giving, Thanks

Thanksgiving is two days away and I wanna get my 2012 thanks and "no thanks" out of the way now. Since it's on the 22nd of November this year, I'll make a list of 22 items:

1. I'm thankful for the opportunity my employers gave me to do my job in a whole new wonderful city but 
2. I'm not thankful that the sacrifice is leaving behind so many wonderful coworkers, friends, and family in Seattle and the whole Washington vacinity.
3. I'm thankful that I live in such a peaceful town not so far from San Francisco but
4. I'm not thankful that it can sometimes be time consuming commuting into work all the way from Walnut Creek.
5. I'm thankful that my longer than usual commute affords me the opportunity to write blogs, enjoy music/podcast, and/or read but 
6. I'm not thankful that I still have a problem with motion sickness and can read only so much before I feel like I'm going to blehhhhh.
7. I'm thankful that I'll be spending Thanksgiving in Anaheim having a good ol' time at Disneyland but
8. I'm not thankful that I won't, instead, be with family eating turkey, mashed potatoes, ham, stuffing, and all the other great Thanksgiving traditions.
9. I'm thankful that I finally realized, after five years, that I could change the voice on the GPS to an awesomely cool British accented female voice but
10. I'm not thankful that I'm addicted to hearing it and, in fact, will use the GPS to drive to Safeway just three blocks away
11. I'm thankful that I finally tied the knot to with my bff,  my soulmate, my forever evah back in January but
12. I'm not thankful that we didn't have a big ol' party to celebrate it with everyone (maybe one day).
13. I'm thankful that all the hard work I put into my job was recognized this year with a promotion but 
14. I'm not thankful that I stooped to injuring myself in order to make management feel sorry for me. ;)
15. I'm thankful that my accident (smashing my mouth into the pavement) wasn't worster than it coulda been but
16. I'm not thankful that I was such a klutz and could have easily avoided crashing (I replay it in my head all the time).
17. I'm thankful that we've already had some guests in our little abode after less than three months but
18. I'm not thankful that their visits are so short.
19. I'm thankful for making some quick friends in our new home... and already have had a board game night with a few of them but
20. I'm not thankful every night isn't board game night.
21. I'm especially thankful for the ability to virtually keep in touch with all the long distance people in my life but
22. I'm not thankful for the non-invention of teleportation. So, you know, visiting each other would be so much quicker (I stole that from the sis-in-law).

Anyway, it's not much but there you go. 

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! 

After all, it's a small world

I'm tired. A busy weekend followed by this busy week has made me so tired that I"m tard. I really really really really (x infinity) can't wait for this week (tomorrow/Friday) to come to an end.

The week being over means I'm that much closer to seeing my sister, bro-in-law, niece, neph, and dog neph this weekend. They'll be our third set of visitors to stay/sleep here in our little Walnut Creek apartment. Too bad my bro couldn't stay here more than the six hours he was here for today. I mean, check this out, yo. Around 1:30pm today, I decided it was time to fill my belly with some food. Just as I was about to get up from my cubicle area, my bro texts me, "Where do you work?"

I'm like, whaaaaaat? I quickly type, "Razprgish" but then realize it's a typo so I correct it to, "Razorfish. Why?"

He responds with, "Going to Hard Rock Cafe."

Having not seen him since September, I suddenly remember [pause to admire rhyming] that my brother was going to be in Japan for three weeks. Ah. Makes sense. He must be in SF on his way back to Washington. But it's crazy that he and his buddy decide to go Hard Rock Cafe since it's literally RIGHT ACROSS the street from my work.

So that was coo. We met for only half an hour but it was seriously awesome to see him. It was a nice ending to a week of "small world" happenings. Last Friday, we went to the UW-Cal game at Berkeley and, while getting in line for a bus, ran into a couple I had just met two days prior at the SF Giants World Series parade. They were pals of my friend Carmen. But then AFTER that game, when we got in line to take the bus back to our car, guess who ended up being behind us?  The SAME couple. Ummmm.... stalk much folks? Just joshin... I kid new friends.

The next day, we met with G & A visiting from Washington. They were in town for a wedding and staying at a hotel in Mill Valley in the North Bay (north of SF). We met them at their hotel, had lunch, hung around for a couple of hours, then parted ways. But we weren't done with that hotel.

Later in the evening, we went back to the very same hotel to visit another friend who was also staying there. She was celebrating her birthday by getting away from her house and staying in one of her favorite SF Bay areas. We had made plans with her earlier in the week not knowing that she would be in the same place as G & A!  Isn't that crazy? One obscure hotel in a random small town serving as the meeting point for two different sets of friends who don't know each other [cue Twilight Zone music].

