Today the mailman deliver a letter to my house addressed to "Ms. Stephanie". I haven't called anyone Ms. + First Name since Miss Angie, my elementary school Principal's daughter and my third grade student teacher, but I went with it. The return address said it was from "Long John Denny". At first I thought it was from Josh since he has mailed me things before, but after I opened it I realized it was something even better.
I believe my exact words were, "Shut. Up."
It was a letter from the Taxi Pirate and it started out with "Aye, Matey." The whole thing was written as if he was a pirate and I loved every word of it. I can't say that I wasn't a little creeped out that he kept my name and address, but he was trying to spread the word about how his tips and fares on October 31 will all be donated to the children's hospital so I'll let it slide this time.
It's this kind of thing that I need to learn to appreciate more in life. I mean, I just can't make this stuff up!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Fool Me Once...
Remember this story problem? Well, it happened again today.
This morning I got downtown a lot later than normal and I knew it would be hard to find a parking spot in my usual garage, so I went across the street to the "$9 Per Day" lot. I thought to myself as I was walking to my building, "You cannot leave after 6:45 tonight" and reminded myself several times throughout the day.
So at 6:35 when I got an email from a publisher asking me to send over some information I had promised, I decided I could do it quickly before I left. I sent the email, shut everything down and practically ran to the parking garage. I wound my way down 12 levels of parking garage at a speed that was a little on the unsafe side, pulled up to the window, handed the parking attendant (same girl as the last incident) my ticket and held my breath.
$18.34 came up on the screen.
S: How far over was I?
PA: The Early Bird is $9 for 10 hours.
S: Right, but how far over the 10 hours was I?
PA: Let me check...Oh, one minute!
S: One minute.
PA: One minute.
S: Is there ANY way you could just charge me the $9 rate?
She did. And I was happy.
But seriously?! One minute? I think I've learned my lesson.
This morning I got downtown a lot later than normal and I knew it would be hard to find a parking spot in my usual garage, so I went across the street to the "$9 Per Day" lot. I thought to myself as I was walking to my building, "You cannot leave after 6:45 tonight" and reminded myself several times throughout the day.
So at 6:35 when I got an email from a publisher asking me to send over some information I had promised, I decided I could do it quickly before I left. I sent the email, shut everything down and practically ran to the parking garage. I wound my way down 12 levels of parking garage at a speed that was a little on the unsafe side, pulled up to the window, handed the parking attendant (same girl as the last incident) my ticket and held my breath.
$18.34 came up on the screen.
S: How far over was I?
PA: The Early Bird is $9 for 10 hours.
S: Right, but how far over the 10 hours was I?
PA: Let me check...Oh, one minute!
S: One minute.
PA: One minute.
S: Is there ANY way you could just charge me the $9 rate?
She did. And I was happy.
But seriously?! One minute? I think I've learned my lesson.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
California Part I: Los Angeles
One perk of getting to the airport four hours early is having time to catch up on my Google Reader, Facebook, five days of Perez, work email, work email and more work email and also to start some documentation of my week. I've been in California since Wednesday and, even though it's only been five days, it feels like an eternity. I've covered a lot of ground in the last five days, not only geographically but also by way of activities.
The first leg of my trip was in LA for a work conference/excuse for everyone to consume large amounts of alcohol. But let's start from the beginning.
DAY ONE
I worked from home on Wednesday morning and called a cab to pick me up at 1:30 and take me to the airport. My cab driver was a little on the crazy side. He had long, stringy white hair and a matching beard (think Santa Clause) and has been driving a cab for 20+ years. We talked about a lot of things on the ride and it came out that he's a "taxi pirate" for Halloween each year. He described his costume to me and at one point said, "Maybe I have a spare hook with me. No, I left it at home." Bummer. I was really hoping to see it. He also did some role-playing where we pretended it was Halloween and he gave me his pirate speech. Good stuff.
I carried on two laptops and my co-worker asked me if bringing my Mac was really necessary. He clearly doesn't know me. I worked on the plane which was pretty impressive since I'm typically asleep before it even starts moving.
