Much Accomplished

Everything that’s gone on since the last time I posted has been pretty much a blur. When moving, even when you think everything is done, it really isn’t.

We thought we were settled and had everything ready to let us just kick back and relax, but that proved to be far from the truth. Monday morning, Kara had an interview with the company she’s wanted to work for her whole life; her dream job, in other words. She felt the interview went very well, and based on the events leading up to it, I never had a doubt in my mind that they would select her. It wasn’t until Thursday night that she heard back from them, when on our way to dinner, she got a call back congratulating her on the new position.

I was, and still am, so proud of her!

The rest of the week was spent finishing up around the apartment, Kara getting a new drivers license/insurance, and running more errands. We spent a lot of time exploring the area, looking in pet stores (I’ve got her convinced to get a Corgi!) and checking out home stores. We’ve managed to find a whole bunch of stuff we want at Best Buy, Bed, Bath & Beyond, and IKEA.

Our “free” time during the week was spent checking out and enjoying the amenities of our apartment complex. One particularly fun night, we battled it out playing billiards (I won 2-0) and then moved on to ping pong (where I, also, won 2-0). The thought crossed my mind to let her win, but she told me not to, so my competitive side gladly respected her wishes.

Thursday night my parents got in town, and it was on the way to a new Mexican restaurant (to us) called Garibaldi to meet them and my grandparents when Kara got the call about her new job. The news came at the perfect time, as it afforded us a chance to tell everyone at the same time. Dinner was good, reminded me of Los Compadres in Tallahassee, and afterward the 6 of us headed to the Altamonte Mall for a bit.

Kara and I came home, watched Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs (eh….) and passed out.

The following day, Friday, my parents met us at our apartment. After a couple hours of relaxing, we headed off to SeaWorld! The day really couldn’t have gone any better, either. The crowds were light, we saw everything we wanted to, pet a couple dolphins, got to see another hiccup in the Believe show and…

Got my dad on Manta!

He was apprehensive about it, and vocalized his decision on the lifthill by asking, “Why am I doing this!?!” but in the end, he loved it. I was proud of him, and we all had a had blast.

After the park closed, we had a nice dinner at TGIFridays, and had planned to come back to the complex and play ping pong but everyone was exhausted. Instead, my parents headed back to their hotel and we rented Saw IV from the community RedBox and fell asleep.

Definitely a good week, and with my parents here two more days, it should be a great weekend!

Our First Weekend in Florida

After finally getting everything unloaded, and mostly unpacked, Saturday figured to be a good, fun, relaxing day. For the most part it turned out that way.

Before we could get to the relaxing part, there were a few things that needed to get taken care of. First thing in the morning, we brought all of the boxes to the truck, broke them down, and then dropped them off at Publix. Afterward, we headed to this shady Rent-A-Car place to drop off the truck, and had to deal with a Mexican on a power trip for 30min.

Wendy’s was on the plate for lunch, and after enjoying lunch in the presence of a donkey, we were off to SeaWorld to show her dad around for the first time.

We got to the park around 2pm, just in time to scuttle over to Shamu Stadium to catch Believe, however, this performance was definitely a unique experience. I love killer whales, they’re my favorite animal, but the Believe show to me is pretty corny. Today, though, the whales didn’t feel like performing, and instead gave us a 25min glimpse into what I’ll call it, “Whale Defiance.”. All 8 of the Shamus spent their time in the main tank floating around, interacting with guests, spitting water at the trains and just being so nonchalant, that it was quite obvious they just didn’t feel like doing anything.

Seeing this live, it really was 100 times better than the actual show. Once the trainers showed them they wouldn’t get their fish, an abbreviated version of the show commenced that was a huge downgrade from the anarchy that we had just witnessed.

The rest of the day was spent frantically checking out as many exhibits we could. In a 2hr time frame, we managed to see Shark Encounter, Penguin Experience, the alligators, manatees, underwater dolphin viewing, pet some stingrays, checked out Manta’s non-riding queue AND talked her dad onto a front row ride on Manta. It was a rushed day, but it was still relaxing, and everyone had a good time.

We left the park around 5:30 and headed to Winter Garden to meet my grandparents at Chili’s where we spent about 2hr. The place was loud and packed, but the food was good, and it afforded us enough time four her dad to get to know some of my family.

Sunday morning, Kara dropped her dad off at the Sanford airport, and we finally got a day to ourselves. This day ended up being our One Year Anniversary, and we spent it lounging around and being lazy for most of the day. For dinner, we had an amazing meal at Outback Steakhouse, and topped the night off with Coldstone, while walking around and enjoying Uptown Altamonte at Crane’s Roost. It was so nice to show her a nice, outdoor, pretty place of Florida, and she seemed to genuinely appreciate it.

Yesterday was a day of errands and playing tour guide. The day began with Kara interviewing for her dream job, and to both of our pleasure, she seemed to do great! Once she got home, we headed to Wachovia and the post office for errands, and then CiCi’s for lunch. It was Senior day there, and let me tell ya…Old people sure seem to love their CiCis!

