tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59616041057724101472024-03-14T00:19:47.239-07:00a mad world...travelling randomly through lifeMadeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.comBlogger327125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-16598327573622301672015-01-08T14:06:00.002-08:002015-01-08T14:06:47.535-08:00The twenty-year cycle<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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2014 has bitten the dust without me even getting a chance to sit down and muse about it. Do I have a lot to say about it? Not really. What I <i>can</i> say, though, is that 2014 was:<br />
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- Our first full year as Seattleites. Winter, spring, summer, autumn, and back to winter. My favourite part? Always summer. Spring, a close second. Winter blows. The weather here is like that mean boyfriend who is also capable of treating you like a princess... but more often mean. That's Seattle. The climate does not agree with me for a good chunk of the year, but now that we've had two whole summers here? When it's summer, I can't think of a better place in the world to be. It's stunning and perfect, and a damn good thing it exists or I'd possibly be on the next plane outta here.<br />
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- A good time to revisit grunge. The EMP Museum has had a great Nirvana and grunge exhibition all year long, which we've ended up seeing a few times (whenever we've gone to check out newer exhibitions, we always find ourselves back in the Nirvana section). Twenty years since Kurt Cobain's death really only feels like ten years - at the most.<br />
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- My first full year back in the workforce since P was born, even if just part-time. Have I figured out what I want to do with my life, career-wise? Not yet, but contributing a few extra dollars to the household has done wonders for my self-seteem, even if it's only a small amount of money.<br />
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- The year I began wearing liquid eyeliner again. I'm not sure why I ever stopped, but I wore it often when I was a teenager. It's a classic look, right?<br />
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- The year I began wearing Converse again. I used to live in Chucks back in the day, but moved away into other kinds of sneakers for some reason. Like liquid eyeliner, these sneakers began to appeal to me again, and now I can't imagine not putting them on most days - at least until summer is back.<br />
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In short, 2014 was the year of 1994 for me, the year I began revisiting my eighteen-year-old self. Perhaps it's an early mid-age crisis. Perhaps I'll get my nose re-pierced next. I'm still working on <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2014/04/inking-thinking.html">a tattoo design</a>, so why not? I think I'll draw the line at Doc Marten boots though. I spent enough years wearing those, so I'll leave them for the real eighteen-year-olds to party in.Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-7283760705045887382014-12-18T14:28:00.000-08:002014-12-18T14:28:44.897-08:00All of the thanks and funYou know what? We had <i>the best</i> Thanksgiving break ever. It was exactly what was needed.<br />
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Our friends in Portland arrived in record time for lunch, where we proceeded to stuff ourselves silly with food. We ate and ate and ate and ate. As we fell on to the couch to recover, all four kids disappeared upstairs to play, and it was like no time had passed since they last saw each other. As they played, the wine and beer began flowing, along with reminiscing about the years when we lived next door in Sydney. This was pretty much the pattern for the next few days: coffee, coffee, coffee, wine, coffee, coffee, wine, wine, wine, wine. And food. Lots of food.<br />
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I think my liver has only just recovered.<br />
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We kept an eye on the weather forecast because Saturday was predicted to bring snow. I didn't want to get my hopes up because if I learned anything last winter in Seattle, it was that snow gets predicted much more than it actually happens. Also, it was still November! The first snowfall last year didn't happen until days before Christmas. <i><b>As if</b> </i>it was going to snow, right?<br />
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And we then woke up on Saturday morning. Ahem... and, yay!<br />
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It was only a small amount of snow, and oddly none of it actually stuck to the roads, but it was enough to make four kids super excited and willing to head to our local baseball fields for a play. This adult may or may not have been excited too - for the first time, I had proper snow boots to break in and keep my feet warm and dry. Another reason I was happy was because the clouds gave way to sunshine and blue skies, which never happened last winter when it snowed - back then, the rain came and melted it fairly quickly (this time, the snowy white patches stayed for a good four or five days).<br />
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In fact, the skies cleared up so beautifully that we thought it would be the perfect afternoon to take our visitors to the Space Needle. We'd already been up twice in the past, but both times were heavy grey days without mountain views. This day was so cold anyway, not many other people would have the same idea, right?<br />
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<i>Right?</i><br />
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We got there at 2pm, and stood in line for a freezing half hour as icy winds - the truly miserable kind - whipped around us. When we finally got to the ticket window, we were informed the next time slot available was 4pm, and we nearly cried, until we remembered we could go and warm up in the nearby EMP Museum (we get a discount there which makes it worth going in, even for just ninety minutes). So that's what we did, and everything worked out perfectly.<br />
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We made it up the Space Needle with not much time to spare before sunset, but in those temperatures, it's not like I wanted to be outside for more than five or ten minutes anyway. As the sun was going down, we were treated to a birds eye view of two dudes climbing around, installing the Christmas-coloured lights on the outside of the tower. They had a crowd watching, I had vertigo, and knew for sure that was a job there is no amount of money in the world that would convince me to do.<br />
