What happened to November?

Apologies all around.  I used to be such a disciplined blogger but I fear I have fallen off. Part of the issue has been that my computer crapped out and while I can blog with my iPad, because it doesn't have a card slot for my camera memory cards, I can't really post photos unless I take them with my iPhone. I did go out finally and buy a new computer, after all my last one was bought in 2010, over 3 years ago. It crapped out about 2 months after the extended warranty expired. I considered getting it looked at, but I had already spent a fortune after the last crash when I fried the hard drive, I just couldn't sink anymore money into it. The disc drive had stopped functioning and then the screen went. The hard drive still boots up so I hope the data is still retrievable. I just need a hard drive reader so I can transfer it. My external hard drive also crapped out for some unknown reason which really pisses me off because all of my photos were stored on there. I still have my writing because not only did I back it up on my portable hard drive, I also emailed it all to myself just in case this very thing happened again. 

In any case, you didn't miss much. My health has been a bit limiting so I have not really gone on any new adventures. I've been just throwing myself into my work, doing lots of reading, and playing Sims Freeplay on my iPad. Very addictive but a great improvement on the original game. At least when I tell my sims what to do, they just do it...

The Melbourne weather has been very crazy - pissing rain and 15C one minute then blue skies and 25C and then before you know it the clouds roll in again and the temperature drops and the rain is back. The wind is quite blustery at times as well. I'm not complaining since I haven't felt over heated as much with the cooler temps, but everyone else certainly has(complained, that is). Folks are still rugged up like they're ready for a Canadian winter for Pete's sake, when the so called winter temps plummet all the way to 10C...I don't of course. I barely wear a sweater on the cooler days, let alone a jacket. The cooler temps has at least allowed me to wear socks and shoes, and my lovely Fossil boots I bought in Vancouver a few years ago. It had always been far too hot in Alice to wear them but I have worn them all them time here. They are so comfy and have a low heel. I had to buy some more shoes for work as my previous manager didn't like my sketchers. I also needed them for court, and on my new team, I'm there at least once a week so also had to buy some more conservative skirts as the courts are not the place for my hippy skirts. They are also too big and flowy for my desk chair as I keep rolling over them.

Dundee is doing well and I've blogged a bit for him over the past several weeks. Just click on my profile here and you can check out his blog.  He's been having many more adventures than me, including jumping into the palm tree next to our balcony. I've also begun to wonder if we are alone in this apt...think we may have mouse and a lazy ass cat (Dundee). I think I have found a bit of poop and on the weekend Dundee woke me up while jumping up at some vents in the bedroom wall. I got up and checked it out and there is some kind of vent that runs along the top part of the wall and a few vents outside over the balcony window and door. I went outside and could very clearly hear something scratching around in there and Dundee went a bit nuts trying to climb up there. I don't mind mice, but if is one of those giant fucking rats I saw run under someone's courtyard platform when I first moved in, I will absolutely lose my shit. It was as big as Dundee. Ewwwww.

I've been pretty homesick lately too, thinking about family and Canada and with Christmas coming up, it's just a bit sad. I have a few invites over Christmas so won't be totally alone, but I really miss my girl, Amber. We chat pretty well every day but it's just not the same. I can't hug her, or be hugged by her and I think I miss that the most. I'm seriously considering a move back to Canada next year, but a lot will depend on how much money I have been able to save by then. I may just go back for a long visit instead of a move. I'd want to spend a week with my mother and other family/friends on the east coast, then a few days with my sis and her family in Northern BC and a couple of weeks with my girl in Edmonton and any leftover time with my soul sister and soul brother in Victoria. It will not be cheap and I would need a month. I do get 4 weeks leave per year and have used none so far, so time off shouldn't be an issue. The big thing will be getting a cat sitter...

So that's the latest. Sorry no pics this time around but I promise a park post this weekend.  I'm on my iPad and had already shut down the new comp for the night. Hope y'all are well (all 3 of you, lol) and please feel free to comment using the anonymous if you don't have and account. Just put your name at the end of the message, first name should be enough. 

G'day all!

