Medium? Full City? Vienna? French? Pick a roast!

I don't have much time, but I thought I would do a quick update.

-Equal Exchange is great! I'm still learning a lot; I like my co-workers; and I'm getting into the meat of my work. Basically, I edit and write various content for our newsletter, website and other promotional items (such as a school curriculum on fair trade practices). And then there's random stuff that I do as well, such as attend meetings and manage the inventory of promotional items (shirts, mugs, hats, etc.)

-Tiffiney's karaoke birthday party was fun. I have a ton of great photos, so I'll upload a few soon.

-I ate at a really good Thai/Cambodian place in JP the other night. By myself, thank you! I had a seafood/curry paste dish. It was spicy and delicious. I will be back.

-We still don't have internet at our apartment. We have to get a new wireless router - the one we had didn't work with our setup. But this is good - it's forcing me to not spend time online.

-I am excited for visitors! Luke may come in the near future; Nikki is visiting in late October; and Molly is coming late November/early December. Anyone else is welcome to visit! I'll be a good tour guide, I promise ... even for those on a tight budget!

-This weekend? I plan to hit up a few museums on Saturday, because it's National Free Museum Day. Yay! I also hope to eat at some good JP restaurants, including an Indian buffet. If you haven't noticed, I like food. A lot. But you probably knew that already.

One Week!

Some photos...

the north end:















me and vanessa (roommate) out in JP:














the library:
















the south end:














I survived my first week in Boston! It has actually been quite wonderful - no complaints really. I have had pretty romantic views about living in a big city (especially after my trip to Europe last summer), and I was a little worried that once I got here, I might be disappointed. But it has been everything I hoped for and more! So far I still feel like a tourist in many ways, since I'm trying to see all the Boston sites, but I'm doing my best to look like I know where I'm going when exploring. Then I just sneak a quick photo and join the other locals in getting annoyed with all the tourists.

It feels weird to have my weekends completely to myself - no studying, meetings, papers... it's nice! On Saturday, I walked to downtown JP and took care of some business (bank, post office, grocery store). JP is really cool. Lots of shops, restaurants and boutiques. Since it was Saturday, it was quite bustling. I definitely will enjoy spending time around there. Then I took the T to the South End of Boston. I walked around the Copley Square area, which is now my favorite part of Boston. It reminds me a lot of Europe, with old churches and upscale shops and outdoor seating at restaurants.

Last night about 10 of us from work got together for a co-worker's birthday. It was my first trip out on the Boston bar scene. First we went to this new place called The Beehive in the South End. It's supposed to be modeled after a '20s speak easy. The building itself was really cool and they renovated it really well, but the whole thing was a little too posh for our taste so we decided to head back to JP and go to a local bar there. It was much less crowded and we could actually sit and chat. Vanessa (my roomie) joined us, so that was nice. The walk back home in heels was not. I'm definitely nursing some blistered skin today. (By the way, the T stops running at 12:30 a.m., but bars are open till 2 a.m., which means you either have to walk or get a cab ... or go home early.)

Today is my roommate Tiffiney's birthday so we're going out to a karaoke bar tonight with her friends to celebrate. Should be fun. I've never actually karaoked before.

Then it's back to work tomorrow! This week I start doing some writing and content developing. Have a good week, ya'lls!
a/k/s

Learn about Equal Exchange!

If you're interested in learning about EE, check out this 8-minute video put together by an outside organization:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bf5nj-LG7OM

I've Been Exchanged

An update is in order. On Tuesday afternoon, I ventured into Jamaica Plain, trying to find the "downtown area." Apparently I didn't walk far enough, but I did stumble upon a food co-op so I was able to get some groceries for the week. The store carried Equal Exchange products - it was the first time I've seen them in a store - so that was exciting. I then trekked back home with my groceries in hand. It was probably 10 blocks. I was exhausted by the time I made it back. I rested up for an hour and then walked to the T stop near my house. I took the subway into the North End of Boston, which I had never been to before. I wandered around for a bit and realized I was walking along the Freedom Trail, so I decided to follow it. I saw the Copp's Hill Burying Ground, the second oldest burying ground in Boston, and then walked along the shore for a bit. I also walked past Paul Revere's house. I will add photos of all this soon.

Wednesday was my first day at work. Everyone has been so nice and welcoming here at Equal Exchange. There are a lot of 20-somethings and a couple other recent-ish college grads. I think I will fit in well. I take a van pool to and from work with some of the other employees who live in JP (Jamaica Plain). It's about a 30-35 minute commute each way. Luckily, I'm the last to get on and the first to get off. Tonight EE is having "Band Night" after work - with food, drinks and music - so it will be a nice way to get to know my co-workers in a relaxed environment. (Actually it is always pretty relaxed around here. No dress code!)

I've mostly been going through orientations and trainings. I have a lot of materials to read through to get myself familiarized with co-op business models, EE policies and ideologies, fair trade, coffee/chocolate/tea markets, etc. Next week I will start doing actual writing.

I am invited to two birthday parties this weekend - one for a coworker and one for my roommate. Should be a fun first weekend in Beantown!

Much love,
a/k/s

Bahh-ston

OK, here are the details on everything:

the drive
It took us even longer than we expected and so we decided to stay overnight Saturday near Albany, New York. I drove 10 hours that day and my mom drove about three (we were in my car together and then my uncle Joe and Dad were in the van). We finally got into Jamaica Plain around noon, after getting sufficiently lost. Thank goodness my roommate Tiffiney was around to guide us to the apartment via cellphone. Boston has a lot of roundabouts and u-turns, streets aren't marked and people drive like maniacs. Which means I will be driving as little as possible from now on. Yay public transportation!

the apartment
The apartment is really cute. Vanessa and Tiffiney have decorated it well, with a lot of their artwork on display (they are both artists). My room is right off the kitchen and I think it might be the largest bedroom.







