bitter/sweet

I’ve written pretty extensively on this blog about being real, not fronting, etc., so I’m going to begin this with an admission: Big Head Todd & the Monsters were huge when I was in college, and I still like their first two albums. There. So was The Verve. Not as huge on them, but did (and still do) find Bittersweet Symphony an excellent running song.

You know I can change, I can change, I can change, I can change

I’m starting a new job at the beginning of the next new month, in a new city, in a new house, it’s a new life in an old place – I’m moving home, to my hometown, moving in with my sister, I’m moving into a place that’s just down the street from my parents’ place (if you want to call it The Compound that’s fine), I’m going to work at the place I grew up, where I did my BA, and where I got my start in my career.

Bittersweet, more sweet than bitter…

So there’s been a lot going on. And it’s for sure more sweet than bitter. That said, I’ve lived in Chicago for a decade now, and made a life here, with people and routines and places and while I’m unequivocally glad to be moving on to the next stage, I find that I’m also trying to find a way to process that this is a big, big shift. City mouse to country mouse is just the tip of the iceberg.

Since I’ve announced my departure I’ve been bowled over on a pretty regular basis by the responses I’ve gotten from people, both here and there, and reminded even more forcibly than usual of the sheer magnitude of all the dear, wonderful people and things which come together to make my experience – about which I can most concisely say those most simple words which can become a rote part of saying grace: for that which we are about to receive, may we be truly grateful.

Aside from that, of course, there’s a lot of mundane, checklist types of items that go along with moving: leases, utilities, insurance, movers, boxes, stuff, banking, and so on. I’m incredibly fortunate to have a very generous moving allowance, but there’s still a lot of pre-pack preparation to be doing, and that sifting of the wheat and chaff of my “personal effects” (as the move estimators call them) has had me thinking a lot about what I’ve kept, what I’ll keep, what I’ll give away or recycle or just toss out of the boat. Literally and metaphorically – would you expect any different?

Until I’m once again moored securely in my new harbor: thanks. And thank you. And thank you very much. My regards to Broadway, and I look forward to easier parking in future.