spending time between two homes

It doesn’t really get easier moving back and forth between two homes. Back in May (it’s now August—where did all the time go?), I only brought one carry on suitcase back home. It was stuffed with summer clothes I would wear in warm, sunny California and humid China, where the weather is reliable and you don’t need an umbrella or preparation for thunderstorms.

So I came back to many suitcases and duffel bags, vacuum sealed bags storing my Ninja Creami, my jewelry, and some jackets. Opening up each bag, I wasn’t excited to find all the things I had found: I was surprised to discover what I’d packed away, as they were largely unfamiliar to me. It was like discovering a new side of myself again.

I own a bbl jacket? I have a powerpuff girls t-shirt? Wow, I have this really nice pair of jeans I forgot about! This side of me is only visible to the people in my Pittsburgh life, not the people back at home. I find myself recurrently thinking about who.I would be if I’d gone to different universities, for example UCLA or Purdue or something else. We really are all a product of our enviornment. I am much more CMU-core (nerdy, basic) when I come back home from school, and vaguely more alt/fun when I come back to school from home after summer break.