Welcome back friends! We are officially moved into our new apartment in Eugene, Oregon. We arrived at five pm on Wednesday night completely exhausted, but excited to move in. We found our new apartment on furnished finders. I start work Monday, so I had some time to adjust and unpack, but Nick started back on Thursday morning.
The first week and last week of the assignment is always the hardest. The first week is getting into an apartment, getting adjusted to a new assignment, getting your schedule for a few weeks, and getting the lay of the land.
Our goal of this assignment was to save some money, do some hiking, and get in touch with nature. As some of you know, my last assignment was in Newark, New Jersey, so we spent a lot of time in New York City. This was honestly the best experience. Catch my future blogs about living outside of New York City for an assignment. My husband and I really enjoy hiking and the outdoors. We didn’t get to do much of this in that area. We are hoping to do more of that in Oregon. In terms of a furnished finder, we were looking for affordable, good internet (nick works from home), close to the hospital, and bigger than our last place. Our last place was so small, you couldn’t open the dishwasher and the bathroom door at once! If you are looking for a place, Check out my last blog about tips about looking for apartments.
We found our current apartment on furnished finder. It was affordable, had an office for nick to work in, and it was less than ten minutes from work and the town. We contacted the listers, had a zoom call and signed the lease. On the zoom call, they had mentioned that it was a co-housing development. Nick and I had no idea what co-housing entailed. They offer meals a few times a week that allow people to meet people, and join together for food. There’s no obligation, but the offer stands. Nick and I often go to an assignment and are “unnoticed”. It’s definitely more stimuli than we expected, or are used too. We are ready to get into our normal routine on Monday with our regular work schedules. Nick and I decided that we would attend these community dinners once a week as an opportunity to socialize, and also get out of the house, as long as our schedules worked with it. On Friday, we attended pizza night and met some people in the neighborhood.
Our apartment is ten minutes from work, and downtown Eugene. It’s located on a dead end with parking spaces. It’s a bottom floor apartment, so it made moving in very easy. The kitchen is spacious and filled with dishes and glassware. Some furnished finders come with too much and some come with not enough. This one came with a lot of nic nacs, which some people find helpful, but Nick and I are people that find it cluttered. Luckily there are plenty of cabinets to put them in. The apartment had two decent sized bedrooms and a small office for Nick to work in. It also had two full bathrooms, which was a huge plus. The landlords offered to help get Nick a desk and chair for the office, which was a huge help. For an in-depth review of co-housing and this furnished finder, please visit my blog at the end of the assignment! Check out some photos of our place. Although it’s furnished, we really try to make it feel like home.
Along with getting settled in, we tried to have a little fun this week. We have a Regal Unlimited pass, so we end up seeing a lot of movies. We find it’s worth the $18.99 a month, as long as you see two movies a month. Unfortunately when you travel as a couple, casual date night consists of a Wednesday movie night when you don’t have a lot of friends around! We got to see A Man Called Otto and Knock at the Cabin this week. These movies are completely different, but both were worth seeing. The good thing with the regal pass is that you often go see movies that you typically wouldn’t see in theaters, because the pass pays for itself. We probably would have waited for Knock at the Cabin to go on DVD. Knock at the Cabin is a little disturbing. We are planning on doing an Oscar night, so we are planning on trying to watch all the Oscar nominated movies!
Along with seeing some movies, we checked out a trail. Nick and I were both super excited to check this place out. Tamolitch Falls, also known as blue pool, is located in McKenzie Bridge, Oregon. This was approximately an hour and fifteen minutes from Eugene. This 2.25 mile populated hike led out to a that led out to stunning turquoise and topaz blue water body of water. The Tamolitch blue pool is formed by an underground lava tube. It was created approximately 1,600 years ago. The McKenzie River flows underground through this lava tube from Carmen Reservoir to the north, to where it re-emerges at the blue pool, seeping up through the lava rock. The unique color and how clear the water is due to the temperature. It’s freezing! It’s actually recommended that people do not swim. The water appears to be very clear, when you look down, it looks like the water isn’t deep at all. Reports state that it’s over 30 feet deep. Different articles on the trail have suggested cliff jumping is not suggested in this area. Multiple accidents have been recorded. The trail was a moderate hike with some icy slippery spots. Nick and I wore hiking boots with spikes and did okay. We ran into a few hikers with running shoes who were struggling. I really suggest picking up a pair for hikes like these. I linked them here! Along with wearing the proper footwear, it’s also important to dress appropriately, and to also pack for a hike. We always pack waters, downloaded maps, a phone that’s charged (we bring an extra battery pack), and snacks just in case.
We started a health fitness challenge with my family this week. We made it so everyone could set their own goals. Nick and I both set our goal of losing 5% weight. We also are gearing towards running another 5k as a family. Some are planning on walking. We have a trail behind our new apartment, which makes it easier to get out every morning.
Tomorrow I start work. I’m excited to get into a good routine! Next week I’ll talk about orientation, the transition into a new assignment, and updates about co-housing. We are excited about exploring Eugene! Anyone have Oregon suggestions?
TravelingbeebryantRN & Flicks_withNick 
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