Seattle, the first week plus a couple...

It's funny, but I have come to a realization that I have been a Leftcoaster stuck in a Missourian's body for awhile now. I've always been on the liberal side of the fence politically, but I think 5 years of living in Europe only intensified that.

Make no mistake, I love my home state... so much that I practically have clear Ozark streams for blood. But the Missouri I loved is not the Missouri I left. Granted, I grew up in the St Louis area, the daughter of a Teamster truck driver... so it was more common to have liberals around in that time and place. However, overall I remember Missouri being a generally "small c" conservative place, ruled by common sense and not reactionary fervor. I still have many friends in Missouri who feel the same as I do

Since my return from mobilization to Texas, I knew I wouldn't be staying in Missouri much longer. I felt like I had my wings clipped when I returned home.  Something just had to give.  I enjoyed being home in some ways, but not so much in others.  I felt cramped and confined and invaded.  I got used to having personal space and time, but those were pretty much non-existent.

So now I have come to Seattle.  I have been here a week and almost 2 days and completed my first day of work.  Today I went to the grocery store, I was struck by 2 things... the amazing selection of energy bars like Lara, Clif, etc.  I found some on sale cheap... they will make good work snacks.  But also, the employees were talking about the schedule for the picket lines and how they are going to have to use savings to live during the strike that starts tomorrow.  Strikes and unions were a reality of my childhood.  Having a dad who was union member and a shop steward made me more keenly aware of the issues growing up... not just the inconvenience that it causes some people.  And now, I'm a union member for the first time in my life... and that awareness is reawakened. It won't be as easy or cheap to get groceries, but I won't cross the picket line.  Solidarity is the only way that unions work.... especially from other union members.

It is a different world up here and a much different life.  I am in no  way complaining... for my first week in this new world, I feel content and am anxious for Mark to get up here so we can begin this life together.  It's still an adventure, and the reality will start settling in once I get into my apartment this coming Saturday. It will be another busy Saturday, I will get my keys, move my Maxine stuff in and get my internet turned on and wait for the IKEA delivery guys to show up.

I have also discovered that part of the "commuter uniform" is a travel mug of coffee, often Starbucks.  Also Starbucks is almost a religion of sorts up here.  Even though they are all over the place, they are all busy.  And if there isn't a Starbucks, there is some sort of coffee kiosk... it's the culture. Good thing I like coffee.  There is even a coffee place on the first floor of the building that I work in.  They must make a pretty penny from King County employees simply due to their location... and you can only get in from inside the building if you have a county badge with access chip.  (Yeah, I have that AND I have used it, tyvm.)

I like it up here... even the weather isn't getting me down, mainly because on most days we have some sun, usually in the afternoon.  This weeked broke that trend though, it was supposed to be warmer, and sunny, but we just didn't quite get there.

Another observation... at the mall yesterday, I noticed that half the 12 venues in the food court are Asian.  Good Pho place too!  I loves me some noodle soup!!  I also found the coolest little store with Japanese stuff.  I bought a pair of chopsticks for work that come in their own case, some little tupperware type containers for side sauces, a very nice little phone stylus/pen & a bottle of Calpico (yum).

There is just so much to see and do and explore here, it's unreal.  I may have to start going to roller derby since that seems to be the big thing too.  James photographs it, two of my co-workers have daughters in the Jr Leagues and one of them is even a ref. So it's huge.

At work, I am already finding that they are fun people.  From the window at the end of my row, we can see right across I-5 into a wooded area that is inhabited by homeless people.  My fellows have made spreadsheets of how many tents have gone up, how long they have stayed, and how long it has taken them to return after an enforced removal. On my first day or two, there apparently had been an enforcement.  By Wednesday there was one tent already back up... by Thursday it was 5, and we were holding at 5 as of COB Friday.  I believe the record is 9 tents, IIRC.

Then there was the whole "make it awesomer" fun.  It was more of a "you had to be there moment"... but suffice it to say, it was hiliarious... and our entire department's catch phrase is now 'make it awesomer'!

So far so good. Yesterday was "getting stuff done day"... I managed to get my Washington Driver's License (and become registered to vote and an organ donor at the same time), get my cable & internet ready to go, get my deposit and first month's rent paid, and get my huge furniture, etc. buy done at IKEA & delivery arranged.  So yeah... busy.  Today I laid low and made dinner for James & Liz... it's the least I can do for the help they are giving me.

