Traffic pro

Ok, back to more updating.
James had me start working right away. We got into the house on a Saturday at 5pm and he had me going in to work the next day. There is an old guy named Bob that used to be a manager there and is now retired so he runs errands and helps out once in awhile. So James had set it up for me to go in to meet with him and get shown what had changed in the 5 years since I left. The big problem was that we had just got here and still had stuff in the moving truck.

The thermostat was disconnected over night so I was sweaty and the shower had to stay dry because it just had tiles replaced. So I had to wash my hair and clean up in the sink while James went to the store to buy me clothes, a new blow drier and curling iron since all my stuff was packed who knows where.

I went in for about 2 hours Sunday and then started my first full day Wednesday. I was very nervous about going back to work there. I really did not want to have to see everyone again. When I left I was anorexic and I definitely am not any more. LOL

Finally, the day came for me to start back. I stayed very quiet and really didn't talk to anyone because I was so uncomfortable. I felt very uncomfortable around the owner. I didn't know what to say or what he was thinking. The first 2 days I worked I completely stayed away from him. It was probably very obvious how uncomfortable I was. I have gotten a little more comfortable but I still avoid talking to him for very long if no one is around. Also when I am in his office I try to stay away from his desk.

Some one always has to stay behind with me while I count money and get the deposit ready at the end of the night. It can be James, the owner, or a man named Juan that is in charge of the guys that work in the car wash. Usually they pawn it off on Juan because after 10 hours of work everyone wants to leave right away. Well the other day the owner came back to work at the end and said he would wait around for me. I am sure it was no big deal but I was all of a sudden so uncomfortable I rushed to get done. I quick locked the safe, grabbed my purse and laptop; and tried to race out the door. The owner started talking away so I tried to talk about work things that would stress him out and make him want to leave. I don't know what he would end up talking about but I for sure did not want him to bring up the problems that happened in the past.

Then Bob came in and started talking so I hurried out the door. He has been perfectly normal with me and we both talk to each other as if nothing happened in the past. I don't feel like it is too uncomfortable to work there. I guess I am just being silly. I am just worried that some day he is going to bring it up and it will be very uncomfortable.

Well the weekday cashier just called to say she wants to come pick up her puppy so I have to go straighten up the house. I can't stand this woman but that is for the next blog with more work updates.

The morning after we got to Racine James had to go into work for awhile. That gave me and the girls time to try to look half way normal given what we had available. James came back from work and we headed off to his dad's house to visit with him. Then off to his grandparents house to pick up the moving truck again. The older woman that owns the house we are renting had started to say that she didn't think the house would be ready right away. She still wanted full rent though. We had called her before we left Arizona and told her that we had to be there and if that meant we had to stay in a hotel if it was not ready then we would be deducting everyday that we could not be in it. When we got to Wisconsin she told us that it would be ready the next day (Saturday) at 5pm.

James' brother-like person (Steve) met us and we headed over to the house. When we got there the owners' son and his wife were still there working. We sat outside for an hour and then James got sick of waiting and started to bring things in the house. They cleaned up what they were doing and got ready to leave. The son then told me that the woman that lived there before just left Friday so they only had Saturday to work on it.

It was a disaster. I was so upset. It was filthy and only half of the rooms got painted. Carpets are stained there were still things left behind in drawers and cupboards. Then he tells me that she will be coming back Sunday to get more stuff that she left in the garage and in the basement. He then said he would continue to work on the house after we move in so that he is not in our way.

As James and Steve started unloading the truck the neighbors came outside. At first I was relieved, they are a middle aged couple with 3 kids and a dog. James recognized the husband as a past bartender from the bar he used to play darts for and he used to work at a car dealership he would buy parts from once in awhile.

They said they just lost their house and had to move here 3 months ago. They then said the youngest is a 12 yr old boy, they have a teen aged girl, and the oldest is a 17 yr old boy. First I saw the youngest. He does not look 12 but I guess they say he is because he is home alone all the time. Then I saw the oldest boy. He is a chain smoker and talks like he is living in the ghetto doing drive by shootings when he isn't rapping. Only problem is that he is a short and scrawny 17 yr old white boy.

Then the mother starts telling me that the house she lives in is owned b y the same woman as the owner of the house we are renting. She then tells me that the woman is racist and said that her son can't listen to rap music. I have come to REALLY hate rap music now after having to hear his for 2 weeks. He plays rap music very loud and all day long. He dropped out of school and does not have a job so he just sits at home blasting rap music.

I helped unload some more stuff but the humidity was killing me. I have been having a hard time breathing outside. I am used to no humidity and elevation over 4,200 feet. So I stopped to have a beer. The neighbors this whole time had been leaning on one of their cars that is all banged up and has no license plate. They just stood there drinking beer watching us. So when I stopped to have a beer they started talking to me again.

