another Sunday in the life of this gypsy

Sundays bring adventures. This Sunday I visited a church in Cherry Hill, New Jersey... then I saw my brother out by Philly, had dinner with my academic counterpart (and her family and some other awesome grad students) in Highland Park, then drove to camp so I could work a full day in the office today.

The Cherry Hill visit was really nice, as my visits tend to be. Chris's directions to his softball game took me straight through Philadelphia. It was my first time going to his hood north of the city by driving I-76 and 476, so there was a lot of cool stuff to see. It was a pleasant enough drive along the Schuykill River, seeing lot of amazing historic buildings. Chris told me to look out for boathouse row, but I kind of missed it because I didn't really know where I was going and didn't really know what to look for. That's the biggest problem with me driving everywhere-- I'm the one driving. I am trying to pay attention to the road and the signs and the crazies and miss a lot of cool scenery. Such is life, I guess. I think I still manage to see a lot of cool stuff.

I made it for the last two minutes of Chris's game and then spent the afternoon with him and a few friends at the pub that sponsors their team. Nice place, although I was admittedly slightly overwhelmed by all the TV screens. It was fun to watch the Phillies win in a bar in Phillies country (please note: this does not make me a Phillies fan, I was just appreciating the camaraderie). It was also nice to see my big brother. Beer of the day: Yards Pale Ale, from right down the road in Philly.

One of Chris's friends asked where I was living these days. Chris answered for me, "Who, my sister the gypsy?" That describes it pretty well. I was thinking about this as I charged my phone in my car as I drove further yesterday... I can't remember the last time I charged my phone in a wall in a house. I generally drive for long enough to charge it every time my battery gets low. Hmmm...

After this, I drove up Route 1 (not particularly impressive in any way, sadly) to Highland Park to enjoy dinner with my dear officemate. Her parents are visiting from Venezuela so she had a few friends over. It was really nice to see these friends, who I haven't seen much of since I stopped with full time classes (teaching and/or taking). I'm glad that I'll see them a bit more in the next few weeks as I prepare to defend my thesis...

And so I drove up to camp pretty late. It was a pleasant enough arrival nonetheless. It wasn't freezing out. The air was cool and calm. Spring peepers were singing. Today was a really warm day and I noticed a lot of the trees have buds on them. I love all the seasons, and winter was very beautiful this year, but I definitely enjoy this time as things green up and become a different kind of beautiful.