We finally made it to the hotel and I realized that this was the first time I've ever stayed in a hotel room alone. Let's just say I did not mind the king size bed all to myself.
I had a pretty sweet view...of other buildings...from my room.
I dropped off my stuff and headed to the gym with a co-worker. This picture was after running a couple miles. I spent the weekend taking pictures of my self in an attempt to document. I felt pretty ridiculous but still continued to do so.
My co-worker and I decided to order room service (another first!) for dinner so that we didn't have to get ready to go out again. I spent the evening eating and working. Fun, no? It's a good thing I went to the gym because the chicken strips, fries and molten chocolate cake were calling my name!
After dinner I curled up with the April conference issue of the Ensign and then went to sleep. I laughed to myself as I thought about my night of gym, working and Ensign reading vs. most of my co-workers' night of clubbing.
DAY TWO
We got up bright and early on Thursday, loaded up two buses and drove out the the ghetto. We partnered with the LA Department of Public Works for a service project that I actually really enjoyed. We went to Cyprus Park and picked up trash and painted over graffiti. One co-worker was literally afraid of getting shot because we were painting over gang graffiti. I laughed at her at the time, but as I was out on a street corner - alone - painting a wall I will admit I was a little afraid myself. There was a cop with us the whole time and I can't decide if that made me feel better or worse.
We swept up everything from underwear to CD's to feces to coloring books and painted four square blocks of concrete and I can't tell you how good it felt to be serving. It was so amazing to see how much we accomplished in such a short period of time. I wish I had before and after pics to show the difference. I'm sure someone tagged one of those walls within hours of us painting them, but it was still fulfilling and made me want to find some way to serve in Seattle on a regular basis.
The rest of the afternoon was spent in meetings and getting ready for the cocktail party that night. The party was at a club on Hollywood Blvd. which sounded glamorous until I got there and realized it was a club in a mall. Seriously. But it ended up being a lot more fun than I anticipated.
I ran into Chats McGee and he said, "You look really nice. I didn't even recognize you at first." Umm...thanks, I guess?
This is what I look like after about 30 Diet Cokes and having an entire drink dropped directly on my feet (the same feet that were aching from standing in heels all night). Still smiling!
The whole night I had the strangest urge to dance. Like full-on dance. But no one else was and I didn't want to be that girl. Plus, I couldn't have used alcohol as an excuse for my behavior.
DAY THREE
Even though I was probably one of the few that didn't pass out on my bed at 4am, I still managed to oversleep (by an hour!) and had to rush down to the conference on Friday morning. It made me laugh that they had a basket of Red Bull with the breakfast buffet.
After four hours of conference I made my way back to the airport to pick up my rental car and start the second leg of my trip - visiting Brandi and her adorable Cecilia!
To Be Continued...
The first leg of my trip was in LA for a work conference/excuse for everyone to consume large amounts of alcohol. But let's start from the beginning.
DAY ONE
I worked from home on Wednesday morning and called a cab to pick me up at 1:30 and take me to the airport. My cab driver was a little on the crazy side. He had long, stringy white hair and a matching beard (think Santa Clause) and has been driving a cab for 20+ years. We talked about a lot of things on the ride and it came out that he's a "taxi pirate" for Halloween each year. He described his costume to me and at one point said, "Maybe I have a spare hook with me. No, I left it at home." Bummer. I was really hoping to see it. He also did some role-playing where we pretended it was Halloween and he gave me his pirate speech. Good stuff.
I carried on two laptops and my co-worker asked me if bringing my Mac was really necessary. He clearly doesn't know me. I worked on the plane which was pretty impressive since I'm typically asleep before it even starts moving.
We finally made it to the hotel and I realized that this was the first time I've ever stayed in a hotel room alone. Let's just say I did not mind the king size bed all to myself.
I had a pretty sweet view...of other buildings...from my room.