After lunch, we made the long drive out to Oviedo where I showed her around UCF, where she wants to go for grad school, and brought her to my old stomping grounds. We took a quick jaunt through the Oviedo Marketplace to stretch our legs, and then I brought her through my old neighborhood.

After that we headed to my elementary school, all through Tuscawilla, and finally to my middle school. She seemed to really appreciate it, and I’m glad I finally got to show her where I came from.

Overall, our first weekend in Florida was a resounding success, and hopefully, we’ll get to experience many more.

Dragging Feet

Night time has now fallen on our third night, and second day, in Orlando. These past 36 hours have been a whirlwind, and I’m flat out exhausted.

Yesterday morning, Kara and I made a quick trip to SeaWorld where we got our picture taken with Shamu, checked out the non-rider queue at Manta, and got two consecutive rides on it. All-in-all, we spent about 25min in the park before heading back to our new home and meeting her dad there. It was a nice, relaxing trip before our maelstrom of unloading began.

As I mentioned before, we had a 22ft Penske truck loaded up with stuff, and we were moving into the 3rd floor of our building. Each trek would require us to travel 38 steps up, and 38 steps down. To call the process exhausting would be a gross understatement.

Our first day of moving in, we unloaded about 3/4 of the truck over the course of about 6hr. There was a nice, brisk breeze blowing through the complex, which created a very nice windtunnel effect and helped cool us down a bit. The transition of moving stuff out in cloudy, 20-degree weather and unloading in sunny, 75-degree weather was drastic. That breeze definitely helped keep us rather cool, however.

By the time we called it a night, we had our living room setup and ready to go, and the bedroom was fairly organized as well. We managed to clear out most of the boxes that were brought in so that made the apartment appear a lot clearer than I probably actually was. The night was concluded with watching the Florida basketball game, and a bowl of Fudge Ripple ice cream by all.

Today, we awoke around 10 and almost immediately began unloading the rest of the truck. Thanks to the amount of work we got taken care of on Thursday, the final unloading process today only took about 45min. Fortunately, we finished when we did, otherwise I wholly believe I would’ve collapsed from a heart attack if one more item had to be lugged up those stairs from Hell.

After (separate) showers, we all headed off to run errands and pick up a few things. The first stop was IKEA where we picked up a shower squiggie and bed risers. Personally, I preferred the bed lower to the ground but because of a lack of storage space, we needed the extra room underneath to store miscellaneous stuff.

We then headed to Home Depot and picked up two ceiling fan light kits, and a lamp bulb, then it was off for Round Two of Zaxby’s. I ended up getting my normal, go-to Plate, and Kara and her dad both enjoyed chicken caesar salads.

On returning to the apartment, they took a couple hours at the pool while I enjoyed some time with my neglected Xbox. We re-connected over Modern Warfare 2 and then I headed out to catch up with my friend Todd. Turkey sandwiches were had for dinner when I returned, and the rest of our night has been spent installing the lights, unpacking more, and now unwinding.

Its been a long, draining, exhausting, unrelenting, and exciting two days. Hopefully the car whose alarm seems to go off every 5min stops so we can get some sleep tonight, otherwise they’ll be getting a visit from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office tomorrow morning.

Back In Orlando!

Ahhhh, it feels amazing to be back in Florida!

I had planned on writing in this every night on the way down, but Tuesday night we didn’t arrive in Nashville until around 1:30am and had to be up again at 5:00am so I just crashed on the pull out bed.

Tuesday’s travel day was pretty exhausting. Unlike Monday, where time seemed to fly by, Tuesday seemed to drag on and on. I left Kara’s grandpa’s farm around 1:30pm after we unloaded some stuff she was storing there, and taking a brief tour of the place. It was really the first time I’ve ever been around an establishment like that, and the experience was eye opening and very cool. Her dad showed me around the different barns, the silo, where the cows where milked and where the chickens had been kept. The expansive fields were pointed out to me as well, as if I wouldve missed them otherwise.

With Kara needing to stick with her dad today, due to not knowing where we would be stopping, I hit the road before them so I’d have time to visit my cousin Brett in Louisville. As I already mentioned, the drive through Illinois, Indiana and finally into Kentucky was extremely uneventful, and even moreso…boring.

Crossing the bridge into Louisville, and subsequently Kentucky, right after dusk was an amazing view of the city. Unfortunately, there was nowhere to stop and pull over to get a nighttime panorama. After a brief wait, I followed Brett to his new house to say hi to his wife Jodi, take a tour (amazing house) and then we headed to BD’s. When he told me BD’s had just opened there (and in Orlando), I thought he was just pulling my leg, but no…My new favorite place really did just open down here, where previously it was just a Michigan/Minnesota thing.

After gorging ourselves and saying goodbye, I hit the road again, and managed to catch up to Kara and her dad about 30 miles outside of Nashville. My stop in Louisville lasted about 2.5hr so in that time, they managed to get about 20 miles ahead of me.

