Monday, June 6, 2011

I have spent more time at the mall this past week then I think I have in the past 4 years.

It has been awhile since I wrote, primarily because whoever let me believe it was a good idea to plan a cross-country move, a cross-world move, and a 20 day Eurotrip within 2.5 weeks of each other was wrong. Very, very wrong. Would I do it all again? Probably, I am not the type to learn from my mistakes the first go-round.
Needless to say the past few weeks have been incredibly busy. Before leaving Los Angeles I was busy seeing people before I left, packing, making sure everything was squared away with the girl taking over my room, selling some stuff, cleaning out my closet (the people at Goodwill called me Santa Clause because I brought over so many bags), and giving driving lessons to the person who bought my car. It was a busy time.
Then I flew home, which was an adventure to say the least, lets just say I got very familiar with Chicago's Midway Airport....if you want the story ask. Since arriving in New Jersey, and since my baggage arriving the day after me, I have been running around like a crazy person. My life has been filled with seeing everyone I can before I go, having adventures, answering the question which campus will you be on when you get back? (I find out on June 17th and no matter what the news is I will post it on facebook as soon as I know), shopping for Israel, unpacking, repacking, packing the stuff i am not taking to be stored*...which has taught me one thing: I own A LOT of stuff. Not even I own a lot of stuff given how much I hate American consumerism and our need to always have more, I just own A LOT of things, for an average person. Not counting the 10-12 boxes of books that I own living in the attic at my parents house (which I account to my pack-rat tendencies and my belief that I will need every book from my undergraduate major and from my first graduate program at some point in my life). Outside of the boxes of cups and dishes that I left when I moved out west, I have 2 suitcases of things I am not taking to Israel and potentially 3 suitcases going. The amount of stuff I own has been giving me a headache for the past 3 weeks, and yet I keep buying more. I do not know if I am buying more because I need it, or because the nerves about starting Rabbinical school have begun to set in. Rather then stating I am nervous about school, it is easier to say "but what if they don't sell skinny jeans like the ones I like in Israel? What if they don't have shoes I like? What if I don't bring that dress and then I really want to wear it one day?" The truth is, they may not sell skinny jeans the way I like them, but I will live (and given the amount of pairs of jean I own it won't be a problem), and if I don't bring that dress, I will find something else to wear. The truth is, minus contact lens solution (the last time I used an Israeli brand my eyes burned and they turned red like I had been both crying my eyes out and smoking more weed then anyone should. At the same time. It was bad news), these are not huge problems, they are fixable, but they are easier then dealing with the nerves about moving abroad for a year, and starting school (again). And so, instead, I worry I won't have enough long sleeve shirts, or shoes, or socks, as if I am moving somewhere where I cannot buy theses things.

T-one week until I leave.


*side note--in the past 5 years I have moved 10 times, I am a queen packer if you need any help ever.