I dropped off my stuff and headed to the gym with a co-worker. This picture was after running a couple miles. I spent the weekend taking pictures of my self in an attempt to document. I felt pretty ridiculous but still continued to do so.
My co-worker and I decided to order room service (another first!) for dinner so that we didn't have to get ready to go out again. I spent the evening eating and working. Fun, no? It's a good thing I went to the gym because the chicken strips, fries and molten chocolate cake were calling my name!
After dinner I curled up with the April conference issue of the Ensign and then went to sleep. I laughed to myself as I thought about my night of gym, working and Ensign reading vs. most of my co-workers' night of clubbing.
DAY TWO
We got up bright and early on Thursday, loaded up two buses and drove out the the ghetto. We partnered with the LA Department of Public Works for a service project that I actually really enjoyed. We went to Cyprus Park and picked up trash and painted over graffiti. One co-worker was literally afraid of getting shot because we were painting over gang graffiti. I laughed at her at the time, but as I was out on a street corner - alone - painting a wall I will admit I was a little afraid myself. There was a cop with us the whole time and I can't decide if that made me feel better or worse.
We swept up everything from underwear to CD's to feces to coloring books and painted four square blocks of concrete and I can't tell you how good it felt to be serving. It was so amazing to see how much we accomplished in such a short period of time. I wish I had before and after pics to show the difference. I'm sure someone tagged one of those walls within hours of us painting them, but it was still fulfilling and made me want to find some way to serve in Seattle on a regular basis.
The rest of the afternoon was spent in meetings and getting ready for the cocktail party that night. The party was at a club on Hollywood Blvd. which sounded glamorous until I got there and realized it was a club in a mall. Seriously. But it ended up being a lot more fun than I anticipated.
I ran into Chats McGee and he said, "You look really nice. I didn't even recognize you at first." Umm...thanks, I guess?This is what I look like after about 30 Diet Cokes and having an entire drink dropped directly on my feet (the same feet that were aching from standing in heels all night). Still smiling!
The whole night I had the strangest urge to dance. Like full-on dance. But no one else was and I didn't want to be that girl. Plus, I couldn't have used alcohol as an excuse for my behavior.DAY THREE
Even though I was probably one of the few that didn't pass out on my bed at 4am, I still managed to oversleep (by an hour!) and had to rush down to the conference on Friday morning. It made me laugh that they had a basket of Red Bull with the breakfast buffet.
After four hours of conference I made my way back to the airport to pick up my rental car and start the second leg of my trip - visiting Brandi and her adorable Cecilia!
To Be Continued...
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Friday - Sunday.
This weekend was a rather busy one. On Friday I managed to escape work a little early and had about 90 minutes to spend curled up in my bed unwinding (yay!) before we had to head out to a show. We hit up a new little cafe in our neighborhood for dinner and then made our way down to SoDo in the rain to the Showbox.
We saw Duffy and she was alright. Fun to see her once, but I don't know that I'd buy tickets again.
Lindsay thought she looked like Kristen Chenoweth. I totally agreed but also thought she had a little Angelina Jolie mixed in. What do you think?
The rain got the better of us on the way in and this is what we looked like after the show. Hmm.
Oh and did I mention how awful the opening band was? We got there late so I only had to endure two songs, but that was two songs too many. Aside from wanting to be James Brown (I just kept thinking of Eddie Murphy - "It's hot in the hot tub!"), he managed to come out for an encore even though no one wanted him to.
For those of you who may want to use this trick in the future, here's how it went down.
1. He finished his high-pitch screams, said good night and walked off stage.
2. Some of the crowd gave the normal courtesy clap (I was not included in that group.)
3. His band stayed on the stage and kept playing. The crowd wasn't cheering but some were clapping because they were confused.
4. One of his saxophone players came to the mic and asked us to give it up for whatever his name was.
5. Some people gave half-hearted cheers (I was not included in that group.)
6. Then he came back out, without his jacket, and gave us some more high-pitch yelps.
So there you have it. Just don't let your band leave the stage and they can call you back out.
