"It's never goodbye, it's always see you later"

And so it begins . . 9 weeks in Bikram's 'Torture Chamber' . . I arrived yesterday thanks to Katie who drove me down to L.A. from Santa Barbara . . it was hard to leave SB and the beautiful weather. We arrived during orientation but after registration so Katie stayed up in my room and I attended what was left of the opening events. Bikram was not on the premises yesterday as his opening lecture would be scheduled for today, Monday, at 11 a.m. I met up with my roommate, Jennie, whom I know from practicing at the Upper West Side studio (we requested to room together) and we opted to take advantage of Katie's car and drive to Trader Joe's rather than go right away to the opening reception/buffet. So we stocked up on essentials, including a $17 can opener, and headed back to the room to unpack and get settled. Now came the hard part: saying goodbye to my sister. We had a really nice 5 days together and managed to pack a lot into our short time. I had not seen her since October and likely will not again until TT graduation for which she and Rory are coming to L.A. We tend to like to make our goodbyes as quick and painless as possible so to avoid the inevitable burst of tears and subsequent feeling of emptiness. This time we reminded each other of a phrase that Rory uses when he says goodbye to his family in Jamaica and heads "home" to the U.S. . "It's never goodbye . . it's always see you later" . . that certainly helped when I had to say goodbye to Rory just about a week ago and was comforting when bidding farewell to my sister. So we hugged each other and simply said "see you later".
So, with the first leg of my trip and new life over and TT underway, I am ready to get the show on the road. This morning we were expected in our seats for lecture at 10 a.m. and Bikram spoke at 11 a.m. We surprisingly had about 4 hours of free time and next up is our first class. I can't wait to get in the hot room! See you later!