Gumbo Journalism

Meaning, a little bit of everything all stewed in together.

The apartment is awesome. With the exception of a few minor quirks (parking situation, drier broken/fixed, paper thin walls, general State St. shenanigans to re-acquaint myself with) everything is exactly the way I hoped it would be. It feels like, and is, the culmination of a whole lot of really hard work, and it's definitely a wave that I hope to ride throughout the '09 calendar year. It's great when you can actually see things falling into place, rather than falling apart.

In the same vein, I've made friends with some really awesome people since I've been here. Strange thing is that they're not the neighbors; they're people I've known (of) for months or even years, but never really taken the time to get to know. Maybe the situation was never right, maybe I was never right. Either way, it feels good to know that there are people in my city that share my same sensibilities. I was starting to feel like I was completely alone on a philosophical/moral/intellectual island, and getting closer to these people has proven to me that such a thing doesn't really exist. The only isolation you feel is self-inflicted, and that's the tragedy of it.

On a lighter note, got my W2 from work and did my taxes the other day...found out that all the work I did last year, and all the feeling like I was climbing a mountain made of sand, was not in vain. I'm getting a super sweet refund, which I will use for the following things:

1) New record player, tuner, and speakers so I can listen to music on my preferred medium again.
2) Double-breasted seersucker suit. Witness:

3) Take care of my car insurance for the rest of this 6 month cycle, so that's one less thing I'll have to worry about.
4) Hopefully a week long vacation to Austin, TX. Haven't been there in almost a decade and I miss it.

That should make my life very pleasant, and leave me in good financial standing for the next few months, if not the next year. With any luck it won't take them 4 months to get me my money. I mean, I gave it to them...all they're doing is handing it back, right?

Anyways, today is my day off and I'm probably going to clean the house, read more "Blood Meridian", listen to the LSU game, watch a movie, cook some more, and possibly write some more. If you want to get in on this action, today or any day, hit them digits up. I'm never too busy for my friends.