So, I GOT THE JOB! Last night was my first night. I'm doing quite well. The menu is huge, but I'll get it all down in time. My coworkers are young, but really friendly. Even the cranky guy is nice!

My lovely lady bought me the new NIN CD since I'm broke as a joke until I finish training and start making tips next week. The CD is lovely to listen to, but it also changes from black to white when you play it. Great way to make people buy it without RIAA threats.

Um, yeah, I don't know what all else. Things are going really well. I'm even looking at bailing out of my mom's place well sooner than I thought. Like, at the end of next month. SUPER happy about that. I love my mother and really want to keep liking her as well.

My Uncle's place is even going along quicker than we all thought it would and there have been some sweet little treasures here and there.

I uploaded pictures form the rodeo last weekend. You call all enjoy the sappiness:









My gal's got this big smile she drops all the time that just melts and bitterness right out of my little, cold heart. It's awesome!

So, one weird thing that's been happening quite frequently here in a cultural wasteland... I get compliments on my (lack of) hair. Okay. Here's the rub, they always have a note of surprise in their voice when they tell me that they like my haircut, or that it looks good on me. So it's only kind of a compliment.

Last night was the Speakeasy party in the city. Loved it! Tons of awesome people (despite sobriety, every single one of you was entirely new to me. Don't be upset if i can't remember your name. I'm terrible with two - twenty is just obscene.) There are tons of fine lookin ladies and gentlemen in CA. I anxiously await the Speak-sleazy party so I can wear an ironic cowboy hat in public. Bartending was not only a blast, but it really made me talk to everyone, or the drinkers at least. The down side of last night is that I walked probably four miles in four inch stilettos and now I have a blister on my right foot the size of my big toe. Ouch.

I'm going to Lake Tahoe tomorrow until Wednesday morning. When I return from my mini-vacation i will be thirty years old. I don't feel thirty. But here it goes anyway. The downside thus far is realizing while watching 'What Not To Wear' that I only have five years of mini-skirt left. OH NOES!

I was asked for a link to my wish list today (for impending aging day) and I, of course, ended up adding things to it after I sent the link. I now have no way to get any Asian Extreme Cinema, except online. So now I am obsessed with it. Why does not being able to run out and rent Battle Royale only make me want to see it more?

What's your latest obsession?

So yes. I made it safely. I'm here. I'm even mostly settled. There's still a big hunk of work to do at my Uncle's house, but the week after my birthday should be the beginning of the full-throttle job-search. There has already been much poking around and not much call for bartenders according to the local rags.

i've got a new car. He's a burgundy Civic 4-door. His name is Peter Honda and he will be Captain America themed, natch. And thank god he's got AC. I am dying here. Far too fucking hot. But at least I can wear flip-flops all the time, and i do so love wearing my flip-flops. It's the white trash in me.

A big bit of my spare time has been spent playing with Trigger, painting my nails and screwing around on the internets. Now I am obsessed with Last.FM and have a profile you should add so you can tell me what shitty music I listen to. I've been enjoying the hell out of the recommendations and they're not even very well defined yet.

Um, what else? Oh, tonight is my first foray into rocking the central valley. Lemme tell you, I'm going to kick it's ass with karaoke. You have been warned.

Oh goodness. There's a rental truck in the driveway and it's full (to the brim, oops) of my life. The people, places and things that have made me who I am now. As hard as it's going to be to pack in these last few things and drive away, I know that I need to. Despite all the sadness of saying goodbye to all the amazing people I've met here in Seattle, I haven't questioned whether or not I should go through with it. It's going to be hard, living in the middle of nowhere, but I'm certainly tough enough to tackle it.

I have to say extra special goodbyes to Rice and ThrottleBitch.

Rice - You're an especially heartfelt person. I'm so glad you could mean to me what you have and do. Every one you call 'friend' has someone that would go to the ends of the earth for them and not even think about it. I am so proud to be one of the people that you count as being important to you. I am so proud of you. Keep up the art, it's so great.

ThrottleBitch - There's so much that I could never say here, but that you already know. You may have broken my heart but you've helped put it back together and I know it will be much stronger after it's all healed. Thank you. One day you're going to know that I meant all those things I said about how amazing I know you are. I can't wait for you to love yourself the way everyone who gets to know you does.

Thank you both for all your help. All the help you've given me has made me realize that I'm as valuable to you both as you are to me. And you mean so much to me.

All my Seattle friends, please use that phone number. I expect tales of triumph and heartbreak and three AM shouts of how much you drank. I'll certainly be on SG, but tell me the things you don't ever say on here, I still want to know.

I'm going to shut this computer down and put it all in it's boxes and disassemble the desk it is on. I'm going to load it into the truck and I'm going to drive away. I'm going to be back someday and I'll be a better person when I get here. Just the same, but better.

Tomorrow marks only seven days until I leave Seattle. Yesterday was my last day on shift at the boxcar. I have a date with Chip and Easton to fuck up some trivia via team Boxcar tomorrow night. Wednesday night is a date with my ever-lovin' Hippi (it's his last name, I still hate fuckin hippies) to go to his bar and let him get me all shitty drunk. Thursday I go visit one of my favorite regulars in a very unfortunate place. Friday is the karaoke monster jam. Possibly a yard sale on Saturday and Sunday and loading everything into the truck Monday. Busy, indeed. There's packing and sorting through all my earthly possessions in there, too.

I can't even express how much I'm going to miss this place, my life and all the people in it. I just have to go and search for a few things I seem to have lost along the way. None of you know me, you think you do, but I've kept you all at arms length, and for that I am so very sorry. I need to learn how to be open. I need to learn how to let others listen to me as I am willing to do for them. I need to learn what it's like to let others know who I really am. There's still me here, I'll always be loud and crass, but I need to let others see the rest of me sometimes. I'm not all magenta and rockin' out. Sometimes I'm a crossword puzzle and mint tea.

So please come see me on Friday night. Seeing all of you means so much to me. Now, more than ever.

Oh my goodness. I got some terrible news last night. My car isn't going to make it. There's not enough little blue sad faces in the world for this.

I do have to respect that he let me know while I had time to reschedule the trip down and get a truck and all that stuff. He's been so awesome, but as far as going all the way down to CA, notsomuch. He will also give me more money for the move and make it so that I don't have to cram everything into a civic hatchback (including 3 pets.) My brother kept trying to console me by pointing out that I'll get a newer, better car, but I want my very first car. Who else has awesome leopard print racing stripes?!?! No one, that's who. The glad game isn't really working out for me on this one. I've still got two weeks left with him, and I'm going to enjoy them. I love my silly car SOOO much. he'll help me move, though, and make someone else very happy. Maybe he just hates CA, I can totally understand that. And yes, I do realize I'm talking about my car like he's a person. Wanna hear worse...? I always thank him for the ride when there's no one else in the car. Suck on that.

In case you didn't figure it out, I'm moving to CA for a few months and then who knows where, maybe Seattle again, Maybe San Diego, maybe the bay area even New Orleans is a possibility. I've got time to figure it out, so I'm not going to worry about it now.

Those explanations were kinda backwards, no?