I think this enough of a recap of of my first week, and a disjointed one at that.
MAKE IT AWESOMER!!

Seattle or Bust... 2000 insane miles in 4 days!

Let's just call this take 2.  Urgh. Had a lot written and lost it since I'd not saved it. Grump.

Mostly I have just been trying to wrap my mind around the changes that have already happened and are continuing to happen around this huge transition in my life, on this, my 2nd full day in Seattle.

I feel like so many blessings are flowing my way right now... this amazing new job opportunity, my friends so kindly giving me a place to stay until my apartment is ready on the 26th, the smoothness of the trip... it has been an amazing process so far.

My first day in Seattle, yesterday, found me venturing out to IKEA, Trader Joe's, QFC (which is one of the incarnations of Kroger out here), and a park to go for a run in.  Today I'm just kind of staying in, not doing much, but considering a trial walk to the transit station just so I am sure I'm in the right place in the morning... also for timings.

There are certain times in life when it just feels like things are "meant to be"... I tend to be a skeptic most of the time, but there are other times when I'm not and that non-skeptic side kind of comes out when I look at this whole process and how fast the changes have happened.  

When I first found the job listing for Hillsboro, Oregon and put in the application, I had a feeling rather like getting on a moving train.  There was no rhyme or reason for it, it just was.  My gut also said that putting all my eggs in one basket wasn’t a good idea and I’m so glad that I listened to it.  Because though I was an excellent candidate for the Oregon job, there wasn’t any evidence that I would get that job.  So I looked at Seattle/King County and found several public health nursing positions open that I felt I could do.  The funny thing is that the job I got wasn’t yet listed on their site… and yet they called me the very next day to verify some info and timetable kind of stuff with me.  

Throughout it all, Seattle/King County has been wonderful and responsive, whereas the Oregon people were mostly meh… even to the point of them not responding to my e-mail to inform them that I had found another job and getting my “thanks, but no thanks” e-mail from them on my last day at Callaway County.  I think the rapport that I felt after the Seattle interview was genuine and the “meh” I felt after the Oregon interview was equally genuine.  I am coming to a great place, I just feel that in my gut… but they will have some mighty big shoes to fill after my family at Callaway.

I am also glad to be out of the living situation in Columbia, I was really getting to the end of my rope living with my daughter and her husband, and they were probably getting there with me, to be fair.  Ever since I came back from Texas last year, it has felt like I have had to squeeze my feet into shoes that fit when I was 12 and have had to walk on eggshells at the same time.  I was going to go crazy and take someone with me. I love them, but I really can’t live with them.  I do regret leaving my husband and son… especially since it is my son’s senior year. But I plan to fly back for his graduation and departure for the Air Force in May.  The good news is that they will be coming out to visit me at Christmas and Spring Break… I am already looking forward to that.

The drive out was an interesting test of endurance… covering nearly 500 miles on 3 of the 4 days and almost 600 on one of them. This was with my hip bursitis deciding to really flare up and be lots of fun.  So after the first days, I just slowed down and took more breaks, even to the point that my 577 mile day between Gillette, Wyoming and Missoula, Montana was almost the easiest of the 4.

Driving across country like that brought back distant memories of a family vacation to points as far west as Yellowstone when I was maybe 6 or 7.  It also gave me a lot of quiet time to just go with the flow and let my mind wander.  I also saw some interesting things just from the interstate and beautiful things too.  I-90 isn’t quite your average interstate going through the Rockies…. it is amazingly beautiful.

Northern MO on I-29 was pretty boring… I had lunch in St Joseph and took off.  I was kind of surprised by some big hills up there, though. IIRC, I crossed over into Iowa about 1330 on day one… about the most interesting thing in Iowa was a sign for “Stoner Drug”... apparently it’s a small chain of drug stores in NW Missouri and Iowa.  I’m not sure I’d want to buy my drugs from a stoner.  I slipped into South Dakota few hours later without even noticing… until I saw that the mile markers had changed.  I stopped for the night in Sioux Falls SD.

