After 25 hours of on-and-off plane rides, I arrived home yesterday. I found that a few things have changed -- my brother has been driving my car since fall break, my family put half my belongings into storage and my mother has stopped food shopping. Fortunately she made an exception on Wednesday, and I found a fridge stocked with my favorites when I walked in.

At least they didn't turn my room into a gym. (No, they did that to the family room -- it's actually the equipment of my brother's friend who has been living with us for the last few weeks.)

I couldn't have been happier to come home. I was smiling so hard when the plane landed that I got some rather strange looks from the other passengers. I even got a little teary-eyed when I saw the Philadelphia skyline from above the ground. It'll take me a few weeks to get back on track, but I intend to spend the time eating all the Western food I can find and catching up with the people I've missed for the last year. Oh, and at some point I'll have to find a job. But I'm going to take a few days to rest first.