Gone, like Elvis and his mom

This month in review

Monday, Dec. 13: Took my last final ever and graduated (unceremoniously) from college. Bachelor of Arts in Journalism earned.
Thursday, Dec. 30: Applied for a temporary reporting position with the Associated Press in Seattle/Olympia.
Monday, Jan. 3: Met with the editor for said temp position, which would cover the legislative session in Olympia for 15 weeks.
Thursday, Jan. 6: Got a call from said editor saying I had gotten said position.
Friday, Jan. 7: Went to the AP office downtown to fill out the paperwork and be officially hired.
Saturday, Jan. 8: Packed up everything in my little room in Seattle into my little red car.
Sunday, Jan. 9: Drove my little red car down to Olympia, looked at two rental places and chose the first. Moved everything from my little red car into my new room, in a house next to Chambers Lake.

And Monday, Jan. 10: Legislative session begins and I start my new job.

It's exciting, right? And I should be proud of myself - got a job (albeit a temporary one) within a month of graduating from a good college, in this era, in this economy. An accomplishment, right?

But as always--seriously, this blog is the most redundant thing I've ever read--I'm terrified. Terrified and lost and lonely and berating myself for feeling that way, because really, I'm only an hour away from Seattle, and I'm going back on the weekends, and it's only 15 weeks, and I should be focusing more on the incredible opportunity.

But 15 weeks is longer than it sounds. That's a quarter and a half, for UW folks. I won't be done until mid-April. And I can't imagine that I'll actually go back every weekend--most weekends, yes, and maybe people will come down here, and I have a couple really good friends who are also doing journalist-y things down here, so it's not too awful--but I'm still not there. I can't meet up at Chipotle for lunch or grab coffee on the Ave some random morning or go to half-tab Sundays at Finns with my housemates....sigh. I'm whining, I know. I understand what an incredible opportunity this is--really, I do. The AP is my dream company. I want to do everything I can to impress them during the coming 15 weeks so that my temporary hire will become permanent.

So I know that the whining is stupid. I have a job, right? A real-live job, with the button-down shirts and dress slacks to prove it. I'm a college graduate and living on my own (sort of) in a new place with new people and new challenges and new adventures to be found. All grown up.

But I still want my mommy.

Love always,
molly