Of course, those who know me KNOW that I love this small world stuff. It's so intriguing to me when events like this prove how intimately connected we are...

Not moving on... ADDING on

I remember a time long long ago when I started watching sports as a youngin in Colorado. John Elway was a third year quarterback leading his Broncos to their second Superbowl (his first of five). Alex English and Michael Adams were my favorite NBA players on a fun Doug Moe coached Denver Nuggets. And the Colorado Rockies? Well, let's just say that I'm so old that, as a kid, there was no MLB team in Colorado back then.

Three years later, my family moved to Washington. Although I was in Seahawk/Supersonic territory, there was no way I was going to root against my Denver teams. The Broncos were in the same AFC West division as the Hawks. And I was a die-hard Elway fan. But after he won his two late 90s Superbowls & retired, I felt it was time to move on and start cheering for my local, newly aligned NFC West Seattle Seahawks. It was a great time too... explosive players and a new commitment to winning. You knew fans were going to be in good hands with Matt Hasselbeck as their new QB and Shaun Alexander running the ball.

The Supersonics were a much easier team to transition to. I went to my first NBA game in 1992 and quickly fell in love with the Glove and the Reign Man. Easy fa breezy. Gawd how I miss that team... Seattle professional basketball under George Karl? YES!  The change of ownership and moving? Oklahoma Thunder? No thanks.

Baseball wise, I had no problem joining in on the Ken Griffey Mariner fun. The Kid brought excitement to baseball despite being part of a losing team in the early 90s. But Lou Pinella came along and Seattle became a hella fun baseball city. Griffey, Buhner, A-Rod, Randy Johnson, Ichiro... the list of fan favorites go on and on... Can't wait for the time when they're in the playoffs again...

So speaking of World Series, I don't think I could have come to SF at a better time. It's nice that the Giants aren't in the same league as the Mariners. I CAN be a fan without a single worry. Call me a traitor once I start rooting on the Oakland A's over my M's (that's not gonna happen).

I think one of my work besties properly prepped me for this new found fandom the past year and a half. She's the HUGEST Giants fan who's always singing their praises and it all came together for me when I went to my first game in early September. The magic in that stadium was amazing. Been following them ever since and so thrilled to have this enthusiastic feeling about a baseball team since... wait. Have the Mariners not been back to the playoffs since 2001? My oh my.

Even though I've only been a fan for two months, I think I'll look back at this year as the start of my love for this team. Like almost every other person in the Bay Area, I can proudly say... Go Giants!

Let's Wait Awhile

Because of my "situation", I've delayed plans to meet up with various folks in the SF area. And, by "situation", I'm referring to this whole accident/can't eat solid food thing I'm going through. To be honest, I'm a little tired of myself bringing up this subject. Seriously, it's like, alright Rodney, we get it already.  Woe is you. Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah...

Anyway, yeah, there are many people I can't wait to meet either for the very first time or that I haven't seen in so long. There's G's family in Alameda and my family in San Jose & Monterey. I have a close friend's niece to meet and someone I "met" via their blog a few years ago. I seriously feel lame canceling October plans to get together with all these people but I truly believe the best conversations go hand & hand with delicious food. And, because of that, we will wait to get our meeting up on.

Speaking of eating, I think the best meals I've had are:
     - Mashed potatoes & gravy
     - Tapioca pudding
     - Chocolate shakes
     - Chocolate ice cream
     - French onion soup
     - Smoothies
Yes, folks, life has been mmmm mmmm good.

And I raaaaan

This past weekend, G's cousin ran the Nike Women's Full Marathon in San Francisco, better known as, "Hell yah, give me my Tiffany necklace at the end of the race!" I guess this year the jewelry  was handed out by men in classy tuxes. In previous years, I guess firefighters gave the prizes -  motivating point number two for the ladies.

This was full marathon number mutha effin SIX for the cousin. I know. I'm dreaming of running my first while she's just gettin them done left and right. I wanna run my first full next year. I don't even care how long it takes, I just wanna do it.

But why Rodney? Why? Well, internal voice in my head, I think it just sounds so cool. Doesn't it? "What did you do this weekend? Watched the game? Oh me? I ran a 26-mile marathon..." Anything sounds better than, "I was on my kick scooter and had this accident where..."

I guess other things I could write about is how good for my health running will be, how I could lose a few pounds, blah blah blah blah blah blah... But let's be honest. I'm always gonna go back and forth between fatty mcfatty and not-so fatty mcfatty.  It's the sense of accomplishment that I'm really going for.