Saturday was filled with the doing the program for Sunday, the gym, cleaning, eyebrow waxing, pedicures, shopping for a club dress (I don't want to talk about it.) and dinner with Mark.
Mark is in town from San Francisco and we took him to Easy Street Records and a little Italian place in our neighborhood. Lots of fun and lots of laughs!
I realize this picture is super blurry, but would you believe me if I told you it was the best of all the attempts? Sadly, it is.
Today in RS I sat by a girl that is investigating the church (I didn't know it at the time) and she's super nice and normal (bonus!). I guess the lesson was about families...I don't really know...but people kept telling stories about their own families that were kind of interesting. A few times I caught myself saying "That's SO weird" under my breath after a comment, but apparently loud enough for my new friend to hear. Oops. She laughed, but I felt bad for not being positive about the comments made.
After the meeting was over and I said it was nice to meet her and I'd see her next week and she said, "Oh, and I appreciated your comments. I was thinking the same thing to myself and I like your honesty". Honesty. That's a good way to rationalize it. Either way, I don't think I hindered her investigation in any way.
Now I'm trying to gear myself up for another crazy week but am failing miserably. I only have two days to do five days of work since I'm headed for LA for a work summit (hence the club dress). BUT the good news is that I get to spend the weekend in Cali with my oldest friend, Brandi, and her new baby Cecelia!
Hopefully I don't have a breakdown before I can get there. It's likely.
We saw Duffy and she was alright. Fun to see her once, but I don't know that I'd buy tickets again.
Lindsay thought she looked like Kristen Chenoweth. I totally agreed but also thought she had a little Angelina Jolie mixed in. What do you think?
The rain got the better of us on the way in and this is what we looked like after the show. Hmm.
Oh and did I mention how awful the opening band was? We got there late so I only had to endure two songs, but that was two songs too many. Aside from wanting to be James Brown (I just kept thinking of Eddie Murphy - "It's hot in the hot tub!"), he managed to come out for an encore even though no one wanted him to.For those of you who may want to use this trick in the future, here's how it went down.
1. He finished his high-pitch screams, said good night and walked off stage.
2. Some of the crowd gave the normal courtesy clap (I was not included in that group.)
3. His band stayed on the stage and kept playing. The crowd wasn't cheering but some were clapping because they were confused.
4. One of his saxophone players came to the mic and asked us to give it up for whatever his name was.
5. Some people gave half-hearted cheers (I was not included in that group.)
6. Then he came back out, without his jacket, and gave us some more high-pitch yelps.
So there you have it. Just don't let your band leave the stage and they can call you back out.
Saturday was filled with the doing the program for Sunday, the gym, cleaning, eyebrow waxing, pedicures, shopping for a club dress (I don't want to talk about it.) and dinner with Mark.
Mark is in town from San Francisco and we took him to Easy Street Records and a little Italian place in our neighborhood. Lots of fun and lots of laughs!
I realize this picture is super blurry, but would you believe me if I told you it was the best of all the attempts? Sadly, it is.Today in RS I sat by a girl that is investigating the church (I didn't know it at the time) and she's super nice and normal (bonus!). I guess the lesson was about families...I don't really know...but people kept telling stories about their own families that were kind of interesting. A few times I caught myself saying "That's SO weird" under my breath after a comment, but apparently loud enough for my new friend to hear. Oops. She laughed, but I felt bad for not being positive about the comments made.
After the meeting was over and I said it was nice to meet her and I'd see her next week and she said, "Oh, and I appreciated your comments. I was thinking the same thing to myself and I like your honesty". Honesty. That's a good way to rationalize it. Either way, I don't think I hindered her investigation in any way.
Now I'm trying to gear myself up for another crazy week but am failing miserably. I only have two days to do five days of work since I'm headed for LA for a work summit (hence the club dress). BUT the good news is that I get to spend the weekend in Cali with my oldest friend, Brandi, and her new baby Cecelia!