We found a Country Inn and Suites just south of the city around 1am and crashed there for the night.

Unfortunately, we saved the longest drive for last.

I was already exhausted before getting to Nashville, not being able to sleep much the previous couple of nights, and then only getting 2.5hr of sleep Tuesday night didn’t help matters. We woke up around 5:30 and were back on the road at 6:30am for the final stretch towards Florida.

For the most part, Kara and I stayed with each other on this drive. Her dad slept in and hit the road long after we did, however, we had to get to our new complex by 7pm to get our keys so there was no time to waste.

I always love driving through the mountains in Tennessee and Georgia between Nashville and just outside of Atlanta; the views are breath-taking, and the roads are extremely fun to traverse. I also love going through Atlanta; I enjoy the fast pace and the NASCAR feel of what is the “Atlanta Vacuum.”.

Once we got just outside of Valdosta, I spotted us a Zaxby’s for lunch. She had never eaten there before, but I’ve been its #1 fan for years. I stuck with the tried and true Plate (with extra toast and sauce) and she had her adventure with the Caesar Chicken Zalad. Thankfully, she loved it, and stuffed, we marched on to the home stretch.

Getting into Florida was an amazing feeling, and I’m not afraid to admit that I got kinda choked up when crossing the state line. I enjoyed my time in Minnesota, being able to live somewhere else for a little while, but Florida is where I belong.

We stopped at the state line and got pictures with the Welcome to Florida sign, and then proceeded to the Welcome Center where Kara got a sample of Real Florida Orange Juice. While there, I located a “Living With Alligators” brochure for her, as well. We were finally on the home stretch.

6:45pm rolled around, and we pulled into our new complex. It was after hours, but our leasing agent, who lives on site, provided Kara with her cell number to give her a call when we arrived. We were greeted with a closed gate, but open exit gate, so I decided to drive through that way so we could wait inside for her.

Immediately after pulling in, a Polk County Sheriff’s Officer whipped his car around a corner and cut me off dead in my tracks. It was like a scene out of cops. He flashed his lights at me and sat in front of my car, with about 5 feet of distance between us. Slowly, I got out, as did he, and I struck up a conversation with him.

Turns out he’s the Courtesy Officer, and entering through the exit is a big no-no here. I spent a good ten minutes talking to him, really nice guy, and eventually he let us park by the office after the situation was explained. Ten minutes later, our lease girl arrived and we met her outside of our new building.

She brought us in, gave us our keys and access cards, gave us a little tour, and explained how everything worked. After leaving, Kara and I brought everything we had in our cars up, and let the cat (Maggie) out of the bag to explore her new surroundings. So far, Maggie isn’t adapting too well, but Kara is certain she’ll be okay eventually.

As for the new place, its amazing. Everything is new. We’re actually the first people to live in this unit, which is always nice.

After relaxing a bit, we ordered a free, welcome to the ne neighborhood pizza from Papa Johns, and picked up across the street after gathering a few things from Publix. Once the air mattress was inflated, it was time to snooze, and snooze we did.

Its not 9:30, I’ve been up for half an hour. What does that mean?

That means I got 11.5hr of sleep last night. And man, it felt amazing. I’m gonna go wake Kara up with breakfast croissants and then hopefully we’ll be able to go ride Manta at SeaWorld a couple times before her dad gets here and the unloading process begins.

It feels great to be back.

On the Farm

Well, the first leg of the trip ended last night around 11:45pm CST. We arrived in Plainfield, IL at Kara’s family farm and promptly fell asleep. Check that, I’m sure her and her dad promptly fell asleep; once again I tossed and turned for about an hour before going shut-eye. This whole not being able to fall asleep for hours on end, no matter how tired I am, is really beginning to get old, but I digress.

The trip yesterday was actually not bad at all, and to me it flew by. We finally got everything loaded up in the truck around 3pm and had the apartment management come do their walk-through. After posing for pictures with our packing work of art, the three of us took off. Kara and I went to our bank to close accounts and then met at Culver’s for one last meal at this fine dining establishment; her dad promptly hit the road in the truck.

After lunch, she headed to pick up a rolling rack and I went to Comcast to drop off the cable box. Eventually, we met back up somewhere in Wisconsin, and then made a final stop in the Wisconsin Dells to take a peep at the areas amazing rollercoasters, draped in snow. Before leaving, I filled up the car, and we made a pit stop at IHOP where Kara enjoyed a Philly Cheese, and I tried my hand at their All You Can Eat pancakes.

Eggs, hash browns and three pancakes later, I was defeated and we hit the road for the final three hours to the farm. We were greeted by her friendly grandpa, and then headed next door to her aunt’s house where we would lay our heads for the evening.

So now it’s day two, and sometime soon we’ll be off for another nine hours, probably ending up somewhere around Chattanooga, TN for the night.

Florida’s on the horizon.

