The Waiting Game

Today I ran some errands, and brought mom my library copy of One of Our Thursdays is Missing by Jasper Fforde. While I was there, I borrowed her Internet connection and got out five applications to new companies. Meanwhile, I'm waiting on feedback from the two companies that I interviewed with recently. Both have said they'll get back to me by the end of the week. So I'm hopeful. Also by the end of the week, I should have some news on the Internet connection through Comcast by the end of the week as well.

Interviewing and Letting Off Steam

This week I had two interviews. One was for an environmental company in downtown Oakland. They have work over most of the state, and I go back on Monday to take a writing test. I'll have an hour to condense some facts into a few paragraphs. Then Friday I had an interview and lunch with the principal of an environmental company in Berkeley. they're a very small company with only 3 full time employees. It would be doing all tasks from marketing to office work to field work. Then Saturday Jennifer and I joined the Sorrells for the San Francisco Body Art Expo at the Cow Palace. Jennifer got another tattoo, making her original butterfly into the equivalent of a shoulder angel, but on her front, by adding a "devil" butterfly. She's doing very well, but the fun part was closing down the Expo. Lisa got another big tattoo on her leg. Last year she got the face of Marilyn Monroe, and her artist finished it up 10 minutes before they began turning the lights off. Last night, we were the last booth running while hers was finished up. But it will look wonderful when she'd all healed up.

Unpacked

Yesterday, Jennifer and I opened and unpacked our last moving box. The last room was the office, and we started the day with seven boxes to go.

Mostly it was Jennifer's stuff, but I had random items in her boxes as well. But we got all of them opened and unpacked. I've got several pieces to unwrap and place in the shelves, and our two cabinets need to be hung on the wall, but the boxes are done.

Then we did some picture placement. The fun part is that the ceilings are 9-feet tall instead of the normal 8-feet, and so we can put pictures on top of the bookcases and lean them against the wall instead of nailing them up.

This morning, we hung a few small pictures, and we figure in a couple days we'll start moving the big pictures around the house and decide where we want to hang the rest of them. It's really looking nice, and we feel so relieved to have that stage done.

Summarizing

Lots has happened since my lat post.

Last Saturday, Jennifer and I had to give Pom up to someone else so that she could have a better life. She was acting out from anger, and was pretty miserable being stuck inside. We are hoping that she will be happy in her new home. We are still pretty sad, but it is getting better.

Yesterday I got word from both Bank of the West and the recruiter from Haley & Aldrich. Both companies ended up going with someone else for the positions. However, this morning, I got an interview for next week for Ninyo & Moore in Oakland.

Comcast is still dragging their feet, but are working with the property manager for their survey. Eleven out of 14 of the units want Comcast in some form or another, so we're hopeful for a speedy resolution.

Unpacking progresses, and we're down to the office, and then getting things on shelves to decorate them. And of course hanging pictures.

Disconnected

And I'm still without internet at the new place.

I called Monday, and found out that the whole "surveying the location for the Comcast database and pulling the cable to the electrical room' had been setup on the commercial side instead of the residential side. And for some stupid reason is in as San Francisco.

So after talking to this guy, it's supposed to be on its way to be being straightened out.

Right?

Well, I called him today as a follow-up, and had to leave a message. I then decided I would call through the regular Comcast line, and see what I could find out.

Still nothing. So i worked with them on their side for finding out what to do, and I am supposed to get a call within the next 24 to 48 hours to learn the results of their survey to determine if they service this part of the street yet. I've told them that the electrical room is ready, and just needs the cable pulled. I've seen the empty conduit. But they still have to come out and do this.

The thing I like is that they keep stressing that there will be no cost to me for them doing this.

Really? Well, I'm glad as I don't even have an account with them yet because I can't get anything setup since they still have the building in as one unit instead of the 14 separate units it had been divided into.

So by noon on Friday i should have received a call telling me what they can do for me. Believe me, I'll have my finger on the dial button if I don't hear from them by 12:15.

One good thing is that over the phone, they can't do better for the first 6 months than $40 per month, while online (if I could get past the point where it checks for your address being in the database) I can get the same rate (15 Mbps downstream) for $30 per month. They've put all that in their database now, so I'll be able to dicker with them when they finally decide how they can help me.

Half the fun of this is getting three or more sides of one company to at least claim they are working to help you. I would love it if there were three different groups coming out to pull the cable. It might get done sooner.

Moved

Last weekend, Jennifer and I began out move from Pacheco to Emeryville.

We had begun the process the week before I was laid off, and Jennifer put in our 30-day notice just a couple hours before I was laid off.

We had money set aside for moving expenses, so that was good. We hired movers, and halfway through the day, Jennifer fired them because they were just dragging. Jennifer's phrase of the day was "slower than molasses in winter."

For those that remember from ten years ago, we had water leakage in the place in Pacheco. It got fixed and then a second leak occurs. We had thought that was all fixed. We had three bookshelves on the wall, and when they were moved we discovered that there had been more leakage. Fortunately the bookcases are only stained on their backs, so that's good.

My favorite phrase is: we are well shut of that place.

Now we get to learn all about our new neighborhood, and sign up with the Oakland Public Library.