Riverfire 2009

Our building is unique in that the managers put forth an effort to build a community. We have two function rooms on the first floor near the pool. Every Friday night there is a gathering ("bring your own drinks and nibbles") so that anyone who cares to get to know their neighbors can come and those who prefer to be left alone can just skip it. Since we have to have a security swipe to get in the building, we don't really see any of our neighbors unless we make an effort and lately, we've been making an effort. For Riverfire, there was a sign posted in the elevator inviting everyone to a BBQ so we got our act together and headed on down. Benji made this delicious strawberry dish that was praised and enjoyed by many! I can't even describe to you how yummy it is other than to say that I eat so much of it everytime that he makes it that I very nearly make myself ill. The pool is now heated (Thank Goodness!!!!) so even though it was quite windy, Benji decided to swim for a while. After dinner he headed off to someones apartment to play video games with the other kids/teens. We didn't see him again until the fireworks. We got to go up on the roof so had a great view. The city apparently spends millions of dollars on this extravaganza.

Maritime Museum and Deep Blue

We thought we'd check out the Maritime Museum since they were offering free admission on this particular day. The exhibits were interesting enough...and the ship we we got to go on was HUGE. I got a little lost. Do they give sailors maps of those things when they arrive onboard?

Afterwards, we went to the Deep Blue/Young Blue concert at the Botanical Gardens. Benji has his own way of enjoying music:) As always, we couldn't have asked for nicer weather and the concert was really enjoyable.

Mudpainting

Mudpainting at Northey Street Farmer's Market and then it was back to our house for a Henna Party.

Coochiemudlo Island in Moreton Bay

This was the building that housed the restrooms. I thought it was a nice example of how people around here take the little extra step to make things pretty:)

Not even the first day of spring and it's plenty warm enough to go swimming! One of the kids in the homeschooling group found a huge log...more like a tree trunk. Benji helped drag it into the water and they all played with it for at least an hour.

So peaceful and beautiful. http://www.coochiemudlo.net/

The cute little cafe'/convenience store/restaurant near the beach.

Getting to Coochiemudlo was a bit of a trick. We missed the last bus that would take us directly to Victoria Point jetty so we ended up on a bus that took a rather meandering route. It tooks us well over 3 hours to get there! Next time, now that we know what we're doing, it should only take about an hour and half. I want to go spend a weekend there.....

Bush Dance

We weren't quite sure what we were getting into when we were invited to a Bush Dance but it was a lot of fun. It sort of like square dancing in that someone calls out the steps. Benji said he'd never seen me have so much fun. I'll have to work on that.....

There was also swimming, a shared lunch and lots of good company. It was a great day!

Books

I've discovered an Australian author that I really like! Steven Amsterdam. His first book is "Things We Didn't See Coming" and I loved it. At first I couldn't figure out if it was one long connected story or if it was a series of short stories. Turns out it's more like a series of connected short stories with the same main character. His writing style leaves so much unsaid...plenty to think about and ponder.

Tim Winton and Christos Tsiolkas are two Australian authors that I'm anxious to read. Christos wrote "The Slap". I requested it from the library today and I'm only 184th on the list. Seriously. I guess I'll get to read it about this time next year? Tim Winton wrote "Breath" and "The Turning". I should be able to get my hands on those a little sooner.

Borders has a book club that meets about once a month and last month's selection was "The Housekeeper and the Professor" by Yoko Ogawa. I was certain I wouldn't like it because the storyline involved two things I dislike....math and baseball. But, honestly, the story was so sweet I was crying by the end. I loved it! It's a short little book and she has the direct style of writing that I prefer.

If possible, everyone needs to get their hands on any of the "Bigfoot" books by Graham-Roumieu.

http://www.amazon.com/Graham-Roumieu/e/B001IGM0YO/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1

Click on the covers to see inside the books....I especially liked "Bigfoot: I Not Dead". Kelsey and I were looking at them the other day and I was nearly in tears from laughing. I thought they were so original and clever.

The Inconvenient Convenient Bus Stop

I'm getting lazy about public transportation. Now that we've figured out the easiest routes home, I get a bit irritated when I have to walk bus or ferry stop that's a bit farther away. Just a tiny bit irritated, not the kind of irritated that makes me want to run out and buy a car but the kind that can ruin an hour of my life. Perhaps this is all part of the settling in process and I'll get over it soon.

Main Street, Stop 6 is a thorn in my side. It's one of the closest stops and I only use it to get to Bulimba or Cannon Hill. I don't use it often but when I do, the bus is inevitably late unless I'm not paying attention. I haven't yet missed that bus due to lack of attention but I have twice been scolded by helpful bus drivers who warn me that I "just got lucky" because someone needed off at that stop. You see, the problem is that this stop sits back from the road just the slightest bit and you can't see the bus as it comes off the bridge until it is there possibly flying past you like some unfeeling robot. Since that bus is almost always at least 8 minutes late, I tend to get tunnel vision and start to feel a little dizzy if I stare at the very spot it will appear for too long. The RULE is that you must flag down the bus to let them know that you want a ride. Why? I don't friggin' know. There's only two bus routes by that stop and why else would someone choose to stand out in the sun (you can't sit on the bench that is provided by the city so that you'd be in the shade because you'd miss the bus for sure) right by the pole that signals that "this is a bus stop". Those particular buses only come about once an hour. Are there people wandering around the city who see those blue poles and feel a compulsion to stand there for no good reason? Honestly, I'm sure the drivers are trying to be helpful and it's not their fault that the stop is placed in such a ridiculously inconvenient spot. But, I've been in a foul mood lately. I know my desire to spit on them isn't very mature. Don't worry, I wouldn't actually do it. I just sigh, smile and take my seat reminding myself that I don't have a car payment and once I'm on the bus, I don't have to pay much attention at all.

Eoin (I hope I'm not spelling that wrong) is one of the ferry drivers. He is, without fail, friendly and happy to see us. He's going to get Christmas Cookies when the time comes. He greets us with a smile, chats with us about various things, shares stories and just generally makes our day a little bit nicer. Several of the ferry drivers are wonderful that way. We chat about food, the weather, where we're from and just general chitchat. In contrast, the guy I call Grouchy Dwarf grunts at us when we show him our tickets. Or doesn't acknowledge us at all leaving us standing there wondering if he's actually looking at us since we can't see his eyes because of his sunglasses. So, we wait to be acknowledge because we are good citizens. We want to make sure that he sees our ticket and knows that we can legally board the boat. He seems terribly inconvenienced by having to dock the boat so we can board. And while some ferry drivers will happily dock the boat a second time at the same stop if they see people racing to catch the boat, Grumpy sighs heavily and then as slowly as possibly, docks the boat again. The people who step on alway say "Thank you so much" and Grumpy just stares at them blankly. I think he should try to find another job.

Kangroo Point is apparently posh. Too posh for nice buses. Since most people here drive, we apparently get the crap buses...and sometimes they smell a little crappy too. A mixture of old B.O. and mold. When we were staying in Teneriffe we were so impressed with how nice the buses were with their bright blue seats, clean floors and air conditioning. I'm not sure the Kangaroo Point buses even have air conditioning. What will that be like in the summer? I'd rather not imagine. The windows rattle loudly and sometimes it sounds like the bus is having some mechanical problems. Often when we take the 475 bus home, we get one of the new ones and it feels like a little mini vacation.

Homeschooling Activities

The homeschool group here has some great activities. Last week was archery. We couldn't find a hat for Benji in time to catch our bus so he opted just to take sunglasses. We slathered on sunscreen but since I was in the shade, I offered him my hat...he took it because honestly, being shaded from the sun is important. Notice that the hat is on backwards. Afterward, we all went to a nearby park for lunch. I didn't see Benji all day but when I did see him, I discovered that he'd hurt his toe. Significantly. Luckily we had a ride to the train station as buses didn't even go out to the place we were at that day. By the time, we got out of the train station, it was obvious that we were not getting home by public transport based on the speed that he could walk. I was concerned that his toe was broken because it was turning an ugly shade of blackish purple and swelling in that gross way that injured toes swell. So, we grabbed a taxi and he was pretty well incapacitated for the next few days. By Sunday, he was able to walk well enough to help me with the Northy Street Farmer's Market but really wasn't fully back to normal until about Wednesday. I'm so glad it wasn't broken. He wouldn't have been able to go anywhere for so long!

Yesterday's homeschool group activity was "survival skills". We ended up in Ashgrove in a gorgeous preserve with no bathroom facilities. When we first arrived, we saw a kookaburra but I don't know that he was in an "old gum tree". One of the dad's had set up a "plane crash" site and the kids were the survivors. They treated wounds and injuries. They built a stretcher from bamboo. They learned how to get water. There was loads of fake blood made from chocolate. I only really saw Benji when it was time to eat because he was having an absolute blast with his friends:) I sat on my little blanket and chatted with the other parents. When someone would drive somewhere for any reason, I'd catch a ride to go to the toilet knowing that if I didn't that by the time they got back, I'd be wishing I'd gone!

