Well, I’ve moved to Knoxville, TN, and I like the idea. I am no longer located in Crossville, TN (a shit hole in middle Tennessee with nothing to offer but getting out). It’s the only place I told myself I would never live…except for Cookeville, my old hometown. I’ve now lived in both places, and a change is good.
Like most of my friends from high school and my brother, I have made the plunge. I have just finished moving into a house with my new roommate (the first house I’ve ever rented and the first roommate I’ve had since the middle of college) , and you would think that the daunting task is complete. Au contaire, mon amis. Now, I have to empty all of my boxes, set up all on my books and computers (I have a few), and get everything else in order.
I should probably talk about the house itself and how it differs from my previous space. I’ve just moved out of a 2-story, 2 bedroom, 2.5 bathroom townhouse apartment boasting 1080 sqft of space, a full-sized kitchen, and washer/dryer hookups that I lived in by myself. My house in Knoxville is slightly different. It has 2 stories-ish with 1.5 bathrooms. The living story has about 105o sqft, 3 bedrooms, a new kitchen, and a good-sized living room. I have the 2 smaller bedrooms (one for my office and one for my bedroom), and Adam is in the big bedroom. My goal is to never have to sleep in the same room as my computer ever again, and I don’t think he has a problem with it.
We also have a full basement. The basement is a converted 2-car garage that has been walled up. One side was converted into a room where we think they kept their pets. That is the music room. Adam has set up his drum set and the PA system. It’s fairly warm, and it’s insulated, and the closest neighbor to that room is across the street. Hopefully, we won’t have a problem with sound. The garage space is still left open as a garage, but we have a big rug in there. In the back, there is a large work / storage / laundry room. As a result, there’s plenty of storage space in the house, and the living space is adequate. The shower is small, compared to what I’m used to, but I can get over it. We each have our own toilet, so pooping won’t be a problem. All in all, I think it will be good.
Now, the benefits of living in Knoxville. There’s stuff to do! I’m so psyched about that. Living in Crossville teaches you just about how sad life can be. There are 2 bars and a whole bunch of churches (I think that’s why it’s called CROSSville). That’s about it. Everyone plays the guitar, but the music scene is basically non-existent. The only chain sit-down restaurant is Ruby Tuesdays. It’s the worst town I’ve ever lived in.
Knoxville is different. The music scene is lively, and there’s always a show going on somewhere. My brother lives there, all the friends I still have from high school are there, and it’s actually costing me less to live. Well…it costs more to hang out, but the beer selection is MUCH nicer. My girlfriend also lives in Knoxville, but I don’t want to make a big deal about that because she didn’t want me to use her as a reason to move.
At this point, I still work in Crossville, but with my 2.5 hours of commuting every day, I now have a huge incentive to find a job in the bigger city very quickly. Things like resumes and moving time have held me up on that. I also don’t have a suit that fits at the moment, so that’s an issue, too. I recently injured my back, and the move has kept me from being able to recover completely so far. It sounds like bitching, but it’s really not. Moving to a new town just takes time, and this makes it easier to go to interviews in the new place. Yay!
For all of you who know me, SHHH! For anyone who doesn’t, don’t worry about it. If you’re reading this, please leave a comment about moving. I don’t do it very often, and I want to read some interesting little anecdotes about the process. That and the painkillers will help the pain in my back.
Ta,
