Guess What?

Guess!!!


Je déménage à Paris! I am moving!





That little trip we took in the fall was a little more than just a vacation. It was a reconnaissance mission of sorts.





I've been living in New York for a little over 11 years now. That blows my mind a little bit. It wasn't easy- I had a few very lean years here when I was starting out. I was pretty much prepared to crawl back home to live in my mom's basement at any given moment. I caught a few breaks and did okay for myself in the end and I've been comfortable here as a result.



Still, I feel like I stayed in New York 10 years and six months longer than I expected I would. It's really come to feel like home which is saying a lot from someone who grew up in Maine with farm animals as companions. I have so much here- a cushy place to live in Brooklyn, a dependable job. Yawn. What will change in my life if I don't make a huge effort to change it? Not a lot.



I'm ready to make a drastic change in my life. The opportunity is right, and I'm ready to start a new adventure. I've been diligent about learning the language and I look forward to butchering it as best I can. Check out the Coffee Break French podcast and the Verbcast. They have not-too-overwhelming 20 minute lessons that I have found to be the easiest way to go. For me, anyway.



There are so many things that I will miss about New York- fantastic Chinese food being up there high on the list. All the wonderful friends I have here is another big reason for dragging my feet and feeling down about the situation. I'm hoping that most of those reasons will come and visit me occasionally. It will help if they bring me Chinese food, and bourbon. I will miss all the delicious small-batch bourbons that I won't be able to get. I'm told peanut butter just isn't the same over there either. The good mideastern food I get in my neighborhood. Oh, man. I hope I can get a good baba ganoush in Paris.

Obviously, I'm going through a rather busy time right now. The best part is that we're getting a lot of help from Bryan's employer. They are taking care of all our immigration paperwork, lawyers, logistics, help with housing, etc. It's probably the easiest an international move could possibly be, and still, I'm getting a little overwhelmed with all that has to be done.

I'll be unloading most of the contents of my Etsy shop at a discount in the next month. Most of my belongings will be tucked away in storage for the next couple of years as I can't bring everything with me. It's causing a wee bit of anxiety on my part, but I know that stuff is just stuff, and not the path to enlightenment. Or something.

I'm feeling completely nostalgic about my time here already! I am planning on hitting a list of things that I HAVE TO DO in while I'm in New York- places I never got a chance to check out, restaurants that I can't live without, leisurely strolls in neighborhoods that I haven't been to in a while. Maximizing what little time I have left in the city. I can't tell if it will end up making me more or less homesick to do an epic goodbye tour. The moment I got the word that the move was on I felt as though I never loved this place more.