Hello, Suburbia

February 1, 2006

On a beautiful nearly-seventy-degree Saturday, my Manhattan movers moved most of my stuff into a 10x20 storage unit in Catonsville, not too far north of where I’m staying. We said our good-byes, I tipped them heavily, and then I finished moving the rest of my stuff into a temporary apartment. Since then I’ve been enjoying sleeping and shopping and car-driving in this strange new environment called suburbia.

Everything is so-o-o-o-o convenient. This area near Columbia is a great location – close to all the major roads including I-95. And convenient to both D.C. and Baltimore. I haven’t had to fight traffic. Grocery stores are wonderfully huge – with aisles that can fit not only multiple people simultaneously but also these metal things on wheels that you can carry your groceries in. They're called carts. It’s amazing how many groceries you can fit into one of these carts. And you don’t have to carry it all home on both arms – you can put it in your car and drive it home! What an amazing concept. I’d forgotten what real grocery shopping is like.

And Costco – wow! I hadn’t been in a Costco in a year and a half. That was fun. I bought a new faucet for my future home and some jeans for my new job (which, by the way, is casual dress - no more Wall Street suits, yay!). Suburbia also has lots of malls and huge department stores like Wal-Marts where you can buy just about anything. Shoe stores the size of Bill Gates’ house. Discount clothing stores that sell scarves for under $640 and purses under $850. There's a Pier 1 on every corner....and even a Sears in the Mall at Columbia.

I haven’t shopped this much in a year. Although I miss the excitement of New York, I’m adjusting easily to suburbia and loving my new Ford Escape Hybrid. It makes around 30 mpg, which is twice the mileage I made in the Explorer. It has some cool features – including a GPS sensor and navigation system, a mileage meter that shows fuel consumption as you drive, and a graphic display showing when you’re using the gas engine, the electric motor, or both.

Just a few more days of errands and getting to know the area...oh, and the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl...then I’m off to my new job!