Y7 D127

Boring unexciting day. Taught until 2:40, two whole students. Only bit of news on the work front is that I made plans for a trip 10/11. A full week in my old area basically. Which really sucks because a week later I have to be back there for a concert with the kid. This concert is really causing me stress. I want to go and I already paid for the ticket ($125) but it's a hassle of a plane ride and hotel and rental car, etc. It's not going to be an easy trip especially having been there a week prior. I may not go but I really want to go. I am at a crossroads with my decision. Haven't made a final choice yet, but I need to do very soon.

After class I took care of my travel stuff, then read for a while. We had leftovers for dinner and then watched some TV. Second episode of Limitless. I did also watch the second episode of Minority Report yesterday. That confused me for a few minutes until I realized that what I watched before was an early pilot and the actual first episode got changed from pilot to air date. I had to go back and find a different version of the first episode to see the changes they made. Once I did that, everything else made much more sense.

Went to bed around 10:30. A boring day. I don't foresee the rest of the week being any more exciting. I miss the old days sometimes.

Y7 D126

We got some unexpected news last night. Around 5 or so we heard some banging outside the window down by the garage. We looked and there was a U-Haul truck parked downstairs. Turns out our thumpy package stealing rude ass neighbor across from us is moving out. Buh-bye butthead. They proceeded to make noise for the next few hours but the noise is worth it if I don't have to hear his damn stereo blasting during the week any more. One noisy person down.

Finally heard back from my boss who I haven't heard from in almost a week. He's been busy dealing with getting his kids in school and his wife going back to work. Luckily he knew I can manage on my own but I did need him to respond to an email from last week. I couldn't finish up my timesheet or expense report without an answer. Once I got that I was able to work on my stuff. That was the big task of yesterday. I also learned this last trip was enough to push me to gold for another year on American. That makes me happy. I don't have enough trips left to push me to platinum, but I still feel pretty good. As for more trips, I may have one more in October. The timing is kind of screwed and I am happy he can move it a week, but if not, then I am going back and forth a couple times in October. Whatever. More miles to add to the coffer for the holidays.

Watched a couple more new shows. Scream Queens and Minority Report. The first one was god awful. I don't expect it to last a whole season. But then again the viewing public surprises me all the time. The second while not bad, isn't all that good either. The second episode came down last night and I will probably watch it this morning just to see, but I don't have high hopes.

B has been power watching Dexter and it looks like she stayed up pretty late last night to watch it. I woke up around 2am and she was still up. I wonder how far she got.

Made a pork shoulder with an apple bourbon glaze last night for dinner. Slow cooker all day long. Served it with vegetables and for B a baked sweet potato. I had the leftover grits with mine. We have so much food in the fridge I need to start eating leftovers like crazy.

The weather warmed back up again here and we had the fans blowing all night. I am feeling that in my ears this morning. I hate sleeping with fans on me as it leads right to an ear infection for me. Hopefully it will cool back down over the next couple of days.

Four days of training starts today. Small classes this week. Two people today and tomorrow, then a single person for Thursday and Friday. We need to stop doing these baby classes. But on the other hand, it pays my salary even with one person in the class and keeps me off the radar. Trade offs.

Y7 D125

We saw the eclipse last night. Really cool. Won't be another super moon eclipse for about 18 years so it was definitely something worth watching.

Had a nice quiet day. Watched a bunch of new shows to see which ones are worthy of continuing to pay attention to this season. Watched Rosewood (B),  the new Doctor,  Life in Pieces (C-), Blindspot (B-), and started to watch Heroes Reborn but B wants to watch the original first. Okay. I am cool with that. We also watched the latest Downton Abbey (damn you Lady Mary and your headstrong ways) and the premiere of 99. A day of slacking for sure.

We also did all the laundry, made shrimp and grits for dinner, and found B a new pair of shoes. It's starting to get a little chilly here and we are realizing just how little winter type clothing we both own. This is what happens when you live in the damn desert too long.

I also did some baking and made a pumpkin pie spice cake. It came out okay. I wish we still had cast members to bring the leftovers to though. We are never going to finish it all on our own. We also made plans for next weekend with my sister. It's the opening weekend of Applefest at a cider mill about 2 hours away. It will make for a nice adventure next weekend. They have hay rides and the like. Stuff that B loves. It will also be nice to see my sister for a day. I like that we live close enough to each other that we can visit like that, but not so close that we get on each other's nerves.

That's about it. I have 4 days of classes this week but haven't heard from anyone in days as to what I need to be working on today. I am just going to chill and be prepared for anything. I do need to do my time sheet and expense report but my latest client hasn't been added to my list of available projects. Until that happens I can't do anything.

Don't know why I keep waking up when I do. I went to bed at 10:30 last night hoping to sleep in a little bit this morning, but no such luck. Some day I will sleep in again. Some day.

Y7 D124

Is this what old age is about? Falling asleep at 8:30 and waking up at 4? Is this my life? Or is it my body just finally has had enough of my fucked up time zones and lack of sleep that it is rebelling? Because yes, I laid down on the bed to play with the cats at 8:30 last night and I was out like a fucking light. Gone, buh-bye.

Did all the errands yesterday. Went and got new floor mats for the car (wanted all weather ones since it will be raining here soon enough), candles because B has a slight candle problem, found a new travel bag that I really like, and just assorted shit. Went grocery shopping at 6:30 in the morning. That was enjoyable at least. No one in the store. Picked up enough food to last until my next road trip. Which supposedly will be Canada in a couple of weeks. Let's see how that goes.

Otherwise, didn't do much of anything yesterday. It was all functional activities. We went out for pizza last night. We liked the restaurant but the food and service were okay. It's a rock themed place kind of like Hard Rock but grittier. The ambience and vibe were fun but I guess they think that can take away from just okay food. Whatever.

Laundry today. Fun. Maybe a nap so I can actually stay awake past 8:30? FML.

Y7 D123

I am home. It took a long time, but I made it. I even managed to take public transportation. Look at me go!

Got up and headed down to the lobby around 2:40am CDT. Driver arrived at 2:55. Was at the airport at about 3:15. I looked at the line forming for security and started stressing a little. Until I realized that there was a priority line. In that line was one person. Much better. Here's where things get fucked up. It's about 3:25 and they are going to open the line at 3:30. We have about 5 of us in the priority line and we are all talking and joking. There's maybe 100 or so people in the regular line. All of sudden this asshole midwest TSA agent shouts at us "We don't open the First Class line here until 4. You all have to go to the other line". He says it with such disdain that we knew he waited on purpose. They SAW us standing there. He could have told us any time. But no. He waited. On purpose. Dick face. We ended up getting through in a reasonable time but it was more their attitude. And believe me there was more than one midwestern jerkface in the regular line looking smug as we had to go back to the end of the regular line. Three of us were all on the same flight and we were 1, 3, and 5 on the upgrade list. We were standing around joking and having a good time of it. Only 1 got his upgrade so 3 and I boarded right after him just to be buttheads. Everyone including the counter crew knew what was up and we had fun. The first flight ended up being an okay flight. It was only 90 minutes and was not a big deal.

