SEA vs. ATL: Which is Home Now??

So thanks to those back in Atlanta whom we bombarded in our whirlwind trip back home - thank you, thank you, thank you! To those of you we didn't get to see, I'm so sorry we didn't get to see you - I feel so unbelievably cliche and pompous in saying so, but I'm sorry we didn't get to hit every hot spot in metro-ATL, but it turns out the city and our family and friends are more wide spread than we thought, not to mention the fact that less than a week is shorter than I would have ever guessed (add to that the insane gas Armageddon and bob's your uncle)!

Just to fill in those in the dark...I tried to surprise everyone back home last Tuesday night with a little bite of completely unexpected Seattle Erika pie: turns out a few bites were prematurely nibbled and all that was left untouched was the rents and gma Decker, but alas those few untouched bites never tasted so good as Tues night. You see there I stood - or shall I say there we stood - Clay and I (albeit nervous was he as he prefers to have previous permission for each such trip, but I knew way better that such a trip was WAY far allowed no matter how unplanned)... KNOCK,knock , knock,KNOCK,KNOCK.....and here she comes to open the door (several texts to Josh gone past to ensure a pizza was well on the way as Clay's tummy was rumble-de-dumpscious)....
I see her open the door,

I see her see me,

I see her...

SCReEeEeEeEeACH!!!!

Yet 15 minutes later my heart still beats entirely too fast trying to slow down to a normal pace to enjoy the moment..... :) SOOOO GREAT!!!! - I GOT YOU!!! :)

and might I add...soooooooooo worth it :)

Sure she'll tell you otherwise, but I was in contact with a third party the entire time and the house looked great, she looked great, and everyone was in town who needed to be. The next morning we got to do the same for grandma D. and I could have gone home a happy girl right then and there. Thanks mom and gma, love you ladies!!! :)

Add to that Clay's family, lots and lots of dearly loved and dearly missed friends, and 2 new amazingly-amazing-angelic, far-too-long-since I've held and not-nearly-enough-time-to-hold babies that I got to meet for the very first time.... OH and the most amazing melt-in-your-mouth queso and pizza to touch my taste buds in 6 months, skies far bluer and clouds far puffier than ever I remember, and a strange mix of the muggy humidity that is all-too-familiar along with the dry drought that I didn't think was possible, the start of a nasty cold, and about 27 bug bites to bring back to Seattle - and my first trip back home was TOTALLY worth it.

So here I am back to my second home of gray skies, staticy radio, cooler weather, my (almost) very own thermostat, TiVo, Microsoft, and a city with the irony of an abundance of gas that we don't really ever use...and I tell you what - I can't really complain in either city. Not a bad life when I have to try to decide which to call home: and just like Clay said as we left Sea-Tac airport headed back to the condo: "can't they both be home"?

Love and miss you all, - e :)

I'm a PC!!! :)

Watch out folks, here comes the biggest kool-aid speech of them all...it all started with with the innocent enough launch of the new Zune and the new Zune software - simply amazing if you ask me. Add to that the company meeting and golly gosh darn it - stick a fork in me, I'm done!

This meeting was like no other - to begin with it was held in Safeco Stadium (where the Mariners play) and over 20,000 employees attended. Seriously - over twenty thousand!!! I guess it's hard not to get pumped up in that environment, but you add to that Rainn Wilson Emceeing (Dwight from The Office), demos from the latest and greatest exciting new products, pyrotechnics, an energetic and inspiring (and yes a little crazy) CEO, and finally some awesome new ads, well I left truly thrilled about my employer. So YES, kids, you are going to have to sit through it now too!

Some of my favorite demos were of course Office 14 and Surface, but something new to me was Mesh (mom - look here - you'll love it! you can sync your pics everywhere in an instant, so easy, so quick - to all pc's in the house, cell phones, digital cameras, tv's, and even digital photo frames! I thought of you immediately when I saw it - I think it was invented for you :).

