So, over the past week I've noticed a few things:
- all the kids in our apartment complex play GAIA online
- downtown Seattle has a strange street layout
- I have an innate desire to alphabetize things
- I miss my friends but not Kalamazoo
- my best job prospect right now is Border's in the South Center Mall
- my internet addiction is going through major withdrawls
- Pike Place Market is awesome but expensive
- the people here are friendly despite what they say
- Tiny Adventures is completely addicting and Derek is beating everyone
As far as apartment updates go, we've learned that on the weekends the little kids in the apartment above us like to do laps. That, or as I like to believe, they have a particularly clumsy dog that crashes into things looking for treats. You know, like Marmaduke?
Man. Marmaduke was awesome.
Last night we had our first setback: our washing machine ended up having a bad water seal and leaked all over the kitchen floor. Luckily, my wife noticed it because I was far too engrossed working on a secret project and listening to Coldplay's Viva La Vida. We had to call the emergency contact number to get some one to fix it, but within about 5-6 minutes we met Rick...
And Rick is pretty awesome. He's an older guy who apparently goes by the nickname M.O.B. (Mean Old Bastard) but the reality couldn't be farther from the truth. We chatted each other up, and he made us feel really welcome and comfortable. When he noticed our current apartment situation he said that he might be able to help; Rick got us a loveseat for free!
It was a very friendly gesture, and it got me thinking... what Seattle Freeze? We've met dozens of people so far, from people in restaurants to the new bank, to tenants in the complex... and everyone has been friendly. Maybe not "Hey, come over to my house and have dinner" kind of friendly, but definitely more than polite. I'm very curious to see, from personal experience, if the freeze is real or not.
My one major lament about the new apartment is that it's perfectly laid out for D&D, which does me absolutely no good at the moment. I've been feeding my addiction with Tiny Adventures but the itch isn't getting scratched that well. But we have other things to worry about at the moment, like rebuilding our apartment one box at a time. Our stuff finally came today!
Cristina has a meeting with her new boss at some point later this week. We're planning to go to the Pike Place Market tomorrow, and probably to Lake Washington as well. Yesterday, we drove around town for the first time and are starting to get a feel for which roads we'll frequent often; we actually found our way home without using the Google Maps function on her phone, which is a hell of an accomplishment, let me tell you. Traffic hasn't been as insane as I was expecting, which is an immensely good thing.
The town is still a little big for me, but I'm getting there. I've also gotten my first few job offers through Career Builder, so keep your fingers crossed for us! And on a completely unrelated note, the views here are spectacular... and the air smells like pine trees. We'll post photos when the internet gets set up.
I've got about 20 minutes here, so this update is probably going to be shorter than I'd like it to be...
Wow. I can't even begin to describe the events of the last three days. We'll post a ton of pictures from the trip and of the new apartment once we get our own internet access (hopefully Friday; keeping our fingers crossed -ed). Cash completely hated the car ride until we took him out of the cage and into the front seat. It's the weirdest thing - he used to just sit on the floor of the backseat and complain but on the open road, he's staring out the window as the world passes by.
Today was the first time I've been in an IKEA store. Cristina was sure that I would love it... and it was pretty cool. We also stopped at a Fred Meyer store yesterday, which is strangely similar to the Meijer stores back home. We also found a Petsmart and Target, which are exactly similar to the stores back home. It was a nice change of pace, because the city is nothing like Kalamazoo. I still feel a little like a hamster let out of his cage, but I'm getting there.
The apartments are really nice here. It helps that nothing is more than two years old. If there's one problem that we've run into, it's that the rooms are too big. Our bathroom is what Jamielah would call "stupid huge" though I guess it's better than being too small. We're supposed to be getting our stuff in a few days, and our phone will be hooked up this weekend - so expect more updates then.
Oh! And Dustin, if you're reading this, I will respond to your e-mail as soon as possible. I've got about 5 minutes left right now and need to finish updating this post gets lost. There's also a present coming your way, as soon as we get a chance to sail that direction... Also, I live 10 minutes from the Wizards of the Coast building!! It's completely surreal. Oop! Gotta go!
Wow. So today is the last day we're going to be in Kalamazoo. I have to get up in about 5 hours to finish loading up the car, but I'm pretty full of adrenaline and thoughts right now... so going to sleep is going to be hard.
Today was good but difficult at the same time. My parents visited for a "one last dinner together" which was nice. Also, my friend Josh came over to say goodbye for the last time. Everything was going great until I helped him load things into his car... and things kind of hit me again.
I mean, this was the last time that I'd see him for a while. When Curt left the other night it was the last time I'd see him for a while. And the party last week was the last time I'll see Dustin or Fisher for a while. And suddenly the knot in my throat wouldn't go away. Josh and I hugged it out, and it was hard to choke down the emotions.
