Orlando

Surprise, surprise.

Sure enough, a year after moving to Jersey City, I was attending my annual trip to Skyline's event when I came across an opportunity that couldn't be turned down. Upon returning to my job, apartment and life in Jersey City after the interview, I started packing. And two and a half weeks later, I was out the door down to Orlando.

It's hard essentially starting over at 32. But what makes the transition easier is that Orlando is a city of transplants. I've only really met one person who said, 'I'm from here.' And even that was a lie because she was from Tampa.

That said, two weeks ago Orlando was dealt a heavy one-two-three combo over the weekend where we had a rising star murdered at her concert, a mass shooting at a nightclub and an alligator attack at Disney. Last night at a bar, I was discussing this with a man from Chicago who, like most people down here, was here temporarily. I was surprised that even though no one had really started calling Orlando home, we all felt like we were sharing the pain of those events like we were all part of a home. Blood donor locations are still over-capacity, memorials are still being set at the lake and Dr. Philips, and money is still being pumped into multiple GoFundMes. The stranger at the bar said:

'Yeah, of course you feel like a family cause you all have one common thought: that shit ain't right.'

Then the Cubs got the last out, he chugged his beer, shook my hand and left.