Welcome to Australia, I Hope You're Not Thirsty

This is a takeaway flat white. Size Large. They usually cost between $3.80 and $4.70 depending on where you buy it. But, it was delicious. We ordered a small the other day and it was the size of one of the kiddie cups we used to get at McDonalds in the U.S.

When I go to a cafe and order tea it comes in a cute little teapot. I usually ask for a glass of ice. Sometimes they don't understand me because "why would I want a glass of ice?". I simply must be saying something else. Anyway, sitting in the cafe with my little teapot, it feels like a lot more tea than a takeaway tea. But, it could be that it just feels that way because it's a tiny mug and I get to keep refilling it from the teapot.

One exception is at Three Monkeys where the cups of chai are massive. And by massive, I mean soup bowl size. Oh and I just remembered another exception, the Gloria Jeans cafe at Borders has really large sized larges....I can sit there with that tea for a full afternoon reading magazines and people watching! They are located at an intersection where there's almost always a busker providing entertainment. Sometimes, the term entertainment is being used very losely but not every day can be perfect. The other day there was a fellow singing with great enthusiam but it was dreadful. And his partner was clapping along with the music but was completely offbeat. It caused a strange discomfort to watch it. I wonder if he earned any money. When the light changes, massive amounts of people come walking by the window unaware that they are being observed. Every now and then there's an odd bird who walks up to the window where we are sitting and presses his face against it or bangs his drumsticks on it or just says "Hello". We don't know why they do this. Aren't city people fun?

There is no lack of cafes here and for that, I'm grateful.....Even if they mostly serve kid sized portions;-)

Roma Street Parkland

Kelsey and I spent a few hours at Roma Street Parkland last week. We had a snack at the Melange Cafe there and then wandered around the Spectacle Garden, Forest, the lake area, Arid Plants, FernGully and generally just enjoyed all the beauty. The plant in the first photo has been in bloom since April and shows no signs of slowing down.

Lots of photos of Kelsey because she was the only person with me.

Aren't they gorgeous? I've never seen Poinsettias in a garden...well, up until now.

Not exactly a kangaroo you can pet, but cute anyway.

The Spectacle Garden. It was breathtaking.

There were several water features throughout the park.

The park has only been open since 2001.

July 12th-Abbey Medieval Festival and Tournament

Beautiful stained glass from the 1300s in the church.

Lord Benjamin.

Waiting for the Turkish Oil Wrestling to start. Hairy men cover themselves in extra virgin olive oil and then end up covered in grass by the end of the match. Not sexy but still fun to watch.

Kelsey thinks I look stupid in my hat. But, guess which one of us stood in the shade all day while the other was miserably hot?

It was a gorgeous sunny day.

Last weekend was the Abbey Medieval Festival and Tournament in Caboolture. I feel like my entire life is made up of running to catch some form of public transport. Everytime we walk out the door, I'm saying, "Hurry, hurry, we're going to miss the bus (or train or boat)". On this particular day, guess what? We did. We missed our ferry which made us late for our train. If we had missed the train, we would have had to wait an hour which meant we would have missed the opening ceremony and probably wouldn't have gotten tickets for the joust. I try to not get bent out of shape when we are running late since it happens all the time. I'd spend most of my life upset but I really, really wanted to see the joust and I really, really wanted to get there for the opening ceremony. We were walking as fast as we could because honestly, running wasn't even an option with my bad ankle. I imagine we looked rather funny. Speed walking into the train station, I made a wild guess at which train was the right one and led us to Platform 6 just as the train pulled in. We hopped on. Then I looked at Ben and said, "Should we ask someone if we're on the right train?" He did and we were, so off we went for the hour long train ride to Caboolture. Kelsey listened to her ipod, Ben napped on and off, Benji slept almost the whole way while I had the pleasure of listening to a couple of college students who were very intelligent. I could tell because they knew EVERYTHING, especially about America. Many of the train stations along the way have interesting and/or lovely murals. It's one of the nice little things about Brisbane that make it such a beautiful city....just that little extra effort to make the train station pretty:)

The festival itself was huge. Tickets to the joust were purchased first thing and we did get to see the opening ceremony so I was as happy as a clam. Kelsey immediately started complaining about the heat while I basked in it. My feet were warm for the first time in weeks. The Hare Krishnas were there with their vegetarian food stand. Bless them! When we go to any festival and see them, Kelsey and I know right away that we're going to have decent reasonably priced food...and more than we can finish on our plate. Benji enjoyed the military weapon demos,watching warriors battle, and a public flogging (he was just a bystander, not the one being flogged, of course.) Kelsey and I spent some time watching dances and she went to a presentation on "Surgery in the Middle Ages". Ben and I went to listen to the lecture on the stained glass windows in the gothic church on the grounds of the festival. We were tempted by camel rides but ultimately decided against it. The joust was a lot of fun and everyone at the festival seemed to really be enjoying their characters. We ended up staying until the closing ceremony then had to "run" to catch our train back to the city...we hurried as fast as we could to the platform, jumped on the train and then sat on it for 20 minutes waiting for it to leave.

Friday

One quick post before the weekend...

Wednesday was my mammogram and ultrasound. Today was my follow-up appointment with the doctor. I had to leave the house at 8am to catch an 8:15 bus to get to my 9am appt and arrived 20 minutes early. Oh well, that's the price we pay for public transportation;-) Glorious, wonderful news- No biopsy, just show up again in six mos. for an ultrasound to watch a fibroid adenoma that they found. My knees were weak with relief.

I stopped by IGA on my way home. I knew they delivered but I didn't know the fee. Turns out it's only $5.00. What a bargain! I promptly loaded up the grocery cart with all kinds of heavy stuff. I paid almost $20 for a watermelon. Don't be shocked. It's for medicinal purposes. Okay, FINE, it's for mental health purposes. I'm gonna lose my mind if I don't get some decent watermelon soon. Sadly, this was not the decent watermelon I was hoping for....this one wasn't ripe at all and will be going straight into the trash. But, I don't have breast cancer so if that watermelon is the worst thing to happen to me this week, then "Praise God".

The more progress I make on the unpacking, the messier it seems to get in here. All our stuff is multiplying when I'm not looking. And where did all that laundry come from? I blame it on Kelsey. She was off from work this week so we spent an inordinate amount of time at Borders. Breakfast tea and magazines anyone? Why, yes, we'd love to! Magazines from the states cost $15 or more here. Australian magazines can cost as little as $6.95. Luckily, for the price of my cup of tea, I can read as many of them as I want right there in the cafe. That makes me happy.

My iPhone is my new best friend. That's all I need to say about it. But, I'll say more. I LOVE it and I've only begun to scratch the surface of what that little thing can do. I won't mention that I was ready to throw it at the wall today after fiddling around with trying to set up my iTunes account for over 40 minutes. The problem? It would not accept my phone number. The area code here is 07 or 04. It insisted on a three digit area code. I called the store we got it from and he suggested a few different ideas until we hit upon....just rearrange the numbers so that it looks like an American phone number. It was strange since the phone asked me where I was located and I said "Australia". I prefer my technology to work without my having to put any actual thought into it, thank you very much.

I miss my mom terribly. She's sick right now and I wish I was there to help her. Though realistically, there's absolutely nothing I can do to fix anything there. The phone rang this evening at 8pm and my heart skipped a beat. Thank God it was a telemarketer and not bad news from the States.

By Monday, it's supposed to be 75 degrees. I will be doing a celebratory dance in the afternoon if anyone would like to join me. Too bad I don't have a tambourine.

Vinnies is a resale shop here similar to Goodwill but significantly more expensive. Kelsey and I popped into one of the shops the other day and found several things. I found several really cute tops...very bohemian....and they ranged in price from $9 to $15. Thrift Score!!!! Woohoo! Then we popped into Tree of Life one afternoon. Their prices are really good compared to most of the places here and I found 3 adorable dresses and one smokin' hot shirt. http://www.treeoflife.com.au/
Yes, I'm aware that I went in there looking for winter clothes and walked out with a sundress and a short sleeved shirt. It WILL eventually be summer here so don't judge me. I know I've been very cold lately and been complaining a lot. But, I promise, I'll get out the hot water bottle, fill it up and crawl up under a quilt. Really, I can get by with the same freakin' winter shirts I've been wearing for weeks since I only bought new summer tops to bring with me to Brisbane. Now I shall stop whinging about my boring winter wardrobe and move on....

It's almost a full moon tonight and the way it shines on the river is breathtaking.

