Recently, I took some time off from work (and, regrettably, this blog).
But sitting around, doing nothing, allows my brain to stew in its own thoughts and really reflect on where my life's going and my happiness.
Coming back to my hometown, I'm surrounded by reminders of my past, from old pictures in my parent's house to sights around the neighborhood I grew up in, and even random encounters with faces I haven't seen in a while.
Today, as I was leaving a used bookstore, I heard someone call my name. I turned and before me was my eighth grade English teacher. She was easily one of my favorite teachers growing up. We hugged and caught up on each others lives. She laughed when I told her I was strongly considering becoming an English teacher.
But aside from the joy of seeing a familiar face, that chill of nostalgia I got from meeting her again was all too surreal. It's tricky for me to put into words. I felt really good though. As I was telling her about how I was doing, I had the feeling that she was proud of me. I wasn't speaking to brag about my endeavors, but more in a sense of 'you-were-an-influential-person-in-my-life-so-I-just-thought-you-should-know-that-I'm-doing-well'. Silly me failed to get any sort of contact information so I could keep in touch, but the encounter was somehow rejuvenating; I sang in my car all the way home.
It was really great to see her again.
Speaking of cars, I got a new one. And what makes it a bit of a big deal is that a) it's exactly the kind I've wanted for the past three years and b) I'm paying for it all by myself. The whole process was a bit nerve-wracking; after so many horror stores I had read or heard about, I was afraid of getting short-handed by a sneaky car salesman.
Luckily, my dad was around to barter (read: harass) the guy into giving me a good deal on the car. And I'm beyond satisfied. Today, I spent a few hours just driving it, testing it's capabilities. Getting to know it, y'know?
Finally, I've been looking into updating my wardrobe. Plain 'ol jeans and t-shirts aren't cutting it for me anymore. I think I'm leaning to a more basic but still fashionably appealing look (...I don't even know if that makes sense). But it all comes down to doing a lot of shopping, which I'll have to be careful about, considering I've got my first car payment looming close by.
I'm not too bothered about it.
