Adulting with Emma

My name is Emma and I've just moved into my first apartment. Welcome to the adventures of a 20 something learning how to thrive as an adult!

[emmaadults]

6 July 2015

WHAT AN EXCITING DAY!

This morning I woke up and got ready for an interview with Broadway Bound, a children’s theatre not too far from our apartment. I got there early and interviewed with the owner/founder/director of the theatre. He loved my cover letter and could tell how much theatre meant to me by it. We spoke at length and the plan was to hire me on in the fall for either Annie or Annie Jr. Some time into the discussion he had a flash of brilliance and said I might be able to work as a stage manager on their summer program which is a 5 week commitment with older kids doing Rent! Blows my mind in all the best ways that these kids are doing such a powerful and intense musical in that short amount of time! 

So we spoke to the assistant director (I think) who was supposed to be doing the stage managing for this production and she was wholeheartedly on board for the idea. She asked when I could start and I said “tonight”. She seemed a little surprised but then exclaimed that they started tonight and told me to come early to get set up.

We finished up the meeting and I immediately called my mom, crying with excitement. Although it only pays a small stipend and I will have to get a day job, I am working as a stage manager and technically getting paid for it! I am over the moon!

I went home to tell Cydnee, then went and got some groceries, made lunch and headed out for my first night of rehearsal. It was all a bit crazy, as first nights usually are. I had all the parents come to me with questions because I seem to always be the most approachable person. Luckily I already knew who to redirect questions to so it went fairly smoothly. I worked on paperwork and learning the ropes for the first half and got to sit in on the last half of the rehearsal. It is absolutely incredible to me just how talented these young men and women are! Several of them aren’t even in high school yet and they know so much more about theatre and history and singing than I do. That’s one of the coolest parts about working in theatre, learning knew things all the time and meeting the most talented and brilliant people. 

I am so so so grateful to everyone who has helped me get here. To everyone who has helped me emotionally, financially, and to everyone who has prayed and sent good wishes. I know I am successful because of the love and support that has made me the strong and capable young woman I am. I love you all.

[emmaadults]

4 July 2015

‘Murica

Cydnee, her parents and I drove to Gas Works park and set up camp with several blankets around 11 and hung out all day. We read, walked around, and enjoyed the music and festivities. We played a game of cards against humanity and ate our picnic lunch and dinner. The fireworks were shot off a barge in the water just in front of us. At first there was no music and I couldn’t figure out why Seattle’s fireworks seemed less impressive than Reno’s. Apparently this was a technical error and once the music began playing the crowd really got excited. The show was so spectacular! The fireworks were so varied and SO BIG! The show lasted for at least 20 minutes!

After the show we headed with the crowd to the car and were able to get out of the throngs of people relatively easily. We passed out as soon as we got home.

It was a good day.

[emmaadults]

3 July 2015

What a pleasant day.

I woke up to Cydnee making bacon and waffles for breakfast; what a treat! 

Our plan for the day was to go to a beach, so Cydnee picked out this cute trip to Port Townsend so we could explore some shops and enjoy a day by the water. I learned today that you should be sure of your travel plans before you go and check traffic reports. After a stressful drive up with unreliable navigation we found out there was a two hour wait for the (expensive) ferry we were supposed to take so I elected to turn the car around and give up on going there on a holiday weekend. Both grumpy from the drive and outcome we sat in the car. Getting to know someone intimately and see how they react to all types of situations is a trip. There is so much variance in humanity. I found a different beach that didn’t require a ferry and we drove down, found ‘front row’ parking and enjoy a few scorching hours on the seaweed covered Alki beach. It turned out to be a really nice afternoon and we had a great conversation on the beach about Disneyland and the delicacy of handling situations of diverse backgrounds and wage gaps. 

We headed home to measure our window so we could drive to Home Depot and pick up a portable air conditioner. I decided to call ahead because I hate driving and didn’t want to waste gas. Lucky I did because they are completely sold out of air conditioners and the model I wanted is only sold online anyway. I did ask about getting plexiglass cut to size for our window when we get the unit and the person on the phone was very helpful. Should be here next week.

To escape the heat we went to the mall and Cydnee got some video games and some food. The heat is getting to all of us, especially Piper and Zelda. I found Piper laying out like a pancake in their litter box and on the brick in the cage in front of the fan trying to get cool. Hopefully the girls get better at pea fishing so they can cool down that way. We want to see about getting some marble or granite slabs at Home Depot for the rats and Zelda because they stay cooler that other surfaces. We’ll see how much it would cost when we pick up the air conditioner.

