Awesome (Belated) News!

On the 13th of November, Drew started his new job! It's a retail position for a company that makes table top strategy games that uses miniature figures. We had been visiting the local store, hanging out and purchasing items to assemble and paint and he decided to go to the cattle call/prelim interview. He's working at the brand spanking new store in Kent and having a really good time. Besides the awesome benefits (medical, vision, dental, tuition reimbursement) I can go hang out in the store and work on my minis. In fact, I was thanked by his boss, the manager, for being there so often. How cool is that? I'm even attending one of their academies where they'll teach me about painting and assembling the miniatures and how to play the game.

My job is going well. I'm keeping busy. I sometimes get frustrated as everyone seems to think I have a better grasp on what I'm doing than I really do. (I often want to yell, "I've been here TWO months. I don't know all this stuff!) I'll take it as flattery. Or perhaps I'm far too good at faking competence. =D

I'm now one week into a three month contract for the job I posted about previously. No major issues as of yet. The job seems to be straight forward and I'm catching on fairly quickly. The person I'm covering for will not be in until my contract ends, so I'll be (kind of) on my own.

My only complaint is the drive. I wouldn't mind spending 45 minutes (minimum) in the car if there was constant movement. The stop and go traffic makes me nearly insane. I'm grateful that I'll only be doing this for three months. If I do find a job in the area, which is possible, I'm getting a lot of search results on Monster, we'll be relocating.

Other than the long drive, all is well. We've had a bit of rain, but not too much. I'm certainly not tired of it yet!

Work Update

A few weeks ago I posted my resume on monster.com and received a phone call from a placement agency. They had a job they thought I might be a good fit for, but it turns out that they needed someone with more technical/journal writing experience.

I was called on Friday, by the same group, about a temp job. It's obviously not my ideal situation, but I need a job and money so I'll take just about anything. If she can get me the max offered it would still be a cut. I was told, though, that the max was likely as I have the skills they need (I exceed the skills, actually).

I have an interview on Monday with the placement agency. As it's a bit of a drive from here, I hope they have me interview with the other place that same day. If they decide they want me, I'd start on the 1st at the latest.

I wouldn't turn down good thoughts and prayers for this opportunity and also for the other, permanent positions I've applied for.

One Week Down

I wish I had more interesting things to report, but I've been mainly busy getting things settled in the apartment and applying for jobs. It was so much easier when all I had to do was walk in some place, fill out an app on the spot and, in many cases, get interviewed (and hired!) right then and there. Now there are cover letters and resumes and emails and follow-up phone calls.

The major excitement would probably be the train ride up here. If you have the time and the cash the train is where it's at. I got a roomette for a total of 336, I believe. The day before I left the rate went up to somewhere around 700 to 800, so make your reservation early.

I climbed aboard the train and was immediately greeted by the car attendant, who handed me a lunch reservation ticket. I started to make my way to the dining car and was stopped by...a porter? Who informed me that there probably wouldn't be room for me and my backpack. So back to the sleeper car to find my room, dump my bags and then make my way to the food. I ended sitting with the lovely lady my mom and I met waiting for the train, and a husband and wife from Connecticut who were also on their way to Seattle. I had a lovely time chatting, though the food was average at best. This would be a recurring theme, great company, lackluster food.

Back at my room I ran into the car attendant, Chris. He apologized for sending me off like that and explained that I looked and acted like I knew where I was going and what I was doing, so he figured I didn't need much help! He then explained how everything worked, where the restrooms were and how the food reservations were made. We also made small talk for a little bit. He was a really nice person and I was quite glad I was on his car.

I was also extremely pleased with where I ended up. You can look at the layouts on the Amtrak website, but to give you an idea, the upper floors are almost dorm room like, room after room (11 roomettes and 4 larger bedrooms, I believe), with one bathroom. The lower level is much smaller. Only 4 roomettes and then the family room at one end and the handicapped room at the other. There are also three toilets and the shower on that level. Due to the fact that there isn't a way to move between the cars on the lower level, the only people that came that way were ones on the way to their rooms or needing the restroom. Consequently it was quiet most of the time. I also read that there is less movement on the lower levels, so there isn’t as much rocking. I certainly had my fill while eating on the dining car, which was on the upper level.

