Update

I know I haven't really been updating this as often as I thought I would be or would perhaps like to do.
Part of it is that I've honestly been busy, and part of it is that this "adventure" has really turned out for the worst and I honestly feel like it's been a huge mistake to move here.  My job is slowly getting better, but every other aspect of my life has suffered for it.  I guess my bank accounts are looking better also, and I don't worry about money as much as I used to (I still do, but in a different way).
My grandmother passed away in November and my parents will be out of the country (and out of contact for the most part) until February.  I feel bad missing out on her funeral, and I also feel bad that the last time I saw her was in 2008.  I used to talk to my parents quite often, but after an argument in October we don't talk much.  I saw them for a few hours before Thanksgiving and since they've been in Taiwan we've talked once.  I've tried to Skype them more often than that but they never pick up the phone.  Not sure why all this bugs me so much.
I spent the holidays out of state, which was a really nice holiday.  At least I thought it was.  The night before I came back to Dallas my boyfriend and I had a huge argument which left me thinking our relationship was not as good as I thought it was.
Classes started last week; I'm taking Web Technologies and after this class I will have two more before I graduate.  I'm pretty excited about this class as it seems 'lighter' and less intense than my last few classes.  The professor seems cool and I hope this class will be a lot of fun.  At least I have a good excuse now to learn Perl.
I ran into a neighbor walking her dog while I was out walking my dog; we exchanged numbers and hung out at the dog park yesterday.  So I feel good that I'm slowly making some friends.  I also hung out with a colleague on Friday and one of the people in my tango class friended me on Facebook.  So at least my social life is looking promising!
A lot of people ask me what I don't like about Dallas.  I can't really sum it up in a few words.  The culture here just doesn't fit my style or personality.  That is what I usually end up saying.  But it goes a lot further than that.  The under-the-radar racism and sexism here really disturbs me (A DFW TSA "customer service" representative said, when I complained about a female TSA agent with 'dark hair', "Oh, so it was a black woman".  BTW his name is Chuck and you can reach him at 469-948-1828). Dallas' rampant consumerism and materialism irks me (although is really nice if you want to go shopping).  I still get nervous driving on the roads here.  Driving here is just an exercise in exhaustion for me.  It's not that I don't know where I'm going most days, it's the fact that everything is so spread out.  I have to drive at least 10-15 minutes to get most places I want to go.  It's just a fact.  I don't think moving will help either. (Well, moving out of state may help, but that's not really the point) I find the Texan accent grating and lazy in most cases, and my name gets mispronounced/misspelled as "Diana" more frequently than not.  I could go on.
I've found very few things to be happy with Dallas.  I've found great tango instructors, a good masseuse, and I think Central Market is fabulous.  I like that I can have a dog here with minimal fuss.  Cost of living is cheaper here, so I can save more easily.  But none of this is stuff I really wax poetic on, except for perhaps my tango instructors.

And I Thought California's DMV Was Slow. . . . .

Well, I got my driver's license yesterday.  Still pretty grumpy about that.

I tried to get it over lunch but the guy said there was a 3 hour wait, so I picked up the forms I needed and came back after work (he said that their slowest time is right before they close at 5).  I showed up at 4:20 PM and still had to wait over an hour.  I was pretty upset by that.  At that point they should have paid me or waived their stupid licensing fee.

At least the lady at the counter was nice.  When she saw my old license she mentioned she was going to California for the holidays and remarked how much she was looking forward to it.

They confiscate your old driver's license and give you a piece of paper that says they have it now.  Kind of depressing.  I don't know why they don't just hole-punch and return it like other states do.

So.  I guess in two weeks I'll receive it in the mail, although with my luck it will get lost or whatever.  I've been having kind of spotty service with the USPS here, although the mail carrier seems nice whenever I see him.

The Car, The Dog, and The Law

I am not having a good track record with the po-lice today.

First of all I get pulled over for speeding on my way to my 2nd work site today.  OK, yes, I was speeding, but so was pretty much everyone else.  Going the speed limit on that road would force you to be going at least 10-15 mph slower than the flow of traffic.  At least he wasn't a huge jerk about my not having a TX driver's license yet, and didn't cite me for that.  He did give me a citation for the speeding though, which I suspect is going to cost me.

Secondly, I was taking a walk with the dog this afternoon, when some dude wearing civilian clothes in the complex courtyard flashes his badge at me and asks how long I had been out walking my dog and if I heard a gunshot recently.  Why Officer, I have been out here for around 20 minutes and no, I did not hear a gun shot recently.  "Well I did and I already called for back up" he says as he storms off.

Walking away, I realize I did hear something that could have vaguely been mistaken for a gunshot: some dude was beating a couch cushion into dust-less submission on his balcony.  It didn't sound like a gun shot to me at the time even though it made both me and the dog look around.  I have heard gun shots in the neighborhood before and this didn't sound like it.  Hmm.

