On the road again.

I always get this unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I go back to Eugene for an extended period of time, say for winter or part of summer break, and then leave again. This time, it's for winter break; as it is now coming to a close and classes resume next Wednesday (the 4th), I have once again left Oregon and am now a resident of the Evergreen state. To be totally honest, this feeling I get isn't unsettling in a bad way necessarily, but it definitely grabs my attention. Maybe it's due to the fact that I tend to get way overly attached, to anything really - people, animals, places, things. Growing up, I could never really say that I was overly attached to Eugene; in fact, throughout most of high school, I would spend a lot of my spare time plotting ways to successfully run away and never have to come back. I always thought Eugene to be boring and that it wasn't enough for me, enough to give me happiness. But now that I'm in college, going a school 300 miles from what I am now proud to call my hometown, I often step back and question if my former self was actually completely and utterly wrong. How overly attached am I really to Eugene?

In all seriousness though, I love Seattle. I adore Seattle. The tall, beautiful buildings, the rain (which I prefer over stifling heat, thank you very much), the ferryboats, the everything. And when I finally get settled back into my routine at school, with classes, choir(s), work and homework, I feel good. I feel comfortable. The only time I really don't feel comfortable is when I come back from spending enough time in Eugene to finally start feeling comfortable there again, which is annoying. It makes me feel as though I just get settled into a place, and then I have to pack my life up again. If that makes any sense at all. It's when I get this unsettling feeling that I step back and question whether or not my former self was completely and utterly wrong.

I guess what I'm really trying to say is that it would be really nice if this unsettling feeling would stop plaguing me right now. It would be really nice if my brain would just let me understand that everything is going to be okay, that I've left Eugene before, and that I can make it on my own. Ugh.

"...beginnings are scary, endings are usually sad, but it's the middle that counts the most. Try to remember that when you find yourself at a beginning. Just give hope a chance to float up. And it will too." - Birdie Pruitt, Hope Floats


*le sigh*


BUT NOW, for your viewing pleasure, and to spice up this blog with a little positivity, (haha), here are some shots of Seattle that I've taken throughout the past year. No matter what I may say or think at times (or in the paragraphs written above), a part of me will always feel at home in the lovely Emerald City.

La ville est belle et bonne.


~Erin