unintentional blog hiatus comes to an end!

well, thanks to brian for blogging and getting me inspired to write some shit down.

i suppose i'd kind of given up on blogging for a bit, well, because i just lost interest in documenting the goings-on of my mundane everyday. partially, things became less mundane, and partially, i became a little bit less self-interested. i mean, really... i was documenting my groceries! the 'intentional new experiences' mantra has been replaced by seeking out the comfort of a newly-established home and the availability of a social life.

mostly, brian moved up and with a friend came many new activities, one of which is not sitting alone in a shitty apartment, atop an air mattress, blogging yet another night away. all that to say... life has taken the totally-expected, yet nevertheless-profoundly-great-turn-for-the-better in the last month:


1. we moved.

oh for the love of god, am i excited to be out of that apartment. the new place is really badass. roomy, clean, older and full of character but with amenities. we have a dishwasher! with the move came my long-awaited IKEAgasm, which resulted in lots of new shit for the kitchen and bedroom. including, above all things, this badass bed with a matching full mattress... eight months on an air mattress will really make you appreciate the real thing, lemme tell ya.

brian has proved to be an equally trusty roommate as he is a friend. as a bonus, he cooks like a motherfucker! we're both looking forward to the day that eric moves up (late this month!?) to complete the triumvirate. by then, we will have furniture in every room, art on every wall, ikea lamps illuminating everything, and... this house will become a home.


2. work has been rockin.

cool new projects have come along, one of which has been given to me as my first 'solo' project. at faust, you never have a project all to yourself (nor would i want that) but this newest one was definitely under my wing after the initial brainstorm. with a little guidance here and there from bob and dave, i crafted a really clean and clever Catalog of Programs layout for the Urban Gateways (arts for public schools) program, which led to oohs and aahs at the presentation. very exciting to get that sort of reaction on your first project. also, logos/branding for the Old Town School of Folk Music and a sharp latina writer/blogger named Esther Cepeda are in the works. lots of fun solutions bubbling up for both of those last week, and crits are expected tomorrow.

with every week, i feel more comfortable in the office, more like myself and more confident in my design. eventually it will have to stop getting better, but i'm not sure when.


3. suzie and i are dating again!

after 5 months of seeing if we could stay in touch and stay sane, trans-atlantic style, suzie is finally home for the summer. she flew from cleveland to see me a couple of weekends ago, and we had a wonderful time. i asked her to be my girlfriend again, and she accepted, so now we are officially making this happen. i don't suppose there was a lot to be doubted after our new years rendezvous, as we were exclusive and in love all this time. all the same, i got butterflies when i asked her but felt much better when she said "yes, thanks for asking!" we get along so well when we're together. i feel so happy when we're doing things together, but beyond that when we share the same space, not even touching or looking at each other... i simply feel at peace. we were listening to music in my room and i was just staring at the ceiling fan like i used to when i was in high school, and i realized i felt like my self again. i couldn't remember the last time i felt like myself, which was a strange thing to happen upon.

we'll have another visit over the 4th of july weekend, followed by a few others over the course of the summer, until she returns to england in september. after that, there's another heinous period of waiting until she returns for christmas. then a month for her to put her thesis show together in january-february, and then, hopefully, her plan to move to chicago and pursue her career as an illustrator will finally land us in the same place... yes, at the same time... and yes, for more than four days at a time. we have a lot to figure out, and a lot to learn about each other, but we both are excited about seeing this through to as far as it will happily carry us.

people have been giving me concerned looks when i say she's moving to chicago. but there's no moving in together when she gets here, no ridiculous leaps into the void. just endless opportunities to get caught up on all the little stuff. then we will see where it all goes. if there's anything we've learned in the past seven years (yeah count 'em) it's a sense of patience. well, that and an implicit understanding of the inevitability of mistakes and pitfalls. plus, it should be noted that chicago was her favorite city as a kid and she'd always kind of planned on moving here. i'm glad our paths are finally crossing.

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eventually i want to post a bunch of my work from faust up here, as well as pics of the newly-set up apartment. but that will come with time... and the availability of a digital camera. for now, i want to get to bed early. it's going to be a busy week.

peace!