Getting settled.

Alright, so since I've gotten here I've been pretty rotten at keeping up on the whole blog thing...
The long and short of it is that I'm getting settled, know my way around a little better, love the area I live in, but hate my apartment complex.
I'm actually making quite the attempt to get out of my lease, but all of my attempts so far have been thwarted by evil management. I've now enlisted professional help from the lovely people at Arizona Tenant Advocates. Basically, the maintenance is a joke around here and hooligans are making this place worse than it was before... Graffiti, beer cans, cigarette butts... Gross. And management pretty much does nothing about it.
My sweet Noah is on his way down to Arizona now as well. He picked up his trailer today, will be taking off from Oregon on Wednesday, and I'm expecting he'll be in the state Friday morning. He's moving to a place in Mesa, and once I get finished taking a machete to my lease, that is where I will join him. His brother Joey is also making the move, along with Noah's 2 dogs. A 2 bedroom, 2 bath duplex with 3 adults and 3 dogs. This might get interesting... At least the male/female ratio is good. 2 male, 1 female for the adults; 1 male, 2 female for the pups...
As far as my job goes, I like it just fine, but I'm eager to move upward. There are six Sr. Analyst positions coming up in December it sounds like, which is a brand new position within our 1 year old department. I'm really hoping to be a shoe-in, and not be getting fake encouragement from the management staff up to this point. I really like my supervisor, and the team lead - we all seem to have fun joking around with each other, often at one another's expense, but all in good fun.
Billy has adapted to the heat very well - in most cases, he's wanting to stay outside in it longer than me, and he's wearing a fur coat! I've found a great groomer/doggy daycare/boarder that he seems to enjoy spending time at if he can't be with me, and a really nice vet down the street too, which I will likely take him to even after the move 1/2 hour away to Mesa.
I've made some friends through work, as well as a couple outside of work, but mostly enjoy my solitude. I have people to hang out with if I need some socialization, a sports bar down the street if I just want to have a brew and get out of the apartment, but mostly I like being at home. As it cools down there are a few things I want to do, like hiking around South Mountain, camping, checking out the Grand Canyon (maybe on a camping weekend?), revisit Sedona, and check out some of the sites around Phoenix, like Tempe Town Lake (once it's finished getting refilled), there's another lake about 1/2 hour North of Phoenix, there's a farm with a few restaurants that closed over the summer since it's outdoor seating, and check out our ONLY local brewery, Four Peaks Brewery in Tempe.
Overall, it's been a great Summer, and I'm looking forward to getting visitors sick of the NW rain over the Winter.

P.S. - Thank you UO and OSU for beating ASU in college football these last 2 weekends. It's been nice to cheer on Oregon teams and watch them beat the local team.

Finally an update...

I made it to Phoenix a few weeks ago, and aside from some bumps in the road, I'm loving it.
Things I don't like:
-Not having enough furniture for my apartment (couch, a TV bigger than 13"...)
-Having to wait to buy alcohol (at a restaurant/bar or at the store) until 10am on Sundays
-Crazy fast drivers. If they think you're not going fast enough, they don't go around you, they just tailgate.
-Bugs. A flying cockroach chasing you while on an evening walk with your dog is not as funny as it may sound.
-The black leather seats in my car. Ouch.
-Not having TV/Internet hooked up at the apartment yet. I'm currently blogging poolside in 108 degree weather because the pool has free wi-fi. The sacrifices I make...

Things I do like:
-The ability to buy hard alcohol pretty much anywhere: Walgreens, the gas station, the grocery store...
-Blue skies. Pretty much all day/every day.
-Gorgeous sunsets.
-Low humidity. At least until the monsoons hit.
-My awesome commute to work
-Learning the local flora (yes there is flora) and fauna

More to come, but it's too hot to be out here right now.

Wordless Wednesday.

Countdown to rollout: 18.5 hours

It's my birrfday!!!

Countdown to rollout: 4 days.

So today we're (Billy and I of course) going to Beacon Rock for the day to meet up with my dad, Barb, and my Auntie Robin! I'm really quite excited about this, as it ALSO means a break from packing and organizing.

