Helloooo Key West!

We are here!  We made it!  And believe it or not, this week is the first chance I've really had to catch my breath in a manner that feels more comfortably like my 'old self' again.  My old pleasant, cheerful, relaxed self.  Let's just say that this particular move was by far the most challenging, stressful, and exhausting move Chop and I have made together as a couple, but we managed to survive without either begging for divorce or jumping off the 7-mile bridge that separates the Lower Keys from the Middle.  It was tempting, though.

So, really?  We're in Key West, get over ourselves... right??

Let me entertain you with a quick recap:

Day One:

1.  Despite our addiction to yard sales, we still rolled on the island with too ... much ... crap.  Already feeling overwhelmed.
2.  Chop chased by crazy land crab first night in town.  He swears it was after his blood.

3.  Attempted late dinner on rooftop overlooking-the-marina Thai Island with cranky and tired 2-year old.  Grandma entertained him by wearing cloth napkin and sunglasses on her head.  Desperate times equals desperate measures.  Brought fabulous feast back to Navy Lodging in to-go boxes. 

Day Two Plus:

4.  Picked up key to house.  Completed walk through.  Promptly discovered that shower ran either scalding hot or freezing cold, dishwasher flooded kitchen floor, back door lock was jimmy-rigged, and cable wires had been severed in our hard-to-reach neighbor's attic.  Took one week to get a reasonable shower.  On the flip side, we now know all the maintenance staff on premises.
5.  Filled up house with all our worldly possessions; found out our free base storage option is no longer available.  Sh*t.  Do we really need Christmas decorations this year?
6.  Decided to keep pooch in kennel through the weekend.  Suspected UTI from four days of traveling.  Staff at Pampered Pet rocks.  Wonderfully attentive and helpful until we could bring said pooch home.

Day Three:

7.  Interviewed for job at Sigsbee Charter first thing in the morning.  Good thing I found fantastic new supersonic strength deodorant that smelled pretty.  No shower again.
8.  Babysitter arrives at 6pm to utter chaos.  She had fair warning.  We loved her for being so daring. 
9.  Met Key West friends at our first official "Conch Tale Hour" at the Galleon Tiki Bar.  I love these people.  Love them.  They loved Chop.  They loved his mom.  I can't even explain the feeling of being met with wide open hugs, kisses, and "welcome homes".  I think we will live here until we're old and gray.

Day Four:

10.  Found poisonous fang-toothed Bufo toad snooping around our front door.  Maybe dramatic to reference sharp teeth, but they are poisonous beasts.  And ugly.  Prodded it for reaction.  Nothing.  What a bore.

11.  Meandered over to Alonzo's Oyster Bar for half-priced appetizers, cold la-la drinks, and dinner.  Little conch boy behaved beautifully.  Stuffed our faces and rolled back to the house. 

Day Five:

12.  Offered a teaching job!  Accepted!  I wanted to cry.  The maintenance man celebrated with us. 

Day Six - Eighteen:

11.  An unpacking blur!  But ... there was a lunchtime key lime martini at the White Tarpon somewhere in the middle that took the edge off.  Not to mention the company of two fabulous ladies.  Oh, and brand new neighbor Ashley had a brand new baby boy named Fin. 

Seriously, it truly has been one heck of a flurry these past couple of weeks.  I think I'm only now beginning to catch up on emails and voice messages, and I've already chastised myself for missing a birthday.  J, I love you!  However, despite early spikes in blood pressure, we've made an incredible amount of progress since day one.  Chop is already on his second trip back up to Virginia since we've moved, and the Navy is keeping him busy.  To say I am grateful to be employed by the school I've been following so closely for a year is a stark understatement, and our house finally looks and feels like a home again.   

Over the next couple of weeks, we plan to start enjoying and exploring more of this beautiful island we now call home.  Seeing the sunsets.  Getting on the water.  Strolling about some of the quiet back streets that connect this paradise into a singularly unique community.  One Human Family.  That's the motto here.  However, I think they forgot to include the roosters.

"Rooster Republic" courtesy of John Hartung