Slowly packing to move

Wil and I are slowly boxing up our stuff in the apartment.  We have to leave our apartment by May 31st, so we got 8 days left. Actually our lease runs until end of July, but since we are moving for a job, we were able to get out of our lease early.

We plan to leave Arkansas on June 1st and drive our way up to Washington State. We rented a 16 foot truck with car carrier. (Yes, we are towing our....) Wil says he won't let me drive because I have no experience driving a big vehicle. That is totally fine with me. I just have to make sure I know where we are going ｓo I can navigate.  Anyhow, we have 5 days to drive to Washington, so that ought be plenty of time.

We will move in to our new apartment on June 6th, and I start my new job on the next day. I know I might be exhausted, but since they waited for me for almost 2 months, I wanted to start as soon as possible.

We will take a lot of pictures during the drive!

My ex-roommate, Minato

I lived with Minato from January 2009 to July 2009.  We were both looking for a roommate back then and I moved in to her apartment.  The apartment was close to school, had a high ceiling, and had a really big living room...it was nice.  I didn't know Minato prior to moving in with her, but I am so glad that my roommate was her.  Minato is few years younger than me, but she is responsible, knowledgeable,  and good cook!!

Few days before the graduation, Wil, I , and Minato had a dinner together.  She is going back to Japan during the summer and we are leaving NWA, so it was a last chance to see her. We had a good time!

Wish you the best Minato... good luck with job searching!　Come visit us!!

Parent's visit 写真つき

My parents were in the US from May 5th to the 10th.  I haven't seen them since New Year, so it has been a while. The main reason of their visit was to attend my graduation, see Wil's parents, and see Fayetteville where I spent the last 4 years.

My Name On The Senoir Walk

Back in May of 2008 I walked the Fulbright College graduation ceremony.  I didn't actually finish my degree until August of 2008 so technically I was part of the class of 2009.  The University of Arkansas has finally finished the 2009 Senior Walk so I took a walk to the Walk and found my name on it.  It was suppose to say "William Forrest Gibson" but "William F. Gibson" is fine.  You can click the thumbnail and take a better look at it.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I made cookies Last Saturday because there was nothing better to do.  It was raining on and off all day so I couldn't really work in the garden until later that day.  They turned out yummy, even Wil likes them (according to him, he usually doesn't like oatmeal coockies...)

So here is the recipe.

Last Week Of Classes

Monday starts our last week of college.  I believe Atsuko is done on Wednesday.  I have my last lectures on Tuesday and then a Test on Thursday during my normal class time and one on Friday that I schedule to take so I wouldn't have to do it while Atsuko's parents are here.  I am looking forward to being done again.  I can't wait.

Pictures

Some pictures...

Almost done with residency application

We have collected all the documents that were required for the application of residency.  We had a meeting with Dr. Young today and signed all the forms we are submitting.  Once  the result of my medical comes back on Monday, we are finally ready to send everything  off to the US Department of Homeland Security office. It took a while, but all we can do now is wait.  I really hope I get my work permit before June!!!

More Work On Atsuko's Residency

We spoke with Dr. Young, a professor of immigration law, at the University of Arkansas Law School last week.  She had taken over our case instead a law student doing it.  Things are a lot more organized now and I have a feeling things will flow a lot faster now that we have a better idea what is needed instead of getting small trickles of information by e-mail here and there.  We are waiting for affidavits from our friends and the minister that married us, and got all our tax information.  I think the only  thing we won't have when we see Dr. Young this Friday is Atsuko's new SS card.

If you are looking into getting residency and reading this, my one word of advice is to have your lawyer or whoever is preparing the documents give a list of everything they think you need up front, first day you meet.  Half the stuff on Dr. Young's list hadn't been mentioned at all, which makes us believe no one was checking up on this student.  I'm sure a lawyer that has passed the bar would know better, but it gets annoying quickly!

Garden Happenings

It has been in the upper 70s this week and things are greening up! This is the busiest season for gardeners...planting, mulching, pruning, and more. The garden at the Alumni House is looking great. The tulips are about to bloom, the hyacinths smell heavenly, and all the day lilies are popping beautiful new leaves. I have been taking care of this garden since last summer and people have told me this is the best year. I am really happy to hear it.