And The Painted Ponies Go Up And Down

It was six months ago to the day that I came and interviewed at the school where I am now employed. In two hours I will teach my first class here, starting my 27th consecutive First Day Of School. It's a little crazy to think of all that has happened in the last six months:

• I went from living in a big city to living in a small burg.
  
• I went from being a renter to being a homeowner.
  
• I went from the ghettoed status of a postdoc to the holy grail of a tenure track position.
  
• I went from relying on public transportation to owning a minivan.
  
• I went from a Research I institution to a small liberal arts college.
  
• I have gone from a place where I teach calculus to 100 students to a place where I teach calculus to 25 students.
  
• I have gone from a city where some of my best friends in the world live to a place where I don't know anyone but K.
  
• I have gone from buying groceries on the internet and having a huge cd store across the street from my home to having a huge suburban-style mega-grocery store down the street but having to buy cds on the internet.
  
• I went from having a secretary named Lincoln to having a secretary named Kennedy
• I went from 700 square feet to 2600 square feet (plus all that glorious storage space.)
• I have attended both a wedding and a funeral, and had (at least) two friends have babies.
  
• I went from never having stepped foot in a Lowes in my life to having spent thousands of dollars at one.
  

Most of these changes are for the better. Some are not. But when I look at how different my life is now than it was six months ago, it is barely recognizable. I guess everyone has those periods in their life, but it's awfully weird when they actually occur.