Baltimore

It has been about a month...I have been in Baltimore for about a month just getting settled and working. So far it seems that my mind is going a million miles an hour, even as I have a schedule and a daily plan. I have charts all over. I have a chart that lists the things that I need to get done in a day and I have stickers that I get after completing each task. It hangs on our fridge and I work hard to complete each task each day to earn my sticker. I feel like I am in 2nd grade, and the teacher will pat me on the back. But instead it is just me. I have another chart that lists the foods I will eat each day of the week and when. I have a chart that shows me my schedule for each week. It is all on graph paper. I am just amazed how much structure I need to feel sane these days. My roommates all seem to be busy bees with life happening in predictable ways. They go about their days with such ease and I am excited to be one of them soon. I have started a financial class at a local church for 13 weeks in hopes of gaining some understanding of how to get out of my present debt and start saving for the future. The first class went really well and the budget I made for myself a week ago came in handy to finish my homework for the class. I just used my budget to make another one for the class so that I could see how much money I bring in and how much my monthly expenses are. Thankfully my family is helping me with some of my bills so I am able to save some money at the end of each month. I am living well right now, I am missing Oregon and the fancy free life I was leading there as I was getting ready to move, but this life here is good. It is good to be here in Baltimore and good to be aware of my boundaries with money and such. I can't just drive where I want because of my budget for gas. I can't just go shopping. I have to plan and think out each move before I make it which is annoying but good. I am learning to be a good steward of my money...what little I make right now. Soon it will be time to find another job...but not for a bit. Right now I will just scrape by and work with what I got!

Nesting

I am nesting. I just want to be home! I can be cleaning, I can be watching a movie, I can be doing the dishes as long as I am home I am fine. I think this is a phase...I am in need of some protection and the walls of my house provide that at this point in my life. I give it another month and I will be out rocking the salsa clubs again. For now, everything is just too overwhelming.