I didn’t have a chance to watch any movies, as there was something to do (typically food-centric) every couple of hours. Breakfast is a first-come first-served deal but lunch and dinner require reservations. Those in the sleeper cars don’t have to pay for food, unless you order any alcoholic beverages with the meal. There was also wine tasting in the afternoons, showcasing wines from the state or states we were traveling through. Having never been wine tasting, I had a really good time. The first afternoon I was sat next to the same couple from lunch, along with a Washington local (she was from Renton, which is just down the street from us, so to speak). She was traveling south when there was a stabbing on the train in the coach section! The gentleman across from us used his iPhone to look up news articles so we could find out a bit more about what happened.

The dining car is usually crowded and loud, so I was pleased to find out that there was yet another amenity for sleeper car passengers, the Parlour Car. There are 5 or 6 booths on the lower level and they offered a smaller selection of food, but it was quieter there. In fact, the first meal I had there I was able to sit by myself! The second I was sat with someone else, but I could have opted to eat alone if I wanted to. Again, the food was much like café food, nothing terribly interesting or terribly good. But it was included in the ticket, so I can’t complain too much. I will say I would have felt very put out if I had to pay the prices they were charging for the quality of food that was offered.

The roomette was cozy but not cramped. I can see that with a second person it could be, especially if you weren’t on good terms with them. =] There are two seats facing each other and a pullout table between. The seats were wide and comfy, and there was about a half a foot between the seats and the door. On one side was the “closet”, basically a hook to hang things and then a pocket of sorts at the bottom. The other side had the stairs to the upper berth, which was great for storing my backpack and purse. (I’ll have to load the pictures from my phone on to the computer and post them. The room photos were the only ones I took.) I had enough room for the laptop on the table and when I reclined the opposite seat, it became the perfect footrest.

I found sleeping on the train no problem at all. In fact, I found napping at any time no problem at all. There were times that I considered skipping meals because I was so comfy. Only issue is, you then have to pay for snacks.

All in all, taking the train was a wonderful experience. After driving and flying I have to say that when I travel back to California, if I have the time and money, I’m definitely taking the train.

Time Flies When Work Eats Your Brain

Update in numbered format. Because I'm all about incomplete thoughts. And poor sentence structure.

1. Only thing broken in the move was a ceramic goblet. Not bad at all. Of course we haven't opened all the boxes in storage. The many, many boxes.

2. My last day of work was Friday. Had a lovely potluck. With Swedish pancakes. With lingonberry butter. Take THAT gluten-free diet!

3. I got almost everything done at work that I had said I would.

4. Was asked frequently if I was excited about the move. My pat response was, "I'll be excited when I get all my work done". Guess what? I'm finally excited!

5. Goodbyes suck. That is all.

6. I'm really excited about the train. I'm not so excited about fitting everything into two (now three!) suitcases. Mom and I went to Linens and Things and picked up some space saver bags. They look like they'll be a big help. Although instead of being able to cram soft items in nooks and crannies, I have big, stiff blocks of clothing. I don't think I thought my cunning plan all the way through...

7. And I'm spent. Today will be packing as much as possible, last minute errands and final goodbyes.

Moving Part 1, Completed

The truck arrived on Sunday. I don't have a lot of details, save that Drew helped unload so that it wouldn't take forever.

Apparently far too many things ended up in the apartment, so the process of unpacking, reviewing, repacking and relocating has been going on this week.

Now, to start shipping stuff from here to WA, so I don't have too many bags on the train...

More Moving Adventures

Drew just called. The moving company is (finally) in Oregon.

BUT. It's a new driver. Our stuff was unloaded off the initial truck, then loaded onto another one, with another driver.

A new driver who wasn't aware that we were going to pay for the remainder of the move with a credit card.

Of COURSE the office is closed, so there's no way for the driver to verify this.

Drew is on his way to the bank to pull cash. The only upside to this is that the old apartment was able to get a new tenant in fast enough that our rent check for August will not be cashed.

I am thoroughly annoyed and cranky about this.

Driving. With a Cat.

Half an hour after my last post (9:30 pm) the foreman called and said he could be at the apartment at 11.

(Please see comments re: loud noises after 10 pm in previous post)

Upon hearing this was unacceptable, the gentleman said he could be there at 7 am the next day. I said this was fine.

9am, the movers show up. They get to assessing what we have, and it turns out we have much more than the 700 cu feet (we knew that, just didn't catch it on the contract), and more than the predicted 60 boxes. We were told that 60 was probably too high an estimate.