Yesterday's garage sale was a success, although by the end of the day I was pretty tired of people asking if I'd take $10 for my huge stainless steel microwave that I was asking $50 for. No. I won't. I won't even counter offer to that. I would have taken $30, but you started at $10. Go away. Yes, it may be the end of the day, but make your huge negotiations on the little things. The big ones I can put on my frienemy, Craigslist.

The couch is gone, which is the biggest relief. So is the heaviest TV on earth. Now if I could just get rid of the armoire/entertainment center and the microwave, I wouldn't feel bad taking the rest to Goodwill.

Packing sucks.

Countdown to rollout: 8 days.

Everything that was in storage is now in my mom's garage. As I go through everything, making a Goodwill pile, a Craigslist pile, and repacking things I need to keep, I'm realizing how bad of a pack rat I am. My dad once called me a bag lady, and he wasn't referring to purses - it was backpacks and satchels and messenger bags and luggage. I'm finding this to be true for more than just bags, unfortunately...

Everyone wants to see me before I go, many can't make it to the going away shindig tomorrow, and I just don't have time to see everyone AND pack up. Sorry, guys, gotta get my stuff together.

Schedule for the next couple days:
Thurs:
work 8-2:30
DMV for trip permit (I don't want to renew my Oregon tags since I'm MOVING!)
Nap??? (Please?) or packing. Probably packing.
Gators 6pm-???

Fri:
Pack, pack, pack
2pm get the hitch installed on my giddy-up
Dinner w/friend
back to pack pack pack

Sat:
8am vet appt for Billy to get his certificate of health - required to get him licensed in Arizona.
Pack, pack, pack

Sun: My 28th birthday!
Beacon Rock w/family all day (dad's side)
evening: pack, pack, pack. (this is getting wretched)

Mon:
Pack
4pm family birthday/farewell dinner (mom's side)

Tues:
Work 8-5
Pick up trailer!
Hopefully no more packing!

Wed:
Last day of work 8-5
Load up trailer!

Thurs:
6am: pull outta town!

Fri:
Evening: Pull into Arizona!!!

Goodbyes are hard.

9 days to rollout.

Last night I made my first round of goodbyes...

The Crab Shack in SW Portland, how I will miss Monday mayhem... karaoke. Beer. Dave KJing, Lydia behind the bar, and a group of fun regulars that you can count on to show up every Monday night and sing songs from Disney movies. Yes, really. Jacob & Alex's duet of A Whole New World is my favorite, as is for many. Jacob sings the girl parts.

While fun, however, multiple beers and shots added to only four hours of sleep is NOT fun, as I'm being reminded of this morning.

Goodbye to a comfortable bar. Goodbye to a few good friends. Hello, jalapeno bagel and a soda from Cafe Cello, my remedy for difficult mornings - I'm not ready to say goodbye to you yet.

Craigslist is my frienemy.

Countdown to rollout: 11 days.

Craigslist is my friend. And my enemy. My frienemy. We've actually been friends for a while, but this move is bringing us closer, which also gives CL the opportunity to frustrate me over and over for the next 12 days.

With all I need to get rid of to be able to fit what I own in a 5x8 UHaul trailer behind my car, a LOT is going on Craigslist. A LOT. I put quite a few postings up as I worked through boxes that had been in storage for the last 8 months, and there will be more going up as I continue that process.

The first, and so far ONLY thing to sell: a toaster oven. I got two calls about the toaster oven. One lady came to look and said it was too small (to which I replied I also have a nice big stainless steel microwave)... but aren't toaster ovens pretty much always small? This one did not seem particularly small to me, although it was the first one I've owned, and it was given to me by a friend moving to Texas... Anyhow, I was just surprised that the toaster oven had gotten 2 responses within the 3 hours it was up before it sold. Meanwhile, I'd gotten no bites on anything else.

Then last night, when I started getting responses on my sectional couch! My big ticket item!!! We all know people haggle on Craigslist, just like with buying a car. But when you go to buy a car, would you start your negotiations at half the price they're asking? It seems odd to me that people do this on Craigslist. For a $10 item, okay I can see it. But I just posted the couch yesterday, and some guy asked if I'd take half the listed price. Um, no. Please don't waste my time. I won't even counteroffer. Or maybe I'll counter with DOUBLE the price. That'll teach him. (No, it probably won't.)

