Where God lost his Birkenstocks

I'm in Arcata. I'm at friends of my brothers who are positively EXCEPTIONAL people. They have introduced me to their friends, I have played board games with them and their friends... that just seems to be how it goes down in these parts.

Case in point...

I have been phoning half of the county for leads on apartments and such. One had even mailed (of the snail variety) an rental application. Anything that cannot be returned in at least a quasi-immediate manner... bottom of the pile. Fast forward to two nights ago, I have a call this snail-mail landlady back after she'd left me a message. She informed me that the space she'd advertised had been rented, she recommended another apartment complex. She had friends that had lived there, it was a vintage remodeled hotel with Murphy Beds and clawfoot tubs. She liked older buildings, and Blue Lake; the town she lives in. She's lived there for the last 30 years, since she moved back to the area after having moved away, Blue Lake only has two police officers...

...and so it goes, I received a pretty decent historic perspective on the area from this woman's perspective AND I was invited to her birthday party that I went to today at the local coffee house. A lot of people are VERY friendly here, a LOT of people look at folks coming into the area as part of the influx and outflux they have to deal with, and there's a peppering of douchebags; it was maybe too much to have hoped otherwise.

Anyway, I've got a coupla more places to look into for housing. I've got one that I can lock in if nobody else is calling me back. Hopefully, my name is drying on a lease by the end of the afternoon tomorrow. Details will follow and then a tour of the area will commence!!! Won't you come along with me??? on a Reading Rainbow?

The New Year

I am pushing this baby over the finish line. Being able to transition into a four-year over 2000 miles away with a month and a half to do so is not as easy as everyone makes it sound. I'm spending the day watching Sonny Chiba movies and sending out rental applications, I hope to only be doing one of these for any portion of the remaining year. I'm outside of Sacramento at my folks and am working on lining up housing... with two cats. That's the trick of it, lining up housing in essentially one week in an area with an increasing student body and a development resistant mentality. The applications are out and new leads are being dug up fresh daily, so it is only a matter of time, with or without the kitties that I find my housing. They've survived this much, I have faith they'll make it across the finish line with me. Details to follow.