Caught in the middle of an impending mess, that is.
I'm taking a few minutes' break to set a few things straight, not least why I'm bothering to write a blog in the first place. Also, my apartment is hot, and I need to cool down, so I'll multitask- cool off and get some writing done. Pour out the ice water and crank Sophie Ellis-Bextor, as I have, while I explain what's going on here.
I've been living on the south side of Chicago for just shy of a year now, attending university. I now have a graduate degree in international relations and, thanks to it, a job in Washington, DC. So the reason I've been complaining about packing for the past week is my impending move out east next week. I don't like moving, so I'm not looking forward to it, and I'm not enjoying the packing either.
In any case, while I've been in Chicago I've wanted to keep a blog about my experiences and adventures there. I attempted, but the university soon quashed my attempts to have any life whatsoever outside of schoolwork, and so the blog was left untended for long periods of time (you can see my efforts here). But now that I'm moving to Washington for a job - not for school - I anticipate something revolutionary: being able to leave my place of work at a fixed hour, and not have to bring any of the work home with me. In other words, I anticipate having a life of my own again. Since I'll be not just in a new city but a new part of the country (I am a Midwesterner born and bred), I intend to explore, and to chronicle my adventures I'll keep this blog. This is as much for me as for you - it's like keeping a journal that I can read later and remember all the things I saw and did and thought once upon a time. And if you've come here, you can read them too.
What can you expect of Tales from Federal City? Essentially, a chronicle of my adventures in DC, my discoveries, and my explorations (incidentally, much like a friend from the university, who is doing the same for his time teaching English in Japan with the JET program). In keeping with my established tradition from Chicago and Tales from Second City (note the similar blog titles - it's intentional), I'll also write about my experiments in the kitchen (culinary adventures, inspired by a high school and college classmate's own endeavors here), review art/music/culture events I attend, and share what I uncover about the history of the city, its neighborhoods, and so on. You can also expect some talk of politics as I figure out what's what in the District, and also photos of my discoveries, from restaurants to museums to public monuments and parks. I may even attempts to form essays (creative non-fiction, I suppose) from some of the things I've learned, much in the style of a talented undergrad classmate, whose eloquent blog about her experiences as a Watson fellow you can read here.
I am not under any illusions that his will become a heavily-trafficked corner of the internet, which is one reason I don't intend to install a hit counter or try to figure out if people are paying any attention me, but I'd rather not have it confirmed that no one reads what I write, so I'll remain in the blissful ignorance which Blogger facilitates by not having a hit counter feature (which is actually pretty lame - WordPress has one). However, if you do stop by and read something, let me know what you think - leave a comment or a link, and feel free to come back frequently. I hope to be able to write something about every other day, more or less, though my actual balance of time remains to be determined. Still, I hope to have fun with this and have something to look back on later, and perhaps I'll even entertain you as well.
Well, time to head back to my boxes and newspaper. I'm going to start wrapping up my kitchen (ugh). Wish me luck.
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