Movin' on up to the East Side

Well, I have tons of posts to get caught up on... and I'd like to get them all done today! It's amazing how backlogged you get without a stable internet connection! Today is Kurt's first day of work (should I have taken pictures? I was still under the influence of my sleeping pill.) and thanks to Google text, I found the library, which has free wifi! I decided to start my catch up for y'all with our move, then go back and start chronologically--this somehow makes sense in my mind. Sorry for not having any real posts the last month or so!
So, Kurt and I went to California for 9 days. We got back into Utah last Tuesday night (9/9), spent Wednesday saying goodbye to friends (those we could get on such a short notice), saying goodbye to Kurt's mom and my wonderful grandparents, picking up our rental truck, and packing it. It really didn't take that long to pack the rental truck, only about 45 minutes, but we weren't really able to start until 11:30 so finally at 12:30 we got to bed. We woke up the next morning at 7, literally jumped in the car or truck, and left for Denver. Kurt drove the truck and I followed. Here are the sights from the trip:

The I-15 through Provo

Price, Utah

Woohoo!

Grand Junction, CO

Vail, CO
Wait.. where's the truck? Well, if you noticed in the Grand Junction picture, we were about to head into a massive storm. It slowed us down quite a bit and so we weren't sure we'd be able to get to Littleton before 5 pm, when our real estate office closed. So Kurt told me to go on ahead, while he went up hills at a speed of about 20 mph. (Oh, did I mention that the cabin to the rental truck leaked? He got soaked during the rain storm.) I continued on at a speed of about 5 to 8 mph above the speed limit. No big deal. I was making good time, when suddenly... I got pulled. For going 8 over. Never mind that the people in front of me were going exactly the same speed, but I think the cop saw an out of state license plate and decided to teach me a lesson. Well, he didn't give me a ticket, thank goodness, but now I was going to barely make it.
I get to Denver, jump on the C-470 (the belt loop). I had texted Google to get directions to our real estate office. They seemed a little odd to me (from my limited knowledge of the area) but I followed them anyway. I got lost. Not just lost, but hopelessly lost in the ghetto, not in Littleton. I had no idea where I was, it was 4:50 and no one at the real estate office was picking up. So what do I do? Being the pms-ing woman that I was at the time, I panicked. I mean, really panicked. I'm a panicker and I recognize that, so I try to control it, especially since it bugs Kurt (he never panics). But when I was only a week away from my monthly visitor, I couldn't control it. I called Kurt, sobbing, and told him that I was lost. I also left a few panicky messages at the real estate office. Kurt ended up getting to the office at 5:10 (he was able to get through and ask someone to wait for him) and I told him to apologize for my hysterical messages. I am chagrined to admit that all happened, but it's part of the story and I never leave anything out if it makes the story better. Ahem. We get to our complex, with our keys, and commenced moving in (after spending about 15 minutes to get the truck into a parking spot). And that's when our wonderful neighbors helped us. I'm still amazed at their readiness to help. We're still in the process of moving in--still looking for a dresser, couch, table and chair, coffee table, and night stand (we've ordered a bed; it's on the way)--so we're still surrounded by boxes and have only camping chairs to sit on. BUT! We are grateful to be here, and are very excited! Yesterday was Kurt's last day of freedom, so we took the light rail downtown and ate at the Cheesecake Factory on the 16th Street Mall. Then, we walked down the Mall and I was able to register to vote. Funny story about that:
Kurt and I are walking down the sidewalk, enjoying the gorgeous 70-something, sunny weather. A guy about our age asks if we're registered to vote. "Why, no!" I exclaim and begin to fill out the paper he hands me. We start talking to him and he tells us why he's doing this (wants to help Obama get elected, yadda yadda) and he tells us where he's from then says, "Of course, I'll probably leave the country for a little while if McCain gets elected." I laugh, and jokingly say, "You know, I feel the exact same way about if Obama gets elected." His friendly demeanor immediately drops and he says, "You don't think McCain will screw this country up even worse? Why don't you like Obama?" "Well, for one, he's a Socialist," I say lightly, as I continue filling out my registration form. Then, he darkly mutters, "This country would be a lot better off if everyone were Socialist," probably hoping I'll argue back. I laugh again, and say, "I disagree with you, but that's ok. Because that's what makes this country so great. I have my opinions and you have yours, and I don't agree with yours, but I respect your right to them." At this point, he stopped all conversation. Having learned we were Republicans, he didn't want to be nice to us and seeing that I didn't want to argue, he couldn't argue with us, and so he could think of nothing better than to be quiet. I think it's sad that he couldn't be nice to someone of differing political views. I guess it's election year after all.