So I’m still kinda getting used to this whole “everyone’s so nice”Ā phase. It’s not that people in the other places I’ve lived weren’t nice, but…I’m really not sure I’ve ever encountered this level of hospitality. It’s kinda unreal. I’m not used to such a small town, nor am I used to everyone just knowing…everyone. There are no secrets here–if something happens, everyone will know. So we have to be careful what we say, because for all you know, one of their relatives could be sitting right behind you listening to every word. Tis a good thing that I never made it a regular habit to talk negatively about other people. I guess I’m really just not used to having to really care about what other people in the town think of me (never was an issue before because [1] I’d never see them again, and [2] the chances of people talking about me were rather low).
I also think the place I grew up in was fairly liberal, and I’m not entirely sure what it’s like here yet, but there are churches everywhere and not being Christian is definitely out of the norm. They actually have an SDA church here though (I was very surprised :O ), so I’ve been going there. People are super nice, friendly and welcoming, but part of me wonders what they’d think if they found out just how cafeteria-y of a Christian I am. Joanne mentioned last month (I can’t believe it hasn’t even been a full month since I left California) that when she thinks of someone Christian, she thinks of me, so she doesn’t associate terrible things to them. <3 Makes me happy. <3 I’m not so sure this sort of cafeteria-y Christian-ness will fly around here though, so I’ve been careful with everything I’ve been saying lately. :X
I also can’t tell if someone’s hitting on me anymore. It used to be fairly easy, but here, everyone’s just so nice that it’s hard to tell if they’re really just that nice, so I reciprocate and vaguely hope that I’m not accidentally lead them on or anything. lawl. Also slightly concerned about offending future patients with questions like, “Do you have sex with men, women or both?/How many partners do you have?” since this is not California, but…yeah. :O
I went to Blue Bend last weekend (separate post on that later <3 it is absolutely beautiful) and stopped in Caldwell for dinner at a church friend’s place. (Apparently, practically 2/3 of WV consists of uninhabited crazy-beautiful wilderness.) They live on a farm, so I got to pick/shuck some corn to roast for dinner/pick up firewood. It was pretty awesome. :D They have 2 horses, a bunch of chickens, turkeys, ducks…and speaking of which…
Meet Duck! :D She (we think it’s a girl) is kinda afraid of water where she can’t touch the ground at the moment, but hopefully she’ll grow out of that soon. so cute. ;_;
All in all, it was a pretty awesome, super-peaceful day, although I can’t shake the feeling that I’m always supposed to be studying. It’s kinda like studying for finals, but every single day. :[