Like A Chicken With It’s Head Cut Off

Today was the last full day I had to get everything taken care of that I needed to get taken care of. Below is a list of what I needed to accomplish:

Change my address

Get an oil change

Get my tires rotated

Get a haircut

Finish packing

Help clean up the apartment

Photog Kara’s last day at work (and all the rides in the snow)

Surprisingly…I accomplished everything.

It was stressful, however, to say the least. On top of everything listed above, I took a bit of time out of my day to surprise Kara with lunch at her work. I thought it was a nice gesture, and she seemed to appreciate it. Everything else that I had planned ended up working out great.

Discount Tire, where I go for everything tire-related, had a zero minute wait to start the day. It was truly incredible. For all of the years I’ve been taking my car(s) to them for service, I’ve never seen the place deserted like it was today; I was in and out in less than twenty minutes. Leaving from there I headed to Best Buy to recycle an old TV of Kara’s and then it was off to Goodyear to get my oil changed.

While there, they tried to poach me of $15 to replace a light bulb…Uhhh, no thanks!

After thirty minutes there, I headed to my haircut place, but was greeted with a 30 minute wait. I opted to then head to Valleyfair and bring Kara a chicken caesar salad to brighten up her last day employed with the same company she’s been with for the past seven years. We ended our food together and then I headed back to get my hurr did, headed home to get a shower and then took off again to get my change of address taken care of.

Once that was done (and stunningly, they informed me it would take place tomorrow…score!) I made my way back to Valleyfair and we took a 45-minute lap around the park, getting photos of all of the rides draped in snow. Most of the pictures came out very good, and I’m glad we took that last opportunity to do that.

The rest of my day was spent hunting down a Mobil station, almost running out of gas (literally…check my Twitter upload) and making it back home to unload the huge boxes from my car, rearrange the boxes already occupying the apartment, and prepare for Kara’s arrival. Once she got home, we had three solid hours of packing, cleaning and rearranging.

And it truly is amazing what two people working together can get accomplished.

Now it’s 11pm on Friday night, and I work my last shift ever in Minnesota tomorrow from 8:45am to 5:00pm. Kara is on her way to the airport to scoop up her dad who is helping us with all the finishing touches, loading of the Penske truck, and the trip down to Florida. I even had time to get a couple games in on Modern Warfare 2 with my boy B-40.

For as hectic as the day was (and it could’ve been half as much if I wasn’t such a procrastinator) it sure did turn out well.

The next time I get to scribe, we’ll probably have already completed the first leg of the drive to Illinois. Here’s to a good weekend of packing, and a safe trip!

Getting It Together…Sorta

Kara and I are both huge procrastinators.

Likely the two worst in the world, and if not, we get honorable mention.

It is now T-Minus 4 (FOUR!!!) days until we load up the Penske and hit the road to Florida and tonight is the first night we’ve actually gone gung-ho on the whole packing situation. She gently crammed her amusement park cup and shot glass collection into a box last night, but that was the first of any packing for either of us.

For me, it’s not such a huge ordeal as I tossed most of my crap when I moved from Orlando to Minnesota in July, and most of what I did bring has been sitting dormant in boxes the whole time I’ve been here. For Kara, however…This may take awhile. On top of all the packing anxiety, she hasn’t been feeling too well this evening and I’m convinced is because of stress and uncertainty. We both know everything is going to be alright, but the fact that we’re finally getting around to actually getting everything taken care of is wearing on her.

This week, on the other hand, has been a food extravaganza! We’ve been making our Minnesota food rounds, trying to eat our way through the state; filling up on all the amazing delicacies that we will be missing out on once we get to the south.

Monday night we gorged ourselves at the amaaaaazing Mystic Lake Casino Buffet, where you’ll find anything and everything. I started off with a humongous caesar salad before moving onto my first plate of blackened grouper, mac n cheese, mashed potatoes, barbeque chicken breast and garlic cheese toast. That plate alone should’ve been enough, but oh no! One plate is never enough at Mystic Lake. Plate numero dos was egg pasta, some pepperoni and sausage pizza, and some more garlic cheese toast. The food extravaganza ended with a delicious mug of vanilla ice cream topped with hot chocolate and M&Ms.

Tuesday for lunch we headed to one of my new favorite burger places, Culver’s, and munched out on free cheeseburger kids’ meals, and topped the stop with homemade Rocky Road custard. But the food fun doesn’t stop there! Today for lunch we hit up Buffalo Tap and shoveled a large cheese curd basket down, and shared a barbeque chicken, bacon sandwich. Hopefully before we take off, we’ll get the chance to feast upon BD’s Mongolian Grille for one last time.

That’s this evening’s update. Most of my stuff is all packed and ready to go, now time to turn around and help out the Misses in her never-ending quest of sorting out jump, packing away memories and setting aside clothes for Goodwill.

Maybe we’ll get some sleep before Monday.

My 2009…

…Was amazing.

There’s really no other way to put it.

