To review: last January an envelope arrived rather randomly, informing my husband that he'd been accepted into Tuck, Dartmouth's school of business. It was a Wednesday, I believe. When he decided to attend, it meant a big move for the both of us. I've lived in Virginia (more or less) since age 18 and he's lived there all his life. And now...
Hanover, New Hampshire. Home sweet home as of August 7, 2009.
Population: 4000 Dartmouth students, associated faculty, university administrators, and a very few non-affiliated individuals like myself.
It's strange to be neither teacher nor student in what is very much a college town. Even the word "town" seems a stretch - Hanover is all of one street ("Main Street" of course) in size. Still, it's August in New England and though I may feel differently when winter hits come October, for the moment, Hanover is green, lush, and mild.
Our new apartment is a block from Main Street, the second story in a garden-style complex, which means (fulfilling a longtime dream of mine) we have a balcony. Our landlady, a petite Frenchwoman called Helen, thoughtfully furnished it with a plastic table and chairs. I actually mean this sincerely - it WAS thoughtful and we've already enjoyed wine and cards on the balcony as a result. Less thoughtful was the apartment full of 70s-era dorm furniture, broken lamps, and expired canned goods that also awaited us. Needless to say, our first day of move-in was somewhat stressful - the de-Helenization process took time. (Not to mention the actual unpacking process.)
Still, we love the place: one great room, for living and dining - a kitchen adjoining (small, but still!) two bedrooms and a full-sized washer/dryer. I'm not sure when I became the kind of person who is legitimately (to say inordinately) excited by the prospect of full-sized laundry appliances, but here we are. (and get this, the full-sized washer/dryer are in an actual laundry room!)
Main Street is full of small college-town restaurants of varying types: the burrito place, the coffee house, the diner. Nothing here is chain - not a Starbucks nor Chipotle in sight and I love this (though secretly, I love Chipotle too.) There are two bookstores (at least) - one of the used variety, which I adore - and several quaint-looking boutiques I have yet to explore. The street is lined with trees and benches and at the end, we have Dartmouth itself. Main Street literally deadends into campus.
The buildings of Dartmouth are white and stone and the grass of the Dartmouth Green is so perfectly... green. The Green is lovely - like a super-lawn (UVA-style) with buildings on all sides, benches and walkways and impromptu volleyball courts. While no "Green" however green will ever replace the Academical Village in my heart, I have to say it's a surprisingly close second. All of Dartmouth is wireless and I can see myself there, on the green, typing away on nice days.
So here we are... and I'm sure you're wondering... what's the point, where's the point?
We've made this blog to document the adventure: life in New Hampshire. Dan's journey through b-school. My attempts to stay warm, find a job (as yet TBD,) and a few friends (as yet TBD.)
I've done my best to set the scene, provide the background if you will. This is how life in New Hampshire will LOOK (at least in summertime.) Because this is my life now.
Did I mention I'm not the best with change, meeting new people, saying goodbye? So this will be interesting.
The motto for New Hampshire, if you are not aware, is "Life Free or Die." The internets tell me that this came from a toast General John Stark wrote and I wholly approve of any mottos that originate from any sort of drinking related activity. Moreover, any sort of ultimatum with the negative ending in death is ok by me. Two prime examples of this are 1) Skate or Die, one of my favorite NES games and 2) Til Death Dewey Party, a great shirt and beer koozie I got at Dewey beach when I was 7 or so.
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