Hi Friends,
What does it feel like to move somewhere you’ve never been after living in the same city for 34 years? Equal parts terrifying and exhilarating. As I wrote in my last post, I left New York to brave the unknown. I am now living in Birmingham Alabama. It all started with a simple text in July from a friend and former colleague asking if I would consider coming to fill in for 4 months at Food & Wine magazine. I didn’t hesitate and wrote back yes! No action plan was formulated, all I did was say yes. That started a stream of openings and change that I hadn’t anticipated. Questions arose: Would I sublet my apartment and come back? Would I really leave and put my stuff in storage and fly by the seat of my pants with no real plan after the job finished up? While marinating on this, another plan took shape. After my assignment with F&W ends in May, I head to Natchez Mississippi to stay with dear friends and open myself up to even more opportunities. This plan was met with genuine curiosity from most of my friends and family, but the truth is, I have been talking about leaving New York for about 3 years now. Even though I never made a plan or even had a destination in mind I just knew it was getting near the time that I needed to make a significant change in my life. One friend said outright: “you know you are going to RED states, right?”. To that I replied, I’m not going to a red state waving my democratic flag! I’m going to meet new people and to meet them where they are. That is to say, experience PEOPLE, not their political belief systems.
I knew it wouldn’t be easy to leave but I also knew spending another year in a stuck place was not an option. I had waves of anxiety and doubt about my decision throughout the process. The term “liminality” was brought to my attention and its definition couldn’t have been more apt : “a state of transition between one stage and the next, especially between major stages in one's life or during a rite of passage. ... In a general sense, liminality is an in-between period, typically marked by uncertainty”.
So now i’m here and living in a new reality. The entry was rough due to flight delays and lack of sleep. It exacerbated my anxiety and I went into an emotional spiral. After calls to friends and family crying and thinking I made a huge mistake, I got some much needed sleep and unpacked all of my things (it’s so important to have familiar or special things around you) and it changed everything. Feelings of wonder and curiosity have replaced doubt and anxiety. Seems my spirit has embraced the change and I’m moving forward.
My friend and new roommate Dan (a former NY transplant himself) invited me to come and live in his newly purchased home. Dan is like the mayor of Birmingham. He knows loads of nice people and has been taking me all over and introducing me to life here. We joined the “Walking Society”. Every Wednesday a group gathers at a meeting spot in the early evening and walk together around Birmingham. It is causal and a great way to explore the city on foot. There’s a dynamic art scene here as well and I look forward to going to openings, masked up of course.
I have been here a couple of weeks now and I made another important discovery; my creativity and enthusiasm for work has changed dramatically. I feel completely invigorated and creative ideas are flowing. The air, the altitude, the landscape, I mean just about everything is different and it’s had an impact. It makes me see how stuck I was. I’m still easing into it all but it feels good.
Oh and the treasure hunting is amazing. Antiquing or junking, whatever you want to call it, is like a dream come true. There’s an Antiques Trail! There’s a brochure about it! I’m hitching up the team and hitting all the stops! Dan has been game to take me to these places. I literally could spend hours in these Antique malls. Speaking of malls, there’s a lovely park at the end of my street and after a short stroll through it leads you to a small plaza of shops that include the following: pharmacy (with products I like and buy!), book store, antique mall (!), coffee cafe, wine store, and an artisanal craft store. There’s also a Subway, but I pretend it’s not there. All my interests in a personalized plaza AND you walk through a beautiful park to get there! Magic! It’s a comfort to have things I connect to nearby.
Tonight I’m going to see Tommy Stinson (formerly of the Replacements) at a bar/liquor store. This will be the first live music show I’ve been to in a long time and I’m looking forward to it. More adventures await and I’m saying yes to it all.
Love,
Nancy Jo
Love this!
You aren’t far from dreamland bbq in Tuscaloosa