Getting ready to hit the classroom!

Today was the graduate student orientation at FSU. Besides hearing about Campus Police, Blackboard, and Career Services, it was nice to have a second look at the campus--it is fairly compact and well maintained. The main student center seems to house about 80% of the admin offices, which is convenient, and the library and fitness center are decent-sized. It was also exciting to start looking at the books for my (2) classes. The nice thing is that I am super thrilled to be back in a classroom, even though I really haven't left since being an undergraduate. It will be fun to take notes, be inundated with homework, and after several stressful exams, actually earn credits towards a degree. So far, hands down the biggest stress for me in starting on September 6th is the commute. It took 40 minutes to get to campus today, and I even had Seth to help navigate. I can't imagine driving those CRAZY roads without someone telling me where to go. Oh my god, I am so worried about the driving out there 4 or 5 days a week for the next three or four years.... :o(

Unpacking with a new friend

Heading back to Waltham in a great full car

So, after nearly two fulls days of nonstop cleaning and unpacking, Seth and I are finally making some progress getting re-settled in the old apartment in Waltham. We sublet the place and were welcomed home to a dirty apartment, which was a pleasant surprise. Actually, it could have been much worse, but when you have been traveling for over a year, the last thing you want to do when you finally come home is immediately begin sweeping balls of cat hair, scrubbing a moldy shower curtain, and re-washing scuzzy silverware.

The next thing you don't want to do is go into your storage area (in our case, a densely-packed walk-in closet) and pull out box after box of crap that you never knew you had and obviously did not miss. This is yet another lesson for why it is good to only keep those things that you really need and actually use. By now I am trained to have the urge to clear out as much stuff as possible ASAP because, according to the trend, I am sure we will be moving again soon... Finally, after being away, you really, really, don't want to go through storage and find mouse poos and pea spots EVERYWHERE, along with moths hiding in a storage tub full of food. While this is totally disgusting, I was slightly charmed to find the mouse nest cozily built inside one of my hiking shoes. At least it was no longer occupied.

The mouse nest in my boot was kinda sweet

It has been a little weird but nice to be back in Waltham, particularly since we have never returned to a town (or state) we moved away from. Of course it feels like we never left! All our neighbors are still around, and so far we have seen a couple of the old 'usuals' in Prospect Hill, as well as a few new joggers. It is so much the same that unfortunately the Dosa Factory across from Patel Brothers on Moody Street is still 'Coming Soon'. They started working on it about two years ago and it seems like not much progress has been made. I hope I can get my hands on some nice Indian desserts before we have to move again :P

With all this excitement moving back, we were sure to make a trip across town to pick up a new addition--we adopted an older female gerbil friend for Lorenzo. She is just a month or two older than Lorenzo (so she is near post-breeding age), but she has never had a litter before so she is believed to be infertile. Her name is Ariadne, but Arianna is the Italian form, so we might change it to match with our theme. :o) Unfortunately she is a nipper, so neither of us has been able to hold her, but hopefully with some patience she will warm up to us. For now she has to be in a split-cage with Lorenzo so they can get used to each other without fighting, but after a few days we can let them try to be together. Lorenzo is not pleased to be downgraded to a tiny little cage, but we still let him run free for a couple hours in the evening, and once he can move back into his palace with his new lady friend I think he will be much happier. *The idea behind adopting another (adult) gerbil was to have a companion for Lorenzo. Seth and I can't always play with him, and being naturally social critters, gerbils are happiest when they are in the company of other clan-mates. I hope Arianna works out!

10 gallon slit-cage. Ariana on the left, Lorenzo on the right.

Lorenzo was not a happy camper in his mini cage, but at least he is a little more calm now

One last move

So tomorrow the three of us hit the road one last time to move back to Waltham. This will be my 5th move in a month and a half, and each time it becomes less and less fun. Not only that, but we have to move everything back into our gutted apartment in Waltham, which means the poor car is loaded to its eyebrows with suitcases, bags, bedding and linens, the massive gerbil house, etc. to bring back. There are also boxes and books stashed in Seth's office at Brandeis as well as our storage closet in the apartment that we will have to unload, and a great big pantry and refrigerator to refill. It will be a long next few days...

Summer in New York

Seth, Lorenzo, and I have been in Upstate New York for just over two weeks now. I took a red-eye flight from Minneapolis and met my two guys in Boston, just after they arrived from Florence. Lorenzo was quite a sport, flying in two more airplanes and hanging tight in his mini travel box for over 36 hours, sealing his status as a veteran world traveler. From Boston we rented a car, made a quick stop to meet Chrissy, Erik, and Annika for lunch in Brighton, then drove to Syracuse to drop off the car and meet Rich and Linda. T'was a long day for all.

