4 months

I haven’t done very well at keeping my promise to keep my website updated, have I? I’ve been up here for four months now, and this is the first time I’ve written. Life rolls on and takes up every second of everyday, no matter where you are.

I’m re-writing this because Chris gave his review of what I had so far, and thought that – as he put it, “its bullshit”. Of course, I’d only started writing it, and he hadn’t seen the direction I was going with, but I decided that it would probably be easier recap what my life has been like the last four months from the beginning, rather than work my way backwards, as I was doing.

Life is the same, but different in many ways up here. I work; I sleep; I read; I spend time with the cats; I worry about money. Same as always. (This is the part that Chris didn’t like – he emphatically states that my life is NOT the same – and I agree). What I was trying to do was contrast the differences and similarities between my life now and then... but that proved to take too much time, and I wasn’t really saying what I was meaning to, so I’m just going to type and see what I end up saying…

On May 2nd I said goodbye to my job and all my friends; I packed up my desk and closed the very long chapter of my life that had been ARUP. A few hours later I picked up Chris from the airport (his first flight ever!), gave him a quick tour of Salt Lake City, and took him home to introduce him to the “kids”. The next day we got up and ran some errands, picked up the truck and started loading up my life with the help of a few friends that were kind enough to help lift heavy objects. By late that afternoon, everything I own had been loaded into a very large Budget truck, and I left Utah forever. Myself, three cats, and a very cranky Chris (driving that big truck did not make him happy) spent the night somewhere in Southern Idaho, and then headed for Coeur D Alene in the morning. One we got there, the plan was for the cats and myself to stay in a motel until Monday morning so I could go sign my lease –but that idea flew out the window when I burst into tears with a panic attack when I realized that I was completely lost in a new city. Chris took me home to his parent’s and the two of us, and three fuzzy bodies hid in his small room for a very sleepless night.

I signed my lease on Monday, and was completely moved in my Tuesday. I had one week to get myself settled and organized before I started my new job on May 12th.

My new job… now that was an experience. I caught onto the work really quickly, and since I had prior laboratory knowledge, I got very little training. My supervisor left a copy of my doctor’s note on the copy machine for everyone to see, then just laughed about it when I told her. I got along well with a few of the girls, but otherwise felt like I was an unwelcome addition to the team. I didn’t feel like I was part of the team, and the fact that I wasn’t a permanent employee made me feel worthless and unappreciated. So I took the first opportunity I had to accept a full time (permanent) position in a department that I feel like I belong in. I get to deal with my friend in Utah everyday and I genuinely like spending time with the people I work with.

The first month I was here there was a lot of family drama. Chris’s brother was arrested on some pretty nasty charges, and it basically torn the family apart. Things have calmed down now, but there is still a trial looming, so I pray for the best possible outcome for this family that I have come to think of as my own.

Speaking of family, I was able to see almost all of mine when Chris and I went to my family reunion at the end of June. It was the first time I’d seen many of them in several years so most of them were basically strangers, but I got to spend time with my mom and grandma, and that made the whole trip worthwhile. What made it even better was the fact that I had Chris with me. It’s the first time in my life that I have someone that is not only willing to go to such a family function with me, but one that I am proud to introduce to the ones I love as the one I love.

I’m getting to know Chris’s 14 year old son. He’s a good kid, well – he’s 14 – so I guess for a 14 years old he’s a good kid. Since I met him four months ago his voice has started to change. I only see him every week or two, but each time his voice is lower, and lower. It’ll be interesting to see how he changes as he gets bigger; I think he looks a lot like his mother, maybe he’ll start to resemble Chris. Rhonda, Jamie’s mom and Chris’s ex, is a great lady. She and Chris get along great, so we all spend a lot of time together. She’s the only girlfriend I have so far up here.

Well, I’m starting to run out of steam here… not much else to talk about. You’d think I could write more than just a few paragraphs with as much time as I’ve had, wouldn’t you?