One Month in Carson City

I've now been in Carson City for an entire month, and a lot has happened in that time! Life has been pretty hectic, with moving, starting a new job, and learning my way around a new town. Although some days I've felt pretty homesick and have missed my friends and family, it has also been really exciting to start my new life here. Along the way I've tried to snap a few photos to document what has been going on, so without further delay, here is a photo journal of my first month in Nevada!


I spent the first few days doing a lot of shopping for house things like toothbrushes and toilet paper, and Jasper was very excited about the new toothbrush...
 

Jasper was also excited about the quails that live in the bushes outside my apartment, and has been keeping watch at the window.

 

Jasper and I both love hiking in the desert. It is dry and warm, and it smells amazing

 

We were walking in the park by the river and I spotted a coyote in the wetland

Turns out coyotes act a lot like dogs. This one peed, then sat down to scratch its ears.

My parents came to visit during the first weekend in May. We drove all the way around Lake Tahoe on Saturday, then went to a cowboy festival and a historic army fort on Sunday. The weather, which had been sunny and warm, turned cloudy and rainy when they arrived. I guess the Washingtonians brought some much-needed rain to Nevada. I realized once the warm sun returned that I haven't quite recovered from my sunlight-deficient life in Oregon--I was way more excited than anybody else in Nevada for the sun to come back!

 

Thunder and lightning over the desert

Fort Churchill is out in the desert and is mostly falling down, but it is still really cool. Nevada has a lot of history.

Last weekend Jasper and I went for a hike up Prison Hill, which is right in the middle of Carson City, but feels like the middle of nowhere. It was about 85 degrees and absolutely beautiful.

 

 

 

 

 

Last Day in Corvallis

Wednesday, April 17th was packing day. I got up earlier than usual to make sure everything was ready. I ate breakfast, got dressed, and then gathered up all the things I would be carrying with me as I drove to Carson City. Jasper watched carefully as I carried suitcases, bags, boxes, and my sleeping bag to my car. Around 8:30 I took Jasper outside for a walk down the street. As we were coming back, we watched an enormous truck come around the corner. The driver stopped, checked some papers, then hopped out--it was beginning!

 Packing was kind of a strange experience. A team of three men (along with two more who came later) methodically packed everything in my house. First I showed them what to pack and what to leave for my roommate. Then one mover went around with an inventory form putting numbered stickers on each piece of furniture. Each bookshelf, side table, and chair got a sticker, as did each leaf in the dining room table. Meanwhile the other movers unloaded piles of cardboard boxes, tape, and paper and began packing smaller items into boxes. They wrapped every item in paper and put it in a box. Each box got a label describing its contents and a numbered sticker. Some things, like clothes in my dresser drawers, they left in place, but most other things got packed up.

While this was going on, I alternated between watching, reading, knitting, and taking Jasper for short walks. While I was in the house, I moved from chair to chair, room to room as the movers packed. Ocasionally I would answer a question about whether something should be packed, or chat with the movers, but mostly they did their work while I tried to keep busy. About 3.5 hours after the packing started, it was time to load the truck. The movers carried each box and piece of furniture out to the giant moving truck, and within another half hour the house was empty. All that was left was Jasper's crate, my knitting bag, the houseplants that couldn't go through the California agricultural check station in the moving truck, and a couple doormats. After signing my name on a bunch of paperwork, the movers were gone.

Since I was staying one more night, I went out to my car and brought back in my clothes and sleeping bag. Then, since it was too weird to be in an empty house, I left to go downtown. I got lunch at a sandwich place, then wandered through the shops in downtown Corvallis. I picked up my thesis from B&J Bookbinding and bought some candles that look like succulents. Then I got tired of walking and decided to go back to the house. I spent an hour or so putting together a table for my roommate, then I drove back downtown to pick up the ring I bought myself as a graduation/finishing MS/getting a job present. Unfortunately, although the ring had been resized, it was still too big, so I left it there with the promise that they could have it ready by 10am the next day. Local businesses are wonderful!

Then I went back to the house again to take a shower and get ready for dinner with friends. My roommate came along, and we had a fantastic Thai curry dinner. The best part was getting to laugh and talk with some really wonderful friends :) It was a perfect way to spend my last night in Corvallis!

Lots to report

A lot has happened in the last week--new city, new home, new job--and there is so much to share! I'm hoping that I will have some time this weekend to do some writing, and also catch up on emails and phone calls! Stay tuned for updates from Nevada!

T-1 Day Until Moving Day

Moving day is tomorrow! The movers are coming bright and early in the morning to pack and load my stuff into the big moving truck. I'm pretty excited to see how this whole process works, since I've never moved like this before...Moving to Corvallis was actually my first big move. My family never moved while I was growing up, and I took basically only what I could fit into duffel bags with me to college. When I moved to Corvallis, my mom and brother drove a U-Haul down with me, so we did all the packing, loading, unloading, and unpacking.

Today I spent a good portion of the day wandering around my house trying to decide what to take with me in my car and what to send with the movers. The moving truck could take up to a week to arrive in Carson City, so I want to make sure I have everything I need with me to survive for a week without most of my stuff. I also tried to find things that have sentimental value, or would be a headache to replace if something happened to them. So far I have a decent-sized pile of important papers, toiletries clothes, things for Jasper, and random other things that I will pack into my car in the morning.