Hopefully I don't have a breakdown before I can get there. It's likely.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Wack-Tastic
Happy Birthday, Tate!
Pretend that 3 is a 6...then I made (bought) you a cake for your big day!
You're the best kind of friend a girl could ask for. I hope you had a fantastic day!
PS - It's amazing that, after all of the time we lived together and all of the crazy things we did, I couldn't find very many pictures of us!
Pretend that 3 is a 6...then I made (bought) you a cake for your big day!
You're the best kind of friend a girl could ask for. I hope you had a fantastic day!
PS - It's amazing that, after all of the time we lived together and all of the crazy things we did, I couldn't find very many pictures of us!
I'm Creepy
I just spent the last hour adding blogs I lurk on to my Google Reader. I had avoided doing it before because I thought it made my lurking less creepy if I wasn't actually alerted as soon as they posted. But then I kept forgetting where I was lurking and...well, that's really the main reason. I couldn't keep up on my lurking without it!
So, it's done. I'm officially more creepy right now than I was when I got up this morning.
So, it's done. I'm officially more creepy right now than I was when I got up this morning.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
"You only get what you give away."
Every day I pass by The Moore while on the bus and think about how I want to see a show there. Well, tonight I had my chance and, aside from sitting on a wet seat (I'm crossing my fingers that it was rain water), it was a good time!
We were a little bit late but made it just in time to catch all of Marc Broussard's set. I love his voice and enjoyed him more tonight than I did when we saw him this summer. He sang Gavin's Song, which I didn't expect but was so happy about. I played that song on repeat in my car for several months a couple of years ago.
It's always so awkward to get your picture taken together - I can never think of anything good to say! I guess next time I could use what the girl behind me said, "Did you get the cookies I made you?". Marc responded with, "Umm...today?"
At half-time we took our self-portrait. Is it just me or do I look kind of scared? Maybe it's because my butt was damp from an unknown substance.
The night ended with Sara Bareilles. She rocked that piano like I only wish I could!
The photos are super bad, but they were the best I could get.
Another successful evening of music!
We were a little bit late but made it just in time to catch all of Marc Broussard's set. I love his voice and enjoyed him more tonight than I did when we saw him this summer. He sang Gavin's Song, which I didn't expect but was so happy about. I played that song on repeat in my car for several months a couple of years ago.
It's always so awkward to get your picture taken together - I can never think of anything good to say! I guess next time I could use what the girl behind me said, "Did you get the cookies I made you?". Marc responded with, "Umm...today?"
At half-time we took our self-portrait. Is it just me or do I look kind of scared? Maybe it's because my butt was damp from an unknown substance.
The night ended with Sara Bareilles. She rocked that piano like I only wish I could!
The photos are super bad, but they were the best I could get.
Another successful evening of music!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Portland and Pumpkins
After work on Friday, Breann, Lindsay and I hopped in the car and made our way down to Portland. Why? Well, you might be aware that I watch a lot of television. One of those shows is Little People, Big World on TLC. I love the Roloff's! Pretty much as soon as I moved to Seattle Lindsay and I decided that we would head down to Portland to visit their farm during "pumpkin season" - so that's what we did!
After the drive down we were all feeling a little grimy. We took about 15 photos and this was the best we could come up with.
This was what our hotel room looked like each night. Leave it to us to watch TV and surf the internet even when we're on "vacation".
We got up Saturday morning and headed out to Hillsboro, about 45 minutes west of Portland. It might look like they live in the middle of nowhere with no neighbors for miles on TV, but that's not the case.
Cars were lined up for the last mile but it was a beautiful day so we didn't mind waiting.
When we finally pulled into the drive I started freaking out because I saw Matt in his "mule" up ahead. He stopped us and we had to wait for a few minutes while they let some other cars through. I snapped this picture while they weren't looking. Matt was supervising while Zach directed traffic.
We chatted it up with Matt and he told us to "be careful what you wish for" as he tried to figure out how to get all these people on his farm. And can I just say that I love Zach? While we waited we heard this conversation between Zach and Matt after a car left the farm.
