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California Update

We sold the house in Georgia for slightly less than we had hoped at the end of May, and everything was shipped out here and put in large storage unit whilst we looked for a house. We were not looking forward to emptying it! However, thanks to a wonderful friend (the wife of one of Dick's podcast buddies) and her church group, and some other friends who all turned up one Saturday morning - it was all emptied and unpacked in just one day! It took a little longer to put it all in its place, but it was a great start. Surprisingly, we actually have fit almost everything in the house. The clear outs we did before we left were worth it!

The house itself is only about 3 years old, and not really what we originally had in mind, but turned out to have everything we wanted. It is 1800 sq ft (a bit larger than we thought too), has three bedrooms, and is two storys. Downstairs the floors are wood, and upstairs they are carpet- the complete opposite of Lakeshore Drive. The downstairs living room is open plan, and has a formal dining room tucked away so that no one can see all Dick's stuff, (it is now a library and an office), and a modern kitchen that looks out onto the perfect sized garden ie concrete patio and lawn, with a border that needs some work. The front and back lawn take 10 minutes to mow, and that makes Dick very happy, even though he has to do it every two weeks. It grows so quickly with all the sun and the watering system.

Pepper is also a very happy dog- she has just about lived out there all summer, despite the heat. We have a gazebo so she can be in the shade, as well as a bed for her in the garage which is very cool. We have to force her to come in at night! There is also a small park around the corner from where we live, and she happily plods (very slowly) around there three times a day.

The master bedroom upstairs is big and bright and on the back of the house. The ensuite bathroom has a large deep bathtub (hooray!) as well as a separate shower, and a walk-in closet. The second bedroom is perfect visitor size (hint hint), and the small bedroom is now known as the "media room" - set up as a recording studio and skype room- Dick's territory :-)

The double garage has enough storage space and fits both the cars and Dicks' motorbike, as well as all four of our bicycles. Can you see why we like our house?

Ok, so that's the house. It is in Morgan Hill, and I think I've already said why we like it here- and we still love to be able to walk to local restaurants.

I started looking for a job in May and after my second job for a temp agency, was offered a job. I really enjoy my job as it is so varied. The office is in downtown San Jose on the 16th floor of a very new building and the views are spectacular- we even have a roof top patio- very nice. I get to work by riding my bike to the train station, (Caltrain) and then get the train directly with my bike into San jose- about 35 minutes, and then ride my bike to the office. I even have a bike locker in the garage under the building. Not a bad commute :-)

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