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Happily, the entire horizon - both east and west - was full of mountains and pink skies, so I finally got my wish for clear views form the Space Needle. And white snow-dustings atop the buildings downtown - still a novelty. We got some cheesy photos of the four kids sitting with Santa in his space sleigh, and called it a day. The Portland gang had to leave the next day, and I spent another three days eating stuffing... I want more weekends like this, please. There's nothing better for the soul than quality time with close friends you've known for a decade and gone through the dramas of baby stuff together with, right? Living away from Australia, the opportunity for spending time with old friends isn't something we get to do often, if at all, so I'm grateful we only live a three-hour drive from these guys.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-65212922422686955892014-11-26T14:09:00.001-08:002014-11-26T14:09:54.209-08:00Bits and bobsI still have some half-finished posts about summer sitting in my inbox, but I might save those for a quiet wintery day. In the mean time...<br />
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As you can see, P <i>had</i> to be Elsa - along with about 90% of preschool-aged girls, am I right? In fact, at one point, F also wanted to be Elsa. Things were going to get complicated, but thankfully she changed her mind when she saw this cool witch's costume. Halloween wasn't <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2013/11/half-arsed-halloween.html">the lame effort that it was last year</a>, but those outfits were totally store-bought. Maybe next year I'll actually make something... but don't hold your breath.<br />
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On a pretty note, we had our first frost of the season the other week, bang on schedule for November. What else? Recently I've been getting in a little more solo time on the weekends - even if it's just in small doses. The girls have Kung Fu lessons <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2014/10/chinatown-in-seattle.html">in Chinatown, which is very close to downtown Seattle</a>. If J is able to come with us and stay with the girls, I wander and wander and wander. Sometimes I just walk to Pioneer Square, sometimes I jump on a bus through the bus transit tunnel, just a few 'stations' along, and people watch downtown or at the Pike Place Market. Even though it's getting super chilly outside on those afternoons, it's always a much-needed reboot for me.<br />
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As for now, it's Thanksgiving tomorrow and we're gearing up for a visit from our mates <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2013/09/pacific-northwestern-tourists.html">in Portland</a>. By 'gearing up', I mean 'preparing to eat, eat, eat'. The forecast is for snow in a few days which would be the icing on this little holiday period, but if I learned anything about Seattle winters last year, it's that the snow may only fall for about a fraction of the actual forecasts made. Whatever happens though, I'm really looking forward to the next few days. Bring on the flow of wine!<br />
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Plus, how gorgeous are fairy lights at this time of year? Any time of year, actually, but they definitely dress up what is otherwise dreary, gloomy grey coldness. I would still prefer a lengthy, warm sunny Christmas Day, but there is something about having every tree and awning covered in twinkling lights - it just feels so 'right' for the northern hemisphere Christmases.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-24779716882548218792014-10-30T16:26:00.000-07:002014-10-30T16:26:26.341-07:00Autumn and changes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Here we are, halfway through autumn, and I haven't even finished catching up in here about summer. I have drafts sitting, waiting, but for today I'm going to fast forward to the present.<br />
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I've never been a fan of autumn. In Australia, my birthday always fell in autumn and I was envious of friends who got to celebrate theirs in the more cheerful summer and spring (which I now get to experience). For the most part, though, I've always viewed autumn as the death of summer. Dramatic <i>and</i> pessimistic, I know. It's just how I'm hardwired though - warmer weather and climates will always be my preferred state of being.<br />
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That being said, autumn in Seattle is the prettiest autumn I've experienced anywhere so far in my life. Alright, so I haven't been to New England but the way these trees here change colour is hitting the spot. The multicoloured trees are so spectacular that quite a few people I've met here say that this is their favourite time of year. I'm not quite there yet, but I've changed my tune a little - autumn doesn't quite suck so hard.<br />
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Things are pretty good in general now. After struggling with working evening and part of the weekends for close to a year now, I've made some necessary changes. The whole reason I began working those hours was I thought it would be my brilliant solution to child-care - at least until Miss P was in school full-time. No stress of rushing between school drop-offs and work. However, instead of that stress, I had the stress of trying to squeeze in helping with homework, school projects, and cooking/organising dinner for everyone in that window of time between school finishing and me starting work. Together, J and I had the stress of coordinating use of our one car, and getting the girls to their kung fu lessons, soccer training, weekend matches. J was having to leave earlier in the mornings to be back in time for me to get to work. When I'd get home, he'd head to bed while I still needed an hour or so to wind down and have some quiet time to myself. We weren't really spending much time together. As for the weekends, I was missing out on a lot of family time and we haven't been able to plan (or take spontaneous) mini road trips to see more of the Northwest. I was feeling like I could barely catch my breath, and during the summer - without school even being a factor - I even had a nasty anxiety attack.<br />
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Things came to a head with J taking on a new role at his work, which will see him needing to travel a few times a month, on weekdays. This will make it difficult to schedule my evening shifts, or change them at a moment's notice, so we thought about it and decided it's just not worth the stress any more. With Miss P now in Pre-K an extra day a week, and the option of booking her in for the lunch programme there, I told my manager that I would only be available during preschool hours, that I'd be happy to come in and work mornings and the lunch rush on those days, and that if they didn't have a place for me during those hours and they needed to replace me, then no hard feelings. Thankfully, they seem to really like me and have been super helpful and accommodating. I'm not sure how long this arrangement will work for (school holidays are going to be tricky or impossible, but I'll cross that bridge later), but for now our little family unit is a much happier one. J and I get to spend more time together again, weekend date nights are doable, we all get to eat dinner together most nights now, and the girls seem to love having me around at bedtimes again.<br />
