Baltimorean

I moved to Baltimore, Maryland on June 20th.  Hopped a plane with my baby girl Genevieve and we were off… leaving Austin for the first time since my parents dragged me there, kicking and screaming, in June of 1988.  Twenty-one whole years later, and I was now leaving my “new” home reluctantly, to follow the hubby to a new town.

Our house in Austin

The last couple of weeks at our house in Austin were very hard.  The “make-ready” was commandeered by my mother-in-law, who is a force to be reckoned with, and I was left out of the loop on a lot of things that were happening in my home.  I sat upstairs, taking care of the baby, while so much change was brewing around me.  It was so difficult… to feel so out of control in your own home.  Sam and I both felt that we needed the help but it came at a huge price. Leaving our house and our town was so intense, almost like we were forced out.  We didn’t want to leave our house, or Austin, but we had to… there were no other options and had Sam turned down the job here in Maryland, it would have been foolish on many different levels.  There was simply no other choice.

I have been in Baltimore three weeks now, and I have to say that the first week was the most difficult.  I didn’t feel safe and I stayed home for the most part. Being home alone with the baby in a strange city was taxing because we hadn’t yet established any sort of routine yet. When Sam came home from work we would take the baby out in her stroller and explore the neighborhood.  We had walked around a bit on our previous trip to Baltimore in May, but I still didn’t have much of a concept of the area and these walks really helped me to get to know our spot in Baltimore.  We live in a neighborhood called Hampden, which is a really great place for people of our… shall I say demographic?  Whatever, we love it.  It took me that first week to feel comfortable (as in, not watching my back every second thinking I’m about to get mugged).  I didn’t realize how incredibly scared I was of moving to a new city.  I think the Forbes report that placed Baltimore ahead of New Orleans for “most dangerous cities in America” freaked me out a LOT.  I guess I never thought any city in America was crazier than New Orleans, so I was very concerned.  After the first week though, I mellowed out quite a bit.

Our house in Baltimore

We met our neighbors who live across the alley from us on one of my first days in Baltimore.  L told me that first night we met on The Avenue and walked down Hickory Street that there would be a period of time where I would just be in shock and think “what the hell did we do?!”  And yes, that was definitely my frame of mind the first few days… what the HELL were we thinking, moving all the way out here?  I can’t believe we brought all this stuff!  Holy crap!! It’s so overwhelming.  She reassured me that it will pass and we will settle in and enjoy the city.

From an email I sent Anne:

Here are some funny tidbits about my life here… I dress nicer here than in Austin.  Why? Because it is guaranteed that I will be seen during the day.  I will have to get my mail from the front doorstep (glass panes in the door) or go on the back porch to entertain Genevieve (neighbors across from me can all see me on my porch from inside or outside their houses). I don’t hang out in pajamas.  Perhaps that will pass but for now I am fully dressed and (usually) showered before I set foot outside. Knowing that you are seen can add to your sense of safety.  You know that your neighbors are aware of you.  You are part of a community that is very immersive, like a small town.  Everybody knows everybody (at least on your row) and there is soooo much excellent gossip!  Very entertaining.  I have met many people since I got here 2 weeks ago, many more than I did in my 3 years in our NW Austin suburb! There are merchants in the neighborhood too, so you get to know them first.  It’s excellent.  And today I did see Geoff from Ace of Cakes through the window of Cafe Hon.  He was with some fancy chick and they were both walking their dogs.  I was very excited.

on The Avenue in Hampden

We haven’t been yet but there are apparently some really excellent farmer’s markets on the weekends with fresh orchard fruits… cherries, etc.  There are arabbers in the streets of our neighborhood who pull donkey carts full of fruits and vegetables for sale.  There is a lot out there that I can’t be a part of because of my mom duties, but because I live so close to the main street of the neighborhood I have managed to venture out a little bit during the week to get coffee at Common Ground (the hipster coffee shop with no coffee menu or web site) with the baby in the sling, going in and getting out fast before she screams too much, and a couple other places.  G gets bored fast and she kinda hates the sling so I haven’t had much mobility.  Might need to try another sling.  The stroller is good but a lot of the shops have front steps (they’re former row homes) so it can be hard to use the stroller.

Soooo… so far it’s mostly good.  Sam and I have been slowly unpacking.  It has taken me a couple of weeks to find a groove with G and her nap schedule, but I think it’s mostly figured out and I should be able to maximize her naptimes for my organizing efforts. Our house is small but very well laid out and I think it will work nicely for us for a little while, while we get our bearings and see where we want to go next.