Do I go back and point out to this cop with an attitude/power-trip/disadvantaged-height-complex that he just may have mis-heard what he thought was a gun shot?

No.  No I do not.  I've had more than my yearly dose of talking to the police, and I really don't want to talk to them no more.

Why You Should Never Talk To The Police

Detour Review: Sushi Sake

Who would have thought there would be a good sushi restaurant in this land-locked town?

Anyway, I've been to this place twice, and the food is fantastic.  It's very Japanese without being kitschish.  The greeters, waitresses and chefs are friendly and accommodating.  I chatted up the sushi chef at the bar once, and watched him put together two matching Nama-chirashi boxes.  Absolutely beautiful!

I recommend getting the Spanish Mackerel sashimi.  They bring it out tossed in a light dressing; after you gobble that up they will ask if you want the rest of it (the skeleton, fins, and remaining meat on the fish, which until this point is a garnish) deep fat fried - say yes.  It's fantastic, and about as Japanese as you can get.

One new thing I tried here was sea urchin sushi.  Its fatty butteryness is a new favorite.

I've heard from several other people that this is the best sushi restaurant in town, so I'm glad I didn't have to look far and wide for my sushi fix.  They have tempura, teriyaki, and other standard Japanese fare if you don't like raw fish.

Sushi-Sake Japanese Restaurant
2150 N Collins Blvd
Richardson, TX 75080
(972) 470-0722

Driver's License Application

Yes, I know I said this was a 3-step process.  I've been busy, and as I'm not wild about being in Texas I'm kind of in denial about getting my driver's license here.

Anyway, I glanced at the website today.  It looks like I'll need:
Passport
Social Security Card (crap, where did I put that?)
Texas car registration, proof of insurance
Driver's License Fee of $25 (they say you can pay with a credit card although I'd just bring cash - I've heard that they can be particular about personal checks also)

If you have a valid out-of-state license you bring your current license in (I think they take it from you, which is another reason why I'm reluctant to bring it in) and then all you need to do is pass a vision exam.  No written or driving exam required.

Then just fill out the form and present all that to a DPS office.  Yeah.  I'm gonna get right on that.  :(

What is Up With That?

I guess the newness of living in a new place as eroded and become the despondency of finding oneself in a place where one truly doesn't fit in.   I pretty much dislike most aspects of life here, from the crappy drivers to the yokel attitude that's pervasive here (even on the radio).  I was pretty disappointed with the concert hall as well.  Even with most things being "bigger in Texas", the symphony concert hall isn't big enough for the whole orchestra; the piano is squeezed into one of the "entrance areas" next to the stage.

Anyway, the latest of the things I've gotten grumpy about is the obstinate medical receptionists wanting all your info before you even show up at the office.  (And then of course you get to fill out all those forms again!)  I was trying to schedule my annual check-up today (which I'm actually late for, but I digress).  My health insurance company has stayed the same but I know the numbers aren't quite the same.  Anyway, after getting all this information from me (SSN and everything!), I tell the woman that I have the old card with the numbers on it, but haven't received the new card yet and I can bring a printout with the new numbers on it when I come in for the appointment.  Apparently that wasn't good enough for her, because she goes into a rant about how they need all that information before I show up for the appointment (I didn't have access to the right computer system to get the updated group number for her).  Huh?  When I went to the eye doctor recently they were able to make a phone call and get the information they needed.  I got so frustrated I just told her since she wasn't going to work with me I could go see someone else and to have a nice day.

I mean how difficult do they have to make it?  How hard is it to just get the insurance information when I come in for the appointment?  She didn't even recognize my Fortune 500 employer when she asked me who I worked for.

Ugh!

Homesick

I get homesick every now and then.  But when I went to visit home last weekend it didn't feel like home anymore.  I guess you can never go back.

Some days are better than others.  Today was not one of those days.  I don't know if it's the heat that's making me so short tempered, but I really cannot stand the arrogant, self-absorbed jerks who drive like maniacs around here.  I theorize the difference between the Dallas self-absorbed jerk and the Los Angeles self-absorbed jerk is that the Angeleno knows how big his/her car is (usually) and the Dallasite (not sure what residents of Dallas call themselves, but Dallasite is kind of like parasite) thinks his/her gigantic SUV is half the size it is.

Between that and the people who think that the economy is Obama's fault or that a Smart car isn't "smart" because they had a 1980-whatever Honda civic that could get 40 mpg make me feel like this entire city is filled with ignorant, arrogant, mouth breathing goons.
 
I'm irritated that you have to have three (3!!!) huge stickers on your windshield to have your car considered registered/toll tagged.  No wonder the drivers here can't drive; they can't even see out the window.

I'm tired of never fitting in no matter where I go.  At least I felt comfortable in LA.

Even the airport doesn't give me a break.  DFW Airport is what happens when you realize the nightmare that is an Escher drawing in concrete.  Good luck trying to escape.