I am turning into Mr. Rogers

It's a beautiful day in this neighborhood, A beautiful day for a neighbor, Would you be mine? Could you be mine? Won't you be, my neighbor? - Mr. Rogers

This post is about my apartment, so if that is not of interest to you, I won't feel bad if you just skip this one.

I have not posted any pictures of the moved-in version of my apartment because I want to get things a little more organized and put away first. I've also been pretty busy lately and I haven't had a good chance to just go to town on my list of to-do's. Plus I haven't had my Internet installed yet, so I've been having to steal the Internet for a few days.

Mom & Aunt Teresa & Mallory got to come help me get some things done, I wouldn't have been able to do it on my own. They really got me off to a good start on situating things.
One good thing about moving is that it gives you a chance to get rid of things you don't need, and organize the things you do need. It feels very refreshing. Today I had dinner with a girl from work who lives nearby. She doesn't really live close enough to call her my neighbor, but I did agree to water her plants while she's away, so I guess I could say she's neighbor-esque. It's nice to know at least one girl my age is in this neighborhood. I feel like everybody knows each other here.

But I am thoroughly enjoying my new place. Here are some of my favorite things about it:

1. The park. I love the park that is by my new place. There is always some sort of activity going on, whether it's a softball game, kickball game, kids swimming in the pool, mom's walking w/ their strollers, people walking their dogs & jogging. It really feels like I'm part of this community. Some days there is this thing called "Boot Camp" where people choose to put themselves through gruelling physical activities in 100 degree heat, doing things like jumping hurtles & doing sprints around little cones & stuff. The other day I had a perfect view of them from my window while I ate KFC & drank Dr. Pepper on my couch.

2. Peace and QUIET. Seriously, it's like I live in a house, not an apartment because I don't share any walls with anyone else. It is sooo nice not having to deal with someone stomping over your head. I can listen to my music and sing out loud as much as I want. Recently its been a lot of Owl City & the Forever Song by Chris Brown.

3. Location, location, location. Lakewood is just a precious neighborhood. I love to ride my bike up and down the streets just to look at all the houses. It's a pretty old neighborhood with big trees that hang over the streets & quaint old homes, along side newer ones. Plus there is an adorable old shopping center with an old theatre & this dangerously cute little store called Curiosities that my mom & I went to when she was here. It doesn't hurt that it's a 5 minute drive from work, too.

Pictures to come. I apologize that I don't have anything more interesting to post about. Job is the same as always, friends are good, family is hanging in there, life is trucking on along as scheduled.