New Years 2008/2009 was spent with a bunch of my closest friends. We spent the night hanging out around a bonfire, playing games and just enjoying each others’ company. Soon after the New Year, myself and two friends from Chicago headed south to Gainesville and Orlando to celebrate the Florida Gators winning the 2009 College Football National Championship and theme park-hopping. It was in Orlando where the foundation was laid that would lead to so many life-changing decisions that would take place the rest of the year.

While in Orlando, my friend Corey played the middleman in bringing together me and the best thing to ever happen to me. Her name was Kara.

A few weeks after getting back to Tallahassee, I packed my bags and flew up to Minnesota to meet Kara for the first time. Now, I had a lot of big plans for this year, and none of them included visiting Minnesota, but it turned out to be the most life-changing trip of my life. I instantly fell in love with this girl and we enjoyed a short 5-days together touring the state, playing in the snow for the first time, visiting the Mall of America and getting to know this amazing girl.

Shortly after returning to Florida, I moved to Orlando with my friend Rob, and where I’d hoped that Kara would soon find herself as well. Things didn’t go the way I had planned, but my time spent in Orlando provided me a few months to build a great friendship with Rob and provided us the opportunity to have some of the best times of our life. The work situation was far from ideal (more like non-existent) and it really seemed more like a five month vacation, but the memories were irreplaceable and I’m grateful for having that time there. We spent all of our time hanging out, park-hopping, checking out the Orlando nightlife and becoming best friends with his puppy Corgi, Kumba. These are five months that I’ll always look back on, thankful that I got to spend all that time there having fun.

While living there, a month and a half of the time was spent living in Minnesota with Kara, and her visiting me in Florida. While out of state, we managed to hit a couple of parks that provided us great memories. In May we hit Silver Dollar City (Branson, MO), Six Flags St. Louis, Worlds of Fun (Kansas City, MO) and Adventureland (Altoona, IA) and rode a ton of amazing rollercoasters and made a bunch of great memories. In April, she visited me in Orlando and we enjoyed our time relaxing, as well as attending a boat wedding in Ft Myers and visiting Busch Gardens Tampa for the first time together.

Revisiting my earlier comment about Minnesota not being in my visit plans this year, July would provide quite a life change that was far from expected in that we made the decision that the best thing for our relationship was for me to move to the Land of 10,000 Lakes. And so it was, I packed up all my stuff into my little 2-door, threw away what I didn’t need, and hit the road on a 3-day, 25hr, 1,600 mile drive to Shakopee, MN.

On the way I stopped in Louisville, KY to stay and visit with my cousin Brett. it was great getting to see him as it had been awhile since we hung out. The second leg began with a quick stop at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom and ended with a stay with my friend Scott in Chicago, and the third leg began with a quick trip to Six Flags Great America. Finally arriving in Minnesota, I was afforded the opportunity to meet Kara’s mom for the first time. It was so great to be back with her, and I felt fortunate to finally get to meet the amazing woman who raised her.

My time spent in Minnesota has been all of a culture shock, a great learning experience, frustrating and amazing all wrapped up in one snowy package. For one, I LOVE the food here! Cheese curds are my new favorite snack/appetizer. I’ve got a new top 3 favorite restaurant in BD’s Mongolian Grill, and all the dives I’ve experienced have been amazing as well. If there’s one thing I’m gonna miss the most about this state, it’s the food.

What I’m not going to miss is the way everything is done. It took me six weeks to get my driver’s license. The highway system is absolutely absurd and whoever designed the roadways here needs to be shot. Also, there’s a saying here about people and it’s called “Minnesota Nice,” as in people are nice to your face and not so nice behind your back. I’ve definitely noticed that this is alive and well in a few instances, but there have been a few people I’ve met that this does not apply to. In fact, there’s a couple people who I’ve become friends with that I’ll actually miss.

In August (and again in October) we visited the Wisconsin Dells for Mt. Olympus, Timber Falls and general touristy stuff. That place is just amazing, and is easily one of my favorite places to visit now. Also in August we visited the Minnesota State Fair where we gained 20lbs each gorging on anything-on-a-stick (my favorite was Hush Puppies), checking out the portable rides and seeing Quietdrive in concert. We also witnessed (for about 3min before we got sick and had to leave) a cow giving live birth to a calf.

Let me tell you about how amazing Kara is. She’s never been a big football fan, but liked going to games for the tailgating and cheers. She had never experienced southern football, and my parents warned her that when football season began to be prepared for how crazy I am about it. She handled it like a champ. She put up with every Saturday being dedicated to sitting around with 4 games going at a time, and she was very considerate of my requests. She took to heart the fact that I couldn’t call up a bunch of friends at anytime to come over and watch the games, and did everything in her power to be understanding and enjoy the time together.