Side note... I'm on BART right now after quickly walking 25 minutes from the office. Soooo sweaty. Finally got a seat and I know when I get up, my wetness will be on the chair. Wish there was a  spray bottle and towel I could use to wipe up. Sigh.

Where it all happened

It's been almost two weeks since I've been in the city but here we are. Waiting for BART. On the walk from the apartment, I was a bit hesitant. What would happen when I was back at the spot where it all happened that Monday night? I figured I'd be okay. But as I walked closer to that intersection, I could feel myself tightening up. There it was. The curb. Where my scooter blindly hit and I was thrown off suddenly and I smacked my mouth into the ground. The wires on my teeth are a daily reminder of what happened.

I swear I thought I'd be fine. But I was suddenly weighed down by emotion. I wasn't ready to face all the suffering  from that fall. My eyes started to water up and I couldn't believe I was crying in public.  I could tell some passerbyers  wanted to comfort me but I bolted off before...

Well, none of that actually happened but I often like to be overly dramatic in this head of mine. Truth is, I'm meeting the wife downtown after working from home today. I actually thought it would be cool to see  traces of blood on the sidewalk from that nasty spill of mine but no such luck. Oh well... can't wait to be back in SF again.

And of course it had to happen to me...

Monday evening, on the way home from work, I was blogging it up on my phone about how my first "Casual Carpool" experience went. I had written about how I traveled only two stops from my BART station. I described saving $3.25 by getting off at Lafayette and then hopping into a stranger's car (just like mom & dad always taught). But it's a normal thing around here. Single occupancy drivers pickup passengers to have three total to use the carpool lane AND save on the tolls. Passengers get a "free" ride into the city - well, for me, only $1.75 to get to Lafayette. I had written about my "interesting" first experience. Jamie was with me in the front - we got in a niiice BMW with a dog in the back seat (sweetest dog ever) laying out and putting his head on my lap. Good ol' Buster. 

But that blog never got posted. Instead, last night, I got out of the BART, started scooting home, was at a crosswalk, thought I could safely use the upward slope from street to sidewalk, but as I was avoiding different couples walking...

*BAM*

...everything went dark. I suddenly couldn't see a thing as I was continuing to hold on to the scooter handles then went face first into the concrete. No, not face first... two front teeth first. I laid there for only a quick moment then quickly got up and right away I knew something wasn't right. My teeth were loose and I couldn't close my mouth properly. The sweetest couple came along and tried helping. "Oh my gawd, you're bleeding very badly." I grabbed a shirt from my backpack and stared at them and kept saying, "Oh, man, this is bad. This is very bad." 

I did what I do and kept cracking jokes about the situation - about how it was my first time riding into work with the scooter, how my wife was in NYC, how I had no idea that would happen, how I was new to the area with no dentist, and so on & so on & so on.  They couldn't believe I was making light of the situation and they kinda came off feeling guilty for laughing. I had to explain that, yes, I already had an overbite and not to be alarmed about that. Then... Jamie, my hero, came along and she made sure I made it safely home. 

Once I got home, I immediately emailed my coworkers to let them know the situation then proceeded to try to find a dentist. It's been quite the journey since yesterday but here I am. At home. In pain now that the drugs are wearing off after being worked on by an oral surgeon. My two front teeth were pushed back up where they belong. Actually, they might be situated a little better. They used wires on the upper portions of my teeth to keep them all in place. Basically, the good teeth to the left & right are supporting my two fronts. And, now, I'm feeling that wire grating into my gums... and the insides of my mouth. Ow.

Anyway, I love that I have Facebook to share throughout the day what happened to me. It's good to have my supporting friends/family share kind words (and hella funny ones too) virtually while I'm so far from everyone. Hopefully, I can get a good night of sleep... and wake up bright & early feeling better and ready to get a lot of reporting done from home.

Scoot scoot scootio... Oh oh...

Half an hour on my new scooter in Walnut Creek and I'm a sweaty mess. It's hot up in this mug. Definitely don't mind the temperature but now I'm wondering how disgusting will I be when I stroll into work on Monday morning? Is it time to admit that I  have to bring a change of clothes to avoid the pee-ewing from coworkers?

This scooter is riding pretty well. On nice smooth portions of the trail near my place, the ride is immaculate... gliding happily along.  But then come the bumpy cracky parts and.... well, whaddayaknow? It's still all good. Of course I've gotta put a little more oomph into it.  But the vibrating is to a minimum and I still feel safe as I stride merrily along.

