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Oct. 2nd, 2011
Well, here I am
Oct. 2nd, 2011 12:51 pmI am having flashbacks to the first year in Phoenix, when I didn't know very many people and didn't know how to get around. I am also thinking a lot about <lj user="ursulav">, who moved to San Francisco, then promptly moved back to North Carolina.
I have managed to bike up to the one coffeeshop that I know about that is into everything local. Turns out the bike ride is pretty easy and straightforward. Later today I will attempt the grocery store.
Boy, getting here. Driving through Austin was pretty nightmarish, especially with memories of El Paso close at hand. Right as I got on I-35 north to blast through Austin (at 9 pm on a Saturday, not the best of times), a traffic jam started and drivers were pushy and in a hurry to get where they wanted to go. I don't know if I can describe the driving style to you, yet. On the one hand, easygoing, but on the other hand, drivers get really impatient if they aren't moving in an instant. I don't think as many people talk on their cell phones or send text messages here, but we shall see. So, on the one hand, I think they're more careful, but on the other hand, they drive like there's a ton of space. At least they won't be able to yell at me to get on the sidewalk - walking around my new neighborhood today, it looks like there are only sidewalks on about half to 1/3 of the streets.
Anyway. I think I must've checked seven or eight motels last night, looking for a place to crash. After one last Holiday Inn Express failed to pan out (apparently many places are booked with firefighters), I finally gave up and took a nap in the truck cab. Not easy, given how much stuff was in there, but it was enough that I could keep going at about midnight. I reached the new house around 3 am, pulled my sleeping bag and sleeping pad out of the back, and camped out on the new front porch.
The new house faces a busy road. There were also some dogs barking/yipping all night long. There are two gas stations down the block, as well as a donut shop and a bar/grill that uses oyster shells for its landscaping. The drive-through line was pretty long on this Sunday morning. Oh, and there's a psychic two doors down. Convenient, I suppose. The next-door neighbors are a family with a small child. The houses just to the north of my area look nicer than the houses just to the south. There's also a laundromat just up the block to the north. So I suppose I can postpone buying a washing machine without turning into a complete hobo in the meantime. The golf course across the street looks fairly peaceful, and full of old white men.
I need to ask my sister about oak trees - or was it walnut trees? The yard is almost entirely shaded, front and back, by oaks. Elements of the backyard remind me of Farmer House. There's one of the two posts that one needs for a functional clothesline. Chunks of wood and pavers are strewn about. Only a couple of the windows have screens. I don't know, yet, if I'll end up moving out when the lease runs out in May, but my tired self isn't feeling particularly optimistic about anything right now.
Other things I need to do: contact the gas company to get the gas turned on. Contact BTU to switch over water/electricity to my name, and request a trash can whose axle is not broken. Choose an ISP (ideas, anyone?). Get over to a bike shop and get my paws on a bike map.
Also, I am in the throes of some of the wretched side-effects of being stressed out: no coffee (irritates the bladder), not hungry. Ugh.
I have managed to bike up to the one coffeeshop that I know about that is into everything local. Turns out the bike ride is pretty easy and straightforward. Later today I will attempt the grocery store.
Boy, getting here. Driving through Austin was pretty nightmarish, especially with memories of El Paso close at hand. Right as I got on I-35 north to blast through Austin (at 9 pm on a Saturday, not the best of times), a traffic jam started and drivers were pushy and in a hurry to get where they wanted to go. I don't know if I can describe the driving style to you, yet. On the one hand, easygoing, but on the other hand, drivers get really impatient if they aren't moving in an instant. I don't think as many people talk on their cell phones or send text messages here, but we shall see. So, on the one hand, I think they're more careful, but on the other hand, they drive like there's a ton of space. At least they won't be able to yell at me to get on the sidewalk - walking around my new neighborhood today, it looks like there are only sidewalks on about half to 1/3 of the streets.
Anyway. I think I must've checked seven or eight motels last night, looking for a place to crash. After one last Holiday Inn Express failed to pan out (apparently many places are booked with firefighters), I finally gave up and took a nap in the truck cab. Not easy, given how much stuff was in there, but it was enough that I could keep going at about midnight. I reached the new house around 3 am, pulled my sleeping bag and sleeping pad out of the back, and camped out on the new front porch.
The new house faces a busy road. There were also some dogs barking/yipping all night long. There are two gas stations down the block, as well as a donut shop and a bar/grill that uses oyster shells for its landscaping. The drive-through line was pretty long on this Sunday morning. Oh, and there's a psychic two doors down. Convenient, I suppose. The next-door neighbors are a family with a small child. The houses just to the north of my area look nicer than the houses just to the south. There's also a laundromat just up the block to the north. So I suppose I can postpone buying a washing machine without turning into a complete hobo in the meantime. The golf course across the street looks fairly peaceful, and full of old white men.
I need to ask my sister about oak trees - or was it walnut trees? The yard is almost entirely shaded, front and back, by oaks. Elements of the backyard remind me of Farmer House. There's one of the two posts that one needs for a functional clothesline. Chunks of wood and pavers are strewn about. Only a couple of the windows have screens. I don't know, yet, if I'll end up moving out when the lease runs out in May, but my tired self isn't feeling particularly optimistic about anything right now.
Other things I need to do: contact the gas company to get the gas turned on. Contact BTU to switch over water/electricity to my name, and request a trash can whose axle is not broken. Choose an ISP (ideas, anyone?). Get over to a bike shop and get my paws on a bike map.
Also, I am in the throes of some of the wretched side-effects of being stressed out: no coffee (irritates the bladder), not hungry. Ugh.