the GOOD: Call off the dogs. My search for a dance studio in Philly is officially over. My Philadelphia spot for dance is on the third floor of 1923 Chestnut Street- it's a really gorgeous space that belongs to the illustrious Kip Martin. Kip is a Russian- trained, meticulous teacher who lets nothing slip by, demonstrates everything flawlessly, and even dispenses some sassy wisdom when it's warranted ("let's not fall off the stage the next time we do that, hm?"). In a word (or two), he's fucking amazing. After class, he inquired about my training- where it was, what style, nationality of my teachers, etc. I explained about Maureen and Keith in Maine (who- oh my god, I miss terribly), and Kip looked at me over the rims of his glasses and said "Well, they did a good job, I think."
So, now we are best friends. And as soon as my calves unclench from the over 1000 releves (998 of which we did at the barre-[!!!!]) we did in class I am headed back. Kip told me I should feel like I have a home there, because I do. Well, okay. If Kip says so.
the BAD: Ben is away until Wednesday for med-school interviews, which is actually incredible news. It would just be more incredible if I had a television in my apartment. With a TV, I can lay in bed, put on the sleep timer, and listen to fraiser, the golden girls, or the food network and fall asleep until morning. Without a TV, I turn out the lights, lay awake in bed, and convince myself that every noise I hear (the cat, the wind, michael next door, nothing) is a murderer or dead body or ghost or giant rat. It doesn't help that I have gotten into Stephen King for Halloween. I'm reading a collection of previously unpublished novellas- one about a man who slaughtered his wife like a pig and is driven insane by her decomposing corpse and a harem of giant rats, one about a woman who is viciously attacked by a bunch of rednecks on her way home one night, and two more that I haven't gotten into yet. It was stupid of me to begin reading it the week before Ben left on a week-long adventure- it was probably stupid of me to start reading the book in the first place, but once you start reading, the descriptions and the suspense completely pull you in- even IF the first sentences you read are "i murdered my wife and tupped her body in a well. i forced my son to help me" (or something to that extent). The book is residing in the freezer (in true "Friends" fashion) until Ben comes back on Wednesday. And luckily I have Elizabeth and Geoff's guest room to crash in until then too- entire blocks away from the scary book.
the UGLY: On Friday night I had the pleasure of watching one of the sweetest little boys in the world (look at how cute he is ) who lives in the nearby neighborhood of Mount Airy. I took Elizabeth's car. His parents went to a jazz concert and arrived home late (not a big deal, Matty was asleep anyways), and I COULD NOT FIND A PARKING SPOT TO SAVE MY LIFE!
This is what I know about driving and parking in Philly, and none of it is good. The driveways here are apparently not meant for cars. Everybody has a car (or two) and everybody has to park on the street AT ALL TIMES. Let me ask you, in a city that has public transit that is reliable (on weekdays at least) and gets you almost anywhere in the city and the surrounding suburbs, why on earth would you want to have a car that ALWAYS needs to be parallel parked?? Sometimes I see the entire streets filled up during NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS. If you don't have a job that you need to get to on time, WHY DO YOU EVEN HAVE A CAR?!?! Of course I could be wrong. Maybe all of the owners of those cars work at night. Or they are being green and walking everywhere or something- but if they are walking everywhere, WHY THE CAR? I understand that a car is probably more convenient than having to depend on public transit, and that it makes impromptu trips across state lines (or to ikea) a lot easier. But good gravy, I DO hate driving and parking in the city. I am okay with relying on busses and trains. If I don't have to drive in Philly on the regular, it will be okay.
Tomorrow I am going down to Main Street to get my nails done and look for a coat and/or earring rack. The hardcore cleaning of the apartment in Ben's absence has been going incredibly well. Maybe I'll even get some pictures of our cozy, furnished apartment up on the interwebs. And Babs is doing well. She's a good cat.
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