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freeing a soul : october 2001
10.29.2001
christmas bells are ringing
my mommy & daddy agreed to get me a digital cameral for christmas this year, so i did my homework and just ordered this one!
<hophophop>
posted by belen 7:29 PM
10.28.2001
a perfectly lovely evening
i finally had the opportunity to meet an old friend of david's named Lish. she is a naval officer who has just been moved to bremerton, wa, which is about 50 minutes away.
we drove out there in the early evening, and when we arrived, i was floored. the house is on a bay, water access, 2 floors, exposed wood, huge windows, big decks overlooking the water, trees everywhere. it is just *amazing*!
so we ate dinner, watched a movie, drank copiously and wound up spending the night. i had a marvelous time...it was a relaxing lovely evening, and probably the first away-from-austin gathering i have been to that has really made me feel warm and at ease. i have to say that it was such a pleasure to finally meet lish. it makes me sad that she is shipping out for 3 months next week, so our last month here we wont really see her :(
the drive home today was bright and sunny, the fall colors shining on the rolling green hills, mt ranier standing tall and proud against the blue sky with puffy white clouds...just a perfect day. it would be awesome if we continued to have this kind of weather until we leave!
posted by belen 4:25 PM
10.27.2001
<SIGHS>
well, david just said "i wonder where the keys went?"
i said "i still think that they are somewhere in your stuff and we will find them later"
and he said "well, we can solve that"
and he started emptying his stuff out of his backpack.
and lo-and-behold, there are they keys in the bottom of his backpack.
<SIGHS>
david says that since our trip was so inexpensive, that we were not being patriotic and doing as Bush asked (SPEND MONEY!), so we decided to do our part and toss $55 to the wind.
<shakes head>
posted by belen 12:29 PM
back home
well, we are *finally* back home to lovely 50 degree rainy olympia (cant have it all, huh?)
so the whole trip was *amazingly* successful (except the airport to home stretch of our travels).
we snagged the apartment for only the $100 reduced deposit. rent will only be $610 because of the specials they had going on. it has a quiet view of the vine-covered tennis courts. it is big and new and lovely :) and get this: it has the new-fangled washer/dryer, where the washing and drying happen in the same unit. dont ask me how this works, but i assure you that once i experience this miracle-appliance, i will report back. imagine never having wet laundry forgotten in the dryer again!
i went through a series of meetings (3 in 4 days) with the websonly (www.websonly.com) people and we came to an agreement. i am going to give them 30 hrs a week and they are going to give me an annual salary, for the 1st 90 days and then we will reevaluate, and see how everything is going. this leaves me the freedom and time to still do contract work (i dont have to abandon xtine). and they want me to start now, so i am pleased. i think what this will end up meaning for me is that i am going to be working my ass off 50+ hrs a week until all my projects balance out and i get into a new routine. but thats all good...i defiantely cant complain!
so the flight back was the direct route: tampa to *newark* to seattle. (what do you expect for $168 round trip?) the flight was long, we were exhausted. and then, because the trip was just too perfect, we had to be struck with difficulty. we landed and grabbed a cab from the airport. the car was parked at bob's and he had left my car keys locked in the glove compartment bec he wasnt going to be home that night.
we got to the car, its raining and cold enough to see your breath. and david searchs for the keys and cant find them. he thought he had put them in his trench coat pocket, but his gremlins apparently thought that was too easy and lifted them when we werent looking.
so we are at bob's in the hood, locked out, no car keys and no bob. so we took all of our stuff, trudged through the rain to the safeway across the street and looked up some numbers in a phone book. we called the airport in hopes that the keys turned up on the flight...no cigar. then we called a locksmith and waited the hour-long "25 minutes" for him to arrive. then we forked over $55 for his services, drove *back* to the airport because someone told david that he needed to fill out a "lost" form. and when we got there, they told us they didnt have they keys and there were no forms to fill out.
<GROOOOOOOOOWLS>
so finally at 12:30am (3:30am our east-coast body-clock) we drive the hour home to olympia.
needless to say, we could have done without the last part, but hey, if that is the worst of the trip, i cant really complain :)
posted by belen 12:21 PM
10.25.2001
karma angels save the day
well, i couldnt have *asked* for a more successful trip :)
we found THE apartment - great location, great amenities, great price, 818 sq ft. i am sooooooo excited! this gives you a little idea of what its like.
and i met with the websonly folks and i think we are going to enter into a confirmed part-time gig (about 20 hrs a week) and see where it goes from there. we just fit together so well, and i am very excited about building this relationship to fit both our needs. looks like i have 3 flash intros coming up from them :)
more coming soon :)
posted by belen 10:13 AM
10.23.2001
hellooooooooooo out there
<waves and grins> hi!
wanted to give you the 30-second update :)
after travelling fro midnight sunday until noon monday, and then trying to function long enough to eat lunch, visit the partment locator and drive home without causing an accident, we finally fell onto the couch in sheer exhastion. i will *NEVER* fly all night again. it is not worth the $$$ saved.
so today we woke up and felt human again :) and first thing on the list was lunch with the WebsOnly folks. it was *such* a pleasure! it went really well, and i can only hope to get the chance to have a working relationship with them. i think we are going to try to get together again before we leave on friday. yay!
