Settling in.

Hey all, it’s Jason. It’s been a little over a month since we moved in, and things are going well. Still have a few boxes hanging around the living room, but a majority of our stuff is in its new home. I’ve been doing the commute to Palo Alto for a while now, and I’ve tried a couple of things. The drive down 280S is not bad (little traffic between 8:30 and 10am), but I’m trying not to waste so much gas, so I’ve been driving to the 22nd street Caltrain lately. When I catch the express train, it’s only about 45 min. to get to work—plus I can read on the train—but parking is not always easy, so I’ve missed the express a couple of times (in which case it takes about an hour and a half). Regardless, it’s better than driving, and much cheaper since I got a $100 unlimited ride pass through school.

Quick unrelated aside: Last night I heard a bunch of noise outside that sounded like a parade of cars backfiring. Turns out it was the fireworks display at the Giants game, which we have an awesome view of from our bedroom. We can also see the Bay Bridge, and a little bit of downtown. This is preferable to the other side of the house, which has the view of the corner where a bunch of kids were setting off M80s the other day. Apparently pyrotechnics are popular around here.

One thing we still have to figure out is cable service. We just bought a new TV, and we’re stuck peering through static until we decide to suck it up and sign up for cable. Everyone in the building has Comcast, which does cable, phone, and high speed internet for $33 each if you get all three. If you just get cable, it costs anywhere from $18 to $112. This of course means that we have to figure out if we want digital cable, HDTV, and certain channels. I wish we could just pick and choose channels for like $1 each…sort of like a cable buffet. Ordering internet service is not so critical because we can share with others in the building. We don’t really need a land phone line since Jen and I both use cell phones exclusively, but we can’t buzz people into the apartment with cell phones. So a land line would be nice, but that’s probably exactly how Comcast wants us to think…”Phone and internet will only cost $20 more, might as well get it.” We’ll keep you posted on developments.

I’m still sitting on a collapsible Ohio State chair right now. Can’t wait to get our couch in a month.

Later,
Jason