Now the super-de-doopertie exciting part - the new commercials! They discussed the Bill and Jerry commercials a bit and then unveiled the latest and greatest: I'm a PC!! windows.com. I admit it was cooler on dueling screens about 30 ft. by 30 ft., but still cool! They also showed this older but goodie one for Windows mobile ad here (note the song - I love the song)! Then in MSFT fashion, the meeting ended with free food and drinks and buses back to campus for the eastsiders, while the much cooler seattlites continued to celebrate downtown with a pub crawl back home spreading the word with dozens of "I'm a PC" stickers. (I kid you not - I have even been asked about them since then at my favorite hangout - shy Erika is that excited about this stuff!)

Ok, one last force feed and I promise I'll quit (for now). Love and miss you all, hope to see you all soon!

e :)

Happy Birthday to you....

....Happy Birthday to you....

Happy Birthday Glee Anneigh.....

Happy Birthday to You!!!!!

One day late ;)

I miss you Glee!!! Hope to see you in October, love you and miss you! Hope you had a great day!!!

Georgia Watch Out...

...he's headed back to town. Clay, that is. Just dropped him off at the airport again and I have to admit I'm jealous. I've been planning this whole time to wait until the house sells, but boy 6 months isn't exactly what I had in mind when I first made that plan. :(

6 months seems like a long time, eh?? Sometimes it feels like it was only a month or two ago, but when I stop to think about how much I miss family and friends, or how much I've missed like all the millions of babies everyone is popping out back home, it feels like years have passed without me....not to mention all of the mellow mushroom pizzas consumed, sweetwater beers enjoyed to the last drop, and queso dips slopped up on yummy crispy hole-in-the-wall mexican chips and soft tortillas.....yummmmmm. Man food up here doesn't compare! Oh and the tailgates I've missed!! OHHH and the sun, the glorious poolsides and the Lake boat rides!!! I swear I'm paler than I've been since - well - since my Hewitt days I guess. And contrary to what some might say, pale is NOT the new tan!!!

Sigh....

So everyone treat my clayfus well, redden up his neck for me, and send him back well fed :)

Love and miss you all,
e :)

ps-send back lots of pics with him please!! OH and lots of lots of hugs and kisses!!!

How to insult someone from 3000 miles away...

Anyone want to know how to insult someone from 3,000 miles away? Here's an idea... Offer them less than 75% their asking price on their home, that's how!

WOW. The nerve of some people. Don't get me wrong. I understand a buyer's market, I promise I do! You see, right out of the shoot I had all carpet replaced and the entire outside and downstairs interior repainted all while listing my price 10% lower than market value trying to sell my house "quickly". Pretty damn good I'd say. Right?? Anyone??

Not good enough, eh? FINE. After not selling after 3 months on the market, another appraisal, and lots of additional listings in my neighborhood, I lowered my price an additional 7% AND made a few more improvements. So after all furniture was removed, a few straggling closets had carpets replaced, the final 2 rooms were repainted, and it is practically a new house! So what's left but to what for an offer, right??

HA! Finally the first one landed tonight. LITERALLY less than 75% of my original listing price, less than 70% of the original value....in fact almost the price I originally paid almost 8 years ago. I can't tell you how insulted I am. I have watched shows on tv about snooty buyers who are so insulted by offers that they don't even counter and I was deplored by their smugness.

Yet here I stand. And I won't counter, dagnabbit.

I mean hello people!! I get that's it's a buyer's market, but I'd be better off with a duplicate mortgage payment for another two years than to give in to your offer you rotten stone thrower!

Thanks, but no thanks buddy. And the next time you attempt to make an offer, why don't you think about how horribly awfully awful of a horrible person you are right now and that your first born child might need to be put up for pennies or even 75% of a penny for the next 30 years of his life before you attempt to insult someone who has worked so hard to actually take care of their mortgage and not default like the other irresponsible people in this country who are calling uncle like the other people looking for "change" and seeking "assistance" from the government in their loans or who are running for shelter or chickening out and saying "oops" on their loan so the banks can now sell their house for way less in my neighborhood so that buyers can now buy a home in my neighborhood for half the price of my home even though i am the one who is responsibly trying to sell my home legitimately?????

Ok sorry peeps, I promise not to get back on my high horse for at least another couple of offers - and no telling how many months or years that will take.... ;)

PS-I MISS YOU ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!