then we took a gander at apartments. some ok, some not...i think tomorrow's list is more promising. we did find 1 dream-apartment, but alas, too far out of our price range. it was right on the bay, medeteranian style villa complex, big beautiful apartments, every amenity you could ask for....just amazing! <SIGHS&rt;
then we went to the beach to walk on the white sand and watch the sun set. i could definately get used to this :)
more updates tomorrow :)
posted by belen 6:26 PM
10.20.2001
the pilgrimage
well, tomorrow we leave for florida :)
today is the laundry-clean-pack day (oh the joy) :)
it will be nice to be visiting someplace 85 and sunny!
well, as we trek along, i will keep you posted...
posted by belen 3:06 PM
10.17.2001
amen
God Angrily Clarifies 'Don't Kill' Rule
posted by belen 9:42 AM
10.16.2001
oral fixation
last night, my dreams were dominated by oral sex.
all.night.long.
and (being the kind soul i am) it was all about the "giving" not the "receiving".
i just couldnt get enough...boys, girls...equal opportunity!
i was even giving lessons!
every goal of every dream was getting lovely ones on their backs.
<grins> how's that for a great night's sleep?
posted by belen 10:00 PM
10.14.2001
proud owners
so david and i are now the proud owners of a 1991 GMC Suburban :) bright blue & silver (very sexy two-tone action!) its in really good shape, the inside is all sorts of comfortable and cushy - and all for only $4200.
look for us in a town near you ;)
posted by belen 4:36 PM
10.10.2001
busy busy girl
goodness, time flies when you are chained to your desk ;)
i have been *SO* busy!
we calculated total driving miles for this move today <SIGHS> with a route through SF, LA, austin, NOLA and then to our new home, the total driving miles will be <drumroll> 3600 miles.
oof!
posted by belen 6:41 PM
10.9.2001
the gypsy bug
well, here we are again...plane tickets bought, ready to fly across the country to look for apartments :)
we decided: clearwater, FL - well, actually, the tampa bay area...nothing specific yet.
i figure:
1) it has to have more opportunities than here.
2) i might as well continue being a weather whore. while you sweated all summer, i basked in 75 degree days with puffy white clouds...and while you shiver in february, i will sip mimosas on a patio in a puddle of sunshine.
3) i am doing my good deed by giving my sister her spring break vacation spot.
4) we are masochistic gypsies - moving everything we owned and 2 cats from austin to olympia was not extreme enough - we need more of an endurance test, and this can only be accomplished with a washington to florida move :)
5) well, why *not*?
so we are in florida apartment hunting from oct 21-26, and moving sometime between mid-nov and dec 1. (and then i will be in texas for 2 weeks around xmas, seeing all you lovebunnies!)
when i looked at moving options, i was appalled. a UHaul or the equivelent costs between $1500-2000 just for the rental (then add gas, and i almost faint at the thought). but get this: a full-service moving company who packs your shit *for* you starts at $2000! there is a 3rd option: companies that let you pack the stuff and then they ship it...that is $1300-1600.
the alternative that we are looking into at the moment is buying a used suburban and towing a trailer again. david's parents have offered to help add to the fund, and i think we can get a late 80's suburban, and actually have something to show for our hard-earned money, rather than throwing it away on the other ghastly moving options.
<giggles> the gothicsuburban :)
so, thats what's new in my world...you know, its all about radical decisions ;)
posted by belen 12:26 AM
10.3.2001
trials and tribulations
you know, i could complain....but i don't really feel i have the right.
this job thing is so...frustrating.
i mean, at the moment, i have a veritable cornicopia of work. i have AGA, i have messy fun, i work with xtine from time to time...and i believe there are other things brewing. so for now, all is mostly good. but its so unstable...and even though i am making money *now*, i don't feel right using any of it to put toward my mountain of debt, because i feel i have to squirrel it away for those 3 months that i will make nothing.
so i heard from the florida folks. they hired someone local because they needed someone quickly to deal with their workload. which i totally understand. but they said that they are very interested in me, are growing fast, and since i was planning on moving to the area anyway <belen coughs and clears her throat> that they would love to interview me if i am ever in town.
they also asked me if i was interested in bidding on a flash site.
well, all around, not too shabby. but its just another question mark, like NOLA...*if* you live here, *maybe* we will have work for you or offer you a job.
and i know thats the way it goes...but that doesnt make any decisions for me. there is nothing solid helping me decide to spend $1-2k to haul myself across the country. there are no guarantees.
but i know there is nothing here (unless you count the "maybe our online dept wants you to do contract work for them" from the olympia paper).
so its a conundrum. to move or not to move...that is the first question.
where-oh-where being the second question.
i know i would be happy in NOLA, but would there be work that pays well? when you look at the stats, the average salary in NOLA is $22k vs $33k in the tampa area. both cities have companies that want to talk with me about work. i know NOLA and am comfortable there, but i think florida has more opportunities out there.
<sighs> so once david wakes up, we get to debate the Moving Options.
as i said, i can't complain! i have people offering me work, there are people interested in me...the problem is that most of them want me *there* to "talk". ah well, such is life.
posted by belen 9:49 AM