Update

It has now been 6 days since I moved to Seattle and SOOOO much has happened. I got my apartment and its amazing. Just enough space to make it usable and nice, but no misused space. It is in an amazing location. There is a target, a Fred Meyers, a Whole Foods, a Safeway, and a Panera, not to mention an entire shopping mall and music store near by.

I had an interesting time with spiders the first few nights I lived here. I spent a lot of time killing them and they actually had to come and fumigate. These are not your normal spiders... these are large 2 inch in diameter HAIRY spiders... yep like tarantulas only a bit thinner!!

On Thursday I went to Tacoma to pick up my sofas, which are gorgeous btw!, and got the cargo van I rented stuck in the sand... fortunately for me people in Seattle are so nice that two guys just came and towed me out... FOR FREE!!!! But people in Seattle really just are the nicest people in possibly the world, at least the world I have visited.

I also have an interview scheduled for a position at the Seattle Conservatory, but I pretty much have it because I have been asked to sub for them already. So its merely a matter of meeting with the faculty and administration and making sure that we are a good fit.

Finally I began the weekend single and ended it in a relationship. I am now officially Tom's girlfriend... holly cow!! And let me tell you I am a lucky lady...

So let us recap, in less than a week, I have moved states, found a job, furnished and apartment and begun a wonderful relationship... I think I am going to like it here! :)

End of countdown

Ok everyone. This ends the countdown. I am officially packed and about to leave the house in a half hour to commence my trip to Seattle and a new adventure. So the countdown has ended and now the real fun begins. I was really nervous last night while packing, but thanks to Tom and Lana the fear is now manageable! So yay for friends and yay for new adventures. Here goes nothing and everything.

13 hrs to take off

I officially have 13 hrs to take off... man I need to pack!

2 days

I have 2 days, actually its only 37 hours!! Woah. Starting to get scared of the plane ride... as always. I am currently getting ready to go by doing laundry and packing. Better get packing!

4 more days!!

I only have 4 more days. Thats all.

5 more days

5 more days till Seattle.

Verizon rocks, they made a mistake and they fixed it, PLUS they actually made good on it by giving me the deal of all deals. Plus they will soon have FiOS in my area!! Ahhh. Comcast should take a lesson from them.

6 Days

I have 6 days till I arrive in Seattle/Redmond.

As those of you who have been reading my blog regularly know I HATE Comcast. So when I received a call from the apartment company letting me know that they would take care of all utilities except phone, internet and cable I figured I was going to ask the question! Who did their internet. They said Comcast, my heart sank, then... they said Verizon!! With this one word my heart soared! These people do fiber optic internet. I have been drooling over this since Tom mentioned it. Was it possible? Yes and no. Yes they service and I got high speed to rival Comcast for 29.99 a month... forever, no change in price after 6 months. No they don't have FiOS... YET. So once they get it they can just upgrade! Oh yeah. I am so excited. Oh and should I decide to get cable services, they have direct tv, so I do not need to get Comcast cable which is a ripoff! Only catch is I need a land line. So I now have a land line in Redmond, which is good for buisness and emergency reasons. You know like when my cell phone runs out of batteries mid-call and takes half an hour to charge again!

Also, I bought a flat panel TV. Thats right. Me, the "I already have a TV what the heck to I need a new flat TV for?" girl. Well I needed a new TV since I, how shall I say, threw mine... hehe. So I got a flat panel. I was informed by a friend, who knows way more about this sort of stuff than me, (you know a guy) that it would probably be obsolete in 2 years as everything was switching to HDTV, but oh well, at that point I can be known as being the girl who says "what do I need an HDTV for, this one works fine?" Plus I hear there are converters. Plus I got a great deal on bedding online. It is exactly what I was looking for at an amazing price.

So what have I learned in all this? The internet is amazing, you can purchase things for amazing prices and often times can either pick them up in store or delivered for free. It's awesome. Advise: don't buy anything till you look for it online and compare prices.

One week

I have only one week left. Again the internet is acting up. It's become my daily battle to make this thing work. I wake up take my mom to work, come home do things for my dad, and then spend a good hour or so making the internet work. Unfortunately it doesn't end here. I usually have to turn the thing on and off at least five or six times a day as it keeps losing the signal. Again i say... I HATE YOU COMCAST!

