Say hello to Studs, my new laptop, everyone. He is a dell that will hopefully not break like my third to last laptop that was also a dell. Studs saves me from needing to throw my old laptop through the window because of that awful sound it made with the broken fan. So everyone is happy!

So no job yet, sadly. I took a 'break' this past week from job hunting and will begin again on Monday. I'm going to go after more of a part time job I think. Starbucks, dog walking, that sort of thing and see what happens.

All my stuff from Chicago is here! I can't tell you how happy it made me to sit at my desk and my blue oversized chair. I missed my things more than I thought. My apartment actually feels like a home now that I've unpacked.

Writing is going slow, but I'm not worried. I think that will change now that I really feel settled. And feeling settled is wonderful. :)

I saw My Sister's Keeper yesterday and was extremely disappointed in the movie. I absolutely loved the book and the changes they made didn't make any sense at all. Ah well. Harry Potter is the next big movie I'll probably see. Wonder if they're selling tickets yet...

So how are all of you?

- The whirring noise of doom was my fan, according to the Geek Squad. They did something called a 'squeaky clean,' and my fan is indeed broken. And it will cost about $300 to get it fixed. Not willing to pay that, considering I saw laptops selling for $500. So for a quick fix, I'm just going to live and let live. If the noise starts, or my computer gets too hot, I'll simply turn the computer off for a bit. And I'll start looking for some good sales and buy a new computer eventually.

- Kerry's LA Road Trip, Part II: Revenge of Route 66 has been called off. Someone suggested a moving pod, and it turns out that it is more cost effiecent for me. The pod will be packed next Wednesday and I should hopefully have my stuff in two weeks.

- I just got word that I have a second interview for a part time receptionist's position at a law firm. The hours are perfect, 8:45am - 1:00pm. I would really like this position, because I would have some money coming in, and then I'd be able to look for another part time job, or a different internship. Wish me luck!

My computer is making the whirring noise of doom!

*frantically backs up everything on computer*

or better known as:

Kerrymdb's LA Road Trip, Part II - Revenge of Route 66!

Well, I'm settling the details now, but it looks like I'll be flying back to Chicago early next week, getting all of my stuff from storage, putting it into a uhaul, and then driving back to LA later in the week. This time, I'll be driving myself, instead of with my mom. I had hoped to go with a friend, but that fell through. My mom was nice enough to offer to drive with me again, but we'd have to wait until July, and I can't wait that long.

So this should be interesting. I now have to buy a plane ticket, reserve a rental truck, have my parents talk to the neighbor's teenage boys about paying them to move my stuff from storage to rental truck. (I'll happily pay them $50 a piece not to do it myself...)

But then when it's all here, I'll be settled. I just know things will get better then, when I don't still feel like I'm living in two places at once. I'm really looking forward to this.

Alright, fellow So You Think You Can Dance fans. What do we think about the top top twenty? My favorite is definitely Evan. Yours?

And I need suggestions, people! Gimme your favorite movies, televisions shows, etc., so I can add them to my queue. I am going to get my 8.99 a month value here!

Officially taken over my flist. I'm going to have to start filtering, cause it's getting past the point of crazy. Even when the last Harry Potter came out, my flist wasn't this cluttered.

And in other news, my car, my beautiful, bought just over a year ago car, went to the shop this morning. It's going to have it's third, yes, that's right, THIRD new bumper put on. There was the original, than the new bumper that got put on in February when a high schooler backed into it, and now a new one for my bad curb judgment, and falling off a curb when I was backing out of a driveway, causing the bumper to slightly separate from the car.

Such is life...

So yesterday I was driving in Burbank, by the NBC studios, on my way to Target. The traffic on the street is moving slowly, which is odd. I look ahead and see that someone is driving a really old car. Like, this car looks like it's from 1910 or something. And because it's so old, it's moving slowly.

Well, I end up passing the car (I'm in the right lane, the car is in the left) and it turns out to be Jay Leno of all people driving the car. He was just by himself, no camera crew or anything like that.

A little more interesting than the Victor Garber sighting I had at a grocery store a couple of weeks ago!

Well, I've no been living in my apartment for just over a week. Today, the bestest thing ever happened. My mattress was delivered. Tonight, I am going to sleep on a real mattress for the first time in seven weeks. I can't wait! Is it bedtime yet?!?!

