Emergencyyyy

I just got a fucking flat tireeeee. I'm so annoyed. Right now I am still about 3 hours from Jason's house in the Outerbanks. I was just driving along and hit a HUGE pothole. Thank God I have AAA. I was able to pull off the exit and into a rest stop with WiFi. I'm pretty lucky actually so I can surf the internet and vent on here! I'm calming my frustration with a huge cup of gas station coffee and a vending machine candy bar. AAA says they will be here in under an hour. We'll see. UGH!

Looks Can Be Deceiving!

So, Jess and James are quite the pair and have made D.C. a veryyy interesting experience. I got into the city around 5 on Friday night and decided to have dinner by myself and walk around a little bit. I am not a particularly shy person but I wanted to have some prep time before I had to introduce myself to the 2 total strangers I would be staying with for a few nights. I stopped at a little restaurant that boasted that it had the best crab pretzel in the city. I'd never tried a crab pretzel so I figured it was worth a shot. I actually really liked it! It is always kind of awkward to go out to dinner alone. Thankfully, I brought my book and got some reading in. Little did I know then that I wouldn't have a chance to read again for the rest of the weekend.

After dinner, I walked around and looked in some store windows. The weather was really nice so I enjoyed some time to explore. I arrived at Jess and James' around 8 and they were already WASTED! I expected a totally different type of welcoming. They greeted me in the doorway and led me into the kitchen where they already had a shot poured for me! I wasn't about to offend my host and hostess so I went along with it. I thought, this is turning into a drinking vacation...don't get me wrong, I enjoy a good party but I had literally just recovered from my NYC shenanigans. Meanwhile, more and more of their friends arrived and they ended up having a huge party at their TINY apartment. I just kept drinking and drinking so I wouldn't feel awkward....BAD coping mechanism, I know. Late at night, well really early in the morning, people began to leave and I found myself sitting between Jess and James on the couch with 2 of their other friends sitting across from us. I couldn't help but feel like both of them were hitting on me. I chalked it up to the alcohol at first but after a while, it became quite clear that the leg grazes were not accidental. Feeling awkward, I got up to use the bathroom and when I came back Jess was making out with the OTHER guy that was not James! She motioned for me to join and it immediately clicked...they were SWINGERS! All four of these polo and seersucker clad prepsters were about to have a foursome and wanted me include--fivesome I guess... Very intoxicated and overwhelmed, I declined as politely as possible. Although, I'm 100 percent sure my shock was visible. They understood and the four of them ventured into the bedroom. Thankfully, I had brought my Ipod. I took one more shot for good measure and turned my music up as loud as possible and squeezed my eyes shut till I fell asleep.

Needless to say, I left early in the morning and spent last night at the Holiday Inn. I'm a little bit bummed because I handled the situation awkwardly (I mean how else would I have handled it!) and I didn't want to call either of them to show me around the next day. So, D.C. has been a bit lonely. I had a solo picnic on the water and went on a few tours of various historical sites. I enjoyed the city a lot. There are so many beautiful parks and stunning flowers and trees. I'll have to come back with friends next time.

I'm off to the Outer Banks in North Carolina. I'm really excited! I know it is still early in the season but my childhood friend Jason lives there now and he promised me a surf lesson! I'll be in the Corolla area for 3 days. I hope the weather is nice. It isn't beach season yet but I'm not too bad on a surf board. When we were kids, Jason used to take me out surfing with him and his brother in Connecticut. I haven't seen him few 2 years but I made sure to visit his family when I was in CT. He is the kind of friend that you can talk to once every few months and its like you never left each other. We spent every summer together from the time we were born until we were about 22.

Post soon--

-L

On to D.C.