So, most of Wednesday was spent in South Dakota.  I have to say that South Dakota is proud of a few big things… Wall Drug!!!... or at least the owners of the place want you to know all about it, over and over and over and over… I didn’t stop there in protest, but then wished I had since SD decided to close both of the last rest stops in the state.  They also are big on Mt Rushmore… and a little bit big on Sturgis and Laura Ingalls Wilder.  I REALLY wanted to go to DeSmet to see the Laura Ingalls Wilder stuff, but due to time constraints, I really didn’t have the time to do a 55 mile side jaunt EACH WAY.  Why Pa had to settle so far from the interstate is beyond me.  South Dakota was truly high plains and I think I saw some sloughs like L.I.W. mentions in her books.  The west side of the state had also been hit with blizzards and snow accumulations of 3-4 feet the previous Friday (4th October), so I got to see dead cows by the side of the interstate… creepy.  But you could still see where the snow had drifted over the fences and the cows had just walked right on over… you could also see where the drifts had been across the highway but had the middle of the drift plowed away.  My relief stop finally came once I got into Wyoming at their beautiful welcome center, which I think was placed strategically for scenic impact.  They were lovely folks and gave me a place to finally stretch and empty my tanks.  That night ended in Gillette, Wyoming… a little town of no consequence, so far as I could see.  Natives would prolly disagree, but what I saw just passing through wasn’t particularly impressive.

Thursday was Wyoming/Montana day… my longest with a drive of nearly 600 miles. Since the bursitis in my hips had really been bothering me (as in shooting pains down my legs), I was determined to stop as much as I needed to and take my time. It was, ironically, my easiest day’s driving.  Just the beauty of the Rockies made me just want to stop and take pictures about every 2-3 miles, but I kept on trucking until I made it safely to Missoula, Montana… which is apparently the Columbia/Austin of Montana.  Funny that… you don’t picture a liberal/crunchy/funky place in Montana.

Friday started in Missoula and ended in Seattle at long last.  I was ready to be off the road by the time I got here… oy.  The changing of scenery and climates crossing Washington was fascinating… there were at times: Texas scrub, South Dakota plains, Arizona desert, more mountains, Missouri farmland… and it goes rather quickly from one to the next as you buzz by.  Really interesting state… of course I’m living in the rain forest on the west side of the Cascades… and I’m okay with that.

I stopped by the apartment complex where I will be living and got some needed information and then trucked up to James & Liz’ place… fed the cats and got settled in a little, then collapsed, exhausted and muddy in the guest bed… well, maybe not muddy, but exhausted.

Today I took my dry run down to the bus station so I know where I’m going in the morning.  I have Maxine’s back seat unloaded… impressive pile of stuff Markle got in there.  The trunk will not be unloaded until I get into my apartment next week.  I have my clothes laid out for morning.  I will miss my afternoon nap.  I think I'm going to prepack my lunch, so I can just grab it and go in the morning.  I did buy myself a lunch box and containers for it for work at IKEA… it was a good thing I went or else I’d have been lost for what to eat. I also got groceries.

But that is the synopsis of my great Seattle or Bust trek...

Winding it down here...

I have a lot of emotions rolling around right now, the problem is they are harder to tease out individually because they are so tangled up.  It's kind of like a disco ball, I catch glimpses of one and then another but can't catch a firm hold on any of them.  It creates a sort of uncomfortable sense of not feeling and one emotion in depth, while feeling everything a little bit.  It allows me a calm veneer over a surreal internal shallowness.

I feel very deeply about this whole move, but feel unable to express it. I guess it is helpful because I am able to get things done for the move efficiently without getting mired down in the emotional swamp.  I am sure I will cry once I'm on the road, but right now I jut can't go there.

I can't believe that I'm down to less than a week. The physical signs of the move are there, but not a lot looks hugely different at this point. Having the dumpster was something and getting rid of ... 1.8 tons of crap... yes nearly 2 tons... was amazing. Yesterday we hauled off boxes of books to Half Price Books in Independence.  Today I got all my favorite bedding into a space bag and the air sucked out of it.

Tomorrow will bring more wind down stuff... putting clothes into space bags. I have my bag packed for Archon mostly, and the one that will get me across the country.  I need some provisions for the drive. I also will be getting Maxine her final maintenance and new tires.  I also have her title and lien release certification.

I think I'm pretty much ready to get packed up and head out next Tuesday...