Frederick is a small Maryland city about 40 miles outside of the city. Frederick is a wonderful town with a beautiful walkway and path on either side of the creek. The path leads up to the downtown area and there are fountains that shoot water around the creek and in path-side fountains.
After arriving in town I had some time to kill, so I went to one of the three local records shops. After lounging around for a bit, I headed over for some coffee, and finally met up with Ona. We had a lovely dinner at a local restaurant and then headed for Lancaster.
Ona booked us an Airbnb in Lancaster, and we pulled in around 10 or so. Thankfully, the door was a keyless entry, which was pretty neat. Just type in a code and ta-da! We were were in! The house was a beautiful old mid-rise rowhouse, with narrow stairwells leading up to our second floor landing room. The buildings in Lancaster were all so historic and magnificent. All having their own stories tucked into their recesses and alcoves.
On the day of the wedding we headed out for an early start. We got coffee and a wonderful breakfast at Commonwealth on Queen in the heart of downtown.
One thing I was not suspecting Lancaster of having was the amount of diversity; one could see the range of people simply walking around town. For a town that I had only thought of as Amish country and a small hamlet, the city held much more than I was expecting. I saw an "ethnic hairstyles" salon, and a Latin@ shop/grocery on our walk to breakfast. Later that night we would get pizza at a place that offered a "Spanish" menu as well. I had to start looking up the demographic numbers for Lancaster, and I was taken aback by the percentages. A little over half of Lancaster city proper is white.
The wedding came, and I found myself wondering if I had dressed well enough for the occasion. I hadn't been to a wedding since I was a child basically, so I was curious if I had the right clothes. Thankfully I fit right in, and the ceremony and celebration was fairly informal (the first portion had taken place outside of Portland a week earlier with a much bigger crowd).
Marriage brings with it the "traditional" idea of "settling down". I've been out of college for tw- three years now, and the idea of taking a position somewhere permanently and setting up shop for...ever really terrifies the hell out of me. Ever since I left college I've been on "assignments" that were only slated to last a specified amount of time. I'm on an assignment now, slated to go until November. Sure, it's not ideal for the future, but more than simply gaining experience, I really do not like the idea of picking a point on the map and calling it a day for the rest of your life. I don't want to call Columbus Ohio home for the rest of my life. I don't want to call Vancouver or Portland my home for the rest of my life. There are too many places to see to simply settle down. Consistency is for the birds.
It tears at me. Resisting what's been bred into you through your Midwestern upbringing is tough.
Thinking about this brings up memories on conversations I've had before. There's always mention of "when I get a permanent position". I know that it makes me terrible for job applications (henceforth why I don't share this blog directly with potential employers), but I feel much more comfortable seeing positions that have defined timelines rather than an opaque mystical "you will work for us forever." Especially if I want to see a new place. What if I don't like it there? Can I ever learn to like a mid-sized city again? How about rural areas? I seem so happy to be in Washington D.C., our nation's capitol, with it's tons of stuff to do, see, and experience. But I don't know if I want to stay here forever either.
It's easy to get wrapped up in these thoughts, especially when there is such a close horizon date. But I have to just slow down and remind myself: I'm here until November. That's three months more than the usual intern. Think of all the time I'll have to enjoy the city and discover myself a little more. With that I just go to sleep and dream of where the Metro will take me tomorrow (if it is even working), and enjoy what I have right now.
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