Relocation decision carved into fucking *stone*. No way no how. Not to fucking Tempe. It is my nightmare sprawl situation. And is there a law that stipulates all houses must be painted a shade of sand? It’s just sand, yellow sand, reddish sand, sand sand sand *everywhere*. Even when I went into Phoenix today, I could…

Heeey, I got a pat down, too! My crotch set off some sensor. No clue why. My treats were in my candy bag since they *are* candy, and they got through with no problem. We got here with plenty of time to spare, but! The flight keeps getting pushed back. On the up side, I start getting time and a half beginning in two…

Check out the album covers for Metallica’s Load and Reload. He did those. Load’s cover is a work called “Semen and Blood III,” and it’s  bovine blood and his own semen. Reload’s cover is “Piss and Blood XXVI.” Guess what that is.

Psst: The link about getting late to the airport goes to the Us magazine article about Pratt! I honestly want to read the one about the airport because I have great anxiety about that, and I’m flying for the first time in ten years on Wednesday! (My anxiety isn’t about flying. It’s specifically about getting to the…

Damn, that Malabrigo! Did you know that KnitCrate now has a quarterly partner crate subscription with them now? The first two quarters sold out within, like, an hour each time (I was lucky enough to snag one the first time around), but if you hop on the waiting list, I think they will guarantee your spot for the May…

One of the most terrifying things I have ever seen in my life — and keep in mind I watch a *lot* of horror movies — was this video. I’ve been on a bus that has slid sideways on the ice, although we thankfully didn’t hit anyone, and I could just *feel* myself bracing for that impact when I watched this:

The best thing is when all of the people who moved to Seattle from, like, Minneapolis think that *they* know how to drive in snow, so they’ll be fine! Uh, no. Let me introduce you to the Counterbalance (I lived in an apartment at Valley and Queen Anne for a couple of years in the mid-‘90s, and HOLY CRAP that is an…

I’m in Portland, and although we only got a couple of inches, OH MY GOD the photos I’ve seen of the grocery stores here from yesterday afternoon are so bonkers I got anxiety looking at them. Hilariously, one store sold out of kale before milk. (I didn’t go to the store last night because I was already prepared to…

He’s from an area known for its wineries (my family is from there, too, and OH MY GOD we are a bunch of drunks) (and I just remembered what my username is, so, uh, yeah), and he actually owns one of them! Something about a bear. Pursued by Bear! That’s it. 

Thank you to everyone who chimed in on my comment about relocating for a guaranteed job with a company I don’t really like vs. staying in my city and looking for a new job! I’m headed to the potential city to scope things out on Wednesday since those plans were put in motion when I was leaning towards relocating, but…

This. I grew up in Battle Ground, and we ALWAYS shopped in Oregon for clothes because of the sales tax. I now live in Portland proper, and my family lives in Vancouver, so I’m still going back and forth at least a few times a month. Hell, I don’t know how many of my coworkers live somewhere in Clark or Washougal county…

Based on the caption, it doesn’t look like Jennifer Garner owns that statue. It does look like she’s staying in a hotel that has that statue while her kids are not with her, and she’s so used to Mom Gear that she hauled the statue in the shower and cleaned it, which makes me kind of sad. Live for yourself! That’s a…

The unemployment rates are pretty much the same in both cities, plus the average salary where I currently am is something like $5k/year higher than there, so that would probably be another tick in the “do not move” column! I keep hearing local friends tell me that I’m very underpaid given our job market here, so I’m…

Thank you! I’m just not sure if I’m making excuses to not move or listing out my very valid reasons that it is time to move on career-wise. 

Ooh, yes, I like that flashlight factory phrase! That is going into my metaphor bank immediately. That’s really what it feels like. For example, when I asked for a visit to the new area to see if I liked it there, the bigwigs seemed very, very surprised at the request. I was apparently expected to make a decision…

Right? That’s the part that made me decide that they don’t actually want us to take the offer to relocate. They’re going to be paying less as far as salary goes, but they’re going to be losing eight years of knowledge and experience when I go. It’s already a dumpster fire, and people haven’t even started officially…

Thanks for the up side of things! Yeah, the hot mess nature of the company really makes me hesitant to move. When people you don’t even know in other groups you can’t even name stop you in the hall to tell you how much it sucks that your group’s functions are moving and then segue the discussion into reasons why the…

The job is in Tempe, so Phoenix-adjacent. I would not only not be getting a raise but would actually get a pay *cut* because they will adjust for cost of living, and it’s cheaper there than where I am. The more I think about everything, the more it seems like the universe wants me to take the severance package (which…

So my job is moving to Arizona in July, and I have to decide if I want to go with it in three weeks. Really, I have to decide which I would hate worse between two options. First option: Looking for an apartment in a town a thousand miles or so away, packing everything up, driving there with two freaked-out kitties,…

Um. Fuck gender reveal parties, but I would love to have a pan of lasagna with pink cheese instead of a birthday cake. Hell, blue-green cheese would work, too. I guess what I’m saying here is I want some lasagna now.