Welcome to the Jungle

Iain is downstairs making dinner with Guns 'n Roses blasting on the stereo, so I decided to take this opportunity to update the blog. I don't think Tama likes Axl Rose -- he's sitting in the middle of the hallway howling. Or maybe that means he likes it?

Well, Tama managed to bust through the electric fence again. It's been a few months since the last time and it's still a mystery how he does this. At 7:30am, Tama didn't appear for his breakfast. Weird. Around 3pm he'd been gone approximately 8 hours and mild panic had begun to set in. It started raining and I thought, "Good -- he'll come home now!" but he didn't. I increased my checks to every hour, walking in my raincoat through the bush behind our house shaking a bag of treats like a total idiot. By 4pm I could barely hold it together. Worst case scenarios started creeping in, including a scene from The Orphanage which makes zero sense for a cat. I realize how lame this all sounds for people with outdoor cats, or children.

Finally both Iain and I went out and started calling, and that's when I heard the faint reply of a small kitty. I turned towards the sound, and standing next to our neighbor's house was Tama. I also saw the neighbor's huge grey cat race away. The neighbor's cellar door was open, which is obviously where both cats had been hanging out all day, no doubt smoking and playing cards. I picked him up and brought him inside, where Blue sniffed him all over (then hissed) while Tama inhaled an entire bowl of cat food.

We took a trip to the pet store to pick up a new collar - we presume the one he's wearing has loosened to the point where he doesn't feel the electric shock.

The Week

It's been a slightly less hectic week. We're still waiting for all of the quotes from the builders, but have already made a few decisions. The biggest is that we're leaning more and more towards getting rid of the spiral staircase. A "real" staircase will cost a few thousand, but we'd probably get that back in resale. One of the architects told us that spirals are illegal in new homes now -- we don't yet if that's true.

Movie Recommends: Frost/Nixon, Milk
Don't Bother: The Reader

Saturday and Sunday

It's the middle of winter over here, and the days are chilly but sunny. We did house stuff all day on Saturday. We went through the house plans room by room, painstakingly figuring out where windows and doors would go, and got into heated discussions about where the bathroom vanity should go (under the window? or by the wall?) and how the kitchen should be configured. Again, any advice anyone has is appreciated!

On Sunday, we put house stuff aside and relaxed by hanging out in our favorite neighborhood bar. Now that we're redoing a house, everything I see reminds me of home renovations. Just walking into the bathroom turned into a recon mission: "Oooh.... I wonder where they got these vintage taps... and what kind of wood did they use on these floors? I like this mirror." Then I'd return to our table and Iain would comment on the lights above the bar and the cool wallpaper. As much as we tried not to talk about the house, all we did was talk about the house.

Of course, we aren't even close to that fun decorating stage yet. We're still meeting with builders and drafts people and being told about waste pipes and gully traps and load bearing walls.

Oh, that's just great...

Its been almost two years since I checked my credit report to make sure it's accurate, and it's a good thing to do once a year, especially if you've had identity theft issues, which I have.

So, I go to the government website that sponsors the reports, and THIS is what I get. What the HELL?!

The House

To those who may not know, in the span of about 48 hours right after I left for the US, we sold our UK house, sold our Auckland house, and purchased a total "do-up" a few blocks away. Whew!!! Iain worked like a dog while I was away, consulting lawyers, realtors, and builders. He also attended about 5 million open homes to make doubly sure we were making the right decision to buy the fixer-upper. When I got home, we dove right in. We measured rooms, drew up potential plans, and discussed everything from hardwood floors to appliances to number of bedrooms to whether we can afford a pool (totally not). It's really exciting. I just hope the cats like the new digs!

Click HERE for more pictures.

If anyone has ANY advice on renovating a house, please pass it on!

We're Back!

I returned home from the US last week. I enjoyed almost two weeks with my family and friends, attending reunions, happy hours, dinners, and BBQs. My mom cooked all of my favorites: crab legs, sausages, steak, devilled eggs, French toast.... I met old friends in NY for an afternoon of mojitos and burgers. In Buffalo, I had lamb souvlaki and fries with gravy. My high school reunion was a blast. I indulged in the best fish fry ever. I hung out with old coworkers and had wings and tequila shots. I got to meet kids who were born while I've been away. Watched reality TV and ordered pasta at 10pm (only in NYC!) On my last night, I ate huge scallops and two fantastic cocktails. I gained 7 lbs. That's okay. It was totally worth it. I'm already super psyched for 2010 (although I'll have to skip the NYC portion next year).

A few things I learned from this first trip home:

1. Pack light. Airline regulations are super strict about excess baggage, and this left me virtually unable to shop for fear of going over my weight limit.
2. I forgot how awesome shopping in the US is. Perhaps I'll arrive with an empty suitcase next year!
3. Rent a car so no one has to chauffeur me around (thank you Mom, Dad, Kate, Och, and Alex!!)
4. Buy shampoo, etc. when I get there to avoid the extra weight.
5. Leave behind extra jewelry, pairs of high heels and bathing suits -- I never wore any of it.
6. Try to schedule the trip a bit further into the summer -- I arrived during a cold spell and had only packed sun dresses and t-shirts. One pair of jeans and two long-sleeve shirts had to suffice for like 5 days.
7. If possible, fly Air New Zealand over Qantas. Qantas is cheaper and it shows. No online check-in, long lines, rude employees.

