A post in *aStErIsKs*

*For every day I choose to NOT drive to work, I get paid an extra $3.25 for the day. Take notes, Chicago. Shoot-- if I'd had that incentive last year when I didn't OWN a car-- it would have made biking that much more rewarding! I love my new green employer.

*Day two of orientation was... rocky. I woke up that morning feeling crazy nauseous but decided to suck it up and go (via walking) to work anyway. Through the morning talk I got the chills and sweats, then on an afternoon tour, ended up in an observation room in the Emergency Department after essentially fainting (black vision, sounds like underwater...). After three hours of begging them to not admit me (I don't have insurance this month and that is not a bill I can pay) they finally sent me home in a taxi (praise them!). I immediately found my bed, called my dad and lost it, then fell asleep. It was a night of febrile dreams, sweat, dry heaves, ridiculous nausea and dizzy attempts at hydration. I spent Wednesday on my couch in and out of consciousness. I felt a lot better on Thursday, but the hospital has a 24 hour fever free policy that forbade me from going there. Good news is that as quickly as that episode came, it left, and today I went to work without any episodes. What an icebreaker, eh?! m-o-r-t-i-f-y-i-n-g.

*My apartment is slowly looking like an apartment. I have a couch, thanks to Craigs List. My focus is now the spare bedroom. It should have a place for potential guests to sleep, so I'm looking for a bed. And a bed for ME, seeing as how I am borrowing one right now.

*I haven't gotten to explore much yet-- thought I did run on the Burke Gilman Trail once and enjoyed it. The hills really ill my knees... so that will be interesting. I'm looking forward to a mild winter that will allow me to stretch my legs a little.

*I'm ridiculously nervous to drive anywhere, though, out of pure fear of repeating the episode of getting lost that happened on my way back from dropping my mom off. That's a quarter tank of gas I'll never get back. Bah!

*Everyone I've met here has been ridiculously nice and that is SO ENCOURAGING and exciting. Maybe I made a good decision... the first time...! (knock on wood...)

*I'm still looking for a gym. Haven't looked super hard this week because I haven't been able to walk 20 feet without feeling light headed.. but that is atop my TO-DO list for the weekend.

*I feel like I am in school again with all the 'online learning modules' to complete and notebooks of information that I'm "responsible for" I've received in the past few days. Gulp.

*Loving Seattle!!! Pictures later.