Life After Graduation

Update: I took the plunge and changed my blog! Consider this an interim redesign, 'cause there are just too many options for me to find my final design. This one's actually pretty basic.

Anyway:

So things are going pretty standardly over here. I’ve started my new job, and seem to be doing okay, even though I am still working on becoming the story-pitching machine I want to be.

I’ve moved into my new house, which is pretty cool. I live with five other hippies. All of them have bikes. All of them are vegetarian or vegan. Food is communal. There’s no TV in the house (thank god). Most evenings, we chill on the porch smoking hookah and talking about Issues.

I’ve pimped out Arnold, my bike, so that he now has new tires/tubes, a new light, and a mirror. Also he has reflective tape cut into awesome designs. I’ll post a picture when I’m finished with it.
From living in the hippie house, I’ve mostly adopted a vegan lifestyle, and between that and taking various supplements, I feel very healthy and am probably going to continue with this diet. Really dairy is pretty bad for you. People are all like, Oh, you need calcium, but really you don’t need calcium from dairy. There are lots of places you can get it (like kale). Also, the only people who AREN’T more than 50% lactose intolerant are white people.

Plus, think of the baby animals.

I also have learned to cook many things. Since I’ve been part of the hippie house (which we call MADUSA, for reasons I’m not yet sure of), I’ve cooked:

1. Saag paneer with tofu instead of paneer (it’s basically the same)
2. Cilantro-lime beans and rice (ridiculously delicious)
3. Banana curry
4. Miso soup with the whole refrigerator put in it (except the sweets)
5. Muffins.

All from scratch. All vegan.

I’m a freaking Iron Chef.

Tonight I’m cooking saag chana.

So things are going great since I got that little degree in my hand. There’s only one downer about my post-graduation life: my lady friend left. And I don’t mean we broke up or anything (it’s disgustingly cute how we never have serious fights). What I mean is, she left to go do the job she signed up for before dental school.

Don’t ask me.

I won’t tell you.

It would be illegal.

Plus, I know They (by which I mean the people she’s working for) are probably reading my blog as I type. So I’m gonna keep y’all updated, but y’all gotta play your part by not mentioning any names or places if you know them. It’s important – partly because They’re reading, but mostly because I really like sounding like a secret agent. Cause let’s face it, if you wanted to find out who she is it wouldn’t be impossible. I’ve found out who people are before just by doing stuff like pinpointing times and locations. But the point is to not be a flamer. So if I’m not officially telling, no one’s gonna take the time to do that.

Like, I’m pissed about the laws, but at least you get to sound like a secret agent.

Anyway, she has to do this thing for four years ‘cause that’s how many years of dental school they paid for. People ask me if I’m worried, but I’m not really ‘cause I grew up in that environment. Really it’s more of a pain in the ass than anything. I’m gonna have to pull so much money out of my ass to stay in a hotel when I visit her instead of just staying with her. Also, I’m wondering how many other people are in this situation – even blogging cryptically, as I am, maybe one url away—and don’t know how many other people are too. I mean, you can’t exactly make an online forum. I’d be scared to go on one if there was one.

So that’s the only bummer. Other than that things are going well. This weekend the DC Folklife Festival starts. It’s not as good as Seattle, but you can bet I’m gonna be there.