Updates, answers, and the like

Hello 2013! Excuse my absence from this little blog, I've been quite busy wallowing in the winter weather and sleeping 10 hours every night. Spring has reluctantly arrived and there are a few sunny days most weeks now which has given me extra energy to pour into this space.

Matt is still working for a local company as a quality assurance engineer and he rides the bus to downtown Seattle 5 days week. I was working part time at a local domestic violence agency, but as of April 2nd I will be a full time staff member of the part of the agency that runs a shelter for abused women and children.

I'm absurdly excited (and only a teensy bit anxious) about transitioning to full time. In my mind, this is my first "adult" job because I will be eligible for benefits, accrue vacation time, have sick pay, etc. It only took 23 months after graduating from college and 19 months after moving to Seattle to get here, but they say life is a journey.

I also applied for graduate school in January and finally heard back about admissions early this morning. I didn't get accepted. And while that distresses me a little, I'm also relieved. I had just accepted a full time job and I was unsure of how I would juggle both commitments. In addition, the path to become a licensed social worker isn't exactly a short one. It requires 2 or 3 years in school and 2 to 5 years to get all the supervised hours and then you've got to take a competency test before you're officially licensed.

The idea of starting a graduate program became this huge commitment hovering over me that I wasn't sure I wanted to make, but who says "no" to something they've already said "yes" to so many times? Not being accepted was a reprieve in many ways, but I was also majorly disappointed. Several times I have asked myself, "What the heck? Why didn't they want me? I am AMAZING." But more often than not I have said to myself, "Thank goodness, now we can move back home whenever we want."

I wouldn't mind committing to the PNW for another year or two, but the idea of being here for 2+ more years is stressing me out. I've had numerous anxiety attacks about being stuck here for the duration of graduate school, or being unable to get back to Texas if I became pregnant, or being trapped here by job opportunities we couldn't pass up. Now I feel like there is one less obstacle blocking our path to getting to where I see us in 5 years: surrounded by our support network of family and friends.

Discovery Pass

Things are going really great here! I have been full time job searching which is absolutely exhausting and rattles my sense of self-confidence. I would lie and say I am not lonely and have not cried to spare you all the melodrama, but considering the ginormity of our move, these feelings and behaviors were not unexpected. Thank goodness Matt is here to go on late night cookie baking and eating binges with!

The tall trees and fresh pine scent still absolutely
amaze me every time I walk outdoors!

We were able to explore a tiny bit before being serious adults, but Matt started working full time after our 2nd day here so the exploration was minimal. There is a state park nearby that we can hike at to escape city living. In addition, there is a little beach area on the Puget Sound that we can walk to watch the sunset (pictures of that coming soon, I promise!).

Also! Good news to share: this morning we finally received a call from the truck driver with our stuff! He stated that he should be able to drop our belongings off to us next Monday or Tuesday (luckily, Matt’s two days off next week!). Once that happens I can officially report that we are settled in Washington but until then I will try to bask in the “glory” of simplicity and life without stuff.

Enjoy these pictures, hug your loved ones and eat some cookies. Tomorrow is Dr. Who-day and life is good. 

At the state park, the blackberries grow like the brambles they are. 

Weed-like and wild!

The beach at Dash Point State Park

Live sand dollar all sandy and squirmy! They were absolutely
everywhere on the beach. I've never seen so many!

Dead sand dollar. Pretty but dead =(

Negatron Uninvitedly Visits

Moving is difficult. Moving is tough. No one told us any less than that exact truth, but because things were going so well I chose not to believe them. There are so many things to consider and plan and coordinate. There are so many things waiting to go WRONG.

This morning, I would have sworn that we had everything figured out! But alas, I have been smited for how many times I smuggly said "Ahh, it will all work out!" to the wise adults that warned me to be prepared for the unexpected.

I should start with the good before I begin my complaints. Last night:

• Matt was offered a full time position in the Seattle suburb we wished to relocate to!
  
• We narrowed down the moving companies to 24 Hours Moving, Inc. or U-Box.
   
• We narrowed down the apartments we wanted to our top 5 choices, then top 2 choices and called our #1 choice who just so happened to have one 1b/1b apartment left with a fireplace, washer/dryer hook up and a special that got us $100 off the market rent.

Last night, we toasted our plans and success with Limoncello and life was good. Did I mention the potential apartment complex was also located 1.1 miles away from Matt's new work location? Now, we only had to FedEx our rental applications and deposits to the apartment complex and it was ours!

This afternoon, after paying an exorbitant amount of money to FedEx our info to the complex, I get an e-mail. The apartment was leased. To some California jerk that managed to FedEx his application a day sooner.

After pathetically whine/crying to the leasing landlord, she fandangled us another apartment that would be ready around the necessary time frame. Blah, blah. Blah, blah. Problem is, we won't know until Monday if the special for $100 off the market rent will stick around for the next month. Round and round we went.

Is the complex trying to rip us off? Maybe! But I love their location and the price was great and everything was so settled. Now Matt is so ticked off at them he doesn't even want to live there. Back to square one we go, comparing rent prices, amenities and locations.

And! When I was trying to scan and send back the rental agreement for our moving company the scanner gave me so much sass I started throwing things at it! I did not need any more crap tonight, especially from my electronics.

I am sure it sounds silly, but I am devastated. I pouted all night. Drowned my sorrows in wine at a dinner I did not help prepare (which is very unlike me). And now I am here to document how awful and stressful moving can be. There are a million other things (good and bad) but right now, I am stuck on this disappointment.


To end this pathetic post I will  leave you all with a relevant quote from the show that is my cure-all (most especially effective on Negatron moods): 

Lorelai:  Hey, I can be flexible.
Luke:  Please.
Lorelai:  I can! As long as everything is exactly the way I want it, I’m totally flexible.

"A-Tisket, A-Tasket", Gilmore Girls Season 2, Episode 13