Some words before we begin

In my high school yearbook, my senior quote reads "And now, let us step out into the night and pursue that flighty temptress, adventure." It is a slightly modified quote said by Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. I chose it because at the time, though I was sad to leave high school and all the good times and great friends I had there, I saw my next life step (i.e. college) as a giant adventure. Since that time, I have come to see each new life experience in the same way.

After graduating college in just three short years and sharing some bittersweet goodbyes with the friends I still have there, I set out on the most exhilarating and terrifying adventure yet. About a month ago I moved to a small town in Wyoming, where the closest person I knew lived six hours away. I had lived in a moderately big city my whole life, and before moving here I thought my college town with a population of 20,000 (not counting the students that attended the university) was small. Now I live in a town with less than 2,000, where every knows me simply because they don't know me. I am a volunteer with the government, receiving a stipend that places me at the poverty level. Part of my job is to help enhance the community I'm in, while I am still just becoming familiar with it. I live in a trailer (which is actually a lot nicer than I would have assumed) and work 8-hour days in an office. It is all very different from what I'm used to and nothing like I had expected.

When I graduated high school, I never in my life imagined this is where I would be after three years. I thought I would be working for a public relations firm or at a magazine and simultaneously writing my first novel... or more likely, that I would be enjoying my 4th year of college instead of skipping it. I did not foresee my picture being on the front page of a small-town newspaper, or predict the miniscule amount of money in my bank account, or anticipate the heartache I feel when talking to my four-year-old niece and realizing how far away I am from her... But although I've had those moments of loneliness where I can't stand being without my friends and family and the life I'm accustomed to, it's been an exciting journey so far. I've made some new friends, had some new experiences, and done some interesting work. Overall, I am very happy with my decision to move out here, even if it's only for one year.

In this blog, I hope to introduce you to some of these adventures I've been having; the good, bad, and just plain strange. I hope you enjoy it. And now, let us pursue that flighty temptress...