I am still alive! (Part 1 of 2: life stuff)
Hola all!
It has been a long time since the last time I posted on LJ and a whole lot has happened in the meantime.
The move was pretty terrible. First of all, it took us 3 days to load our truck because we really couldn't get anyone else help us. And I really don't blame them, because there were official warnings to only go outside if it was completely necessary. So it was just Me, Katy, Katy's mom, and Katy's worthless 15 year old brother packing up a truck with three flights of stairs, half a block of walking, 8 inches of snow, and "feels like" -20 temperatures. I have never been so exhausted and wet in my life. I was literally on the brink of leaving everything behind. But, we made it through it obviously. So Katy and I both drove the "12 hour" drive trying to save money on a tow dolly, but it would definitely have been worth it. What should have been a 12 hour drive turned into 28 hour due to bad road conditions and people who didn't know how to handle them. At one point it took us 2.5 hours to go 7 miles. We couldn't even stop at a hotel because they were all completely booked. ugh. But we made it safe and sound in Asheville, NC, dropped off the truck and drove another 4 hours to Raleigh to pass out. And then we had an actually relaxing Christmas day free from worry about anything whatsoever.
We got back into Asheville on December 26th, to start unloading the truck and were almost completely settled in by New Years. I big source of stress after that was that we were literally without any money. We used up our savings in the move, and were down to less than 150 dollars in our checking account. We have since racked up very large (very, very large) credit card debts while waiting for some sort of income. (Did I mention we moved without jobs? :o) ) I have had a few really quality interviews with some local establishments, but nothing has really come of them. And Katy was engaged in an epic battle with the NC teacher certification board trying to get her status to transfer from IL. She was offered a job, but wasn't able to start working there until this 3-week long process was finally settled.
So, that is the bad news.
After a long battle, Katy is now a Highly Qualified educator of exceptional children and got paid for the first time on Friday! YAY! We might be able to make rent next month without borrowing from someone. It is weird not being the bread winner, but we have decided that I am going to be a Stay-at-Home Dad while I wait for something I really want to do to come around. This is both bad and great, but the great wins out. Two incomes would be nice for once, but being with Quinn is a lot of fun and I think I am better at the domestic stuff than my wife. Cooking everyday, doing laundry, dishes, bills. It's probably best that I am in charge of these things. Plus it gives me plenty of time to study, and I have gotten 3 good Scrabble sessions in during Quinn's naptime.
Another good part is, we absolutely love living in Asheville. Chicago was never quite home for us (although we really loved it there while we were), and being back in the mountains has been a revelation on our stress levels. We have really good friends in this area that we haven't seen in a while and the Scrabble club is much more competitive than I thought it would be. I have been to two club sessions, one unrated one-day, and had 3 kitchen table session with local players. Much more than I was expecting.
So in all, after a long rough spot, things are looking up again. While we won't be out of our rut for a little while, the promise of steady income is a huge weight lifted and allows us to plan for the future.
To those who have been in contact, and I haven't been very responsive (I'm looking at you Erica) I really apologize. I will try to be more in the loop in the near future now that life seems a little less bumpy.
It has been a long time since the last time I posted on LJ and a whole lot has happened in the meantime.
The move was pretty terrible. First of all, it took us 3 days to load our truck because we really couldn't get anyone else help us. And I really don't blame them, because there were official warnings to only go outside if it was completely necessary. So it was just Me, Katy, Katy's mom, and Katy's worthless 15 year old brother packing up a truck with three flights of stairs, half a block of walking, 8 inches of snow, and "feels like" -20 temperatures. I have never been so exhausted and wet in my life. I was literally on the brink of leaving everything behind. But, we made it through it obviously. So Katy and I both drove the "12 hour" drive trying to save money on a tow dolly, but it would definitely have been worth it. What should have been a 12 hour drive turned into 28 hour due to bad road conditions and people who didn't know how to handle them. At one point it took us 2.5 hours to go 7 miles. We couldn't even stop at a hotel because they were all completely booked. ugh. But we made it safe and sound in Asheville, NC, dropped off the truck and drove another 4 hours to Raleigh to pass out. And then we had an actually relaxing Christmas day free from worry about anything whatsoever.
We got back into Asheville on December 26th, to start unloading the truck and were almost completely settled in by New Years. I big source of stress after that was that we were literally without any money. We used up our savings in the move, and were down to less than 150 dollars in our checking account. We have since racked up very large (very, very large) credit card debts while waiting for some sort of income. (Did I mention we moved without jobs? :o) ) I have had a few really quality interviews with some local establishments, but nothing has really come of them. And Katy was engaged in an epic battle with the NC teacher certification board trying to get her status to transfer from IL. She was offered a job, but wasn't able to start working there until this 3-week long process was finally settled.
So, that is the bad news.
After a long battle, Katy is now a Highly Qualified educator of exceptional children and got paid for the first time on Friday! YAY! We might be able to make rent next month without borrowing from someone. It is weird not being the bread winner, but we have decided that I am going to be a Stay-at-Home Dad while I wait for something I really want to do to come around. This is both bad and great, but the great wins out. Two incomes would be nice for once, but being with Quinn is a lot of fun and I think I am better at the domestic stuff than my wife. Cooking everyday, doing laundry, dishes, bills. It's probably best that I am in charge of these things. Plus it gives me plenty of time to study, and I have gotten 3 good Scrabble sessions in during Quinn's naptime.
Another good part is, we absolutely love living in Asheville. Chicago was never quite home for us (although we really loved it there while we were), and being back in the mountains has been a revelation on our stress levels. We have really good friends in this area that we haven't seen in a while and the Scrabble club is much more competitive than I thought it would be. I have been to two club sessions, one unrated one-day, and had 3 kitchen table session with local players. Much more than I was expecting.
So in all, after a long rough spot, things are looking up again. While we won't be out of our rut for a little while, the promise of steady income is a huge weight lifted and allows us to plan for the future.
To those who have been in contact, and I haven't been very responsive (I'm looking at you Erica) I really apologize. I will try to be more in the loop in the near future now that life seems a little less bumpy.