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So for now, I'm breathing better and able to appreciate the beauty of my surroundings. Some days are still a bit of a scramble, but nothing like the concentrated way that the afternoons had been. I feel like I've gained back a bit of my life, just from freeing up my evenings and Saturdays.<br />
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The way the same types of trees change to different hues, the way the leaves seem to dance and twirl as they fall, the way they lay curled on the ground, the way the sunlight makes the raindrops sparkle on them, and the fact that as I'm walking, it's fun to identify the many leaves: maples, alders, oaks, sycamores and ones I've yet to learn the name for... I'm actually enjoying autumn.<br />
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Maybe a leopard <i>can</i> change its spots.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-36060257283800554432014-10-14T10:11:00.000-07:002014-10-14T10:11:19.019-07:00August (Part 1)I'm not sure if I'll ever get around to properly writing about everything we got up to in August, because - like July - it was busy, busy, busy. We had close friends from L.A. stay with us, a bowling birthday party for a newly-minted eight-year-old, a girls' night out (me) to see Chvrches live, multiple beach and splash park play dates, and local neighbourhood festivals. August was wonderful to us, and hopefully my catch-up post for the second half of August will do it more justice than this post. Ahem.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-43646446417466695532014-10-09T14:31:00.000-07:002014-10-09T14:31:09.202-07:00Chinatown in SeattleThree years ago, I wrote about <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2011/09/chinatowns.html">Chinatown in Los Angeles</a>, comparing it to the many other Chinatowns I've been to (hint: L.A.'s Chinatown fails miserably).<br />
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Lately, I've been spending time in Seattle's Chinatown. The Faery and Miss Pie have been doing weekly Kung Fu classes there, and - happily - it's a part of town that's enjoyable to hang out in. I've had a few people say to me that it's sketchy and unsafe, but nope. I've never felt a dodgy element there. I think there's a preconceived idea that because it's so close to downtown and a couple of major bus/train stations and stadiums, with a large presence of homeless souls, that it's perhaps not safe. I would say that's rubbish. Unlike so many inner-city neighbourhoods, it simply hasn't been gentrified... yet.<br />
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It's not a large Chinatown, but definitely bigger than Melbourne's and London's. It's not cramped together, nor is it sprawled and difficult to navigate. It's less colourful and vibrant than San Francisco's, but the colours and patterns are around. There are the requisite restaurant windows with barbecued ducks strung up, signs advertising Chinese herbs, and curb-side trees that have a more Oriental feel to them.<br />
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We've settled into a bit of a groove during the girls' Kung Fu lessons, where I go for a wander to take in the streets. I obsessively take snaps of buildings, windows, and fire escapes (that remind me a little of San Francisco in general). At some point, I usually head to <a href="http://www.uwajimaya.com/">Uwajimaya</a>, which is one of my Happy Places. It's a massive Japanese-owned supermarket where I can find various Asian (and other imported) goods that I have trouble finding elsewhere - including real passionfruit for my beloved pavlovas. Uwajimaya also happens to be right next to a <a href="http://www.kinokuniya.com/us/">Kinokuniya bookstore</a>, which was my Happy Place in Sydney. The last thing I do is grab some bubble tea as a treat for the girls, as they've become quite obsessed with it. I have a feeling that as winter closes in on us, we'll start having dumplings and other staple Chinese food afterwards, to warm our bellies before heading home. I'm not looking forward to winter, but I'm looking forward to a good excuse to eat some hearty Chinese food.<br />
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I've yet to bring the proper camera with me, so it's just iPhone shots for now.<br />
(Also, yes. It's no secret that <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2012/01/dragon-heart.html">I have a thing for dragons</a>...)<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-30505373307917195722014-09-25T15:12:00.000-07:002014-09-29T14:20:25.670-07:00Big Four Ice CavesIn August, we went on a day trip northeast to the Mt Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, which covers part of the Cascade Ranges. We drove ninety minutes from Seattle for an easy hike with the kids, and to see the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Four_Ice_Caves">Big Four Ice Caves</a>.<br />
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The hike itself is a super-kids friendly one. It's only a mile each way (from the car park to the ice caves), and not much in the way of incline. There is a path - and at one point, a boardwalk - to follow the entire way, with the only obstructions being tree roots here and there to step over. In fact, the hike is listed as wheelchair/stroller accessible, but I think that's slightly optimistic. I saw enough families lifting their strollers up and over the tree roots to think that it looked like a pain. In terms of ease for young kids though, they can walk it. Miss Pie managed fine on the way to the ice caves, only wanting to be picked up for part of the hike back to the car park - and that was mostly due to the fact that she'd run around like a lunatic at the base of the ice caves, and worn herself out.<br />
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The scenery was incredible and varied along such a brief trail. At the start, we could see patches of snow still at the top of Big Four Mountain. From my understanding, it's that snow which melts and trickles down a nearby glacier and creates hollowed out channels underneath, resulting in the ice caves at the base of the mountain. The trail continues across a marshy wetland area, over a river, through cedar-filled woods, gradually replaced by wildflowers, then out to an open gravel area in front of the ice caves.<br />
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Despite the number of people walking in and out of the ice caves, and letting their kids climb on the ice, there were numerous signs which pointed out the possible danger of falling boulders and chunks of ice (a young girl was killed by a falling boulder only a few years ago). I'll be honest though: my curiosity was pretty strong, and if we didn't have the girls with us, I probably would have gone inside for a wander. I blame Instagram.<br />
