2009: Week 6

Last August, I walked out of the lab in Calgary, and into an adventure. This week, after almost six months of glorious unemployment, I walked into a different lab and back into the world of work. For those of you who haven't caught up on the news, I was offered a job at the University of New South Wales, and started this week.

It was a good week overall. Most of my work time was spent reading and becoming familiar with some of the software I'll be using. The project I'll be working on is really exciting, and I've enjoyed reading background material and beginning to know enough to ask questions of my own. I've also spent time starting to get to know my new colleagues - they are a great group of people and I think working with them will be a lot of fun.

Best of the week
- Morning coffee - just $2.50 and generally drunk in a lovely garden courtyard.
- Coming home each evening.
- Arriving home and discovering that dinner has already been prepared. What bliss!

Worst of the week
- The pile of things to read, which always grows faster than I can read it.
- Exhaustion in the evening - I've turned soft with all the time off, and a whole day of work really takes it out of me.

2008: Weeks 49-52

Despite my valiant efforts to write each week, the time has come to admit defeat and write a few posts to get back up to date. The last weeks of December were rather busy, filled with travel and preparation for travel.

We started the month in London, sending the last 5 nights of our trip in a nice little hotel between Paddington Station and Hyde Park. Despite constant gray skies and drizzle, and extreme tiredness we managed to fit in the Tower of London, the National Portrait Gallery, and the National Gallery. We also walked through Hyde Park, visited the Diana memorial fountain, and explored the very eclectic Victoria and Albert Museum. On the social side of things, we caught up with friends at a nice pub in Camden, and toasted our last night of holiday drinking cider with John. Then, after almost 3 months, we were on a plane and back to Canada.

Our 11 days in Merrickville were spent packing and organising, applying for jobs, and of course enjoying a bit of Canadian winter. We had an early white Christmas, and enjoyed walking around the snowy village. And we had a memorable trip into to Ottawa, trying to get around during a transit strike the day after a massive snow fall. Too soon, though, we were back at the airport, this time heading for Sydney.

After way too many hours on a plane (delayed because we had to be de-iced in Vancouver of all places), we finally touched down, and after a short wait for the plane to be be dosed with bug spray, we finally had our feet on the ground. All 4 of our large bags arrived safely, and we were soon through the gate and greeting my family. They were happy to see us of course, but there was better news to come for them - after months of secretly applying for visas and talking about where to live we finally told them that we were planning to stay.

The last week of December was filled with celebrating Christmas and my Dad's birthday and settling in to Australian life. Finally, we saw out the year eating great food and drinking great wine with some very good friends.

Best of 2008
- skiing Banff
- NYC with Lynda
- Elysa and Patrick's wedding
- Algonquin Park
- camping at Castle Mountain
- roadtrip to Vancouver Island
- Radiohead in Vancouver
- Quebec City
- Edinburgh
- Amsterdam
- white Christmas in Merrickville
- sunny Christmas in Sydney

2008: Week 41

The week started fairly slowly as we continued to settle in to Amsterdam. We spent time looking for a second bike (one came with the apartment), watching TV to escape the rain, and exploring our local area. We've also been investigating some of the food and drink items available here. Blackcurrant seems to be a favourite flavour, and we have enjoyed blackcurrant jam, soft drink, and tea (all similar to Ribena, but a little less sweet). Salt and vinegar chips are non-existent, but the barbeque ham flavour is pretty good, while the balsamic flavour was disappointing. Beer is cheap; €10 buys 24x330mL bottles of Grolsch or Heineken in a plastic crate. At the market we can buy cheese of varying age, bbq kippen (miniature chickens; the taste is very similar to Aussie bbq chicken), and fresh herring (you eat it raw with onions and pickles). A new favourite is FEBO, fondly referred to by us as "the food in the wall place". There is a counter where you can buy hot chips and sauce (saté is my favourite), and a wall with many small windows holding various flavours of croquettes. Just drop your coins in the slot, open a door, and you're enjoying your hot snack. It sounds a little gross, but the turnover is high, so the food is fresh and the serve yourself option keeps the queing time to a minimum.