Since then we have been spending a good deal of time at the local library in the very small town of Gorham, where I have been reading, watching videos, and preparing for our big move back to Waltham while Seth works on his research and now on his complicated 2010 taxes, lucky guy. Thankfully we have also managed to visit a bit with the family (Chrissy and the kids are here, too!), and catch a couple stinky Finger Lakes festivals.

Lorenzo reunited with his old, teeny tiny aquarium

After being spoiled by his mega tank in Florence, we decided to upgrade

We took Cora out go-karting

Tory's masterpiece: a pipe-cleaner go-kart

Last weekend Seth, Melissa, and I went to the Sauerkraut Festival in Phelps, NY, and there was even a parade!! Not even a little rain could keep people away.

Italian parades are typically Renaissance themed. This being America, it is all Colonial...

...and cows...

...and crappy cars (Mustangs)

The beach-inspired Finger Lakes Credit Union float, passing out frisbees (Seth's Mom works at the FLCU)

After the parade, it was time for kraut!

The first cup was really good, but the second was a bit much

Kraut-eating contest. (The guy standing just finished and won.)

Melissa picking up some Pierogis. Poor girl, they were still frozen in the middle... But she returned them and was given a bonus one!

The decorated cabbages were very cute

The next day at the Garlic Festival at Fox Run Winery
overlooking Seneca Lake

So many types of garlic, and we got to try them all! My stomach was still burning by the end of the day....
Old guys making garlic braids

Lorenzo, doing his thing

Hats off before entering the library
Running around here would be ideal, except for the sun and the hard, crested roads. At least it is really pretty and we get out early.

Chickens roasting

They have been working on some water system lately and there are all these super neat hydrants scattered around. I am totally fascinated.

The surprises while running through the country never end! My alpaca buddies!

Silly turf grass

This guy sums up quite well how I feel about front lawns in America. These grassy patches that have their homeowners wrapped around their soft little blades are a microcosm of America's less ideal qualities: over-indulgence, wastefulness, excessiveness, and impracticality. Thanks, status quo bias, for making everyone's lives a bit more stressful.

Your Lawn

On the Road with Dad to visit the new addition

Andrew and Jennifer's Sawyer Adams Landstrom was born on July 15th, and thankfully everything went as well as hoped, except for the tragedy of the missed final Harry Potter movie. Mom was able to stay in Rochester with the family for a couple days after the birth, then just after she returned to Raleigh, Dad and I decided to drive to Minnesota to have a visit for ourselves. We spent two days in the car, appropriately listening to the audio-book of 'On the Road', and enjoyed the greenery along the way.

I think this was in Kentucky

I couldn't believe my eyes; a Rally's in Indianapolis. I hadn't seen a Rally's since growing up near one in California.

It is nice being in Rochester with the newly enhanced Landstrom clan. I haven't seen them since Grandpa's funeral a year and a half ago in Colorado, so it has been wonderful to visit and spend time with Carter. Carter is such a good kid--leaning towards the mild and sensitive side--and really fun to be with, so I wouldn't mind staying for much longer. Poor baby Sawyer is still too tiny for my comfort level so I am afraid I haven't been much help in that department. Andrew has been on call almost the entire time since we have been here, so Dad and I are happy to lend a hand as we can, so that means lots time with Carter playing frisbee and t-ball, walking the river trail to the grocery store, checking up on his dinosaur, and watching 2-minute monster truck videos!

These could be branches but they are more certainly a dinosaur skeleton. We had the duty of checking up on it twice a day to make sure it was ok, until a lawnmower got hold of it yesterday. A terrible loss indeed, but Carter said he was ok with it.

A rare spotting of Andrew. He was 'allowed' for the first time to skip work and go to Jennifer and Sawyer's doctor appointment.

We had a special dessert one night at a great, local ice cream place. I got a kick out of all the Midwest, Scandinavian (slightly chunky) blondies in the shop! After leaving Italy, one notices these things.

Yesterday was extra special in that we managed to get Jennifer and Sawyer out of the house for a few minutes to join us at the county fair!
This little guy for some reason reminded me of Lorenzo. I don't even know what kind of animal he is.

Pink was Carter's favorite color, until Dad had to go and ask him what color those "scary" pigs were.

I love the giant corn rising above the horizon

Corn dog time!

I had never seen award-winning veggies before

I was pleased to make the acquaintance of the Best in Show

And the prize-winning baked goods :o)A big family dinner!

While at the mall today, once again I had to notice that nearly all the kids were blonde. Silly me for thinking it was a recessive trait!

Chatting with Seth for the last time before he left Florence. His plane should be just about to take off from Milan right now. I can't wait to see him and Lorenzo in Boston tomorrow!