Trams and Trains

Part of being a Melbournite is embracing public transit. I have to say, there seems to be a pretty extensive system here between the trams and train, not to mention the many buses. I'm not much of a fan of buses but I have to say I love the trams and trains. This is the first time since 1985 that I've lived in a city large enough for trams and trains. The last time was when I lived in Mississauga oh so many years ago. And there is nothing more fascinating than people watching on public transit...Melbourne folks never fail to disappoint either. Here are a few observations...

- on the tram home from work, this lady came on, barefoot, scruffy, dirty, and holding a juicebox. She appeared to be about 30 years old, but it was hard to tell. She was talking to herself and at first, I thought, she must be on her cell phone, but it quickly became apparent that no, she was indeed talking to herself, rambling on about pie in the sky, purple people eaters, flock of seagulls, and a whole lot of other nonsense. She was very worked up about things and was ranting about how people are not going to tell her what to do, you can bet on that...oh, and did I mention she was crawling on all fours at the time....

- mobile phones and tablets are taking over the world. Seriously. People are no longer interacting with each other in public spaces. Instead they are gathering in order to communicate with other people, instead of communicating with the people right in front of them. I see people all over the trains, platforms, and simply walking down the street while texting. Australians are obsessed with mobile phones. Many are playing games to pass the time, and I'll admit, I do this on occasion - Candy Crush seems to be quite popular here at the moment. Look out though if you happen to forget to mute the sound - other commuters will lose their fucking shit over it and demand that you turn it down or off.

- there is a rule that school students must surrender their seats to any adult that asks, which I think is interesting. Few will offer on their own, but I have seen several adults who advise the young students to stand up and let someone else sit down. I've had seats offered to me several times too, not by students but just random people. At first I wasn't sure why - did I look haggard? Ill? Tired? Disabled? No - turns out I just looked pregnant. No, I am not pregnant. I am just fat. I have a fat stomach that has popped out through the muscles in my stomach for the past several years. It was bad enough when the nuns in Cambodia assumed that I was, but now it's happening here. So my feeling about it is - if you are dumb enough to think this old lady is pregnant, then I will happily take your seat, thank-you very much. 

- there is an abundance of transit staff. These neon vested folks are everywhere, offering help, making sure no one gets pushed off the platform in the crowds, and signaling the driver that it's all clear. In addition to this, there are ticket police who jump on at any time and randomly check to see that people have paid to ride the train. They don't use coins or tokens anymore, just a card called Myki. You purchase the card for $6 and then add funds to it, swiping on to get access to the train platforms, and swiping off when you depart the stations. The major stops have gates that won't open unless you swipe, kind of like the older turnstiles used to do, however the smaller ones have no gates or turnstiles, so you could easily ride for free. The problem is if you get caught, it could be a fine of over $200 for not paying your $3.50 fare. They can tell just by swiping your Myki card through their reader. If you have not swiped on, then you're screwed. There are thousands of people who do not swipe. When I get on the trams, I only see about 20% of people actually swiping their cards. I'm one of them.

- the trams and trains seem to run on time most of the time, which is great. There are also phone/tablet apps that let you check to see where and when the next tram or train is. This comes in very handy when you don't know where the hell you are but need to catch a train or tram. It uses the GPS on your phone or tablet to locate the nearest stop, and then can tell you when the next tram/train is coming. Very helpful.

- the conversations I overhear are sometimes priceless. It's funny how people seem to forget they are in public, surrounded by strangers who can hear their every word. They talk about the most private of matters from embarrasing health ailments to last night's sexcapades, to how much they hate their boyfriend and why. What I get the biggest kick out of is that these conversations sometimes end up in the Metro paper - you know, that freebie daily newspaper that we get waved in our face at public transit stations. The section is called "Overheard", and some of the entries are just hilarious. People are so fucking dumb sometimes...

- I feel like I am living in the United Nations. There are people from every race and ethnic background here in Melbourne. I don't think there are any folks not represented, and I can overhear a dozen languages on just one ride. I love that about Melbourne. The bulk of immigrants are of course Asians, given we are so close to Asia here, but also highly represented are Eastern Europeans, Africans, and I believe half of the UK has moved to Australia - so many Welsh, Irish, Scottish and English here, they nearly outnumber the Aussies! My office is no exception. 

