The extrovert

Yesterday I had a few friends over to the new house. I met Susie, a recent transplant from California, because she was in temp housing across the hall from me when we moved to Omaha. I met Michelle at Sophie's dance class, and ironically, Michelle's husband went to high school with Susie in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Small world. Anyway, we've started to have these playdates on Thursday mornings and of course, I look forward to that adult stimulation every week!

Yesterday Susie said something that really put suburbia into perspective for me. Although I like my new house and I think I'll love living on a golf course (since that's my passion), I have found the past few weeks, and months horribly isolating.... isolating to the extant that I have no concept of why anyone would want to live this "American Dream". How is this a dream? To me, this is a nightmare! Susie said that her psyc friend once said that introvert find a lot of stimulation exhausting and overwhelming and need to retreat to a quite space and have self time. Extroverts feel the same way about quite and tranquility - it's exhausting and draining!

If an extrovert is home and alone, they are going crazy, and that's me! If I've spend the day, or even half a day inside this house, or the temp apartment, I am exhausted, drained, and I feel overwhelmingly anxious. I guess that's why the city is a better place for me. I thrive on the energy and if I don't have that energy and interaction, then it brings me way down.

So, now I sort of understand why this type of place is good for those "home-body" people. They are probably introvert who are more comfortable with less interaction. They would find my world in Boston exhausting, just the way I find suburbia, sitting home alone exhausting.

Now I am starting to get it..... And I know it's not for me in the long term, despite finally finding a house! HOW I MISS PEOPLE!

Home, Home on the Range.... I mean, Tenth Green!

We have now moved into our new house in Omaha.... Sort of. I have unpacked countless boxes, and put things away in massive cabinets and the walk-in pantry. I am so overwhelmed with all the space! In Boston we had to be very judicious with the things we acquired, and how we organized them. Serving dishes would be piled on top of crock pots, on top of cookie sheets. Here everything has a place and lots and lots of space. Maybe I could get used to this??...????.......

But the house is very nice. It's a 4 bedroom one and a half story house with a three car garage. That means that the master suite is on the first floor and the other three bedrooms are on the second floor. The kitchen is granite, stainless with birch cabinets and there's a really cool mud room off the garage with a bench and all sorts of cabinets and hooks and a coat closet for all that junk we seem to drag home. There's a big laundry room and we got one of those sanzy new high efficiency washer dryer sets. Pretty cool if you like that kind of thing.

The house also has some neat kid things . The girls' rooms are connected by a "Jack and Jill" bathroom. I call it a "Soph and Maggs" bathroom. They also have a loft on their floor that looks down on the great room. This is the "play room". It's nice because I can hear and see them without sitting in the sea of toys. This will do until we finish the basement and who knows when that will be.

There's also a guest room with private bath, of course, and we have a den that we're using as a living room with a pull out couch so there's lots of room for you all to come and visit me!

Since we needed to furnish this entire house (given that our stuff is back in Boston since we are renting that house furnished) I looked on Craig's List to find used furniture. I didn't find anything in Omaha except yucky OAK which would never do, so I started looking on Craig's List in Boston and lucked out. I found a guy giving away basically his whole apartment full of stuff. He had bought a place at the new Ritz a few years ago and I guess it came furnished. Now he was moving to New York and didn't have the space and wanted to give it to one person who would come and take it all. So we now have a new sleeper sofa, 3 chairs, 2 ottomans, 2 entertainment centers, a kitchen table and chairs, a king sized bed, countless end tables, a coffee table and a bunch of lamps. It was my lucky day! Our house almost looks like a real adult's house!

I also went up and checked out the country club. We live on the tenth green of an Arnold Palmer course, and I am really looking forward to spring. The Club is putting in a pool complete with kid pool and it's a short walk from our house, down the cart path. Hence I am really looking forward to spring! Hopefully I will see what everyone else calls the suburban dream.

So, I am really trying. I miss Boston every single day, but I feel like I am giving this a good, honest chance. If it's at all possible for me to be happy in suburbia, then it's here, where I'm living now... on a golf course and country club with my three stall garage in my new house. Yawn.......

Unpacking

The movers were here today with all of our things from Boston. I must admit, I am shocked that all of this stuff fit in our house there! Now I am overwhelmed by boxes and had a thought.....

why is it that movers can never pack boxes and write "Every Day Dishes" and "Silverware" on them? They just say "kitchen". Now I have successfully unpacked the following:

• Martini glasses
• Ugly serving tray - wedding gift I never used
• Lint brush
• Coffee scoop (no coffee maker, or coffee, but I have a scoop... lucky me!)

All these wonderful items but nothing I need. What logic is that??? UGH!

Home for Christmas

Well, we did it. We closed on our new house in Omaha the day we left for Boston for Christmas. It's a good thing we did, or the girls and I very well might not have returned to Omaha with Neal! More about the house later, but now.... home to Boston.... Mecca! The Hub of the Universe as far as I'm concerned!

As soon as we could see the harbor and the city from the plane, tears streamed down my face. I always knew I loved Boston, but now I know just how much. After we got off, of course I had to RUN to Dunkin Donuts! The girls needed their Munchkins and that iced coffee never taisted so good!

Once we got home, everything was as it should be. We got the big jogging stroller out and off we went to run errands and meet friends for dinner. The girls were noticably happier sitting in the stroller watching the world rather than sitting strapped into their car seats. Bore me! Throughout the week Sophie played with her Boston buddies . Unlike the children in Omaha, they shared, and took turns and I never once had the feeling that I should leave, and that these children were too terrible for mine to play with! In Omaha, it seems like every child we meet has "playroom syndrom". They've only ever played in their own playrooms with their siblings so taking turns is not something they've ever had to do. No playing at the park in Omaha where everything is community.... Omaha is the land of "Mine!"

But, I digress.... my parents and brother came on Christmas Eve morning and stayed until Christmas evening. This is a big deal having all three of them leave the funeral home at the same time. We had a typical Boston Christmas in the home I love so much complete with a Dunkin Donuts run after present-opening, and a blazing fire all day. My turkey was even pretty good dispite having packed away all my spices.

The trip seemed to consist of errands, getting the house ready for our renters, and visits, but unfortunately, not as much normalcy as I would have liked. I did relish in things like poping over to see Lori on Christmas morning..... just opening the door and walking in after picking up coffee, just like old times. I really enjoyed that convienient, pedestrian lifestyle and I can't even describe how much I miss seeing all the people on the street. Life in America is so isolating compared to being in the city where everything's happening all the time, all around. I just love it!

The week seemed to fly by and before we knew it, New Years Eve had arrived. We took the girls to see the parade down Boylston Street at Abe and Louie's with "Jana and Captain John." They loved it and Sophie had one of her "I want to stay" melt downs when it was time to leave... and way past her bedtime.

New Years Day brought the annual Pork and Sauerkraut feast. This year we held it at a local church and it was a good thing. We had 70 people and there's no way that I could have accomodated that many in my house..... especially given that movers were coming the next day!

So, it's with sadness that I said goodbye to my house and my friends for the next 7 or 8 months. I know everyone keeps talking about how great it will be to have a house and a yard and a garage, but I'm not so sure it's for me. I like to be where the action is, and I know it's not in Omaha. I love just meeting people on the street and chatting.... that doesn't happen in Omaha because in addition to never walking anywhere, you never even keep your garage door open so you don't see people coming or going. It's just different, and I guess I will see if it's better.