Big D
We have been in Dallas for two weeks. So far, so good. We are staying in Nate's aunt's house for three months while we scope out the city and figure out where we want to live. The house is big and comfortable. Plenty of room for all of us. My office is in the front bedroom and Nate has the middle room for his office/cave. Nate's working from home now so that's a big adjusment.
Dallas is an easy city to live in. Not too crowded, not too much traffic except during rush hours. It is also a big adjustment. Our neighborhood is very quiet. Our neighbor across the street has something like five cars in his driveway and in front of his house. I've seen one car move regularly. Our lives are so quiet now that when I saw two cars gone, I had to tell Nate. The mail man is a major event. In Nate's office, he watches two lizards run across his windows.
But things are going very well. Just a slower pace. We're both getting a lot of work done and seeing our families more, which was one of the main reasons to move back to Texas. We've been eating a lot of Mexican food and Bar-B-Que, two other reasons to come back. Also, can you say queso? I love that stuff. All we could get in Chicago was queso fundido, which is good but not quite the same. Ahhh, queso. And margaritas. I'm glad to be back.
P.S. Those tenants did work out. No worries, except for that whole not having a job thing. Not too worried about it though. Not yet.
Monday
Cross Your Fingers
We may have found two people to sublet our apartment. We're waiting to hear if they passed the credit check. If everything works out, that will be our last major worry. Except for the fact that I will be unemployed and broke. My last day of work is Friday. Strangely, I'm feeling very relaxed about it all. I haven't had a summer break in quite awhile.
Thursday
Storm Before the Calm
The good thing about all of this moving anxiety stuff is that I know it will be over soon. I am having anxiety dreams and not sleeping well. Last night I dream about zombies. But the truth is, we are very lucky. One of us has a job, we have a place to stay in Dallas, and I will get to take some time off and try to finish my novel before I go back to work. Also, I’m going to Vermont in August, which is a great time to get out of the Texas heat. Life is good, if stressful for the moment.
The good thing about all of this moving anxiety stuff is that I know it will be over soon. I am having anxiety dreams and not sleeping well. Last night I dream about zombies. But the truth is, we are very lucky. One of us has a job, we have a place to stay in Dallas, and I will get to take some time off and try to finish my novel before I go back to work. Also, I’m going to Vermont in August, which is a great time to get out of the Texas heat. Life is good, if stressful for the moment.
Wednesday
Bad Moon Rising
There’s weird vibes lately. Bad juju. Mala honda. I said I wouldn’t bore you with all of the navel-gazing (and complaints), but I lied. You can skip the rest of the entry if you don’t want to read my whining.
First, next Friday is my last day at work. So there’s the stress of trying to finish all of my assignments and projects before I leave. Then there’s packing and all of the details that come with a cross-country move. It seems as though everything that could go wrong is.
Last week when we left for our Dallas trip, we saw street cleaning/no parking signs on the opposite side of the street. Nate wondered if he should move our car (parked on the side of the street without the signs) because he felt sure they would clean the side we were parked on the next day. I said the city was required to post signs at least 24 hours ahead of time, and there were no signs, so there shouldn’t be a problem. When we got back into town after the weekend, we had a ticket. Of course.
Another example: we are getting a cable modem installed in the house we are renting in Dallas. The house belongs to Nate’s aunt and is currently vacant. She already has cable in the house (but no internet service), so we tried to get a separate account. We were told that our account would be billed for the charge, not his aunt’s, and that there was a certain installation fee but no extra charges. Today we found out all the charges were billed to his aunt’s account and oh yeah, there was a $250 deposit they forgot to mention.
When we had originally spoken with our landlord about our relocation, we thought he would keep our deposit (a month and a half of rent) and we were fine with that. While we were in Dallas he told us we would be responsible for the remainder of the lease, which ends next May (we signed an 18-month lease). We’re trying to find tenants to sublet, so if you know of anyone who needs a great 2-1 with an office on the North Side, let me know. Otherwise, we’ll be paying rent on an empty apartment in Chicago.
Added to this, today I went to work and one of my work buddies was laid off. It’s sad and stressful. She’d been at that job for t he past four years and it was totally unexpected. She’s the one who told me about my job, she’s the one who recommended me. I am in serious need of a drink. Or ten.
There’s weird vibes lately. Bad juju. Mala honda. I said I wouldn’t bore you with all of the navel-gazing (and complaints), but I lied. You can skip the rest of the entry if you don’t want to read my whining.
First, next Friday is my last day at work. So there’s the stress of trying to finish all of my assignments and projects before I leave. Then there’s packing and all of the details that come with a cross-country move. It seems as though everything that could go wrong is.
Last week when we left for our Dallas trip, we saw street cleaning/no parking signs on the opposite side of the street. Nate wondered if he should move our car (parked on the side of the street without the signs) because he felt sure they would clean the side we were parked on the next day. I said the city was required to post signs at least 24 hours ahead of time, and there were no signs, so there shouldn’t be a problem. When we got back into town after the weekend, we had a ticket. Of course.
Another example: we are getting a cable modem installed in the house we are renting in Dallas. The house belongs to Nate’s aunt and is currently vacant. She already has cable in the house (but no internet service), so we tried to get a separate account. We were told that our account would be billed for the charge, not his aunt’s, and that there was a certain installation fee but no extra charges. Today we found out all the charges were billed to his aunt’s account and oh yeah, there was a $250 deposit they forgot to mention.
When we had originally spoken with our landlord about our relocation, we thought he would keep our deposit (a month and a half of rent) and we were fine with that. While we were in Dallas he told us we would be responsible for the remainder of the lease, which ends next May (we signed an 18-month lease). We’re trying to find tenants to sublet, so if you know of anyone who needs a great 2-1 with an office on the North Side, let me know. Otherwise, we’ll be paying rent on an empty apartment in Chicago.
Added to this, today I went to work and one of my work buddies was laid off. It’s sad and stressful. She’d been at that job for t he past four years and it was totally unexpected. She’s the one who told me about my job, she’s the one who recommended me. I am in serious need of a drink. Or ten.