And we're off.

So, I have like 5 blogs, because it seems my friends go from blogpage to blogpage.. so.. to actually be able to communicate with them, I hath come here. So please stay!

First off, the weather here is amazing. For months after I told people we were moving to Seattle this summer, I heard "Hope you like the rain" .. "Bring your umbrella" etc.. well.. sure, for half the year, its rainy.. but really.. is the rain so bad? In the winter, I'll get rain, while my friends in Nebraska and family in Missouri will be getting snow and ice.. road hazards.. and when I want to see snow, I can go up in the mountains, and skii all over it. Snow is actually fun here.. not a burdon like in Nebraska!

When summertime comes again, I'll be sitting here in 75 degree sunny skys, for a few months straight.. thats right.. I could go swimming EVERY DAY here in the summer.. in Nebraska, you had to worry about storms coming through.. if it lightninged.. you didnt go out and swim.. I can plan anything in the summertime here, with no worries of it getting rained out.. like picnics! I just have to get off my lazy butt and go on one.

I FINALLY have a temporary job.. David's mom works for a place that sells giant industrial fans, and talks to reps who buy the fans all over the US. Theres a place near David's workplace that she is in contact with, and through her, I have a job 3 days a week. It pays 14 dollars an hour.. for easy office stuff.. which I thought was crazy good.. in this area its equivelent to making 9 dollars an hour in the midwest, but shhh, dont let that ruin my joy! The only bill that went up was my health insurance. But amazingly, I pay.. 30 bucks more, for WAY better coverage.. before.. I basically had a 5000 deductible, no copay.. no good stuff.. this one, I have maternity and vision coverage.. stuff I dont really need.. but heck, its just thrown in there with a better deductible and copay and going to specialists etc. It'll do until one day I hope David finally asks that all important question and I will be on his healthcare.. Boeing has amazing benifits!

Speaking of Boeing.. if you didnt know, the union workers went on strike. It affects David in the way that.. well.. they shut down one of the bathrooms in his building.. so the others are a lot busier. Sucks for him, he doesnt enjoy public bathrooms one bit. But anyway. My dad has 25 years experience in maintenence work, and he has to pay a lot for his health insurance through his job (Which is unionized, BTW), he pays the union dues, and he gets about the equivelent of 2 weeks off a year, and one week a year of shutdown time.. usually in the Summer.. not bad eh.. no reason to go on strike there.. he also makes decent money.. lots more than what he made when we were kids.. we were pretty poor folk then.. and now its amazing how lucky mom and dad are to have good jobs with a nice house. They deserve it. Back to Boeing. Boeing workers average pay is about 56,000 a year. 20,000 more than my dads workplace average pay. Coming in on entry level, they get around 36,000 a year, 2 weeks benifits, and 1 week off between X-mas and New Years. After a year, its 3 weeks off, many holidays, and 1 week off between X-mas and New Years. They get free AMAZING insurance. Now.. they are negotiating their contracts.. an 11% increase in pay over 3 years.. thats 40,000 for those entry level people, and thats if they dont get their yearly review raises, or if they get promoted to a level 2.. which they most likely would in three years.. for those who are average pay? That bumps their salary to 62,000 a year.. for a blue collar worker.. and they are STRIKING because thats not enough? They are the top paid factory workers in the country. Some of them (the ones who have been there 20 years and make nearly 6 digit salary) actually said they wanted to go on strike because they needed some time off to go hunting.. leaving those people who have 36k a year.. working at McDonalds so they can pay the bills. Its sad really.

Well, this is a long post.. I've definately got props to give to the skilled pursemaker I find here. She has some pretty good sewing skills, and her blog is a good read. I wish I could make a purse like that! http://angiepie30.blogspot.com/ That niece of hers is a cutie as well!