I had three hours to kill until my second flight so I went to the club for a while. Watched a couple new shows - The Player and Limitless. Both turned out to be pretty decent shows. Limitless I thought had better writing and was a little sharper while The Player was more cliche. It isn't a bad show but it's got the typical wife dies, ex-bad guy now good, set in Las Vegas vibe. It reminds me a lot of Human Target. But overall, I will watch both of them to see how the season progresses. Got to my flight and waited to board. When I actually boarded it turns out there was a special needs child in front of me with this giant car seat contraption that required the seat to be pushed back the whole flight. Ugh. There goes my lap and knees. To add insult to injury, the people next to me were classic Portland baby boomer patchouli smelling pot smoking ex-hippies. Lovely. 4.5 hours of that. Oh well. I got home and it was what it was.

I was determined to take the train home and found the station. $2.50 for the trip. Not too shabby. The downside to the train was it took over 90 minutes to get to my station including one transfer. While efficient, quiet, clean, etc, fast is not one descriptor I would use. It does the job but. Got home around 2:15. Only 15 hours from when I got up. B needed to run some errands and we took care of that. Although before we could go we ended up locking ourselves out of the garage again. Dammit. This time it's because we tried to program the remote in the rearview mirror and it overrode the standard remotes. Got the office to let us in and reconfigure the remotes. For dinner we Lebanese food as she was craving shawarma. Errands done, we relaxed and had dessert. Until 9:30 when she realized she was still out of shampoo and conditioner. Out we go again. Got back and I finally gave up to the sleep around 10:30.

Today we need to go grocery shopping which I may do here in the morning while she is still asleep. Otherwise, there's nothing planned for the weekend which is nice. It's good to be home. I need to do some bills, file some stuff, but nothing pressing or urgent. I can relax.

Y7 D122

I waited until 2am here to make my post so it is technically midnight back home. Oh the things I do for you people.

I have been up for about an hour. Car service gets here around 3. I am heading down in about 40 minutes. Yesterday was another boring ass day. Taught from 8ish until 4:30, headed back to the hotel, began packing, ate my 'dinner' which was really the lunch I took from the client's cafeteria (they gave us coupons to use) and saved for later, then I slept on the couch in my room from 6 until 1. Such a crazy time. Woo. Look at me.

Now I go to the airport to go home.

Sigh.

Something's going on in my head. I don't know what yet but I can feel it. I can feel something in there like an itch you can't quite reach. Anger? Frustration? Depression? Need for an outlet? I miss doing shows when I was single. I didn't feel the pressure to behave. I didn't care what anyone thought and I could be an idiot. Maybe that's what I am feeling. I need to release some pent up 'good behavior'. I need to just let my zero fucks flag fly. But how? Where? I don't know. I am married to someone who doesn't get that feeling. She doesn't drink so it's not like we can go have a ruckus somewhere. Instead I will feel self conscious all night about how much I am drinking, end up not drinking, and whatever. Fuck. See? Something in my head.

Y7 D121

Remember the long posts I used to have while I was on the road because I would end up in some bar and have some crazy adventure or be so hungover in the morning? A big part of me is glad I don't write those any more. Adulting. I'm doing it right. Case in point:

Got up yesterday and sat around until it was time to walk over to the client. I left here around 7:15 and got there at 7:30. I would have been there sooner had it not been for the rain. Staying right across the street is wonderful unless it's raining all over you. I also got there early to check out the room and was frustrated that no one came to get me until almost 8. Class was scheduled to start at 8:30 and to sit and wait like that was driving me nuts.

Finally got into the room and luckily had everything ready by 8:20. Everyone managed to show up on time and we got under way. Not a bad class. They are getting the material fairly well with no issues. Since this is only a two day class I did ask why we just didn't do it remotely. Turns out they all work in different offices and this was an opportunity for them to all meet each other. Don't mind the travel and cost to have me out there. Make it easier for them. Meh, I need the miles anyway so whatever.

Finished class a little after 4 and walked back to the hotel. Around 5:30 I went to a grill next door for dinner. The place was so fucking loud I couldn't take it. I ate quickly and came back to my nice quiet hotel. Screwed around on the computer until about 10:30 and went to bed.

See? Nice boring nights. In other news, wished my niece a happy birthday, read cast emails that I no longer have to stress about, and watched the new Muppets show. Horrible by the way. The voices all sound so wrong. They're almost right which is what is so wrong about them. This weekend I may watch the original show just to have the old voices back in my head for comfort.

Today is a lot of the same. Teaching, dinner, leave for back home at 3am Friday. Joy.

Y7 D120

Long day of travel yesterday. Was up at 1am, car service arrived at 3. We got to the airport around 3:30, got through security at 4, on my plane at 4:45. Had a small window between flights as I went through Phoenix for once which was interesting. Arrived in MN at 1:45 as scheduled. Got my car here, checked in around 3 and proceeded to iron and get ready for today. I had dinner with some friends who have moved here for school. That was nice. I haven't seen them in months and it was fun hanging out with them. Dinner was fancier than expected but it is what it is. I will be cheap the rest of the week. Went to bed around 10:30.

A boring day to be sure. Not much to write about at all. I didn't sleep on either of my flights which sucked. But I did get a good night's sleep here which is more important.

Day one of training starts now.

Y7 D119

Big day yesterday. Got a new car. Yup. Now before you think I am crazy, remember, six months ago I tried the same thing. If you recall when I went in for a service about six months ago the dealer told me that my car was at a really good spot for early turn in. Unfortunately due to negative equity we couldn't come up with a number that worked for everyone. Their advice, try again in six months. Okay.

On the way up, the Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) light went off on the car. I checked the air, made sure everything was cool and kept going. For the last two weeks I have been monitoring all four of the tires and there's been no change, no loss of air, etc. But the damn light wouldn't go off. Fine. I finally had time to bring it to the dealer yesterday. I didn't have an appointment so I got there at 6:45 to try and be one of the first in. I did manage to get checked in early, but it wasn't until 8 when the tire guys come in. While I was waiting around 9 the sales people started coming in. I ended up talking to the sales manager and telling him about six months ago. I told him about negative equity and the whole nine yards. He asked me what vehicle I was considering, I told him, and he said, let me work on it while you wait for your other. He introduced me to the nicest sales guy ever and we waited while numbers were processed. He had the exact vehicle I wanted on the lot too. That was important. If I was going to do this, there'd be no compromise. Not in color, not in features. After about an hour the sales manager came back with numbers and terms I could live with on the deal. Bottom line? I ended up $24 a month LESS than my current payment, nothing out of pocket except the first month payment which I would have given to the bank anyway (hadn't paid it yet this month) and to top it off, in the end my insurance went down $108 a year because of safety features and vehicle type. Total annual savings of over $340 and I drove off with a vehicle with 7 miles on the odometer. I am not even changing lenders. This way too I don't have to go to OR DMV to get new plates.

I ended up getting a 2016 Mazda CX-5 Grand Touring. Tada:

The color B wanted, the features and price I wanted. I too like the color but she is in love with it which makes me happy. I feel grown up again with a SUV.

Best part? I feel like I made an 'adult' decision on a vehicle finally. I didn't rush it. I didn't compromise. I didn't have an emotional attachment. I held firm, I said no six months ago. I also ended up with a vehicle that is practical, fun, and has all the gadgets I want. Like auto sensing radar cruise control. Yeah, that's a thing.

