Since the great migration west, we have been cautious about where and when we spend our monies. Why? Well, we don’t exactly have jobs here in Austin. OK, we don’t have a single one. What are we doing? Applying to jobs like mad people. For the past week, I’ve been writing, editing, and sending various versions of cover letters to several school districts, universities, and publishing companies. Good news came into my dear Gmail inbox last evening, I have been requested to interview at a high school within the Austin Independent School District (AISD) for an English teaching position. Awesome! Double Awesome! Erik and I did a few fancy jigs in our living room last night around midnight. Erik continues to regurgitate the irritating log-ins and applications on various sites, such as careerbuilder.com, monster.com, and Craiglist. We often wonder if applying online works. I guess it does on the state education end of things. But, I’m confident in him. We always figure out a way to make ends meet.
Double good news: a friend from Raleigh, NC, and his girlfriend are moving to Austin next month! They were here this week to start on work and find a place to live. We met him for lunch yesterday at an establishment called Freddie’s. There was a good mix of lunch entrees available; I chose the Fried Fish Sliders with good ol’ regular french fries. The plate cost me $6, and the frozen ‘rita a petty $2. What a deal! For Austin to be such a metropolis, food and drink specials are easy to stumble upon. We’ve also enjoyed our visit to the Black Sheep Lodge off South Lamar. Shuffleboard, darts, misting fans. Why, you had me at ‘hello,’ Black Sheep! 🙂 On Saturday nights, they have $2 cans of 16 oz. beer and $3 well drinks. Moreover, we met some pretty cool Austinites who welcomed us to sit at their tables and instruct us on being proper Austinities: where to live, where to eat, what to do, etc. Thanks, y’all!
Finally, I wanted to mention a few of my friends blogs that led to my own blog creation:
Natalya: www.notnotrocketscience.blogspot.com ! One of my good friends from Raleigh, NC, gives her daily digest on nutrition, fitness, and being a rocket scientist. I spoke correctly! She studies space propulsion and is transferring from Duke to MIT this fall! She’s also started blogaways for various fitness and nutrition products, so check it out!
Ariel: www.eatfoodrealfood.wordpress.com ! Another friend from Appalachian State University blogs from her home in Washington, DC, about food science and nutrition. She gives a thorough yet readable rundown on everything health from butter and sugar to her own farmer’s market recipes and original inventions! Give her a looksy!
Jim: www.youareveryhandsome.blogspot.com ! Jim, a great English friend from Appalachian State, brings you along his journey being a teacher in a middle in South Korea. His posts literally make me laugh at loud, so go laugh and read his blog!
Thanks guys! Now, I’m off to accomplish the only objective that I have today: buy shampoo and conditioner. Ha! Wish me luck on my interview on Monday at 10:30am!
A Small Thing in Big Texas 
Thanks for the shout out girlie! I’m so happy you got an interview! Fingers crossed.
You should post pictures of your new place, I want to see 🙂
I posted the apartment pix on Facebook… but maybe I’ll slip a few somewhere on here… Thanks! No prob!
ohhh thanks! i love this blog. it’s so pretty, and you are leaps and bounds ahead of me figuring out the nuances of wordpress. happy blogging, trina! i miss you, but am so happy to hear about your amazing adventure 🙂
Found your blog through a comment you made on Move To Austin. We are also possibly relocating to Austin in the next few months. I jumped on over here to peruse your blog and just wanted to throw out some encouragement. 9 years ago my husband and I finished grad school at Texas Tech (in Lubbock) and moved to Charlotte, NC. We decided on a Thursday and moved the following Tuesday. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen my mother more angry, disappointed or worried! We moved without jobs or even any prospects of jobs. It was the most exhilarating thing I’ve ever done! Would I do it again? Not in a million years! But of course that was 3 children ago and children to tend to cause you to be a little more conservative when it comes to provision. Anyway, to the encouragement. We spent the first two months or so living off leftover student loans, spending our 8-5 day sending resumes and cover letters and our 5-? nights learning our new city. A month and a half later, my husband was offered a job (which he turned down) and another a few weeks later (which he accepted). And I was offered one not long after that. And we are living happily ever after (well, mostly 😉 ). Enjoy this time and good luck today with your interview!
Thanks Nicole for the encouragement! My parents and in-laws were devastated to see us go, too! However, we’d been ruminating over this move since January/February this year, so they were warned. We are enjoying our Austin experience so far (as you can tell!). If you ever have any particular questions, please direct them by email! Good luck on planning! Thanks again!