Hopefully, we'll go some where this weekend worth photographing and I'll be able to post some photos next week. I know we'll be going to the Farmer's Market but beyond that....who knows.

Vodka and Naked Fruit

One day last week, Kelsey's co-workers brought vodka to work. They used the fruit and blenders there to make drinks and promptly got drunk. Kelsey was left to do the work while they all hid in the back sipping their cocktails. They left a lot of stuff undone and when the afternoon girl came in, she and Kelsey were able to bond over their frustration with the extra burden. So, it wasn't all bad. Kelsey said that this particular girl was finally being friendly now which makes the atmosphere there a bit more bearable. She almost has enough money saved for her airline ticket and her camp fees are paid so she's getting really close to her goal now.

Just a few random things that are either bugging me or I feel deserve a mention because they are so absurd.

Last night, I threw a few things in the dryer...on high heat....set the timer for 30 minutes. When Ben got up this morning at about 8am, the dryer was still going. Wonder what our electric bill will be?

The dishwasher has a cool rack for plates. The plates from the rental company fit so nicely. Ours don't....they have to go on the other side of the dishwasher. It messes up the idea of fitting an evenings worth of dishes in there. Plus it bugs me.

The kitchen sink is small. I spill water on the floor every single day when I clean the juicer. You'd think I'd learn.

The water in the shower goes from comfortable to boiling to cold with almost no warning. I fear that one day I'm going to throw myself through the glass walls of the shower trying to save my skin. The water gets seriously hot. I can run water over tomoatoes in the kitchen and then easily slip off the skins after just a few moments. One night I was thawing out some hamburger meat using water straight from the faucet. Not only did it thaw, it cooked.

We got our first phone bill. For your flat monthly rate, apparently you get nothing. (Well, I suppose you get local calls to phones that are not mobiles). Now, brace yourself....for every call, there is a connection fee. On top of that there is a per minute charged that is based on the type of phone you are calling. If you are calling a Telstra mobile, it's a bit cheaper than calling a non-Telstra mobile. But, there are caps on how much they will charge unless it's a non-Telstra mobile. You only get a certain number of phone calls to home phones included in your montly fee....then they also incur additional fees. What I just typed there doesn't even begin to explain all the charges and exceptions. It gives me a headache. Thank God the cable tv system is pretty straightforward. Though they can't seem to get my tv guide here on time. Nobody's perfect. I love our DVR. I suppose recording the shows means we're missing some of the funny Australian Commercials. Some of them aren't so funny though. They take their anti-smoking campaign very seriously here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rSrrSTW0UU Warning, that video is gross.

We went to Borders last night to hang out in the cafe. Here it's a Gloria Jeans instead of a Seattle's Best. The store was much larger than I originally thought...three stories instead of two. I missed my old job until I saw someone shelving books, then I got over it really quick.

Today has been a day of unpacking boxes and doing laundry. The apartment is starting to resemble a home rather than a warehouse full of boxes and random crap laying all over the place. I can't wait until we're finished.

Treasury Casino/Sculptures

Kelsey goofing around. We had been "shopping" at the Queen Street Mall when I remembered that we'd wanted to get a photo of these sculptures and I finally had the camera with me. Just behind them, you can see the Treasury Casino. There's a free comedy show at the casino on Wednesdays but we either forget it or are too tired to go. It's dark by 5pm right now and I get sleepy early! The Brisbane Square Library is across from the casino....it's a bright neon green and blue building.

Da Vinci Machines

Ben and Benji went out one day to the Da Vinci Machines Exhibition at South Bank- http://www.ourbrisbane.com/whats-on/events/da-vinci-machines-exhibition-south-bank

Mona Benji?

This is Benji on one of the CityCats.

Typical Weekend

Okay, so I can't figure out the formatting issues on this post in the amount of time that I have this morning.....and considering the difficulty even staying online everyone will just have to look over it.

The first two photos are of the Riverside Markets. They're just across the river from us and we always forget about it until we are running through it on Sunday morning to try to catch our bus on time to make it to the Northey Street Farmer's Market. This weekend we had less to carry so we took the time to look around a bit.

The next photo is of Kelsey at the Northey Street Organic Farmer's Market. That's the one that we go to every weekend.

The next photo is of a couple doing the tango at the Powerhouse Farmer's Market. They were very enthusiastic and funny.

The next two photos are of us on the top deck of the ferry on our way to the Northy Street Market. We finally had some beautiful weather and it was warm enough to sit up there for awhile.

Ron Mueck's sculpture at the Gallery of Modern Art (South Bank). I love his work...it's amazing.

The last photo is me at the Pagoda at South Bank. http://www.southbankcorporation.com.au/nepalese-pagoda

"In the heart of this serene and romantic venue is one of South Bank's longest standing buildings, which was donated to the people of Brisbane following World Expo '88.
The spectacular hand-carved two storey Pagoda, is a magnificent venue surrounded by a traditional paved area, which makes it a perfect location for a private event. This is a real hidden treasure, surrounded by lush tropical landscaping and one of Brisbane's unique and romantic venues.n the heart of this serene and romantic venue is one of South Bank's longest standing buildings, which was donated to the people of Brisbane following World Expo '88.
The spectacular hand-carved two storey Pagoda, is a magnificent venue surrounded by a traditional paved area, which makes it a perfect location for a private event. This is a real hidden treasure, surrounded by lush tropical landscaping and one of Brisbane's unique and romantic venues."

Deana Gets a Duckdown Doona

It belongs to Ben, too. But, my name makes a cuter blog title. We have been having (rumored) record breaking temperatures. Single digits. It's freakin' cold at night. There's a cute little button in our apartment that says "heat" but apparently that's just a little joke. I couldn't get it to work so called the realtor who sent a repairman who said that that it's not a heating unit....only air conditioning. Oh, that explains my inability to make it work even with an instruction booklet.

Last night Kelsey had to work until 9pm so we figured we'd head downtown to buy a space heater and a doona so that we could meet up with her when she was finished. We found a fantastic sale and purchased a duck down doona and a space heater. In the states, we call them duvets but isn't doona a much cuter name? I also bought two doona covers....so versatile these doonas! Last night when I went to bed....well, I can't even describe to you how wonderful it felt My feet were warm within about 15 seconds. It was like going to the beach on a hot summer day without the sand, the cabana boy, or the sea breeze...... Oh, I guess it wasn't that much like going to beach then, huh? It's warmer today so who knows if we'll ever need the space heater now but I have it and that's what matters.

Poor Kelsey. She's inherited my ability to attract men with either no teeth or really bad teeth. Is it our blue eyes? What is it about us that just screams, "Hey Buddy, if you don't have any teeth at all or have never partipated in any dental care traditions whatsoever, then I'm your girl!"? Two days in a row some creepy fellow with broken teeth and a rather nasty vibe has made a point of stopping by work to have a little chat with her. Made us grateful that we met her last night when she got off because there's no bus that late and she would have had to walk to the ferry.

After we met Kelsey, we stopped by Jimmy's on Queen Street for dessert. Let me just say that I have never, ever had tiramisu that delicious. It wasn't soggy...it had just the right balance of flavors. And it was a huge piece ($11.50 AUD)....I'm thinking we should make that a weekly family tradition. I'd make it a daily family tradition but that seems a bit too decadent.

The sun is out today and we are heading to a food festival (also known as paradise). I can't wait!

Random Stuff

Raisins are called sultanas. There's a cereal called Sultana Bran. Rice Krispies are called something else too....but I can't remember what it is....something like Rice Puffies, I think.

Sometimes instead of saying "Thanks", people will says "ta" which is short for "thanks a lot".

No worries stands in for "Thanks" or "You're welcome" or "It's okay" and possibly even more that I can't recall right now.

I recently heard someone from New Zealand say that "if the Australians were any more relaxed, they'd be dead on the ground".

Kelsey's job...

The boss texted next week's work schedule to her. Seriously.

The Weekend

I thought I would roast a chicken for dinner. But first I have to look up how many grams are in a kilo and what temperature to cook it when I convert it to Celsius. And how do I tell when this oven is preheated?

The sun has been out all day. But, I'm not fooled. The only thing keeping it from raining is my complete refusal to set foot outside today at all. I'm making the sacrifice. I'm staying indoors so that the rest of Brisbane can enjoy the beautiful day. (Shhh, don't tell but I did sit out on the porch for most of the morning but I don't think the sun could see me.)