New York City has been amazing. I'm thinking of maybe moving here when I'm done traveling. My friend Sarah showed me an awesome time! On Wednesday night we went out with a lot of her friends and our friend Mike from college who also lives in the city. It was a little bit overwhelming though. It seemed like we went to a million bars and I got a little bit too drunk! I was planning on leaving NYC yesterday but I couldn't think of driving all the way to D.C. with my head pounding that bad. We started off drinking at Sarah's apartment with some of her friends. I haven't taken shots since college but we decided to whip out the bottle of vodka for old times sake! After about 4 shots things started to get a little bit wild! Sarah's guy friends that live on the floor below her came over to hang out with us. They were hilarious. She had this one friend Marc that was so cute and very funny. I was immediately attracted to him. They brought over some beer so before I knew it we were all pretty wasted and having a rowdy time. At about 11 pm we left to head to a bar close to the apartment building. It was more like a pub if you ask me. We ordered a round of wings and continued drinking. My memory is a little blurry from this point on but I remember little parts. We stumbled as a group outside the bar and hailed a cab. The cab driver was a flamboyant man from the Dominican Republic. I told him about my plans to travel around the U.S. and he recommended that I go visit his family in the DR. I lied and told him that I spoke Spanish. OOPS! My lies still come out when I'm drunk. I took a few Spanish classes in college but I'm veryyy rusty. As soon as I told the man I spoke Spanish I knew I'd be subject to having a conversation. Ugh. It was terrible. After a few failed attempts to speak Spanish I laughed and admitted to the whole cab and the drive that I'd lied and I only spoke the few words I'd learned in college. It was surprisingly easy to admit and everyone got a good laugh about it. By the time we got to the next bar things were heating up between Marc and I. He kept putting his arm around me. At the bar he bought me a drink and asked me to dance. We made our way onto the dance floor and had a great time! Soon all of Sarah's friends joined us on the dance floor and Mike and Sarah started dancing together! As far as I knew, they had been just friends! Apparently not, I remember them kissing and he ended up going home with her later that night. I didn't know until the morning because I went back to Marc's house! I barely remember it but we had sex! It was awesome even if it was pretty clumsy.  Even though I'll probably never see him again it was really fun to hang out with an awesome guy. The morning was a little bit awkward. I haven't had a one night stand since college and I didn't know what to do. Thankfully, Sarah only lived one floor up so I mumbled something about how she must be wondering where I am and ran out.

Anyway, we sat around laughing about our drunken night and eating pizza and ice cream. It was like we were back in college again. It was great. I spent one last night on the couch in Sarah's apartment and left early this morning. Right now I am in a coffee shop along the highway. I was still tired from my time in New York so I decided to take a little break. I'm on my way to D.C. now. I don't know anyone to stay with in D.C. but I joined this couch surfer network on the internet before I left and I am sleeping at one of the other members apartments right in the city. I'm a little bit nervous. Her name is Jess and she lives with her boyfriend James. They look a little bit up tight from their pictures. Like matching polo shirts and seersucker pants. They joined the couch surfing network because they have an extra room and say they like to network. We'll see how it goes. They seem really nice so far!

I'll keep you posted!

-L

CRAZY Week!

I've been on the road for 3 days and it has been AMAZING! Right now, I am in New York City. I haven't gotten too far yet seeing as Boston is only about 4 hours away! But I love this city! Also, it took me a few days to get here because I stopped to visit some family in Mystic, CT.

I guess I need to backtrack and explain why I left a few days later than planned. So, as I was packing up to leave on Thursday night, my friend from work called and told me that she couldn't sublet my apartment anymore! I was so mad. Finally, I had this amazing opportunity and she all of a sudden was preventing me from doing it! Needless to say, I was not very friendly when she told me. After I hung up the phone I was really upset but I knew that I needed to go on this trip no matter what. I spent the next few days in constant contact with my landlord and on the phone with friends. Finally, my friend that was originally going to sublet called me back and said that she changed her mind yet AGAIN! I said okay and told her this was her last chance to back out but she didn't! I left the next day, Sunday. Close call...

