Leased!

Matt and I finally made the big decision. We finally decided to go through with it. We were super nervous, but it turned out well...

Okay so we rented a house in Albuquerque. Signed the lease on a 700sf casita that is super old but has been completely renovated and has a backyard big enough for a party. So if you live in the Greater New Mexico Area, be prepared. I will take pictures as soon as I get a chance.

We think we will be moving in starting next Wednesday, just in time for our lease here to be up and to clean out our house.

Also, as a side note, if you are ever in need of getting rid of furniture quickly, send out an email to a local college. We sent one to Matt's department around 4 pm yesterday and everything was out of the house by 8 pm. Speedy! And watching all those things go totally relieved my moving anxiety. Moving is so much easier with less stuff. Try it!

Earthquake!

That's right folks, last night at 11:16pm Socorro time, there was a magnitude 3.3 earthquake 6km west of Socorro. It woke me up and scared the crap out of me. I think Matt thought someone was breaking into our house. Since we'd been asleep, we weren't really sure if it had been a noise that woke us up, but I was pretty sure it was movement and can't remember if it had been accompanied by a noise. I am used to the house shaking from various explosions Tech undertakes on purpose, but this definitely felt different - I guess because the ground was moving. I wasn't convinced it was an earthquake until this morning when the Albuquerque Journal and the USGS verified it. I am fairly convinced an "aftershock" woke me up later, but there is no mention of one.

This is the second earthquake I have felt in my life, the last one being my freshman year of college when we could feel tremblings from a California earthquake in our dorm. That woke me up too.

I guess the universe is prepping me for my summer in LA...

Albuquerque

We spent parts of Tuesday and Thursday in Albuquerque looking for houses and hanging out with our friend Arun on his birthday. We managed to get ourselves invited to his parent's house for his birthday dinner by calling his cell phone at about 10pm Monday night and having his mom answer. Oops. Apparently Arun, who lives about half a second from his parents, left his phone at their house again. So anyway, on our way to meet Arun for the family dinner, we thought maybe we should get him a card. And maybe a present. So we stopped at the Smith's by his house, picked up a great pickle card, a six pack of New Belgium spring seasonal, and a $1 DVD called Kill Cruise, starring Elizabeth Hurley. It was originally a German movie called Der Skipper and has been dubbed into English for our viewing pleasure. What a great movie! Not in the traditional, artful sense, but it really was hilarious. We kept inventing alternate scenarios, none of which ever panned out. I think appreciation of this movie is related to a very narrowly defined sense of humor, so it might not be right for everyone. But if you are bored and live near a Smith's that happens to carry $1 DVDs, I recommend it. Good times were had by all. The fajitas at dinner were good too.

On a more sour note, we still have not made a moving decision. We found this gorgeous casita in our price range that we are really tempted to lease, but then we found out that Matt probably won't be able to get a seat on the vanpool next year. In other words, if we move to Albuquerque, he would have to drive one of our vehicles 150 miles a day, 2-4 days a week. That would suck. Our latest possibility is to get one small place in both cities to try to have the best of both worlds. And I don't even know if I have a job, so that is another hitch. I had another interview yesterday, but I don't think I want to work for them anyway. So yeah. We have two weeks left to clear out of our current house, and nowhere to go. Except a storage shed. And LA...

Back to Life, Back to Reality

After we returned from the mountains, we had an ant infestation in our kitchen, so we decided to order pizza for dinner. For the second time since we have lived here, we ordered Pizza Hut delivery. For the second time, they failed to bring my soda. Since the delivery guy last time never brought one to me, I refused to pay this one until he returned with it. Shockingly enough, he returned in about 2 minutes (Pizza Hut is not very far away).

The weirdest thing about this is that neither time did the delivery guy seem surprised or apologetic that they had forgotten the soda. It was like it was a given. So my question is, are they really just stupid, or is this some sort of scam that they pull on everyone? I mean really, what are the odds that 100% of the time they forget the soda (despite the small sample size). And then say nonchalantly, oh, I'll have to come back with that. What is with this state?

In relation to state weirdness, when we were on the trip this weekend, two different people were describing how great their neighborhoods were. And then, as an afterthought, discussed the gunshots and drug deals and thefts that go on all the time. So crime is just a given to people in Albuquerque. Whereas I would not think a neighborhood was great unless it was low-crime. I guess this is something we're going to have to get used to.

Mountain Goodness

This weekend Matt and I visited our beloved San Mateo Mountains to help out with a stream restoration project organized by New Mexico Wilderness Alliance. Along with about 15 other volunteers, we camped for two nights and put in various structures to decrease the velocity of streamflow and re-wet the meadow. The Forest Service will fell some trees in the canyon bottom to complete the project.

Our mini-group built 12 'one rock dams' which require the moving of large rocks from the surrounding hillside to the riverbed. It was hard work. We were with a couple Forest Service guys. There were also people from the BLM and other environmental non-profits on the trip, so I tried to do some networking. We even made a couple friends who live in Albuquerque and got their phone numbers so we can stalk them!

It was definitely a lot more fun than we have at home, no matter how sore we are. Try it sometime! Your local environmental organization probably has similar functions. There were a range of volunteers from young and single to older nearly retired couples. A good time will be had by all (if you ignore the one or two super annoying people).

Continued

I just picked up this week's Newsweek and read Anna Quindlen's The Last Word - Still the Brightest. In the wake of David Halberstam's recent death, Quindlen discusses the impact he had on journalism by doing extensive research, looking for answers where no one else wanted to go, and revealing information to the public. She notes his endless sense of "intelligent curiosity" that inspired her, along with other younger writers, to live up to their potential.

I must confess that I have never read Halberstam's book on Vietnam, "The Best and the Brightest," but I have nevertheless been well aware of his influence on journalism and the American public. I plan to add some of his books to my reading list. The tradition of Edward R. Murrow and David Halberstam must continue. I hope that journalists everywhere will continue to be responsible citizens by using their platforms to educate the public and reveal injustice wherever it may be, whether in front of our noses or in hiding. And as citizens, I think that we must demand this from our media.

Carnival of the Liberals

Carnival of the Liberals is a biweekly blog carnival that is hosted on various websites and is a compilation of the latest and greatest liberal blogs. This week it is hosted by Faith on That's So Queer, which I link to on my sidebar, and I read the entries for the first time. My favorites were posted on The Republic of T and deal with how harassment, alienation, and definitions of 'masculinity' are involved in most of the cases of school shootings. This blog is well-researched, well-written, and most of all, a call for empathy and a fresh look at American culture. I'll let him explain the rest.

In a related note, Matt and I watched Good Night, and Good Luck last night, and I was impressed not only by the story of Edward R. Murrow taking on Senator McCarthy, but also the many quotes and scenarios that reflect what is going on today. One of the biggest issues is allowing the accused to face their accusers, which is definitely not happening right now at GitMo. Another issue is the responsibility of journalism to inform and even editorialize, not just entertain. Murrow acknowledged that sometimes there are not two sides of a story. Sometimes something is morally or ethically wrong, and people whose voices are heard should do their best to stand up to the injustice and inform their listeners. The movie is a little slow, but at only 90 minutes, it is well worth it. Netflix it today. And check out Matt's blog on the subject. Also see Amnesty International's Close Guantanamo campaign and join the flotilla!