Where to start?

So, there have been times in the past when I've tried to keep a written record of what was going on in my life. All of these attempts failed. I never managed to keep a travel journal during any of my trips, never documented my junior high heartaches, never wrote down funny happenings or sayings.

Part of the problem was that I never knew where to start. How to you just start writing about a life that's already been around for 12 years, 19 years, or, now, 29 years? Do you need to start with a backstory? A bio? A cast of characters?

Lately I've been feeling very disconnected to some people in my life. I've lost touch with friends that I only just recently saw on a weekly or nearly-daily basis. Some friends I haven't communicated with in years (hello Elaine--you're getting married?). In part, I'm thinking about starting this blog in order to keep in touch with them. Do you ever do this--think about calling someone you haven't talked to in a long time, but then you think it will be too awkward to call because it's been so long since you called? And you'll have to fill them in on all the stuff that's been going on in your life that really you should have told them about much sooner? Yea, its like that.

So, in a nutshell, I have a lot going on in my life :) Patrick and I bought a house in Malden (hence the blog title), we got married in May, I'm trying to buckle down and finally finish my thesis so I can just graduate already, I need to find a job, and I've started gardening. Actually, this is the calm after the storm of the wedding/purchase/finals crunch, but I'm still feeling a bit drained.

Anyway, I thought I'd start keeping track of this sort of stuff, for my own sake. I think it should be kind of fun to write about my job search, my attempt to understand Malden, and the problem of what to do with the kitchen. Maybe you'll find it fun to read.