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Walking around the entrances was surreal, even from a few hundred metres away. You know when you're in the ocean, and you hit pockets of warm water, compared with the rest? The air around the ice caves was like that - for the most part chilly and refreshing on a warm day, with unexpected patches of warmer air.<br />
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It's a given that I took far too many photos. I brought the DSLR along, as well as my phone, and the images below are a mix from the two. With the exception of the first photo (Instagrammed), none of these have been edited or filtered. The clouds passed over and changed the light a fair bit, which accounts for the difference in brightness.<br />
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Beautiful, n'est-ce pas? Something about this landscape gave me flashbacks to being in the Swiss Alps - as in, so beautiful it brought a lump to my throat.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-90008978754989438952014-09-18T14:46:00.001-07:002014-09-18T14:46:40.988-07:00July (Part 2)After raving to my parents about how perfect July was last year, my parents timed their visit here for mid July. They were escaping a cold winter on NSW's south coast, and it was to be their first time in Seattle. It was my mum's second only trip ever to the US (she visited us once in L.A.), and my dad's first time ever overseas. Exciting stuff, right?<br />
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It took a lot to get them here. In the almost-five years that J and I lived in England, my parents never visited - but to be fair, I had much younger siblings then and it would have been far more expensive. I'm not completely delusional though. Having their two eldest grandchildren now living the US is a huge drawcard... but whatever the reason, I'm glad they came.<br />
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After me talking up Seattle at this time of year, the city decided to make a liar out of me. For a good chunk of my parents' first week with us, it was grey and mostly rained. Temperatures were not that much warmer than the part of Australia they'd just come from. They'd also had a two-day stopover in Hawaii, which didn't help matters, so I don't think their first impressions of Seattle were particularly favourable.<br />
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A couple of days after their jet lag hd worn off, we had a sunny afternoon so I took them to a nearby state park for a walk. They've both seen little but eucalyptus trees over the last fifty-odd years, so it was great for them to experience some classic Pacific Northwestern forest. This park is full of cedars and firs - incredibly majestic, and I still remember how those tall trees took my breath away the first time I encountered them in Vancouver more than fourteen years ago.<br />
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Later that week, after giving up on the wait for blue skies, we drove out to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snoqualmie,_Washington">Snoqualmie</a>. It's a town that J and I have taken the girls to several times, and we love it there. It's only a forty-five minute drive so it's an easy, short road trip to do but gives a sense of being well away from the city. It's also where much of Twin Peaks was filmed, so - geeks that J and I are - we always get a little kick out of seeing Snoqualmie Falls. In Snoqualmie, there's also a historical old railway museum, which the girls love, so we thought my dad might also enjoy seeing some of those old rattling trains because, let's face it, there's far less of that sort of thing in Australia.<br />
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Thankfully, the weather gods decided to smile upon us and make that the last grey, drizzly day for the remainder of my parents' visit. The next day we went on a lake cruise, where the sun gently eased out from behind the clouds, then gradually turned up the dial for heat and brightness over the next eight days. We spent much of it sightseeing: the city skyline and Lake Union from Gas Works Park, had dinner at the same seafood restaurant where J and I had celebrated our anniversary in May, checked out a classic car show that happened to be in our neighbourhood (because what fifty-something-Australians who love older American cars but have seen very few in real life <i>wouldn't</i> pass up the chance?), visited a fabulous hipster coffee joint downtown, took in Pike Place Market, and enjoyed sunsets at our local beach at Lake Washington.<br />
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A couple of days before my parents were due to leave, we celebrated the Faery's eighth birthday. EIGHT! Having two doting grandparents in town to help with the spoiling, she was in her element. We let her pick somewhere fun to go and - because we hadn't been on it yet - she chose the <a href="http://seattlegreatwheel.com/">Seattle Great Wheel</a>, down by Seattle's waterfront. The weather was amazing, the views were amazing, and I'd recommend it to anyone who might be considering it. The pier also had an arcade with old games, so a birthday carousel ride, along with air hockey, was a must. The day was topped off with dinner of her choice (pizza within walking distance of home) and chocolate cake. I felt bad because this was her first birthday that I hadn't baked her a special cake myself, but the days leading up had been a busy blur. Hopefully next year I can make it up to her... but I think she had a lovely day regardless. She is a darling, and I love the age she is. I have clear memories of my own eighth birthday, so it feels easy to get into her headspace and remember what it was like to be an eight-year-old girl. We promised her a low-key bowling party too, but that had to wait until August, when her best friend from L.A. was due to visit. Stay tuned...<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-33558450442140573772014-09-11T15:37:00.000-07:002014-09-11T15:41:35.541-07:00July (Part 1)I'm back.<br />
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It wasn't something I planned, but it appears I took an unofficial, extended break from this blog over the entire summer. With two kids needing summertime fun, family visiting from Australia, friends popping up from L.A., road trips when we could squeeze them in (and not to mention work), things became quite hectic - but mostly in a good way. When school finished in June, I näively thought we'd have endless days ahead, with few plans, and the only schedule I'd be ruled by was my work roster. The Faery wanted to sign up to just about every day camp under the sun, but I'm glad she only did a couple.<br />
