Kiss Kiss....

"High up above or down below,
When you're too in love to let it go,
But if you never try you'll never know
Just what you're worth,
Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones,
And I will try to fix you."

-- Coldplay, Fix You


I'm finishing up my first week of work. It's been great. I was rather bored my first day, but I dug in my second day (my boss called in sick so the other designers gave me stuff to do). I landed a big project today and for the meeting even wore a suit to work... and HEELS! My former co-workers would be proud. If they recognized me under all this makeup. :)

I made a few friendly connections, including a single mom with a daughter the same age as mine who moved recently from Tampa. THE editor introduced us; I thought that was downright homey of him. And she's a cops reporter willing to associate with a designer. I have so much unlearning to do, LOL.

I fell in love with this town only after I moved away for college and have been nurturing an affection for it for the past 15 years. I swear, when I came back for visits, it was like romance. I would beam every time I saw the city skyline, take pride that I knew my way around her roads, and just gush about her to anyone who asked.

Well, now that we've moved in together, it's truly a battle of wills. Hello, city planning anyone? Construction... the myths are NOT myths. All those Pittsburgh jokes my family fowarded to me over the years are ALL TRUE. I am scared to drive anywhere because Expedia maps can't keep up with closed roads. And the weather... ahh, this refreshing weather. On the way home I heard on the radio: few snow showers, no accumulation. There's two inches on my fucking car right now. Leave my car alone! She had nothing to do with this!

I'm dealing with it. Dreading it, but dealing with it. I'm enjoying it slightly. When I leave work and skirt the downtown area and see that skyline... I still beam. I'm still proud. I feel like an outsider, and I probably will for a while. The newsroom has made me feel at home, and I'll probably get used to them sooner than I will settle this romance with my old flame: Pittsburgh.

And I do have to say, after about a month off between jobs, I'm so happy to have a conversation with anyone who knows the meaning of broadsheet, pica or ROP. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.