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By Jess, September 12, 2007 12:53 am

I’m back from San Diego and four days away from my pre-London east coast tour. It freaks me out a little bit to be back home, because the end of the San Diego trip means one less event to buffer my departure to London.

On the bright side, I’ll have a chance to see family and friends in a last goodbye. “Last goodbye” is a bit of hyperbole, since I’ll go the same length of time without seeing my parents as if I were in DC. The dread of finally going to London is just the usual dread I feel about starting anything new, and it’s extra exaggerated since I’m waiting in limbo while everyone else has already begun their school year adventures. Let the packing begin and let function win over sentimentality, at least in this case.

Here are some San Diego pictures.

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By Jess, September 6, 2007 11:51 am

Home life is in stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of working eighteen-day stretches at Helly Hansen without a day off. It’s hard to stay busy when there is seemingly nothing to do but this has been my general schedule. I wake up around 9 or 10AM (impressive for me), eat, watch tv, go to some doctor appointment, watch more tv, annoy my dog for some attention, possibly go on a short excursion, and wait for my mom to get home from work. After dinner in the gloomy nighttime hours when I might normally be socializing, I force myself to jump on this thing.

Yes. Say what you will, but the 20-30 minutes I spend on it eases my growing insanity. It’s only a short stretch I have to endure at home and it’s not all bad; I enjoy having a stocked fridge, free food, zero time constraints. The hardest thing for me is recovering from the best summer I’ve ever had, constantly surrounded by 6 of my favorite people at Georgetown.

Some of you probably think I should be proactive about this whole boredom thing and I agree. Yes, be proactive. Following my 5-month stint posing as an outdoorsy girl at Helly Hansen, I decided to rough it a little bit. I discovered that Henry W. Coe State Park, only a short drive from my house, is the largest state park in Northen California. I picked out a hike to do with a friend and got psyched. Then I heard sirens one day and saw billowing smoke clouds, signs of the 18,000-acre fire that’s expected to burn at least 30,000 acres before it’s contained.

Despite the fire and lack of plans, the downtime of home has caused to me to finally get excited about London. Was I excited before? Barely. Did I once tell you that I was? Probably. I lied. I can’t wait to step outside my building and see city streets ripe for exploration. I can’t wait to be able to walk somewhere. I can’t wait until I’m not constantly available. There are still 23 days until my departure from the U.S. Sigh. Until then, I hope that I can come to terms with the fact that my friends’ lives are up and running like mine would have been if I was at Georgetown. In the meantime, find me in the garage on the bike… sweating out the frustration.

Also, skype skype skype. I skyped for the first time with my high school friend who is studying in Australia and the video and sound quality are top notch (fo’ frizzle!). Download skype or prepare to sacrifice our friendship/family relation for a year. I’m kidding… kind of.

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By Jess, August 28, 2007 10:55 am

I’m back home for the first time in over 7 months and I’m a little unsure of what to make of it. My dog remembers me and my dad does too. My room is pretty much how I left it. The Target is now a Super Target across the street from its original location. I didn’t notice any other significant changes on the drive back from the airport.

I wish there was somewhere I could walk right now. I am starting to fear that I’ll resort to becoming one of those people that goes to Starbucks to read or write. Normally, that’s fine… you walked to M Street; it took work to get there. But to drive to Starbucks and sit down for a few hours? That seems different. Repulsively different. It feels good to be back home mostly because I can be coddled by my parents and leave my stuff somewhere knowing that it won’t be displaced by the rightful owners of the space. But I actually already resent the doctor appointments that are stacking up and disrupting my plans to see the people I want to see when I’m home.

This summer definitely cemented DC’s place as my home. I had the privilege of living in gloriously decrepit Darnall, in the even more run-down S Street house, and in the fresh but prison-like New South. California is good, but I miss everyone already. Talk to you soon.

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By Jess, August 22, 2007 10:30 am

Here’s a little life update for any family members that are wondering my whereabouts. I just finished moving out of and cleaning the house I lived in for the summer. It was a bittersweet goodbye to the house that mysteriously slanted to the left, that lacked central air, that fostered hours of Guitar Hero 2, but I’m glad to be out. My current belongings consist of a duffel, two backpacks, and a rolly suitcase. It feels a little unnerving to be reduced to so little, but it’s good to be sticking around on campus while the rest of my friends trickle back.

Until I return to California (for the first time in over 7 months!) on Monday, I’m staying at a friend’s in a freshman dorm on campus. It makes a good temporary home: the mattress that we stole from a freshman room is fully outfitted with my mattress pad, sheets, comforter, and pillow. The downside of this arrangement is that I have been stripped of the freedom to come and go as I please. So… right now, I’m bumming at the Gtown radio station with miscellaneous belongings and ceramic plates wondering where I should go next. I feel a little out of place moving out while thousands are moving in… like a fish against the current but so be it. I haven’t been doing anything LSE-related and am anxiously awaiting to get my LSE email account, so pathetically, I can join the LSE facebook network. For people over age 25 who don’t know what facebook is, here’s a link to explain what it is. Alright. Alright. Let the bumming continue.