NOVA: 3 El Yearos Latero

25 September 2007 ~ In Rear Reflection

I meant to post this yesterday but I was pretty much a walking zombie all day. I didn’t get any sleep Sunday night so needless to say I had that crazed look in my eyes all day yesterday…you know, the look that says “Brains….ggrrrrrrrr…..brains” Ok, I hope somebody gets that reference. :)

Anyway, I rolled into this area 3 years ago on 22 September and managed to traverse the maze of roads to find my new apartment complex. Since I wasn’t scheduled to move in until the 24th, they wouldn’t let me have it so I had to stay in a hotel for 2 nights. By the way, if anyone ever moves to the DC area (Northern VA) let me know so I can tell you which apartment complex to avoid, unless English is not your first language and then you’re ok. Take that as a standing rule of thumb around here.

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The past 3 years have been crazy but they have been very rewarding as well. I met someone really special right after Thanksgiving ’04 and come this New Year’s Eve, we will celebrate our three year anniversary. But let me tell you, it has not been a stroll in the park like you see in the Disney movies. I mean, let’s get real! We’re not opening umbrellas and defying the laws of gravity by taking flight to the clouds, and wild animals don’t greet us at the window every time we whistle a tune. We often joke that if we didn’t own a home together and share custody of 5—count them FIVE—‘kids’ then there are times when we probably would have broken up long ago during one of our “disagreements”.
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I have a nice job with great benefits and I’m going to school to complete my degree. I know I’m a little behind in life, but I discount it to spending 7 years in the Air Force and working at an isolated international station abroad. Or, I could just be honest and say that I COULD have taken internet-based classes while stationed abroad, but honestly I didn’t feel comfortable with that idea. I much preferred a brick and mortar style of learning.

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In the past 3 years I have owned 5—count them FIVE—vehicles! When I moved here, I was driving a 2003 Jeep Liberty Limited Edition (blue), then traded it for a 2005 Honda Civic Hybrid (metallic blue), kept that for 10 months, but at 10,000 miles I traded it for a 2006 Jeep Liberty Limited Edition Diesel (crimson red), then because of the mechanical problems with the Diesel engine, I swapped it for a 2006 Jeep Commander Limited (crimson red) and finally, I tossed the gas-guzzling, Republican-supporting Commander for a 2006 VW Jetta. Recently, I said that I’ll have to schedule my Jetta’s first oil change since I just drove all over God’s green earth going to IL for my brother’s funeral and then down to MS to visit my family. One of our friends joked that “Hell, I guess that means it’s time for a new car!”

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It’s been great living here and being so close to the Kennedy Center (for the Performing Arts), and the National Theatre. Together, we have seen Mahler’s Ninth, “Les Miserable”, “The Nutcracker”, a few NSO performances, and my life long dream finally came true this past summer: “The Phantom of the Opera”! We’re going to see a few shows this coming season, most notably Disney’s “The Lion King”. We also went to Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors Tour 2007” concert this past summer, which was to support equality for all American citizens, not just heterosexuals. The message was clear: no one is seeking “special rights” (as the conservative right would have everyone believe) but instead to extend the provisions of the Fourteenth Amendment to ALL tax-paying Americans. Anyway, I won’t get on this right now. :)

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One of the most memorable things happened this past summer. For starters I have always wanted to take Amtrak cross country and for my big 3-0, we went to Chicago for 2 weeks via Amtrak. The trip was about 18 hours one way but we had a nice room and we actually got a view, unlike what you get by driving or flying. I would love to live in Chicago again, and somehow Nate knew that the entire two weeks would be one big “sales pitch” on Chicago…and it was! LOL While we were there, we got to see the Blue Man Group, the usual touristy things like the Sears Tower, and a few boat cruises and for my birthday, we had dinner in the Signature Room of the John Hancock building (95th floor). We wanted to do something that would make this trip even more memorable so we finally did what we had been wanting to do for the past year: we each got a tattoo (and my first). Ha-ha! My tat is the rainbow Star of David and in ancient Hebrew the word “Shalom” underneath. Anyway, it was a great trip and we did loads, but I won’t bore everyone with that. Instead, I’ll just make copies of the home videos and send to everyone, compliments of the HD-camcorder! :)

A lot of other things have happened but I won’t go into it now. My next class starts today and I need to log-in and check the syllabus.

Until next time…
NK