My Blessing in Disguise.

It's funny to think when it came time to chose a graduate school Kansas City was not on the top of my list... I wanted to move home so badly, I am not sure why but that's where I was going to go. If that didn't work then I was staying in Springfield.

Welllllllllllllll Plan A or Plan B didn't work so I ended up in KC.

Being in a sorority you think it would be very easy to find a roommate in KC, not so easy. I was very lucky that a girl in my future graduate program sent out an e-mail to our incoming class saying she was moving from the state of Washington, knew no one in KC, and wanted a roommate. I instantly replied to her "classified" ad. After a few e-mails we decided that we, and one other girl in our program, would be roommates.

I had always lived with people I knew, so I was very anxious to live with complete strangers...

My first official night in KC, was a Friday. I walked into new apt. on the Plaza, and my new roomie Jasmine was on her computer uploading photos. She seemed nice, and asked me to go to dinner with her mom, sister, and friend that night. I instantly accepted. A few minutes later my other roommate Crystal walked thru the door, unlike Jasmine, Crystal and I hadn't communicated at all before this meeting point. She seemed friendly, but I already felt left out. Jasmine and Crystal had moved down to KC the night before, and seemed to have already hit it off. Was I going to be the third wheel in this apt.?

We all went to dinner at Brio that night, I was extremely quite. After dinner Jasmine, Crystal, and I all sat in Crystal's room. I noticed Crystal had a bible or two by her bed, and a giant cross on her dresser. Instantly Crystal and Jasmine are talking about going to church together, and how they are going to marry their boyfriends. I felt like I had nothing in common, it was Friday night and I was staying in listening to two girls talk about their future engagements, when all I wanted was a beer. Needless to say I went to bed with tears in my eyes, thinking maybe I picked the wrong city....

I survived the weekend... I only survived the weekend because I decided to escape and visit my boyfriend in Springfield.

It was now time to start my classes. Rockhurst is about a mile from our apt. and our first class is at 5 pm on a Tuesday. 4:15 Crystal is ready to leaving for class, jingling her keys.... I tell her to go head, and sure enough when I walk into the class at 4:55 Crystal has her pencils sharpened, notebook open, and an apple for the teacher.... It didn't take long for me to rub off on her.

It didn't take Kansas City long to rub off on me either. I soon fell in love with my roomies, my graduate class, my professors, and the city. Kansas City has a much different feel than St. Louis, and I don't know how to describe it.

It didn't take long for me and my boyfriend to break up once he moved to NYC. We tried to make it work, but being so far apart, it is easy to get lonely.

With my first summer away from home I soon realized I needed something more in my life, a job. I drove to a country club that was hiring a beer girl, I ended up at the wrong country club, but this country club was hiring as well. Next thing I knew I worked a small beer hut at Mission Hills Country Club. This job could not get any easier, nor could it be more fun. The people I worked with, soon became my close friends, and we had the most awesome summer.

My roomies and I moved off the Plaza into Westport with 2 more girls in a program. Living with 5 girls is a lot, but for the most part, it worked well. I soon found my true love in Westport, Rudys, a Mexican restaurant a few blocks from my house. I sometimes think Crystal and I, and eventually Maggie kept this place in business during the recession. I also believe we are the reasons they now charge for chips and salsa.

After graduate school I toyed with the ideas of moving to a new city.... I just couldn't land a job that was worth moving for (Aka Baltimore).... I also couldn't think of starting all over in a new city alone, therefore I stayed in KC and moved in with Maggie and Dawn, which now our lease is coming to an end and with that I decided to move back home... You are probably asking why? I could list a million reasons, but a job came my way and I didn't want to pass it up.

Since living in Kansas City I have met some awesome people, ate some amazing food, made the most unforgettable memories, and I constantly question if I am making the right decision moving back to St. Louis....