Over the weekend, we went over to Greenfest at the City Botanical Garden a couple of times. Food, food glorious food. I had the single best doughnut I've ever had in my entire life....I just kept thanking Jesus for it. Benji and Kelsey met some other teens there to watch the concerts. We met them later and bought practice poi and a "fire stick/baton thingy" for Benji. I'm sure his has another name but I've got to get this chicken in the oven so will have to look it up later. (I think he's discovered a new passion and they will be both be going to some new groups that meet for fire dancing soon). The Hare Krishnas were serving huge plates of vegetarian food for a measly 10 bucks so Kelsey had that. Benji and some of the other boys made their way out of the park to go to Hungry Jacks (equivalent of Burger King). Kelsey said that she and R. were dancing at one of the concerts and a lady came dancing up to them saying "You girls are soooo beeauuutiiiifuuullll!!!!". Ben and I explored the park and it is lovely. Several beautiful areas for weddings, a lagoon full of water lilies and birds, just overall lovely quietness right in the city.

Sunday morning, we woke up to beautiful skies. But, I'm no dummy. I layered up shirts, put on jeans....my only concession to the lovely weather was that I put on sandals. Well, that was enough. We headed out to the Northey Street Farmer's Market and didn't even make it to the ferry before the clouds moved in and the rain started coming down. But, food must be purchased so we went anyway. My feet were freezing!!!!! We had breakfast at the market....rice with cream, orange zest, pistachios, sultanas, goji berries and whipped cream. I wanted to weep it was so yummy. We also have little mini pancake balls with vanilla custard, waffles with eggs and bacon, chai, and a flat white. MMMM! We bought so much produce that I don't know how we got it all home. Ben can probably tell you though since he was the one lugging it all back.

Afterwards, I wanted to finish up the grocery shopping by heading to the real grocery store. What an exercise in frustration. Pecans? No. Shelled pistachios? No. Steel cut oats? No.

Sunday night was a free comedy show at the Suncorp Piazza at South Bank. We should have arrived earlier. We did get in but I tell ya, I was afraid there for a bit that we were going to get all the way up to the door only to be turned away. What a great show! We laughed and laughed and laughed. I even got some of the Queensland jokes. We saw Charlie Pickering who is very, very funny. The Kransky Sisters who were funny but a little too quiet...I kept missing things. Tripod was a comedy trio that we really enjoyed. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1329362959167995041 You must watch them! We had to laugh because when certain comics were introduced, the crowd went completely wild. We had no idea who any of these people were (except Charlie, I did see him on a game show one night but I thought he was just a contestant). I stayed up until 11pm. That is the absolute latest I've been up since we arrived in Australia! But, my gosh, I fell into bed exhausted....a bed never looked so inviting!

Today, Kelsey is off to the Dreaming Festival with some friends. Ben and Benji went to a movie. And I'm here guarding the good weather for us all. This is finally the weather I've been promised. It was probably around 75 degrees today. Not bad for winter. But, I'm not taking off my woolly slippers. I know it's probably just a trick.....

My Poor Head

The people upstairs are renovating their apartment. How nice for them. But, seriously, wasn't the tile they had nice enough? The noise from the jackhammer is unbelievable. There are rules in place that limit the amount of time they can make that much noise each day but today has been the worst. I don't feel well so I can't really go anywhere to escape it. Just 10 more minutes...just 10 more minutes.....

Ben and Benji enjoyed watching a rugby game earlier this week. You know, trying to get into the Aussie spirit of things. I don't like sports but I suppose if you have to watch a sport it should be one that has muscular men in short shorts tackling the crap out of each other. Of course, I don't think that's why they were watching it.

Kelsey's job may be a bit too "no worries" for me. Apparently, the people who work there communicate with the boss by "texting" him. Huh? Seems odd to ask for a day off by texting someone but what do I know. She still doesn't know her schedule for next week or how much she's getting paid. Rumor is that she will get between 30 and 35 hours per week. I hope this isn't the normal way they plan the scheduling because it will make it really difficult to plan ahead for events that she wants to attend.

The sun is finally out today. Of course it is. I feel like crap and don't want to go anywhere. As soon as they stop with the noise upstairs, I'm going to sit on the porch with a good book and a glass of tea. That'll make me feel better.

Benji went downtown to play video games with a couple of boys from the homeschool group. He called about 5pm and asked if it was okay if they went to a movie....I could barely stay awake late enough to wait for him to get home. I think he walked in the door around 9:30pm. He is loving the freedom that public transportation is giving him.

Lone Pine and Kelsey's Job

Kelsey got a job!!!! Yea!!!! She was getting rather discouraged with the whole job prospects situation and knowing the money for camp was going to be due very soon. She took her resume' down to Queen Street again and just went from store to store....and she got a call back less then 3 hours later asking her to come in for an interview. She did and they hired her later that afternoon. It's a place called Naked Fruit so she gets to make awesome fruit drinks....and she gets a fantastic discount. She still doesn't know what her schedule will be, how much she's getting paid or exactly how many hours she'll be getting.... But, he did say that she'll be getting full time hours starting next week. It's all very "No Worries". Today when she went to work, the manager had forgotten to let everyone know that she'd be coming in....but that was okay, "No worries". It sounds like she just started working and if she had questions, there was always someone willing to help.

Monday, we went to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary. They are adorable. Just as cuddly as you've always imagined but I guarantee that you've never imagined quite how they smell. The males have a scent gland on their chest to attract females and they are...well....very musky to put it nicely. We fed lorikeets and kangaroos. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that I'd get to pet a kangaroo. Wombats are much larger than I imagined. They look like something that should be in a science fiction movie. Cute faces but just oversize in some strange way. The dingoes look exactly like dogs and the Tasmanian devil is adorable. Ben was so funny. He was so excited to hold the crocodile that you'd have sworn he was twelve years old. Keep in mind that I'm talking about my husband here, not my son. I'm sure I was just as enthusiastic when I got to hold the koala but I'm the one writing the blog so I can only describe the rest of my family. The place is just small enough that you don't feel like you need to rush to see everything and just large enough to make it worth going to see. I'll post some photos soon.

Sunday we went to the Northey Street Farmer's Market and I nearly made myself sick eating a yummy rice dish that had cream, pistachios, raisins (sultanas), goji berries, orange zest and honey in it. Oh, and little pancakes filled with vanilla custard. And some of Ben's flat white. All of this after I'd had breakfast at home. But, it was just so good, I couldn't stop eating. I found a member of my tribe there and we had a passionate discussion about good food. It was divine.

Sunday night was stand-up comedy at the Powerhouse. It's very odd to be in a crowd of people who get the jokes when you have no freakin' idea what they comedian is talking about because it's stuff only a Queenslander would understand. It just reminds you that you are the foreigner. Not a big deal really, just an observation. And, the comedian had plenty to say that I did understand so it was a fun night for us all.

One of the families from the homeschool group met us at the Powerhouse. She has 4 boys and 1 girl. Her son was teasing her that she was starting to speak American when she was talking to me. She must have been picking up some of my accent but I didn't even notice. I told her that it didn't bother me because I noticed I was picking up some of the Australian accent. Ben had been teasing me earlier that day for the way that I said the word "tonight".

Today has been rainy and cold. The sky tries to trick you. When you wake up in the morning, it will be blue skies and sunshine.....then as soon as you get to your destination and walk inside a building the dark clouds come running in as fast as possible and just before you walk out....they let loose a torrential downpour. And, of course, you have to go out in it otherwise you'll miss your bus! Do you think I ever remember to bring an umbrella? No. I'm just happy if I remember to bring a jacket! The rain is a good excuse to duck into a cafe for a cup of something warm though....so it's not all bad:)

The bus routes are getting so much easier now. It's such a relief to have at least a general idea of where you're going and how to get there.

Benji's Diet and Karawatha

Benji doesn't particularly like the food here. His preferred diet was rather limited in the states anyway and here it's even more limited. No jelly for his peanut butter sandwiches because they don't have grape jelly. The closest we can find is plum and that's just different enough that he doesn't care for it. The pancake syrup is different. The canned soups are different (I have to agree with him, they are dreadful.). So far, only one kind of cereal that's acceptable. The mayo doesn't taste the same even though it is Kraft brand. The ranch dressing is different. He likes the steaks and the same fresh vegetables that he's always liked. And, of course, he has liked most of the candy he's tasted. Bless his heart, he even happily ate a mixed bean soup I had made the other day and didn't even complain.

No tour at the Botanical Garden for us yesterday. We opted instead to join in an activity with the homeschooling group here. One of the members offered to give us a ride and it's a good thing...I would never have found my way from the train station. We went to Karawatha Forest Park for a Solar Cooking Demonstration. It was wonderful. The couple doing the demonstration was so passionate about the subject....they weren't so much teaching as just talking about something they obviously love to do. All the members of the group were very nice and welcoming. There was a short guided hike where we saw a termite mound up in a tree but no animals other than birds.

Mt. Coot-tha

Sunday, we decided to get out of the city which wasn't hard to do. A short drive and we were at Mt. Coot-tha. The hiking trails were closed because of the recent rains but we stopped at one of the picnic areas so Benji and Kelsey could play in the creek. We checked out the scenic overlook and then headed down to the Botanical Garden. It was gorgeous. Kelsey and I are going back Thursday for a guided tour.