Tip of the day: Plan/call ahead for information.

Apartment temp: 88

[emmaadults]

2 July 2015

A truly exciting day indeed!

Woke up around ten as usual and set to work getting ready for the day with Cydnee so we could go sign the lease for the apartment WHEN SUDDENLY I got a call from a 206 number over my cinnamon life. Eagerly I answered and was greeted to the sweet sound of an interview offer! After completing my application at midnight last night before bed I was shocked to be hearing from Ross of all places. We set up a meeting for 1 and I continued getting ready. Cydnee and I signed our lease and I got my keys and my parking permit. I have a cool key that opens the door to the buildings and also opens the garage! A nice alternative to having two giant key fobs. 

Cydnee left for work and I clipped and painted my nails quickly before setting off to the interview. Luckily Ross is less than a five minute walk across the street from our apartment (I can officially say “our” apartment which is exciting). The interview was more intimidating than I expected, but they seemed to like me and called me to follow up as I walked into the apartment afterward to let me know they were processing my background check before setting up my second interview (with the interviewer’s boss). I guess this is either to give me time to buy a long sleeve shirt, take out my piercing, and dye my hair...or because Nevada background checks take a lot longer than other states’? Who knows. Also, interesting note, everyone always says their background checks are more intense and more thorough than anyone else’s...so...who’s right? I’ve had so many already I’ve probably been probed to my core. Maybe someday I’ll know how that whole process works.

Not long after I get off the phone with Ross I receive an email asking me to interview with Broadway Bound! It’s a children’s theatre not far from here and I would be lying if I said I wasn’t the biggest ball of nervous excitement ever. I have no idea how it will go but I would give anything to start working in theatre again! PLEASE CROSS YOUR FINGERS/PRAY/SEND GOOD VIBES THAT THE INTERVIEW GOES WELL! I have to wait until Monday for that interview. 

I cleaned the apartment (not entirely, but I got all the dishes done, made some more popsicles, and cleaned up some clutter) before Cydnee got home. We hung out, played some games, complained about the heat and attempted to take a cold bath while eating spaghetti. Lesson of the day is to not put a bath bomb in a cool bath, it will get all clumpy and gross on the surface of the water. Instead we ate spaghetti and watched the beginning of Kiki’s Delivery Service before getting too tired and getting ready for bed. 

Something I continue to learn in life (cliche warning) is to never stop appreciating the little things, and today was a great example of that for me here in this new apartment. Sometimes an interview is all you need to soar your spirit; and sometimes bliss is watching a cat play with a piece of dry spaghetti you dropped; and maybe love is a cold bath neither of you wants to get in and a shared bowl of spaghetti.

[emmaadults]

28 June-1 July 2015

Dear friends I am sorry for my absence. I fell ill in the middle of the pride celebrations on Sunday and have been mostly sleeping these last four days.

FORTUNATELY, though I am not able to eat comfortably yet, I AM GETTING BETTER, so now I can recount for you the tales of my adventures!

Sunday was a celebration several months in the planning. A big part of moving up here when I did was to be here in time for the Pride parade. Sunday morning we got up (we being my girlfriend Cydnee and her friend Kellen) and got ready. After cleaning, dressing and eating we caught a very full bus of normal commuters and excited (and friendly) pride-goers. There was an older man on the bus who had a shirt that said something to the effect of “I don’t need Google my husband is a computer genius”. I told him I liked his shirt and he said it was a joke because his husband was not tech savvy. I think it said he’d gotten it in Mexico. 

We went first thing to Capitol Hill to get Cydnee’s wallet back. The people at the great clips were so sweet. Kellen stayed behind to meet up with friends so we lost them for the remainder of the parade. Once back in downtown Cydnee and I walked almost the full length of the parade in search of another of Cydnee’s friends, Becky. Finally we found Becky and had to run across the parade to get the the right side. (I told a small child we passed we were chickens, the poor child was too young to understand my terrible humor) We watched the parade for a while. 

It was really exciting and I was thrilled my first pride parade was such a spectacular one. There were rainbow mini coopers (told my dad that should be his next car), and roller derby girls, and nude bikers and this INCREDIBLE collection of balloon sculptures a la Alice in Wonderland. There was a massive tea pot made up of normal balloons that even had the tea mouse inside ALSO MADE OF BALLOONS that moved independently and popped up out of it as it moved along and a giant Cheshire cat on top of a van. Around that time I started feeling tired/week and had a bit of an upset stomach. I figured I was hungry and thirsty so I popped into a little restaurant behind us and got a little meat pie and lots of ice water. They left a tall glass bottle on the table and I had to ask if there was a charge because it was so European I figured there was a fee for drinking the table water. There was not and the waitress looked concerned even after I explained. 