For the first game of the season we met up with the Twin Cities Gator Club and met a bunch of people and got to watch the game surrounded in orange and blue. It really made the transition a lot easier for me. The following week we headed to Michigan where we spent a day at the Michigan State-Central Michigan game, touring East Lansing and meeting up with a couple of her friends. We spent the rest of our time in Michigan visiting with her family, jet skiing on Lake Michigan, visiting Michigan’s Adventure and getting to know where she came from. It was an amazing trip and one I’ll never forget.

In this time I also tried getting back into school. I was determined to do it, enrolled and started taking classes at ITT before realizing that it was a sham and I got out before I took a hit. It felt good to get back in school, but that just wasn’t the right way to go, and after reading through other people’s experiences, I’m extremely happy with my decision to get out when I did. I also got a job here working at Dick’s Sporting Goods, which has been fun in that I’ve gotten to meet a couple of friends and have had, for the most part, fun getting out and doing something.

Thanksgiving we spent in Florida visiting friends and family. Our time was split between Tallahassee, Gainesville, and Orlando. I’m not gonna go all into this trip since I wrote a long post on this site recapping that amazing week, but suffice to say, I couldn’t have wished for a better holiday. Christmas was spent alone as Kara went back to Michigan to spend it with my family, and I had to stay in Minnesota to make up for not working over Thanksgiving. And New Years was a nice, relaxing night of having some champagne, playing Battleship and celebrating EST and CST New Years. It was a great time, and I couldn’t have asked for a better way to celebrate the New Year.

So what now?

WE’RE MOVING BACK TO FLORIDA!!!

I can finally talk about it! Two weeks from today we will be hitting the road and heading back to Orlando. Kara has finally had it with the winters here and wants to pursue her dreams of palm trees, grad school and a dream job. I’m grateful for finally getting out of this state. It’s been a great experience and I’m thankful for getting the opportunity to live in another state and experience a whole new world, but my roots are calling and it’s time to go home.

2009 will go down as the best year of my life, and with the upcoming changes, 2010 should be just as good if not better. I can’t wait to get back to Florida, and I especially can’t wait to live there with Kara. She turned me into a northerner, and now she gets to be transformed into a southerner.

That alone should make the year one to remember.

Changing of the Seasons

Happy Friday the 13th! And what makes this Friday the 13th particularly scary?

I turn 26 tomorrow. Now THAT’S scary.

Birthday’s used to be something to look forward to, now I’m just dreading them. I feel like I’m caught in a parallel universe between still young and fun, and time to buckle down. Where does the “fun” have to end? I know I’ve dragged my fun around for a lot longer than most people. I guess everyone goes through this sort of thing, I just like to vocalize everything that goes through my mind.

You know what else is fun? Sun.

I love the sun, which is no surprise considering I’m from Florida, and this Northern weather adjustment period seems to have been a long process, that’s only about to get longer. Apparently the three snow showers/storms (whatever they’re called) we had here in early October were just an apparition. From what I’ve gathered, it never snows that early and was the earliest recorded snowfall here ever. I enjoyed those snow encounters, since it was the first time I’d ever actually seen snow fall, but now it seems as though it’s really gonna be winter.

The weather here the past two weeks has been perfect fall weather. Upper 50′s and low 60′s, sunny every day, light breeze, no rain or snow. But as Kara and I were leaving the movie theater the other night, and the air became a bit brisker, she made a comment that she “felt like winter was upon us. I bet it starts snowing soon.”

I went straight to my Blackberry and pulled up the forecast for the next ten days. No snow, same perfect weather.

*phew*

But even I started to notice a change beginning yesterday. There was no sun, the temperature was dropping slightly, and the breeze was picking up. As I sit here and type today, overlooking trees with dwindling leaves and a gloomy sky, even I can feel the changing of the seasons upon Minnesota. And a quick check of the forecast now mentions the possibility of flurries in the next week.

So much for fun in the sun.

There is a silver lining, however. The massive amounts of snow that I’m sure is just right around our corner does bring us the opportunity to do new, fun things. I am looking forward to trying skiing, snowboarding and snowmobiling. And you can’t go wrong with snow angels.

Maybe I’ll even build a snow fort.

So Much for Being A Floridian

I finally did it today.

I went to the dark side.

I became a Minnesota resident.

A few weeks ago I tried, and failed to do so. Apparently a different state-issued driver’s license and a social security card aren’t proper forms of identification here, so I had to have my dad mail me a certified copy of my birth certificate. It arrived yesterday, and if there was one thing I learned from my first failed attempt, it was to get there early.

I arrived at the DMV 25min before opening and ended up being the second customer through the doors. After taking a number, and three other people who came in after me going before me, my ticket was called and I was off to take the test. I was nervous, considering most of my studying was a 15min cram session about three weeks ago, and with all of the crazy roadways in Minnesota, and the fact there’s snow here, I figured I’d probably have to retake the test.

In the end, I passed with a score of 82%, and by my calculations, that was one wrong answer from getting a DENIED on my application. It ended up costing me $24, which was less than I thought it’d be, but the funky thing happened with everything was done.