I hoped on the road and headed down to coastal Connecticut to visit my family. I grew up going there in the summers and I was really looking forward to returning. When I pulled into the town I was flooded with memories. I can't believe how many years it took me to return here. Even though it isn't summer yet, I pulled over and took a walk along the beach. I arrived at my Grandparents house in the late afternoon. They were thrilled to see me! I spent Sunday night to Tuesday morning visiting all of my favorite spots like the Mystic Aquarium, the Mystic Seaport, and the Mystic Drawbridge. It was hard to leave but I was excited to get to New York City.

I arrived in New York City late last night. I have a good friend from college that lives in the city, Sarah. I haven't seen her since college so it was so exciting to be reunited! Since I got in so late last night we couldn't go explore the city but we will tonight! I can't wait.

I have to go. We are going for a walk around the city.

--L

To plan or not to plan?

Since I was a little kid, my life has been pretty much planned out for me and look how that has turned out. I've done exactly what I was supposed to do until these past few months. I need to experience something real. I feel like I can't find what I'm looking for but I do not even know what it is I'm looking for. I hope that my journey will help me find what I'm looking for. My dilemma as of right now is how I will go about taking this trip. I have a 2008 Subaru Outback that used to be my mothers. I bought it last summer with only 50,000 miles on it so it should work just fine. I decided to go alone. Some soul searching is in order. So, that's about all I have planned. I told the Coffee Shop my plan and they were surprisingly accepting of it. The manager gave me some names and numbers of friends he knew in different places across the US. He said that he'd always wanted to take a trip across the country but never found the time. I'm making the time now. I don't want to be sitting around someday thinking about the trip I wish I took. I'm taking it. Also, I'm telling the truth the whole time. I've lived a series of lies for so long. Maybe it's because I was bored with who I really am. I'm embracing who I am. It's time to put this way of thinking to the test. I must seem so sporadic and almost frantic to whoever may be reading this but that's probably because it's how I really feel.
I plan to leave my apartment on Friday morning. That gives me 4 days to find someone to sublet and pack. My friend from work is taking my cat. Sadly, he hates cars and wouldn't make a great travel companion.
Wish me luck!

-L

Off the Grid...

I've been struggling with posting on my blog. I guess I kind of freaked out about 2 weeks ago. After a whole day of dumping my brain into the computer, I slammed my computer shut and threw it out the window. I immediately regretted it. I couldn't control my frustration with my novel, my mother, my love life, and my life in general for that matter. I had been wasting days cooped up in my apartment just typing and typing and typing. My fingers went numb and my eventually my brain went dead. I'm starting to realize that being a novelist is a lot more than I bargained for. I had so many ideas floating around in my head that I couldn't wait to get on paper but I am sick of it. Who am I to write this novel? Who was I to think that someone would actually want to read it?
Well, to get to the point... I haven't touched my computer in 2 weeks. That means my blog went away with the computer. Unfortunately my writing freeze dragged blogging with it. I actually enjoy blogging when I am in the mood but I was in no mood at all for a while.
For the past 2 weeks I have tried to sit down and figure everything out once and for all. I can't escape this limbo I've been trapped in for years now. I have had such a hard time getting on my feet. These 2 weeks have helped me sort some things out. I've decided that all I want to do is be happy. I spent two weeks figuring out what makes me happy. I've been spending time with friends and getting to know people. I am so happy when I am with new friends. I've been so open about my real life with all of the people I have met recently. I've enjoyed sharing my life to near strangers and they have become friends. I have traveled around the city and I have taken a trip out to Cape Cod. I have explored all that I can in the Boston area. I've concluded that I am going to take all the money I have saved and I am going to travel. It seems like another drastic decision but I am going to do it. I have about $15,000 saved from my last job, graduation, and the coffee shop. I have been doing a lot of research and I think I have more than enough to take a US tour. I'm going alone. I was going to bring Danny but he couldn't quit his job. No one really understands my ability to drop everything and start over. I've done it a few times in my life and it hasn't satisfied me. I hope this will do the trick. If not, I hope to meet some interesting characters and see some awesome places along the way! For now, the novel is on the sidelines.

I'll keep you posted!

-L