- hailing the tram almost seems surreal - once the tram approaches the stop, people just walk out into the street towards it like zombies. Cars must give way to the tram when it stops, kind of like a school bus - the little sign on the side comes out with STOP written on it and God help you if you drive around the tram while people are getting off and crossing to the sidewalk - they lose their fucking shit - HEY I'M WALKING HERE!!! I've seen the tram drivers get pretty testy too when cars crowd the tram and he's trying to make a turn - they just open their window and shout out to them "hey stupid, I'm gonna trash your car if you don't move off from my path - GET OUT OF THE WAY!!" I'm not sure what brain trust these car drivers belong to - clearly you give way to something that is 20 times as heavy as your little Ford Escort...he can and WILL crush you.

- backpacks are evil, particularly if people are wearing them on the train/tram and fidget about. I nearly got slammed in the face several times by this one high school student who had the hugest backpack on her back and every time she moved, it swung within an inch or so from my face. I was about to tell her off when someone else beat me to it and demanded that she take the backpack off before she "hit that lady in the face". 

- the trams and trains are clean - and I mean mostly spotless clean. No rubbish, no graffiti, no stained seats. The only thing they do not seem to be able to combat is what people scratch into the plexiglass windows. Everything else is quite presentable. Even the stations and platforms are clean. I'm not sure how they do it, but it's rather impressive. The only mess I see consistently is at the end of the Footscray tram line - there are several garbage bins, but by the end of the day they are always overflowing onto the ground. At least the effort is made I guess. What they really need is a better bounty system on the deposit items like cans and bottles. Instead of lining them up to be collected like they do in Canada, they are simply all tossed in the garbage bins. Australia is very far behind in that regard - recycling does not seem to be a priority. 

- people of all walks of life seem to take the trains and trams. I think it's wonderful - I couldn't imagine how much more clogged with traffic the streets of Melbourne would be without such great public transit. 

I hear the trams pass my building all night long. I think they finish about 2am and start again at 5am. I thought it might bother me more, but now I've just gotten used to hearing it rock on by...rock on.

Becoming a Melbournite

my bedroom, big window behind the bed

I am a shameful blogger. There are a few reasons for that, but overall laziness does factor in. My laptop screen has stopped working; my new iPad does not allow an sd card to upload my photos; and I've just switched teams at work, so finally spend less time in front of a computer. After spending all day in front of one, I don't always feel like doing the same at home, particularly if the experience at work was unpleasant and frustrating. The photo thing is a real pain, but then I remembered that I still had my old little purple computer - has internet, working screen, and most importantly - allows for my sd card.I need to sort out the issue with my laptop. It's probably something stupid like a monitor button I pressed but cannot find to press again. Who the hell knows. I got my iPad about the same time so have just been using that. I had been thinking about getting an iPad for months, and they finally dropped the price of the iPad 2, as the newest version is now out, so I picked up the iPad 2 for $398. I also bought the keyboard so I can use it at work too, like when I'm sitting around at court all day, I can work on case notes and other docs. There's talk at work that we will all have an iPad before the end of the year, which would be awesome.

I love my new team. Good group of folks, minor frustrations, and very welcoming. I certainly feel like I fit on this team. My new pod is directly across and down one pod from my old one, so see all my former team members all the time. My new position is much more what I like. Still an enormous amount of paperwork, but that's the nature of the biz, both government and social work - if you didn't document it, it didn't happen. My favorite part though is the contact with families, and the opportunity to help a family reach goals, and make positive changes in their lives.It's very different from Alice Springs - I'm back to sitting in peoples living rooms or kitchens and taking paper notes on a table. How very different from sitting in the red dirt and sand with a family in the shade of a gum tree. I miss Alice Springs.

the rest of my bedroom

     I've finally been feeling better and well enough to go exploring, as well as finish up my apartment. It's much smaller than my last place in Alice Springs, but it works well for Dundee and I, and I am enjoying life in Footscray. I began tutoring a Vietnamese woman on Saturday mornings. She has very little English so we focus on whatever she would like to know, written and/or spoken. It's been very interesting to finally volunteer again on a regular basis. I haven't been able to do that in the past with work schedules and bush trips that chopped up my time. I do miss the bush though, just being out there in the middle of nowhere surrounded by the red desert, camels, and the bright blue sky. I'm glad I bought some artwork during  my time there, and having it all over my walls reminds me all the time of the beauty of central Australia.
     I have been so happy with the weather, though the recent high winds were beginning to piss me off. I never could sleep when the wind blew back in Canada. I can sleep through rain, thunder, and barking dogs, but the wind has always worried me. I think partly because I have seen what it can do up close and personal, particularly when I lived in Grand Bruit. The temperatures are still fairly chilly here compared to Alice Springs where it's already been 38C...gross. Good move coming here. I can actually wear sweaters and socks. I am looking forward to a bit warmer weather so I can go to the beach. There are so many nice ones close by, so I'll be visiting most of them!

