It can only get better from here....

It truly can only get better from here...when we got home last Sunday from our Atlanta Bread Company daily visit we found that the air conditioning in the house had stopped. At first we thought that the circuit was just tripped, or the line frozen. No. Such. Luck. The whole system had shut down and refused to start. The interior of the house was about 95 degrees (this was after a 110 degree day) and the dogs were hiding under the bed. Zinger was spread out of the floor like a giant blob of cat goo airing out his junk (as he likes to do). And the fish were floating lazily around their tank as the temperature began to rise slowly above 86 degrees (boiled fish anyone)??? I immediatly had a panic attack...because seriously...what else could go wrong at this point. My mind immediatly went to, where are we going to move, where am I going to work, how are we going to get everything moved. We don't have the means to replace an air conditioner in a house. one of the main reasons we are living in Lawton is to give me an opportunity to finish my doctorate and Susan a chance to get ahead financially.

After many tears and "holy shits" we finally came to the conclusion that we had no choice but to move. I had found a prospective employment opportunity at a mental health center in Wichita Falls, Texas (near where Susan was teaching) making a grand total of $30,000 a year (why did I get a master's????). We resigned ourselves to the fact that we needed to look at houses in the Wichita Falls area and begin the process of re-packing. I was freaked by this prospect and decided the best way to deal was to hide in the bedroom with the covers over my head.

To make a painfully long story short, we don't have to move. My mom is being gracious enough to replace the unit in the house and replace the defective duct work (please tell me why we are heat and cooling THE GARAGE????). In total it is a large sum of money and I eternally grateful that a team of people has come together to make my attempt at pharmacy school possible. I start classes in a few weeks and need to get my head in the game. I am taking physics, chemistry, botany, zoology, and calculus. All of the things I avoided as an undergrad student (they have come back to haunt me). However, if I can make it through one year of classes a whole new world will open up and I can apply to pharm school this time next year.

So, while the first week in Oklahoma has been utter hell (literally..it is 110 degrees here!) it is slowly becoming more manageable. There have been several times that I have come close to putting my animals in the car and driving back to Virginia....but truly, I don't think my Saturn would make it that far! I am grateful that everything is beginning to come together but at the same time I feel extremely guilty at the amount of money this is costing my mother. But I try to keep my eyes faced forward and moving toward the ultimate goal (knowing full well that when I graduate from pharm school I can repay her many many times over).

Oye! Let's hope it is better from here....

We've made it!

I have officially been in Oklahoma for one week. We pulled in last Friday to a hail of carpet and lanolium pieces. The trip here was fairly uneventful...although we did decide to alter the route about four hours into the drive. Amy spent a significant amount of time on her cell phone trying to find a hotel in the western part of Tennessee that allowed animals (since we were traveling with two dogs, two cats, and four fish). She managed to negotiate a hell of a rate (using what tactics I don't want to know) and we stayed the first night in Dickson, TN. We spent the next day (thirteen hours) driving to Oklahoma City. The one thing I clearly remember at this point (and it has all become a blur) is that the further west we traveled the warmer it became. When we pulled out of Virginia at 10:30 in the morning it was a wonderful 79 degrees and when we pulled into Oklahoma City two days later at 10:00pm it was 95 degrees. If only I had known....

When we arrived at the house I should have known there was going to be a hiccup (everything had gone way to smoothly up and until this point). I pulled up to the house and noticed that there were two work trucks outside. When I walked in the house all of the sub flooring was visable and two guys were standing around discussing where they should start. Mind you, all of this was supposed to be done BEFORE I pulled in to Lawton. The temperature outside was quickly rising (by this point it was 100 degrees) and the dogs, cats, and fish were all in the car. At this point I gave my self full license to have a "Chris Straub" moment and lose my cool. I called the maintenance foreman and calmly (at least I thought it was calm) explained to him that there were MEN inside the house and NO carpet and to top things off there was a refridgerator sitting in the middle of the driveway. And, what exactly did we pay all the money for him to do??? (I think that was the point where I lost my cool). He said he would be right over....

Meanwhile I left the dogs/cats/fish in the car with the air conditioning running and called Susan in New Mexico (which involved her leaving class). She had the task of finding a hotel room (that allowed pets) in a city smaller than the size of Roanoke (for my Virginia peeps) during the ONE weekend that Tim McGraw was in concert and it was the 4th of July. To say the least we ended up promising our first born for the hotel room (the last one in town that allowed pets). The movers ended up showing up on time (the one blessing in all this craziness) and ended up working through 105 degree heat without a complaint (except for the one mover who had Torret's and kept shouting "FUCK"..and frankly I don't blame him).

