Humans of Mac – KC – Jennifer P.

Jennifer, out in front of the soon-to-be-complete Newbern. 

Welcome to our Humans of Mac blog!  As part of our community, we like to highlight our amazing and interesting residents. Everyone has a story and it’s incredible to hear the accomplishments and daily lives of people who come through our community. We hope that you enjoy reading.

How long have you been a resident at Mac?

“I moved in last December, so 8 months. Or, at least, that’s how long I’ve been paying rent. I travel a lot for work, and I sometimes feel like I’ve only been in my lovely little apartment for a few weeks.”

What do you like to do in your free time?

“You can usually find me reading, watching Game of Thrones, or rocking the pool tables at Buzzard Beach.”

What do you enjoy most about living at Mac?

 “I love the buildings and their fancy names. Seeing restoration happen and then living in it makes me feel a little more settled – like I’m living somewhere with permanence.”

Describe yourself in 3 words.

 “Sass, flashdance, orca”

What’s your biggest strength?

 “Empathy.”

What’s your biggest weakness?

 “Shallow pools.”

Tell me about one of your favorite memories in Kansas City.

 “Let me preface this with two things. One, I sometimes wear a shark onesie in public. Two, I broke my back in June and am still recovering (keep reading and I’ll tell you what happened). On this particular day I was facing a task that I had previously never seen as a challenge: moving my suitcase from my car to my apartment. I decided this called for a Slurpee and donned my shark suit. With the hood pulled up, I could guarantee that people would notice the suit before they saw the brace. The benefit of this? Anyone on the street will ask you why you’re in a brace; only people who would do it themselves will ask you why you’re wearing a onesie. My walk to the 7-Eleven was uneventful, and I was returning to my apartment when a group of guys, sitting in lawn chairs and drinking Colt 45, started pointing in my direction. I braced myself to be joked at, but it turned out they just wanted to hang, and they shared their beer to prove it. As I passed more groups of people on lawns and porches, it more or less went like this: people saw the onesie, yelled some version of “HEY,” noticed the brace, and invited me up for a drink. By the time I made it back to the Windemere, I was feeling cool and assertive enough to flag down a couple out for an evening stroll to help me get my suitcase inside. Sometimes it’s bomb to be a shark.”

What attracts you to KC?

 “People. I came to visit once and decided not to leave.”

What are your life goals?

“The simplest way to answer this question is to tell you the end-goal of my goals, which is happiness. Sure, I have targets along the way: do my laundry by Sunday, stand out on that project at work, talk to that boy in that bar, spend time with my grandparents, never assume you know what’s happening in the life of that one woman who glared at you in the supermarket – but everything I do along the way is directed towards my present and ongoing happiness.”

Tell us something interesting about your job, personal life, or charity work.

 “Okay, okay. I promised I would tell you – I dove wrong into a pool while on vacation. Pros: priority boarding, brace = good icebreaker, modeling gig for those plaques on the sides of pools, I’m better now. Cons: ouch, struggling with fitted sheets, children pointing, etc.”

What would you like to share with your KC Neighbors?

 “One of my favorite things to do in KC is go to ¡ClaroKC! meetings. First off, it’s an amazing pun. Second off, it’s a great group of people interested in getting together and sharing a meal – in Spanish. The attendees range from native speakers to first-week beginners, and all are welcome. The regular meetings are at Taqueria Mexico on Southwest Boulevard every Tuesday evening from 6:30-8:30. You can find more info through their meetup group: http://www.meetup.com/ClaroKC/

What would you say to someone looking to live in Midtown KC Apartments?

 “You may regret that overpriced ceramic cat you bought in Riverport, but you won’t regret bringing it home to here.

Wait. Nope, you won’t regret the cat, either.”