The crowd started dying down after that and we needed to get home for the party so we paid and walked all the way back to the bus stop. The same man in the google shirt we had gone into town with was on our bus back out which was cool. A few people came to the party and Cydnee’s parents were wonderful and grilled. I was feeling so tired I was an unfortunately lame host. I did get to talk to Joellen for a while which was nice. After a few hours we packed everything back up and went upstairs to play cards against humanity. That’s when I started feeling really ill. Everyone left not too much later and Cydnee and I crawled into bed after an exhausting weekend. Unfortunately pain kept me awake until I was sick and then I was between the couch and the bathroom all night and hardly got any sleep. 

Monday was a day to just rest and recover. I spent the whole day napping, watching netflix and going to the restroom. Not much to report.

Tuesday was not much different. Still recovering.

Today I went with Cydnee to the doctor and then took her to work. I had grand plans for the day but ended up sleeping for most of it. I guess my body still needs to heal itself. I still get pain in my tummy when I eat but otherwise am doing better. Going to keep eating rice for now. I played a little bit of Assassin’s creed, wrote this post, worked on the car title stuff so I can go to the DMV with my parents over face time and am working on job applications. I’m dying to read Howl’s Moving Castle, but need to finish The  Book Thief first. (The Book Thief is REALLY good by the way). 

[emmaadults]

27 June 2015

Today was a whirlwind!

We tried to wake up early to go sign the lease and ended up sleeping in until our regular time anyway. Despite having told the guy in charge of our lease that we would be there sometime in the late morning, when we arrived around 10 he was not there and no one knew where our paperwork was. They said they would call us back and they never did…so we’ll try again tomorrow morning.

After that we had breakfast and headed off to celebrate pride (just some celebratory stuff, not the actual parade and everything) with the girlfriend’s parents. We sunscreened liberally (and gayly?) and walked along Broadway street getting free stuff and pointing out each adorable dog (Mom: there was a shaved ausie that looked like Shadow) until it was too painful to walk anymore. 

Then we hiked all the way back to the start and went to QFC to pick up some baguettes and soft cheese and a container of blueberries. Victoriously packed with our goodies we hopped another bus down to the lake! On the way to the lake my girlfriend noticed a stranger had requested to friend her on facebook. We speculated over how she could have known her name, but brushed it off.

The lake was good. Nothing like Lake Tahoe. There were some seaweed dragons out for my ankles, but the water was cool and refreshing, a needed break from the apartment. I can’t seem to be able to drink water fast enough to maintain my new sweating habits. When it was time to pack up around 6 we took inventory of our things as we put stuff back in the backpacks. It was at this time my girlfriend’s wallet was found to be LOST OR STOLEN!? *dun dun duuuun*. We searched every bag twice and brainstormed possibilities. She had had it at QFC, and had emptied her pockets before swimming, and the bags had never been left alone because we all took turns swimming in pairs of two. We caught the bus back to QFC and asked everyone and left her number at the desk in case it was found. Unfortunately there was no luck there. I tried to call the transit center but they are closed until Monday. Sadly we headed home, tired and upset about the wallet. As we pulled into the bus stop outside our apartment it struck me. “What did you do about that person who tried to friend you? Did you block them?” It clicked. She added them straight away and found a message from 3:34pm asking if she had lost her wallet! We’ll pick it up from a person working at a hair salon on our way to pride tomorrow!

Kellen, a friend, came over and we helped cut their hair and had burgers before collapsing into bed.

Todays tip: ALWAYS wear sunscreen and remember to REAPLY!

Apartment temp: 85

Soundtrack: Ambient crowd noise, the sound of my own sweat, “Happy Pride”

Workout: Not technically? But we walked a ton and I carried a watermelon around for a while so I’m going to count it.

[emmaadults]

26 June 2015

-edit: pictures to come-

I’m thinking about this as the format for my posts; let me know what you think.

So today was a rough start, I thought I would never wake up, and when I did I wished I hadn’t because even this morning the apartment was a sweltering 82 and climbing. As I’m writing this (with both tiny windows open as wide as they go, both fans on full blast and the door to the hallway propped open) the apartment has stayed at a blistering 85 all day. I moved north to avoid the heat, but here I am sweating without even having to move.

