I’ve been contemplating this blog for awhile now. It just doesn’t sit right with me, having a blog mostly dedicated to SF when we are now onto a different phase of our lives. Especially, since I started this blog when I was running to California. Now, that Dev and I are settling down together, it’s time to start a blog for the two of us and our life here in NY. I have different goals now and I’d like to start with a fresh page.
So, from this point on, update your bookmarks and links to:
In other news, Dev’s in Boston visiting with Kesh, Kami, and tiny Ixa. Our camera has finally bit the dust, but hopefully she sends me some photos through her phone. I can’t wait until I’m able to go up North for a visit too!
Yesterday was my first day on the farm and I loved it. The ragweed was insane though, I had a sneezing fit on the way home. By the time I had washed all the pollen from my arms and face, the whole sink was a bright yellow. Besides that, it was a great time. The other workers are chill and around my age. Some are migrating with work and others are locals with a similar dream of owning a farm or at least becoming self sufficient.
Dev baked a no-noodle lasagna (due to our findings that I can’t eat wheat) before I got home, so I have enough food to last me while she’s gone. She also baked a wheat-free apple pie for when we had Gabe and Mae over for dinner, so I get all the leftovers to myself. Just in case you weren’t sure how amazing she really is, there’s a little glimpse for you.
It’s weird and quiet around the house now without her here. I need to get up and do something before I look up and it’s 6pm or something. Tomorrow is the slow day at the farmer’s market, I’m going to check out if there are more places that could use a hand. I have Thursdays and Fridays for sure at EMOF, but I’d like to have 4 scheduled days a week so I can start working on art again.
Hey y’all. This is just a quick picture update since we still don’t have internet at home. We’re on our way to check out some of the waterfalls in the area. It’s been a week and we haven’t unpacked a thing due to repainting. It’s been easier to move and cover boxes than all of our belongings. The bathroom, kitchen, and bedroom have been repainted. The living room is the last in line, but we may wait a bit for that. At least until we move the majority of our stuff into the first three rooms.
So, onto pictures. This grouping is from SF to Chicago via: Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, and Missouri. I still can’t believe we made it and that we’re on the other side of the country. I’ll post pictures of our yard and apartment as soon as I get all the trip/ wedding in Chicago pictures up.
we made it. the cats are fine. we’re fine, but without internet until next weekend. the truck is almost unpacked entirely. we stocked the fridge with groceries and made an appointment to have the car fixed.
and the biggest news of all:
DEV GOT A JOB TODAY!
she’s starting next week at Gimme! in Ithaca. we’re stoked.
um, so we’re sitting here on at the Gimme! a mile from the house…and a guy wearing a white button down shirt and tie just drove by on a tractor. seriously. we definitely moved to the right place!
okay, we won’t have internet until next thursday. until then, i’ll be trying to find hot spots for updates. unfortunately, that means i won’t have photos up for a few more days.
you know, driving through the desert in summer…not too bright. (especially, without A/C and three cats.)
we wrapped a couple bags of ice in plastic bags and situated them between the cat carriers. it shouldn’t be a repeat tomorrow. according to the forecast, we’ve already traveled through the hottest part. at 8 pm, i could put my hand out the window and it still felt like a hair dryer. doesn’t this place ever cool down?
yes. in the hotel room. the cats are getting along fine, although still a little doped up. Busta and Chester are growling and hissing, but no one wants to make the first move.
oh, and if you were wondering where the “purple mountains majesty” are…there’s some awesome examples by Needles, CA. or somewhere thereabouts.
i’m not sure where i packed my camera cable, so no pictures online yet. soon.
The concert was so much fun! 62 years old and still putting on a hell of a show. there were two one hour sets with a break in between and one encore. I’m so glad that we were able to enjoy this concert with Gabe and Mae before the move.
I’ve already been on youtube.com trying to find clips of the show. this was one of my favorites: (embedding is disabled, so click the link!)
Dev’s mom, Maiyim, came to town last night. I’m going to try to pick up as much overtime in these next two days as I can, but I hope I can make it over for dinner too. I’m not sure when we’ll be able to visit with her after the move, but hopefully it won’t be too long. We’ll be gearing up for the engagement party (west coast version) this Sunday. A week after that and we’ll be on the road…but let’s not think about that now. There’s still so much packing to do!
Dev, Gabe and his wife Mae, and i are going to see Dolly Parton tonight. i’m so excited! we’ve been planning on seeing her since our last trip east, but her show in Boston was cancelled when she hurt her back. a few weeks later i saw that she had added more stops on her tour, including the Bay Area.
we picked up tickets for Gabe and Mae for his birthday, since we figured they would probably be hesitant of spending because of the upcoming move.
everything is flying by, really. i think this concert was the mid-point of my “list of important things before the move – including the move”. right? after this there’s just my last day of work (this Friday) and the Engagement Party (this Sunday). then that’s it. time to pack and clean and pack some more.
it was beyond all expectations! really. Dev planned the whole thing and managed to keep it a secret, even though it seemed like we were reading each other’s minds all weekend.
So, since this is four days worth, i’m going to try to simplify this post as much as possible.