And for those of you interested, here are some pictures. The place is pretty empty right now, but will get better next month when I get the rest of my stuff.

( Chez Kerry )

I really like my place. Assuming I get a job somewhere in the area, I can see myself staying here for a long time, which would be nice.

I'm sending out notecards to family and friends with my new contact information. One thing I'm determined to do is send out more mail, such as quick little notes, instead of e-mail and the like. I even bought some nice new cards to motivate me.

Well, I have a pile of cards that I've collected over the years and I went to use one, and I realized that it's from 1999!

Perhaps I should use what I have before I go out and buy new things...

So I just re-watched Labyrinth tonight. Man, I love that movie. Anyone besides me think that world needs to be revisited? A grown up Sarah's child gets taken by the Goblins and she has to go back to the Labyrinth. And if she's grown up, she and Jareth could act on the UST that was in the first movie duke it out for control of the Goblins.

Or perhaps that should be filed under 'future fanfics.'

Except to use my shiny new icon. It cracks me up.

Oh, wait, I do have a purpose! Anyone on my flist watch 'So You Think You Can Dance?' I've never seen it before until this season. I really like it!

I just installed the internet! Yay! I'm back online. *pets internet*

Good: My sister's boyfriend getting off of work early today, meaning there was time to move my stuff over to my new apartment today instead of waiting until Saturday.

Bad: Internet isn't being set up until Wednesday. Gah!

I'm going to have very limited internet access until Wednesday evening, so I'll see you all then!

Or, kerrymdb's new profile and theme. I've been spending more and more time at various 'shipper' communities, so I decided that I should celebrate that fact.

So go check out the shiny new header on my LJ page. These are my eight favorite ships. Can you name them all?

And in other news...

I got the apartment! I sign the lease tomorrow. :)

So I realized I haven't made any updates about what's going on in kerrymdb's life lately. I've no been in California for a little more than a month. And I'm right about where I thought I would be, with the exception of writing.

I got word on Tuesday that I was accepted for a pretty cool internship that I applied for. It's for a Visual Effects company, and it's a learning internship, not a 'go get my coffee' internship. Three days a week I'll be in front of a computer for eight hours a day learning all the tools to be a visual effects artist. It might possibly lead to a full time job in a couple of months, but if it doesn't, it's giving me the skills to get a job somewhere else.

But, because it's a internship, and not a paying job, I still have to find a part time job of some sort. I'm leaning towards finding a job at a front desk of a hotel. I have experience as a front desk supervisor, so hopefully I can get a job pretty quickly.

Then I think I found an apartment. I saw it on Tuesday and the landlord seemed pretty cool. Since I don't have a paying job, I offered to pay two months rent instead of just one to start and that seemed to do the trick. It's a single, which is basically a studio with a separate kitchen. What's really cool is that it has a huge walk-in closet. Big enough for my clothes and a sewing nook. I'm waiting for the guy to run my credit, and as soon as he does, I'll be able to sign the lease and stop sleeping on a couch!

Like I said before, the only downfall in this is writing. I haven't written one word. Not a single sentence since I've been out here. That's basically because my days had been devoted to finding a job/apartment and then at night, my sister and her boyfriend would come home and watch TV all night. I just can't write with the TV on. I've tried. But luckily, this dilemma will be solved once I have my own place.

So that's life at the moment!

I saw the movie again last night and thought a more well reasoned review was in order. Thoughts are behind the cut. Beware of possible spoilers in the comments.

( Are you out of your Vulcan mind? )

Just came back from the Star Trek movie. I loved it! I was really worried, but it ended up being fantastic. Got a little tired of the fast moving cameras, but other than that, it was great.

And now I have the urge to write some fanfiction about a pairing that I did not expect, but absolutely loved...

So I've now sent out a total of 67 resumes and haven't gotten a single interview for a paying job. I've had three interviews for internships. (I'm averaging about one a week...) But nothing that would actually pay me money.

It feels like all I'm doing is looking. Looking for a job, looking for a place to live, looking for a writer's group... I knew coming out here when I did, in this crappy economy, that it would be hard. But I'm tired of looking. I would much rather be working!

Even if just one thing could fall into place at this point, I'd be happy...