Wow....

Its been awhile since my last post. So just to fill you in. I am in California now, and I'm not loving it. In fact, Collin has applied to a bunch of schools outside of California, and we are waiting to find out where we are moving next. I hope to know by the middle of March, and then we can start making plans and decisions. I like the planning and deciding phase better than the sitting and waiting phase we are in now.

So, why didn't we like California? I have a list of reasons.

1. Collin can't find work. There were jobs advertised for English teachers when we moved here, but the budget situation in California caused most of those jobs to go unfilled. So living in California on one income is difficult. I would love to explore the area more, but we just plain can't afford it.

2. Riverside doesn't suit our vibe. I was hoping California would be like one giant Austin, but its not. Riverside is like the Lubbock of California. No art theatres, no Whole Foods, no used book stores. Riverside does have a Trader Joes, but its not the same as Whole Foods or Central Market. I think the worst is the lack of used book stores, we miss Half Price Books more than I can say.

3. We haven't made any new friends here. My co-workers are really nice, and some of them have reached out to me very kindly, but we haven't found any good friends to hang out with yet. Part of that is because Collin is not working, many of our friends in Texas were met through his school and work. I guess we could get involved in something, but I'm lazy when it comes to socializing. I miss our Texas friends.

4. Its freaking expensive to live in California, granted this one goes with number one, but the fact remains. I hate living in our 1 BDRM 1 BATH apartment. Which is $400 more than the 2 and 2 we had in San Marcos. Cereal is $4-5 a box and eggs are $3 a dozen. If I was making as much as a do in Texas, we could afford a new car and still have money to save. Here, I'm going into debt just living here, to pay for car repairs, etc.

5. I miss my family and friends. I'm missing out on seeing my nephew. Its hard to communicate with my dad and my brother over the phone. I just need to see them more often. Same with my friends, its hard to keep up with them when we are so far away, and it was so nice to see them when we were there at Christmas.

So, that's why California sucks, and that's why we are moving. I don't know where. Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Denver, Lubbock, Houston, and Athens, GA are the options. I hope we know soon.