Binary Blonde

We got our internet set up about an hour ago, so now I can finally give a short update! Woohoo!

So, we drove into Austin on Friday afternoon to our apartment where we are staying until the house is done being built. Yesterday, the movers dropped off most of our stuff and the rest went into storage, because this place is teeny tiny. There is a lot left to unpack, but I’m just glad we’re here and safe.

I mentioned via Twitter two days ago that on our first day driving, I was rear-ended in Riverside, CA in a three car pile up. I was the last car hit, so I had the least amount of damage, both to me and to my car. Even though I was hit so hard that I was thrown over a full car length ahead, I stayed far enough away from Kevin (I was following him) that I didn’t hit him. I came close, though.

Physically, I’m mostly okay, but my neck and chest still hurts a lot (I think something was bruised internally). I also bruised my knees somehow. The fire department was first on the scene and they pretty much insisted I go to a hospital to get checked out. It was the first time I was ever taken anywhere in an ambulance, and those stiff boards they put you on are more uncomfortable than the injury you have, I think!!!

As for my car, my bumper is crunched in and my trunk has trouble staying closed, and I basically had to keep my left rear car door closed the rest of our trip out here with a luggage strap. Seriously ghetto, but I did what I had to do since we were on a tight schedule. 😆

Both Noni and Kanji did okay on the car ride over (they were in Kevin’s car because of my allergies), though every once in a while they’d have a little freak out and want to crawl up front with him. We had to stop a couple of times to zip Kanji back into his carrier for a bit until he chilled out. For the most part, though, they were A+ passengers, and were totally fine in the hotels we stayed in.

They’ve already made themselves at home here at the apartment, so I don’t think any permanent trauma was done, thank goodness! 😀

We have several errands to run today, so we’re going to head out now and get them done before Kev starts his new job tomorrow. My “job”, starting this week, will be to get my car fixed and to unpack, and then maybe look for a “real” job after.

Tomorrow morning, bright and early, the movers arrive to pack up our stuff and take it to Austin. We had planned to leave tomorrow as well, but because the movers aren’t leaving until 5:00 PM, we felt it was too late to start a 5.5+ hour drive. Especially considering it’s a work day and everyone will be on the freeways at exactly that moment (ugh).

So, the new plan is we’re leaving at 10:00 AM on Tuesday morning, right after rush hour traffic. Also, even though each day will take us about 5.5 – 6.5 hours closer to our new home, that isn’t including pit stops, so we spaced out the drive three nights, instead of two.

After the movers leave tomorrow evening, we’ll be staying in our own place for the night. We had considered staying in a hotel for the night (since all the furniture will be on a truck heading towards Texas), but felt we could “rough it” for one night on an air mattress. 😆

Noni and Kanji are taking all the commotion considerably well. Even so, I took all necessary precautions and cleared out our walk-in closet. Inside, I created a little sanctuary for them to hide out while the movers stomp all over the place tomorrow. I put in their soft-sided carriers that they will be staying in during the drive, so they can get used to them, and their food/water and litter box will be in there, as well.

I’m not really worried about the drive for us, only them. So, we made sure to get anything and everything we could to make them as comfortable as possible. Cats don’t really enjoy rapid change, so we’re going to make every effort to keep their food times consistent, as well as any other familiar routines we can think of. 🙂

Hopefully, it’s enough to keep them from being too traumatized! Though, these two are pretty cool customers, so I’m not fretting too much.