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The Questions No One Asks When You Move 3,000 Miles Across the Country
Must bravery or stupidity underwrite every bold life decision?
When I shared my intention to move across the country, the questions began coming as if on a conveyor belt. Predictable and uniform. Are you keeping your job? Do you have an apartment yet? Why?
I imagined myself as a mysterious figure giving a press conference. With a twinge of vocal fry and a twirl of black, drapey clothing, I announce that I will take no further questions at this time, thank you. But it’s not really considered polite to tell friends and coworkers that you are taking no further questions. My life is not a press conference. I am not some high-profile detective, updating the public on the unknowables of my existence.
Or maybe I am. I certainly don’t have it all figured out yet. I learned soon enough, though, that the simplest response to a boring question is a boring answer. To say anything too extraordinary would overstep the dance. The questions people ask are, at least, ones that I have answers for. Are you keeping your job? Yes. How are you getting there? I’m driving. Do you have an apartment yet? No, I’ll figure it out. Why are you moving? Because I’ve spent most of my life bouncing between points in a particular constellation and I’m young and…
