Life in P-town

It looks like Erik is soon to be employed at Test America, woo hoo! It is exciting that we will soon have a steady income and be able to do fun stuff in this potentially fun city. We are also looking forward to investing and saving some money as well. Is it sad that I can't remember the last time I had a savings account?

Today we are going to check out a huge park with lots of trails and trees. Kristin is on her way up (about an hour and a half drive) from Eugene. We always have fun when she visits. Hopefully it won't be raining tomorrow and we can ride the Max downtown.

My first week of work was great. I am busy all day so those 8 hours just fly by. There are 6 other lab technicians between the ages of 24-30. It is a very casual work atmosphere with plenty of teasing and dirty jokes. The drive isn't terrible, but it gets a little slow going on the way home. I rode the bus a couple times this week which takes considerably longer but saves money and the stress of traffic.

Check back for pictures of our hiking adventures!

My first blog post (and what a let down).

Just posting to showcase the new feeds I added to the site. Check them out in the sidebar!

Long Weekend

Sarah and two of her friends were in town this weekend, which led to lots of fun. We went out last night and hung out at a cool pool hall downtown with DELICOUS pizza. That really hit the spot. Downtown is full of characters which makes walking down the street an interesting experience. Friday night we went out to dinner at Typhoon (really good thai food) which was followed up by a couple hours in the hot tub at Todd and Ryan's. Needless to say, my sleep schedule is completely messed up and I don't know how I am going to get up for work tomorrow.

Yesterday Erik and I took Captain and Miss Pup to "Pup a Razzi" where we gave them baths. It was so nice because the tubs are big and high up, shampoo and towels are provided, and we didn't have to do any cleanup! The best part was blow-drying the dogs, Captain turned into a fluff ball.

Today Captain and I went to Hyland Forest Park while our lazier counterparts stayed at home. The park is two miles away and is basically a forest with a bunch of well groomed trails through out it. He had such fun sniffing and peeing and running around (well as much running as a dog can do on a leash). I think we pretty much went on all the trails but my sense of direction was just good enough to get us out of the forest at the end of our journey with only a slight idea of where we had been.

And of course the most exciting news of the weekend is my new nephew! Maria gave birth to Christian Todd Chilson yesterday after the doctors induced labor. I guess the little guy was smaller than he should have been so the doctors wanted to get him out to determine if something was wrong. It looks like he is a healthy 5lb 10oz baby! I heard Maria did a great job (big surprise considering she is the bravest person I know) and is doing well.

what a good father's day present

So Very Excited!

We are both very excited because I got another job offer today and made my decision. I am now employed at Specialty Analytical in Tualatin, OR. It is a full service environmental lab so I will be doing analytical chemistry. I am so excited because this is the exact kind of work I wanted, the pay is really good, excellent benefits, and the owner(s) genuinely care about the employees and really have pride in the work done at the lab. Their attitude and work philosophy made me so excited to be part of their group.

I am starting on Monday at 8AM; yikes that's early! Erik has an interview tomorrow and hopefully all will go well and it will be something he wants.

Will Work for Pay

I think our two (going on three) weeks of unemployment are coming to a close. Looking back, I now see that it was a well-deserved break after five years of school. This was the first time in a very long time I haven't had anywhere to go day after day. The last time I didn't have a job all through summer was probably about 6 years ago. The last couple of weeks felt really, really good.

But, now its time to become part of the working class. Erik has an interview at Test America on Thursday and at Circuit City tomorrow. I have an interview at Specialty Analytical on Wednesday and will be hearing back from two other labs (one is clinical the other is environmental) this week. I will also be hearing back from the lab that already offered me a job sometime in the next couple of days. It was fun while it lasted, having money will be even more fun though!

Pictures!

All right I now have all my pictures up. My computer was on the fritz for a couple days there but it looks like all is well now. It has been raining here, which makes our yard a poopy mess. So, we're spending a lot of time inside.

taking a break after loading the truck

the dogs were curious
on our way to Portland!
the gate Kristin and I installed
making himself at home

the sunny kitchen

our nice big bedroom, complete with a window!
living room, complete with Erik
the plant has since moved because Erik was starving it of light
front door of course
downstairs bathroom

my half of the computer room

Erik's half
upstairs bathroom
view from the top of the stairs


Well those are all the pictures for now, more will come. One thing I love about Portland is that there are parks everywhere. Beautiful, big, green parks! We are going to check out a dog park tomorrow that is only 3 miles from our house. Miss Pup and Captain are really enjoying having a park right at the house; every time we go out they act like they've never been there before. There are always other dogs, people, and interesting things to smell.

I am beginning to see how unemployed people become lazy. We sleep in everyday, stay up late, sit around the house a lot, and generally are not very productive. Of course we take the dogs out, do errands, explore the area, and job search, but when we're at home its easy to go into lazy mode. I'll have a burst of motivation and clean something, or take out the garbage, maybe exercise, but that's about it!

Today we went to the tennis court that is just east (I think?) of us in the park. It was really only my second time playing tennis, but we had fun. We scored two rackets (new and matching!) at Goodwill for $7.99 each!

Bringin Home the Bacon (hopefully)

Erik just got called by for a second interview at Columbia Inspections! It has been narrowed down from about 30 people, to ten people, to 2-3 people! We are so excited! Of course at this point if he doesn't make it we'll be even more disappointed, but either way things will work out.

After Erik gets my PC wireless card today I will post those pictures.