Archives for August 2007

It’s Saturday afternoon and I am back in Ventura. The commute between Southern and Northern California is really not that bad and I am sure I will figure out the most time-efficient way in the next few weeks, but I am playing catch-up with the emotional side right now. It’s kind of weird to be in Sacto one day and in Ventura the next and vice versa, but I am sure I’ll get used to that as well ;)

I had a really good week, got a lot done [even though I have been working on the same “problem” for quite a few days] and I already got my first paycheck! Yay! We get paid twice a month and so I got my first paycheck for the first 3 days [August 13th – 15th] this week. Oh it feels so good to finally earn my own money again :)

I am also trying to figure out if I am paying enough taxes. I still have a hard time to accept the fact that I myself have to tell my employer how much taxes they should withhold. You see, in Germany this is decided FOR YOU and you don’t have to worry about it. Therefore, filling out the W-4 was a little adventure for me. Since my annual income this year will be on the low side [since I just started working two weeks ago], they withheld a really small amount percentage-wise from my last paycheck. Not that I mind, but of course I want to make sure that I don’t owe any money to the IRS next spring. I’ll just wait and see what my next paycheck will look like since it’s actually going to cover a whole half month instead of just three days.

By the way, I calculated that the per diem rate that I will be paid for one week per month will actually cover two more round-trips from LA to Sacramento, if I book in advance and get the cheaper fares. What I really like about Southwest Airlines is that I will be able to change flights online if I happen to have to reschedule my work hours and that I’ll be able to put the full amount towards a new flight. I’ll also collect “Credits” for every flight and rental car reservation that will eventually result in free flights to ANY Southwest Airlines destination :) I think that will really pay off for someone who’ll be traveling as much as I do.

I am also really excited that I’ll be moving in with Kari tomorrow night when I get back to Sacramento. We probably won’t see each other, because I’ll be getting in really late and we both will have to get up around 5:30 a.m. on Monday, but it feels good to go to an apartment and not to a hotel.

I hope you’re all enjoying your weekends :)

The new week started well. I actually enjoy! getting up at 5:45 a.m. and getting ready for work. Ha, let’s see for how long that will be going on :) This is too good to be true.

Anyways, staying at a hotel in a city that I called my “home” for 1.5 years feels kinda odd though. I can’t wait until I move into an apartment. It will feel much more like “home” again than going back to a hotel room every night. Oh wait, there is some good news I wanted to tell you: I’ll be moving in with someone this coming week! Yay!

You might remember that I looked at a room last week and it looks like it is working out. I really like the tenant, and her cat and her new kitten ;) OMG. Now I am even more excited about living with her, because I’ll finally have the pets that I always wanted! Kari seems to be excited, too, that we’re going to be roomates [and hopefully friends!]. She already invited me to join her and two neighbors to a baseball game next week. Cool!
I went over to the place tonight and we signed the “roommate agreement”. I got to meet the kitten [so tiny and so adorable!] and we talked about some organizational stuff. I think I couldn’t ask for a better roommate situation.

BUT: I am also excited about going home on Thursday. Commuting makes you look forward to the weekend even more – although I do have plenty to look forward to during the week as well.

Ok, enough of this crazy talk now. I think you got the point. I am pretty happy these days :)

My first week at work is almost over and I finally have a few minutes to update you guys. The last week has just been so busy.

First off, we moved last Thursday. You gotta love the US for the “easy” moving procedures. You just back up your boxes, collect a few furniture pieces, clean up the place and leave.
There is no “disassembling of the kitchen”, “disassembling your closets” or anything like that. We packed up and cleaned up our apartment in Westwood in just one day. Awesome.
We spent the first night in our new apartment Thursday night. J and I have made it our “routine” to sleep the first night in an empty apartment on the floor :) It’s kinda fun.

Friday, we unpacked the U-Haul truck and unpacked. I love our new apartment. It doesn’t have as much style and it’s not as unique as our apartment in Westwood, but it does have some nice features… vaulted ceilings, a nice-sized kitchen with dishwasher!, and a big patio :)

Monday morning, I had to get up at 3 a.m., the airport shuttle picked me up at 4 a.m. and took me to the airport in Burbank. While waiting for the flight, I spilled a cup of coffee right on my top. GREAT! Fortunately, I only had carry-on luggage and therefore was able to change clothes.
The flight was only an hour and before I knew it, we landed in Sacramento :)
I picked up my rental car – a Toyota Prius Hybrid. OMG! I l.o.v.e this car! It operates half on a normal gas motor and half on electric power. When I first stopped at a light, it almost felt like the car was not even running at all. Amazing! I am curious how much gas I will have to refill before I drop it off again.
My boss and co-workers were thrilled to see me and I was very excited myself. Most of the day I was busy with filling out paperwork and running a lot of administrative errands.

In the evening, I met with my friend Ilka for dinner downtown. She took me to this nice little, serve-yourself restaurant Jack’s Urban Eats and I kept kicking myself the whole night that J and I didn’t know about when we lived in Sacramento. It’s a nice place with decent prices and the food is just delicious! They serve soup, sandwiches and salads. You can create your own salad from a list of menu items and then they prepare it for you right in front of your eyes. Yummy! I ended up getting some take-out there last night, so here’s a picture. Ilka and I talked for about three hours. It’s so great to have a familiar face to meet up with while being here :)

My workday starts at 7 a.m., so I had to get up early on Tuesday. Since I’ll be working a 4-day week, I have to put in 10 hours each day and that means that I’ll be off to an early start every day, but that is actually fine with me. I have to say that yesterday and today just went really fast. Maybe it’s because I had a lot! to do – I don’t know ;)

Tuesday night, I met with a girl who is renting out a room in her duplex apartment in Midtown. We instantly clicked and within minutes her cat had decided to take up residence on my lap – seems like we were off to a good start :) We had a really good time, the apartment is really nice [I would get my own gabled room upstairs] and after two hours she said that – if I can work things out – she would like me to move in. Yay!

Life is good right now.

… how much work it is to move.

Since J did the last move from Sacramento to LA all by himself [well, with the help of his friend] while I was in Germany, I forgot how much work it is to declutter, pack boxes, and clean up the old place AND then drive around, collect information, pick out a new place and move all your stuff from one place to another.

No, we haven’t found a new place yet – ha, that would have been kind a quick, now wouldn’t it? – but we’ve been apartment hunting for the last couple of days and I know that we’ll be very busy these coming weeks. In fact, it’ll be a double-move for me since I will also be looking for a place in Sacramento soon. Hopefully, the move up there will be a piece of cake compared to moving our whole household. I hope to find a roommate situation in a house or apartment in Sacramento and literally move up there with a few boxes. That would make things a lot easier.

So, have you guys had time to digest all this news?

Thank God, I adopted an attitude a while ago that would make me less worried about sudden changes in my life and make me feel less compelled to plan everything like months in advance. I think, now I am actually ok with it and wow, that’s a big step for me ;)