Home Again, Home Again—Jiggity Jigg

Home again. Home again. Jiggity Jigg.

My dad says that, without fail, every time we get home from a journey and today was a journey for sure.

We left at 9a.m. this morning and we got home around 7:04p.m.

Talk about a long, long travel day. But alas, I am now lying comfortably in my own bed for the first time since May 28th, when I left for the adventure of a lifetime.

When my mom called to talk the other day, I told her one thing: You better not stop at Cracker Barrel on the way up to NYC, because I need sweet tea and biscuits on the way home. And I wasn’t joking around. I am very serious about my sweet tea. And by 1:30 in the car when we had travelled below Washington, I was on the lookout for that rocking-chair-southern-comfort of a restaurant.

Of course I got chicken-n-dumplins with spiced apples and corn. And you better believe that I washed it all down with a big ol’ glass of sweet tea. And you also better believe that I was slowly gaining my accent back (not that I ever really lost it) as I got closer and closer to Kinston.

Yee-haw, she’s back in North Carolina.

My dad had another saying all day: “You can take the girl out of the country, but you can’t take the country out of the girl.”

It’s true. I’m living proof.

****

My parents had travelled to NYC on Thursday and I was very excited to show them around the city. I reserved tickets before they got there to see Sister Act. I showed them my favorite New York City hotspots, including Jack’s, Haagen Dazs, Strands Bookstore, and Union Square. Sister Act did fail at entertaining me a second time. I’m telling you if you go to see one show this year, I hope it is that one.

We rode on a boat around New York, letting my parents see the sights of the city up close.

We ate at Ruby Foos. We shopped. We went to a dueling piano bar at HA! Comedy Club—which I definitely recommend, especially if you are a Billy Joel fan and it was not touristy. Do it.

We went to Hoboken to visit the Cake Boss. He was busy with a line of hundreds of people, so we said, “See ya later” and got sandwiches and ate by the river.

We rode in a taxi cab where the driver didn’t know where the World Trade Centers are. He also didn’t carry bills smaller than 20s.

We went to FAO Schwartz where I got a book with Kermit the Frog quotes, so prepare yourself for cards with empowering speeches from the green Muppet.

We ate Crumbs cupcakes. A lot of them.

And I was prideful because I had learned all of these things in 10 weeks and was able to show them what I had accomplished and learned.

****

So here I am back in the state where things are green and the rain pitter-patters on my roof outside, making it perfect for sleeping. And it’s quiet. There aren’t the beep beeps of the yellow taxi cabs. There isn’t the sound of the jack-hammer outside my window. Nor do I hear the sound of trucks and cars moving constantly outside.

It’s just the sound of my fingers against the keyboard.

I will miss those sounds. There will always be things I love about New York City and I will always remember the great experiences and lessons I have learned there.

I will miss the constant go-go-go mentality I had there, but of course, I will be applying it to a different part of my life as soon as school gets back in session.

****

And this week will be just as go-go-go. I move into my new house in Chapel Hill on Saturday. My nephew and sister come tomorrow. I have furniture to buy. Curtains. Toiletries. School supplies. Food. Frames to paint.

I will be busy. Just a different kind of busy. And I hope to get some sort of a suntan.

The air is thick with moisture here and the hot is hotter than anything I’ve experienced this summer. And all that is so welcoming.

And I welcome the unpacking and packing and unpacking as I begin another adventure.

I’m home. Again. Jiggity Jigg.

Peace. Love. Kinston.,

Carrie

P.S. What should I rename the blog? Comment and put suggestions!

P.P.S.S. Take this to heart. It’s about accepting yourself. Muppets and Jim Henson are smart, people.

“It’s not that easy being green.
Having to spend each day the color of the leaves,
When I think it might be nicer being red, or yellow, or gold
Or something much more colorful like that.

It’s not easy being green.
It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things
And people tend to pass you over,
’Cause you’re not standing out like flashy sparkles
or stars in the sky.

But green is the color of spring
And green can be cool and friendly like
And green can be big like an ocean
Or important like a mountain
Or tall like a tree.

When green is all there is to be,
It could make you wonder why.
But why wonder, why wonder?
I am green, and it’ll do fine
And I think it’s what I want to be.”  --- Kermit the Frog