Z: Dad, she looked mad.
M: I'm sure she wasn't mad. Did she wave at you when she drove by?
Z: Yeah...but it wasn't a happy wave.
After about an hour we finally made it to the parking lot and were able to check out the farm!
They have two tours available and we opted for the scenic tour. The wait was about an hour and while we were in line Matt came through! He was so nice to stop and take pictures with everyone.
On the tour we rode past the house, the barns, their favorite spot to watch the sunset, the swamp fort that that boys built and the backside of the western town. The other tour was specifically for the western town and we could have met Molly and Matt's parents if we had taken it, but we didn't want to wait in line for another hour.
The view of the pumpkin patch from the wagon tour.
I don't think I've ever picked a pumpkin from a patch. With so many to choose from it's hard to find the right one!
But eventually I did!
Sven weighed our pumpkins for us and we couldn't resist taking this photo. I think it's so funny!
The crew was there filming. They got Zach directing traffic on his bike.
And Matt checking on the line to weigh/buy pumpkins. Amy and Jacob were MIA and Jeremy was too cool for school. We saw him hanging out with his friends up by the house.
You might think we're crazy for going, but this is what we do! Maybe you'll even see us on TV!
This morning we went to Old Town Portland to VooDoo Doughnuts. The place was a dump, but apparently it's famous. I went with the ODB - yeast doughnut, chocolate fudge, Oreos and peanut butter - on recommendation from the guy behind the counter. It was...intense.
Then we went to brunch and walked around the Pearl District. There were a lot of parks and courtyards and I found this bench that I fell in love with. Random, yes.
Me and my bench.
It was a really fun trip. I love seeing new places. Next we're going to have to discover Vancouver.
After the drive down we were all feeling a little grimy. We took about 15 photos and this was the best we could come up with.
This was what our hotel room looked like each night. Leave it to us to watch TV and surf the internet even when we're on "vacation".
We got up Saturday morning and headed out to Hillsboro, about 45 minutes west of Portland. It might look like they live in the middle of nowhere with no neighbors for miles on TV, but that's not the case.Cars were lined up for the last mile but it was a beautiful day so we didn't mind waiting.
When we finally pulled into the drive I started freaking out because I saw Matt in his "mule" up ahead. He stopped us and we had to wait for a few minutes while they let some other cars through. I snapped this picture while they weren't looking. Matt was supervising while Zach directed traffic.
We chatted it up with Matt and he told us to "be careful what you wish for" as he tried to figure out how to get all these people on his farm. And can I just say that I love Zach? While we waited we heard this conversation between Zach and Matt after a car left the farm.Z: Dad, she looked mad.
M: I'm sure she wasn't mad. Did she wave at you when she drove by?
Z: Yeah...but it wasn't a happy wave.
After about an hour we finally made it to the parking lot and were able to check out the farm!
They have two tours available and we opted for the scenic tour. The wait was about an hour and while we were in line Matt came through! He was so nice to stop and take pictures with everyone.
On the tour we rode past the house, the barns, their favorite spot to watch the sunset, the swamp fort that that boys built and the backside of the western town. The other tour was specifically for the western town and we could have met Molly and Matt's parents if we had taken it, but we didn't want to wait in line for another hour.The view of the pumpkin patch from the wagon tour.
I don't think I've ever picked a pumpkin from a patch. With so many to choose from it's hard to find the right one!
But eventually I did!
Sven weighed our pumpkins for us and we couldn't resist taking this photo. I think it's so funny!
The crew was there filming. They got Zach directing traffic on his bike.
And Matt checking on the line to weigh/buy pumpkins. Amy and Jacob were MIA and Jeremy was too cool for school. We saw him hanging out with his friends up by the house.
You might think we're crazy for going, but this is what we do! Maybe you'll even see us on TV!This morning we went to Old Town Portland to VooDoo Doughnuts. The place was a dump, but apparently it's famous. I went with the ODB - yeast doughnut, chocolate fudge, Oreos and peanut butter - on recommendation from the guy behind the counter. It was...intense.
