My Life in Seattle

I have arrived and I have begun!

Life is a new and exciting array of opportunities! Katie and I arrived in Seattle on the 11th after a cross country drive. I stopped by my Alma Mater (weird to say) to spend some time with college friends before meeting up with Katie in Denver, CO. From there we went to Perry, UT, up through Laramie, WY, then Boise, ID, then SEATTLE! I left on the 6th from Texas and we made it on the 11th.

My car was packed overfull, and my dog Riley took the passenger seat to keep me company.

It was so cold when we got in that night, and we were supposed to be able to walk right into our unit to start unpacking, but somehow the wires got crossed and nobody left it unlocked for us so we were stranded! It was 10 at night, and we were two girls alone in the city. Fortunately the apartment manager answers her emails at night, so she kindly called the on-site emergency help (who had previously not responded to OUR calls) and sent a man over to let us in. He had to drive all the way from Kent, which is about 20 minutes, so we started unpacking our things outside our door. It was a hard task with my dog, but we managed to get all our essentials unpacked by the time our helper came by. Katie and I unpacked our cots for the night, flipped a coin for who got the master bedroom (I lost), and went to sleep!

The next day we woke up and got to work. We unpacked our cars, half of our boxes, and then went out for the essentials. Katie and I only packed things that could fit into our car, so not only were we foodless and jobless which is to be expected, but we were furnitureless, and I happened to be pillowless. What a dilemma.

So we spent the next couple days obtaining our food, and random bits of furniture that we needed to unpack our boxes.



We visited a local market, and ALL of the Seattle Goodwills in search of the cheapest buys. I found a beautiful lamp that reminds me of the one my grandmother had when I was a child. I also scored this amazing rolltop desk!



Now we've been here a week and a half and we're almost unpacked all the way. We're having furniture donated on Sunday and I can't wait to have a couch and dining room table! The rest of our time has been spent job hunting.

One of the things I find most frustrating about job hunting is being considered too young. I've been asked 'Are you 18?' Not only am I 18, but I happen to have a degree! However, I feel the search is going strong and I think I'll have a job to speak of soon. Currently I've stumbled into a Stage Managing gig at Stone Soup Theatre, which is terribly exciting. I was originally supposed to intern there to help with marketing, but they needed someone last minute and handed me a contract to sign after a brief interview. The show is A Child's Christmas in Wales and I hope to stay on for the duration of the rehearsal process and run. If I get a day job that will pay my rent and the hours conflict, I'll obviously have to choose to pay my rent.

I have an interview this next week at a Performing Arts Preschool to be a substitute teacher. I'm hoping to grab little jobs like these to have for extra money. As a sub, I would be on call for whenever they need me which would be great!

All in all, I've gotten to explore more than I thought I would. Yesterday I found 2 theatres in West Seattle where I live. I've found some auditions coming up, but I don't think I can afford to go on them until I have a job under my belt. The city is beautiful, and I can't wait to meet more people here. Our neighbors are friendly, and the dog parks are fun places to meet and greet. Everything's going pretty slow right now, but it will pick up soon!

It's really starting to feel like I've moved cross country. Family and friends are very far away, but it's all so exciting right now. Katie has been trying to figure out Christmas plans, and we're looking at spending our first Christmas without family. But we've made a list of our own traditions to start to make this apartment feel like home. All good things.