I also took a trip to the landfill today! This might not seem that exciting to most people, but I got pretty excited by the engineering and efficiency of it all. A steady stream of trucks, machinery, and people were moving in and out with loads of trash. I checked in at the scales and was given a card with prices. For household trash, there were enormous dumpsters placed at the bottom of a hill. A curved road led up to a large flat area above the dumpsters and there were low walls around the edge. I backed my car up to the wall, unloaded my trash, and tossed it over the wall and into the dumpster. Then I drove back out to the scales, paid the fee, and was out of there in less than 10 minutes.

The landfill was also a good reminder of how much stuff people produce and throw away. I try not to accumulate more than I need, I donate things I am no longer using, and I recycle when I can, but sometimes its easy to forget that things don't really disappear when you throw them away in the garbage can.

Moving has started

My move to Carson City has gotten underway in the last few days. I've been sorting through clothes and papers and closets, getting rid of stuff I don't need. My house is kind of torn apart, but I can't really pack anything because the moving company is doing that. So I have lots of piles of stuff. All the pictures are off the walls and on the floor. I've been trying to figure out which stuff to take with me and which stuff to send with the movers. Not much fun, but I am getting really excited to move!

 

I also had a really nice gathering with a bunch of good friends on Thursday. It was really nice to see the wonderful people I have met during my time in Corvallis, but tough to say goodbye. I will miss them for sure!

This is a picture of Peggy right before the party started. Brownies and angel food cake--yum!

Found a place to live!

I flew to Carson city today to look for a place to live, and found a place by noon! 

It was a pretty stressful morning because my flight got delayed so I had to make some last minute changes. The apartment hunting itself was also stressful because it affects my life for the next few months. I'm still not 100% sold on Carson, but I think it will be fine, and I'm starting to get more excited.There weren't too many options, so the process was pretty quick. I'll be living in a 2 bedroom townhouse close enough to my new office to walk to work. It faces a large field and is an end unit, so it should be nice and quiet. Andy flew down from Washington to help, which was really nice. He had to do a lot of sitting and waiting, and I kept promising him that someday we will go on a fun vacation. 

First we looked at three different apartment complexes. I pretty much knew which one I wanted, but we spent some time sitting in a McDonalds parking lot so I could make a decision. Then I had to figure out how to get a cashiers check because I forgot my checkbook. This involved finding a credit union affiliated with my credit union in Corvallis, and giving them my account information. Once they accessed my account it was exactly like being at home--so nice! Got the cashiers check, headed back to the apartment office, got the rental application turned in, apartment hunt complete!

Then we headed to Tahoe. We wanted to get to the waterfront, but ended up wandering around the  Heavenly Village because all the beaches seemed to be private. I was also completely exhausted, and all I really wanted to do was sleep. It was pretty cool to see the ski lifts going straight up from the resort! There were little girls running around in bathing suits and skiers dressed up in winter coats! It is really beautiful, and so cool that it is so close to Carson!

Jasper Runs

 
This is a video I took of Jasper in my backyard in Corvallis on March 31st, 2013. Every time I let him out he runs back and forth along the fence. My landlord's dogs are usually over on the other side, and he really wants to go play.  This was the first time since October that I've let him out without his leash, so he got really excited. He ran basically until he collapsed on the floor next to his water. He was panting so hard I threw him in the shower for a couple seconds to cool him off. Still took him ~20 minutes to calm down...So much energy!

progress on the home front

I've made a lot of progress in my apartment search in the last couple of days. Lots of emails from the complexes with information, and I also booked a flight to go visit! Andy is going to come with me too!

We're going on the 27-28th of March and I am hoping to pick a place that will be workable for at least six months. Right now I am leaning towards Parkway Manor or Tanglewood Village or one of the Portofino townhouses. I've pretty much eliminated Carson Catalina and Dolphin Bay because they don't have what I am looking for.

jasper and chickens

Yesterday I took Jasper over to a friend's house for an afternoon party. They had a big backyard and I let him run around off leash most of the time. Towards the end of the party, I was playing with a friend and a little kid in the corner of the yard, near where Jasper was hanging out. Jasper had been pretty interested in the neighbor's yard all afternoon, and was spending most of his time by the neighbor's fence. I thought he was watching the kids next door play kickball...but it turns out there were actually chickens over there, hiding in their coop and not making a sound.

All of the sudden, I looked over to see Jasper squirming under the fence. Next thing I knew, there were chickens and feathers everywhere and Jasper was tackling chickens. I ran into the chicken pen--luckily there was a gate that I could open--and chased him around screaming at him to sit. I eventually caught him, covered in feathers and chicken poop. And luckily the chickens were all fine. Needless to say, Jasper was in the doghouse after than. However, in a weird way I was also kind of proud of him. Seeing him use his natural instincts is pretty cool. After the incident I did some reading about Earthdog, which is an event for certain types of terriers to track rodents underground. It seems like something Jasper could be a champion at, so I'm definitely going to check it out soon!!

looking for an apartment

Today I spent some time searching for apartments in Carson City, where I will be moving in April. I was thinking of getting a duplex or small house but I think I will be better off in an apartment for now. Prices seem reasonable and it will be nice to have the amenities and lower utility costs. I also haven't needed a yard in months because its been so wet in Corvallis that letting Jasper off leash outside is not an option. Some of the options I'm considering are Parkway Manor, Carson Catalina, Dolphin Bay, Tanglewood Village, and Park Portofino. I emailed them all tonight, so we'll see what I find out!