my moral standing is lying down

Some things of note, though:

It's been almost a whole year now since I moved to LA! I can hardly believe it. It feels simultaneously longer and shorter. I've made some new friends! No one super close but it's been great nonetheless.

In September I FINALLY found a job! I'm now a research assistant at a commercial mortgage brokerage. My favorite coworker, Olga, is also a big hockey fan, so how could it possibly get better? Well, I could really be making a bit more-- that's something that I'll have to face soon. I wouldn't mind staying at this job for a considerable time but I'm barely making ends meet right now so something's gotta change.

Anyway, because I got a job, I finally switched my car title, registration, and license over to CA, which made me feel like a super-amazing adult (for like a week or two). (Previously the car was still titled to my parents, so.)

Back at the end of July, we adopted two adorable kitties from a shelter and they have been the sweetest (and the most annoying), but they've been a constant of awesome in my life.


Dublin is the dark tabby; Pekoe is the calico.

Unfortunately, Pekoe was just diagnosed with FIP, a disease that presents in cats under two (Pekoe will be 9 months at the end of January) and is terminal in pretty much all cases. She's hanging in there but she hasn't got much longer. I'm so glad to have had her but I'm so sad I don't have more time with her. She's just the sweetest kitten. <3 It's all extremely bittersweet.

In other happy news, though, NHL LOCKOUT IS OFFICIALLY OVER! It's been sad and boring without hockey. I miss the Rangers so much. I went to a charity game here in LA, which was fun, and then to the (more serious) charity game in Atlantic City when I went back to NYC around Thanksgiving, and then to an ECHL game in Ontario, CA (60 miles away from LA). But it's just not the same. I MISS MY BOYS! These last few weeks I'd even started to watch football! (I'm currently watching the Denver Baltimore game as I type! Ahhhh it's been so intense!)

BTW, it's also been a little over a year since Rich & I started dating and ahaha, it's still going well, considering it's a pretty long-distance thing. I'm really happy about it. =D

Anyway, I don't do New Year's Resolutions, but if I did, this year's resolution would be to get back into posting and reading on LJ! So I hope to be around a lot more than I have been!

Soooooo, let me know what's going on with you guys! Or ask me questions about moving to and living in LA, or whatever else you're curious about! At the very least, go check out the SEX IS NOT THE ENEMY FICATHON! (It's a 500-word minimum, so you KNOW you have time to contribute!) Sign-ups are still open, and prompts will be assigned on Wednesday!

So. You may have heard by now: I'm moving to Los Angeles!

...I'm used to having a strong reaction to respond to at right about this point in the conversation so I now find myself at somewhat of a loss!

WHY?, you may have asked. Well, I realized back in July, when I experienced a huge upheaval in my life, that I kind of want a change -- a big one -- and that change of jobs wasn't really going to cut it. I want to not see the same thing I see every day, the same subway, the same places to hang out, etc., etc. I've never ever before in my life felt the need to leave NYC because I love it way way more than I should, but I guess I reached that point. I can't imagine actually leaving NYC for good, though, so I'll likely be back in a few years.

But I totally need this right now.

I contacted likeaglass who I knew was sort of vaguely planning to move to LA and asked her whether she was still going and if she'd like a roommate. Aaaaaand here we are, along with a third fangirl friend, Eli, planning a February 1st move-in.

So guess what that means? Cross-country road tripppppp! What a huge fucking opportunity! Similar to how I've wanted to go to Indonesia but never really wanted to use my vacation days to do so, I've wanted to do a cross-country road trip. NOW IS MY CHANCE! I'll be leaving probably between January 22-25; my parents have bought a new car (2009 Toyota Rav4, which is awesome and I'm so jealous I won't be able to drive it around much), which they've been thinking about doing for a while anyway, and will be giving me their 2005 Toyota Camry.

One of my really close friends from work, Maura, is taking the trip with me because she loves road trips and driving (and it'll be a big help to have another driver at hand)! We've planned to sort of go from NYC >> New Orleans >> Austin >> LA, so if anyone at/near any of those places -- or anywhere along the way -- wants to meet up, just let me know! I'd love to combine this with fangirl lunch-dates across the country! And, OMG if any of you actually live in/near LA, I'd love to meet up with you and chat and get some tips on the ins and outs and things to know about LA!

I still haven't read my flist for a good 8 weeks now, and I-- alsjdflasjlfs what is my freaking block on it? =/

In the meantime, if I haven't seen you since I got back from Indonesia, WE HAVE TO HANG OUT BEFORE I LEAVE! I will miss all of you guys SO SO SO MUCH, you don't even know! <3333