My trip to California has come to an end, but my time on the west coast has not! When I last wrote, I was in my third week and right in the middle of my intensive workout regimen. As I mentioned, I extended my stay another two weeks so I could continue my workouts and scope out the scene as far as finding a place to live and a job. On Friday of my third week, my dad arrived in San Diego. He got to check out Awakenings and meet most of the staff, then he treated me to sushi and drinks in Encinitas. On Saturday, after lunch in La Jolla and some shopping, we met up with my cousin Theresa, her husband Ken, and their adorable daughter Angelina for dinner in Old Town. After a bit of searching, (and witnessing some sub-par hostessing skills) we were finally seated at a Mexican restaurant, complete with a mariachi band to serenade us during the meal. Theresa and Ken's visit from Santa Monica continued through brunch Sunday and a trip to Balboa Park. We took a surprisingly interesting walk through the miniature train museum and wandered around the park before our visitors had to head back north. After they left, Dad and I decided to go to the BODY WORLDS exhibit at the San Diego Natural History Museum. What a fitting way to spend the one-year anniversary of my unfortunate tumble from the saddle. I had spent so much time at Awakenings learning which muscles I should imagine using for which motions, and thinking about my spine and my vertebrae - this was the perfect opportunity to see it all in person. It was fascinating.
Angelina, Theresa, Ken and me. Obviously only paying attention to Angelina.
That evening we headed over to the Hotel Del Coronado for drinks and dinner, then made our way back to Del Mar and turned in. Monday morning, my dad loaded all my stuff in the car and moved me into the Homewood Suites, my new home for my last two weeks at Awakenings. What a difference! The room had a small kitchenette, complete with full-size refrigerator and two cooktop burners, so I'd be able to actually fix my own meals. The bathroom was bigger and had a lot more counter space, and the hotel has a beautiful pool and jacuzzi. After Dad left for the airport to head back to VA on what would have been my flight back, I went to Awakenings to start my fourth week of training.
The following two weeks were low-key, as far as visitors go - I had none! It was probably for the best, though, because I added an extra massage and acupuncture session to my schedule and didn't return to the room every day until 5 or 6 pm. My only weekend alone in San Diego I spent sunning and relaxing by the pool at the hotel - something I hadn't had a chance to do during my stay.
My final week at Awakenings would have been bittersweet, had I not already decided for sure to move back permanently. I spent countless hours scouring craigslist, looking for possible job opportunities and places to live. I applied for one job, but didn't have high hopes and wasn't sure what my alternatives were going to be. Luckily, Crystal and Gretchen at Rivanna came to my rescue! (For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past 10 years, or just don't know me very well, Crystal is my stepmom and Rivanna Natural Designs is the company she started seven years ago.) They offered me a part time job working for Rivanna, working on the company website and doing marketing for them. This was exactly the kind of job I was looking for - something with flexible hours that would still allow me to work out at Awakenings during the day. I can do all my work for them from home, and only need to be available a few hours during the workday but can do the rest of the work whenever it suits my schedule. While I won't make enough money with Rivanna to completely sustain myself, it's the perfect part-time solution.
I planned on finding another part-time job to make the rest of the money I would need for living expenses, etc., but on my last day at Awakenings another opportunity presented itself. During my "client assessment," during which the staff members involved in the client's program discuss his or her progress and plans for the future, Laura suggested that I could also work at Awakenings part time, doing much of the writing for print material and the website. She also offered to send me to a grant-writing class so I could do that for them as well. Obviously, I jumped on this opportunity! We haven't discussed particulars yet, but I'm excited to become part of the Awakenings family. Plus, this means that I will have fewer distractions from my recovery, since I'll be spending time actually working at Awakenings as opposed to several other part time jobs. I will probably still need to find a job tutoring or something like that in the evenings for supplemental income, but things are really coming together!
My last day at Awakenings was eventful, to say the least. That evening, I went out for sushi with two of the trainers at Awakenings, Matt and Zach. Matt and I were discussing the housing search, because I was looking for a one-bedroom place and he was also looking to move out of his current living situation and find a place on his own. We got to talking and realized it would be a lot cheaper to live together than to each live separately...so over the next few days we talked about it and decided to do it. Matt has several clothes friends in wheelchairs and lived with one of them for a couple of years, so he knows exactly what I need in an apartment. We've been looking on craigslist since then, but the perfect place hasn't shown up yet. Hopefully it will soon!
My extended stay in California spanned Easter weekend. Laura and Chris invited all the Awakenings family to their house for dinner on Sunday, which I was very excited about since I was missing Easter with my family at home. Unfortunately, I got really sick on Saturday night with food poisoning, or some sort of 24 hour bug, so I missed most of the festivities on Sunday. I made it to their house for a couple hours in the evening - just long enough to play a game of Scene It before everyone went home.
My flight was scheduled to leave at 9:55 Monday evening, so I spent most of Monday packing and getting everything together. I headed over to Awakenings in the afternoon to say goodbye to everyone (and I had planned to partake in some of the leftovers from the day before, but unfortunately my stomach still wasn't cooperating). I managed to kill enough time to almost miss my flight! That turned out to be a good thing, however, because I was bumped up to first class. I flew in style from San Diego to Newark (ugh!), and then not so stylish from Newark to Richmond. Of course, it was 45 degrees in Newark when we boarded the plane (outside, of course, because there was no jetway...that was an interesting experience) and pouring down rain in Richmond when we landed. Excellent welcome to VA.
Since I've been back on the East Coast, I've been frantically readying myself to leave again. Awakenings is having a big fundraiser on April 29 that I really wanted to be back for if possible, but I knew I couldn't make it back in time driving my car out if I wanted to be in Charlottesville for the Foxfield Races this Saturday. I decided it makes the most sense to ship my car out now, then fly out next week on Tuesday. I was a little worried that I wouldn't have anywhere to stay when I got there, since Matt and I still haven't found a place, but after talking to the folks at Awakenings, it looks like I will be able to stay with Paul Jacobson, who is a client at Awakenings and offered me a room in his spacious house for as long as I need it. How nice!
So, it appears that things have pretty much come together. I just said goodbye to my car this afternoon when the auto transport company picked it up. It should take around 8 days to get there, meaning that I'll need to rent a car for a little while when I arrive in San Diego, but not too long. I booked my flight for Tuesday morning at 10:15, and I'm going to ship out some of my furniture and belongings on a freight carrier through my dad's company for pretty cheap. It's really happening!!
I'm so excited to finally be starting a new chapter in my life. It's been almost a year since I saw my friends moving to different cities to attend graduate schools or start new jobs, and I (sometimes) patiently waited for the time to come when I would be able to do the same. It seems that it finally has. I know it will be difficult to be so far from my family and friends, but at the same time I think it will be healthy to make some new friends and create some new memories that are completely separate from my life before my accident. While I am nervous, I think excitement and the whirlwind that has been the past week or so is overshadowing that, at least for now.
Thanks to everyone for all the encouragement and support. And please please please, feel free to come visit me out in San Diego!
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