Why

So why New Zealand?  Why am I moving to another hemisphere?  Why is my cat coming with me?  Why am I putting such crazy amounts of stress on my current life to save money, sell everything, and say goodbye to those I love?  Because this is a time in my life that I can easily do all of this and I could use the challenge.  (Plus this adventure, unlike other opportunities, has its own romantic perks)

The last time I challenged myself to do something like this was when I moved to San Francisco from Encinitas.  I was accepted into SFSU for a major I wasn't sure I could get into (turns out nursing was so impacted I had to do health education instead) and I moved to a city I had only briefly visited on a long road trip prior.  I had no friends in the city.  I had no idea what city life was like.  I had no idea how much I would miss my family and my first boyfriend.  I remember after the long drive in a rental van (where my parents sat in the front seats and I sat in the back of the van on a lazy-boy chair chained backwards to the front seats, facing the back of the van, with no windows, [true story]) we ended up at a HoJo's in South San Francisco.  I would be moving into the dorms the next morning.  This was the site of my first ever panic attack.  My Mom walked around the HoJo's parking lots with me until I got tired.  She listened to my fears and wiped away my tears and did her best to fortify me for my upcoming adventure.  It worked.  I slept like a log and dove into my terrible dorm situation with enthusiasum.

Now I move again to a city I know nothing about.  To a city where I can count those I know on one hand, most of which I have never met in person.  To a situation that is completely new to me.  It may not be another dorm this time but it is a living situation WITH A GUY.  Omg.  I always said that my next apartment would most likely be with my "plus one," I just never had any idea that the apartment would be in a place where there are no Thanksgivings.

I am excited for this challenge but am weary for the panic attack that I am sure is on the horizon.  Where is my Mom and a HoJo's parking lot when you need one?  I take comfort in the thought that my friends are close by, my family can always be reached with a phone call, and Ness will always be at my side (covering everything in fur).  112 days to go...... but until that countdown on my phone app hits zero I will continue to live life according to my 2013 motto: "Save money.  Pack.  Do good".  The outcome will be well worth the wait.