Thought-Provoking Thursday

John starts his law program in two weeks. We have had a great, busy summer. We still have one last trip to go on before our summer of family fun is over. I have loved being together as a family this summer; we have definitely built many, many memories. I am ready for the next chapter to begin, though. We have known that John will be going to law school in August since this past December. In many ways I feel like we have already gone through school and are now ready to move forward. This feeling makes it hard not to jump ahead three years in my mind. As much as I keep telling myself to stay in the moment - to practice all the mindful tactics I educate my clients about - I can't help but tricking myself into thinking about life after law school. I tell myself that it is good to prepare, that we need to be strategic and think ahead. These thoughts are traps and they barrel me forward in time, to a time that I cannot predict, no matter how hard and long I imagine it.

I still go there though.

I am actively running the pros and cons to living in different cities and regions of the country. I know all this thinking is in vain, that in the end we will move wherever we move, and we will adapt to wherever we land.

I still go there though.

My mind is making it's own U.S. News and World Report list of best places to live. Really, USN&WR should contact me for some generalized stats and perceptions. I have been factoring the benefits of living near family, regional perks, cultural hubs, school systems, accessibility to other places, living costs, outdoor activities, community involvement, friendliness, opportunities for kids, proximity of close friends. All these categories lead me down longer, more confusing and theoretical paths. And did I clearly mention that I don't have much factual data that I am working with here? I get nowhere with my thoughts.

I know three years from now things will be clear, and I am almost certain that life and where we end up will be nothing like what I could imagine right now. I know we will land where we need to land, but I cannot stop myself from weighing out ideas. I imagine so many different places having very different influences on our family. I know there is no magical place, and I am not sure John and I are people who will truly ever settle down somewhere for the long haul, so we can have many different experiences living in different places. Now that we have kids, though, it seems a little more critical to find a good spot.

What do you look for when you think about places to live? Where is your ideal place to live?

We're In. Almost Completely.

The past days have been full of boxes, organizing, and not enough hours in the day. Grayson stayed with the grandparents Friday and Saturday night so we could maximize our time. Friday and Saturday I felt like I was racing the clock, knowing that Sunday morning we would be busy with a toddler again. Friday we finished painting our priority rooms. I don't recommend painting multiple rooms at a time. I quickly tired of painting and I slacked off in my precision. Multiple times I told reminded myself that Future Shannen will probably be frustrated with the Past Shannen who opted to do a poor paint job, instead of taking the extra time to do it right. My personal comeback to those thoughts was, "Whatever. It's just where I'm at right now. Future Shannen needs to understand that." Don't you love it when your past, present, and future self gang up on each other?

By Saturday evening we were about 80 percent moved in to the new house. We decided to do a no-pack move, since we were moving such a short distance. Our strategy takes a lot of trips, but we don't have any boxes that need unpacking. During a break from moving Saturday evening we went to dinner at The Grit with our friends Stephen and Alise, who will be moving from Atlanta and into our old house in June. Our server at The Grit was none other than one of the hiptsers who used to live in our house! When I originally looked at the house she was home and she answered my questions about the house in great detail. So much detail, in fact, that we knew to ask in the contract for specific renovations. She was so much help. The seller felt like she was too honest and too much help, but she stood by her decision to be upfront with us. While we were eating dinner it was nice to chat with someone who spent the past two years living in our new house, but there was also a level of surreal awkwardness. My Grit experiences will be interesting as long as she works there. Why it's awkward I don't know, but it is.