5/23/22

 What have I been watching?: The Kardashians

I have been in Milwaukee for one week, and I am loving it. There is so much activity here, so much good energy, so many beautiful parks and outdoor spots, so many bustling bars, breweries, restaurants, etc. 

On the 17th, I moved into my apartment with the assistance of my family. The building is brand new with tenants starting leases only as of May 1, so there are not very many residents yet. I have a one-bedroom apartment with a gorgeous, large balcony overlooking Walker's Point. I am close enough to the highway to see the cars speeding past a block or two away out my windows, which makes getting on the road to go to other parts of Milwaukee super easy. 

Bathroom pre-unpacking

Living room area with view of balcony

Living area plus partial view of kitchen

Although I've barely even lived in Milwaukee yet, I have already had the chance to get out and see friends and check out some spots. 

On Friday night, I believe it was, I had the wonderful pleasure of joining one of my future co-clerks and some of Judge's former clerks for drinks. I was in contact with my future co-clerk and she had let me know they were going to be going out to celebrate one of the current clerk's last day. I was so honored to be invited and knew I definitely had to take advantage of the offer and go out! I met them at the Juneau Park Traveling Beer Garden, where my future co-clerk treated me to a lovely root beer lol. It was raining on and off that day, and the seating there is outdoors, so eventually we relocated to another place. We ended up at the Knickerbocker, which I thought was so incredibly funny because when I had informed my old Contracts professor months ago that I had gotten a job in Milwaukee (she went to law school at UW Madison), she told me I had to check out the Knickerbocker. So I thought it was cool that one of the first places I ended up visiting in Milwaukee was the place she had mentioned. Cool coincidence. 

Also present that evening was another Judge's clerk and, like I mentioned, some of my Judge's former clerks. I recognized and remembered a few of the former clerks from when I had interviewed last summer. Everyone was so amazingly kind, welcoming, and open. We chatted and laughed sooo much. They toasted to my recent graduation and shared lots of intel and funny stories with me. I felt so, so grateful to be included and to be having such fun with these folks within only a few days of me getting to Milwaukee. The next morning when I woke up, I seriously wondered if I had dreamt it all because it was so fun and hilarious. We all exchanged numbers, and I hope we can hang out again before the current clerks (and recently former clerks) leave town.

This most recent weekend, my brother Tim and my sister-in-law Taylor came over from Madison and spent Saturday afternoon and evening with me. Then they spent the night and we explored Sunday morning as well. On Saturday, we went to a plant shop I had discovered on Instagram called Maranta. Tim and Taylor are plant crazy. They have dozens and dozens of plants in their apartment in Madison, and next time I visit there, they said I can take a few home with me.

I didn't have any plants to bring with me from Cleveland due to a tragic series of events culminating in me "burning" all of my plants with fertilizer spikes (rip). It was for the best probably because transporting them all would have been very cumbersome. I picked out two larger plants at Maranta because I wanted a few bigger plants rather than a bunch of little plants scattered around. I would have bought even bigger ones, but we wouldn't have been able to transport them in my car. At the apartment, Tim helped me repot one of them into my largest pot. However, that pot may be cursed because I had a ficus in that pot at one point, which I had christened Mother Fiker. Mother Fiker perished slowly over a long period of months.

We then had pizza at a place nearby called Fixture Pizza Pub. It was within walking distance and gave me a good chance to look around at the other shops and restaurants on the nearby streets. We liked the place, although I tried artichoke on pizza for the first time, and I don't think I would do so again. 

The next morning, we checked out the Mitchell Park Domes. The Domes house Milwaukee's botanical gardens. It was absolutely gorgeous and a super cool visit. The tropical-themed Dome was soooo hot and humid that we were all sweating.

Then Tim and Taylor headed back to Madison because I had to get back to my bar prep. Bar prep is going pretty fine so far. It is hard to tell sometimes if I am on track or not. My first batch of subject matter has been Contracts and Sales. I did not take Sales, but I did have a very rigorous and comprehensive Contracts class which seems to have covered almost everything I need to know for the bar. I have also had to do some Family Law, which I also did not take in law school. I don't care much for Family Law as a subject matter, to be honest.

Then on Sunday night, I had plans to see an old coworker of mine from Culver's! I have worked at multiple Culver's in the past, and one of my former coworkers had relocated to Milwaukee some time ago. So we knew we had to meet up once I got to town. We met for dinner and then watched a Kardashians episode at my apartment. It was soooo good to see him and catch up. I think we will plan to hang out again. I suggested we hit the beach once it gets hotter, and I also want us to take a trip one of these weekends to the nearest Ikea. 

I am feeling seriously so grateful for the wonderful days I have had in Milwaukee so far. To already have had such welcoming, friendly experiences with people here seriously makes my heart swell. I am feeling comfortable in my new apartment, and feeling positive with my nice view, the good light, the bright walls, etc. I do need a few more things for my apartment, though. I just have my futon in my living area, so I am looking for an armchair or similar to add some more seating. There also isn't overhead lighting in the living area or my bedroom, so I've ordered a floor lamp for here in the living area. I was considering getting a desk for bar prep, but I am on the fence about it. I have been studying on my futon, on the treadmill in the apartment gym, on my balcony, and while sitting at my kitchen cart table thing. Also this morning I spent about four hours studying at a coffee shop nearby. So while I would likely use a desk to some extent, I definitely don't need one. I also still need a TV stand, and my TV is currently just sitting on the floor. A bookshelf or some other kind of storage would also be good as currently I don't have anywhere to put my books and to display my various knickknacks, photos, awards, etc. 

Oh also today after my studying, I swung by the UW Milwaukee Police Department because my friend told me that they give away free steering wheel locks for Hyundai and Kia owners. Why, you ask? Because apparently they are the easiest vehicles to steal! I had no idea. They are disproportionately among the most frequently stolen vehicles in the city. I am, as you have probably deduced, an owner of one such vehicle. So I took advantage of the free steering wheel lock, although I do not yet know how to use it.

On my way to the UW Milwaukee campus, I got to like drive this route along the lake. It was sooooo gorgeous and I'd had no idea!!! The beach is like...fucking pristine. I saw Bradford Beach, and it had a Tiki Bar and a bunch of volleyball courts. The beach was so well-groomed and had such beautiful sand. And I had thought Edgewater was a decent great lakes beach! I can't wait till it gets hot enough to go to Bradford Beach. The scenery was just generally so beautiful along there, and there were these huge gorgeous mansion-like houses on the cliff opposite the lake. My jaw literally dropped while I was driving past.

Bye!