New Home

Once again, it's moving time for Catherine...

I have lived in seven different apartments (including this newest one) since moving to Brooklyn just over eight years ago. I am not counting the various places (read: friends' couches) where I have crashed for various lengths of time in between homes...I am just counting those places where the post office has deemed it official enough to deliver mail to me.

This newest apartment is in a neighborhood of Brooklyn that is completely unfamiliar to me, a whole new zip code and cable service provider. I've hardly had a chance to explore the 'hood (moving takes its sweet time), but I am already finding things to appreciate: 24 hour fruit/vegetable groceries on nearly every block, West Indian/roti eateries seemingly every 50 feet, a laundromat across the street, a public library behind my building...
There is more of a longstanding "Brooklyn" feeling here than in the other considerably more gentrified neighborhoods where I have lived, and I like that...but there are also just enough chain establishments to create a feeling of comforting familiarity. Every major bank, a Blockbuster videostore, and a Duane Reade drugstore are all within easy walking distance. And, while it is totally gross if consumed on a regular basis, I can't argue with having a Popeye's down the street that is open until 2:30am (3:00am on weekends).

Up until now, I've hardly had more than an hour or two at a time (usually at night) to check out my new surroundings. I am interested to discover how my perceptions of my new locale and my place within it will change and develop in the coming months (and, I hope, years...moving is exhausting, and I'd prefer to cut down the frequency of its occurence in my life).