Flying Solo

After a weekend running around, it was time for Larry to head over to Sydney for his official orientation. This meant that I would be alone for 2 nights and almost 3 days: mixed blessing. I'm used to Larry's traveling regularly since his line of work normally requires him to fly out on Monday and fly home on Thursday night. So far in our relationship, this has worked out quite well, but I was not too excited to be left alone after only being here for one week! The only thing I was really looking forward to was sleeping in the middle of bed.

First thing was first. I’ve been eating very well since arriving here, so I found a bikram yoga studio. Ten days of unlimited hot yoga torture, only $20. This is not a bad deal since the drop in rate for one class is $18. This kept me active Monday and Tuesday. No friends yet, though since you are asked not to talk in the studio (bikram folks are hard core). At least I was able to get my sweat on.

Tuesday, I spent the morning on line looking for a job. I e-mailed a resume on one position and got a call within 20 minutes. Apparently the job market is a bit more robust here than back in Florida.

Being in a jolly mood, I spent the afternoon checking out the shops in Subiaco, our soon to be new neighborhood. I found lots of things to help feather our new nest: stools, blankets, sheets, coffee pot and wine glasses as the ones we brought didn’t make it through the trip (total tragedy!). I even found a store that stocks Dr. Bronner's liquid soap! When I found it, I almost cried. When so many every day items look different, sometimes it is really comforting to see something that looks familiar. I haven’t shopped for laundry soap yet, but I’m willing to bet they don’t have Tide Total Care. At least I have the Dr. Bronner’s option.

Leederville is a great little neighborhood that has a particularly lively Tuesday night life. After checking in with hubby, I headed out to Kitsch. Tuesday nights they have pad thai and Chang beer for $18.80! That is a pretty great deal considering the beers alone are $7.50. I’m not so much of a beer person, but the Thai beer blended well with the pad thai containing pork, tofu and squid! It was really good, but seriously portion controlled. I could have eaten two. So after dinner, I went over to Dome and got a chocolate chip cookie! This is exactly why I am in need of the hot yoga.

This morning I woke up feeling a bit more adventurous, so I ventured our for a jog. I made it all the way past the Subiaco Oval in 30 minutes which was great for my park walk/part jog. It was cold, but worth it to know I could make it that far that quickly. The Subiaco Oval is really neat looking, too. From the shops out front it appears to be home to both the Perth Eagles and the Fremantle Dockers, both AFL teams. Larry and I both have Footy fever! We love watching the games on tv. The physical stamina these guys have is amazing! They take hits without pads that would seriously injure players in other sports where they wear padding. Check it out on ESPN 2 if you have the chance. The premiership is coming up so I’m not sure we’ll have a chance to see a game this season, but definitely next year when we will be within blocks of the stadium. In fact, I believe that the parking signs on our new street indicate no parking on the days when there are Footy games!

After my interview I headed out to Oxford Street. I grabbed a chai and sat in the sun in the park for a bit. I discovered a lovely fish market with lots of new things to try. One item that I have never seen in the states are scallops actually still in the shell! I wonder if you can cook them like mussels or if you need to extract them from the shell first. Sounds like another Google search! I also discovered an Indian grocer that has both take out, dine in and byo, a concept that I love - bring your own wine and the restaurant charges a small corkage fee which is much less on the mark up they normally put on a bottle so it works out well.

I’m now back at home safe and getting ready to fix some dinner. Larry will be home shortly. Tomorrow brings Larry’s first day on his new project, and Friday we sign the lease on the new pad. I’m really excited, and I know Larry is too, that we will be able to enjoy life together like normal people. Larry will enjoy working and living in the same city for the first time in ages and I will enjoy being able to cuddle up with him in the evenings. We seem to be settling in nicely.