Yee-haw!

Howdy, y'all! It's official - we are gen-you-wine Texans now! On Tuesday we got Texas license plates for our car (it still freaks me out when I see them) and on Wednesday we got Texas drivers licenses! They won't arrive for another week or so, but as far as TX is concerned, we belong. That's a frightening thought.

Getting my new license was a breeze. I just went to the DMV, gave them some money, read line 5 from the vision test machine (EML5 2DS9 T6IQ or something like that), posed for the camera, and handed over my MN license. Easy!

For Gus, however, it was more of an adventure. Though we didn't realize it at the time, his MN license expired on his birthday - April 28th! Even the nice policeman didn't notice when he stopped Gus for speeding on May 4th. :D But about a week ago Gus happened to look at the expiration date (I'm not sure what prompted this) and discoverd that he was no longer a licensed driver.

When we went to the DMV on Wednesday, we crossed our fingers in hopes that the clerk renewing our licenses wouldn't notice that Gus's had expired. No such luck. Instead of the easy route I took, Gus had to take the written AND driving tests again!! He passed, of course. So now I can let him drive my car again. :)

In other news:

• It has been in the 90s here for the last 10 days or so. The lows at night are in the 70s. Right now - 11pm - it is 79 and there is a gentle breeze. I have the balcony door open and Hilton is sprawled out on the balcony, sleeping. He loves it out there! First thing in the morning, as soon as we get out of bed, he scampers over to the door and meows for us to let him out. :) He spends quite a bit of time out there.
  
  
• I got a raise! I haven't even started working yet (that happens on Tuesday), but I got an e-mail from my boss saying that a proposed pay increase was approved by the provost, so all the teachers in my department are getting a raise, effective immediately. This boosts my expected salary by 26%!!
  
  
• Although the official assignments haven't been made, it looks like I will be teaching two level-3 communication classes this summer term. These classes cover reading, listening, speaking, and vocabulary. Fortunately, the department provides me not only with textbooks to use, but also with lesson plan outlines for the whole term. That makes it seem a little less overwhelming!

We're here!

Just a quick update. We arrived in Denton around 9pm on Sunday evening after a 12-hour drive from Colorado Springs. Since I had already gotten our apartment key, we went directly to our new apartment. While Gus unloaded the truck, I began unpacking. By 1am the truck was empty (except for the piano) so we called it a night.

Monday we hired local piano movers to carry the piano up the stairs and into our apartment. We spent the remainder of the day unpacking.

Tuesday I had orientation all day at the university. While I was there, Gus finished all the unpacking. :)

Wednesday we spent most of the day exploring our new hometown. There is much more exploring to be done, of course, since the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex has a population of 5.7 million, making it the fifth largest metropolitan area in the United States.

I don't officially start work until May 30th, so I have some time to explore, relax, and settle in before I start earning my keep!

Let's recap, shall we?

Here's what the last few months have looked like:

• February 13: Submitted final draft of thesis.
• February 27: My birthday. :)
• February 28: Defended my thesis. Passed!
• March 2: Submitted finalized and signed-off thesis.
• March 3-4: Picked up Budget moving truck, packed, loaded truck.
• March 5: Went to a wonderful party at my parents' place in WI.
• March 7: Left MN.
• March 8: Arrived in CO.
• The remainder of March: Job hunted.
• March 24: Interviewed and signed on with Globelink tutoring company here in CO Springs. Never heard from them again. :)
• April 3-5: In WI for Grandma's funeral.
• April 11: Learned that the University of North Texas (UNT) in Denton (Dallas) was looking for full-time ESL teachers for their Intensive English Language Institute.
• April 15: Submitted application to UNT via priority mail.
• April 26: Interviewed at Pike's Peak Community College. They have no work for me.
• April 26: Got a letter of interest from UNT.
• May 1: Arranged an interview at UNT for May 5th.
• May 3-4: Drove from CO to TX.
• May 5: Had interview at 10am. ReaperCon the rest of the weekend.
• May 8: Drove back to CO. Got a phone call from UNT at 4pm, offering me the job. Accepted the offer.
• May 9: Spent the morning online, looking for apartments in Denton. Drove 1/2 way to Denton in the evening.
• May 10: Drove the rest of the way. Found an apartment. Picked up paperwork at UNT. Picked up apartment key. Drove 1/2 way back to CO.
• May 11: Finished the drive back to Colorado Springs. At paint club in the evening to say goodbye to our friends.
• May 12: We will pack our apartment.
• May 13: We will pick up and load the Budget moving truck.
• May 14: We will drive to TX.
• May 15: We will check into our new apartment.
• May 16: I will attend an all-day orientation at UNT.
• May 17-29: Unpack and settle in!
• May 30: Officially start work.

My head is spinning.