Is it wrong to hate your computer?

I wonder if it is possible to hate an object? I manage to do a good job of hating my computer. Today I was having trouble with the internet, whats new you ask... I will tell you! I clicked on the little icon to see why I had no wireless and it told me that I could not sign on with Microsoft as I had elected another program to run my wireless... WHEN?! I have no recollection making any internet connection choice other than, no please do not make Yahoo my main page. So in their infinite wisdom the people at Microsoft (sorry Tom) decided to tell me, via a little button, if I did not want to use another program I could use something called Wireless Access point Zero. Ok fine I will do that... what the hell is that. To explain what it is there is a link. Ok I say, obviously I should click on this. So I do... AND IT TRIES TO TAKE ME TO THE INTERNET!!! HELLO!!! If I had internet would I need the button I ask you?! Well I got all sorts of upset and after looking into it more realized that Intel was now running my wireless... same difference to me. I then had to figure out how to make that work.

Now my real question is this. Obviously people at Microsoft are not retarded. I know a person who works at Microsoft and he is, from what I can tell, Intelligent and above all very good at thinking things through. So why, WHY would they do that. Is it not obvious that if I have an issue with the internet I can NOT access it to get help and as such I need that sort of information saved on my hard drive. Furthermore, how did it even happen? Why can't I control my computer. So what if that means I need to read a manual! I will read it. BTW I don't even think I got a Windows XP manual with this computer...

Anyway, that is my rant. I think I have fixed the internet, but I have a sneaking suspicion that this is not the last of my woes where this particular problem is concerned.

BTW Comcast still sucks harder than anything.

8 days

8 days left.
Not much else to say today. I guess I have just been really tired.

9 Days

9 days to go.

My brother left today and the house is so empty. This will most likely bring about a different atmosphere in the house, much more quiet. The calm before the storm...

Comcast

Ok so just to update comcast picked up the phone!!! Amazing. All I needed was a small password. I have it now and so hopefully if this happens again I will be able to fix it! YAY, it only took like an hour and a half. Better than I anticipated.

10 days and broken internet

I have 10 days till Seattle!

Oh and Comcast sucks. I have been trying to get my Internet to work for the last hour!!! I have actually been on hold with them for that long. I think I am going to listen to Tom and look into the Fiber optic Internet in Seattle. I swear the Internet is always broken here and it was the same in San Francisco. Grrrrr... anyway, it turns out that if the Internet connection resets at the Internet site then they reset the user name and password. As such I am locked out of the system. Note to self, should the Fiber optic Internet not be available in your area, get your own wireless router!! I have the site I need to go to in order to reset my name and password, but since my user name and password reset, I can't log into that, even from the hard line connection. Of course this happened to everyone so we are all probably on hold for the same reason. This promises to be a very exciting Sunday afternoon... Oh wait, did I mention that I have to be connected to the wired Internet... which is in my brothers room. Not too bad except my brother is a chain smoker and I of course have a sensitivity to cigarette smoke, of which his rooms reeks. Yay!!!!

BTW I have been on hold the entire time I was writing this post... comcast... SUCKS!

11 days

I only have 11 days till I arrive in Seattle.

On another note I FINALLY found a good Japanese restaurant in Miami where the sushi is not only fresh, but at an adequate temperature. The other dishes were also quite good and I think, as good as their sushi is, I am going to try the dinners next time. So if you add to the this the Chinese restaurant we found that is really good, all I need now is a good Indian restaurant. My brother has been searching and it does not seem likely. But one day we will find it, and Miami will be culinarily complete!

12

12 Days!!! YAY!! I have only 12days till I get to Seattle. I am getting more and more excited as the day approaches. It is a new chapter in my life. I get to start over with a clean slate, in a school where I am not viewed as just some stupid singer and I get to reinvent myself as a musicologist. There is such a stigma that comes with being a singer. You are looked down upon intellectually and it is great to have freed myself from that stigma. I am not only excited about the UW but the whole area and the opportunities for professional growth and hopefully personal growth... ;) So yeah... 12 more days... YAY!

13 Days and cool furniture

Well it is now 13 days. I said I would do a countdown so I am trying to remember to come everyday.