I'll go for another ride manyana and time myself to see how many minutos I'm really saving on my commute. But it is promising that I was passing a ton of walkers along the way. This master plan of mine might actually work.

Being Single: Day 1

Okay, technically, I'm not single. Legally and love-interest-wise, I'm most definitely happy with another for the rest of my life. Forever and ever. Evah evah evah. Amen.

G is currently enroute to NYC as we speak (write? read?) and I won't see her for a week. This is the longest we've been apart for this length of time since four months into our relationship. For those of you who can't do the math, that's 12+ years ago. Add to that, I'm in a new city where I don't know too many people? Awwwwwwww yeah. I can do whatever I want, whenever I want, wherever I want. All on my own.

What big plans do I have in store? Skies the limit. So far today, I worked until almost 7pm. Now, I'm on my way home to cook a huge pot of spam goulash. Then, I'll probably watch a marathon of new shows on the DVR or Walking Dead 2 on DVD. Heck, I might just bust open a bottle of wine and drink alllllll by myself.

How excited am I? Very. How sarcastic am I being? Not at all. I haven't vegged at home in I dunno how long. Who knows what I'll do the rest of my days solo. But all I know is I'm gonna enjoy it while looking fwd to having the wifey wife back home next weekend.

Visiting Seattle

Only a few days ago I was looking forward to seeing family and friends in Seattle. Definitely a fun time had by me. But... I'm ready to go home.  That was definitely weird... big move to a new city and only three weeks later... back to the place I had just left.  I think now is when it all officially begins. New chapter, adventures, people, experiences... It. Is. On.

I'm realizing it's going to be impossible to see everyone I want to see whenever I visit Seattle. This past week, I got to hang with coworkers because I went into the office for five days. I saw G's family because of her mom's birthday extravaganza. And I saw my immediate family because, well, they're my fam fam. At least I'm comfortable enough to not  feel guilty if I don't see certain folks. I don't  need that kind of stress in my life. But it's just a shame that there's not enough time for everyone, ya know?

Reminds me of a very close friend who moved to another state.  Years ago, she came back to Washington to visit family. When I found out she had come and gone without telling most of her friends, I was livid. I berated her something along the lines of, "CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WERE HERE AND DIDN'T LET US KNOW? I DON'T CARE IF, ULTIMATELY, YOU CAN'T VISIT BUT AT LEAST SAY YOU'RE IN TOWN IN CASE THERE'S A WAY WE CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN!" Ugh. Thinking back at the whiney sensitive guy I was is embarrassing. Very overreacty. Or, "over-Rodney-ing". Yup, that's me. I still have that side of me but I've definitely come a long way from that dude I was and I constantly try to not be like that.

Of course, yearrrrrrs later, I know why she didn't tell me when she was in town. It's a tough situation, yo. I definitely should have been more understanding. Basically,  please don't pull a Rodney if you hear I'm in Seattle and you don't see me. Know that I'd love to but it's not always going to work out. On the other hand, if you're in SF and don't tell me? Oh maaaaaaaan, I'm gonna be soooooooo pisssssssed......... ;) 

Seattle bound

It's been less than three weeks since the move to the Bay Area and guess where we are? On a flight back to Seattle! It's G's mom's birthday this weekend and we're in town to celebrate her 75th. Yeah, big deal for sure if you ask me. I hope I'm as active and outgoing as my mother-in-law when I'm her age. The time I've spent in SF has been very short but I think we can jot down a list of awesome things I've discovered at work:

•  Fridge stocked with drinks: sodas, juices  
• All types of coffee: Starbucks machines, Peets Coffee, an espresso machine (I haven't gone once to SB)  
• Fresh popcorn popped at least once a week Roll Friday:  three diff people from our dept each Friday are responsible for buying everyone breakfast. The first time I was there, a couple people brought dim sum dishes! 
• Food trucks on Tuesdays and Fridays - not for free, but it's so convenient and introduces new delicious cuisines each time 
• Monthly dept fun get-togethers:  I attended my first one last night and the activities included beer pong & flip cup competitions. No, I'm not still in college. 
• Dog Fridays: those with canine pals can bring 'em in once a week as long as the doggies are well behaved. I'm not a dog owner but I do enjoy seeing everyone else's furry friends.

Of course I have my fair share of things I miss about Seattle. The commute. For sure. I went from traveling thirty minutes to eighty minutes (one way, twice a day). And I was spoiled with all the food options near the Seattle office. 