We live on the first floor.











My room:

















Living room, Dining Room and Kitchen (walk-in pantry to the left)




















the roommates
I love them already! They are both really sweet, interesting and fun. I think this arrangement will work out well for all of us. Tiffiney is 26 and finishing up her art education degree. Vanessa is 23 and is doing her student teaching for art education.

jamaica plain
I have yet to really explore the area. There is a high Latino population so there seem to be a lot of Mexican restaurants. More on JP to come.

today
I finally finished putting my room together around 2 p.m., took a much-needed shower and then headed out into Boston. I decided to be adventurous and left without a map or guidebook. I walked down to the T stop near my house (about a 10 minute walk) and took the subway to a downtown station. It only took about 15 minutes to get downtown. What I failed to realize/remember was that the closer you get to the ocean, the colder it is. So a t-shirt is a bit chilly today. Lesson learned. I walked around in an area I didn't see when I came for my interview and after just a few blocks I already started to recognize the area. Boston really isn't that big - compared to, say, NYC, so I already feel pretty well oriented. I was starving (no food in the house yet) so I was looking for a local hole-in-the-wall type place. But then I got overwhelmed and saw a Qdoba, which is like my comfort food. So I totally sold out and got a chicken burrito there. It was just what I needed. Now I am sitting in a Starbucks because I wanted to use the internet. I naively thought it would be free, but nothing is free here so I had to pay $6 to use it for an hour. Hopefully we'll soon have our wireless internet hooked up in our apartment.

I start work on Wednesday so I will probably do some more exploring in the city tomorrow.

Miss you all!
a/k/s

p.s.

moving is exhausting. everytime i do it i vow to never do it again...

Hello/Goodbye

In less than 24 hours we will be on the road to Massachusetts! I feel like I still have a lot of packing/organizing to do. I came down with a cold this week so that's slowed down my progress but I am feeling better today. This week has been busy with last goodbyes to some of my best girl friends. Definitely sad but I am waiting for them to plan trips to Boston :)

I am most anxious to meet my roommates, see the house and explore Jamaica Plain. I'm hoping my parents will have some time for us to go into downtown Boston, but it's going to be a pretty quick trip for them.

Well, I don't have much else to say...except thank you all for your well wishes and support!

See you in Boston ;)
a/k/s

Out on the Weekend

What a weekend! On Friday, I went back to East Lansing. I had lunch with the crazy ladies at the Women's Resource Center ... I will really miss them. They have truly been not only co-workers but also mentors and friends. Later that night, I went to see a friend's band, Frontier Ruckus, at a local bar and a lot of familiar faces were there, so that was fun. On Saturday afternoon, Molly picked me up in EL and we drove to Au Gres, Mich., to meet Lindsay at her cottage on Lake Huron.

It was such a beautiful and relaxing weekend. The three of us had the place to ourselves so we got some quality girls time in before we start our new ventures. We enjoyed the sunshine, swam in the pool (and attempted to make a whirlpool, like when we were kids ... apparently, it's a lot of work with only three people!), and soaked in the hot tub until we were beyond wrinkly.

We also watched "Father of the Bride," which turned out to be fitting since it is largely about growing up and moving away from home. Annie, the bride/daughter, is 22 (the same age we are now) and we discovered some things we hadn't realized before:
1. Annie is finishing up her master's degree. How is that possible? Did she finish her undergraduate degree at age 20? COME ON!
2. Annie dresses way beyond her years. We know it was the early '90s, but seriously. For example, look at this outfit that she wears on an errand to the wedding planner. It's a blazer/skirt suit with a matching purse! I guess I need to wear more work suits out on the town.

Anyway... now I'm back in Richland. Just packing, packing, packing. T-minus five days!

The violin might be the saddest instrument

Today I was approved for my apartment in Jamaica Plain! My new address will be:

240 Hyde Park Ave. #1
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130

I will be living with two young women, Vanessa and Tiffiney, and I can't wait to meet them.

Yesterday I took a walk into "downtown" Richland, got a sub sandwich and ate it in the park. I sat there, listening to Sigur Ros on my iPod, and thinking about all my memories in that small park ... hanging out with friends when we craved independence but we were too young to drive ... my first kiss on one of the wooden benches ... watching the annual 4th of July parade from the curbside ... getting drenched in the rain with Katie, my German exchange student friend ... all pieces of my former self that were now uniting in this one moment.

As I sat there, what had previously been a cloudy morning suddenly changed as a burst of sunlight broke through the clouds, sending light and warmth down on me. It was all too perfect and I couldn't help but smile.

Signed, Sealed, Delivered

BIG NEWS: I was offered the position at Equal Exchange and I accepted! I will be starting there on Sept. 19, and will most likely move to Boston on Sept. 15. I am very excited! They said it was highly competitive and they are happy to have me.

I already found two roommates in Jamaica Plain (thanks to my friend, Stephanie), which is a neighborhood just outside of Boston. It's supposed to be a very artsy, bohemian, young professional type area, so I should fit in just fine.

So basically I'm just packing/organizing and saying my goodbyes for the next 10 days. It's an overwhelming task. You don't realize how much stuff and how many friends you have until you're faced with leaving it all.

I said goodbye to East Lansing on Monday. It definitely felt like a chapter was ending, but I'm ready for the next. I spent my first evening back in Richland at my friend Betsy's house on Gull Lake. There was a beautiful sunset, so it was a great welcome home.

This weekend, I'm traveling up north to my friend Lindsay's cottage, before she leaves for France (she'll be there most the year). I'm going with my BFF, Molly (the one I studied abroad with). It should be a great last hurrah.

Well, that's it for now. Start planning your trip to Boston to visit me!!