I joked the other day to my girlfriend that I should start working out for no other reason than that the exercise facilities are air conditioned. She agreed that she wanted to start working out so we went down for an hour. Yesterday, unfortunately, she did not want to work out and instead we ended up eating burger king for dinner thanks to an add we got in the mail and our weak wills. HOWEVER! I will work out 5 days a week even if it’s only for a little bit. To you, my dear blog and friends who read it, I promise this. Feel free to (read: please) hold me accountable to this!

Anyway, I started my day slowly, hanging out watching Cydnee play Last Of Us until she had to go to work, then making breakfast and vegging in front of youtube and netflix for an hour or two. I had eggs with cheese and un-toasted toast (read: bread...because we don’t have a toaster). I submitted a few more job applications to Wells Fargo too. I then got the resolve to go to the store (because it’s air conditioned, unlike our apartment, and I needed ingredients). I got a few ingredients for banana bread and some fresh fruit for popsicles before reluctantly heading back out into the heat. Halfway home I realized I still needed a strainer to make the popsicles so I dropped the food at home and went to Target since I have a gift card. The only strainer they had was giant and expensive ($18, seriously!), but they had cheap, stackable ice cube trays and soda on sale so I decided I’d add kool-aid ice cubes with sprite to the list of treats to make. I then stopped at Ross and got a pack of 3 different sized strainers for $7 and went home to start working my magic. (Ross is hiring btw so I’ll be applying there too!)

Mammy’s banana bread

Raspberry real fruit popsicles

You could make these bad boys with pretty much any fruit you want, I just used raspberries because the girlfriend and I could agree on them. All you do is clean the fruit and dump it in a blender or processor (I used my magic bullet with the quad blade and large pitcher attachment) and get going. All you need is your fruit (I used 2 6oz cartons of raspberries), add sugar (I changed the original recipe to make a smaller batch so I used about 2/3 cup), and add fresh lemon juice (I squeezed half a medium sized lemon which was about 1.5 tsp) and some water (3/4-1 cup depending on how much fruit you use) This recipe is really forgiving so don’t be afraid. Blend all that shit up together real good and then comes the fun part. Once you have your frothy fruit concoction you get out your fancy new (or old) strainer and a cup/bowl/magic bullet accessory container, etc. Pour some of your juice into the strainer over your bowl and use a spoon/spatula/clean hands to squish the juice through the strainer. About halfway through I had to press the solids really well then throw out the solids in the strainer because there were too many seeds and it was getting hard to do. Once you’re all done with that pour (or spoon) your juice into your popsicle molds or dixie cups (whatever you have), stick the sticks in and pop them gently into the freezer. Bam! The hard part is the waiting.

Kool-Aid Ice Cubes

Super easy, make a pitcher of kool-aid according to the instructions then spoon or carefully pour (it will stain everything, so be careful) the mix into ice cube trays. Once they’re frozen you can add them to sprite or [insert other light soda brand here] and when the ice cubes melt (and in this god foresaken apartment they will almost immediately) you have a tasty, colorful drink! If you have more than one pitcher or a million ice cube trays and an empty freezer you can make different flavors to mix and match!

Todays tips: Always wash new cooking utensils before using them (ie icecube trays and strainers), and when freezing bananas, remove the peel and wrap them in cling wrap. Just trust me, you don’t want to peel a frozen banana.

Apartment temp: 85

Work out challenge: approx 1 hour. I got interrupted about 15 minutes in by a security guy that gave me the lead for a job, then watched the last half hour of criminal minds after that. I should always go in at midnight on Fridays, no people and an hour of criminal minds on the treadmills.

Soundtrack: Pony-Ginuwine, No Diggity-Blackstreet, No Scrubs-TLC

Adulting rating: Win

[emmaadults]

I wanted to give just a little bit of background for this blog. I just moved out of my parent’s house after graduating university and am now living roughly three states away in a 448 sq ft studio apartment with my girlfriend, her cat, and my two rats.

This blog is a place to share knowledge, share recipes, and laugh and learn as I apply for jobs, work on my cooking skills, maintain my car, and try to assimilate to life in a new big city! There are many blogs here and elsewhere that have wealths of knowledge and advice that I may refer to, but for anyone who has questions or wants to talk about the things I post feel free to ask me.

My goal with this blog is to upload what I’ve done for the day as a way to document my life, keep myself accountable to different challenges I set for myself, keep in touch with family and friends, and have fun watching my growth.

Welcome friends to my new blog!