“You’ll receive your new Minnesota driver’s license in the mail in 4-6 weeks.”

HUH?? 4-6 WEEKS?

“Yes, 4-6 weeks. Here is a temporary license, keep it with your Florida license at all times until you receive your Minnesota-issued license. Have a good day.”

Since when do they mail you your license? Do other states do this? I know in Florida you get your shiny new State of Florida license on the spot, within 10 minutes of completing the test/application.

Regardless, I’m no longer a Floridian…But hopefully not for long.

Wow…

…A ton of time has elapsed since I last touched this thing.

In fact, it appears the last time that I blogged was before I even moved to Minnesota. I’m gonna try to catch up on what has been going on in my life, post-Florida, but not all at once. I think sitting down one time and describing everything that has gone on in one big, enormous breath would be exhausting and counter-productive…So we’ll break it up.

Let’s start off by hitting on my last post, which was in regards to my parents and the steps forward my dad and I have taken in becoming a better father-son combo.

Since I left Florida, my dad and I have become extremely close. I used to rarely talk to him, and honestly didn’t really take to heart much of what he said. I guess I housed a bit of resentment unknowingly because of the lack of relationship we used to share. If it wasn’t about Florida Football, we didn’t talk.

Now, I turn to him for everything.

He has become my biggest supporter, has shown and outpouring of love (that I knew was there, but was just never expressed) and he has repeatedly gone above and beyond what has been asked of him. He has been a huge supporter of Kara and I, and has been instrumental in numerous possible life-changes for us. There’s a level of comfort there for me now that I never felt with him before, and I feel like I can turn to him for anything.

He and my mom visited up here in late August for four days and we had a GREAT time. I think that trip was really the turning point for everything.

When I left Florida, he was pretty much devastated; supportive, but hurt. It’s been a long, rough road trying to adjust, for both of us, but I feel like we’re both finally at a point where everything is okay. I believe their visit up here was a huge step in the right direction. We spent their time here checking out the local eateries, visiting Kara’s park (which included a riveting, down to the last hole round of mini-golf), checking out the Mall of America, driving around Hazeltine and taking in a Twins game.

It was so great to be able to go the Twins game with my dad, who has been a fan all of his life, and it made it even sweeter that this was the last year of Dome Ball. I know he was extremely happy and grateful to be able to experience that.

Not to be forgotten, things with my mom have been as great as ever. It feels really good to finally have both parents on the same page, as far as my perception goes. I always felt bad when I would turn to her for everything, but there was a comfort level there that was missing with my dad.

Now, I feel extremely lucky to have that comfort level even between them.

Coming Around

I love my parents, equally.

Neither is better than the other.

But for most of my life, my dad hadn’t been the most outspoken person as far as feelings go. Him and I rarely told each other that we loved the other. It was known on both ends, it just was never vocalized.

With me moving, it has opened that door and now I feel closer than ever with him. Being able to talk about more than just football and bills has been refreshing. I think it’s made us both appreciate more how special the other is (not to put myself on a pedestal or anything). And now to be able to come out and say “I love you,” it feels so good.

I know I have full and complete support from both of my parents no matter what choice I make in life. I honestly used to be scared to go to my dad about things because I always feared I’d get nothing but negative feedback, even though I know he loved and supported me. Now that those fears are gone, I feel like I can turn to him for anything and that’s an amazing feeling.

With me moving across the country in two days where I’ll have no friends or family, to finally feel this much closer to my dad is going to make things a lot easier. And I’m extremely thankful for that.

Packing…Again

Well, my time in Orlando has come and gone.

These past five months have flown by, and while I’ve had an incredible time living here, things just haven’t worked out. So where’s the next stop of the Steve Nuss World Tour?

Minnesota.

Yep, it’s true…I’m moving to Shakopee, MN to live with Kara. Just the thought of that is mind-blowing, and while I’m going to be extremely sad to leave Florida (and nervous,) I can’t wait to actually start my life together with her.

We made the decision about two weeks ago, and this coming Saturday morning I’ll be hitting the road on a 3-day, 24hr drive with overnight stays in Louisville, KY and Chicago. I’ll be making stops at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom and Six Flags Great America. And best of all, I’ll be making a permanent stop with the love of my life.

This is a huge step, and frankly, a bit “out there,” but I know deep down it’s the best thing for me, for her and ultimately…for us. I’ve got full support from all of my family, even if things are extremely emotional. My parents and grandparents all feel like this is the best thing for me to do right now. I’m just so glad they’re as supportive as they are, and so thankful that they love Kara. It’s gonna be the start of a new chapter in my life.

And I’m confident in it being the last.

Snap(ped) Back to Reality

Orlando.

The City Beautiful.

Where I grew up.  Where I’ve wanted to be for ten years.

And now I’m back, as you might have read already.

But I’m starting to feel kinda empty here.  My first month of living my dream was amazing.  Park-hopping, club-hopping, meeting new people and constantly having fun.  There was never a dull moment, and I now fear that that first month sort of ruined my perception of life down here.  Now that the money is running (very) low, and I’m not doing as much as I was at first, times are relatively depressing.