I also wanted to post a link. I was looking for environmentally friendly furniture. While I just can't afford this right now, I love their furniture. What is it with me and Contemporary/Ethnic furniture...? Anyway, they use planks from old Korean buildings and their furniture just looks so wonderful. I believe what I enjoy most about it is the simplicity of the lines combined with the beauty of the natural material. The design allows the material to be the center of attention, and with a material as beautiful as thick, antique woods, its a wonderful combination. Too bad one piece is more than my entire furniture budget...
Overall though, I think that this would be a way for me to own wooden furnishings without the guilt of deforestation and once I actually can afford it that is going to be my furniture, make no mistake. Oh and can you believe that it is cheaper than Restoration Hardware... the crooks!

14 days left

Another post for the countdown. Two weeks... exactly. At this time two weeks from now I will be in the air. For those of you who know me well, you know thats not where I wanna be, but thats our mode of transport until we figure out how to beam people up so to speak. So yes, in two weeks I am headed out to Seattle and could not be more excited. I am a bit sad to leave my family as I don't know when I will see them next but I am not sad to leave the city. It is hot and the people are so rude.

See some of you in two weeks!

Countdown Begins

The Countdown to my arrival in Seattle/Redmond begins.

16 days.

I am getting very excited and am ready and waiting to go. I am going to miss my family a lot, but not Miami. Its hot here and people are so rude! Anyway I have to get back to my Harmony Textbook, but YAY!!! I only have a little over two weeks till I get to Seattle.

Its HOT

To experience Florida in August is to taste of the fires of hell. Actually I think that might be why people retire here, they look at it as purgatory, or training...

In all seriousness though, I went into the hall to change the doorknob for my mom and I sweat through my shirt. I had to change. It was a doorknob!!! Looking at me though you would have thought it was a construction site.

It really is just too hot here. Just to give you an idea, We have the air on high, I have the windows closed and draped to keep light out, I have no electronics on in my room except for the laptop and the ceiling fan, I have turned off the lights and I am sitting right in front of the vent for the central air... I am still hot!!! I can not wait to get to Seattle. I might have to wear a parka for a few days as I adjust to 80 degree weather but oh well. As they say "You can always put on clothes but you can only get so naked." Even our pool is hot. I tried going in for relief the other day and it was not pleasant. The pool felt like it was heated.

The only good thing I could say about this heat is that since the cockroaches like heat they tend to not move into the house as much so we are spared their attacks, at least for the most part.

Between the humidity and the heat Miami is a like locking yourself in a sauna and they realizing you left the keys outside. Do not visit in the Summer and least of all August. Come in the winter when it is livable.

Exorcism

Exorcism, or better said, possession, has always fascinated me. From the time I was a little girl and my Grandmother put a cross over my bed. She told me I should keep the cross and as such Jesus near to me and I would always be protected from Satanic possession. Well that scared the hell out of me and I added a Rosary to that cross and every time something "scary" or as I saw it, demonic, would happen I would pray the Rosary. Needless to say the first time I watched the Exorcist it was like my nightmare come to life. As an adult I still watch that movie and tremble. While my faith in Christ has ebbed and flowed, my fear of Possession has always been tangible and terrifying. When they say you had the fear of God put in you I can only assume that this is what they mean. Even in my most Agnostic moments I am, deep down, still frightened of Satan.

This leads me to ask, can one believe in the power of evil and not in the power of good? Is it possible for me to believe in Satan without believing in the God who banished him from his kingdom to live and rule in hell? There is a quote that goes something like "I know there is no God and I hope there is no Devil" My ex made fun of my for saying that was how I felt and said that it was a stupid quote. I do not believe it is. For it is easier in life to believe in things we know, and most of us have faced the darkness or evil of some sort. Hell my ex could very well be credited with bringing a large majority of that darkness. I often hear stories of good fortune and think, thats wonderful how that happened and sometimes, all be it rarely, I think, God had a hand in it. However; most often I see negative things, and these things always seem to me like the workings of the devil, the same devil that I still, even as an agnostic, I keep a rosary and a cross around my neck to protect myself from.

