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So I move into my first house on Saturday. In three days. I’ll be signing the final paperwork on Friday, in two days time. Suddenly, that seems like a phenomenally short time to wait for something so big. All told, I’m excited, scared, happy, nervous, and slightly short of breath.

The last week or two has been a blur of planning, working, doing, scheduling, calling, and all sorts of other house-purchasing-related activities. Some plans pop up on my radar only to be shot down for lack of time. For instance, I was hoping to paint the living room on Thursday night, figuring it’d be easier before I moved in all the furniture. However, as Dana pointed out to me, given my schedule, I don’t have a lot of time to pack my Amesian belongings. I can’t afford to spend an evening (or even most of one) painting, if I don’t want to risk infuriating the worker bees on Saturday. So, the painting has been delayed for the short term.

I’d probably have more time to pack (and thus, to paint) were I willing to give up my social and quasi-social activities. Alas, not gonna do it. Monday, for instance, I jogged and helped my dad set up furniture in the new place in lieu of packing. Yesterday, I played racquetball in the evening, though I did get some packing done (with the Danar’s help) afterwards. I’m going out with Des Moines friends this evening, and won’t get to packing until late. I’ll be jogging again tomorrow, though afterwards I plan to spend a great deal time packing, you know, before and after Grey’s Anatomy. And Friday, I plan to close on the house, go home to pack, play racquetball (for the last time in a long time… sigh) in the evening, and then resume packing until it’s all done. The good news is, it will get done. Because, you know, it has to. That the frame of mind what got me through grad school last semester, and that’s what’ll get my packing done this week. :)

So this last run of not-posting was bad even for me, but I’ma not gonna waste too much time talking about it, since posting about not-posting is just weird, I’ve decided.

Did I mention that I started jogging? Yeah. I’ve actually kept it up for a few weeks now, too. I jog after work (still treadmill-bound) on Mondays and Thursdays with Amanda and occasionally Megan. It’s good to have a jogging buddy, I’ve decided. Last night, for example, we both admitted afterwards to wanting to quit about a mile and a half in, but we kept going simply because the other person hadn’t stopped yet. :) So instead of giving up after 1.5 miles, we both got in just under 4 miles. My current goal is to get 8 - 10 miles of jogging in a week. I might increase that number in a few weeks, when I’m forced to give up my twice-weekly racquetball games for the short term. My longer term goal (maybe by the new year) is to be able to jog a 10k (6.2 miles) in one go. After that, I can worry about doing it faster. :p

The home-moving thing is still moving forward (very quickly). I have a meeting with my loan officer this afternoon to go over the paperwork, so I should hopefully know more tomorrow. My parents are moving out of the place this Sunday, October 1st. And, if all goes according to plan, I’ll be moving on Saturday, October 7th. If you would be available and willing to help me move from Ames to Des Moines on that fateful Saturday, I would be ~most~ appreciative. Just let me know.

To be perfectly honest (which I so rarely am), I’m a little worried about the financial aspect of this move. My mortgage payment is going to be higher than I expected, as are utilities. Add to that the fact that gas prices have been falling (making the daily commute slightly more tolerable), my (really high) student loan payments start in a couple of months, my landlord won’t return my calls (making negotiating my leave nigh impossible), and I’m having a much more difficult time than I anticipated finding a roommate… and you’ve got yourself a nervous Robby. I’m sure it’ll work out, as these things tend to do. I just don’t know how yet. :p

Speaking of, though, if any of you know of anyone who is (or could be convinced to be) looking for a place in the Des Moines area, please let me know. I’m looking for someone 21ish - 35ish, of either (or any) gender, who doesn’t need to smoke indoors, is childless, vaguely responsible and rather easy to get along with. You know… someone like me. :) The house is about a 10 minute commute to/from downtown and 6-7 minutes from Merle Hay Mall. They could move in any time after October 7th (and hopefully before December 7th). I’d much prefer to live with a friend (or at the least, a friend of a friend), but if I have no leads in the next week or two, I’m going to post an ad on Craigslist and simply hope for the best.

Similarly, actually, if you know someone who’d like a 1 bedroom loft-style apartment on Main Street, with hardwood floors and high ceilings at a fantastic price, let me know. I have myself one of those, too.

Le sigh. Work has been really busy these last couple of weeks, which has really cut down on the time in which I might update here. I’ve even worked through lunch every day this week to make sure my stuff gets done well and on time. Also, I’ve noticed that my workload is usually heavier at the beginning of the week, meaning it’s Thursday or Friday before I ever even get a chance to write. I’ll figure something out.

Big News of Last Week (in no particular order):

First, as some of you have already heard, I might well be buying my parents’ house and moving to Des Moines in the really near future. They’ve decided to downsize a bit, and since they have a house, and I need a house, it seemed pretty logical that I just take theirs. I’m still working on mortgage stuff and so forth, so I suppose it isn’t 100% for sure, but it’s pretty far up there as far as percentages go. I’ll be looking for a roommate, too, so Kara, if you were serious, email me and we’ll talk. ;) Otherwise, I have one or two other prospects I could try to persuade.

I had workFriend Amanda up last Friday and Saturday for a weekend of singin, dancin, drunken fun (singing and dancing came after the drinking, obviously). I had a blast. :) She, Dana, and I (along with Scott on Friday night and Kate on Saturday) pretty well toured Welch Ave, hitting five different bars in the two nights. We also spent Saturday afternoon taking jello shots and watching the CU vs. CSU football game at Dana’s place. I don’t remember who won, but that really isn’t the point.

I went jogging after work twice last week, and I’m going jogging for the second time this week tonight after work. Well, jogging on a treadmill. Milling? I have no idea what it’s called. Regardless, it is hard and I sweat all over the place and usually wish I were somewhere (anywhere) else by about 15 - 20 minutes in. So I must be doing something right. Basically, I decided I was going to need more cardio in my life in order to lose weight, and there’s only so much racquetball can do. And now, if I’m going to be moving to Des Moines, that’s probably going to put a hold on my racquetball playing for a while, so it’s good to have an alternative in the works.

Time to wrap things up here. Keep your stick on the ice.