Ah, Craigslist... I see how our love-hate relationship has been sustained for so long. What did we do before you? Oh that's right, we wasted a whole weekend doing a garage sale. Gross.

Blind Date With Phoenix.

Countdown To Oregon Exitus: 13 days.

When I say blind date with Phoenix, I'm not talking about the deceased River or Johnny Cash-man Joaquin. I'm moving to Phoenix, and I have never actually visited there. I've only seen pictures, read articles, and talked to people who live(d) there or have visited. It's like going on a date with someone you met on the internet, who you also have mutual friends with. I suppose it's not even like going on a date with them - it's like marrying them.

Today, I put in my notice at work. Let me just say that it was not well received.

Maybe that's a good sign though? They don't want me to leave? I just wish I weren't getting a cold shoulder from certain people. I haven't gotten a work related email in over an hour. I had to email Shellie just to make sure my email was still working... They've already seemed to have cut me out of the wire process. Maybe this means they're going to let me go early? All the better for me - go ahead and pay me to NOT work those last 2 weeks. I can go mess around with friends, pack REALLY well, etc.

Speaking of packing, I took all of my stuff out of storage last night and put it in mom's garage. Time to go through ALL of the boxes and figure out what I cannot live without. Slim down my inventory of random and sometimes useless items. I'll be starting that process this weekend. In need of luck. Also needed: for my procrastination inclination to disappear. I can't put this one off. Luckily, I'm also fairly organized when I AM motivated, so I hope the volume gets turned up on the organization and turned DOWN on the procrastination.

Tonight, I'm allowed to not repack anything. Tonight, I have a date with my Dad and Barb. Guess who doesn't know yet that I'm moving? Yeah, that's right, Dad and Barb. I'm telling them tonight, but my stomach is doing somersaults! My planned opening line: "Wanna go on a road trip, Dad?" Some of my fondest memories of childhood involve road trips with my Dad. Even as a young adult, we had a Seattle to Portland road trip, and it was good. We got a lot off our chests. I hope he says yes. Maybe we could use a road trip.

Two Weeks to Rollout. SURPRISE!

Yesterday, I got the call.

I'm getting a job offer. In Phoenix. I'm taking it.

Why? Why not. I'm single [with no prospects by the way]. I'll be 28 at the end of the month. No kids. No mortgage. WHY NOT.

Yes, Portland has been my comfort zone since 1991. But maybe it's time for the little birdie to leave Portland's nest and migrate South.

Yes, my parents, sister, nephew, and friends are here. My parent's were able to survive when they were first starting in the NW (Seattle area), my sister in tow, and me to follow years later, with their parents in SoCal and Missouri, and siblings scattered all over the place. The friends part reminds me of a little nursery rhyme from childhood: "Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold."

Yes, it is HOT in Arizona, and I get pretty miserable with 100+ degree weather, which they have quite often (pretty much daily to my understanding) June through August. June through August of too hot (with A/C in EVERY rental and business) with the rest of the year being similar to NW Spring and Summer sounds better than September through May of rain and gray. Do the math: three months of not being able to do outdoor activities vs. nine months of not being able to do outdoor activities. Hmmm... Also, Arizona has monsoons July through September. Thunder and lightning and massive rainfall. In the heat. It sounds delicious.

Also plusses: Lower state income tax (yes, they do have sales tax though). Bad housing market is making rentals awesome. Great road trips (Grand Canyon: 4 hours. Joshua Tree Nat'l Park: 4 hours. Vegas: 5 hours. 4-Corners: 5 hours. Hoover Dam: 6 hours. Family in SoCal: 6 hours. Lake Havasu: 3.5 hours. Palm Springs: 4 hours. Plus many lakes and rivers MUCH CLOSER.). New adventures.

So the countdown is on: I'll be rolling out of Beaverton, Oregon, and on my way to Surprise, Arizona on the morning of June 3rd.