Things are lookin' up...

So I'm starting to feel better about this situation I'm in. Once again, things are kind of falling into place, as they've been doing ever since Rob and I got together 2 1/2 years ago. Of course we've had our challenges, but for some reason when we have a plan to do something, things just cooperate, and it all works out marvelously. So this situation I keep mentioning, and failing to elaborate on... I'll finally explain.



Like I said before, my contract with Sony is up very soon, June 12th to be exact. I started in January, on inauguration day, and have been plugging along ever since. My work schedule has fluctuated a ton since I started, pretty much based on work load. For a while I was on mandatory OT, which was great. Lots of extra money in the bank. But I was too efficient, because I worked myself out of shots. So no more OT. Had a couple scares thinking they were gonna let me go because of lack of work for me, but they keep finding new and exciting things for me to do. I'm very thankful that they've kept me around. But I guess I've earned it, I've busted my ass the last 5+ months. I've been impressing all the right people, which means I will always have a potential future at Sony. So anyway, I have 2 weeks left. There's not much going on at Sony (or any other studio for that matter) till the fall or winter of this year. LA is way too expensive for me to just sit around and live off Uncle Sam again, waiting for the next project to start up. Well, conveniently Rob just got laid off from his job of over 3 yrs, his last day was yesterday. Shit. Double shit. Both of us unemployed by mid June. What the fuck are we gonna do?! Car payments, rent, student loans, credit cards, yadda yadda yadda. We were both making really good money, it's hard to just pick up at a new job and expect to be making what we were making earlier this year. Especially with the economy the way it is right now. Well, Rob's parents offered to have us live with them rent-free in San Marcos, TX.


(Thank you, Google Maps)

Initially I thought "fuck that, I'm going back to Portland". But then I thought about it. Thought about it a lot. It may not be where I want to be right now, but I think it's where I need to be right now. Everyone I've talked to said that the Austin area is awesome and that I'll love it there. People often compare it to Portland, which works for me, because I absolutely LOVE Portland. There's a ton of video game studios there, which would be a lot of fun. We could save SO much money by not paying rent for a while. We could finally get married and start saving for a house. So I can't be so stubborn about staying in Portland, I have to be open minded. This is the next chapter, and who knows, we may end up back in Portland later down the road.

So here's the plan... Mom flies to LA from Dallas on Saturday, June 13th. She's never been to LA before so we're gonna go out and play on Sunday, probably hit the Hollywood Walk of Fame and anything else cool and crazy we can find. Monday, at the buttcrack of dawn, load up the car and hit the road. It's almost right at 11 hours to Las Cruces, NM, where we've planned to stay overnight in a hotel to rest up. I imagine it'll be a little longer than that with pee and food breaks. (Oh yeah, did I mention Fiz is coming?) So anyway... We hit the road again Tuesday morning, June 16th, and drive the rest of the way to San Marcos, where Rob's parents live. About 8 hours or so. Rest up, get Fiz settled, then head to the airport on Wednesday the 17th. Mom's flying back to Dallas and I'm flying to Portland. Then I have a few days to tie up loose ends and say bye to my friends and family... Then we hit the road (for my SECOND drive to San Marcos) on Sunday June 21st.

So, the reason for the "things are lookin' up" title... Our friend Jeff has offered to drive our stuff to Texas for us in his big trailer, I don't think I can express how grateful I am (we are) that he's offered to do this. It's going to help out in so many ways. The other thing, I got a call today that a bunch of shots got skipped, that should have been done a long time ago. So they need me back on OT and working Saturdays. I've been really wishing things would pick up somehow, so I could get some OT this last couple weeks and pad the bank account a little, in preparation for the move and being unemployed. It all goes back to what I was saying about things falling into place. I feel very lucky.

So anyway, that's the story and this entry is WAY longer than I planned. I'm sad to have to leave Portland but excited to see what lies ahead. Maybe I'll elaborate more tomorrow, but for now I'm done.