I returned home with mild jet lag. Basically, I'd feel absolutely fine all day except for one or two periods where it felt like someone had slipped an Ambien in my coffee. But I'm doing much better now, which is good since we're absolutely swamped.

Anniversary!

We had a great anniversary. I had a job interview in the morning (fingers crossed!), then we went and looked at 4 houses, then went grocery shopping. We'd missed lunch, so our hunger got the best of us and we had a late "lunch" of battered hot dogs and champagne. I don't care what anyone says -- it RULED. Then later on, Iain made incredible filet mignon and pappardelle with a sun blushed tomato sauce.

Today I'm packing for my USA trip. Despite studying international packing under the tutelage of Iain, I am still guaranteed to screw something up. It's usually a case of packing too much of one thing ("How did I pack 14 t-shirts?") and not enough of something else ("Crap! I didn't pack any pants!").

House hunting, interviews, trips home!

This week, I have two job interviews, a flight home to Buffalo, and 5 houses to see. Talk about packing it all in! We spent another weekend driving all over, checking out different neighborhoods and homes. It's incredible how a house can look awesome in pictures, but you get a completely different vibe up close.

Here are some pics.






Tomorrow is our 3rd wedding anniversary, to be spent with a job interview in the morning followed by 3 or 4 homes to see in the afternoon. Then we'll crack open the bubbly and settle in for a nice romantic meal at home.

House Hunting!

We've started looking for a new house!

Last weekend we drove out west to the country, checking out a few places along the way. On the ride home, we happened to drive by this hideous development with the ridiculously nouveau riche name of "Mansion Court". We are obviously NOT shopping in this neighborhood...

ER

Last Sunday, after a day of house-hunting, we settled in with the cats for an evening of couch bed and back-to-back episodes of Dexter. We were just getting comfy when there was a knock at the door.

It was our neighbor (the landlord for the Americans, who left without saying hello OR goodbye!) He's one of those guys who is ALWAYS doing "home improvements" but you never see any result. A fence gets half dismantled, and never repaired. A yard gets torn up in anticipation of landscaping or paving, but it just sits unattended for months. He's a nice guy but man... We've spent entire Saturdays sitting on our deck reading magazines, while all you can hear next door are the sounds of hammering and sawing. There should be an entire second house built by now, for all the work this guy does. We're always remarking, "What the hell is DOING over there?!"

Well, turns out the guy's not skilled. He'd cut himself with a saw and was wondering if he needed a ride to the hospital. He was pretty freaked out. But a quick rinse under the tap revealed a minor cut, the type that bleeds a LOT but isn't deep. We sent him on his way with some iodine and Iain's version of bandages. I asked for a picture. Yeah, that's duct tape.

Jet City Woman

Well, I've been practicing straightening my hair almost every day, but I have a long way to go. It takes me forever and the result is not exactly desirable. It's looking a bit like Geoff Tate from Queensryche. But each time, it gets a little easier and I get a little better, so I'm hoping I eventually nail it.

Double rainbow!

It's been raining every day for over a week, but it's like most tropical storms: Lots of sun, then it POURS for a few minutes, then it stops and the sun comes back out. So we've been seeing lots of rainbows.

Louis Theroux can suck it!

This documentary was a terrifying look at the city's rougher neighborhoods, but anyone who sees it will immediately think this represents all of Philly.

Home!

I'm getting really psyched for my trip home in a few weeks! Iain's also getting psyched to fly to Dunedin, and the cats... well, they don't get to go anywhere.

We've had a pretty uneventful week, so no posts.

What the WHAT?!

I was standing in our living room yesterday around 5pm, Tama in my arms, when I looked in our backyard and saw some KID traipsing across the lawn. My response time in situations like this is abysmal. Someone could walk in and rob our home in front of me, and I'd just be standing there. I managed to say, "Um, Iain - why is there a kid in our backyard?!" Thankfully, Iain is like Blue responding to the sound of the can opener -- he raced right outside and confronted the boy.

When asked why he was walking through our backyard and not out on the sidewalk, the kid replied with a sullen, "It's too far."

It's TOO FAR?! What?! No apology, no fear, no nothing. It was like he was annoyed with IAIN for bothering him on his quiet walk through everyone's property.

To be fair, he was about 10 years old and in school clothes -- it's not like we had a gang member back there - but it's still a little disconcerting, and moreover, his whole "Wha'd I do?" attitude was infuriating.

This experience re-ignited the, "Let's just sell the house and move somewhere else already" convo, but we finally calmed down and acknowledged that we aren't ready to sell yet.

Next door, the Americans moved out. Odd to have neighbors for that long who we never spoke to, but we've now realized how good we had it. For all of our complaining about their antisocial behavior, they were excellent neighbors. No noise EVER. We're now living in fear of who will move in: A family with five kids, ranging in age from 6 months to 14 years?? A couple who also works from home but plays hip-hop music all day? A drummer? One of those people with a huge exhaust pipe on their car who likes to let the car idle in the driveway? The list could go on and on.