Swimmin' pools and movie stars...

That right!  I finally loaded up The Duchess and moved to Santa Monica!  My apartment in Chicago was the only place I have lived in for more than a year since I went off to college.  I wouldn't say I'm a moving pro, but it has definitely become somewhat routine for me.  Except for this move.  NOTHING about this has been routine.

After being told that my original move-in date was October 1st, it then got pushed to October 5th.  My U-Box couldn't get delivered until the 8th so I got everything arranged for Saturday and would get the keys from my landlord on Thursday the 6th.  On the 6th, surrogate mom Sara and I drove up to Santa Monica with some of my stuff in The Duchess only to find that the house was still being worked on...sigh.  They promised it would be finished and cleaned by Saturday.  Sara, The Duchess, my stuff and I all drove back to Huntington Beach and ate Chinese food.

At this point, I'm supremely anxious.  All of the back and forth: alleged house, alleged job.  It's a lot.  And don't get me wrong, it's not like I've been living in a cardboard box on Hollywood or anything- my surrogate parents and housing were wonderful- I'm just so ready to start my life and get settled in.  In a way, I feel like I have been in transition since March...

Stay classy San Diego

I'm not good with down time.  I am, in fact, so bad with down time that when I was in Australia I got a job, joined a gym, joined a club and made multiple "To Do" lists with different places, foods, activities and events to experience in order to minimize down time and maximize... well, my Type A personality...

When I was unemployed in Chicago, I baked.  A lot.  My roommates would come home to a kitchen full of literally hundreds of savory tartlets, various vegetable salads and dessert concoctions (ya know, for balance).  Packages of treats were sent to the neighbors.  It. was. obscene.

With my California  "To Do" list at a seemingly never ending standstill I really have no choice but to embrace the down time and learn how to relax and have some fun.  Not that I don't know how to have fun.  I'm really fun.  It's just usually... scheduled fun.  Earned fun.  At it's best and most wild, it's responsible spontaneity.

The Duchess's New Plates

In true Taylor fashion, I have found other productive things to do despite reaching the standstill mentioned in my previous post.  As a result, today The Duchess had a very big day.

It started with her smog test this morning.  She was pretty nervous so I had to drive her around a bit before the test.  :) Actually, surrogate Dad Paul told me that I needed to warm the car up before the smog test so that the readings were accurate.  Anyway, she passed her test with flying colors and then it was off to the DMV.

The CA DMV was actually a pretty pleasant experience.  I made a reservation, I showed up early, and I don't think I waited more than 5 min to be helped at any point during my visit.  The Duchess had her identity verified and then I got my licence and she got her registration.  The annual registration fee is actually less than in Iowa AND I was exempt from tax since I acquired my car as a gift from a blood relation (thanks PaulSale).

Then it was my turn to be examined.  I'm happy to report that I passed my vision exam without my glasses-- keeping me from legally having to wear them every single time I drive.  I also passed my written driving examination despite the fact that I was unaware that it is illegal to smoke when you have a child in the car and that I apparently don't know the sign graphic for "lane ending, merge left".  I mean, come on.  There are usually other contextual clues to help you out there.  Oh, and sorry I give bikers the right of way, I would hate to accidentally hit one of them and in Chicago they do whatever the hell the want anyway... regardless, in 2-4 weeks I will have a new license in hand.  Until then, I have this:

The Duchess was truly the big winner today as we drove away from the DMV plates in hand.  I took her to a car wash as celebratory treat (aka: removal of all the bugs that attacked when driving through STUPID Nebraska) and then we made the switch.

So it's official!  The Duchess and I are California girls!  Cue the annoying song about girls from California of your choosing... personally I prefer the Beach Boys.

Hurry up and wait...

Today is one of those days were I do everything I can to move a process forward and them am left to rely on others to finish their part before real progress is actually made.  Thank goodness it's sunny and nice here or I would be going crazy right now.  These past few months has been a total exercise in patience for me, something I am not very good at.. on with the life updates!

California here we come!

Greeting from a Starbucks in The Valley!  All I can think about right now is Cher from Clueless ("Eww!  The Valley!") so I'm not really sure how I am supposed to feel about his place...

There are about a million things I should be doing while I have internet access-- but I'm choosing to blog-- in a very cliche' manner non the less.  Courtesy of my sister's excellent Googling, I'll be relocating to Cabo Cantina in Santa Monica later this afternoon.  Free WiFi + Margs= win.  Also, much less cliche' and potentially less productive.  So let me get you up to speed on my cross-country trek and my first 36 hours on the coast:

After shoving my life into the U-Box:

Mom and I set off for our 28 hour drive--