But most important... I miss the people a ton.  That's not a negative jab toward my SF coworkers. They all seem really cool and I know, in time, I'll get to know them better. But the RF crew in Seattle are a special bunch who I've had the pleasure of becoming close with in less than two years. I've gotten super close with a handful of them and I hope to never lose touch with those loonies. Looking forward to seeing them all the next several days. 

The Move

Pop quiz, mathematical hot shot. Travel 900 miles in a U-Haul at an average 8 miles per gallon x over $4 per gallon. What does that work out to? Well, if you were an outstanding math student in high school like I was (no, this isn't bragging), you'd know this calculates to: "holy sh*t, it cost so friggin much to move from Seattle!"

I knew what I was getting into cost-wise minus all that gas guzzlin. Ultimately, that was the worst part of that road trip over the labor day weekend. And if you think of all the things that could have gone wrong in our almost thousand mile transplantation, I would consider this a highly successful move. Thank gawd for the most awesome friends. I'm not one to ask for help so anytime I get a serious assist like this, I become overly overly grateful. There were six of us between the RAV and U-Haul on the road for over 16 hours. Plus the two meowing felines in the Toyota. I was never around the cats so I'm not sure how insanely annoying their never-ending crying went. But those guys seemed to make it through.

Once we arrived in Walnut Creek, our close friend joined in on the fun and our crew of seven powered through unloading the packed truck. You just don't know how relieving it was to get it all done. Sweaty, tired, exhausted, spent... etc. We were a disgusting mess but, over two weeks later, I'd say that was super worth it.

But why, Rodney, why?

Ten minutes into my BART ride home from The City, I'm now able to spend a little quality time with my phone. Sure, homie to my left has no idea that his backpack is all up on me. And, yep, the only letters I can think of are B and O.  With this packed-liked-sardines daily reoccurence, you might be thinking, "Rodney must hate it!" Well... I won't lie. It isn't ideal. But I don't mind it all that much. It's a new and exciting experience to be part of this hustle and bustle. Fun times.

The whole let's-one-day-move-away from Seattle idea has been brewing for several years now. I think G and I started talking about it in 2008. For her, she's lived in only Seattle... wait... WEST Seattle her whole life... only three houses. In fact, the place we were in before we left is where she grew up through elementary/middle school. She's always wanted a new outside-Washington adventure and I was completely down for helping her make it happen.

For me, being an army brat the first 14 years of my life meant a lot of moving around. I went to eight different schools during that time. I thought I was done with moving once my dad retired in Washington. But that was a long time ago and now I'm in the right mindset to explore a new area.

Thankfully I work for a company that values keeping good employees. Somehow, I fall into that category (oh yeah, I know... cray cray). So when I expressed interest in moving to SF, my manager supported me 100%. Unfortunately, there are no open account manager positions... meaning doing exactly what I did in Seattle... only remotely from our SF office.  We'll see how long this lasts. It's not a forever situation, even though I absolutely love my team/client. But, realistically, it makes sense that I have to switch off the account one day. For now, I'm gonna enjoy my role from this remote distance. Thankfully, the work aspect  of this transition remains somewhat unchanged.

Next up? I haul, you haul, we all haul, for u-haul...

Let's start over, shall we?

As many of you don't know (and only a very few of you do), I've had a blog. I've written only a few things here and there through the years.  I've always been hesitant to share publicly because I don't think  anyone really cares to know all my goings ons.  I've sometimes griped about people or overshared way too much and I think sparing you all the details was quite nice of me... right? Well... that is... until now.

In a perfect 48 hour day, I would have the time before sleeping to Doogie Houser my thoughts of the episode...errr... I mean, my day. That's not going to happen. But I'm going to give it my best to be consistent with this badboy.

I think this is the best time to get this party started (right?) since this is the newest chapter in my life. How many chapters have there been? I'd count this as number eight or nine... which we can get into later. But this one would be entitled "SF... The City...The Bay." I've lived in the Seattle area for 24 years and I think my move down here warrants creating a divider in the story of my life.

What's your role in all of this? Read, comment, talk to me in person about what I've written, attempt to ask me to tone down my TMI, be creepy and never tell me you've read it (stalker)... anything you want to do, go for it. If I've posted something about you and you want me to remove it, let me know. But there's only two things I ask. First, don't correct my grammar or spelling... I might be composing this on the train or bus or while I'm waiting for my tacos at a food truck. Be a little forgiving. Second, don't read my posts with Kristen Bell's voice narrarating an episode of Gossip Girl. I try to write the way I talk in for real life so keep that in mind. I'm far away from a lot of you... my close family and friends and I'm hoping this is a way to keep our relationship going for now.

Next post? Riding dirty from Seattle to Walnut Creek.