At this point we are settled (somewhat) in the house. I am very grateful for everyone that has come together to make this move possible. It is an advance for Susan (Dr. Professor Susan Harvey) and a chance for me to return to school to pursue a doctorate. We have spent much of the last week making the house livable (seriously...hot water to the refridgerator and a frozen water hose to the washer). I am blessed to have this place to live (thanks to my mother) except that I look at Susan at least once a day and say "but I've never lived like this before...you don't understand...I am spoiled!!). On our way home from Wichita Falls yesterday I made Susan stop in Burkburnett, Texas to look at townhomes that are for rent. We aren't moving (at least anytime soon)...but it is nice to dream!

We will have internet installed in the house at some point tomorrow (so help me AT&T) so hopefully I can update my blog more often. Susan has already started teaching (and she loves being Dr. Professor Susan Harvey) and I am slowly unpacking the house (even though I SWORE I was going to the Hilton until the house was unpacked...but that would involve having to find a Hilton in Lawton, OK).

And away we go....

The last week has been a whirlwird of packing, cleaning, and doing nothing. In between fits of cleanliness I have managed to watch more documentries on Netflix and download more torrents then I care to think about. So, while I may claim to be super busy I've still found time to watch all of the last season of How I Met Your Mother. Today starts the "offical" move. Betsey will be here to pick me up this morning to drive me to Lynchburg to pick up the truck. From there I will pick up the carpet cleaner and last of the moving necessities this afternoon. The movers will be here at 9 am tomorrow morning and I should be ready to leave around 1:00pm. However, we pull out Wednesday morning around 11:00, with plans to meet my dad and sister in Roanoke at 12:30. It will be me, two dogs, two cats, and three fish in the front of the Penske truck all the way to Roaonke. Thank goodness after that we pick up Susan's truck and the transfer all the animals. It is going to be a whirlwind trip.....

Thanks Virginia...thanks a lot

Yesterday was the kind of day that makes you never want to leave Virginia. The temperature was cool, the wind was just enough to toss your hair lightly, and the golfers were spaced far enough a part that the terrier didn't become hoarse from barking. This was Virginia's way of saying...don't leave me!!! It felt comforting and relaxing to be able to throw open the patio door and let the cool summer air in the house (this involved ignoring the tufts of dog/cat hair that the wind would toss about). I was able to steal a few minutes away from packing to sit on the back porch (on the step mind you, because I have packed the patio furniture) and enjoy the last cool summer Virginia day I will probably experience before the move.

The good doctor landed uneventfully in New Mexico to only have to wait an hour and a half in the airport to be picked up. Lesson learned: set a time to be picked up, never agree to call someone when you arrive. Unless of course you like the sight of weary travel ladened people dragging screaming kids through the airport. She was safely deposited on the campus of the University of New Mexico where she will spend the next two weeks completing her Kodaly certification (some music jizz that I don't understand...I agree not to talk counseling lingo to her and she doesn't talk music jizz to me!). As I told my mother last night, I actually prefer her being away for Part Deux of the epic move. This allows me to go into planning overload and finish the task at hand without being distracted.

My little sister and I spent father's day with my dad, on his porch, with a bucket of KFC. Nothing like a ghetto father's day to say, "Thanks for taking a week to drive across the country with me dad...". So for my dad...I leave a bucket of chicken as I get back to packing!

Day one of many

I guess today could really be considered the beginning of the moving process. Not that I haven't been packing since March, collecting boxes since February, or helping the good doctor send out CV's and cover letters since November. But, this is the actual move to a different part of the country beginning. We spent the early part of today finishing the last of the packing (Susan's den) and then trying to ensure everything she needed would fit into one carry on and two suitcases. Because she is headed to New Mexico for a two week intensive course on some music concept, one bag consisted completely of books. There was a lot of rearranging, standing on the scale with the suitcase (to make sure that the bag did not weigh more than 5o pounds), and rearranging again. In the end, all of the essentials made it into either the suitcases or the carry on. And frankly, I don't understand why it matters if the damn suitcase weighs more than 50 pounds because regardless we have to pay for it to fly. Since when do you have to buy your suitcase an extra ticket?

After I took the good doctor to Waynesboro to meet another teacher from Harrisonburg, I treated myself to a drive back down Route 11 to Lexington. Beyond anything else I am going to miss the mountains of Virginia. There is something comforting and slightly protective about the mountains that surround Lexington and Rockbridge County. They feel like home. I don't know whether this is an indication of my fondness for the area or just feeling comfortable with where I am. However, I am beginning to look forward to a new area, new culture, and new opportunities.

The next ten days are going to be jam packed with things to accomplish to get this move off the ground. With the good doctor safely in the air tomorrow morning at 6 am I will begin Phase 2 of the epic move. I need to finish packing the little things that are always left out before a move (hangers, tools, the fish).