The Adventures of Captain Z: February 2017

Started Nov. 15, 2015 completed Feb. 9, 2017

Penguin kept appearing around the apartment as I unpacked and D worked.

The big brown boxes have all been emptied! A mattress has been ordered. The Internet is connected and fast. I think we are moved in! I am very happy that none of the smell of our old place traveled with our belongings. The only thing that didn't make it unpacked in one piece is my crystal juggler which has been glued back together more times than it can remember. Here is a list of things I've learned if I ever start a moving company:

-I would not wrap paper in paper and expect the paper to maintain its shape. (origami flower sadness)
-I would use different colored papers to indicate there is something wrapped in here/this is just filler.
-I would make sure my crew gets a lunch break so by the end of packing we're not hurrying and not caring because we just want to finish.
-I would put computers in boxes, not just wrap them in paper and tape.
-I would copy this crew by asking about items that the customer is concerned about and wants extra care involved.
-I would invite the customer to pack on their own anything they are concerned about us not being able to appropriately pack. (instead of recommending "don't pack anything")

All in all having someone else do all the moving was a big help and worth it since JPL was kind enough to pay for a good chunk of it. We experienced some stress upon unpacking as we discovered items packed in ways that don't make sense to us, but some squished origami flowers and one broken decoration (broken by us upon unpacking) is pretty good. I still have some boxes of things that I packed left to open up and inspect but I'm staying optimistic.

The Grand Tour!

The kitchen from dining room before fully unpacked.

Dining room from kitchen.

Living room from dining room.

Front door and the rest of our nice sized room.

Hall from living room.

Guest room.

Hall bathroom.

Master bedroom.

Our study which is supposed to be the master room.

Master bathroom. I love the mirrors and 2 sinks!

Holiday closet.

Walk-in closet for storage.

The two fortunes from our fist meal here read: The world will soon be ready to receive your talents -and- Your life will be happy and peaceful. I'll take them! The irony of moving in is that the apartment has to get messier before you can reach order. When everything was in boxes stacked neatly along the walls the rooms looked so nice. Now as we begin unpacking our belongings, the paper that protected them, and the boxes are becoming strewn and stacked across all surfaces. On the plus side, we have enough really large boxes to make a pretty epic box fort! Our management discourages filling the dumpster with moving boxes, so until we make it to a recycling center the fort will be possible.

So much paper!

Kitchen finally done and used for cookies.

One of our first surprises, aside from the really dirty floors, is a really large, aggressive, daddy long legs type spider that quickly made its home behind our computer desks. We trapped it in a butter container and were very surprised that instead of running, it held its ground and looked very ready to attack. I am not used to spiders being brave! What happened to: they are more afraid of you than you are of them?! In the coming months we will find two more of these guys also trying to live behind our desks and thankfully my dad was visiting and helped take care of the problem. I didn't care for the one that tried to take over the end table and built a web all over the cubby and in the drawer. Now that spring is nearing again I wonder if we will see them again.

Seriously, what is this monster?

A second and very welcome surprise came in the form of a fitting and thoughtful gift from a dear friend. That explains why she asked for our new address. Thank you very much for this connection to home.

We enjoyed another new adventure this month when D's work had a special event at Six Flags Magic Mountain that allowed event pass holders to continue riding the roller coasters until 1 am! Discounted entry plus extra hours made this RDO a perfect opportunity to get to know another local amusement park. We enjoyed their fake snow as they begin decorating for the holidays, and rode their coasters 21 times! That feels like a record. They have 14 coasters open and are refurbishing another, so we definitely did a few repeats.

This view on our way to Valencia is as close to fall colors as we'll get here.

Coca Cola bear for my sis! The fake snow is cotton batting.

My favorites are Tatsu (don't eat before, you're stuck on your tummy for a while), Superman (WOOSH!), X-2 (but you have to be SQUEEZED into your harness or it will hurt), Full Throttle, Twisted Collosus (you go upside down and only your legs are harnessed in a really smart design, you WILL lose your hat), and Apocalypse (4 times in a row will give you a headache). The Riddler is a fun stand up that is smoother than Iron Wolf was. Green Lantern will make sure males never have kids, and girls won't feel so good either. Goliath is fun and simple, and my eyes try to black out towards the end. Scream is super boring, the big drop is at the perfect angle where you don't feel a thing; going over a bump in a car is more thrilling. Viper is nothing special, and a bit bumpy from what I remember. Batman is the mirror image of the one in Illinois. Gold Rush is fun and simple. Ninja is fun but not worth a long wait.

This ride shoots you straight backwards into a 90 degree lift and then gravity pulls you back in. What a RUSH!

The line for Apocalypse. You feel like you're on a jet, and it sounds like it, too.

An even bigger version of Penguin!

Super successful trip!

To finish up our month before we get into the holidays D's colleague who was his first connection for JPL was kind enough to invite us out to eat at the member's only Athenaeum. He wanted us to see the place so that if we want to join we can, and welcome us to California. The food was very good (I had soup) the deserts were super yummy (but the rum thing was too much for me), and it was very nice getting to spend time away from boxes talking with familiar faces. They generously treated us and we need to return the favor someday. I just don't know where we would take them. To me the Olive Garden is fancy enough, but it is nothing compared with this place.

I woke up one morning to Penguin using my computer.

Oops! Sorry, buddy.

Despite our already very busy first month in state, we had one more big adventure ahead. The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights was celebrating its 20th and final year at Disney World. When I think of Disney magic this event is the first thing to pop into my head. We've been going to Disney World as a family since before this event started. I remember the pure magic of my first time seeing the backstage area of MGM Studios (now Hollywood Studios) lit up with every house decorated and a huge canopy of lights covering the road. I met Minnie at one of the houses while wearing a Minnie sweat shirt and necklace and despite being in 4th grade still couldn't contain my excitement. Over the years the lights went from static or blinking, to dancing to music with snoap (soap snow) falling from the rooftops and magic glasses that turned each bulb into bugling angels, snowflakes, or snowmen. This is a type of magic I had to share with D because words cannot fully describe the feeling. So we booked the trip, left our recently delivered mattress to fluff up while we're gone, and flew to Florida over Thanksgiving for a perfect three day magical escape.