... i wished to the dark sky above to be captured ...

... i wished to the dark sky above to be captured ...

during one of my final two years of college, a group of friends gathered at our meeting spot at meg & christine's and stealthed across campus to the large field across the street from main campus. clutching blankets and pillows, we joined a large mass of students who had come together to enjoy a huge meteor shower. as we found our spot and stretched out on our backs to gaze up at the sky, huddling together for a little warmth against the chilly midnight air, we "oooh"-ed and "aaaaah"-ed like little children as the streaks of light burned against the darkness, pointing to the sky as the afterglow flickered for an instant, forgotten seconds later as the pattern was repeated.

i recalled this particular night tonight as i found myself again stretched out on a blanket, this time at t & t field, this time a lone watcher of the stars. i went down to the field to see mars, which was, naturally, present, but less red and more amber than i had expected it to be. the rest of the night sky was just as beautiful, spread out above me crystal clear and lovely. as i traced one of the three or four constellations i can actually identify, the stars played tricks on me in my peripheral vision. time and time again, i was convinced that i had caught a shooting star in the act. while logic explains to me that it was just a glimmer of a star caught on the fringes of my vision, not an actual shooting star, i nevertheless made a wish each time.

just in case.

what a series of days ... where to begin? the beginning, i suppose, would be avisable. since monday, i have travelled from vermont to maryland, from maryland briefly into d.c. and back, and then from maryland back to vermont. my time as an official resident of the greater washington d.c. metropolitan area came to a close as my brother and i rounded the street corner, my (former) apartment building disappearing behind us while 495 beckoned, ready to take us home ...

first of all, packing sucks. i advise against it at all costs - whether it means you have to live as simply as possible or, as chloe laughed about while she took in the half-packed, half-bombsite condition of my room, simply never change residences. i naturally found things i had been looking for since ... well, pretty much since i moved in a year ago ... and i naturally put things away where i won't be able to find them until i prepare to move again.

but we did remarkably well - fitting just about everything into the two cars we had brought down for the Great Apartment Move-Out of 2003. i had to leave behind my beloved chair, the loss of which i lamented. but i was silly and had my mother take photographs of me in the chair.

i stopped into the office to say goodbye to the people i wanted to actually say goodbye to, as well as to pick up a couple of personal items i had left there. it was great to see the people i felt like i clicked with while working there - there were others who definitely surprised me with their lacks of common courtesy, but hey - it's to be expected. can't please all the people all the time.

after sitting in my room while the lights flickered and a monsoon-calibar thunderstorm raged outside, we walked over to cheesecake factory for one last bit of chevy chase dining indulgence. i treated the family to said dinner as a way of thanking them for all of their help and support in the move, and we all had a fabulous time. which was certainly felt during the walk home. good lord.

i then had the pleasure of spending some time with paul, without which i would have been incredibly upset. it amazes me how random amusement just flocks to us - for instance, keys being placed in small boxes built onto trees. i remain convinced that there is a secret garden around there somewhere - if it is discovered, let me know!

the next day brought the rest of the packing and then, late in the morning, the final goodbye to chloe before leaving. it didn't hit me that i was actually leaving until that moment in which i lost view of the building - even when saying goodbye to chloe, it felt like i was going to be back and going to see her in a week or so. it goes without saying, but chloe and paul - you both have open and enthusiastic invitations to visit at any time, with any form of notice or lack thereof. i miss you guys already.

but things here are going to be fabulous. i feel great - energized, passionate about things again and excited about the future - both long-term and short-term. for instance, i think i'm going to finally buy myself a bike. this could be a great item to have when traveling around burlington and the area i'm in right now. i'm thinking about what i want to do, when i want to do it and how excited i am about the prospects. i feel like i'm finally ready for it to happen!!!

this may be partly due to the fact that my first freelance story was published today - after being good and (im)patient during the early morning, i picked up a copy of the paper on my way to work. front page of the L/O section with a photo refer box on page one - two photos, four columns of copy with a jump to page two, where my sidebar story is also found. very colorful, great clip material and a huge rush of adrenaline.

now i'm working on my next sports assignment and waiting to call my features editor back tomorrow to discuss how that's going to play out - i'm thrilled. things are going to be great. hurrah!

the way things feel right now, who knows? the way i feel right now, mraz will get a craving for a snack while traveling to montreal for his show tomorrow night (*tear*) and happen to stop somewhere on the new york/vermont border. i'll happen to be working. bwahahaha.