I can hear my neighbors but I have yet to meet any. ¬†I don’t hear music, talking, or people walking through the halls. Rather, I can hear the indoor plumbing being used when they flush the toilets or turn on their showers. ¬†PEOPLE! I KNOW YOU ARE THERE! I wonder if they know I am here too.
The trip down yesterday was uneventful. My bus arrived at 30th St Station 30 minutes late (which is normal for megabus) and my uncle picked me up and drove me to the seminary.  We arrived to find the Director of Student Services and a member of admissions manning a table. I picked up my keys, found my room, threw my stuff down and then headed out to Costco and Bed, Bath, and Beyond.  You cannot furnish an entire apartment with only one small suitcase and one athletic bag.
We had great fun going to the suburban box stores. ¬†Even though K and I love the city, we are suburbanites at heart and having the option to load up a car truck full of goods and services, is something that K and I really appreciate. ¬†I’m use to granny carting it to Costco. ¬†Cars are a luxury. ¬†We picked up sheets, towels, a set of pots, 1 bowl, 1 plate, 1 cup, 1 knife, 1 spoon, and 1 fork. ¬†Why only one of each? Because I’m living the bachelor life now. ¬†I will, most likely, just be eating out of the pans if I ever cook. ¬†I am a classy fellow.
After the trips to suburbia, K and I set up my room. ¬†I’ll post pictures later today. ¬†The place is rather spacious (though it is missing a desk). I actually have closet space which I don’t have in NYC. ¬†And I have more dressers than I really need. ¬†I’m pretty sure I’ll fill up this place with quite a bit of useless stuff over the next few weeks but it is nice to have room and knooks and crannies to place dust collectors. ¬†For a dorm room, this isn’t half bad.
I was able to show K the campus – the tour took a whopping five minutes. ¬†We did get to glance into the chapel which is always nice. ¬†When the campus has only five main buildings (or maybe six), there isn’t too much to see. The book store was closed which was a shame. ¬†I felt like buying college kitsch.
Through the day, I did see some of my future classmates. I saw many vans and SUVs in the parking lot with plates from Jersey, Iowa, Minnesota, and a few other parts of Luther Country. ¬†Admissions let in 62 folks this year which is a lot for a school of only 500 students across all degrees. ¬†We still need to wait to see if everyone shows up but it looks good. I don’t know how many are aiming for a Master of Divinity degree nor do I know which ones are in Candidacy or not. ¬†And I’m not sure if any others are coming from my home synod.
After the campus tour and setting up the dorm room, my uncle took me and K out to dinner with his family. It was nice talking to my cousins who are in high school (and who I originally saw when they were each 1 years old).  After dinner, K jumped on the bus back to NYC (which was 45 minutes late) and I took my first SEPTA ride!  If you ever head from 30th St station to LTSP, I recommend taking the Cherry Hill West line, jumping out at Allen Lane and then walking straight down Allen.  It runs right into the Seminary after about five minutes.
This morning, I’ll experience the big local lutheran church, St Michael’s, that serves the Seminary. ¬†And then I need to go out and buy all the remaining things I need. ¬†Showering without a shower curtain is a very wet affair. ¬†And not having an umbrella on the one day in the week where it is thunderstorming is very lame.