While I was doing all this, I submitted a bid to have my motorcycle shipped up. I found a company that will do it for $275. My bike will be here sometime next week. I told the sales guy I will be bringing that by to trade in for a car for B in the next 90 days. 

I did end up being there until almost one which ate into my day. When I got back, B needed to run some errands, then we grabbed a bite out. When I got back, I packed, did my hair, and then went to bed around 7:30. I had been up since 4:30 to check in for today's flight. I am off to MN for the next four days. I managed to get one upgrade and will get breakfast this morning at least. Cramped second flight, but it's okay. I am feeling good regardless.

The kid had some issues yesterday but her and I talked through them. Her grandmother is seriously invading her privacy and trying to impart her puritanical views on the kid. She can apply for housing in October. Just right around the corner. She'll make it we both hope.

My car service will be here in an hour. Time to finish up.

Y7 D118

We had a great adventure yesterday. The kind of thing I want us to be doing now that we have moved. The kind of thing that one can do when it's not 110 degrees outside. Where there are actual things to do that don't require an hour plus drive sitting in traffic in the heat. We got to live like I want us to yesterday. It wasn't anything super exciting, but it was fun as hell.

I got up and meandered for a while. B got up around 10 and we headed out around 11. I have been wanting to check out some of the cheese shops here and we found the greatest cheese shop yesterday. Name "The Cheese Bar" it was wonderful. They have over 200 cheeses they rotate through during the year and there were at least 50 to choose from yesterday. It was a lovely drive to where the shop is located. The weather was perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. We got there a little before noon and I sampled about 6 different cheeses before settling on two. We also had lunch there. Wow. I had their backed mac and cheese with a side salad and B had a ham and cheese panini with tomato soup. For dessert we shared their cheesecake. Incredible. It was just so pleasant and nice and a wonderful way to spend a Sunday. Best part it was dead. There were only two other tables with people. Compared to how most places get on a Sunday this made me happy.

We got back and B napped. I went for a nice walk and when I got back I napped for about 45 minutes. We hung around and then decided on dinner. With all the leftovers and what not we ended up making chicken fajitas. Last night was the UK premier of Downton Abbey which I got for us. We ended up watching over 2 hours of it because we re-watched the last episode of season 5 to make sure we were up to date.

When it was over I played a little Diablo while B read and then I went off to bed around 10:30. A really nice day. Days like this are why we moved. Two weeks down and still feeling good. Not going to romanticize - we are frustrated with the neighbor across from us who plays his music too loud, we don't like the traffic speeding down the street outside, and small things like that. But at the same time, the area, the weather, and the people we have encountered (outside mr. noisy) have all been wonderful.

I also worked with a new insurance agent this weekend who was excellent at responding and getting things done. As of today I am fully covered in OR. $8 price difference between here and CA but okay. When you add up everything we have saved with no sales tax, I can handle the extra $8. You don't realize how big a difference that is until you step back and do the math. On every purchase 9% is just not there. We have easily saved over $100 since moving here in two weeks. Easily. Might even be closer to $200. I am going to get spoiled and cranky when I travel.

Today is trip prep day. Need to research a couple of things for my Weds/Thurs class. Fly out tomorrow. Need to check in for my flight in 45 minutes. First week on the road from here. This should be fun?

Y7 D117

Got past my funk yesterday. Managed to shake it off around noon. Took going out and just breathing for a little while. I went to finish hanging stuff (we had one mirror for the dining room left to hang) and I got so frustrated with my tool bag I went off to Home Depot. B was still asleep when I went and woke up while I was gone. Just getting out and clearing my head helped. I went to the store to pick up a screw holder. At the bottom of my tool bag was a million loose screws, bolts, picture hangers, etc that I was tired of digging through it and not finding what I need. I bought a $4 plastic tub to put everything in. The ridiculous part is that I have never done this in like 10 years. Way overdue. I brought us back Zoup. While we ate we discussed rearranging the room. There's been something off about the furniture placement since we moved in and neither of us could really pinpoint it. We talked through it and realized how we could change things up and make it more organized and feel less eclectic. To do it though required a new cable that I didn't have.

We decided to head out to Best Buy. As we were leaving B noticed a hole in my jeans. In the crotch. Dammit. We decided to also go to the mall as I need a good pair of jeans for travel this week. Spent a while out getting jeans and the cable and just being. It was nice. The weather was wonderful and being outside helped blow away the rest of the funk. We also went to Cost Plus and bought all the halloween sodas. Like so many.

By the time we got home it was close to dinner and we decided on sushi. There's a plethora of places up here and we basically picked one at random. Made a good choice. We both loved dinner. Got back around 7 and started in on the rearranging. The front room and dining room look great now. We are both very happy with the layout. I did pull something in my back and took a bath after.

Not much else to report. Went to bed around 10:30 and had another great night of sleep. Seriously I have slept better in the time we have been here than in any time longer than I can imagine. B says I am snoring less too. Everyone wins.

No plans for today but I am sure we will come up with something.

Y7 D116

I'm okay this morning. Just okay. I am in a mood. Just a flat annoyed kind of mood. 6am. Welcome to my life.

Taught yesterday and had to deal with an issue. Around noon our fucking neighbor across from us decided it was a good time to share their fucking mariachi techno music with all of OR. Seriously. I could FEEL it through two walls, a closed door, and a 20 foot gap between units. It was distracting the fuck out of me. At 1pm when I had a break I went and pounded on their door. No answer. So I called the office. I won't tolerate that kind of noise on a weekday. This is the third time in the two weeks we have been here that this has happened with them. Have some common courtesy dick head. These are the same neighbors that stole B's package right before we got here. I do not like these people. Luckily they did turn it down and I was able to finish class with no issues. We finished up around 2:30.

I spent the rest of the afternoon hanging stuff. To me that's the last part of 'moving in' some place. It's the one thing that says 'yep, I am staying here'. It's like putting something personal on a work desk. It makes a space yours. I got our Beauty and the Beast stained glass hung, my Brophy piece in the bedroom, a mirror, and my Tiki Room piece in the office all hung up. All that's left is the mirror in the dining room. That ones harder as I need to make sure it is perfectly level and it's a two person job. B was busy reading and I didn't want to disturb her as she has been trying to finish a book for the last week. She had 6% left and I wanted to let her finish.

When I was done we had dinner. She made a crockpot chicken fajita soup which came out really nice. After dinner we went for a walk around the neighborhood. Then we started in on laundry. The first big laundry since we moved. It's still going. The last load just went into the dryer. Yay more clothes to put away.

This is the first weekend here with no plans. Let's see how we use the time.

Y7 D115

Riddle me this - why is a bunch of my stuff on the floor this morning? I go into the closet to scoop the cat litter (yes, it's in the master closet for now since we don't know where else to put it) and a bunch of my clothes are on the floor. Then I go into the office and one of my books is on the floor. WTF? Got to be the stupid cat. Or a ghost. One or the other. Ancient Indian burial grounds. Must be.

Good day of teaching yesterday. First class all year where I didn't get frustrated with at least one student for being stupid. This group did a great job with the material. They still have one more day to go but so far they are doing well.