     I've gotten comfortable enough to find my way around Footscray without the GPS, but the rest of the city is still a bit tricky. I know the general direction and big highways, but it is a fairly big city, particularly compared to Alice Springs. The traffic is bad at times, but public transit is pretty good, so I often just jump on the train and head into the masses. I've been to visit friends, stroll the downtown streets, and explore the many parks. I came across a cool one the other day not far from my house. I happened along it by accident. I've got a separate post in progress about the park with a group of photos. Stay tuned!
     Dundee has settled right into the new digs. I bought him a new bed which he seems to be happy enough with. He loves the balcony, and hangs out there for hours on end. I like leaving the door open to keep the air fresh. It's not too smelly where I live - no restaurants next door or factories. I'm far back enough from the road that I don't smell any exhaust fumes from my place. And on that note...time to head off to bed!

tiny but functional bathroom

entry way and Dundee's room

my living room - big window to balcony

living room - dining table behind sofa, computer desk in back

more

pass through window to kitchen

kitchen - no upper cabinets, so had to build shelves

kitchen through to entryway

balcony is tiny but I have my own tree

cozy but adequate for outdoor space - covered too

I love a rainy night...

Yes, it's raining in Melbourne again. And I love it. The weather is warm, the rain is brief at times and then the sun comes back out again. Spring has truly arrived. The trees are in blossom, the flowers in bloom. The temperatures are set to rise in to the high 20s this weekend, so I may even head out to pick up some plants for the balcony. Right now it's just painted concrete and steel...need some mother nature to brighten it up. I'm up high enough that I look across the tops of the trees, beautiful palm just beside me, which is pretty nice for a cheap city apartment. Dundee loves the balcony. It's up high enough that he doesn't need heavy supervision. He has walked along the rails but I am trying to discourage it. They are very narrow, and the winds can be quite strong and blustery at times. It is a tiny balcony, so space is precious.

     I've been in training for my workplace all week again, learning heaps (such an aussie saying) and made some good friends there as we were a small group of 9 for three weeks of training together. We engaged in the week long training sessions, sharing lunch, shopping together, sharing at training about our lives and our experiences both personal and professional. These types of training sessions can often bond a group together quite well. One of our instructors also commented to this effect, that we were quite a bonded group, which sure made those three weeks bearable. It is a lot of information that is presented in a short time to prepare us for our roles. I look forward to putting it all into practice next week.
     I'm feeling much better now, after such an ordeal at the hospital a few weeks back. It was scary to be in the hospital for several days, with no family in the country, and having just moved to Melbourne, just a handful of people that I knew here. It had been such a long time since I had been in the hospital, back in the 90s. Things hadn't changed much...
     So I'm pretty well unpacked and settled in the new place. Painted my television cabinet a nice bright blue, and having plenty of paint, I also painted my Ikea step stool. There are many tall cabinets to reach into and I'm not tall enough, and neither is my little cedar step stool I brought with me from Canada. Once I put up all of the artwork, posters, maps, etc, it finally felt like home again. Dundee was certainly happy to have all of his beds set up. He loves to be on the chair under the table, so I put his bed on the chair. He also likes to be on the bench in the living room in front of the window, laying on my woolen scarf. The scarf is too messy to wear as it loses woolies all over the place, shedding like a cat...so I gave it to the cat. He loves its softness, and I still get to look at it. I have about 30 other scarves to choose from anyhow...
   


 So here I sit on a Friday night, after a long week of training. It's 9:30pm and I'm going to watch a movie with the cat and then head to bed. I meet my first student tomorrow. I'm teaching her to speak English. I have no idea how it will go for our first meeting, but I'll give it my best.

