Hello from Canton, MS!

Alright, so my countdown on this blog for this new journey in my life wasn't as extensive/overdone as my journey to Germany. (See archives.)

However, I am currently typing this to you in my apartment in Canton, Mississippi. 93-degree temperatures, flies as large as bottlecaps, and nerves for my first day of work tomorrow are all in abundant quantities here!

I arrived here late Friday night with my parents and Joe, to move in for the next three months. Joe left this morning to go back to Milwaukee and I cried, as figured. I miss him now, but it will get better as the days pass.

The drive down was smooth - just like Colin explained to me before I left Green Bay, you really don't get the full understanding and feeling of greatness for this vast country until you actually drive it yourself and experience it. Don't ride along as a passenger, don't catnap....no, no, no, actually drive your little fire-engine red Volkswagen Beetle across 969.3 miles of the great United States of America, to get a feel for your homeland. Wah.

14 hour trip, Green Bay to Canton. Many smushed bugs on the windshield, many gallons of gas expended, and a few bottles of Mountain Dew choked back, to suck the caffeine out of them.

I'm proud of myself for driving (my parents caravaned in front of me with my mom's truck.) The best part? Dad actually admitted that he LIKES the Beetle as a road trip car!! To quote:

"That little car is bulletproof, the wheelbase and center of gravity is so much better than my truck's. You put her on the road and she just sort of.........sticks there. It's fun."

Yayayay! Beetle just won over another heart. :)

The only weird thing that happened along the road is that some FIB was harassing my mom by pacing her on the highway and flipping her off, then pulling in front of her and slamming on his brakes to irritate her. She did nothing wrong --- except for probably having Wisconsin plates in Bears NFL territory.....



Now that I'm here, I am petrified of my first day of work tomorrow. I know I've got some pretty big shoes to fill, and I'm beating myself up, asking, "Ashley, why the hell do you do this to yourself all of the time?!?" I go out on a whim and try something new, speak up, or go after an interest of mine -- and it always lands me feeling nervous or hesitating that I jumped before I was ready.

I've just got to look back and realize, though, that every single time I have done this, it has landed me at the next level. I've consistently moved on to bigger things, and thus has led me to today sit back and say, "I have led a pretty interesting life." I'm always getting myself into something. Life explodes. :)

This, here, down south, is on par with my Germany charade. Sure, Germany was in another country (on the opposite side of the world!), but that was only for 1 month. This is for three months....and on the coast of the U.S. that might as well be its own country!!

It's difficult to leave behind everything you've ever known. Everything Wisconsin and small-town-dorky-girl.

But I'm going to stick it out. :)