Lindsey Leger: Rochester so far

Ever since I got here last Friday, I've been job hunting like crazy. I've applied at over 20 places, posted resumes for on-campus jobs, and tomorrow I'm going to a job fair at school (and probably ditching orientation in the process). So far, though, it has been fruitful! I went on an interview today at Panera Bread and I have a second interview with them on Saturday, and tomorrow I have interviews with Burlington Coat Factory and Pier 1 Imports. They're all pretty near campus and on my way home, so either one would be a decent option, but I'm hoping for Panera at this point. So, wish me luck, pray for me, read your horoscopes, whichever you prefer! I can hardly believe I'm having such good luck so far.

In other news, I'm pretty sure I'm about to get my ass kicked by school. Hard. I got an email from one of my professors for my Materials & Processes class, and we start up with labs and work right away. I suppose it's not really surprising, as we only have 10 weeks per quarter, but wow. I'm still waiting for my textbooks to come in, and I haven't even ordered some of them because I wanted to make sure I was going to be okay financially before I did... hopefully this will be okay.

I have only gotten seriously lost once so far in Rochester. Last Saturday, I took the bus to the bookstore, walked around campus, etc., when I ran into this boy who was looking for the bus stop. His name is Zaryab, and he's from Pakistan. So we got to talking while we were waiting for the bus, and we ended up hanging out and exploring town all afternoon. So then it was about 8 PM and we were waiting for the bus to come at the mall to take us our separate ways-- him back to RIT, me to where I live in the other direction-- and so I got on the same bus I rode that morning. I ended up in a rather dangerous part of downtown. The bus driver called for another bus to come and take me back to where I needed to go, and so I got on that bus, but then halfway there, he turned around and drove me right back to where I was. By then it was nearly 11 at night and I was getting really scared, to be honest. I only had $10 on me, and I knew a cab ride back would be much more, and I was about to call the police for help when my landlord called and offered to pick me up. I felt really bad having him come and save my neck already, but so far he and his wife have been really great in helping me find my way around. You never know when you move into someone else's house how they're going to be about stuff like that, but I feel really fortunate to have found them. He's always offering to let me go grocery shopping and stuff with him, and they're letting me use his wife's old bicycle to get around.

So long story short, I have to remember that this isn't San Franciscco and the buses aren't magnificent here. I'm going to be using the bike to get around for now, until it starts snowing and the roads freeze over, which should be around late November. I'm hoping that once school and work start, I can find someone to carpool with, and my dad is talking about helping me get a moped or something. But riding a bike sure beats walking-- the other day I ended up having to walk home from campus which is a good 5 miles. I guess I'm probably going to be putting 50 miles a week on that bike, so I'm going to be super in shape. Win!

Here's a few pictures from here-- nothing amazing, I haven't done much shooting yet.