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So many spur-of-the moment outings and visits kept us more than occupied. I'm in no way opposed to days at home with the TV on for kiddo entertainment - it's something I more than rely on at times - but we surprisingly had very few days like that over summer. I suppose the knowledge of how short-lived summer is here put me into a "make hay while the sun shines" mentality. Summer in Seattle is <i>amazing</i> but it doesn't stick around for long, so I forced us to get out of the house every day. Lots of vitamin D hits for us, but it meant that for the first time ever, when school resumed this month I didn't feel ready, that we needed more veggie days at home just doing sweet nothing. I guess that's better than feeling as though we wasted summer, though.<br />
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Here in Seattle, people joke that summer doesn't officially begin until July 5th (the joke being that July 4th celebrations are often rainy). This July 4th threatened to prove them right, with grey skies and passing spots of rain. We took a gamble anyway, and hosted a barbecue at our place, with a bit of a pot luck dessert from friends. By sheer coincidence, it was mostly Aussie expat friends, with one Canadian and only one American - poor girl! It was a good excuse to make pavlova, and a friend got into the spirit by making a divine s'mores pie. Lucky for all of us, the walk to the waterfront fireworks that evening were a mile downhill so we managed to walk off some of our gluttony.<br />
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The following week, the Faery attended a day camp at one of the Western Washington Girl Scout campsites. It was in a beautiful 400+ acre setting, complete with log cabins and surrounded by cedar trees. Camp River Ranch is a forty-minute drive from home, but instead of me needing to drive the round trip twice a day, we were fortunate enough to have a camp bus that serviced a route with a drop-off point only five minutes away from home.<br />
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Once at camp, the Faery spent her time in a small group of other Brownies, and together they worked out their week's itinerary of craft, fairy house building (in the woods), mermaid-spotting from a boat in the lake, swimming, ice-cream making, and a tent sleepover on the Thursday night. Basically, the kind of week I dreamed about when I was that age. Movies like The (original) Parent Trap and 1985's Poison Ivy (Michael J Fox was my first love) fuelled my childhood dreams of an American style camp in the great outdoors, so there <i>may</i> have been a little vicarious living through the Faery. However, every day she emerged from the camp bus, face flushed and glowing. The heat wave that week was probably a factor too, but she had such a wonderful time that she kept asking to go back and do another week or two. I will be more than happy to send her back next summer.<br />
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On the last day of her camp, instead of having her take the bus home, we met her at the camp and then headed to a farm for a bed and breakfast farm stay. I'd managed to find a farm that had a platform tent with a queen sized bed inside, plus room for two single camping beds. Glamping!<br />
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The farm itself is an organic one, established by an older couple who had left the rat race of Microsoft behind them. There was an assortment of animals, and their farmhands invited the Faery and Miss Pie to accompany them on their rounds to feed the animals and collect eggs. The girls were in heaven because it was their first time on a proper farm.<br />
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It was ridiculously hot and humid, so we were stoked to find a bar and grill in the nearby town of Carnation, with a kid-friendly beer garden. Not only that, but the fence was lined with a misty spray sprinkler to cool us off. As the shadows got longer, we realised we'd better head back to the farm before it got too dark.<br />
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J was in heaven once he'd got a campfire going near our tent. As luck would have it, there was a full moon rising over the Cascade mountains, which we we had a clear view of from the farm. We roasted marshmallows with the girls and then once they were asleep, we sat by the fire for far too many hours, and drank far too much wine (me) and beer (him). Aside from the dozens of mosquito bites to my thighs after the briefest of nature-calling-grass-squats, it was as good as any date night. Full moon, campfire, marshmallows, booze, dearly beloved, and... did I mention the full moon? It was pretty damn special.<br />
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All of that was followed up with a sore head (him), goat-milking/feeding (the girls), and a home-cooked breakfast made from the farm's good food. By the time we left, the heat had kicked in again, so we stopped off for a swim in the Snoqualmie River, soaked up the last of the rural vibe, then headed home. It definitely felt as though summer had arrived, and with a bang.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-48274786513476343472014-06-26T20:23:00.000-07:002014-06-26T20:23:22.722-07:00One year in the NorthwestA weird thing happened when I looked at my calendar earlier this week - I realised that today marks a whole year since we traded in L.A. for Seattle. I could probably continue at this point with half a dozen clichés about time flying, but I'll spare you. Instead, I'll bore you with a bunch of visuals. My photos tend to be better than my words anyway.<br />
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I've had several half-baked posts sitting in my draft box over the last couple of months, so I've decided <i>to hell with it</i>, and rolled them all into this one. Snipped away the few words there were, and am letting the images do the talking. You'll just have to believe me when I say this post is actually two months in the making. There are times when I'd rather bake banana bread than sit down and blog, you know? Or figure out the best way to make banana pudding (which I've become obsessed with). Or simply eat donuts (something I <i>do</i> love about Seattle).<br />
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Essentially, I'm making the most of getting outside as the days become a little drier and warmer. The long daylight hours are divine - something I loved about living in the UK too - and given that I'm typically at work four evenings a week, those other three evenings are not guaranteed to be sunny and dry. When they are, I drag everyone down to one of the lakeside picnic spots, so that I can enjoy a sunset. Not a swim though. No. That lake water is still <i>far</i> too cold for a wimp like myself.<br />
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We've been discovering new places to wander - both local, and a little further out. Been visiting favourite touristy spots again, and doing our best to shake the pallor of winter off ourselves. School finished up last week, so I'm finding myself now a little more time-poor... but the mini sleep-ins are making up for it. Swimming lessons are the only thing that have us rushing out the door this month, but July - when my parents visit - is going to be packed full.<br />