You know, something that I make a point to say to my close friends is that they're like family. Unlike most of them, I was an only child. And while I've been blessed with good luck meeting new people, there are a rare few that not only touch your life, but stay in it. And those guys have stayed with me through a lot of times... good and bad. Saying goodbye isn't just a farewell to the person, it's saying farewell to the promise of more times with that person.
And it's hard. Because my brothers are here and I'm moving. Because I've never had to really let go of friends this close before. But the things that are important in your life... you tend to hang on to. And I have no intention of letting them go.
I was with Curt when he went through a bitter divorce years ago. I laughed at Dustin's wedding as a groomsman. Josh was there at my wedding. Fisher and I have known each other since we were six years old. These are not just friends. They're so much more than that. And I owe them my strength and humor, and so much more.
Thankfully, it's much easier to stay in touch now than it was years ago. We can talk on the phone, send each other e-mails, and talk on Facebook (yeah, I finally caved. I'm completely addicted to D&D Tiny Adventures, by the way). Even my completely bad ass ex-neighbors Derek and Becca keep in touch with us, which is awesome. So distance doesn't have to be as final as it used to be.
Well, this post was more sad than I meant it to be. Cristina and I are very excited about the move, and love the possibilities that Seattle represents for us. And I have faith that things will work out. I guess the feeling that I have is like the first day of school: part of you is really excited about all the new people and the things you'll see... and the other part is terribly afraid that you'll piss your pants in front of the other kids. Cause, you know, then they'll call you pee pants.
Well. It's official. I'm moving to Seattle. I'm really, really moving.
The moving company took all of our stuff a few days ago - over 52(!) boxes worth of clothes, books and DVDs... the latter two which my wife laments the greatest. We still have a surprising amount of things in the apartment, including a dresser and twin sized bed which will be donated to Habitat for Humanity, but none of the standard fare in the way of tables and chairs. That should prove problematic this weekend for our goodbye party but my friends are a clever bunch; we'll come up with something.
This last weekend I played possibly my last D&D game ever. That makes me sad in and of itself; playing tabletop roleplaying games is a tradition in my circle of friends. We've had basically the same group for over 5 years now, including two friends from college and even one from high school. I know that it will permanently spoil me against my next group of players; like a baseball mitt, it takes years to wear-in a solid group. I'll miss the hell out of them as people, my friends are my family, but at the superficial geek level I'm kind of screwed here. =(
But the show must go on. They've already started a new project; a shared campaign setting with rotating DMs. If I get the time, I think I'll write them an adventure to play in my absence. If I get time...
While I'm waiting for my last day at work to come to a close (only five more days left!) I've been amusing myself with old episodes of Whose Line Is It Anyway. Man, I loved that show. And in the plethora of crap television that has come and gone in the last few years, I have to honestly ask why did they ever cancel it? I bring this up for the very slight seguey into the fact that Ryan Stiles lives in Bellingham, Wa and the next very slight seguey into the fact that we might actually see him live the weekend after we get to Seattle!
The official Little Big Planet website is holding a design contest! You download a template and just create. If your design in chosen, it will end up in the game! The whole thing is pretty fun, and is a great way to spend a half an hour.
You aren't allowed to use character designs from other companies, but I think mine could slip under the radar. SOTC is actually developed in-house by Team ICO, and this really was a logical marriage of ideas for me. SOTC is such an amazing game and Media Molecule has a massive hit on their hands with LBP.
Go check out the contest! Meanwhile, I'm going back to dominating inferior species in SPORE.
This is probably the third or fourth time that I've made an attempt to maintain a journal. Years ago, I kept a livejournal running for a long time; it served as more of a diary for difficult feelings than anything constructive. At the time, I was struggling through a relationship that was... to put diplomatically... not the right one. So, basically, I just bitched a lot. And nobody wants to read that.
But! I've now been married since March of last year. And things are going great. We're about two weeks away from moving to Seattle! The fact that I'm leaving Michigan has really just started to hit me - and the relentless teasing by my friends about the move has really helped to keep my mind off things; they love to insinuate that the reason I am moving 2000 miles across the country is so I can get Chinese Food delivered.
Unfortunately, that is the reason. And there's just no other way around it.
Oh, yeah! This is the point where I should mention my sense of humor can be a little dry. I'm not really moving for the Chinese Food. I've always wanted to move to the Pacific Northwest but my college education was in the way, my family didn't want me to go, couldn't find a job there online, never saved up quite enough money, was too worried about my girlfriend cheating on me (which she most often times was), and a myriad of reasons that may or may not have been valid.
But all that changed this year when my wife told me to MAN UP and she was offered a position in Seattle with her company. And suddenly, things were moving in the right direction. That's my little angel; always kicking me in the crotch at the right time.
We're going to drive across the country starting in 14 days. And I'm gonna miss my friends like crazy.
