in brief

I'm in Illinois. This summer has flown by. At the beginning of July, my aunt Patricia died. All through July and the beginning of August I wandered around the foothills with my alcoholic friends, this kid from Missouri and a girl from my high school in particular, smoking Reds and trading music. I fought with my boyfriend over the phone all the time.

Then on August 10th, my parents and I packed the car and started driving. Las Vegas, Bryce Canyon, Moab, Denver, west Texas, Dallas, south-east Missouri, then here. All kinds of things in my head quieted down. Driving through the desert, through the mesas and the mountains. Staying in my great-aunt Georgia's house, where she and my mother's mother grew up. I went on a few long walks with my dad, talking over everything that's been going on.

Now I'm in the middle of the cornfields, right at the edge of town, getting ready for classes starting tomorrow - children's literature, youth services librarianship, communities and libraries, information organization, poetry, all spread through the week. My parents just left this morning; they spent the last few days helping me put together my apartment. My dad surprised me with a beautiful poster - it's that photograph of Audrey Hepburn with the Roman Holiday haircut. He said when he saw it in the store, he couldn't walk out without getting it for me. I'm adopting a cat - Estlin - who I can pick up from the shelter on Tuesday. She's a gray tabby with tufty ears and she likes ping-pong balls. When we went to the pet store to pick up food and a litter box, my mom nearly filled the basket with toys.
"From grandma," she said.

There are thunderstorms here that knock out the power. I'm hoping I find people I like in my classes, hoping that I fit into the meetings here the way I fit in at home.