The end of the week was all about being tourists. Between us we had three family members staying in Amsterdam, so we spent several days showing them around town and visiting lots of museums. We saw the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh museum, took a canal cruise, visited the botanic gardens (and saw giant lily pads, about 1m across), and toured Rembrandt's House. Food-wise, we ate pannenkoeken, croquettes, frittes with sauce and had a wonderful Indonesian dinner.

By Sunday, only Lynda was still in town, and the two of us caught the train to Brussels for the day. It was a whirlwind visit, but we walked around town, admired Grand Place, ate waffles, visited chocolate shops, saw the lace museum, and ate mussels in a cheesy restaurant on rue de Bouchers. A little under three hours on the train and we were back in Amsterdam.

Best of the week
- Catching up with Tina, Jen, and Lynda.
- A day in Brussels with my sister (who even learned a few words in French).
- Buying a bike so we can explore the regions surrounding Amsterdam.

Worst of the week
- Dodgy and over-priced bike dealers; is it just me who finds it odd when someone has already sold the bike advertised but miraculously has another one (worth €300 new) for sale at a bargain price?
- Over-the-top waiters in Brussels - joking about going on a date is funny, offering (repeatedly) a sample massage is just sketchy.

2008: Week 35

It's been a while since the last post! With a lack of internet access (I was forced to pay for an hour in Starbucks - but I didn't drink their coffee), and Blogger not talking to my hosting service for a while, suddenly 3 weeks have passed!

After finishing work on August 15th, Matt and I headed to Vancouver to visit his sister, see Radiohead, and then go camping with friends at Tofino, a beach town on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Then it was back to Calgary to pack up our stuff, because tomorrow we head off to Ottawa for the next step of our adventure.

Best of the (last 3) weeks
- The end of work for a while.
- Radiohead (despite the rain at an outdoor concert).
- Finally driving from Calgary to Vancouver and seeing the much-talked-about BC interior.
- The sunset seen from the ferry between Vancouver Island and the mainland.
- Beer on a sunny patio in White Rock.
- The long-awaited arrival of Ethan - congratulations!

Worst of the (last 3) weeks
- Camping in the rain.
- Packing up a wet tent.
- Packing up a tent in the rain when it's 6C! What happened to summer?
- Leaving friends in Calgary.

Last day!

It's finally here, my last day at work! Hooray!

Pantry inspired cooking

As we get ready to move, I'm trying to use up as much as possible from the pantry. Anything left will be inherited by our house-mates, but given what I've observed over the last two years, preparation of food that requires actual mixing of ingredients and cooking is extremely rare. I thought I'd share some of the things I'm cooking, and which ingredient(s) they are helping me finish;

- Cannelloni (6 lonely cannelloni shells, parmigiano reggiano, frozen spinach).
- Black pepper and parmesan no-knead bread (470g whole wheat flour, parmigiano reggiano, cornmeal, black peppercorns).
- Fettucine (400g semolina flour, 185g whole wheat flour, sage leaves from the garden).
- Steak with bearnaise sauce (tarragon from the garden)
- Risotto (400g arborio rice).

Now to find a way to use up condensed milk, 2 tins of passionfruit pulp, macadamia oil, puff pastry, assorted spices, and some frozen quince syrup....

2008: Week 31

This has been quite a productive week. I spent a day going over my response to paper reviewers, and I'm hoping to have everything ready to go in a week or so. Things at work are winding up, and I'm making good progress on my list of things to get done before I leave.

At home we are trying to sort through everything and only take what is really needed. It seems that no matter how much I try not to accumulate unnecessary stuff, I still end up buying lots of things I don't need (or maybe even want - so many things fail the "do I love this enough to warrant shipping it across the country?" test). It's also apparent how much unnecessary packaging we accept as normal. Honestly, do we really need one of those big plastic cases for every DVD?