Custard Apples and Our View

Kelsey and Ben eating a Custard Apple. It's just exactly what it sounds like it is. A bumpy apple like fruit that tastes like vanilla custard. Very, very sweet. Do they sell them in the states? I've never tasted one before and the fellow at the farmer's market just kept going on and on about how sweet they are and how they are almost out of season. They're good with a little cinnamon sprinkled on top. They liked it but it was too sweet for me . The other two photos show the view from our balcony. You can see the CityCat, too.

Not Much Worth Noting...

Not much worth noting this morning. I had a new bus strategy yesterday. Kelsey and I were in Woolloongabba for her second job interview and decided to try taking a bus to Fortitude Valley. I knew most of the buses would pass through Cultural Center Busway and I knew which bus to take from there so I just hopped on the first bus that looked like it was going downtown. Most of them go through Cultural Center so I figured my chances were pretty good. Victory is mine! That bus dropped us where I thought it would and we hopped on the right bus and magically got off at the right stop (okay, fine, so a passenger and the driver helped too....) and walked the two blocks to Ben's office:) Same strategy on the way home. I won't try that all the time but it was nice to learn a couple new routes.

While waiting for Kelsey I had lunch at a little cafe. There must be a dozen cafes per street around here. Anyway, I had a BLT. They are divine. You know how you know a burger is good if it's messy? Well, the BLT was like that. I must have looked insane eating it. My eyes were probably bugging out of my head as I slurped the tomatoes and snarfed down that sandwich. I know I must have been making those silly noises I make when I'm eating something yummy. Oh it was soooo good. The good thing about not knowing anyone here is that I don't have to worry about someone I know seeing me so messy. hehe. Oh, but, mental note.....never accept the Lipton Iced Tea in a bottle flavored with Peach. ICK. That was not divine.

The ferries and CityCats stopped running at dusk last night. I can only assume it was because of debris in the water. Kelsey and I were lucky to catch the last ferry home. ACK! That would have been a lot of walking trying to find the right bus stop if we had missed it.

When the man came to fix the dryer yesterday, we were chatting about the rain. He said it was the worst rain they'd had in seventeen years. I thought he was joking. He wasn't. That's what it said in the newspaper, too! Horrible flooding and people literally being blown across the street. Literally an 8.5 mos. supply of water in 24 hours. I believe that technically, the drought is over but they are not lifting the water restrictions yet.

Rain, rain and more rain....

Now the blog is finally up to date and I'm posting in "real time":) Yea, internet!!!! I had a moment of fear yesterday when the BigPond guy thought he wasn't going to be able to install it. ACK! But, thank goodness, he was mistaken. Fifteen minutes later, I was online with the children circling the computer like little sharks waiting for their turn. Okay, so they weren't really circling but the pressure to hurry up was definitely in the air. But, it's 6am now and they are asleep....so it's time to check email, post, play with facebook, research activities in the area, and look at all my news websites (aka as "People Magazine" and "Reality Blurred"). No worries though, I look at MSNBC.com and CNN.com too....so don't judge me!

Kelsey got a job call back yesterday! Gloria Jeans coffee shop in Wooloongabba (also known as "The Gabba" pronounced "The Gabber") called and asked her to come in today for what we are guessing is another interview. It's the place that is a little further away than I like though still within walking distance. I just wouldn't feel comfortable with the thought of her walking home alone from there at night....it's very dark and there just aren't that many people around. But, like I said, we'll cross that bridge if we get to it.

The rain, the rain, the rain. I've been stuck at home for what seems like years waiting for delivery or installation people. Yesterday, it poured and poured and poured until I thought I was going to scream. Ben looked like he was nearly drowned by the time he got home. Seriously, you cannot even imagine how miserable he looked (and was, I'm sure). Benji offered to go to Bulimba to return some movies to Blockbuster. By the time he got there, his rain poncho hat had been ripped off by the wind and the poncho itself was torn down the middle. He opted to toss it in the trash rather than fight the wind for custody. Today I'm still stuck here until the TV is delivered and then I'm hoping the rain will hold off long enough for me to go do anything at all. Without all my things here with me, there just isn't enough to do in the apartment to keep me busy for days.

Okay, so maybe it was obvious but the dryer has to be broken. I thought I was just putting loads in that were too large but that's not it. Yesterday, the damn thing couldn't dry 3 towels, 3 hand towels and two washclothes and I ran it on high for 2 hours (not including the naps it likes to take). I called the realtor and she's going to send someone to look at it. I hope the sun comes out soon otherwise we'll have no clean clothes!

Enough With the B.O. already!

Monday

I hate to continue harping on the fact that there’s a significant amount of body odor around here but the issue continues wafting into my face. As I was sitting at an internet kiosk at the mall (yes, I’ve become that desperate to get online), I smelled him before I heard him. The friendly fellow sat down two seats from me. I had about 7 minutes left online and he decided to let me know that the kiosk he was at had taken his money and had not let him online. Trying not to gag, I sympathized a bit and then turned away. He continued to talk. He told me about how he had been there a couple of days ago and it was just horrible that he’d had to clean fast food trash off the kiosk before he could even use it. After all, he had two kids and even they knew how to clean up after themselves. It took everything in me not to point out how nice it was that he knew how to clean up after himself since it was obvious by the aroma of what could only be unwashed ass that he didn’t know how to clean himself. I logged off immediately and got out of there as fast as possible.

We made our way yesterday morning to the Northey Street Farmer’s Market. Public transportation hit a dead-end after our ferry and first bus ride. When we got to our second bus stop and realized that it only ran every hour, we called a taxi and got there in no time at all. The market was fabulous. Fresh eggs, local organic meats, tons of delicious smelling foods you can buy for breakfast or a snack, gorgeous veggies, fantastic fruits. There’s even someone selling fresh unpasteurized unhomogenized “bath” milk. Here in Brisbane, the raw milk laws are basically the same as they are in Maryland. …it can only be purchased for non-consumption uses but I can’t imagine someone at a Farmer’s Market back home selling it. I bought some lard from a woman who was so happy to meet someone who understood the value of “fat” in our foods. She didn’t have to convince me!

We explored a little bit of Kangaroo Point yesterday evening. Now I know where the grocery store is and it’s not very far at all! We found several restaurants (Fish and Chips are very popular here.), a pharmacy, a bakery and a convenience store. Kelsey will be going down that way today to apply for jobs. She’s starting to get a bit discouraged. Yesterday was especially bad as the manager of a restaurant nearby had told her to be there at 7am for a trial run. His wife was in charge at that point and when Kelsey arrived she said she didn’t need her and would call her. Terribly rude of her to do that but what can you do? There were two other girls coming for a trial run and she said that having Kelsey there would be too much. Sounds like bull since the other two girls weren’t going to be there until 9am. But, honestly, she was foreign (Asian) and who knows what kind of miscommunication was going on.



Tuesday

Yesterday was gorgeous and sunny for the first part of the day. So, when Kelsey and I stopped by the apt. to drop off the groceries, I also dropped off my sweater. Turned out that was a mistake. By late afternoon, the clouds were out and I had goosebumps on my arms. As soon as we got home, I put on three shirts, jeans, socks and wooly slippers. The rain started about the time we went to bed and poured all night. It’s still coming down hard this morning. I read that it’s possible that we’ll get enough to put an end to water restrictions. I didn’t even know there were water restrictions though I have been mindful to use as little water as possible because of the drought. I guess if I watched the news I’d have heard about them. But, watching the news here is just as depressing as it is at home. They bash their politicians, delight and despair when their sports’ heroes fall from grace and people get hurt just like they do at home. And reading or hearing about it doesn’t really seem to be easier when you don’t “know” them. Adding news on top of dealing with homesickness just seemed like a bad plan…so I avoided it.

Kelsey had a little better luck with the job hunt yesterday. At least she found a couple of places that were actually hiring and they talked to her while making notes on her resume. Two of them are within walking distance of the apartment. The other might be a little difficult to get home from at night but we’ll work that out if she gets the job.

A couple of days ago, Kelsey and I were on a bus chatting. For some reason, we were talking about protests and wondering which countries allowed people to gather in protest or in support of a cause. About that time, the lady in front of us got up to get off at her stop and turned around and said something very quickly. Luckily Kelsey understood her or it would have remained a mystery forever…..she was happy to let us know that you could protest in Queensland, that “it was a way of life”. Another day, Ben and I were making our way somewhere with a map….no less than three people stopped within the 20 minutes we were walking on a particular street and offered to help. The pace is different too. The Queen Street Mall area streets can be just as crowded as any I’ve been on in NY but they walk slowly. Usually too slowly for my impatient American tastes, so I often end up rushing around people as soon as I can. They must think I have an emergency somewhere. But, I am getting more patient. Really, I am. I was able to be very patient through a very slow restaurant meal the other evening and didn’t even get irritated by having to wait so long for the check. I just enjoyed sitting there. Seriously, I did. I may never be able to do it again but I did it once and that must count for something.

