Lint Licker

Rome, Georgia is the home of transients... and permanents. Unfortunately, I do not fit into either group quite squarely. I've been out of college for going on four years, so I don't really hang with or have much in common with college students. Gone are the days of carefree abandon and energy until 3am. That era died when I move to D.C.

Likewise, I don't quite mix well with the "permanents" (aka - married with or without kids). The people I work with have families of their own and mortgages to pay. Conversely, I am a one woman circus who can't seem to find a place to settle. I'm flexible, but many of my friends are not able to drop their responsibilities to hang with little 'ol me. Chances are... they don't even want to. They have their own lives to live.

I hate to say it, but I feel like some of my friends don't hang out with me or talk to me anymore, because I'm not able to share in their current life station. This is not entirely by my own choice. I mean... who wouldn't want to have a mate to come home to after wrangling 200+ kids everyday? But alas, there are no viable suitors to be had in Rome, Georgia. Well, as far as I can tell, and I don't want to date a college student. I pay my own rent and work 40+ hours a week.

But partially, it is my decision to stay single. There have been a few bites: no one I'd consider dating. I am enjoying my "Mary Tyler Moore years" (as Mrs. Ivery has aptly labeled them). I eat what and when I want. I do what I want on the weekend and after work. I can watch the channel I want to watch and read myself to sleep if that seems desirable. I only have to do my laundry and dishes. If I want to purchase an item, I save for it and buy it. I don't have to consult with anyone else. I can decorate my room in the manner I desire and stay up late.

Pretty much all those sentences start with "I". Such is the temptation (and potential dark side) of living this kind of life. It's been relatively easy to slip into selfishness. Thankfully, God uses my job at Unity to keep the focus off of myself (at least part of the time). He also uses my close friends to keep me humble and grounded in Truth.

In a nutshell: most of my current friends are dispersing at the conclusion of this school year. These aren't just any friends I'm referring to, but these are my sisters in the Lord. We eat together, pray together, play together, laugh together, read God's Word together, weep together, and generally share life. I'm happy that they are on the cusps of new seasons, but I can't help but feel a little alone.

What is going to happen in this ongoing season I'm in? Will I continue to fight an uphill battle at school sans curriculum? Where will I go if my roommate gets engaged and married like everyone else seems to be? When will I finally be liberated from longstanding debt? Will I just stay here... in Rome, Georgia as an "in-betweener"? For how long?