I was still trying to be nice. I had been hoping to get along with the neighbors. I made small talk for awhile before they got weird again. The mother tells me that the car is all banged up because the son got mad and stole it. The father then tells me that if you go behind everyone's garages a couple of houses down there is an opening in the fence and it goes to a bar. He continues to add in that at 8pm they smoke pot in the back and then at 10pm the kids go to bed and it is time for the bar. I have come to find out that he smokes pot with the 17 yr old.

At that I decided to go back to unloading the truck. LOL

James thinks it is funny to shock people, so he gives Ally his old pellet gun he still has from when he was a kid, it looks like a little rifle. I always worry someone will think we are bad parents so I reassure them that it is not really a rifle. The father then says that he has 3 felonies so he does not mess around with that stuff. OMG Who are these people that will be my neighbors?

Then the woman that used to live here shows up. She packs stuff up and does a few trips before she comes over to talk to me. She tells me that she is done getting things and to tell the owner that since she did not get her deposit back she is not going to bother to get rid of her stuff. She then says to be careful with the neighbors. She said they just moved in 3 months ago and they had come to her door and asked her if she wanted to do drugs with them. I really am not looking forward to living here.

We are still unpacking and cleaning the house but it is looking better with all of our things in it. The neighbors have started to hide from us now. The owner's son comes by from time to time fixing things and noticed they had a puppy so he made them get rid of it. He knows we have puppies that will be leaving when they are done nursing and is fine with us.

Then the neighbors started screaming at him about some note on their door over a week ago. All he said to us was that is what happens when you don't pay rent on time and your kid is a piece of crap. We had already heard that they were not going to let the kid stay after he turned 18 in a couple months because the lease says 2 adults and 3 kids. So we assume that is what the note said. I hoped it said they are all evicted but they are all still here so no such luck.

The owner has come by a few times knocking at their door but they don't ever answer. They are just weird. I went to the store the other day and left Noelle at home. She said that the father came running out the door after the wife kicking her car and screaming at her. I think they are all smacking each other around. I can hear the kids beating the crap out of each other and screaming from my house. When I look the mom's car is here. Well at least they hide from us. I just have to turn the TV up so I don't have to hear them.

Well, the kids are starting to wake up so I better make tea and breakfast.

Well, I guess I have a lot of updating to do so maybe some time in the future I will get to present day stuff. It took forever for the cable company to get out here to install everything and then I was busy doing papers for work.

We had gotten everything ready to go the day before so all James and my dad had to do was fill the truck. It still took James and my dad 6 hours to fill it up. We almost did not get it all in. We had to stuff it full to the top stacking everything. We got the 26 ft diesel truck thinking we would have extra room but we did not want to get one that would be too small. I had no idea we had so much stuff and that was after the yard sale.

Then the car filled up and we had no room for the suitcases we had set aside for the trip so I only got to change clothes once during the trip and I ended up wearing a baseball hat and no makeup. Yes, that is a big deal to me. LOL

Well after showering, getting dressed and taking off it was already 3pm. James was in a big hurry to get going since we were behind schedule so we still left that day. We drove an hour and then stopped to eat. Then drove another hour and a half and he was too tired so we had to get a hotel room already.

We were wide awake at 2am so we headed out early. Between the dogs, kids, and me drinking caffeine to keep going we stopped about every 2 hours to pee. We got on a weird schedule of stopping at hotels early and going to bed at 8pm and then driving at 2am. We were trying to make up for time we lost the first day but we kept getting too tired to keep driving past 6pm.

Driving at 2am helped with traffic though. The third day I started feeling sick and run down. We started to get stressed and annoyed with each other on top of it. James thought I was just stressed and having panic attacks all day because I kept calling him telling him I needed to make stops because I felt like I could not breath and needed to puke.

By the fourth day James was sick too and realized I really was sick. We spent most of the fourth day rotating driving for 2 hours and then sleeping at rest stops. We were both too tired and sick to drive very long. On top of it all we kept having to dodge storms. There were a lot of trucks flipped over along the way in Iowa. When we got to Illinois the storms were right behind us so we had to keep in front of them.

Finally we hit Wisconsin and just about 1 hour from the end of the trip the storm caught up with us. The interstate was only going 40 mph and it ended up getting so bad I could not see enough to feel safe so I pulled off at a rest stop and sat for 30 minutes until it passed. The windshield on the truck was straight up and down so James could see and continue on. He met me at the hotel.

The trip was finally over at 8pm the 4th day. According to Mapquest it was a 28 hour drive.
We left Tuesday 3pm and got there Friday 8pm. Well, Children are now calling me so I will do more updates later.

Oh yeah, and just my luck the 1st and 2nd hotels internet didn't work. The 3rd I was too sick and just slept, and then the 4th did not have any.