The atmosphere here for buskers must be very supportive. There’s always someone performing at the Queen Street Mall and at South Bank. There’s going to be a busker competition in June with cash prizes. I even saw a little girl on the street playing her clarinet for donations. That’s gotta trump a lemonade stand any day!

In Our New Apartment...

TUESDAY

I don’t even know where to begin since it’s been so long since I’ve documented anything. I have a crap memory so the chances of remembering all the little things I wanted to note are slim.

We are in our new apartment. It’s about 6:30am and I’m sitting at the dining table looking at the river. The sun has just come up…it looks like it’s going to be another sunny day. I hope it’s a bit warmer than yesterday. Honestly, I’m going to be very cold wearing only the little bit of winter clothing I brought along in my suitcase. I’m the only American complaining though. Figures. Today will be filled with trying to find a grocery store that will deliver to the apartment. I have to figure this out without access to the internet or a phone book. First plan of action is to have Ben call me with a few phone numbers and then go from there. I want to stock the pantry thoroughly because I’m sick of eating out. Though last night, I must admit, we had a nice meal. It was at a café here near the apartment and for $29 Benji got a t-bone steak, salad and fries. A full meal? I was nearly thrown out of my chair from the shock of it. The service was shit, but ya can’t have everything.

Monday, May 11th was our official move in day. Technically we had the key on Friday but could not have beds delivered until Saturday. Turns out that worked out okay because we would have been in trouble with building management if we’d had our deliveries on Saturday as I was told in no uncertain terms that they “do not do move-ins on the weekends”. I don’t even care to try to figure out why or to even ask. There are just enough cultural differences here that my brain is tired of trying to work them out. So, I just try to go with the flow. Perhaps it’s a good lesson for me. Anyway, we had rental furniture, our new porch furniture and our electronics (fridge, mixer, other small appliances, etc) all delivered on Monday. The sheets the rental company brought are about negative 700 thread count or something. If I couldn’t see them with my own eyes, I’d swear they were a burlap blend! So, I tossed them in the wash to try to soften them up. No problem there. Now, the dryer, that’s another story. My gosh, how do they do laundry here????? The dryers are just sooooo small. The building manager had shown me the clothesline area so I had to finally take them down there to dry. Oh and in the middle of drying, the dryer just stops to take a rest. I guess it gets too hot since it vents into the room. We aren’t allowed to put one of those little laundry drying racks on the balcony which is a bit impractical. Line drying your clothing is just a fact of life here and that means an elevator ride down 5 floors, walk through the pool door, out the gate, around the building and down a little path. It’s honestly not that bad but just a little odd, I guess. I’m going to get one of the little racks and put it here in my dining nook….when the windows are open in this place it’s like a wind tunnel. Seriously, I felt like I was on a boat yesterday. It’s going to be fabu in the summer!!!!!

Our apartment is like Fort Knox. The building is always locked. If someone comes to visit, they’ll ring your apartment and when you pick up the phone, you can see them on a little mini screen. To get into the building yourself, you have a little “fob” that you scan to unlock the door then you scan it again when you get in the elevator. The elevator will only take you to your floor and public areas. When you get back on the elevator, it will only take you to the ground floor unless you scan your fob, then you can go to the first floor where the pool is. In other words, that little scanner recognizes where you are allowed to go. When you buzz in a visitor, the elevator will take them only to your floor. I swear, you’d think the crime rate in Brisbane was horrid. Everywhere we turned while looking for an apartment, there was some kind of security feature. Honestly, it was just a bit of overkill.

I am SO grateful for the new beds from the rental company. I think I only woke up once last night and it wasn’t because I was in pain. The bed at Goldsborough place was just dreadful. Our porch furniture is so gorgeous. I bought it with the plan to bring it back to the states with me. It’s a wicker look….table w/ 4 chairs, settee, coffee table and two chairs. The salesman even threw in four embroidered pillows I was admiringJ. I’ll have to settle for a less than stellar sofa (lounger, they call them here) now but it’s worth it.

Our apartment is located in the suburb of Kangaroo Point. Isn’t that an adorable name? I still haven’t figured out where the bus stops are but there are 3 city ferry stops and 1 citycat stop very close by. So, I’ll be able to most anywhere I was right now even if technically my path isn’t the most efficient.

I can’t wait to get some plants to really make this place feel like home. There’s a ledge right above the kitchen sink that will be perfect for little pots of herbs. I can see trees from my windows but a little greenery close by will be comforting. Honestly, if only my friends were here, this place would be perfect. I’m being very stubborn and babyish right now about making new friends. I don’t WANT new friends. I want my old FRIENDS. For now, I’m happy being alone. Once I’m not happy being alone then I’ll consider braving the territories.

I have no idea how to work the heat or a/c in the apartment…not that it matters yet. I can work the oven reasonably well and the stovetop is self explanatory (Thank goodness). The vacuum cleaner presented no new mysteries and the small appliances don’t seem like they are out to get me. I was even able to turn on the dishwasher without any major snafus. Even the washing machine was cooperative. If I could have given it a treat, I would have.

My feet are freezing. Mental note, must get rug for under dining table. And possibly slippers if they can be had for a decent price.

Cable tv. I really like it when things are simple. But, not everything is simple. A forty year old woman should know that by now. The cableguy showed up yesterday and after about 15 minutes of mysterious calculating and planning told us that this place had never had cable tv. What? In order to get cable, we have to hire a carpet layer to pull up the carpet, run the cable under from the hallway and then put the carpet back. He’ll also have to do the same in the hallway outside our door from the telecommunications closet. It was easy enough to get permission to do that from the “Body Corporate” (meaning building manager, I don’t know why they didn’t just say that….they made it sounds so imposing) and from the realtor who is representing the apartment owners. But, geez, what a pain.

The owners were kind enough to leave an entertainment center in the living room. The realtor said we could have it…if we wanted it. I did not. It was flesh colored. That creeps me out. So, she sent a fellow yesterday to disassemble it. Turns out the owners had not bothered to move it when they had new carpet put down. So, there’s a fancy cutout in the carpet now where you can see the old carpet. I don’t care. I just don’t like flesh colored furniture. The owners left a lot of other stuff that we’re going to put down in the garage. We’ve been told the big plant they left is impossible to kill so at least I don’t have to worry about that responsibility. Of all the things I do that I don’t feel bad about, I’d feel bad if I killed someone’s plant. I’ll work on that….

We have about a billion hangers coming in our shipment. But, we need them now. And hangers are about 4 dollars for a dozen. Seems silly to buy them when so many are on the way….

Kelsey went to a free comedy show at the Powerhouse on Sunday night with the other homeschoolers she met here. Apparently, they met a rather famous fellow (we saw him on a game show the other night) and had their photo taken with him. She said he was very funny.

WEDNESDAY

I ended up going to the exact same grocery store I’ve been going to all along in New Farm. None of the others had a delivery service. As it turned out I bought so many groceries that it came out cheaper to take a taxi anyway. Lesson learned. The taxi driver who came to pick me up immediately commenced to telling me how much he hated picking up passengers at shopping centers. Perhaps I’m getting used to the way they say things here since I didn’t get my feelings hurt. I just thought to myself, “I’m tired, I’m hungry, I have 20 bags of groceries …just fucking drive”. He continued with his complaining for nearly the whole ride but his accent was one of the thickest I’ve heard so for all I know he could have been calling me a plethora of filthy names. To his credit, he did help me load and unload the groceries though. My gosh, what an undertaking though. I must have been at the store for over 2 hours trying to find what I needed and figure out what some of that stuff was. Turns out that “caster sugar” is just powdered sugar so technically I had written it twice on my shopping list. I thought I would get a cake mix so Benji and I could bake a cake….I had a whopping 3 choices. And if you want icing in a can…..two choices…vanilla and chocolate. But the bread selection is enormous. Row after row of breads. Kangaroo meat is a really, really deep red color. I did not buy any. Now that I think about it, I haven’t seen any on menus at restaurants either. Not that I have any intention of eating it. I’m sure it’s delicious and nutritious but I’ll pass. Our ice cream choices have also been very limited. The grocery store is still completely overwhelming and I’m so tired by the time I get out of there. The Farmer’s markets, however, are exhilarating. I love the stand after stand of gorgeous fruits and vegetables. (Though I’d pay double the price for a really good watermelon right now). I’ll be heading over the Farmer’s Market at the Queen Street Mall today for the first time. I can’t wait to see it. I’ve got my little granny shopping trolley so that I don’t have to try to carry everything. It’s tall and black and has wheels so I just pull it along behind me. I’d like to say it makes me feel very cosmopolitan but that would be a lie. It’s rather clumsy feeling but it’s a lifesaver for my back and neck.