After class I was exhausted but I forced myself to stay awake. I went to the grocery store to get some stuff for dinner and thought I would be okay. Unfortunately at 4:30 I sat down to pet the cat and next thing I know it's six. Dammit. I can't wait for tomorrow where I can sleep in a bit. Catch up on this sleep deprivation I have going on. I need a good 9-10 hours to catch up. I am still sleeping like a log, just not enough.

Made dinner when I woke up and then we watched the finale of Masterchef. BOTH of us were pissed off at the end. It didn't come down to food as it should have. No. It came down to marketing and that just is wrong. Someone on their staff decided they would make more selling a cookbook from the hispanic single mom than they would from the drummer from FL. Such a shame. His food was better plated, more unique, and deserved the win.

Pretty much went to bed after that as it was near 10 already.

This will be the first weekend with no boxes or plans. Two weeks here already. Amazing.

Y7 D114

You're wet. Yes. It's raining.

I know people who live here think this is just sprinkles, but to me it's rain. A welcome site. I would much rather live some place where it rains too much than be 100+ degrees all the damn time.

Taught until about 2:40, then took a walk. B was asleep so I took a walk over to the convenience store next door to us and got some rockstars. I like being able to walk places. Maybe get rid of some of this damn fat I have going on. Goal for end of year. Came back and B woke up shortly thereafter. We then went back to the garage sale store. She saw some ornaments for her friend she wanted to get as an early Christmas present. After we went to Target and she needed some new tops. She is feeling all fat and bloated. I feel her on that. Getting out of hell has made us both realize how much weight we put on being sedentary in our old place. Time to get moving. I think this weekend we will go gym shopping. Might wait until I get back next week, but it will happen.

Came home, made pork chops with a caesar salad for dinner. No new TV came down early enough for us to watch last night and I finished up all my clothes. There are officially no more boxes left. Just under six days. Not bad. All that's left to do is hang two mirrors and two paintings and we will be done done. That will be tonight's project.

That's about it. Nothing else exciting happening in my brain.

Y7 D113

Year seven is over 1/3 over already. Amazing. Time flies like an arrow, fruit like a banana.

Taught up until 2:45 yesterday. I didn't want to screw with my sleep schedule and forced myself to get out of the house. It was a nice overcast with some slight drizzle yesterday afternoon and I wanted out of the house. We went to the mall to buy B a nightlight for her bathroom and to 'spoopy' up the place for the holiday. Everything around me smells like pumpkin, apples, leaves, or some combination there of. Welcome to fall. While we were out we grabbed Qdoba for dinner. If you've never been there, it's a blatant rip off of Chipotle. There's something about the place that bugs me and I figured it out last night. They ARE a ripoff of Chipotle. Chipotle started two years earlier and they both started in the same area. B loves Qdoba because that's what opened first where she lived where as I was the other way around. Regardless, we both love Freebirds more and miss them.

Got back around 7 and started in on the last two boxes. I managed to get through one of them. They are big clothing boxes and I am taking my time because I want my clothes organized and not just a giant mess like it was at the last place. I am going through everything and making sure it fits, that I actually where it, and that there is room for it. Right now I have about 8 small boxes of clothes down in the garage.

About 9 I went into the office and my keyboard on one machine started yelling at me about battery life. I have three more days of classes and didn't feel like having my keyboard die in the middle of it today so I drove to Target at 9 something to get batteries. Came back, changed the batteries, did some more clothes and went to bed around 11.

I had a pretty bad dream last night and it's taking its toll on me this morning, but hopefully that will go away soon. I am already behind though. Moving quite slowly this morning. Going to get through the next three days and then it's off to MN for four days.

New shows start coming back tonight. Excited to see how South Park looks. Almost 20 years it's been around. Amazing. Which will go away first, Simpsons or South Park? We shall see.

Y7 D112

I am always paranoid when I get emails from places I don't know and they have my correct email and some old phone number. I just got one from some spa in MI and they had my old phone number on the account. Who signed me up for this? Who logged me in? Where are they getting their info? Why? It weirds me out. I wish I could flush my name from every database out there some days. Or at least track down which ones have my old info and purge that.

Rained here yesterday. The morning was beautiful. Teaching class, watching the rain outside the window. A little chill in the air. Yeah, I like it here. I like being able to keep the windows open at night.

You ever think about what 'life changing' means when it comes to money? I started thinking about it yesterday. I was thinking about in January signing back up for our 401k. Just a little bit, like $100 a pay period. Not enough that I would miss it, but with matching, enough to feel like I have some money put away. It got me thinking about that concept. Everyone's perspective is different on that. For some, $10,000 would be life changing. Maybe get them an apartment for a year. Buy a car to get to work. Get their kid the supplies they need for school. For others, it takes more. Maybe even less depending on where you are. For me, I think about what would truly 'change' my life. Would $10,000? No. It would improve my life, but not change it. Not dramatically at least. It made me think about what would change my life. The answer? $75,000. Enough to pay off all my debt, pay off my car, and set me towards being able to save for a house. That would drastically change my life. Anything more would be life altering. Like $150,000. That would pay everything off AND give me the money for a down payment. Imagine that. Being able to wipe the slate. There it is. There's the answer. How much does it take to clean the slate? Heck, to be fair, even $50,000 would be life changing. But just barely. It would not be immediately life changing. It would change things over the course of a year. Same goes for a smaller amount. If I came into $25,000 tomorrow with no obligations on it, it would dramatically enhance things, but it would take at least one to two years to see the true benefits. Just pondering as no one is about to give me $25,000 that I know of any time soon. Sigh.

Taught all day to the sound of rain. Finished up around 2:40 and fell asleep. I didn't mean too. I was struggling to stay awake while teaching. It was too warm and cozy in my office. My big plush chair, the rain, the soft light. Yeah. I was out cold for almost two hours. When I woke up, B was asleep but I saw she had gone to the store for dinner stuff. We went old school last night - sloppy joes and tater tots. Rock on. I also managed to find one of the missing boxes. It was in the garage and had been put there because they all thought it was a box with soap that had leaked. Nope. It was Blue Curacao that leaked. The rest of my booze was in there too. Two bottles of whiskey, coffee liquor, etc. Got all that put away, took down the remaining clothes boxes, then did shoes. Got all my shoes either boxed up or put away. All that's left for me are the clothes boxes. I hope to finish those tonight, then do picture hanging, and we will be done.

It looks like this weekend I may be going to a comic con in Portland. Excited about that. Excited about doing stuff in general. We have done more in the last week than in the prior month. That makes me happy. That's life changing.

Y7 D111

I'm cold. What a concept. Wake up in the morning and actually be chilly. Haven't experience that for a while. I am sure as the weeks go on I will be even colder in the mornings too. Yay? I don't know. For the most part living here hasn't felt that much different from my old old place. Not the last 13 months, no, that was hell. I am talking the four and a half years prior to that.

We worked on the bedroom a lot yesterday. I was up early to finish the kitchen and office. We did discover that a box is missing. We don't know how but the movers managed to steal or lose an entire box of alcohol. The only other explanation is that it went straight into the garage without us realizing it, but I am pretty sure we inventoried everything that went into the garage before they left. There's only two boxes left of my clothing and I know the booze isn't in there. I am pretty upset because some of the bottles were empties that I was keeping and had meaning to me. Like my Heineken bottle I made in Amsterdam. Today after class I am going to go down to the garage, go through every box in there and make sure that it is in fact missing. I am going to be pretty pissed off if it is.

