A Clarification

I want to clarify some things. Over the past few days, a number of people have expressed concern about my mental/emotional state, and I'd just like you all to know that I'm doing fine. As a matter of fact, there are things about my life right now that are significantly better now than they were before I moved here. I don't focus as much as I should on these things, because I'm a Negative Nancy, so I'd like to enumerate them for you here:

1. I have these great friends who I hang out with all the time and who are ridiculous but are always up for anything. I never have to be by myself unless I want to be.
2. There are all kinds of concerts and comedians who come to town, and I go to see them. Even though bigger artists come through DC, concerts there are bigger and more impersonal. Will Sheff would never have almost dropped a mic on my head at the 9:30 Club.
3. I am getting paid to get a great education on a fascinating subject, and developing this new knowledge has nearly felt like a physical sensation on many occasions.
4. My friends from college in Minneapolis and Northfield are almost always accessible to me. Sure, I would still be in touch with a lot of them if I had moved somewhere else, but being geographically close to them has given us the opportunity to get to know each other better and develop even closer relationships.
5. Even though I don't have a church to go to here (sorry, Mom!), on Sundays I now have a routine that I like just as much if not better, and have found a great way to keep in touch with Lia, which has been terrific.
6. Although I am still not friends with any of the baristas in Fargo, I do feel like I've sort of developed a rapport with a lot of the store owners and employees in town. People here are consistently friendly, in a way that I would have found off-putting seven months ago.
7. Yeah, winter is terrible, but I know that when spring comes it will be a revelation, and anticipating that feeling almost makes the next few weeks of single digit or negative highs worth enduring.
8. I know that someday, I am going to be able to tell people that I used to live in Fargo, and they will be amazed.

So, yeah, that's not a complete list, but I just wanted to make sure you all weren't too worried about me. It's a rare day that goes by that I don't miss DC, but I know I made the right decision coming here, and can honestly tell you I don't have any regrets.