Then we went to brunch and walked around the Pearl District. There were a lot of parks and courtyards and I found this bench that I fell in love with. Random, yes.
Me and my bench.
It was a really fun trip. I love seeing new places. Next we're going to have to discover Vancouver.
Thursday, October 09, 2008
"Poooke!"
Note: If you've never used Facebook (so...probably only my parents) this won't be funny to you.
They played this video during a meeting at work today and I loved it. My favorite part is the beginning when he pokes him.
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Sadly, It's True
While working from home tonight I had an email exchange with a publisher that went something like this...
Publisher 9:20pm:
"We'll have something for you to review before your deadline. One question, [Insert question here]?"
Me 9:21pm:
"Thanks, Publisher! We need [insert answer to question here]."
Publisher 9:23:
"OMG - you and I apparently have no life!"
He's totally right. About me anyway.
********
As a sidenote, but also related to work nerdiness, I was talking to a different publisher today and he used the phrase "We just inked a deal". I thought it made him sound like such a d-bag that I wrote in down in my notes so I could laugh about it later.
Publisher 9:20pm:
"We'll have something for you to review before your deadline. One question, [Insert question here]?"
Me 9:21pm:
"Thanks, Publisher! We need [insert answer to question here]."
Publisher 9:23:
"OMG - you and I apparently have no life!"
He's totally right. About me anyway.
********
As a sidenote, but also related to work nerdiness, I was talking to a different publisher today and he used the phrase "We just inked a deal". I thought it made him sound like such a d-bag that I wrote in down in my notes so I could laugh about it later.
Monday, October 06, 2008
Sunday, October 05, 2008
Six Months Ago I Moved to Seattle
Once upon a time, exactly 6 months ago (yesterday) I packed up my car, cried as I said goodbye to Tatum and Gavin, picked up Jill and headed north on I-15 to start a new life in Seattle.
The drive was long and I was very tired after a whirlwind month of moving out of my house, moving in with T&J, quitting my job without having another lined up, interviewing for my current job, preparing a presentation for the 3 hour in-person interview, deciding whether or not to go on a European cruise without knowing when my next paycheck would come and, the hardest thing, saying goodbye to friends and family.
Jill was kind enough to ride with me and we still managed to have some fun. I was getting gas in Bliss, Idaho when I got the call offering me the job. It was so reassuring to know that things were falling into place and that no matter what happened, I had received confirmation that I was making the right choice.
After many hours and a mishap in Oregon where I tried to pump my own gas (and a small Oregon blizzard) we finally made it to the great state of Washington! We risked our lives by stopping on this bridge that didn't really have a shoulder to take pictures with this sign. It was a wee bit windy.
We encountered another blizzard driving through the Snoqualmie Pass and when we stopped for a bathroom break we found these massive snow banks.
Eventually, we made it. It was official I had moved to Seattle.
I was pretty overwhelmed that first night - well, the whole weekend - but especially that first night. This was supposed be home, but I got lost finding my house and inside my room was full of boxes. I tried to suppress a freak out and focus on having a fun weekend. I mean, Jill needed to be entertained, right?! It's kind of hard to entertain someone in a city that is as new to you as it is to her, but we did our best.
First on the list was Pike Place Market. A must-see for any trip to Seattle.
We walked through the market and ate at the Three Girls bakery. Very fitting for the three girls on a tour of the town.
There was some shopping involved. Those who know me know that I'm not the world's best shopper, especially in my unbalanced emotional state. I barely survived.
We saw the troll under the bridge. I picked his nose.
We checked out Gasworks Park. There's a great view of the city and Lake Union from there. Little did I know I'd be driving past this park every Sunday on my way to church.
I bought a guitar for no reason and I haven't regretted it for a second.
I ate a Pork Bomber.
Breakfast at the Blue Star Cafe. Delicious food but I was a little confused by the mural of bunnies that looked like they might kill me.
