here i am, sitting in my 8th floor apartment at the corner of sidney and pacific. on my left are cherry-red plastic boxes overflowing with books, sweaters, and an embarassing number of disposable chopsticks. on my right, the cambridge horizon unfurls its splendor; from central square and beyond, i can see the towers of my harvardian past, their tops poking proudly into the sky with shiny spires and bright colors.

i can see the sunset from here.

my day began at 4:30am, wide-awake in the softness of dark, a combination of excitement for the return trip to cambridge and some lingering jet-lag. i did most of the driving today, save for a two-hour hiatus when my parents forced me to rest. otherwise, i happily cruised to downtempo beats while my parents snored in tandem. tucked in breakfast at friendly's... nothing like eggs, ham, french toast, and pancake (in the singular) to wash down the coffee. lunch was a surprise discovery, an italian restaurant labeled "NINO'S", adjacent to the local motel 8. not terribly promising at first glance, but the pasta (handmade!) was magnificent. our gemelli with chicken and mushrooms tasted vaguely chinese-foodish, but we didn't mind in the least. a new foodie discovery: serving a tiny sliver of lemon peel along with a demitasse of espresso. why? the addition of rind counterbalances the acidity of the coffee. i thought i knew everything there was to know about food, but i'm relieved to realize there is so much more in store!

now that i'm here, everything seems alien and familiar at once. mass ave bustles and tempts with bookstores and fresh naan. but i live in new dorm with glass-lined industrial park styling and no grandiose staircases and antiqued leather. i'm rapidly reuniting with my friends from cambridge and boston. yet i'll be meeting an enormous number of new people, which will be emotionally challenging to manage. i used to associate being at school with relating intimately with jim, but now... again, it is different.

to undergo the metamorphosis.