Windy City Life

Well, since my last post, I was MIA for a week at the local hospital with the worst pain of my life. Ever. And that includes childbirth and the great toothache of 2010. I was in for pancreatitis, and had a few complications, but I'm feeling much better now, and looking forward to really enjoying life in this windy city. Yes, it is terribly windy much of the time. I have a lovely little balcony but it's too bloody windy to sit out there in a wind tunnel created by the palm trees and buildings. I'm certain I'll enjoy the wind in the summer, but in the winter it's just cold. I have the door open often, which Dundee just loves. He enjoys being out on the balcony, surveying the scene below and around him. There are flocks of birds that come in and out of the trees beside and below us, so that keeps him entertained. We also get the sun most of the day, which he loves to roll around outside in. He's been very good at coming in. Sometimes he just needs to see me get up off the sofa and he's inside the door. We seem to get rain nearly every day but it doesn't always last long, just sweeps through with the wind, and then the sun comes out, or the stars at night. Strange indeed compared to Alice Springs and the desert weather.

So I did get to the beach - it was also a bit chilly and I was feeling quite sick at the time, so didn't get to enjoy it like I wanted to. It was great catching up with an old friend, but in the end I was just as glad to be at home on the sofa, writhing in pain. I'm hoping to do a lot more exploring soon, however I'm pretty busy with chores at home, and not quite feeling 100% just yet. Apparently recovery can take awhile. I was just so glad to get out of the hospital. You are at your most vulnerable there, and it amazes me how many people take advantage of that. I won't say much here, but suffice it to say I have a few letters to write.

I've been settling into my flat, and the local neighborhood, having to use the GPS less and less to find my way around. I went to the movies yesterday, and saw The Conjuring. It was a scary enough movie, but the stupid teenagers behind me were chatting, and thumping around the entire time, and finally someone yelled out at them. Didn't help. I don't feel like I got my money's worth - $19/Adult for the movie, and it was a matinee, still pricey. I bought a popcorn - frozen coke - candy combo, and it was $23!!!!!!!!! For one person! I nearly shit my pants, but was hostage to the popcorn and frozen coke. The coke was amazing, but I hated the stupid cup with a blender they give it to you in. Pain in the ass and in the way. The popcorn was dry and oversalted, as they don't put topping on it, butter or otherwise. I won't be going to the movies again.

I am hoping to finally square the last few things away today, and then take some photos of the place as people have been asking. I had to buy a vacuum cleaner yesterday to get on top of the fur, dust, and hair balls I see slinking along the floorboards. While I do so very much enjoy the lack of carpeting, the drawback is you see all of the dirt, as it has nowhere to hide. I left my other vacuum in Alice Springs, broken. I'm certain Dundee will hate it just as much...

Laundry prices have changed - $5.00 for a load, and $1/8 minutes in the dryer. Cost me about $30 yesterday to do the laundry. I miss my washing machine. I did splurge and dry things in the dryer which I usually don't do, but things take days to dry here, so the clothes rack is up for days in my cozy little apartment.

Back to the office finally tomorrow. I got out of the hospital on Monday and went back to training on Tuesday in the city. Now to get to work!

Winter Rains

my new coffee table

Another rainy night in Melbourne. It rains nearly every day, but not always for too long, but on occasion, it rains for hours, often quite heavily. I live on the top floor of my building and have windows on three sides so I hear the rain and feel the wind. I'm above most of the trees around the  building, but I do have a covered balcony. That's only dry though if there isn't any wind. Tonight there was a gale of wind, and the rain pounded while the wind whistled around the windows. The temperatures haven't been above 20C, which is just fine with me. I do look forward to a little warmer times, so I can sit outside, but at temps down to 5 or 6 at night on the third floor in the wind, it's brisk out there! Dundee has been out exploring on the balcony. He's still a bit nervous as the wind freaks him out. We didn't have much wind or rain in Alice Springs, so this is new for him. When it's dry though, he enjoys watching what's happening below, and monitoring the many birds.