Today the sun is shining again. Yesterday was too cold for me. I was so happy to see the sun rising this morning over the river knowing that the sky was not cloudy. The apartment has warmed up reasonably well though the bathroom with it’s ridiculous vented window is still cold. I did a load of laundry this morning to try to help warm things up with the dryer. Stupid thing has been running for nearly 2 hours and the clothes still aren’t dry. Of course, it did take a little siesta somewhere in the middle of it all. Lazy dryer.

Big W and Woolies

Now, I finally feel like I'm learning my way around a bit. I can get around Bulimba, Tenneriffe, Kangaroo Point, Riverside, and can get to the Queen Street Mall which I call downtown because the damn thing seems as large as a small town. I spent too much time on the boats yesterday and took a while to get over the dizziness. Not a good sign but I'm ignoring it for now because who has time to find someone to fix that problem? I'm going to try to figure out the bus from Kangaroo Point tomorrow so I don't have to take the ferry every time. Right now, it's just too complicated from here. I could spend half the day trying to find the second bus stop. Oh well. The apartments I saw yesterday weren't really anything to write home about. They were all acceptable in their own way. The one in South Bank was a great location in that it's near that fantastic South Bank park area, the art museum, the science center and a bus stop where all the buses seem to go thru....but it had absoltely no view to speak of. The ones on Kangaroo Point were small but okay. All were quiet either because they faced away from the street or they were just in a quiet area. What a I really want is the inside of the apartment in Admiralty Towers (so large it even had a breakfast nook), combined with the view from the one in front of Skyline Apartments (the name escapes me for the moment), combined with the quiet of Bulimba and for it to be located at Riverside. See, I'm not difficult to please. I have one to see this morning and then Ben and I will be out for most of the day tomorrow looking at potential places. The one in Silver Quay looks so promising that I'm practically holding my breath in anticipation.

Ben keeps telling me about various areas that other people tell him about. He has NO idea how much walking I'm doing trying to see places. I flatout refuse to try to find my way to a new area by myself. We've decided on which areas are acceptable and until I exhaust all my options there, I don't see any reason to open to door to other possibilities. I simply don't have the mental energy or the physical stamina (though I have been doing really well in that department, if I do say so myself.) End of rant.

Apparently, there's a huge celebration here in August called River of Fire. I'm only catching about half of what anyone tells me about it but apparently there's boats, lots of lights, fireworks and if you have an apartment on the river then you are in high demand amongst your friends;-)

Yesterday a taxi came out of nowhere around the front of my bus and was nearly hit. It was all very exciting. I even let out a little yelp. The driver was paying attention and was rather proud of himself for stopping so quickly I think. The lady across the aisle commenced to telling me about how many accidents she's seen and how many times she's ended up on her back in a bus. As I type that, I realize it sounds little dirty but she had a cane so I'm pretty sure she meant she'd just fallen when the bus driver hit the brakes. lol. The driver could hear her talking and said, "Ay, sounds like we've got a black cat on the bus today" and grinned at me. When the little old lady realized what he'd said, I think she was rather offended. Like anywhere else, there are varying degrees of sympathy and care from the drivers...some will step off the bus to fold up a walker or a stroller for someone...others will sit there all day and just watch someone try to get on the bus. But, honestly, I've seen more kindness than indifference especially considering how mindnumbing the job must be. The worst job though would have to be the ferry across the river. It's a five minute ride, tops. So, the boat driver is just back and forth, back and forth all day. Tie the boat up, untie the boat, tie the boat up, untie the boat, wait for the city cat to get out of the way, tie the boat up..... I'd simply lose my mind. I prefer riding the bus. Being on the ferry makes me want to go to sleep. The view is always lovely but I get too relaxed.

There's a place that makes fruit shakes...tossing all this gorgeous fresh fruit into a juicer, dropping in a dollop of yogurt and it's done.... I could drink them all day. At at about $7 for a large one, it's quite a bargain. Kelsey and I had lunch the other day and it was over $45. I had fish and chips (with ketchup that tasted just like American ketchup to me so I don't know what people were talking about when complaining about the ketchup) and a lipton bottled tea. Kelsey had a salad and a smoothie. At least we were full when we walked away. Junk food can be had for next to nothing,McDonalds or Subway....$7 or so. Gag.

Monday is a holiday here. Ben will have three 3 day weekends in a row! Hopefully, in another week we'll be over our jetlag completely. Bedtime last night was around 8:30 but that was with me really pushing to stay awake. lol. I was technically ready to lay down at 7pm. But, I love being up with the sun and it's not as if there's anything at all on tv. I cannot even express to you how lame the local channels here are. But, it's probably a good thing. After all, there's no lack of something to do here.

I found a huge store similar to Walmart here yesterday when I was wandering around the Queen Street area. Ironically enough it's called Big W. While the prices still cause sticker shock, it was a good bit cheaper than the other places I've been. But, honestly, the quality here is horrendous in many cases. You know the cheapo laundry baskets you can buy at Dollar General Store? Well, that's just about all I've seen here. I finally found one that was a little less brittle at the grocery store for $10.49 so I bought it. The ones at KMart were so brittle, I was afraid I'd break it in less than a week. The grocery store I prefer is called Woolworths. I think the only reason that I prefer it is that everyone calls it Woolies. And seriously, who wouldn't want to shop at a store with a nickname like that? It sounds so friendly and non-threatening. hehe. They did have organic apples so that also helped.

There are no pennies here. The smallest coin in 5 cents. So, your total is either rounded up or rounded down. But, the cashier gives you the real total first. Weird. Why don't they just make everything end in 5? And with the $1 and $2 being coins, you can rack up a heavy pocketful of change pretty quickly. The largest coin is 50 cents. It's huge compared to the others. Seriously, it's a bit of overkill if you ask me. lol.

Well, I must run. 'Tis better to arrive at an apartment inspection early assuming I don't get lost rather than late because I was lost, I suppose. Afterwards, I'm going to explore the Queen Street area a bit more.....

Huge Bats!

Last night there was an uncountable number of huge, huge bats flying past our balcony. Kelsey was using her flip to record it...and one flew pretty darn close. The video has plenty of ducking and screaming on it. We've been told they're fruit bats and aren't a danger to humans but that didn't make it any less exciting when one came so close. They're really quite beautiful. Not bird of paradise beautiful but knowing they don't have rabies helps me to appreciate their unique loveliness. Benji says that he's seen them flying back home at dawn.

Did I already mention that each outlet here has it's very own on/off switch? So, not only do you plug an appliance in, you also have to turn on the power to it at the wall plate.

My feet hurt. It took a full week for there to be any pain at all so that's saying quite a lot about the quality of Chacos sandals. My body aches too. I look forward to having my own bed again. There's still so much walking left to do. I'm sure I'll get used to it quickly.

Some people here stink. Literally. I know, people stink everywhere but there seems to be more than the usual share here in Brisbane. At least once a day I have to move to another part of the street/the bus/the store/the sidewalk to get away from some stinky person. Yesterday, this dear old man wanted to have a chat with me. It was horrid and you all know I have a soft spot for the old folks. I was trying so hard not to gag. Doesn't someone love him enough to tell him that he needs a bath? I couldn't get away from him without being just blantantly rude and I kept thinking he was going to wander away at any moment. I've got such a sensitive nose, I seem to be the only one who can smell them.

This morning we were up bright and early to head down to the Powerhouse Farmer's Market. It was marvelous. We bought homemade cheese, pineapple (literally from a pineapple farmer), passionfruit, bananas (different variety than I've ever had before and they are dreadful), cookies (from a lovely couple who want to go to America in the winter), a cupcake, organic grass fed beef (woohoo!!!! The farmer heard Ben and I discussing how we could figure out how to broil them in the oven and he said, "Ahh, ye got to get yerself a barbie, mate!"), organic free range eggs, rockmelon (cantalope), dragonfruit (from a cactus), a very, very expensive espresso brownie, carrots, candy, salad greens (they have one called rocket but I have no idea what that is), avocodos, and apple juice. I also bought a bouquet of flowers to make the condo feel a little more like home. There were samples galore and I was nearly sick by the time we got out of there from eating so much. I was in Heaven! And everything was so much cheaper than in the grocery store. I wanted to dance....but the bags were too heavy.

We hauled it all back home and then went to explore Kangaroo Point to see if it's somewhere we'd want to live. Ben liked it. I'm not so sure. I really, really like where we are staying....so,we'll just have to see what happens.

