I managed to get the server back fully online, a whole month earlier than I thought I would. The temporary housing has better internet than I thought it would. I was not even sure if there would be any connection, let alone one that would let me setup and get the server going. I am not sure about speeds as of yet. I have not had much of a chance to do testing, but it seems fast enough. At this point something is better than nothing!
Packing out of the apartment in West New York was a very weird feeling. I always knew that I would be leaving someday, and I actually ended up being there longer than I had planned. I was so nervous about it I hardly even slept the night before. I knew that I was ready, but I kept thinking about all the things that went wrong in the move out from AZ, and I did not want that to happen again. Other than the cold everything went smooth as silk! When the packing day first started showing on the five day and week away weather predictions it was suppose to be in the 40s range, it ended up in the 20s and I think even down into the 10s. The hardest part was I had to leave all the doors open so there was only the bathroom where I had Arwen locked up that was warm enough. Everything managed to fit into the truck, barely! the packers were amazed at how well I had managed to fit everything into the apartment. All I kept thinking is I can not wait until I have a nice two bedroom again!
Flying out was rather uneventful. I was pleasantly surprised at how well Arwen did. When she flew last time the vet gave her tranquilizers to calm her down, sometime between policy changed and pets are no longer allowed to be tranquillized to fly. Those who have met her know how easily she freaks out, she will not deal with anyone but me, and will hide as soon as strangers show up. And here I was dragging her into a place full of them! The only real excitement on the flight was for the landing. The bay area had the biggest storm in 20 years still hitting it and we flew right into it, the flight went from smooth, to roller coaster. The plane was being blown up down and side to side, just a tad freaky. It reminded me of the jumper flights between Flagstaff and Phoenix, or San Francisco and Sacramento. We started coming in for the landing and instead of the stewards/esses collecting all the final garbage they told us to stick it into the seat pocket as they were not going to be able to come down the aisle. Then all of a sudden the turbulence stopped, the stewards/esses hurried through and picked everything up and we came in for an easy landing.
Getting to CA was rather a shock. I have been into San Jose a few times over the years for various reasons, but this time I was coming home. I have also lived up in Sacramento area, but that was for a mission and I knew exactly how long I had. This time, it is all unknown! A good thing, I have always dreamed of this, however a weird thing. I got the rental car and drove to the temporary apartment. I knew it would be something nice as Apple is usually pretty good about these kinds of things, but even still I was surprised. The place is VERY nice! It is a large two bedroom, and it feels rather weird having so much space after living in a tiny one bedroom for so long. I am sure my stuff would all fit in here and make it feel full, but with just the provided furniture, I am rattling around.
The new job is amazing! I can not talk much about the details, but it is the perfect fit for me. A bit of hardware tinkering, some coding, some investigation, and a lot of fun. It will be an intense job, and will be a lot of work, but it looks like I will enjoy it to no end. Everyone I have met so far in typical Apple fashion is very nice and considerate, always willing to help. I even get a real office with a window out onto the center of Apple campus. WOW! The hours are very flexible, which feels weird after working retail for so long. I generally show up somewhere around 10, and leave somewhere around 7. As long as I make it in by 11 and get my work done, the exact hours are up to me. Of course I have meetings to go to, but so far there does not seem to be much of those, but then it is my first week. My new boss is very nice and I can tell he has high expectations, but is very willing to help and explain things. I am sure it will all be for the good, it has been a long time since I had a job that was actually challenging in more ways than just frustrating. Ahhh the days of no more yelling customers!