Day two. Stood in line at the Social Security office to get a Social Security Number. Although we’re in a good neighborhood, the crowd was diverse and very large. I waited one and a half hours for a number ticket, and another one and a half hours to be called. In response, they gave me a piece of paper barely resembling a document, stating that my SSN application was accepted, and everything should be processed within 2 weeks.
Almost wandered into the Thinkgeek office. It’s right next door to the Social Security Administration. I should order something from them, since that’s the case.
At work, 100% of the people around me are English speakers. Overall, there has been quite a drastic transformation – since January 2nd, not a single person I knew before has appeared around me. I mean, everything is new, including the people around me.
I live in the city of Vienna, a suburb of Washington. It’s like our Reutov, only… According to the 2013 CNN/Money and Money magazine rating, Vienna is ranked third in the U.S. for best living conditions. http://time.com/money/2791413/vienna-va-3-best-places-to-live/ But with its own features: housing here is among the most expensive in the U.S., and so are the taxes.
So far, I haven’t held cash in my hands. I think it’s possible to live here forever on cards (credit cards), if it weren’t for one thing – laundromats operate on coins. I still have some clean clothes left, but it seems I need to start looking for coins tomorrow.
The workday starts early, but it also ends early. It’s eight in the evening now, and it has been quiet for three hours. The silence is deafening. Well, three hours ago “there was almost no one”, and now there is absolutely no one. It’s unusual. But it’s very peaceful to work.
Hi, I'm Rauf Aliev. 