Category Archives: Home

I intended for today to be a lazy, do-nothin’ type of day. Yet, somehow, I feel accomplished. The plan was to stay in my pajamas for the few hours I’d be awake, do a little writing, catch a snack and go back to bed. While I still plan to hit the hay sooner than later (let me fill you in on a secret: it was already dark when I woke up today!), I feel as though I’ve already finished so much.

As I type this, I am winding down and watching a movie: The Nightmare Before Christmas (I’ve finally opened my collector’s edition–it’s only been over a year!). I wrote, rooted my phone, edited some final settings after my second Windows reinstall, put away laundry, showered and shaved and even cleaned the toilet. Combined with the cleaning I did this morning, I am some sort of awesome get-er-done robot. With boobs.

Perhaps I feel accomplished because I set out to do nothing and did anything at all. Regardless, it feels good and anxiety is low.

In the book that is Cole’s life, this chapter would start with something stereotypical such as “I never expected to return home and part of me dreaded it, as much as the rest of me was looking forward to it.” I would continue on with words about how things were not how they were when I left them (true), how I needed to cut ties with some of the people and things that used to be part of my life (also true) and how, despite all this, things would turn out even more amazingly that I could ever imagine (the truest).

I think what surprises me most about returning home is not the reconnections I looked forward to but the new connections I am constantly fostering. I have become good friends with complete strangers and better friends with mere acquaintances. The area itself and the individual people in it are continuing to surprise me. I never realized my home town, my home state was so full of versatility, options and adventure.

If you hadn’t noticed, the holidays were a little difficult and moving was stressful. I wasn’t able to be as positive as I’d have liked and that in itself was bringing me down a bit. I have been so positive these last few weeks, however. I’ve been dealing with, if not managing to overcome my anxieties and, at the end of the day, I am most surprised–yet pleased–with myself. As confident as I might sometimes appear, I guess I never knew I had it in me.

I am so fucking glad to be exactly where I am.

Having successfully spent more than one night in the new apartment—a good three weeks after I signed the lease—I am now operating in what I call “quirks mode.” That is, I am learning the quirks of the new place. For example, the mailbox door requires you to push down to open it and you may have to push the dishwasher door slightly to the right in order to shut it properly. The ceiling light in my bedroom makes a slight buzzing noise, sometimes, and the switch operates it from high-medium and then to low. I wish I could say the water heater issues were only due to a quirk but that is not the issue and it required a plumber (albeit, a fairly good looking one) to fix it. Four days without hot water may not sound that extreme but I can tell you that it felt awful and there was nothing more amazing than taking a hot shower this morning. I will have to remember to be grateful for that.

It is that very same gratefulness that will pull me through when I’ve had a bad day, when I’ve dropped furniture on my fingers or toes, when the DirecTV technician incorrectly informs me of policies and fails to install the damned thing after I have waited all day, when the cats have kept me up at night and I have been unable to fall asleep despite a very important meeting in the morning. When the Internet is shoddy and I have had one too many quirks for my liking, I will remember to be grateful. Hopefully, I will not wind up hating my home as I have previous abodes.

Because, hey, nothing can really be that bad as long as you have a hot shower—and your own bathroom to shower in, even if the cats keep forcing the door open because it does not close all the way. d=

Not 3 days after posting a mopey thread at DayDreamz about not knowing where I’m going to live and being upset about this whole ordeal.. Well, let me explain.

Yesterday, I was officially here a month. After spending weeks looking for places over the phone, with my cousin, she decided to back out suddenly. Wendy piped up and said she’d like to move with me so I sent her and mom on apartment searches. We found a really nice place.. who took two weeks to reject us and basically rented the place right out from under us. “So Sorry, try next month.” We were unhappy.

My wishes to have a place ready for me pretty much fell through at that point. I sent Wendy on more apartment views–many of which sucked. We finally found one that was affordable and decent but, it took them 5 weeks to deny us, essentially. It was a combination of me moving and their utter lack of professionalness and disorganization. By the time yesterday rolled around, this “sure shot” seemed doomed and we were looking for more apartments.

Or apartment.

Wendy wasn’t at all happy on the way to the first place. Everything seemed to be delighting in making us miserable. We’d already had to pay for another month’s rent at her old place (the one at which she’d already put in her notice). I tried to convince her that maybe this was meant to be–that maybe the place we were about to see was really fucking awesome and it was all happening for a reason. Yea, I wasn’t buying it either.

After some Google map mishaps, we found the place and she wasn’t happy with the outside looks. To be honest, the exterior and the hallways within the buildings are extremely plain but.. the apartment. My god.

Is amazing. Two large bedrooms. Two full bathrooms. Real carpet. Tons of closets. New appliances. Garage. Adjustable lighting (in my room!) A patio. And a washer and dryer in its own room.

The woman who showed us the place wanted to know if we were serious and, if so, she’d put our application in ASAP. She did and we continued to look but I fretted. We’d been turned down by two places. One because we essentially didn’t make enough and the other because we made too much.

But, I was right bitches.

We were approved within the hour and we will be heading over this morning to sign the lease. And maybe use the washer and dryer. I don’t know. It’s all just amazing.

I feel a certain sense of smug satisfaction that I was right. Things did happen for a reason! I can call this morning and have my stuff delivered to my new home. I won’t have to live out of luggage anymore.

I almost started crying when she told us we were approved and I am crying now because this has all been so exhausting and I am just.. flabbergasted that it took a month and a half for two places to fuck us around and only an hour for one place to make my fucking year.

It will be a struggle to move Wendy and all her stuff but it will be well worth it in the end, for sure.

As I type this, Wendy and I are watching V for Vendetta. We are a day off, oops. It’s actually the first time I have watched the movie. It has been several days since many of you have heard of me and I assure you that I am not avoiding you–simply been busy moving across the country, cleaning my former apartment, applying for a new one and making all the calls that are necessary when performing a major life transition.

In between, I’ve been trying to spend time catching up on sleep, catching up with work and meeting up with friends and family. To be honest, I haven’t seen many people but there is no rush now.

So how is it, you ask?

Pretty awesome. I’ve adjusted to the cold better than I thought I would have. I bought an awesome new coat. It’s actually been warmer than expected. I walked a couple places yesterday and it was quite enjoyable. People I passed greeted me and drivers even yielded to me!

The kitties were amazing. They weren’t happy and I certainly wasn’t when I had to hold them in the San Antonio airport while the TSA agents scanned the carriers but, all in all, things went well. My last flight on Monday night actually got in 10 minutes early! And they haven’t killed Wendy’s cats or vice versa.

So now we are just waiting to see if we can get an apartment and them moving her stuff over there. It’s a lot of stuff and I’m not sure if I am ready to move so soon. My body has just gotten over being exhausted and I’m still bruised all over. I shaved my legs this morning and it only makes the bruises stand out.

Anyhoo, I’m alive. I miss you guys. I’d update more but I can’t access the Internet or send/receive picture messages on my phone right now. I’m trying to get that figured out.