I've finally unpacked the last box. I still have a bit of organizing to do, and the walls to decorate with artwork and other things. I had to pick up some of those 3M wall sticky things. They work very well at holding things on the wall without ripping the paint off. That is tomorrow's chore. I replaced my coffee table with a much smaller one from Ikea, which really makes a difference in the room as the living room not nearly as big as the one we had in Alice Springs. I managed to sell my washing machine, small fridge, and I have ditched several things to make it feel less crowded here. My sofa is huge in this room, but I love it so much. It's a seven footer, which is awesome to lie down on, so roomy, but with a small living room, it feels like a beast. So with the smaller coffee table, there is more leg room to walk about. I'm also getting rid of the bean bag. I don't have the room, and it isn't all that comfortable for me. I picked up a free chair downstairs, but just need to get some filler to put in new screws. I also bought paint to finally paint the tv cabinet. It's been this kind of dirty green color since I bought it in Victoria, BC at a second hand store. I bought a nice aqua blue enamel - we shall see how that changes the look of the cabinet.

I've only been at the office for a couple of days at my new job. Then I spent all of last week at training in the city. It was a good refresher and introduction to my new agency, and the computer system. It's back in the office this week, and then another week of training, and so on until it's all done. It was pretty cool to ride the train into the city every morning for the week. I took the train to Footscray train stop and then into the city to Parliament, which was quite close to the training building.

I have had a few different tradies in the new place, to replace the antenna, to paint the tub, recaulk the kitchen counter, fix the hinges on the balcony door, fix the lock on the screen door, etc. I'm quite happy with the new place, and don't mind the stairs at all. There are stores very close to where I am that are open late, so I could just run out and pick something up down the street, like tonight when Dundee informed me we were out of cat food. He is a persistent informant...

I have rows of these

I've been driving all over the city, shopping for the new place and finding my way around. A few scenic tours, both intentional and unintentional. I've been to Ikea several times...love that place. Oh the damage I could do with unlimited funds...the inner ocd in me loves their storage options, and design for living. I also bought a bunch of shelves for the kitchen. There are no top cupboards which is typical of Australia but weird for this Canadian. Such wasted space with nothing there. So Ikea showed me these metal shelves you can join together and stack up. They're strong enough to hold heavy dishes and glasses and look nice enough, better than plastic which usually looks cheap.

     I'm heading to the beach in the morning to spend the day with a friend I met in Alice Springs who now lives in Queensland, but is visiting Melbourne this weekend. I hope it doesn't rain all day tomorrow...

Movin' On In

So I finally moved into my own place in Melbourne today. It's on the third floor, so a whole lotta hiking up the stairs, but I managed it okay without passing out, snapping an ankle or knee, or having an asthma attack. I'm pretty sore tonight, but that is to be expected. I had to move everything from my friend's second floor apartment down into the car first. I have discovered more to love about my new apartment such as:

• the balcony is covered
• The kitchen cabinets are quite large
• the tub is huge - have missed that since coming to Australia
• I have windows on three sides, and no neighbors bordering my bedroom as it's on the corner
• there is a liquor store and grocery store just down the street
• the closet space is enormous, more than I've had in years
• there are lots of plug-ins (known as power points here)

There are a few negatives, one rather large one that I hope to tackle - the place reeks of curry. And I hate curry and the smell that comes from it. I have washed down all the walls and cupboards in the kitchen, and some of the living room, but will likely have to do all of the walls, ceilings and floors. I also have bowls of vinegar out hoping to absorb the stench. The other negative is that my large tub is peeling terribly, so I'm going to have to ask them to redo the tub. The screen door does not close properly and I can't seem to work the lock, so they shall have to fix that too. There are also no upper cupboards so I'm going to have to sort out a shelving rack, probably from Ikea, which is fine - I love Ikea! 

Dundee kind of freaked on the drive over, which annoyed the hell out of me. He was fine for 2300kms in the car from Alice Springs but for a 30 minute drive from Thornbury to Footscray, he wouldn't stop meowing and climbing all over the bloody car. He was unsettled at first in the apartment but has since calmed down, loves all the windowsills for him to sit on, and is currently curled up on the bed for a snoozer after all his exploring. 

I stopped at McDonalds next to the IGA today and had some totally random strange person come right up to me at my table and ask for a hair tie. The strange part is he looked like he had Down's Syndrome, which isn't all that weird - but he was wearing a brilliant long red costume wig that he was looking to put in a pony tail...he was dressed like a woman, but clearly a man. He was very thankful and went on his merry way after putting it up while looking at his reflection in the glass of McDonalds. Strange...I love randomness.

