Fresh Start

Today I moved to Seattle. Amazon put me up in a great apt until April. It's a two story penthouse right on Lake Union. The views are phenomenal. I do, however, sometimes have to take 2 or more elevators to get to my floor. The building has a slightly bizarre set up. I actually walk on the roofdeck to my private entrance apt.

Tomorrow night I get to see my good friend from business school, Dave Manley. He'll be here for a business trip and I luck out by getting to have dinner with a close friend just one day after arriving in my new, unfamiliar city.

Speaking of the city...it's beautiful. It is also full of beautiful people and today I learned why. On my little walk around the neighborhood, I climbed 100+ steps and had some pretty big hills to climb. In addition to that, everyone was running to the gym after work. Looks like I'll have some good motivation to shed my 25 or so Arkansas pounds pretty quickly. Plus, all of the newer apt buildings and condos have gyms in the building. They can't make it any easier.

I didn't have much time to explore today, but I have the rest of the week to work on that. So far, I am looking at two neighborhoods to settle into after temp housing. One is Pioneer Square. The other Belltown. Pioneer Sq is the historic part of the city and blocks from work. Belltown is listed as one of the 10 hippest neighborhoods in the country and is full of young professionals. I found this great book about living in Seattle. Instead of just being a tourist book it gives more stats and information to people moving here.

I start work next week and am excited, but a little nervous. They have some big expectations of me. I just hope I live up to the hype.

I will try to update on all of the cool findings I have in Seattle. I may need to change the name of the site though. :)

Overall, I just feel relieved to be back in a city with people who I think will inspire me. I can't wait to learn and grow and try new things. I am also hoping amazon execs aren't quite as drama-filled as those at Wal-Mart. I really hope amazon has a sane working environment. Here's to my new beginning!

Cheers!

...and the winner is...

Seattle! amazon.com offered and I accepted. I'll be starting there in 4-5 weeks. I'm so excited for this next chapter of my life. One of my best friends, Nikki, will be heading up for a visit in April. My friend, Dave, has a business trip there in March and my dad has business trip up there in April as well. In addition, one of my good friends has had 3 of her friends move out there pretty recently. So, for a girl who didn't know any one in Seattle this is shaping up to be a fairly easy social transition. Can't wait! Every one is welcome to visit by the way.

New horizons

After a year and half here, I am ready to move along, now it is a matter of finding the place I am going to move along to. I am looking to leave shortly after the end of the fiscal year (2/1). This lets me get my well-deserved bonus. Next week I am off to Seattle to have an on-site interview with amazon.com. I am also talking with walmart.com in SF and TJ Maxx in Boston. Here's hoping one of those turns out to be something fantastic.

Christmas/NYE

I'll be in the Bay Area for Christmas and San Diego for NYE, so if anyone's around, let me know.

Christmas Tunes

With the holidays in full gear, I got a nice little treat at work. Thanks to Lee Scott, we will have Christmas music piped into our workplaces until the 26th. Let's just say it adds a whole other level of distraction to running numbers.

Hampton Inn

I'd also like to comment on the Hampton Inn. I love the new Hampton. In TN, we stayed in one with a giant fireplace, that was so beautiful. The new rooms are amazing with the best duvets. Kudos to renovated Hamptons. I have stayed in a few of them now and they are terrific, especially for the price.

More on Tennessee-LSU

Just e-mailed a friend the details...

So, last weekend, I went to the Tennessee-LSU game. Oh my gosh, it was so fun. I would absolutely go back there for a weekend. I also now get regular college life and I understand how it's possible for people to flunk out of school. When you have a whole day to focus on a football game, grades probably aren't that great...just a thought. It was so fun though. I especially enjoyed that their cheers, colors, etc aren't annoying (ie the Arkansas hog/pig obsession). The pre-game show was cool. It was like they had a checklist of all of the stereo-typical college game day stuff. The band was cool and made all kinds of cool shapes on the field. I strongly question if they all play instruments. They seemed a little quiet and their lines were very straight. There might be some ringers in there. There was also a band leader with a giant plume coming out of his hat and he leaned back so far that I worried he might fall on his head. At the end of the show, they create a giant open T that all of the players run through. It was very cool. And, the part that really cracked me up was that they had a dog mascot. I don't mean a costume some 19 yr old is stuffed into. I mean, there is an actual live dog. It totally cracked me up. During the game there were 4 mascot-like figures. 1. the live dog who runs the opposing team's end zone when UT scores a touchdown. 2. Davey Crockett. 3. Person in dog costume with jersey. 4. Person in dog costume in suit and hat. There were also 3 sets of cheerleaders to hit each corner. It was cool. Highly recommend it if you're ever looking for a trip. FYI...the VP I was travelling with was an LSU fan, so I rooted for anyone who did anything cool. Also, Tennessee girls have great hair. And, finally, my trip, the next day ended with me in a huntin' and fishin' store that, by the way, had Starbuck's. I actually ended up buying a sweater, but was very confused about how I ended up in a store like that.

Sunset Magazine

I had a great weekend. Last weekend I worked, so it's been 2 weeks since I have had a day off. I did a lot of napping and caught up on some magazines. Most of Saturday I was reading Sunset magazine. More relaxing than the Travel Channel. I ripped out recipes and articles on wine and cheese. It's like somewhere in my head I really think if I pull out a cool enough recipe I'll cook it. Actually, I've been cooking more lately so it isn't completely unlikely. I think my co-workers should get ready to experience some lemon-basil shortbread cookies soon.

In other news, I'm off to St. Louis next weekend to see my friend Janell and her new son. Should be fun. Maybe they're the ones that will be experiencing the shortbread cookies.

Tennessee-LSU

Last weekend I got to attend the UT-LSU game in Knoxville. It was amazing. The stadium seats 105,000 people. Knox County only has 400,000 people. It's a really cool environment and was one of the biggest sporting events I've been to. And, on top of that, it was a great game that was decided in the last minute.

Charlie found a home

Charlie was taken home by a loving family today. I actually do miss him a little bit, but I think my time with a pet committment is over until that time if/when I have a family and am home anyway.

Meet Charlie

I now have a cat. Charlie was picked up from the side of the road a few weeks ago. The husband in the family that found him had allergies, so Charlie moved to my friends' house, but the husband in that family has allergies as well. Rather than sending the little guy to a shelter I figured he could crash at my place. So, until we find Charlie a long-term family, he's staying at my place. He has his own room and bathroom, so there is finally a purpose for this home.