Ok, sorry it's been so long since I made a post. I've been busy settling into my new diggs. I live in 1BR apartment now in Federal Way called Glen Park. It's 5 min from work which is very nice. It has 3 swimming pools, at least one of them is heated (good for winter time). There are also saunas located at each pool facility so you can sit in a nice warm place after taking a cool dip.

Getting ready for Nitrous class this coming Mon. It's a one day course allowing me to get certified for my hygiene license. I have to take a lot of tests to get my full hygiene license because WA does not reciprocity with CA. I have already taken the Hygiene exam and passed. Now I have to take Nitrous, Restorative, and Anesthesia exams to get my full license. Of course it will take time and money to do these things but eventually, hopefully, I'll get it all ironed out. If not, I'll be in trouble and may have to do the unthinkable, like move back to CA.

I've learned that the quality of life in SF Bay Area really isn't that great. I was looking at a 18" sandwich at Winco the other day for $5. It came on a roll with lots of meat, cheese, and lettuce. I said to myself, you can't buy something like this in the SF Bay Area, not a chance. Actually it's not just Winco that has good deals. Even QFC has $2.99 sandwiches with roll, meat, lettuce, mayo and mustard which has been my choice for lunch selection the past week. It would cost almost $3 if I were to purchase the meat and cheese and those items by themselves.

People are also much nicer here in Federal Way than in SF. I'm not worried about traffic as much because if I need to change lanes I'm confident someone won't go out of their way to make sure I can't change over which was a daily occurence in San Bruno. I can't stand it when people sense you are about to change lanes and then they speed up to make sure you can't change over. I do not do this and I hope others don't either. It's really annoying.

I feel like I've lived here my whole life which is nice. I think it's a good fit for me personally and for my career. So far I'm very comfortable and happy living here. It's like living in Yosemite. There are so many pine trees everywhere. It's like outdoor living but you're in a big city.

Some how I lucked out and got in a really good location. There's big stores everywhere very closeby. Within 2 miles there is Fred Meyer, Winco, Costco, Walmart, Big Lots, Home Depot, Lowe's Target, Best Buy, H Mart (sort of like 99 Ranch but bigger, better, and Korean). There are also countless, charming, cute little deli's and eateries all around in the little strip malls. I live in an area that I call apartment row because there's tons of apartments in the general area I live.

Within Glen Park Apartments there are 464 units. Some of those units are 1BR, some are 2BR and some are townhouses. Many families live here so there are kids everywhere. One of the neighbors above me smokes a lot, she's middle eastern or something and annoying. She leaves her cigarette butts in the front each day and I have to kick them to the side other wise I'd be tracking in cigarette matter into my apartment daily.

So far so good as far as noise. The sound proofing is really good and the only time I hear anyone is when they flush toilet. I can hear music sometimes but it's usually someone from outside the apartment complex with their low riders and tinted windows and they are usually friends of the people who live in the apartment.

I met my neighbor who works in the high tech industry. He's a nice man with wife and kid. He told me that the previous tenants were Mexican couple and they just disappeared after a short time moving in. They broke their lease. The previous tenant before them also broke their lease because of job situation or something. And the previous tenant before them also broke the lease. So now I wonder why they all did this?

I think the Feng Shui for this apartment is good and solid. It's definitely older but they have tried to upgrade some of the faucets, knobs, and other items and it does look nicer, but I can tell that they just basically painted over the old and tried to make it look nice, which it does.

I feel like I live in a hotel every day only I don't get room service. The room doesn't feel like a house, it feels like a hotel room. The carpet is a little cheap and I heard my neighbor next to my bedroom for the first time the other day. It wasn't loud, I just have sensitive hearing and he was talking real loud so the sound came through.

The sun comes up early here and sets later than in SF. The sun just came up at 5:30am and twilight will still be here around 8:45pm or so although the sun will set around 7:30 or maybe earlier. The temps at the moment are pretty nice, not too hot or cold. Yesterday had some clouds but it was nice as it shielded the sun. The wind is a gentle breeze which I love. Not harsh like in SF. Also, during summer time the temp is pretty constant and doesn't usually get super hot or cold. I'm sure I could have gone walking late last night and not even worn a jacket because it was so comfortable.

Last night I got food poison. I ate teriyaki chicken bowl and I think I didn't cook the chicken long enough. I should have microwaved it, but don't have a microwave yet. I started getting sick around midnight. I threw up but knew that more would be coming so I drank some Listerine, hoping it might kill the bacteria. Worked like a charm! My stomach calmed down right away and I didn't have to heave anymore. How wonderful! I didn't realize this trick could work so well. Now I can resume my reading duties today because I have to prepare for my Nitrous and Restorative courses coming up in the next week or two. Normally after food poison I feel weak, tired, and dehydrated, but now I feel like I'm just ok, little bit weak, but not too bad.

My cousin is getting married Aug 15 and I'm helping him with the slideshow. It's a lot of work, but I'm happy to help out. I spent all night the other day working on it and I'm pretty happy with the results. That's it for now.