But man have things changed. Since September, I have been living in Mt. Vernon, NY (just north of NYC) and attending grad school at Sarah Lawrence College, where I am getting my MFA in Fiction writing.

My friend Joey always comments on how cheerful I am, and the only answer I can give him is that last year at this time I thought I was mired in a life I didn't want and wouldn't ever get out of, and now I have everything I want. (Minus a steady relationship, but my roomie Nina and I have a plan ... more on that later) Anyway, I've just finished my first semester (and my Christmas shopping) and Monday I head home to OK for almost three weeks.

Oh, and as for home ... that's not the same either. My parents bought a new house in July, five blocks west of our old house but with an extra bedroom and living area so there is finally room for three adult children (I'm giving my bros benefit of the doubt on that) and all the crap they lug back and forth. I only lived there for two months before moving to New York -- when I went home for Thanksgiving it felt like visiting my grandparents. You know, familiar but not mine, really. I'm not entirely sure spending all of my break in OK is a great idea, but I'm planning to stay in NY for the summer to work, so this is going to be my big vacation for the year.

This is a LONG post, for me, but of course I had a lot of updating to do. Now that so many of my friends are all over the country, I plan to use this a lot more so people can keep track of me. Later!

Currently Reading: The Complete Shorter Fiction of Virginia Woolf