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Anyhow, there it is. A whole year in Seattle, and we've still got a lot of discovering to do. I have a lot of affection for the Pacific Northwest and all its clean air, good coffee and amazing food, but I need to work on making peace with its winters before I start feeling like one of the locals. I have a way to go, I suspect.<br />
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In the mean time...<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-22439737533063212302014-05-27T14:49:00.000-07:002014-05-27T14:49:02.128-07:00Evening escapesTen years ago, when J and I were living in Melbourne, I got my hands on a CD by a Scottish band that happened to be on tour in town. I immediately fell in love with the album, but sadly missed out on the chance to see that band live. As the years went by, that album - along with subsequent ones - have been on high rotation in our home and for road trips. This band is Franz Ferdinand, and they make music that is the perfect blend of pop, new-wave and rock, and guaranteed to get me dancing.<br />
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A couple of months ago, J heard that Franz Ferdinand would be doing a gig in Seattle, so on a whim, he booked tickets and I booked a babysitter. To be honest, I was a little blasé about the date circled on our calendar. I thought it'd be a nice enough night out, and knew the music would be great, but I had little expectations. I hadn't listened to Franz Ferdinand for a while, and wasn't particularly hyped.<br />
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Well.<br />
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Ever since that night in April, I've been meaning to write a post here about the awesomeness of seeing Franz Ferdinand, but every time I start thinking about it, I simply don't have the words. My mind? Was blown.<br />
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Everything about the night's performance was so tight, so perfect, so spot-on, that I knew halfway into the first song that I was experiencing the best live gig I'd ever been to... and not to brag, but I've seen some pretty amazing live performances over the years. I have nothing but superlatives for Franz Ferdinand. When I need to go to a happy place now, all I have to do is close my eyes, recall one of their songs, and I'm back in that darkened venue. Catchy guitar riffs, beats that groove down to your tippy toes and bounce into your heart, and a captivated crowd (at one point during a split-second pause in one of the songs, a guy yelled out <i>"<b>I LOVE YOU, MAN!</b>", </i>and without missing a beat, Alex Kapranos pointed back to him "And I love <i>YOU!</i>" with perfect showmanship and utter sincerity... maybe you had to be there).<br />
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And that's all I can write here about the joy of Franz Ferdinand live, because no words of mine will do justice. If you get the chance to see them perform? Just do it.<br />
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We finished the show with a couple of drinks in a dive bar across the road from the venue. It turns out that bars with floors that are covered in peanut shells don't exist solely in American movies and TV shows. We were given a fresh bowl of peanuts and I was more than a little perplexed with where to dispose of the shells, until J pointed out the floor. Um, ok then. It felt wrong, and I realised I might be a little too old for those places now. Anyhow, I chalked it up to one more 'uniquely' American experience to add to my notched belt.<br />
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As if that night out wasn't enough to keep me happy, we celebrated our wedding anniversary one week later. May Day also happened to be the warmest day in Seattle so far this year, so it was with happiness that we waved goodbye to the girls and their babysitter, I tottered into the car - dresses and heels are not my thing except for the rarest occasions - and we made our way to a waterside restaurant on the southern end of Lake Union. I had sterling company (of course), views of a busy waterway that everybody appeared to making the most of, and I devoured salmon, salmon, and more salmon.<br />
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If I haven't mentioned it before, I <i>love</i> salmon and will eat it in any and all of the ways it can be eaten. Sushi, poké, smoked, grilled... I'll eat it all. So, if you love salmon as much as I do, and find yourself in Seattle one day, with a need for water views and city skylines, then I suggest <a href="http://www.ivars.com/locations/salmon-house">Ivar's Salmon House</a>. I'm already trying to think of an excuse for us all to have brunch there this summer. My parents will be visiting, so I think that's a good enough reason, right?<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-21773445243411481372014-05-01T10:19:00.000-07:002014-05-01T10:19:13.791-07:00VancouverOver the Easter weekend - I wish I could say holiday or break, but America doesn't do that [insert eye roll] - we took a little road trip to Vancouver. Finally. It's something we've wanted to do since moving to Seattle, but had to wait until our updated US visas were sorted... and then we were in the throes of winter. I've already been to Vancouver a number of times, but it was always winter so I was hoping to see some spring glory there for a change.<br />
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As it happens, spring in Vancouver involves a lot of rain. Weather-wise, nothing different to Seattle. Grey skies, rain, and a total of about ten-minutes diluted sunshine over the two days we were in town. Oh well! Lucky for that city, it's such a stunning beauty that we didn't really mind.<br />
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The trip itself was straightforward, without too long a wait at the US/Canada border crossing. We giggled at the sign to remind American visitors of the change to metric on the roadsigns, but our giggles turned to face-palming when our phones buzzed with a welcome message, notifying us of changes to the data roaming charges. Faaaark. We'd packed our passports but we'd completely overlooked the fact that - being in a different country, of course our usual phone plan rates wouldn't apply. Something about driving into foreign territory, as opposed to flying, made it feel, well, not so foreign. And having been here in the Pacific Northwest for almost a year, nothing stuck out as that different. So, having been stung (badly!) by data roaming charges on our first trip back to Australia, we decided we'd just have to switch that option off on our phones, and limit our online time to the free wi-fi in our hotel.<br />
