It's nice to fit in. I have often found it hard to fit into new places. One of the keys to fit in is to find other like-minded people. Sometimes that's easy to find, sometimes not so easy. The internet made it so easy to get together with others. The huge range of communities are reaching everyone and making them feel less alone. Even when the tastes are out of the mainstream of their physical communities.

One community that has risen to fill a specific niche is metric motorcycle community. They connect motorcycle enthusiasts with each other, sharing tips and tricks of the trade. There are forums for stories, for personal chats, for buying and selling accessories and parts. All sorts of stuff. I browsed some of the posts and found it full of cool advice and tips about tires. I never would have thought that tires came in such different sizes and features.

It's the beginning of the week. Second week of spring break; next week my daughter goes back to school on the yellow school bus. I'm settling in. Starting a bible study at church. For once I've moved and decided to join this at the right time- the book is just starting. The discussions are forming, and I can be there from the beginning instead of the end. The book is "The Case for Christ". A lot of thinking. I'm trying to keep up with the book. Another first- I'm actually about to stand a chance of getting the homework done every week.

It's a good thing. The whole deal. I'm happy here. The kids seem happy here. My Boy said to me that he wouldn't mind finishing out his career here, if that's the way the wind blows...

In this age of financial hardships it's always interesting to take a peek into other areas. People are so prone to narrowing their views, not seeing beyond their own fields into what else is out there. I like taking peeks into other industries. For instance, I know what my life is like as a renter of a home. I've been involved in applying for housing, the credit checks, the calls to the leasing office when something or other goes wrong, the followup calls when the first dozen get lost, the other stuff... Real Property Management is a peek on the other end. I didn't know all the stuff that goes into owning a home and then renting it out- other than the sorts of things that end up on court tv shows. I skimmed the website and then started thinking, what happens to people who buy a new house, and end up unable to sell their former home? If it doesn't sell, and doesn't sell, wouldn't you try to rent it out? At least get some kind of income coming from it to offset the property taxes and maintenance fees. The thing is, renting out a property can be a large headache, and sometimes a person doesn't want to deal with that either. So, a property management company takes care of it for you. For a price, they'll handle everything connected to the property. If I was fortunate enough to be in that situation, I'd be first in line to have someone else take care of it for me.

Dinner was okay; leftover steak, chopped, simmered in a red-wine-enhanced gravy, and served up with salad and steamed veggies. My daughter did not eat it. After making a face at one taste, she opted for peanut butter sandwich. I'm relatively pleased, though, that she did taste it before turning it down. Maybe I'm starting to get through to her?

The little boy ate well tonight. Coconut milk is agreeing with him. I have cautious hopes of some serious weight gain at his next checkup.

It's wet and chilly again today. The damp is starting to creep in, and I'm thrilled that unlike the last house, this one seems to have fully functioning weatherstripping. I can feel a mental draft, but not a physical one. In the days to come I know I'll be starting to think fondly of my years in the desert. It may have been insanely dry and hot, but it was definitely not cold and damp. I hear that Scottsdale Arizona weather is about 80 degrees. That's not so bad. I could use a shot of that right about now.

On the other hand, how many years have I been bitching about not seeing rain? How long have I been missing real weather, and seasons, and isn't this cold dampness a part of weather? I can't pick and choose what weather I want at any given time. It's not a chinese menu option.

I need to just sit back, throw on another pair of warm socks, and dream of wool. Or other warm fibers. I could be living in Canada, after all, where I'm sure it's a lot colder and damper. Someday I'll be warm again, probably in a few months when the seasons turn. In the meantime I'll just sit here and enjoy the damp, and try not to daydream about handing over my future to the relocation team.

Not as much, however, as I enjoy the lack of draft when the wind howls.

This morning the washer and dryer got hooked up. I now have the power of Laundry. That's right, my super-powers are coming back online after a few weeks of being powerless against the dirty clothes.

Yay me.

The house is now almost completely unpacked- the only things left are the clothes, which is going to be an easy manner of taking out of boxes and rehanging in the closet, and the crafts and books. Books are not being unpacked until bookcases are bought and set up. Crafts are not being unpacked until the closet storage stuff is here and in place to receive them. Next on my to-do list is scheduling the trash pickup guys to come and get the bags of packing paper and flattened boxes. That will be a sweet, sweet day.

I've almost got a decent living space again, not a maze of boxes and junk. This is the sweet part about unpacking and moving in.

Wow. What a trip. We packed up and left Hanford about two weeks ago. I took the kids on a scenic drive north, through rolling farmland and mountains and forests that made me feel like I was leaving one whole world behind for another. Since I left the East Coast behind for the West, I haved lived in the paradise of San Diego, the farmlands of the San Joaquin valley, and now I'm in the great Pacific Northwest.

I have to say that I thought I was crossing into a storybook when we were on the ferry. After the woods, the tall evergreen trees everywhere, the mountains and the SNOW on the ridges and in the air, and then the water... to an island where there are deciduous trees and more farms with red barns and silos that might have come from the farms of my childhood... the water of the harbor, just over the hill from my front door. The chill in the air and the seagulls everywhere I go.

The drive was nice. The children as well behaved as I could have wished. They both got sick as we left the bad air for the good, and I lost the wheeze in my lungs as we crossed the mountains. I can breathe again. I can only imagine what it's doing for the kids. Then we moved in, and they both got briefly sick, and now I've still got a ton of boxes to get through and I'm sick (though starting to feel better, slowly), and we've finally got internet in the house.

I've also been having some tiny time to read and sew and work on warm things for the house. It's coming along. Will post pictures when I have a bit more time. On the list for next week: battle with the school district.