The worst of the sorting is the books. I love my book collection, and it's hard to be objective about which to keep and which to pass on for someone else's reading pleasure. The cost of shipping brings some perspective - maybe I'll actually get a library card in the next place!

Best of the week
- Finally working out how to create icons with transparent backgrounds. In fact I was so excited I was jumping up and down looking at my handiwork. Yes folks, I am a nerd.
- Success re-probing a very old western blot (from May 2002!). I know this makes no sense to most of you, but it's probably the difference between the paper being accepted and rejected.
- Slow but steady progress sorting and packing.
- Moving as an excuse to creatively use up everything in the pantry.

Worst of the week
- Reading the unfolding story of the poor young man killed on a Greyhound bus in Manitoba.

Gone fishing

Well, not literally. But it is about time I wrote about some big changes that are just around the corner.

It's time to move on again. Matt and I have resigned from our jobs and in just a few weeks will be leaving Calgary to spend some time travelling. The exact details are still to be finalised, but our basic plan is to drive back across Canada, leave the car (and our stuff) with Matt's parents, then head to Europe for several months. We plan to be back in Australia for Christmas, and after that I suppose we will have to give up the good life and head back to work. However it's still unclear exactly where that will be. Or for me, what it will be. As I've posted previously, I'm feeling pretty burned out in my current job. I'm hoping that the time away will give me some space to think about what's next career wise. The suggestions so far involve cupcakes, coffee, and shoe shopping. I like what I hear :)

2008: Week 15

Change is in the air here in Calgary. Spring is asserting itself, and winter retreats, although with great reluctance. This week I saw my first crocus and hyacinth for the season, and noticed tulip shoots reaching for the light. Then on Thursday morning we had a foot of snow fall in just 4 hours, the largest snowfall by far this year. The weekend was glorious, with temperatures as high as 20C; we had our first BBQ on the patio tonight. The coming week will be cooler, with temperatures predicted to resemble the mild winters of my hometown.

My jonquils are flowering, the freesia bulbs I bought are in pots, and the steel bucket I found at an estate sale a few weeks ago now holds the herbs we will enjoy all summer. But for the time being, the heat which feeds these plants comes from a sunny spot in front of the fireplace. It will be several weeks before they can be confidently moved to the light and warmth of the outside world.

Best of the week
- Wading through fresh snow on the way to work, barely resisting the temptation to make snow angels.
- Venturing outside in a T-shirt, skirt, and bare legs.
- Finally taking the plunge and upgrading to Leopard.

Worst of the week
- Working several weekends in a row, and remembering how easy it is to stray into workaholic territory.
- Golf on TV. I'm way too hyperactive to want a day on the couch doing nothing.

Three

I sat alone on the balcony.
I sat alone on the balcony and watched the moon rise through the sunset; large and pale through pink clouds, then free, bright in the evening sun.
I sat alone on the balcony watching the moon rise, and drank a toast to what was but is no more.
I sat alone on the balcony in the moonlight, port in my hand, and memories in my heart.

I sat on the balcony and remembered that I was not alone.

Thank you everyone who has remembered with me today.

Suitcase living

My time in Ithaca is almost over - Lyn and I fly to Las Vegas on Monday, then on Friday she is off to spend some time with a friend before heading home, while I will be going to Calgary. For now, the apartment is full of boxes and packed suitcases in preparation for the big move. I am fortunate that the person who will be subetting the apartment is moving into their own place for the first time and will take a lot of the household bits and pieces I'm not going to move.

There are several big tasks scheduled for today. Firstly, to drop 8 boxes and 3 suitcase to UPS to be shipped. I'm a little afraid of how much this might cost. Then to breakfast at the Carriage House, where Lyn still has not been (shameful indeed, as the Ithacans out there will agree). Then to the bank to deposit all that change collected over the years, and finally (and most devastatingly) to Time Warner to return the cable modem, at which point I will be mostly offline until I start work in Calgary on November 1st. So don't expect rapid replies to email (just in case you ever did). The phone will be OK until Friday when I leave the US, after that, check your inbox for new contact details. And there's an email link on the left of this page in case my work address is inactivated.

