Holy Slumlord, Batman!

I am soooo tired and soooo sore. I slept like ass. Everyone else in the house is probably worse off, since they did all their shit plus helping with mine. But anyway, I am almost all moved now.

I'm back at my apartment for awhile because there is internet and other useful things here that are not at my house yet. Also, Chris' parents are not at my apartment. Not that they are awful or anything, it's just a little awkward being around someone else's parents.

I need to put my computer back together and move it. I have some other useful items to move today, too. Like my lamp and alarm clock. Some more kitchen crap. My desk chair. More books. Ummm... a first aid kit and a jewelry box. Yeah. There is more, but it's too heavy for me to move by myself, and I am trying to be self-sufficient today.

Yesterday I wasn't self-sufficient at all, but a lot of stuff got done.

Chris' parents had a U-Haul until noon Saturday. They said they would help me move if they got all of Chris' stuff out in good time, but they seemed doubtful.

By 10:30, I was worried and about to give up hope they'd call.

By 11:00, I was waking Kevin up, hoping he would have a better idea. He thought we could fit almost everything in one of the Civics somehow. Strap the mattresses to the roof, that sort of thing. It's only 0.8 miles, it could work.

While I was on the phone, panicking, Chris called. I maneuvered my phone's stupid call waiting feature to find out they would be outside in a few, ready to help. Chris and his dad are big, strong guys. They moved my big stuff into the U-Haul and when we got to the house, Lauren and Margaret joined to help remove it. They are all awesome for that.

Kevin showed up at the house a few minutes after that. We moved some stuff around, like mattresses into my room and the futon into the basement, made another couple runs to the apartment for stuff, and went to Ikea.

I'm kind of appalled that I wanted to go to Ikea. I'm sure it's about damn time I embraced my inevitable yuppiedom, but still. At least I pretty much knew exactly what I wanted there. I got two crazy, wall-mountable, plastic, cris-crossing CD racks, two small cloth shelf clothes organizers (and one drawer), a red rag rug for $5, and table legs and a table top.

I needed a new desk. This one is a shitty, broken, corner thing that won't work well in my new room. Oh, and I hate it. I wanted a simple desk that was deep and long but only about tall enough for my plastic three-drawer filing cabinet to fit underneath. I was looking at the basic Jerker model desk, but table legs plus a table top were only $40, while a proper desk assembly kit was $69. I win. Kevin built it for me, though, because I suck with screwdrivers into non-pre-drilled "wood."

Now, my room is pretty much put together. I need to hang some things on the walls, shelve CDs, put together the computer, and get rid of Ikea packaging, but it's otherwise all good. It's a small room, but I planned to use the space effectively. I think I have succeeded. It's very pleasing. About the only thing that might make it better is real curtains instead of flat sheets. One window has a black jersey knit sheet (set against a red wall), while the other has a pink striped sheet with deep greens and reds and some blues in a floral pattern at the bottom (white wall). It's kind of a weird clash.

I also bought some plants at the farmer's market yesterday. No, not carnivorous ones. For those I need to make a special trip to Fremont. I got several starter plants: rosemary, peppermint, serrano chiles, jalapeno, sweet red peppers, and bush girl tomatoes. I potted them this morning and they're living on the front porch, along with the tiny basil sproutlings my mom brought.

Apparently, the shower leaks, though. Charming.

Kevin and I ended up eating at the Spice Rack last night. No one else was there, and we were seated about a half hour before closing. We got channa masala and something else with similar sauce and flavorings, but instead of garbanzo beans it was roasted eggplant. HOLY LORD, was that eggplant dish heaven. I also tried lassi for the first time. It was good, but it would be better if I'd ordered really spicy foods. Then we rented Down by Law at Scarecrow. It was a good movie. Jim Jarmusch makes such beautiful and strange films, Tom Waits is awesome, and Roberto Benigni is crazy.

Oh, did I mention my mom bought a house in Seaside, Ore.? Well, she did. So I've told my boss I require three-day weekends all summer so I might make extensive use of the place. Fuck yeah.

I should get packing again.