keep believing, keep pretending...

Well, suffice it to say, I made it back to Kirksville ok. I truly intended on finishing my stunning narrative of Spring Break, but it has been complete chaos since getting back to school. So, I guess I'll pick up where I left off... After the dreadful loss of my camera, I was a bit bummed out. Buddy and I woke up fairly early the next morning to check out the house that we were really interested in. I was a little remiss when we arrived and the realtor was about fifteen minutes late. Even so, the place was nice. It was still getting some last minute renovations but the space was big and it looked like it would be a comfortable place to set up. We took a couple rental applications from the realtor and told her we would think about it.

So there we were at the crossroads. We could pretty much negotiate terms with her and set up a decent place to live or we could continue looking around for a place that really impressed us. We wound up driving all over Phoenix, Tempe, and parts of Chandler to get a feel for the neighborhoods before heading back to the hotel to check out. At this point, we were pretty worn out. We called a couple more realtors, but it seemed as though it was really going to come down to the last house or postponing finding shelter for another time. We started making plans for leaving Tempe and decided to contemplate over a late lunch. As we were ordering, Buddy got a call. It was someone he had called from an ad. The place sounded promising - northeast Tempe, four bedroom, two bath and he was willing to negotiate terms of the lease. We were thrilled. Maybe this would be the place. He said that he would arrange for us to take a look at the place that day. As we ate, we decided that we would leave tonight and start heading up to Colorado. As soon as we saw this place, we would head out and either drive through the night or camp out at a truck stop. It was then that we got a call from the tenants that said they could meet us later tonight. With a little back-and-forth, we were able to convince them to let us come right at that moment. We immediately left the store and rushed over.

As we were pulling up to the neighborhood, everything looked great. The roads were clean and close to the highways. We could pull onto the highway, but there was no exit traffic onto the street. The roads in the subdivision were wide and the lawns were all well-kept. As we pulled up to the house, we were amazed. The house was not unlike others that we had seen from the outside, but there was something about it. As we walked in, I was immediately taken. Unlike our first experience with house tours, it was pristine. As we walked through the place, I couldn't believe it. I pretty much felt like this would be the place. Now my job would be to convince everyone. The rent was a bit more expensive and we would need to start paying early. Fortunately, we were able to postpone it a bit and start paying halfway through June. We snapped a couple pictures and I got them onto the internet for Ben and Rob to see. I called them right away and pushed my bit. Buddy was a bit more reserved, but I think he was pretty stoked about the place, too. We decided to head out on the road and think it over before making any decisions. We were able to make it out a couple of hours before parking it in a rest stop.

The next morning, we woke up in the familiar reclined position in the front of Buddy's Subaru. We headed back on the road and were able to make it back to his parent's house around noon. While there, we were able to share our experience with Buddy's mom. As we described the place and kind of the situations that led up to that point, she said that it sounded like this was the one. It was like everythign was falling into place. Even so, we left the house with the decision that we would still mull it over for the night. We headed out to his parent's condo in Silverthorne and got settled there. We made a bit of dinner and pretty much sat around and waited for Paul, Kristi, Jeremiah, and Dorielle to arrive. Eventually, Paul and Kristi showed up and Jeremiah and Dorielle arrived shorther thereafter. Dorielle, Jeremiah, and Paul decided to go skiing while Buddy, Kristi, and I planned on hanging around the trails by the condo. So, we all went to bed in preparation for a relaxing day.

So the next day, I woke up just as Paul, Jeremiah, and Dorielle were heading out. I changed and the remaining three of us decided to go snowshoeing around the area. I knew it would a good workout, but I had no idead that it would be nearly as strenuous as it was. We would literally move about fifty yards and I would be winded from the incline. Maybe it had to do with altitude, but I suspect it had to do with me being ridiculously out of shape. Even so, we managed to hike through the woods and got fairly far along the path. After about an hour or so, I was literally drained. Fortunately, Buddy and Kristi were kind enough to call it quits. We headed back to the condo and waited for the ski crew to return. In that time, Dominic and Lindsay stopped by before they headed down to the city for the roller derby.

After a long decision-making process, we decided to make dinner at home before heading out for the St. Patrick's Day madness. Kristi and Paul cooked up one of the best soups ever in about half an hour and we were eating within the hour. After eating to our hearts content, we realized that we really weren't too thrilled about battling the drunken masses at the pubs. So, we stayed in and watched a movie. Yes, thank you everyone, we're old. I accept that fact.

As the days went by, we became more comfortable with the thought of signing a lease at the last house we visited. It seemed right and too much of a windfall to turn our backs on it. So, we called up the manager and started the process for signing the lease. Other than that, the next couple days were fairly uneventful and Buddy and I got back to Kirksville without any problems. I pretty much collapsed in my apartment and was very excited to be sleeping in my own bed.

The next morning was pretty much a whirlwind of waking up, getting to class, and taking that monstrous NBME exam in the afternoon. I don't know whether it was just the post-break fatigue or the exam itself, but right around the 120th questions, I was ready to tear the whole thing up and scream. Nevertheless, I managed to finish and rapidly evacuated to my apartment.

---this was a draft that I never finished... suffice to say, it has been long enough that I have completely forgotten what happened next. --andy 5/1/2006