I managed to get the car fully unpacked just as it began to piss down rain again. It rains a lot in Melbourne. I don't mind. At least it isn't hot. And my new digs has new air conditioning - a split system actually so I can use it to heat the place as well, not that I'll really use that, not here. It doesn't get that cold at night like in Alice Springs. There are also mini-blinds in every window, which I hate, but will work well to block out the sun in summer to keep the apartment cooler during the day when I'm at work. 

So now I'm sore and tired, and about ready to lay down with kitty to watch some downloaded television. Tomorrow I am going to see a play about Johnny Cash with some friends, and then going out for Chinese food afterwards. I'll also be continuing to wash down the place in hope of ridding it of the stench of curry...

Melbourne!

I've been in Melbourne for a week now, and it has been busy enough so far, looking for apartments, organizing this and that, doing a bit of shopping, orienting to the city, exploring the many suburbs, and settling into roomie life with my friend for a few weeks. My roomie is extremely power conscious, to the point of insanity at times, as I've told her. She cannot stand to have a power point left on, or a light, or a computer, or a computer that is shut down, or the speakers, and so on and so on. My 7 watt reading light by my bed apparently is what is destroying the ecology of the country, that and my sleeping computer with it's two LED lights flashing. I try to tell her that the amount of power used is so minuscule it could hardly be measured. I've also offered her money so she may stop nagging me...it doesn't help. She sits there and looks around the room for things to turn off, constantly. I recognize that I am in her space, but come on, it's all a bit ridiculous. She can spend $2000 on botox but won't take my $20 for power so I can leave my computer turned on. I am on a mission to find my own place ASAP so this does not destroy our friendship...she knows how I feel, but my words are lost on her. Lots of love to you, girl, but the whole power things is beyond me sometimes, heh heh.

I interrupted his catnap in the sun

Dundee looks over the 'hood

I spent most of the past week looking for apartments, organized a bunch of inspections, and went to see several and then checked out the commute to work - over an hour. Back to the drawing board again to look for apartments in Footscray where my office is, and spent most of yesterday inspecting apartments and putting in applications. I'm very particular about what I want, and know I won't get my ideal place, but there are certain things I am going to hold out for. My ideal place is this: one bedroom or very large studio in an old building with gas cooking, on-site laundry, adequate cupboard space, off-street parking, and hardwood floors. Additionally I would like a shower over tub, and a courtyard or balcony. So far I have found no old buildings in the area I need to live in, you know, the character buildings with lots of beautiful footboards, ceiling and window trim, huge windows with large ledges. I have found several with hardwood floors, but not always with gas cooking, or on-site laundry. Most all have parking, but few have a courtyard or balcony. I prefer ground floor but have only seen very dumpy apartments on ground floors so far. The search continues. 

Dundee found a nice chair to curl up in

Tomorrow I go to the office for the first time and meet my new coworkers and team leader. I'm both excited and anxious. It is a chance to reinvent myself once again and start fresh, but what if they don't like me? And does that matter? I wonder what my desk space will look like? Will my new team leader be as awesome as my favorite team leader in Alice Springs? What is the workload like? How many days will training take? When do I get paid?? So many questions. I hope to have many of them answered on my first day. Stay tuned...until then I am curling up on the sofa on this rainy day in Melbourne and settling in with a good book and my kitty.

possible apt - nice kitchen

the living room and balcony

Leaving The Red Centre

After a crazy few weeks of packing, sorting, camping, working, and organizing, I finally finished it all up and hit the road on July 5th and headed south to Melbourne in the state of Victoria. About 2300kms ahead of me and Dundee to cover. I wasn't sure how he was going to cope but turns out he was a terrific traveler. The car was stacked to the roof as usual for a move, but after a few initial protests of "what the hell are we doing in here with all our stuff????" he found himself a little cubby space back on the bedding and stayed there for 2 days. Yes, 2 whole days. I'm sure he came out when I left the car for one thing or another, but he didn't show his face the entire time I was in the car. I checked on him at each stop for gas, and he was snuggled deep into my bedding.
I did get a fright/panic attack at one stop along the way. I had just finished filling up and put the hose back on the pump when a cat shot out from under the car and dove under the store into a crawlspace. The cat looked just like Dundee - a tabby, but I was in shock and couldn't work out how in the hell he got out and I didn't notice. I had locked the windows so an errant paw couldn't push it down while climbing about, and was careful when I exited the car. I ran over to the store, started calling for Dundee, and then thought - wait a minute...how about I check the car first before diving under the store...and sure enough, there was Dundee, snuggled deep into the blankets. PHEW! I had visions of spending the rest of the day calling out for the little fucker under this massive store...thankfully, it wasn't him.

