Cody's New Job, and my career

While Cody was visiting, he tried to find work in Vegas so I wouldn't have to be alone here until next June. Fortunately, the local union here is really hurting for experienced riggers. He had an interview today, and got a job with the union here from December to June. He really lucked out, the union here has 3000 people!!!!

Before Cody came out here, he made it to Arapahoe Basin with his friends for opening day. The only run that was open was the run behind him in this pic. Notice the grass everywhere else but the run. Cody was telling me he was falling and falling, and having a tough time getting used to it. He noticed about halfway through the day that the run was a blue (instead of the bunny hills designated as green that we are used to boarding). He was pretty sore for a few days, but he said it was well worth it.

Although Cody would rather be snowboarding in Colorado, he is a great husband and was more than happy to be here with me now that he has a job. The good thing is, he can have a union card here and in Denver. Denver slows down in January until April, so things are working out great for him. :)

As for me, I have been working a lot (over 50 hours last week, not including the drive). I love being an inspector on the construction site, I truly feel that this is the job for me. I would love to stay in construction...as long as they keep putting me on Nevada jobs (highly unlikely, but possible). The only thing is, it is very difficult to be away from Cody and my family and friends. It is also difficult to keep relocating all the time. In the past year, Cody and I have lived in 3 different apartments!!! That is a lot of moving. I have some serious career decisions I need to make, and soon. My boss is awaiting my answer as to whether I want to be a designer or stay in construction for awhile. I am hoping the answer will be clear to me soon.

Thanks for stopping by, and hopefully I will get back to a regular blog schedule soon!

Before and After...

Sorry...it's been awhile since I have posted. As usual, I have been busy working a ton. Also, Cody has been visiting for about a week and a half. When Cody got here, he was amazed at how I had been getting by with just a 10" tv. and a couch. and thats it.

The first night he was here, I decided to inflate the air mattress so we wouldn't have to share the couch. Little did I know, the cats had popped the mattress with their claws, so we were sleeping on the floor after the first couple hours. Then we were trying to share the couch. then sleep on the floor. then back to the couch... you get the idea

The next morning, we got dressed and immediately bought a mattress. A much needed improvement. :)

When it came time for me to work on Monday, Cody got restless and needed something to do. What better to do in the Vegas area but shop? Needless to say, I called him about halfway into my day and asked him what he was up to. He said "Oh nothing, just playing Mario Kart." I was thinking, hmmmm, we don't have anything to play MarioKart with. So I asked him how he was doing that? "Oh," he says, "I bought a Wii." (like it was nothing)

Then I got to thinking even more, and there were no hookups for a Wii in that 10" tv. So of course, he bought a 40" flatscreen while I was at work. LOL

I guess I can't complain, it is a Sony Bravia 1080p tv, and we needed a new tv anyway. So scroll down to see what the apartment looked like before Cody got here. Here are the 'after' pictures.

The Sealy mattress we bought, we got a great deal on it.

The couch. As you can tell, I love blankets :) And the mess? That goes with working 12+ hours a day.


The sweet tv and tv stand we bought. A fantastic improvement :)
We had to buy the tv stand, when I came home the day Cody bought the tv, he had it sitting on that little wooden end table that the 10" tv had been sitting on (scroll down to previous post to see what I am talking about). Just slightly unstable lol

Here is the kitty ledge so the cats can look out the window (as you can tell, Magic loves it so much, he prefers the carpet lol). This is their birthday present, the kitties turn 7 this Friday!


The apartment feels more like home now, and it won't be so bad when Cody goes back to Denver this weekend. Now if only I could get the yappy dog downstairs to quit barking 16 hours a day/night.

Life in Nevada

I finally got to try an In-N-Out burger, there is one about 2 miles from the apartment. Honestly, I don't know what all the hype is about. It tasted better than McDonalds, but I think Culvers is better.


Here is my fancy setup, lol. I have a tiny tv and the blue chair now serves as the DVD Player table.

Here is the bathroom, it is HUGE. I know Magic will love it because there is tons of counter space, and he loves to sit on the counter while I get ready in the morning.

Obviously, this is the kitchen (don't mind the crap laying everywhere). This place has a lot of cabinet space, which we will need once all of our stuff is moved out here.

And here is the living room. Check out the couch we are in the process of paying off. It is really squishy and comfortable, but I am not the biggest fan of the color. I was originally planning on just renting it, but by the time we head back to Denver, it will be one payment from being paid off. So we figure, why not keep it?

Here is the apartment complex. It is beautiful. Notice how green the grass is? I was wondering how they keep it so manicured because I haven't seen sprinklers come on, or seen any lawnmowers. I found out yesterday when I got the mail.... it's astroturf! That's very smart seeing as how they have a huge water crisis here. Lake Mead is extremely low, and that is where the Las Vegas area gets their water from.


Every time I park my vehicle anywhere, the second I park, a dragonfly always lands on the antennae. I don't know why. Anyone know why they are so attracted to car antennae?

Here is my drive to work. I get up at 4:30 am every day I work, and on my drive in to work I always see the sunrise with mountains in the background and water in the foreground. There are some breathtaking sunrises here. Thought I would share one with you :)

Adapting

So far so good in Nevada. It has been really hot here in the past few weeks (reaching 102 every day), until yesterday. It has been overcast the past couple days, and barely reaching 90, PERFECT! It is supposed to stay like that for the next week, which is great because I will be outside inspecting for about 8 hours a day. The contractor decided to go with four 10 hour days a week, so I get every Friday off. I definitely need that day off though, because I have to get up at 4:30 every day now, and I am not a morning person. The drive to work takes an hour, so my days are pretty long. I usually have just enough time to come home and eat dinner and talk with Cody before I go to bed.

I finally went to a Casino today: Green Valley Ranch. It is really nice, I love the atmosphere there. I am keeping out of trouble though, and not gambling too much. :)

I am so excited for my first trip back to Denver! I am leaving next Friday, and I will be picking up the kitties and moving them out here. It will be nice to have some company in my apartment.

Thats all for now!