I’m still visiting parks constantly, but there’s only so much of that one can do before it starts to become old hat.  Not working at the moment is starting to wear on me.  Cabin fever is starting to sink in.  I loved being able to go out every night and check out the nightlife at a bunch of different, new, exciting places; but now, with low funds and the inability to do so, that has obviously worn off a bit.

More-so than not being able to go have fun every night, is the simple fact that I’m just not doing anything.  Sure, I’ve been applying everywhere I can, honing my Photoshop skills, and having fun just hanging out with my roommate, but the stress of not having money is starting to wear on me.  Not being able to up and do something whenever I want to is beginning to sting.  As much as I love being here, it’s really painful to not be in the position to do what I want, when I want anymore.

I’m gonna ride out the storm.  There’s no way I’m giving up being here, it’s what I’ve wanted for so long.

I just wish something would happen, now.

Let’s Rewind A Bit

It’s been about a week since I’ve posted, and I wish I would have been more up on my Blogging, but it’s definitely time for a little Stevecap.

Thursday night I drove down to Orlando after my last day at the Department of Agriculture, and I spent the night at my grandparents’ house in Zellwood.  It was definitely nice to spend a couple of hours with them and catch up.  My grandma had surgery on her foot so she’s stuck in a wheelchair for awhile, but she was in her always positive self.  My grandpa has been taking great care of her, and that’s amazing to see in person.

Friday morning, I went into work to do a drug screen and my initiation into the profession.  My first impressions of the company were mixed.  I felt they had a great system set up, but I wasn’t really digging the whole 100% commission based income.  After talking to my dad about it, I calmed down a bit and realized if I just busted my ass, that everything would be fine.

I headed back to Tallahassee that afternoon and stopped at Chilis for about an hour for a Records reunion.  It was a lot of fun to see my old co-workers, catch up, make jokes and have a couple drinks.  Once I left, I went into overdrive to get ready for Kara’s arrival.  This is where things got a bit fishy.  Her plane was supposed to arrive in Tallahassee at 9:15pm, where I would pick her up from the airport, and we’d get ready to head out to Bullwinkles to meet up with a slew of friends for my going away party.

Well, weather didn’t want to cooperate, as storms in Atlanta delayed her flight just long enough to cause her to miss her connection.  In the end, she got placed onto the last flight of the night, via standby, and was set to arrive at 11:45PM.  The turnout for my going away was amazing, and I’m so thankful to have so many good friends, and  I’m so glad Kara finally made it in to meet everyone.

Saturday, her and I went out to my parents house for their first meeting and everything went awesome.  My parents loved Kara, and she said she felt the same about them.  Hopefully she’s not just blowing smoke up my ass.   That night I brought her to PoBoys for dinner and she got two meet a couple more of my good friends and we ended the night with Coldstone and cuddling.

So with the terrible weather in Atlanta, we altered our plans and headed to Orlando on Sunday and met up with Rob and Dan at Universal.  Spent a couple hours goofing off, staring at construction, riding Mummy and being pissed off at the Lost Continent and Dueling Dragons.

Monday was spent at SeaWorld, and it was a great, relaxing day.  We rode Kraken a few times, posed with a character.  I finally got my Shamu Express credit, and we had a nice, romantic Shamu strawberry bowl with the ducks.

So what happened next?  Extra Kara time!  Her plane got delayed AGAIN and that gave us an extra 12hr together.  To be honest, the whole thing at first was pretty tense.  Neither of us knew what to really do.  The following day was my first at work, and her new flight wasn’t until 5:15am.  After a bit of emotional discussion, we came to an agreement and ended up having a great night together, and one last couple of hours of cuddling.

Dropping her off at the airport was definitely emotional, and from the second she walked away I already felt a little lost.  It’s amazing how strong feelings can get for someone in such a short amount of time, and it’s so hard to only get a couple days with a person who means the world to you, only to go a month or more without seeing them again.

Tuesday at work was stressful.  From the get-go I just didn’t have the feeling for the job that it would be all that I was looking for.  The money was promised to be good, but aside from that, it wasn’t something that I could get excited about.  I was having serious doubts, but my friends managed to convince me it was just first day jitters.  They instilled hope in me and convinced me to stick with it, and I was determined to.

These past two days have been terrible.  I woke up Wednesday morning with a terribly sore throat, hot, runny nose, headache and very weak all over.  It only got worse as the day went on, and only now am I starting to feel a bit better.  I did get around to getting my address changed today, and I’m “moving into” Rob’s apartment tomorrow.  I quotisize that because all of my stuff is in Tallahassee still and I’m going to be sleeping on an air mattress for the first week, but it’s still gonna be fun.

So that’s my past week in a nutshell.  I’ve got a lot of deeper thoughts I need to get out and written down, but right now I just don’t feel like doing that.