After the 169 boxes were loaded (219 items total), we got on the road. At 4:30. Not the 8 am start time that we would have preferred. We loaded up the SUV with stuff, cat, and people, stuck Emily (the GPS) to the window, and headed out.

We let the cat out of the carrier after a bit on the road. In general, she was okay as long as she had her head buried under something. She mostly sat on the console between us, when she wasn't trying to dive under Drew's feet. Who was driving. With his feet on the pedals. She made it down there once, and I had to haul her out by the scruff of her neck. I made sure she wasn't able to make it down there again. Which meant that I was awake the entire drive, although I'm a champ at falling asleep in the car.

After 8 hours of driving, we made it to Redding and the most uncomfortable Motel 6 bed I have ever slept on. It was almost as bad as sleeping on the floor the night before. The cat ended up under the bed and we left her there, figuring that if she felt safe, she'd sleep well and be more agreeable in the morning. We slept until 8 and the got ready and got back on the road at 9 am.

The second leg we had to keep the cat in the carrier because she wouldn't stop trying to get down under Drew's feet. I got tired of having to restrain her, so back in the carrier. She made her displeasure known by ignoring us when we spoke to her, and staring at the side of her box the entire time.

We arrived in Tukwila around 7:30, left the cat in the bathroom, and unloaded the Jeff (the SUV). After a lovely meal and some watching of Dr. Who (why didn't you people tell me about this show!) we went to bed. On an air mattress. That didn't like to stay inflated.

Saturday was the running of errands, picking up items that we didn't want to move or didn't have room for in the Jeff. Then was the fun task of running cat5 cable between the two bedrooms so that both rooms had internet access. Dinner at Denny's which ended up with a cut lip from a chewed up spoon (the moms) and a funky, PineSol flavored hamburger (Drew's). Then to bed (on the same air mattress) .

At 4 am the alarm went off and I got ready for my flight back to SB. 4:25 I got a call from the cab, which was outside the apartment. Off to the airport for my 7 am flight.

Which didn't leave until...later. I had my cell turned off. Apparently there was an issue with the rear lavatory, and they decided to close it off, pump it out, and then send us on our way. Only problem is that the lavatories were serviced by a contract company, and the guy had called in sick. They had to find a worker with one of the other carriers to take care of the issue.

This meant running across San Francisco's airport to catch my flight. Which ended up sitting there for undetermined (unannounced) reasons. I slept the entire hour until descent to SB. My mom picked me up and brought me to her place, after taking me to the drugstore, the grocery store, and picking up lunch at Chili's. The rest of the day was running errands to get the internet working here.

Things have been going smoothly at my mom's. I'm not fond of the air mattress, but it's better than the floor. It's warm, but there's an industrial size fan here that's pretty good at keeping things at a reasonable temperature. Work will be hectic, I think, and I'll be looking for a new job in my free time.

I think I'm going to need a vacation after all this!

The Saga of the Movers

We had a moving company. Had the date set. Paid the deposit. Drew tried to call them to give a credit card number to charge the first half of the balance and someone kept hanging up on him. He went online to verify he had the right number and found a number of reviews for this company.

Very bad reviews.

The kind of nightmare stories where the movers refused to unload the truck until additional money was paid and agreements signed so legal action couldn’t be brought against them.

Needless to say, we changed companies. Drew researched and didn’t find anything negative about the current company.

Then, the day before the movers were scheduled to show up, I get a phone call from our contact, asking if we could postpone the move until the next day. He had already talked to Drew and he said no. He was apparently fishing for the answer he wanted. I also told him no. We were told that the movers had another job but would be here by noon.

Which came and went. Then we were told they would be there by 5.

Which came and went.

Now, at 9pm, we’re pretty sure they’re not coming. Even if they did show up, unless they could get everything loaded before 10pm (loud noise cut off time*), we’d have to send them away.

So, tomorrow morning, we hope. We have to be out of here on the 31^st. We were hoping to have this evening to clean while the place was empty.

* This is one of the (many) things I really liked about this complex. The lack of noise at night.

Goodbye Mr. Phelps

I’m not sure if a farewell is the best beginning, but it does seem to be the first of the (tangible) major changes in preparing to leave Santa Barbara. Mr. Phelps, my truck of 8 years, is now in another’s possession. On one hand, it’s great. He’s going to someone in the construction business who will use him to his best advantage.

But still. I’ll miss him.

Except when I parallel park.