To finish the bedroom we needed to go to a place called Storables to get some closet organizers. We needed more shelves that what they gave us. We also found a decent vape shop here in town. I picked up a couple of new flavors - red vines and raspberry donut. I somehow managed to lose one of my tanks too yesterday. We think this place is eating things. Indian burial ground I bet.

B took a nap when we got back and I worked on breaking down boxes and the like. For dinner I made a pork roast. We watched a little TV then worked more in the bedroom. At about 10:30 I was once more exhausted.

I am actually not complaining because we have been working so hard and it makes a difference in the mental state. If you went back 13 months ago, you'd read how frustrated I was trying to work while being surrounded by boxes. I am not dealing with that here. We made a priority out of this work space at least which is good. I am comfortable and setup the way I want. Puts my mind in the right place. This week I have five solid days - a two day class followed by a 3 day class. I am going to spend the next 40+ hours in this room and need to feel productive.

Next week I fly to MN, my first trip from the new airport. I still need to figure out how to get to the airport. I need to leave here at 3:00 and that's a rough time to ask anyone to drive me. I will probably opt for car service. But I don't know which ones are good yet. Sigh. Another task for after work.

Time to make the donuts..

Y7 D110

I have slept really well the last couple of nights. I think it's in part due to having a real bed again and that I have been working my ass off all day and am just truly exhausted come the night. Yesterday is a perfect example of that. From the time I got up around 4 until midnight, with the exception of about an hour nap, I went non-stop with boxes. We are down to the bedroom, five kitchen, and assorted Disney boxes. The living room is done (including TV setup and ready to go), the office is all complete, the dining room, both bathrooms, and a bunch of other stuff. The kitchen is almost done. I should have the kitchen done by noon at the latest. We need a couple of storage bins to really finish and I may go get those this morning. We will see.

That was pretty much our whole day. I went out early in the morning to pick up some more fans for this place and that was a smart idea. I had six fans going in strategic places all day. Made a world of difference in how much we got done and how we treated each other. Neither of us was as cranky as we weren't boiling hot. It's going to be much cooler starting today through the week. This is great as we survived the hot parts and can now enjoy the cool. It's supposed to rain starting tomorrow and a couple of times next week. So looking forward to that.

We actually managed to get to a point where we could cook too! Made pork tacos for dinner. Nice being able to cook and eat without stress. We watched Project Runway while we ate and then more boxes. B is starting to feel better but still has issues. The mix of drugs she is on right now is making her a bit lethargic and I got a little frustrated yesterday but I know it's not her fault and managed to keep myself in check.

Okay, time to finish that damn kitchen.

Y7 D109

Insanity yesterday. Just straight up insanity. I got up at 4 and started prepping for the movers. Tried to make sure there was going to be plenty of room and places for them to put stuff. They arrived at 9. So five hours of being awake and being stressed out even before they got here. Three man crew and it took them until almost 9:45 to get the truck in a position that worked. From then until almost 2 they started unloading. Of course it was semi-record temperatures here too. I say semi, because today is supposed to be the record high for the year. FML. I never thought I would miss air conditioning. I am about 30 seconds away from dropping major coin on one of those portable units. We were dying in here.

While two of the guys were unloading, me and the main guy took care of money. Turns out our sales guy grossly underestimated the weight and the bill was $500 more than the quote. Plus, he never removed the part about them packing which added another $600. So basically a $4100 bill when I was expecting $3200. Um no. We discussed it and in the end he believed me on the packing part and they had to eat the extra weight. I ended up paying $3100 as budgeted. Once the movers left, we started in on our tasks. We went for about 4 hours straight, B working in the kitchen, me in all the rooms. I got the front room looking somewhat human, the bed assembled, the desk assembled, and random boxes throughout every room. At about 6:30 we took a break because we realized we needed a few things like shelf organizers. We took a ride to Target, the pet store, and grabbed some food.

Both of us were very cranky yesterday. I was biting B's head off and she was short with me too. It was the heat. Also when we went out, B slipped and fell hurting her ankle and knee. This made her even crankier especially since she is still dealing with the pain from her other stuff. Got back around 9 and went back at attacking boxes.

At 10:30 I found out I have become fatty mcfuck fuck from my old place. Someone was banging on our front door. Hello downstairs neighbor Sylvia. She proceeded to yell at me about how thin the floors are and she could hear us flushing the toiler and it's 10:30 at night and she is trying to sleep, etc etc. I managed to calm her down and went back to unpacking but a little less vigorously. I tried to minimize my activities to ones that were less banging. I did manage to get the computers all set up and the office functional. I will be ready for my classes next week at least.

Fell asleep a little after midnight. Today is going to be more of the same, but I am going out first thing this morning and buying two more fans. Maybe three. I want them strategically placed around here to draw in some air. I know that once winter comes I will be happy for how air tight this place is, but for right now, it sucks ass.

Y7 D108

I just felt the first impact of our move. My check is smaller. I thought I would be paying CA taxes since the company is in CA, but apparently they take OR taxes out of my check. OR has higher income taxes than CA due to the lack of sales tax. It's a small hit (about $100 difference) but I had this month's budget down to the penny and that is not something I was planning for this period. I sent my tax guy a message asking what's up with that. I figured I would be paying CA taxes and then have to deal with OR at the end of the year. I am so confused. If that's the situation, fine, I just need to know. Some other things also have changed - my car payment is $45 less because there's no sales tax on my lease, and we have saved when we go to the store, I just was planning on my check being a certain amount. Ugh.

Taught all day up until about 3 on the dot, then we went on another adventure. I have been trying to find the closest Mazda dealer as I need to know where to go for service. Found it. Also found a Dutch store where we got some really nice cheese and stroopwaffles. I miss those from being in Europe. If there's one thing I truly miss it's those. These are real ones just like I had in Amsterdam. That was a nice find.

Got back, sat around for a little while, then went and had Noodles and Co for dinner. While we were out we decided to go grocery shopping to get it out of the way. Right next to Noodles is a WinCo and we did really well there. $200 for about a month's worth of stuff.

When we returned we watched Masterchef finally, sat around, and then I went to bed around 10. I am anxious about today as the movers will be here in about 4 hours. I anticipate a busy weekend unpacking boxes. Joy.

Y7 D107

I have been feeling like shit all night. Massive indigestion that just won't go away. I felt like I was going to throw up all night and woke up at 2 with massive bile in my mouth. I still can't shake it. Been up since 3:40 because I just couldn't sleep any more. The culprit? Some of the best southern food I have ever had outside the deep south. The killer was dessert. Had I avoided the blackberry pie with brown butter ice cream I would probably be doing a whole lot better right now. The shrimp and grits and hushpuppies were okay, but the minute I started eating dessert I knew I was in trouble. I am paying for it. Today is going to be a no food day. Plain bread if anything.

One more day until we get our stuff. Tomorrow is going to be crazy but at least we will be able to sleep in our own bed which will help.