With my interest in Exorcism and possession explained I will come to a more amusing, all be it mean spirited conclusion. I was watching the Exorcist with my dad and right before the exorcism the priest says:
“Especially important is the warning to avoid conversations with the demon. We may ask what is relevant but anything beyond that is dangerous. He is a liar. The demon is a liar. He will lie to confuse us. But he will also mix lies with the truth to attack us. The attack is psychological, Damien, and powerful. So don’t listen to him. Remember that–do not listen” –Max von Sydow as Father Merrin in The Exorcist
This quote reminded me of the way that certain people have lied to me, and the way they continue to do so, men in particular. Is it then no wonder that the Devil is always portrayed as a man...?

For those of you upset by the end of the blog bear in mind I just had what could be called one of the most atrocious breakups where at time, and especially towards the end of the relationship, I felt I was in hell. I might be Jaded, but I am trying to have fun with it ;)

SIMS

I bought the SIMS 2 deluxe package today... Have you ever noticed how that game sucks you life away. I just closed the game... lets pray I can keep it closed and study!

Move out date

Well I finally got a move out to Seattle date. Turns out they can't get anything ready before the 12th. There is some preventive maintenance as well as replacing the hardware. Oh well at least it will have new hardware and the likes. I am really glad that it only cost 35 dollars to change the ticket so I get to save a lot of money that I can put into furniture. Speaking of furniture I am going to have to furnish and unpack and build everything in 7 days! 7 days!! I don't know if thats even possible. Oh man. Oh well it should be fun. Its fun and exciting, all be it scary. But yay for knowing when I move out. I can't believe it's less than 4 weeks away! I am super, super stocked.

I still have a lot of things to do before I travel, such as get clothes with no holes (dreading this, I hate shopping) and finish the kitchen. The latter is the most daunting. We got the wrong cable for the stove and so I have to go get that tomorrow and then set up installation. Also I need to call the people who are installing the counter tops cuz we went and picked them and they still haven't even come and measured. And thats the easy part. After its all complete I have to do the hard part of unpacking all the stored pantries and do all the dishes and clean everything plus fix the dinning room which has been used as the makeshift kitchen and storage for the kitchen. Looking at all this I guess its better that I have a bit more time.

Ok well gonna go study. Thanks to all of you who wrote me I love hearing from you!

First Blog

Well after much consideration I have decided to create a blog. I was never very interested in this until I moved away from all my friends. Thank God for Valerie! Since I am now moving to Seattle for good and I am falling behind, way behind, in keeping in touch on a regular basis I thought this would be a great way of letting all my friends in on my adventures, and I plan on having many.
For now I am still in Miami. Not quite sure when I am going to be moving to Seattle but I have found an apartment and it will be available no later than the 12th of September. I am getting more and more into this internet thing! I found an apartment online which as luck would have it is located right next to many amenities I care about. Firstly, there is a target nearby! Also there is microsoft around the corner which almost assures a youthful and dorky community, I like those. Most importantly though is the park and ride nearby and the worlds largest off leash dog run. I am talking acres here! With a lake and everything. As baby is my life I would have looked around there had I known it existed for that reason alone. The apartment itself is 700 square feet and has a separate dining room. I am going to make it a dinning room and an office. I am also renting a piano from the greatest company ever. I found some couches on Craigslist which usually run thousands of dollars for 400! So I am excited.
As time passes and I read more about Seattle it seems more and more the right move for me. Things that make it cool are;
Tons and hiking oportunities
The parking at the park and ride is free and plentiful, thats right people!!
The city had SO much greenery. They don't call it the Emerald city for nothing!
Everyone likes coffee
One of the most dog friendly cities in the world.
WAY more affordable than SF, having lived there for 10 years everything seems cheap.
Cool people. I have met so many cool people. Most recently a guy at microsoft with some of the most serious nerd-cool factor EVER. Pretty stoked
I know its cheesy but its awesome that Val lives there
I will probably be taking lessons with JANE EAGLEN!!
I am getting payed to go to school!!!

Ok I can go on and on. Oh I live next to REI. I mean its just amazing. I used to have to struggle to find a 400sq ft place for what I am paying to live in an amazing community. I had a studio with no kitchen and for only 100 more I have a washer and drier in my apartment, its just incredible.

I am thinking of staying and trying to do a PhD and DMA. Yes a double doctorate. I figure the singer in me will balance out the musicologist and the Dork and Diva will cancel each other out leaving a normal person... (?)

I am going to school with my mom tomorow (she is a science and math teacher) and helping her decorate... YAY!!

I am done for now, but hopefully will get to start writing a few times a week.