Cambridge at last!

Hello loyal readers,

First let me apologize for taking so long to post! Before the move, I had plenty of time to post, but hardly any news to share. Now so much has happened that I want to tell you about, only I haven't had five minutes to sit down and write! I guess when it rains, it pours.

Speaking of rain, I'm sitting by my new living room window enjoying a spectacular rainstorm just outside the screen. It's been coming down off and on this whole weekend, but somehow never when we needed to be outside moving furniture or carrying groceries. What luck!

In fact, this move has been pretty lucky from start to finish. My amazing dad, aunt Kathy, and uncle Vern arrived Tuesday morning, and we set out from Austin at about 9 a.m. Wednesday. That first day we drove 650 miles (to Memphis, TN), and along the way saw lots of interesting town names, like Fate, Texas, Friendship, Tennessee, and Hope, Arkansas. (That last one is where Bill Clinton grew up- we found ourselves asking "Do you think Bill has ever been to this gas station?" a lot.) On our second day, we drove an amazing 920 miles or so, from Memphis to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The third day we got into Cambridge around 2 p.m. after having just 350 or so miles left to drive.

Our apartment, which my mom and I (with telephone help from Russell) picked out in May, is on Kirkland and Trowbridge just a few blocks east of Harvard's campus. It's in an old, attractive brick building and has wood floors and high ceilings, so despite being pretty tiny it feels like a real gem. We're already in love! But moving into such a tight space takes time and lots of organizational tricks- right now Russell's in the kitchen installing hooks under the shelves so we can hang our pots and pans, mom (who flew up here for a couple days to help out) is squeezed into the hallway breaking down lots of cardboard boxes, and I'm about to put together a storage unit for above the toilet.

Well, that's the very short version of the last few days' adventures. I'm sure the long version will slowly appear in posts to come, but right now the rain is starting to come in and threaten my laptop, so I'd better close it up and go.

If everyone could send their most loving and grateful vibes to all the wonderful relatives who helped us with this move- my dad, mom, Kathy, and Vern- I'd really appreciate it. I can't seem to thank them enough myself!!

Much love from your newest friend/relative in Cambridge! Expect to hear from me again soon.