Where I Live

This is my view, my window to the world.

I live in a small efficiency apartment a stone’s throw away from the classroom. The unit is about 450 square feet. It has a full bath and a separate kitchen. It’s clean and comfortable. I like it. Both the bath and the kitchen are on the back side of the building and have windows. I can see across the top of downtown Portland and over to Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens on clear days. When I look out of my back windows, I can see the Science building through the trees.

On cloudy days I can see the layers of grey form and slide across the earth as they envelope the city and dim its lights at night. Some days I wake up, and the fog and mist have crept up our little valley. It obscures all but the closest trees that I can barely discern as thin, black fingers in winter. On sunny days, especially after a rain, the air is remarkably clear as the moisture settles the dust and pollution and allows the sun to penetrate every living thing. Colors are made bright and vibrant. There is also a skybridge that connects the main hospital to the VA hospital. It presents a phenomenal view of the mountains to the east. On clear mornings, it is filled with nature lovers who remark on the sunrise over coffee and scones.

Some would say my home is cramped, but I have room for all I need. I fold up my futon bed every day to make a comfortable couch and view powerpoints on a big screen TV hooked up as a monitor for my computer. I’m very thankful to have this new set-up. I had been having terrific headaches last year, and I seem to have been successful at narrowing the main source of my headaches to being bent over desks made too low for tall folks as I studied. My headaches occur a tenth as much as before. Pretty much everything is up on the screen now – controlled by a wireless mouse and keyboard.

I see people pass by when the front shades are open. They walk along the road that is about 30 feet from my front door. It’s not a busy road. I imagine that they are all affiliated with OHSU in some way, but I know that many aren’t. Most of them look like science people to me. They look like they like to work in labs or at tasks that engage them completely. They look like they would be happiest observing and thinking and synthesizing data.

The neighbors have been noisy. Thank goodness the noisy girl next door has gone. Unfortunately, the new girl upstairs walks heavily on her heels at a rapid pace. It echoes through the wood floors and reverberates in the walls. I’m pretty sure she crossed the floor over a hundred times in 45 minutes this morning. Doesn’t seem particularly efficient to me. Maybe it was too cold to walk outside this morning. I can hear her phone vibrate from where it sits on a table or chair, and the sound is transmitted to me when it is finally released from my ceiling.

I eat simply. Cereal and oatmeal with fruit in the morning. I take juice and donuts to class to snack on while I enjoy the show. I suppose popcorn would be more appropriate, but it doesn’t taste as good as donuts do and there are some bizarre chemicals in microwave popcorn. Even the unbuttered stuff, I think… Donuts are pure and wholesome. Sometimes I eat microwave dinners. They have too much salt. I like salads and tomatoes and bananas and whole wheat bread. I eat turkey and ham with too many nitrates (and too much salt, too). I have eggs every once in a while. I don’t cook much. Just keep it easy and try not to kill myself all at once.

I run 4 miles a few times a week and do calisthenics when I don’t run. I wish I would do more, but I need to study and am getting older. My strength is declining and my endurance continues to require greater effort. I do love to exercise. Am pretty sure I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t. Looking around, I seem to have more capacity than my same-age peers, and my energy levels drop quickly (within weeks) when I don’t maintain a workout schedule. I definitely look forward to including regular exercise in my life. I truly wouldn’t be happy any other way.