feels like i'm starting over

[callisto9]

hello, it's me, erin!

i have been a member of the .org since march of 2005. even though i haven't been here long, a lot of this place feels like family - until now! even though i've gotten used to the new format of the forum, i feel a bit lost! icons have changed, user names and avatars have changed and i find myself feeling a bit displaced. it's kinda like moving into a new place. your stuff is there, your family is still there, but things seem "off".

however, that'll go away soon. no worries.

anyway, i'll re-introduce myself. i am erin. i'm 29 years old, female and living in iowa. despite what most people think of iowa, it's not bad here. i live in an area called the "quad cities"; half of the cities are in illinois and half are in iowa. we have a combined population of about 350,000 people. feels like one big city to me. so no, i've never lived on a farm, i don't own cows or pigs and i don't joyride tractors on the weekends. however, i DO love iowa food, visiting small towns and the midwestern attitude. living in bettendorf, IA is like living anywhere else, really. you just tend to see more images of corn and pigs here.

my job? i work as a marketing sales coordinator for a mid-sized, family owned company called rk dixon. we sell copiers, printers and technology services. i've been there about two years and i love it. i love my co-workers, my job duties and my boss. not much needs to be said there.

in my spare time (wow, this is starting to feel like a personal ad), i like to be on my computer (i love learning new software and am kind of a techno-geek), bike ride, go out and enjoy the events in the area, play with my two birds (mateo my ****atiel and oliver my parakeet), drink coffee, spend time with friends and family (who doesn't?) and learn new things. i'll try most things once and obsessively do things i love until it worries other people.

that's my brief summary. oh, and i have a boyfriend of 2.5 years that i love to pieces!

ok, who wants to go next?

note: i just realized this forum edited the word c-o-c-k-atiel to be ****atiel! wow. i wasn't even trying to be dirty. hmmmm.

[AmyJane]

Awww hey Erin! I'm still here! I just typed out a whole bunch of stuff and somehow it got erased so I'm just gonna make it short this time. Someone must be trying to tell me something
I guess I'll reintroduce myself also! I'm Amy (HI AMY! ) and I'm 30 years old and live on Long Island.
I work for the government, and that's all I'm gonna say about that!
In my spare time, that which I have way too much of but I'm trying to fill it up, I like to drive my beetle, Skittle. I just recently started painting with water colors again for the 1st time in a long time. I'm working on something really cool that I can't wait to show everyone! I love to sing and I've been practicing because I heard about an audition the other day for a few bands for hire in the area! Yeah, maybe I'll be a wedding singer! "Do you really want to hurt me? Do you really want to make me cry?" I won't do the Boy George get-up though! I also recently just started jogging thanks to my sister. And I am in the process of finding another apartment which I think I may have found one..I'll know tomorrow or tuesday! So pretty soon I will be on my own for the 1st time ever. I wasn't too excited about the idea at 1st but I've thought about it and now I am! Time for Amy to grow up! lol
I don't know....I guess that's it!
Aren't you glad I made it shorter?

[callisto9]

wow, that post was smiley-happy!

living alone can be great...depending on your past. when i got my own place seven years ago, i was scared to live alone. now, i prefer it. i lived at home for 20 years, then in college had 4 roommates in 2 years and hated it. i've never lived with a significant other (but really want to now!), but i can't say i've minded being alone in my apartment for the past seven years. there's something great about only having to worry about yourself. if the dishes are dirty, you can only be mad at yourself. if the bills are late, guess whose fault that is? YOU!

amy, i really see you following through on this wedding singer thing. i think you might have something there. i do love a good boy george / culture club song. i really do.

amy, nice to see YOU here! you know you're in my top 10.

[AmyJane]

Smiley-happy? Whatever do you mean? Are you saying I use too many smilies? That just can't be! I..I...I think I'm gonna Oh no! Now I've done it! When I cry too much I...I...I Ugghhhh Whew...ok I feel a bit better now! hehe

hey! I can't type in and have the little puking smiley anymore!!! I guess now I have to type in puke like this uke: I kinda like the fart one lol

[callisto9]

Originally Posted by CyberGreenBaby

Smiley-happy? Whatever do you mean? Are you saying I use too many smilies? That just can't be! I..I...I think I'm gonna Oh no! Now I've done it! When I cry too much I...I...I Ugghhhh Whew...ok I feel a bit better now! hehe

i think some of the code for this forum is weird...the smiley i choose on the right is not the one that shows up. it uses the old forum smiley.

this smiley : ) has two references to it in the smileys box and the old one shows up instead of the new, more colorful, shaded one.

ok, enough about smileys.

[scarabY2k]

Hey Erin! what's up Gurrl. Yeah, this apartment is new but I think we'll all get use to it just fine. I like the view. If I burn another pot of grits while talking to you, will you feel more at home? I can see you laughing as we speak!!

And CGBaby, how ya doin ova theyah? Fugeddaboudit or something like that I'm just chillin. You know how we do it.

Well, Im Al and I live in Jacksonville FL. Married to one wife , Valerie. two girls, Vanessa and Crystal. Allthough their not the fruit of my loins, I love them as though they were and they love me just as much. I do want a man child soon though.
Anyhoo, I work for a major paper distribution company here in Jax. Besides the j.o.b., I'm a singer and songwriter, producer and learning the engineering aspect of the biz. Haven't mastered that part yet, but getting there. Maybe I'll post an MP3 of a little diddy I wrote for me wifeee.
Hobbies: fishing (when I can find the time), model building, and of all things bug related. Big fan of football (go JAGS and Penn State!).
Seeing the familars on this side makes the transition that much easier. Its like we're all starting at square one. One cool thing is that we can rack up the number of posts and keep up with the veteran orgers. Oh yeah, props to Justin the moderator. When did this happen? When I grow up, I'm gonna be just like Justin.