THURSDAY
-Leave work at 4PM. – Dev pulls in front of the gallery in “Hot Foot”. (a light blue 1985 Honda Civic with plywood on the rear quarter windows – high class!). the car is packed full with blankets and pillows and a cooler – WE’RE CAMPING! perfect and much needed for sure.
BUT WAIT! THERE’S MORE!
-she hands me a wrapped present – it’s obviously a book- i flip it over and there are driving directions to the campsite – we’re headed to Santa Cruz
-we get to the campsite – it’s basically like camping in grandma’s back yard – there’s a lawn at some parts – no biggie, it’s quaint and there really isn’t anyone there on Thursday night
FRIDAY _BIRTHDAY DAY!_
-Dev wakes me up with a cup of coffee – it’s my birthday! YAY! – we hang out, have breakfast – i open the book – it’s a book of PHOTOBOOTH PICTURES! amazingly beautiful vintage photos.
But Wait….it get’s better! there are envelopes in different sections of the book – “day one – adventure one”, “day one – adventure two”, day two, supplies for day two, sunday drive home adventure.
okay, so today is day one…i open adventure one:
Roaring Camp Railroads mountain steam train ride. now, if you don’t know by know, i am a huge train fanatic! so, this paired with camping is perfect enough, but don’t forget….there are more adventures to be had.
on the train ride, Dev handed me the envelope for adventure two:
it was THE MYSTERY SPOT! i was debating posting about it on here….or just including photos, but it’s so amazing…i don’t want to give away the secret. i encourage you to look at the web site if you want to find out what it’s all about.
during dinner, i persuaded Dev to let me open the envelope for day 3. really, i figured it was my birthday and it’d be nice to have something to look forward too…especially, since the envelope said that we had to get going early…
SATURDAY
-remember how i said Dev is the best ever? or how i can’t wait to be with her forever? yeah…Saturday consisted of…
MORE TRAINS!
-we went back to Roaring Camp Railroads to take the beach train to the Santa Cruz boardwalk. this was a diesel locomotive and we road in a car c.1900 and a car c.1930. the train was an hour each way…the boardwalk is about 10 miles from where we were, but we were going through mountains and towns.
DEEP FRIED TWINKIE!
SUNDAY
-time to pack it all in. wake up early. breakfast with the neighbors since Dev forgot to pack enough meat to last me four days.
-so what’s in the final envelope? only a trip to The Winchester Mystery House! this was one of the “mind reading” insidents (along with the “Mystery Spot” where i was just talking about this place this weekend. it was the one place i really wanted to check out before the move.
-we stop by Bob’s in Boulder Creek to pick up a baby redwood burl and a bag of ice.
-stop by Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park for a walk among giants
-drive back to Oakland – wonder why we don’t live together and how weird it is to spend this whole weekend together only to have to go to our separate houses. realizing that we only have to do this for about 3 more weeks.
that’s it! i really couldn’t have asked for a better birthday. Dev and i we able to spend quality time with each other out of the grind of the city and do a bunch of adventures while collecting all the smashed pennies along the way? sounds like perfection to me. i have a few scans to do tomorrow night, hopefully. we got a few new photobooth pictures to post. two from last weekend and a few from the boardwalk in Santa Cruz from yesterday. we also got one of those “antique” dress up photos taken thanks to Sita and Kym.
soon, i promise.
on a final note: going 4 days without a phone and computer was calming. both our phones died, so we were without for the majority of the trip. also, we joked about how people used to check their messages after coming home from vacation…remember, when you’d try to guess how many messages were on the answering machine? yeah, i’d like to get back to something like that.
Dev is picking me up in an hour and a half so we can start on our drive. I’m just assuming that we’re driving somewhere because we’ll have lil’ Hot-Foot.
I’m so excited to have this long weekend with her.
Tons of photos will be posted as soon as we return.
I put my notice in at work this past Friday. “What’s up with that?” you may ask. Well, Dev and I have decided to move. So, in about 3 weeks, we will be leaving for Ithaca, NY. I know, I know. i JUST left NY not too long ago, right? Well, yes, that’s true. Ithaca is the only place where we can afford land for homesteading/ artist residency and where Dev can still continue her career in coffee. We’re so excited!
It just seems like we are counting down our time here with big plans:
July 18 – put in notice at work
July 20 – my 30th birthday party
July 25 – my actual 30th birthday – surprise vacation trip w/ Dev 24th-27th
Aug 5 – Dolly Parton concert at UCBerkeley
Aug 8 – Last day of work
Aug 10 – Engagement party – west coast version
Aug 17 – head out
I know it’s all going to fly by so quickly. We still have so much to get done, but we do have an apartment! We wouldn’t have been able to find a place without Lisa’s help. She’s been a great friend, looking at the apartments for us. The place we got seems perfect. It’s a mile away from one of the Gimme! coffee locations and is on an acre of land surrounded by open space on either side. We are allowed to do whatever to the backyard as long as we are respectful of the other two tenants. I’d really like to put in a fire pit and a clothesline if there isn’t one already. The other couple that lives downstairs, usually puts in a garden, so we may see if they’ll want to increase the size of it next year with our help.
I’m trying to stay stress-free through all of this. I can’t wait until my birthday weekend with Dev, it’s going to be a much needed break from planning everything.