Always on the move

Lately it feels like I never stop moving. Last weekend I moved house - as always a fun process, and still not complete. The weekend before I drove to Washington DC to see Matt, who moved there a few weeks back. And there's more to come. My time in Ithaca is coming to an end, which means more moving. At least life doesn't get boring :)

Hmmm....not doing so well at the posting lately. Life is busy, but not unusually so. So often I feel that I'm running just to keep on top of the few things I have to take care of, and then I'm in awe of my friends who look after themselves and their families.

The second most exciting recent (and continuing) event is the unfolding of Spring. The daffodils are out, and a few tulips are starting to emerge. Most trees are covered in tiny sprouts of green, and fruiting trees are blossoming. Magnolias are in bud, and should burst into full flower in the next few days. And the weather is consistently warmer, enough to wear skirts and thongs. Hooray!

The most exciting recent event is a stolen (ie/ all I could manage) week of vacation. Location and photos to come.

The most unexciting event is some new upstairs neighbours, who I swear do not sleep or go out of the house. They do listen to irritating hip hop and play car racing video games though. Put that with a total lack of insulation in my bedroom ceiling, and I'm going slightly crazy. Only a few more weeks before my lease runs out though :)

House pictures

As promised, here are a few pictures of my new place. The top photos are my lounge room and bedroom, underneath is the view out the front window and the outside of the house (my windows are the row across the middle floor).

Anniversaries and Grief

Today is my wedding anniversary. It feels weird to say MY anniversary rather than ours, but this year it is mine and mine alone. And I feel a mixture of joy in what once was and sorrow in what now is.

Today Anj wrote words that were life to me. Thanks.

Farewell Paul Hester

Farewell to Paul Hester, Crowded House drummer, who died over the weekend. Thanks for the music.

New house (part 2)

So I promised some more details about my new place ...

It's a 1 bedroom apartment in a divided-up house. The house is pretty cool - it even has a bay window seat near the front door where my guests can wait in comfort until I'm ready to make my grand entrance ... or maybe not :D

The apartment itself is quite a bit smaller than where I am now, but it has windows on 3 sides and faces south (for those in the southern hemisphere, that means lots of lovely winter sun). In fact it was the windows that convinced me to take the place. And it has a bath tub! Sadly the kitchen is ... shall we say ... suboptimal. It will need some creative organisation, but I'm sure I'm up to the challenge.

The other big selling point is the location. It's 5 minutes walk downtown or to great local cafes, 10 minutes walk to the best bagels in town, and 20 minutes walk to work. Plus, the bus stops right out the front for those lazy days. I can't wait!

New house!!!!

I have some exciting news this week - I'm moving house on June 1st. More details later, but thought I'd post a picture so everyone can share the excitement. The four windows across the 1st floor are mine.

Life, interrupted

I've been thinking for a while now about what to write in this post. Words don't come easily.

Most of you who read this blog will know that my Europe trip was cut short by the horrific news that my husband Paul had been killed in an accident on July 27th in Sydney. So I spent almost 4 weeks back home saying goodbye, dealing with practicalities, and spending time with friends and family.

It is an agonising path to walk. There is hope in God's promises, that Paul is with Him, secure forever. But there is also the grief. For the good things in this life that I had hoped for him. For the friendship I had hoped we would share in the years ahead. In knowing that so many of the memories of times we shared now exist only in my own mind. And in knowing that our marriage is truly ended.

To all those who have cared for me over the last month and a half - my sincere thanks. And to those who have known and loved Paul - may you know the peace and comfort of God as you learn to live with the sorrow we all bear.

I've decided to pull down my webpage for the time being. But at least this is an update of sorts. I realised that I hadn't made any changes since October!