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We had no road maps on us - taking Siri and Google Maps for granted when we left home - but fortunately I'd looked at the route online before we set off, and the road we were on at the US/Canada border crossing took us directly to the city. Handy, right? As for finding our hotel, we had to wing it but we had two things going in our favour. Firstly, even though it was more than ten years since we were last there, we'd been a few times and spent significant chunks of time in downtown Vancouver - where our hotel was - because J's sister lived there for seven years. How much could it have changed? Secondly, I have <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2012/01/east-west-what.html">an excellent sense of direction</a>. I was confident we'd find the hotel - a distinct building we'd walked past many times on prior visits - without drama, and we did.<br />
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We chose <a href="http://www.fairmont.com/hotel-vancouver/">the Fairmont Hotel because the old building alone is a-freaking-mazing</a>. We used to walk past it and admire everything about it. When I called to potentially book a room, and learned we could use J's Microsoft very generous employee discount, the deal was sealed. When I showed pictures to the girls, there were gasps because they thought it looked like a palace. Win.<br />
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Anyhow, Vancouver was every bit as wonderful as I remembered it to be. Smaller than Seattle, shinier, cleaner, with a mountainous backdrop (pending those rain clouds) that is <i>BAM-in-your-face</i>. The mix of old and new architecture is very similar to Sydney's, and despite the cold climate, it feels more like home to me than any other foreign city has. We knew exactly which spots we wanted to take the girls to, and <a href="http://www.vanaqua.org/">Vancouver Aquarium</a> was one of them. Located in Stanley Park (the equivalent of Central Park in NYC but much more untamed and on the edge of wilderness), J and I first went in 2000, and we were so impressed that we vowed then and there that we'd return with our future, hypothetical kids one day. Lucky for us, the girls were equally enamoured, and it felt sweet to fulfil that particular little dream of ours.<br />
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We spent the two days on foot only, revisiting old hangouts. We got pretty soaked at one point, but the fancy hotel digs and indoor pool compensated for that. The Easter Bunny paid a visit to our hotel room and that cemented how awesome Vancouver is to the girls. Our beds were possibly the plushest, most comfortable ever, and when it was time to leave and head back to Seattle, the girls were very much in a state of end-of-holiday blues. A week later, they're both hatching plans to return and I have to admit, it'd be great to see even more of Canada. Hopefully we will some day. With the metric system, the British Royal Family gracing their magazine covers, and Queen Elizabeth on their money, it's like J said - being in Canada is a little like being in America, but the familiar Commonwealth elements soften the American edges.<br />
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I did pack the good camera, but with all the rain we were walking in, it never left our hotel room. I'm still happy with the photos I was able to get, though:<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Mementos from visits to Vancouver over the years. Douglas Coupland is one of my favourite writers (to the point where I've gone to several book signings and met him), so I snapped this book up after my first trip to Vancouver.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The older building with the green roof was our hotel.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Gargoyle from our room.</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>This 'Digital Orca' creation was by none other than Douglas Coupland.<br />Do you know how much I geeked out when I discovered that?</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>This city - swoon! But may I see you again with blue skies some day...</i></td></tr>
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<span id="goog_2124744650"></span><span id="goog_2124744651"></span><br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-68682452997766787232014-04-17T15:56:00.000-07:002014-04-17T15:56:42.274-07:00Inking thinkingWithout much fanfare the other day, I officially turned Another Year Older. The day was lovely enough - sunshine, a latte handed to me before I was even out of bed, a home-cooked breakfast, and recipient of a generous gift card to fancy day spa. I had to work in the evening, but hey, that's part of being a grown up, right? At any rate, the day was about a thousand times better than <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2013/04/this-is-37.html">last year's birthday</a>.<br />
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Maybe it's an early mid-life crisis, who knows? But the strangest thing happened. I woke up on my birthday, and decided I want a tattoo. Not just that I want one, but where I want it on my body, what I want the subject to be, and the style. Incredibly specific ideas. These desires came from <i>nowhere, </i>and nobody was more surprised than myself.<br />
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It's not that I'm against tattoos at all, but I spent much of my twenties telling myself I'd probably get one one day, when the right design or image jumped out at me. I didn't want to just pick one from a book in a tattoo parlour, or go for anything common or clichéd. I liked the idea of frangipanis because they're my favourite scent, but then began noticing women with frangipanis tattooed on their feet, ankles or wrists... so I quietly went off that idea.<br />
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By my early thirties, I'd accepted the fact that I hadn't found the 'right one', and gave up. After the Faery and Miss Pie came into my life, I thought that maybe it'd be nice to get a tattoo of a lily and jasmine (their middle names). Still, I could never imagine how to incorporate the two flowers into a design I liked, nor could I make up my mind which body part to have tattooed, so I gave up that idea too. Many of my friends have tattoos - one is actually a fantastic tattoo artist - so I shrugged it off and decided it wasn't meant to be - that to <i>not </i>have a tattoo these days was probably more unique anyway.<br />
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After finally getting to be in a field of tulips last weekend, and this being my umpteenth spring filling vases at home with tulips, I guess tulips are on the brain right now... enough that I want them under my skin too. The realisation was a bit of a lightbulb moment - I've always loved tulips, and it seems so obvious now. They may not have the heady scents of frangipanis, lilies or jasmine, but they're elegant, standing tall and strong. That resonates with me as I'm a bit of a no-frills person myself.<br />
