My New Life Update

Almost all of my boxes are unpacked and I’m finally starting to feeling settled. I have hinted at my life in the last few posts, so here’s a more thorough recap of my new life here:

Apartment
I love my apartment! It is an older building (aka: plenty of character) with new amenities. Perfect combo.  I’m very close to the highway, a grocery store, the library (yay!) and a running trail. Everyone tells me it’s in the best location for the area and the price, but the only drawback is the commute to and from work. It takes me about 25-40 minutes to get to and from work, so I may give this place a year then look for apartments closer to work.

Job
Everyday I go to work, I still cannot believe I got the job and get to work there. I’m still getting the hang of my new position, slowly getting oriented and on my way to becoming an employee, not just “that new girl.” I am eager to be trained already and have some responsibility, though. My position is entry level, so I really want to prove I have what it takes to move quickly, especially since I’ve already had two years professional experience. Oh well, all in due time.

Social Life
I actually have a life here in NC! I’ve seen J every day, know about 10 girlfriends from college/high school who live in the area, and am best friends with my roommate. J lives at home so I’ve spent a lot of time with his family in the last two weeks as well. I haven’t made any weekend trips to see my family yet, but both of my sisters have used my apartment to crash and I plan to go home for Father’s Day weekend.  Everyone is more accessible here, something I cannot say for DC. Sure you have to drive everywhere here, but parking is free and traffic is manageable. I haven’t had a day alone since I moved. :)

Money
I’m doing pretty well with my money so far, even though I haven’t been tracking it very closely. I’ve spent way more than usual on groceries, which is to be expected when you move to a new kitchen… and start cooking for a boy. I received my paycheck from my old job, which normally covers the entire month, but I’m going to use my new paycheck on the 15th for the rest of June to get used to my budget. I’ll save what’s left of the first paycheck–right now there’s $1,300 left… so I may actually make money off this move! Also, I plan to start tracking everything on Quicken so I may have a different system for updating my budget and keeping track of expenses. I’m excited to get all of that started and share with you all.

All in all, life is good and I’m so happy to be here. :)

(photo credit)