Autumn, Anyone?

So it's the end of August and I'm still sweating every time I walk outside. You can usually start to smell hints of fall by now. But it is still 90 degrees and humid in Richmond, Virginia. And the only things I smell are citronella candles and the exhaust from my neighbor's old Buick. I can't wait for autumn. I'm so impatient. I love the colors, the sound of leaves crunching when I take walks through the park. If you would have asked me a couple months ago what I'd be doing at the end of August, I probably would've said selling all of my stuff in preparation for moving to Korea and teaching English. But...(drum roll) actually, I got a job last week as a designer and sales rep for a furniture and interior design company, here in Richmond. I start next week, the day after my birthday. I'm soooo excited! This whole summer I've been whining to everyone about feeling stuck, and wanting to be anywhere else but here. I was a few phone calls away from moving out West for the winter, and then moving overseas to teach. But for some reason, I got a call back from a resume I submitted months ago and never followed up on. I told myself that if I got the job, I'd stay. If not, I would be out of Richmond by mid October. I told all of my close friends and family about the interview. Maybe because I secretly hoped it would jinx me and I wouldn't get the job, so therefore I would be moving somewhere else in a few months. But the truth is, if I really didn't want to be here, I wouldn't be. I didn't really give myself a good chance to transition into this new phase of my life. I guess I thought it would just happen. And when I found myself waiting tables at the same place I was before I moved to Alaska, I felt stuck again. And I convinced myself that I had to leave again in order to feel unstuck. When really, all it took was something different to open up a new door for me.
So I guess I'm here longer than I expected. But for good reason. I needed something else in my field for my resume. My last interior design job was my internship in college. It's weird to think of me having a design career right now. I mean, I think this is where I need to be at the moment. I'm excited about being an artist, and being in this field. And I don't feel trapped like I did a couple months ago. I know that if I want to leave and teach English overseas, or go work in a ski resort in Park City, or move back to Alaska and work any other odd job, I can.
I still talk to my Alaskan dad (Terry,) quite a bit. I was actually scared to tell him about the new job, because he had been excited about me wanting to teach English in Korea. He lived there for many years. He was in the first group of volunteers to ever go to Korea in the PeaceCorps back in the 60s. He met his wife there, and is extremely knowledgeable of the culture. He mentioned that his PeaceCorps buddies were all having a reunion this fall in Seoul, and we talked about traveling together in Korea and Japan if I was up there for teaching. So I didn't want to let him down. A silly thought. He's really excited for me and is glad I'm pursuing one of my passions. And that makes me even more excited. Plus I know that we'll be able to travel together again one day.