The first day of the journey I drove from Alice Springs to Port Augusta - both beautiful and excruciatingly boring with such a flat landscape, I thought I was on the prairies of Canada again. We stopped over in PA for the night at an old pub/hotel with tons of character, but they were not kitty friendly so I had to leave him in the car for the night with the window cracked. I don't think he minded. Up early and off again through the rolling hills of SA and northern VIC until I finally landed in Melbourne early evening. It was a heck of a long drive, but we did it.

I stopped by Indulkana/Iwantja

my last glimpse of Indulkana hill

yeah, I was packed to the roof!

the landscape begins to fill with dirtpiles from opal mining

so very flat

rest area watertank graffiti

Port Augusta hotel room

finally some green!

rolling hills finally

I had a lot of time to think about my time in central Australia along the drive. I am so glad I started there as I think I really got to experience outback Australia like no other place I could hope to travel. Between the bush trips for both jobs, and my own bush travel for pleasure, I saw as much of the outback as I could hope to see. I visited nearly 50 remote communities - I've listed as many as I can remember below, some by their English names, and some by their language names:

camel near Amata

Elliot, Ampilatwatja, Ti Tree, Tennant Creek, Hart’s Range, Haast’s Bluff, Bonya, Engawala, Gemtree, Papunya, Yuendumu, Yuelamu, Nyrippi, Mt Liebig, Laramba, Willowra, Alcoota, Willara, Hermannsburg, Areyonga, Kintore, Docker River, Titjikala, Finke, Wallace Rockhole, Amoonguna, Utopia, Mimili, Indulkana, Fregon, Ernabella, Kalka, Pipilyatjara, Watinuma, Amata, Turkey Bore, Mintabie, Kanpi, Murpitja, Kenmore Park, Warburton, Jamieson, Wingellina, Warrakuna, Tjukayirla, Blackstone, Umuwa.

These are not easy to find on a regular map, particularly Google maps, but if you look for remote community maps online or the APY lands map, you can find many of them. They were all quite similar in structure, some were bigger than others, and some were small homelands with just a few houses. I shall remember them all for the people found in them, and the landscape of their lands that surround them. I will hold them in my heart forever. I am so very lucky.

Camp Out in South Australia

never get tired of this view on the bush roads

How cool is a job that pays you to go camping? Well that was my job at the end of June. Along with a youth worker, a policewoman, and a mental health social worker, we took a dozen female Aboriginal youth and several Aboriginal elder ladies camping at a homeland near Ernabella. Our focus was talking to them about sexual assault, the age and concept of consent, gunga and grog, and domestic violence. And we managed this as we sat in a dry riverbed perched on swags around the fire. It was a cold weekend, but such stunning beauty surrounded us, I hardly felt the cold - that and I am also Canadian so conditioned to be comfortable in the cold weather.

The girls were very receptive, and while they do not tend to talk much, you could see they were definitely listening and taking in the information we provided. Other highlights of the trip included cooking kangaroo tails (I did not partake), taking a girl to the clinic for stitches after she sliced her finger open cutting her kangaroo tail, listening to dingoes howl at the moon, watching wild horses thunder by our campsite, and listening to the stories the elder women had to tell, partly in language, and partly in English. After the girls settled into their swags together with the elder ladies for the night around a campfire, the rest of us swapped stories around our own campfire. It was a lovely way to finish out the last days in my job with NPY Women's Council.

beautiful homeland near Pukatja (Ernabella)

bush flower in winter

camp

very sacred tree - lands given back to traditional owners here

most beautiful classroom

let's learn girls!

dry riverbed where we camped

dirtiest 4WD ever...belonged to the mental health sw

telling stories around the campfire

learning about STI's

swags on the roof

cooking kangaroo tails

time to eat the tails

some huge tails

sunset on the homeland

all cooked

girl at bottom left cuts her finger moments later

cutting up the 'roo tail

2 stitches and 2 steri-strips later