One year ago today, Michael and I finally made our way through Arizona and into California, pulling into his apartment which was suddenly our apartment. Fast forward through the next 12 months, all the little bits to establish me as a California girl: signing the lease, getting a driver’s license, learning the different highways and freeways (and what to call them), becoming EMPLOYED, then later actually getting benefits, and–just as of last week–finally registering my car with California plates. Whew. (I’m still a holdout with my Jacksonville phone number…so far.)

It feels a little surreal that I’ve lived here for a year as of today. This past year has, overall, been one of the best ones of my life. When I look at my life right now–living with Michael, working at a job I really love (even if it keeps me horrifyingly busy 99.5% of the time), spending time with the most awesomest of friends ever (and I am lucky that these friends are scattered across the country, because they’re everywhere I go!)–I am always a little blown away by just how HAPPY I am. Honestly, for the most part, I couldn’t have planned my life out here any better.

Michael and I, hanging out in Alhambra Park, people-watching and waiting for the fireworks to start last Saturday.

And, good heavens, since I haven’t updated the blog in ages here is a partial list of what I’ve been up to:

• turning 28 and basically turning the month of June into my month o’ celebrations: lots of food, dancing, and buying myself jewelry.
• attending my 10-year high school reunion in Jacksonville.
• going to the gym with Michael, not that you would really notice anything different about me. Michael is all of a sudden super-buff, and I am realizing that my body doesn’t snap into shape like it did 7 years ago.
• slacking horribly at my photo-of-the-day project, although I’m still faithfully updating my Flickr account.
• finally paying for someone (a dear friend that I trust very much) to transcribe my mom’s journals, because I have finally admitted that I’ll never have time to do it myself. This means I might actually be able to put out another zine…maybe by the end of the year? I might be deluding myself about how much time I’ll have to do that, but it’s definitely a goal of mine.
• going to Dodgers games with Michael, where I must consume at least one Dodger Dog and one beer per game. Them’s the rules!
• being completely obsessed with “So You Think You Can Dance” and trying to rub off a little of that obsession on everyone who will listen to me jabber about it.
• still loving the fact that living in Southern California means sometimes I can wear sweaters/jackets/hoodies during the summer. Swoon!
• never working a 40-hour workweek because I’m always either coming in early or staying late (or, quite often, both); I adore my job and my coworkers, but I definitely never have an ounce of free time!
• still head-over-heels in love and giddy-happy on a daily basis. Even when we’re getting on each others’ nerves (which does happen…albeit rarely. More often when I haven’t put away my laundry.), I still have to just look at him and I get all melty inside.

So, yeah. To sum up? Life is beautiful.