I taught all day during the day. Went until about 2:45 then took a brief nap until 4. We had to leave at 4:30 so B could go back to the doctor for a follow up visit. The place where she went on Sunday offers a free clinic the first Wednesday of everything month near downtown and since she needed a follow up it was worth the drive in traffic to save $145 for an office visit and the 3 three bottles of antibiotics they gave her. We got to the clinic right at 5:30 (it starts at 6 but they start taking names at 5:30) and we were first in line. Finished at 6:15 and walked around to find dinner. The area we were in was really nice and we both commented on how we could see the Kid living in an area like that. Very artsy, pubs, clothing shop kind of neighborhood. The people we encountered would have been right up her alley.

Again, dinner was fantastic despite the blowback of the stomach problems. We finished up around 7:30 and headed back. Got home around 8. When we got home there was magically the missing package from Forever 21 at our door. Here's the story:

Before we moved I ordered B a dress to replace one she had that ripped. I knew it would arrive after we moved so I had it sent here. It arrived the Thursday before we got here and was marked as 'left at door'. Of course when we arrived on Saturday it was nowhere to be found. The office hadn't seen it nor was it in the mailbox. Suspicious. I opened a claim on UPS and contacted Forever 21. Both claimed it was shipped and left here. Last night before we went out, the neighbor across from us was going into her place. She seemed surprised that someone was now living across from her. She also had this look of 'oh shit' on her face when she saw there were people here now. Funny how when we got back from our stuff the package magically was on the doorstep. Long after UPS would have been here and definitely after USPS would have arrived. Negative points to you neighbor. Let's see if she admits anything. I do plan on telling the office what happened today. I don't expect them to do anything, but I want them to know I am not happy.

It was hot and stuffy in here when we got back and opened every window and turned on the fans. Such a concept. No more fucking AC. Thank god. Warm? Open a damn window. I can't wait until it gets even colder around here. I say that now. You may all mock me in a few months. Permission granted.

Another day of teaching followed by getting ready for the movers. We need to make sure they have plenty of room to work tomorrow morning when they arrive. And then a weekend of boxes. Joy.

Y7 D106

Back to the grind. Up at my normal time to get ready for a class. I have two days of training then the best news ever came yesterday - we get our stuff on Friday! It's perfect as I don't have to teach on Friday and then we have all weekend to stay inside and unpack. I need to enjoy the emptiness we have right now because in 48 hours I will be surrounded by boxes. Oh joy. Luckily we have so much more storage space that things won't be all over like they were at the last place. It's going to be a mess Friday and Saturday but I am hoping that by Sunday some semblance of order will be achieved.

Speaking of order, we made a trip to IKEA yesterday. We went with the intention of picking up a light fixture. Just that. $360 later we walked out with two bar stools, a dining room table/desk for B with two chairs, odds and ends for the bathroom and kitchen, and a light fixture. The light was for the bar/kitchen area. The place is pre-wired for a fixture right above the bar which is nice and we found one that not only meets our aesthetic needs, but also managed to match the fixtures already here. Plus it was reasonably priced. The IKEA is near the airport which also gave us a test run to the airport to see how long it is going to take to get there in the future. Answer about 40 minutes at 11am. Which means 25-30 at the times I would be going. This is important because not only do I have the trip coming up in a couple of weeks, I learned last night I will be going to Canada in October. Four days in Regina. Such fun.

Prior to the IKEA trip I took a drive out to what is supposed to be the 'nearest' WalMart. It's a different one than I found the other day and while on paper it is closer, there's a one way one lane road you have to take and it took longer than going to the other. Good to know. I picked up a couple of little things on our list like bathroom aerators. They have those dumb low flow ones on the sink and they drive me nuts. I also needed a wall plate as I replaced one of the wall plugs with one that has two USB ports in it.

When we got back from IKEA we spent the next few hours assembling everything. Nothing was hard as is the IKEA way and within an hour or two we had everything setup. We then both relaxed for a while. We sat at our new table and looked up the different gyms near us and price compared. We will probably go this weekend and check all three out. Let's get our stuff in first, then worry about those things. It is definitely one of our goals, but we need stuff first. After all that we made our first dinner here. Granted it was a microwave dinner with a salad but it was food and we made it here. That's what counts. After dinner we were sitting around and realized it was pretty hot. We had all the windows open but it was still a bit stuff. Ride to target at 9:54pm. Luckily they are open until 11. We picked up a couple of fans and it made a huge difference. Assembled said fans and went to bed around 11pm.

Today after class we have to take B back to the doctor for a follow up. On Wednesdays (we wear pink, no different thing...) they offer a free clinic at one of their locations and since we don't want to spend another $145 just for her to be seen, we are going to make the drive and head out. It's going to be right at rush hour and there's going to be a wait, but she needs to see the doctor. Hopefully they will continue the antibiotics and that will be that. She seems to be getting better but we want to be sure.

Friday can't come soon enough.

Y7 D105

Day three. Rations depleting rapidly. The sun is unbearable. Wait... Nope, we're great! We went for a ride in the morning to explore as there is a mini -Powell's book store near us. Powell's is the biggest bookstore ever downtown in Portland and there is a smaller one very close to where we are. We found that the shopping center it is in has a lot of practical stores we might need from time to time including a Craft House, Ross, Storables, and Best Buy. Just a little further down is the Mazda dealer which I need to go to possibly today. But we walked around for a while, then around 11 had lunch at a seafood place. I am so excited to be back in a land of seafood. Everywhere. I had a nice crab newport for lunch and it was really tasty. After lunch, B wanted to hit a Goodwill store as neither of us have any 'warm' clothes. She found a couple of flannels for less then $15. I saw a jacket I liked but didn't end up getting it.

Got back around 2 and B slept. Her pain meds were starting to wear off and she needed rest. She slept until about 4:30. While she was asleep I went for a walk to the little strip mall next to us to pick something up for dessert as we were going to dinner at friend's. I grabbed some honey balls from the Greek place which ended up being a huge hit.

We headed over to their place around 5:15 and arrived at 5:30 on the dot. They have a brand new house in a development about 4 miles from us. Normally I would be envious but since I knew the whole story, I am not envious for them at all. They have a very lovely 4 bedroom home. It's a little big for B and my taste, but it was wonderfully decorated and has an incredible view. They have a lot in common with us - recent marriage, recent move, his wife doesn't have to work, etc.

So he had a tiny condo near where I used to live (pre-B). For whatever reason he found a buyer and got SUPER blessed with finding someone who not only paid cash, but paid well over asking. Thanks to that, he was able to fully cover his outstanding loan and pay for the new in full. I respect that they got a 'normal' house and not some crazy thing. They are in a house very like what we were looking at. We would probably go down one size if it were us, but otherwise, I could see us choosing the same kind of thing.

We ended up having Mexican, and then talking until almost 10. That's two nights in a row where we were out and really enjoyed the company of our hosts. Such a refreshing change.

Last day off as I teach tomorrow. I am thinking IKEA today. I also hope to hear from the movers as to when our stuff will be arriving. It would be nice to have, oh I don't know, all our clothes? We're funny that way.

