Town of trees, and potholes

Last weekend I drove a 10-foot rental truck carrying all of my belongings from Pasadena, MD to Ann Arbor, MI. This was my first "serious housing move" since I was bringing large unwieldy furniture to an apartment I'll have all to myself. The drive was uneventful except for a nasty thunderstorm in western Pennsylvania. I arrived in the evening after driving all day, and since my apartment wouldn't be ready until the following morning, I stayed in my favorite inn, the Motel 6 on the outskirts of town. That night I found that Chipotle had opened a store in downtown, which was not there three years ago! This was a bittersweet find, however, because I have fond memories of stuffing myself with "Giant" burritos from the famous BTB (formerly Big Ten Burrito, sued for copyright infringement), an Ann Arbor icon. Fortunately the burrito market here is substantial enough that BTB remains in business.

The next day I took advantage of the four-day truck rental period to drive to Target to buy miscellaneous household items. There are some things you take for granted and are slightly taken aback when they're not there in your new apartment. Toilet paper, shower curtain, and dishwashing soap come to mind. In the afternoon the new MSTP fellows met together for the first time. The main purpose of this meeting was to inform us that as first-year MSTPers we were responsible for performing a skit at the upcoming MSTP retreat. This would be our only formal commitment for the first week, during which we were receiving $500, so apparently they want a very funny skit.

On Wednesday we had another MSTP social at Dominick's pizza restaurant. There I learned that the state of the roads around Ann Arbor is a hot issue, which I was encouraged to hear after a bone-rattling ride the day before. The nicest cycling road in town, Huron River Drive, is nearly unrideable, and repairs are way behind schedule due to town and state budget shortfalls. Ann Arbor cyclists are taking matters into their own hands, working to raise funds themselves to pay the construction crews. The hope is that they'll start repaving in a few months.

Here are a few pictures from my new apartment, located in the "White Coat Ghetto" a short walk across the Huron River from the Michigan Medical Center.

I'm in the basement, so the view I have from one small window is obscured by the big bush on the left. It is a little cooler down here though.

What's behind door number 6? The suspense is killing me.

Already busy with logistical items.
Bicycle workshop.
The "den."
The kitchen, with tiny but mighty oven and spectacular knife set. (Not shown: four beautiful new wine glasses)
The kitchen table. A real newspaper, other than the Ann Arbor 3-page biweekly less-than-rag, would be great but delivery of the NYTimes is very expensive.

This afternoon Nobel Laureate (Chemistry) Ada Yonath is speaking here. She's worked on the structure of the ribosome. Should be an awesome talk!