Welcome back friends,
Al / ScarabY2k

[callisto9]

al! good to see you buddy! it's starting to feel more like home...

[dnyed]

We all had to start over. Isn't is a nice fresh start? I'm so glad to see everyone here. I does feel like home again!

[scarabY2k]

Yeah, these new digs are feeling a bit more comfy. I'll make sure not leave my socks lying around. I liked your analogy of this being like moving into a new place. Good chcice of words. Talk at cha soon.

[callisto9]

Originally Posted by dnyed

It does feel like home again!

well, it's starting to! shouldn't be long until we see some more familiar faces.

[The Cheat]

Allow me to re-introduce myself...

My name is Justin. I'm 21, and I drive a 2005 Cybergreen TDI. Her name is Jenna. She's my true love and fearless companion on many a roadtrip. I recently moved back home, and now it looks like i'm moving back out again. Ah, the life of a 21 y/o. I'm recently single after ending a long relationship, and because of that, I've met someone quite wonderful who I can't wait to move closer to and start over with. I'm a racecar driver in my free time. I have a 1997 Jetta VR6 that I engage in wheel-to-wheel racing with (on a track of course). She's got the marks to prove it too. I'm 12 credits shy of my bachelor's in Computer Science with a minor in Business Management. I drink Guinness, watch real football, and in general, could be considered a "hooligan". I blow stuff up because it's fun (in my large backyard of course). Hmmm, what else? Oh yeah, Volkswagen runs through my veins, but Mercedes is pretty cool too. I have tattoos, and soon to have some piercings as well. I play by my own rules. And lastly, I came to have fun, so let's PARTAY!!!!!

/me throws a lightswitch rave for the masses

[SPIRU]

Well, I for one am glad to see where're all on a distinguished *new* road!

[Dottydeb]

Hey yall! I went to TN Friday morning and got back saturday to find a brand new org! just shocking, and exhilarating, he he. I am glad to be here,duh? Congrats to justin. Hey scarab how about a whats for lunch thread? might be interesting.

[jkinzel]

Geee, I think I might be the old guy in the forms. I’m John, 57 years old and live on Fox Island, WA with my wife, one old dog and one cat that should be with my daughter. Yes it is an island, there is a bridge to it and I have seen a fox once.
I work on tugboats in Puget Sound, WA doing ship assist, barge towing and tanker escorts. 15 days on and 15 days off. Its interesting work and fun sometimes, but I have been here 31 years and want to retire. 5 more years and I’m gone.
No beetle yet, but my wife wants one and I want the TDI. Hope to get one in the next few months if I can pry the $$$$$ out of her fist. Having a kid in college makes $$ a little scarce.
This is a great place, nice people and a lot of information.

Has anyone taken any long (like a week or two) Road trip in there NB? How is it for comfort on long drives?

[AmyJane]

Originally Posted by jkinzel

Has anyone taken any long (like a week or two) Road trip in there NB? How is it for comfort on long drives?

Well I havent taken a week long trip in my NB but I did drive a total of 9 hours in one day and it wasn't bad at all. Justin (TheCheat) would probably be a better one to ask about that. He's only had his NB since march and she already has over 15,000 miles on her!

[The Cheat]

I've driven mine as far as Ohio, and I must say that the cloth seats in my 05 were very comfortable, and I'm happy to report that little fatigue was experienced in 8 hours straight driving (I have a TDI). I have a bad back, and these are the best seats for a roadtrip that I've had since my 1994 Passat.

I'll be taking a cross-country trip soon enough (moving to WA state), so you guys will hear all about that. Also noteworthy is the fact that for that Ohio trip, I drove with my AC on most of the way doing about 85-90, and I pulled 42 MPG with a "green" engine (11k miles). I expect to hit slightly better on my trip to WA state.

You've come to the right place for info JKinzel, and I have a lot of people in my forum that take long roadtrips in theirs. I know Eeyore's done a weekend trip to GA from Ohio in his NB, and mgwerks is a roadtripper as well. What can I say...with a TDI, you look forward to driving.

[noR]

Doh, I need to straighten some things out. You guys have been so active, if you'll help me find those little things and pm me about them when you stumble on them. (like the smilies not working right) I'll be happy to try to straighten them out. I'll change uke: back to for ya too; no biggy.

[AmyJane]

Originally Posted by noR

I'll change uke: back to for ya too; no biggy.

You rock! LOL

[AmyJane]

Originally Posted by scarabY2k

I'm a singer and songwriter, producer and learning the engineering aspect of the biz.

Hey Al! I need to make a demo! Can ya help me out? Maybe write me a song?

[Porkchop]

It is kind of a bummer.... my old self started in like Feb 2002 and I had almost 2000 posts... and while I don't put much stock in post counts, I did feel "established". In fact, I even thought I might get considered as a mod for 2.0L forum since I was constantly helping folks out with the many quirks of said powerplant and took the time to provide good, accurate info.

Oh well.. maybe I should ride my bike more or mow the grass more often or something. All this time on the computer just isn't healthy.