Y7 D104

And here I thought we had an adventure on Saturday. Let me tell you all about our Sunday. B has an issue with something called hidradenitis. It creates cysts in places where skin has rubbed together like armpits, backs of knees, thigh area, etc. The cysts are under the skin and don't always have a head to be drained. Instead they are just painful inflammations of the skin that make life a living hell. Usually when she gets a flare up, warm compresses and ibuprofen help reduce the swelling and the pain. Not this time. The cysts will form tunnels under the skin to connect each other and she has had a pocket of four under her arm. The pain was so bad Saturday night she couldn't move her arm or sleep. Therefore we spent the first part of our Sunday at Urgent Care. Yay. We had a list of about 15 things we needed and my plan was to take a drive to Fry's near here and pick everything up. A quiet day. Nope. Nice try.

We first went to Target next to the Urgent Care as they weren't open yet, but Target was. Unfortunately I was only able to find 2 things on the entire list there. Urgent Care opens, we meet with the LNP who gives B three prescriptions. We then go back to Target, fill the scrips. I take B home and tell her to sleep. I then head out to Fry's. It's about 20 minutes away which is no big deal. On the way there I find a Bed Bath Beyond, WinCo, Zoup, and some other stuff we have been looking for around here. Some of the stuff we are needing off the list can be found at BBB so I decide to go in there first. I successfully find towel holders for the bathrooms. Feeling good, I continue on to Fry's. I should have known something was up when I walked in as the lights seemed dim. Coming from where I did though, I didn't think about it because many places dim the lights to save energy. I thought that's what was happening. Turns out, they were running off generator power because a transformer blew. I find this out as I get in the checkout line and am told cash only. A couple of the things I am buying are only there (that I know of) so I run to the BoA next door to grab cash and run back. I am then in line for over an hour in the dark. I am watching the cashiers and what they are doing is one person is looking items up on their phone while the other writes a manual receipt. Seeing this, I try to expedite my time at the register by finding the items I am buying myself. In the end I found 4 of the 7. The cashiers loved me for doing that. After almost two hours, I finally escape Fry's but my list is less than halfway complete. On the way back I see a Lowes where I can get some more stuff on my list. I take the next exit and try to find it. Instead I find a WalMart. Sigh, fine. Best decision I made all day I hate to admit. I knocked EVERYTHING off my list. Fine. I deal.

I finally get back home and B is doing much better thanks to the meds. We have plans to go over to our friend's house for dinner at 7 and since she is doing better we decide to check out the mall nearby to kill time before hand. Fantastic idea. We both end up LOVING the mall here compared to what we had before. Every store we could want, friendly people, etc. We get some stuff from Lush and enjoy walking around. While there we come across an animal place known as Hannah. They are insurance for pets and B starts talking with the woman who gives her some info on different shelters and the like in the area if she is interested in volunteering.

We get to our friend's place right on the money of 7pm. We have a wonderful home cooked dinner. We needed that. It was so nice of them to have us over. We had chicken and potatoes and bread and wonderful little desserts. It was just a pleasant relaxing evening. I can't describe it in words enough how comforting it all was. We headed home around 10 and I fell right asleep at 11 after another full day.

It's this kind of day, even with the frustrations, that so far has made this move exceed all of our expectations. The quality of life is 1000% better than we had for the last 13 months. I think we're going to do okay here.

Y7 D103

We left our intrepid adventurers on the road at 3am yesterday. Let's pick the tale back up there!

We switched at Weed. What a town. Talk about milking a town name. The people who live there take it for all it's worth, that's for sure. The rest of the drive was pretty uneventful. B slept for a couple hours, I listened to the radio. The best part is that the cats did an incredible job on this journey. A couple of times they made noise, mostly to reassure themselves we were still there but otherwise not a peep, no accidents, and no issues. I am very proud of them. The rest of the drive took us about 6.5 hours. We rolled into town at 9:25. The office didn't open until 10 and I decided after looking up their hours, we should go pick up the modem from the Comcast store to kill time. B also needed a couple of things and luckily there was a Rite Aid next door. Perfect. All said and done we returned to the complex at 9:59 as they were unlocking the doors. Timing was wonderful.

We got the keys in a few minutes. The only negative experience is there was supposed to be a package waiting for us and UPS says 'left at door' but there was nothing at the door, nothing in the office, and the mailbox had been flagged as 'Vacant Unit' so nothing in there either. That part sucked a little. Parked the car in the garage, yes garage with storage, and headed up. We got inside, let the wild ones free to explore, and we started bringing stuff up. I forgot how much stairs suck. But we managed to get everything inside and done. My buddy had offered to let us borrow his air mattress with pump until our furniture arrives and I coordinated with him a meetup at 2. That gave us about 3 hours to try and get some stuff situated. No problem. My main focus was the computers and internet. Of course Comcast fucked up and I had to call them. In the end though, as you can see, everything is good. One problem is that there's only one cable jack in the whole apartment actually wired. I need to get some F-connectors to wire the one up in the office. Right now I have a 50' cable (which I am glad I brought) running out to the living room. Not going to fly when stuff arrives. While I did that, B did the move-in inspection for us. A few little things like light bulbs out and a scratch on the washer (WHICH WORKS AWESOME! FULL SIZE COMMERCIAL WASHERS LESS THAN A YEAR OLD!), and little things like that. Nothing major. We did have a good moment though - they gave us a remote for the garage and without thinking, we locked the car in the garage figuring there was an external control. Nope. I had to walk back to the office and get a second remote. We have to figure out how to deal with that.

For B, the best part of the day came while I was setting things up in the office. I hear her gasp and open the patio door. I go out to figure out what is wrong and she is crying - tears of happiness. It's raining. Not crazy rain, but rain we have missed so much. The weather yesterday was perfect overall. Not too hot, a little rain here and there. We both were so happy. At 2 we met up with my friend and had a mediocre experience at Shari's for lunch. After lunch, the goal was some mandatory shopping. We needed a chair for me (office depot, $150 high back brown leather, so comfy), a shower curtain for B, and some little odds and ends like that. We saved about $30 without even trying. Why? No sales tax!! The price of something is the price of something! We got back around 4 and B laid down for a while. When we got back I had a message from another friend who lives up here. He and his wife have invited us over for dinner on Monday. The other buddy wants us to come over today. Not even here a full day and we have two social invitations. Not too shabby. She ended up sleeping until 7 while I worked on the chair, put up the shower curtain, general sorting, etc. For dinner we went for a walk! Right around the corner from us is Thai, Greek, Vietnamese, and a local bar. There's also a coffee and nail place, but lower on the priority list. Dinner was outstanding. Plus the walk was great. Both of us have a slight problem though. We packed for warmer weather without thinking about how cold it would be or the rain issue. Today we are going to slum it and hit the Goodwill nearby for some hoodies and the like until our stuff arrives.

When we got back B took a bath and the day finally caught up with me. I ended up falling asleep at 9:30. I was just so worn out from everything. As you can read, it was a long ass day. But...

We're happy. No, seriously. Both of us are very pleased with the new place. We did our homework this time and checked for noise, storage, layout; all the little things that bothered us about the old place. So far no issues. Can't hear the neighbors. Things work. I like being up higher personally (we're on the top floor above one other unit and the garage) and the weather is perfect (right now). The best part is that this is a great adventure and I have someone to share it with who is excited to be on an adventure. Who knows what tomorrow will bring, but for today, we are happy and for once I feel like I did the right thing and am moving in a positive direction. Notice I haven't had any major depression episodes lately? Been too busy to be depressed. Being here I think will also help curb things. We shall see. So far so good.