The weather was blindingly hot today but we decided it was worth it to make our way over to the Farmer's Market in West End just to see what it was like. I don't even want to talk about how long spent riding the city ferry there (it's much slower than the CityCat....lesson learned) and then we sat at the damn bus station forever waiting for our bus until we realize that we'd have to take a different one because today is a public holiday (Anzac Day). We were standing in the sun the whole time. (Another lesson learned- read all the signage available) We did manage to catch the last minute of the West End Farmer's Market and got a watermelon for $4.That was before I realized how far we'd have to carry it. Luckily Ben is happy to carry anything and everything though I did offer to help.

We stopped by Sol Bread to grab a snack and buy some organic bread. They have a store here near us, too. I don't know what was in my salad but it's my new favorite thing.

Yesterday, I went to the Butcher Shop down the road. Rabbits laid out in the window. I passed on that. The butcher was great...he was very friendly and didn't mind that I didn't know diddly about the metric system. He gave me directions on what temperature to put the oven and I bought a nice roast from him. He didn't even look shocked when I asked for grass-fed beef and was happy to have a conversation about how much better it is.

So, let's review....I know where there's a great Farmer's Market, I have a bakery, I have a butcher and I have a view of the river. Life is good.

Bus Drivers and Apartment Hunting

Yesterday, while out apartment shopping, I noticed that I'm thinking in an Australian accent. Which led me to think, what will it be like if I pick up a bit of the accent here. Combined with my East TN and W. Maryland accents, will it be charming or just mildly creepy and strange? I guess it'll be a while before I find out.

My first bus driver yesterday had the most amazing accent. I couldn't understand more than one word per sentence. Luckily he understood me and let me off at the stop I requested without me having to push the button. You generally have no idea where your stop is until you pass the sign and by then, it's too late. Unless you're staying on one street....then they are numbered sequentially. But, heaven forbid, you should need the first stop on a street and don't know it because you're gonna be doing some walking right back to it.

The bus has a sign that says, "Scholars and children" are requested not to sit when there are adults standing. To which I replied in my head, "Or what?". I mean, there isn't anything that mentions what the punishment is. Is there a fine? Are the kids who disobey thrown into the river. I later noticed that no one really follows that rule.

To see a home, you have to either attend an "inspection" or arrange for an "inspection". You don't really seem to get a choice. When you call, they will usually take down your number and tell you that they'll call when there's an inspection available. That does give one a sense of urgency when looking at a place though...if you like it, you'd better grab it because God only knows when you'll get to see another one that's acceptable. Sometimes the inspection date and time is listed on the listing on realestate.com.au. You show up with all the other people who are interested and go through it at the same time. That's an advantage if the property is a hellhole like the third one I saw yesterday. I didn't even have to talk to the realtor, I just slipped out the door fading into the crowd like some unneeded movie extra. This place was so bad, I was scared there would be a dead body at the bottom of all that muck in the pool. Creepy. Oddly enough, the neighborhood was lovely in every other way. Go figure.

The first place I wanted to see yesterday was in Kangaroo Point. No luck there. The directions from the official translink site said to take a particular bus to a particular stop....no problem...then walk 200 or so metres to another stop for a different bus. The problem is....which direction? I ended up in Chinatown and when I did eventually find out where the damn stop was, I had walked through the Chinatown market. I still can't figure out how I was supposed to get from stop A to stop B walking in anything that resembled a straight line. Everyone I asked was very helpful in their own way but it was just impossible. By the time I found the stop, it was too late to go to the inspection. I'm sure the apartment wasn't acceptable anyway, right? I came back to the hotel for lunch and to gather my thoughts. I was muttering about how it was "just too bad that someone else was gonna have to find us a place to live cause I'd be damned if I was doing that crap again".

After lunch, I gathered my courage and headed out again. The route this time was a little easier and I had one inspection in Indooroopilly and two in Toowong. And, I had to catch a train. Oh dear. I made it to my first bus stop with no problem and stood in front of a map that had the little dot telling me "you are here" and figured out where the train station was supposed to be. I must have been standing there for a little too long because just as I turned to go, a woman who must have noticed me as she was walking down the street stopped and said, "All right then?". I smiled and said, "Yes, I've got it now". She smiled back and went on her way. I followed a native across the street just to keep from having to walk to the crosswalk (knowing I needed to save as many steps as possible for when I get lost). I saw the sign pointing me to the train station and felt so triumphant. hahahahahahaha. As if the signs take you anywhere. I finally asked directions....several times and made it to the right train platform. I would have gotten on the wrong train if I had followed the directions I got from Translink but luckily, I'm not shy about asking strangers for help. I had no major problems with directions for the rest of the day. It was all very frustrating and a lot of walking but it was manageable. So far, none of the apts. are what I'm looking for....

We are staying in Tenneriffe and our hotel/condo has the most amazing view. The entire front (or would that be the back...) is windows overlooking the river. I can see the CityCat (public transport boats) going by regularly, there are rowing teams practicing in the morning, and people just generally having a lot of fun on the water. It's peaceful and quiet. There are moments when it makes me want to cry. If someone had asked me, I would have said, "Oh yes, we're staying in Tenneriffe, just outside the city". Those of you who know me well, know that my map skills are questionable at best. Ben works in Fortitude Valley which is in the CBD (Central Business District) and he said that it took him about a half hour to walk there his first day. After that, he made it in 15 minutes. I know, any moron who took a moment to think about that would realize that my thinking that we are "outside the city" is a bit delusional. I realized my error yesterday when I got on a bus and headed in that direction...literally go down a street or two and turn a corner and BOOM-you're in the CITY. Duh.

I still don't know how to work the oven here. And if I did, I wouldn't know what temperature to put in on unless I looked it up on the internet. Luckily, I've been too tired to cook.
The weather here right now is just beyond amazing. Sandals and shorts during the day for me and jeans and a long sleeved shirt at night. Ben can wear shorts all the time. The sun feels so amazing. I love being out in it.

Bedtime is still about 8pm. I wake up about 6am. By 6pm, I'm struggling to stay alert probably because it's dark by then.

Today...it's still all about trying to find a place to live. I'm going to Ben's office to get online to try to find something at realestate.com.au and then it'll be time to make phone calls. I hate talking on the phone. I had trouble understanding many people on the phone in the States...here's it's nearly hopeless. I feel like if I can make out the time of the next inspection then it's a successful call. Any other information they are offering is completely lost. I'd tell myself that it will get easier but I know that part really won't. I've always had trouble understanding strangers on the phone so I'll just make the best of it. As long as I sound friendly when I'm making no sense to them, then I suppose they'll just think I'm a nice gal who's a little dim. And I suppose that's better than them thinking I'm some psychotic foreigner who doesn't understand a normal conversation. They probably don't rent places to psychos.

Luckily, in person, I can understand most of what is said here. The accent really is lovely.The exception being anything that includes directions to somewhere. But, that has less to do with the accent and more to do with the way my brain works. Kelsey says it takes them forever to say anything.

There's a drought in Brisbane. But, our shower has the most amazing water pressure I've ever seen in my life. In restaurants, good luck getting a big glass of water. The service is friendly, just different than in the US. Slower...and tiny glasses of water. We have managed to find some restaurants that are a little more reasonably priced than the ones we saw the first couple of days....either that or we are getting over the "sticker shock" already. $10 for a sandwich and we're excited. But Ben did say it was a BIG sandwich.

Next day's notes...


Today we were chatting with a young realtor named Braedon. He was all of 19 years old. Seriously. Very nice fellow and rather funny, too. He said something (and I so wish I could remember what it was) that I thought was an Australian joke...I laughed very hard until I realized I was the only one laughing. Whoops. He was very nice though and seemed to understand that I couldn't help myself. I also asked him how to use the oven. He thought I was joking. He asked me twice if I was serious. I have no pride. I said I was serious. He showed me how to use the oven and I thanked him kindly. The pantry in the apartment was really big. Kelsey couldn't help herself. She climbed into it. He found that very amusing. The apartment had a gorgeous view but I'm not ready to commit without seeing some other areas. If the rental market is as competitive as everyone says then anything I look at over the next couple of weeks will be gone by the time I decide I want it. But, I'm not worried. We'll find a nice place.
Fish and chips for lunch today. Ketchup and tartar sauce packets were fifty cents each. But, the lunch itself was only $10-$15.

Found KMart in Toowong and Kelsey managed to find some shorts on clearance....$8. Quite the bargain. I wanted to dance but I refrained. Found corn on the cob priced at 4 ears for $2.
Television here was rumored to be horrible. The rumor was correct. Even Ben has nothing to watch and that's saying something...

The bus drivers here are so helpful.They are happy to let you know if you're on the right bus or not and direct you to the correct one if they can. It's also nice that the passengers say thank you as they step off the bus.