A New Chapter

This photo doesn't really have to do with anything...it is just of me buying dried cherries in Jerusalem like eight months ago. But I really like dried cherries. And it just seemed relevant. I hope you can understand.

It is the end of an insanely busy day at the end of an insanely busy week, which, come to think of it, is rounding off a pretty busy month.

Tomorrow I leave New Plymouth again for Auckland, and though I know I will be back here in just three weeks for a few days, it feels a bit like the end of an era.

The era of what exactly, I'm not sure.

But this is definitely the end of something, whatever it is, and the beginning of something else entirely.

As of tomorrow afternoon, I will officially live in Auckland.

For the first time in three and a half years, I will be moving somewhere without knowing it is just a temporary stopover. "Just a few months at the ashram before Peace Corps." "Just a few months in Switzerland before Vanuatu." "Just two years on this island before The Rest of My Life," etc, etc...

I mean, in the strictest sense of things, this whole lifetime is a temporary stopover, but you know what I mean...

I will have a home. I will have an address. I may even have matching plates before you know it.

Some items I can't wait to purchase include:
-a bicycle
-a guitar
-tealight holders
-a mug
-some crystals
-organic foot creme (not 'cream' - there is a world of difference)
-a dimmer switch

I am easily thrilled.

Some urban activities I can't wait to partake in:
-drop-in dance classes
-late-night sushi runs
-finding "my cafe"
-exploring used bookstores
-obtaining a library card
-finding a chanting group

And all of the obvious things like seeing live theatre, arthouse cinema, kiwi indie bands, etc...

And then, of course, there is the greener side of Auckland, one of the main reasons why I was first drawn to the city: the beach, the bush, the ranges - just a hop, skip, and a jump from the pulse of urbanity.

Life, in general, seems to be getting easier as it continues. I certainly have my moments, or, you know, my hours, and, okay, there's the occasional four-hour stretch or so, but the general trend of this whole life thing seems to be gently spiraling upwards.

So, there's that...

...you know?