Y7 D102

I was up at 3:15am. Partly out of anxiety, partly out of time changes. I went to the bank, put gas in the car, then sat until B got up at 7. We did what we could to minimize stuff for the movers. They arrived at 9:15 and started in at 9:20. Five guys total and they were out by 11:45. Bam. So from noon on, we sat bored out of our minds. We went to get some lunch which killed 30 minutes. I tried to nap for a little while but that failed. Too much anxiety about everything that needed to fit in the car. We ate leftovers and watched Project Runway to kill time.

We both managed to fall asleep for a while; B slept for about 2 hours, me for 90 minutes. We got up around 8:30 and I took a shower to wake up. Then we started on the car packing. I was right, it was a nightmare game of Tetris, but we did it. All in without blocking a window or breaking anything. At 10:40 we dropped off the old modem at Comcast's office and we were on the road at 11:45. I drove until 12:30, then B took over until 3. And that's where I will end this part of the adventure.

Y7 D101

Bad day for me to be having serious stomach issues. Because it's MOVE DAY finally! Yes, in about 5 hours the movers will arrive and start packing our life up. Say goodbye to our stuff until 9/10 at the earliest. Almost a full week without anything. Oh this is going to be fun. As for my stomach, it's revolting against the Indian food I put in it last night.

Yesterday day time wasn't so much of a problem as last night was. During the day there wasn't a whole lot for us to do except make sure the odds and ends were packed and ready. I did some work including my expense report. I am pretty impressed with myself. $3600 spent for 10 days on the road over a weekend. I only spent $200 in food for the whole time I was there. I did pick up some meals on my own (the weekend) but otherwise, I just was really careful about how much I spent. I had another $200 in car services but that's way cheaper than a rental would have been. The big bulk was the hotel at $2700. But still, I did okay.

I took a nap early in the afternoon, B later. While B was napping I went to the store to pick up eye drops. I put in new contacts yesterday and all day the left one was giving me trouble. I was slightly blurry which doesn't happen with new contacts. I finally decided to take them out and look at that - the left eye had two lenses in it. They were stuck together and when I put them in, I didn't notice there were two. All the drops I had been putting in all day loosened them from each other. Son of a...

Around 7 we headed out with the bike to put it into storage in our friend's garage. That was a scary ass ride. To get there I had to go through this pass with 70 mph winds threatening to topple me the whole time. B was right behind me in the car and when we stopped she told me she was scared for my life the entire drive. She could see me forcefully fighting against the wind. She's right, I was. But we got it there, disconnected the battery and all is good. We went out for one last dinner with our friend and got home around 9:30.

NOW the fun started. It was time to break down the TV, the big computers, move the stuff that's going in the car with us, etc. I finished around 11 and collapsed. I am still dealing with time difference issues which means I was more tired than her even more than normal. She went to bed around 2:30. Time changes are also the reason I have been up since 3:15 with no issue. Wide awake.I am also extremely stressed about today. In 15 hours we are out of here. The next time you hear from me, it will be from OR. And we're off!

Y7 D100

So much went on yesterday I don't even know where to begin. Let's start with my 13 hours of travel. I was up at 1am EDT to get ready to leave the hotel. My car showed up at 2:45am which was wonderful. I was at the airport by 3, through security at 3:40, and in the Admiral's club at 4. I boarded at 4:40 and had a wonderfully pleasant flight from NJ to TX. Had my upgrade and enjoyed a french toast brioche with peach compote. The morning started off nice and relaxing. From Dallas, I had about an hour so plenty of time to get to my gate. I was 14th on the list and ended up sitting in coach. But I got very lucky for two reasons. One, this flight had the economy plus section which I purchased and therefore the seats are a little wider and there's a little more room. Not as good as first, but better than the rest of the cattle seats. Two there was no one in the middle. That was the best part. I managed to sleep a little on that flight and landed at 10:45 on time. Unfortunately B didn't plan for Wednesday traffic and didn't get there until almost 11:30. She did however bring the motorcycle battery which saved me a huge trip back and forth. On the way home we stopped and picked up a battery.

When we got home I was blown away by how much she had manage to get accomplished. So much of my stress was swept away when I saw what she had done. A big portion of what I was worried about was already finished up for me. That helped my mental state considerably. I then decided to focus on the bike. I went out, put the new battery in, and she started right up. Beautiful. I decided to take her to the gas station for gas and air and as I was riding I realized some fucker had stolen my mirrors while I was gone. I KNOW they were there before I left. FUCK ME. Back to being stressed. I went to three different stores in town to see if by any miracle anyone had anything. I found a clip on which will at least allow me to ride it without getting a ticket. It's useless to use, but it will suffice. I decided at that point that the bike is going into my friend's garage until October. I was not in the mood to try and deal with dealers or anything else. I got back home, looked up mirrors on the internet, found a pair for $30 and am having them shipped to his place. The bike is going over tonight to live in his garage.

With that out of the way, I focused on moving files, laundry, ordering a pizza for dinner, and clothes packing. That about covered everything. I also started taking the desk apart.

Today I have to do expense reports, break down the tv and electronics, pack up food, and move the bike. Otherwise, we are ready for Friday. In less than three days, we are out of here.

Y7 D99

Doing this as a draft right now as it's too early to post technically.

Had a minimal day yesterday. Up at 5 to check in for my flight and was rewarded with one of my upgrades. I am at least getting comfy from NJ to TX. Was at the client from 7:30 until 2, came back to the room, packed a little, slept for a couple hours, had food delivered in as I didn't want to go out. Watched the rest of season 2 of Luther and then slept from 8 until 1am. Now I am up and ready to leave for the airport at 3.

SO fucking stressed out about everything I have to do when I get home.

Y7 D98

I'm awake but not awake. I had to get up early this morning to check in for my flight. 18 more minutes.

Last day of formal training was yesterday. I got them through it. Six days of non-stop by the book training classes. Most of them made it through yesterday without any issues. Some of them could use a refresher on all six days already but it is what it is. We finished up around 4:30 once more and I headed back to the hotel.

Did preliminary packing, tonight I finish the rest. I did check my reservation for car service tomorrow morning and boy am I glad I did. Turns out they had 3pm as the pickup instead of 3am. I would have been freaking out tomorrow. I will already be stressed about getting home that's the last thing I needed.

Walked to Chipotle for dinner, ate in the room, watched two episodes of Luther, and went to bed around 10.

Almost done here. Today is 'mentoring' so it could go 8 hours or it could go one hour. It all depends on how many questions or thoughts they have. I am hoping we go to about 2 or 3 so I can come back,  pack, walk over to like Subway for a sandwich and sleep from 7-1. 13 hours after that I will be home. Home. No, not true. I will be at the place we are leaving in a few days. Boxes surrounding me for another 36 hours then movers, then a 10 hour car drive, then waiting, then sleeping on a floor. Ugh. Ask me in about 2 weeks how I am doing. Maybe by then life will be settled down. No wait, in three weeks I go to Eden Prairie. Ask me in January how things are.