I chopped my hair off. Accrued a tattoo. Found a beautiful, beautiful apartment in Seattle. Bought a vintage Motobecane whose name is Zoe and who has seen me through exhilarating Burke-Gilman morning rides and awkward tumbles around Capitol Hill. Applied for grad school, and am awaiting a decision. Graduated from the University of Washington, more or less satisfied with my academic performance but overall extremely happy with everything and everyone I've encountered. Took some bad in with the good.
I originally planned on returning to Spain to teach English for a year through CIEE. However, as the time for me to go abroad drew closer, I realized that there were too many things to take care of in Seattle. I wasn't scared of leaving (I had studied abroad before. Spain felt like a second home). I wasn't lazy about completing the necessary TEFL class and visa application (I function best when my days are completely filled. I was working, completing a grad school prerequisite course and finishing up my Spanish degree while organizing my visa materials and doing my TEFL coursework). I just... didn't feel ready. Here I was, with a wonderful apartment, in a wonderful neighborhood, wonderful job (I'm a nanny for a special needs family), wonderful friends, wonderful life that I've built for myself in Seattle. If grad school was my goal, I needed to work towards it: save more money, establish residency, gain more experience with the American education system. So, after much thought (and a ten block walk/phone call to my roommate while I was in San Francisco to submit my visa application), I decided to stay in Seattle and continue building my life as an independent adult. As conflicted as I felt initially, I couldn't be happier now with my decision.
One of my promises to myself for staying is to experience more of Seattle, more of the Pacific Northwest as a whole. May this continue be a medium through which to record my adventures in a place so firmly rooted in me.
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