I fell asleep a lot that weekend and got made fun of a lot for it. I may have said, "You guys are b*tches" when I first saw this photo, but don't worry I was able to laugh about it later.
We tried to find the Tulip Festival, but the tulip's hadn't bloomed yet so we only got to see daffodils. Still beautiful.
I tried to put my room together as much as possible. I was thrown by how small and oddly-shaped it was, but now I love it.
The Space Needle, of course.
Seattle has random art all over the city. These eyes are down by the waterfront.
We took a ferry ride to Bainbridge Island. It was more for the ferry experience and less for the Bainbridge experience so we got off and got right back on without exploring the island. It was fun to see the city from out on the water.
I can't believe it's been six months since that weekend. It feels like so much has happened and also like nothing has happened. That first night was definitely not the last time I've been overwhelmed in this city, but I still know I made the right decision. I don't know why I'm supposed to be here or what I'm supposed to be learning, but I'm OK with that.
Maybe in another six months I'll have a better answer for you.
The drive was long and I was very tired after a whirlwind month of moving out of my house, moving in with T&J, quitting my job without having another lined up, interviewing for my current job, preparing a presentation for the 3 hour in-person interview, deciding whether or not to go on a European cruise without knowing when my next paycheck would come and, the hardest thing, saying goodbye to friends and family.
Jill was kind enough to ride with me and we still managed to have some fun. I was getting gas in Bliss, Idaho when I got the call offering me the job. It was so reassuring to know that things were falling into place and that no matter what happened, I had received confirmation that I was making the right choice.
After many hours and a mishap in Oregon where I tried to pump my own gas (and a small Oregon blizzard) we finally made it to the great state of Washington! We risked our lives by stopping on this bridge that didn't really have a shoulder to take pictures with this sign. It was a wee bit windy.
We encountered another blizzard driving through the Snoqualmie Pass and when we stopped for a bathroom break we found these massive snow banks.
Eventually, we made it. It was official I had moved to Seattle.
I was pretty overwhelmed that first night - well, the whole weekend - but especially that first night. This was supposed be home, but I got lost finding my house and inside my room was full of boxes. I tried to suppress a freak out and focus on having a fun weekend. I mean, Jill needed to be entertained, right?! It's kind of hard to entertain someone in a city that is as new to you as it is to her, but we did our best.First on the list was Pike Place Market. A must-see for any trip to Seattle.
We walked through the market and ate at the Three Girls bakery. Very fitting for the three girls on a tour of the town.
There was some shopping involved. Those who know me know that I'm not the world's best shopper, especially in my unbalanced emotional state. I barely survived.
We saw the troll under the bridge. I picked his nose.
We checked out Gasworks Park. There's a great view of the city and Lake Union from there. Little did I know I'd be driving past this park every Sunday on my way to church.
I bought a guitar for no reason and I haven't regretted it for a second.
I ate a Pork Bomber.
Breakfast at the Blue Star Cafe. Delicious food but I was a little confused by the mural of bunnies that looked like they might kill me.
I fell asleep a lot that weekend and got made fun of a lot for it. I may have said, "You guys are b*tches" when I first saw this photo, but don't worry I was able to laugh about it later.
We tried to find the Tulip Festival, but the tulip's hadn't bloomed yet so we only got to see daffodils. Still beautiful.
I tried to put my room together as much as possible. I was thrown by how small and oddly-shaped it was, but now I love it.
The Space Needle, of course.
Seattle has random art all over the city. These eyes are down by the waterfront.
We took a ferry ride to Bainbridge Island. It was more for the ferry experience and less for the Bainbridge experience so we got off and got right back on without exploring the island. It was fun to see the city from out on the water.
I can't believe it's been six months since that weekend. It feels like so much has happened and also like nothing has happened. That first night was definitely not the last time I've been overwhelmed in this city, but I still know I made the right decision. I don't know why I'm supposed to be here or what I'm supposed to be learning, but I'm OK with that.Maybe in another six months I'll have a better answer for you.
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