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I also realised that if I'm going to go to the trouble and pain of a tattoo, then I want to be able to see it - easily, without a mirror or having to contort my body. This rules out my back, shoulders or neck. Also, I'm at an age where I'm not concerned about covering a tattoo up. I tend to work in fields where the odd tattoo on display isn't going to raise eyebrows anyway. Getting ink on my feet doesn't appeal for some reason, and anywhere that's going to sag in due time is not on my list. I don't know why I'd never thought of it before, but my inner wrist or (if a wider design) inner forearm, near the crook of my elbow, is ideal - with the design's top in the direction of my hand so that I don't have to admire it upside down or sideways. This is for <i>me</i>, after all, and no one else.<br />
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As far as designs go, I want something stylised and not hyper-realistic, but not abstract either. After searching google images for tulip tattoos yesterday, I don't want it to be some ambiguous flower bud. It was good to see what designs are out there, to help me know what I <i>don't</i> want it to be. I also did a general image search of tulips for ideas, and what I saw reminded me of how much I love art deco, art nouveau, and stained glass images so I think that's the direction this will go in. If I find a font I love, I may still incorporate the girls' names into the design (I'm thinking two tulips total for the design - one to represent each girl), but only if it won't look fussy.<br />
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The only person I'll consider for the tattoo gig is my friend. He's been solidly building his reputation in recent years. Before his musician days, his background was in graphic design so he is mighty handy with creating new tattoos. He and his family are great fun to hang out with, and our eldest girls are good little buddies (they went to school together). I like the idea of someone I know personally doing the tattoo. The only catch is they live in Los Angeles. That's okay, though. It means I can take my time in getting the design perfect, rather than impatiently rushing to get it done here in Seattle. It's also further incentive to plan an eventual trip back to L.A.<br />
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Some of the inspiration I've found so far:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GpBqicUiwUs/U1BUspQ7wOI/AAAAAAAAEeE/nOmY2epkc1U/s1600/3de8485ebf7897403667efb5526f4a35.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GpBqicUiwUs/U1BUspQ7wOI/AAAAAAAAEeE/nOmY2epkc1U/s1600/3de8485ebf7897403667efb5526f4a35.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>(<a href="http://www.minigallery.co.uk/Muriel_Clark/art59886/">Click here for photo source</a>)</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8_lH7SA2sZY/U1BVioYPZOI/AAAAAAAAEeM/dWjzNNXdatE/s1600/8989b0a051adf615b31778052f0caa01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8_lH7SA2sZY/U1BVioYPZOI/AAAAAAAAEeM/dWjzNNXdatE/s1600/8989b0a051adf615b31778052f0caa01.jpg" height="400" width="210" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>(<a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/122239885/art-nouveau-redwork-in-tulips?utm_source=Pinterest&utm_medium=PageTools&utm_campaign=Share">Click here for photo source</a>)</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9e6vnow8MC8/U1BWrr-9pqI/AAAAAAAAEeU/K9qphv_Hn4g/s1600/INR-050-5lg.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-9e6vnow8MC8/U1BWrr-9pqI/AAAAAAAAEeU/K9qphv_Hn4g/s1600/INR-050-5lg.gif" height="320" width="218" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>(<a href="http://www.stampingsensations.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Store_Code=SS&Screen=PROD&Category_Code=NEW&Product_Code=INR-050-5">Click here for photo source</a>)</i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QwtejruUFLE/U1BX4eafW7I/AAAAAAAAEec/oZLTdKCEoyM/s1600/Tulip-Design-Stained-Glass-Window-Panel-13dcd741-c6ec-4a1f-90a9-207844e418e2_320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QwtejruUFLE/U1BX4eafW7I/AAAAAAAAEec/oZLTdKCEoyM/s1600/Tulip-Design-Stained-Glass-Window-Panel-13dcd741-c6ec-4a1f-90a9-207844e418e2_320.jpg" height="400" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>(<a href="http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Tulip-Design-Stained-Glass-Window-Panel/8295481/product.html">Click here for photo source</a>)</i></td></tr>
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I love the idea of having two tulips, in an oval shape with a border, with pops of colour like the stained glass.<br />
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Mid-life crisis or not, I'm genuinely excited at the thought of having a lovely, permanent piece of art on my skin. Happy birthday to me!<br />
<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-86705979158931167432014-04-14T14:34:00.000-07:002014-04-14T14:34:36.443-07:00What cherry blossoms?Cherry blossoms are so yesterday.<br />
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Over the weekend, I fulfilled <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2014/03/hanami.html">one of my other bucket list items</a> - to be surrounded by fields of tulips.<br />
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Along with who knows how many other thousands, we drove an hour north of Seattle to the <a href="http://www.tulipfestival.org/">Skagit Vally Tulip Festival</a>. Thankfully, we arrived early enough to beat the nightmarish traffic, and any time we did spend sitting in the car en route was <i>totally</i> worth it. It was the warmest, most cloudless day yet this year, and by the end of our visit I had several hundred photos under my belt, one bunch of the lovely-sounding chameur tulips, and a catalogue for tulip-bulb ordering. I may have a black thumb, dammit, but seeing how effortlessly tulips seem to flourish here in Seattle, I am determined to grow some of my own for next spring.<br />
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Funnily enough - given the T-shirt and flip-flops weather - we capped the day by stopping off at a popular outlet mall on the way home, and successfully found North Face and Columbia waterproof snow gear for both the girls at almost half their normal retail price. They won't be needing them for some time, but come next winter there'll be no more need for raincoats layered over puffy jackets - they'll finally have the proper attire for some serious snow adventures. Now just to get myself kitted out...<br />
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Disclaimer: If tulips bore you, look away now.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-43483496744448453722014-03-24T14:49:00.000-07:002014-03-24T14:49:45.407-07:00HanamiThere are a couple of flower-related activities on my bucket list. One is to do with tulips - more specifically, to stand in a field of tulips, and be surrounded by them as far as the eye can see. I've managed <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2011/11/wrong-turns.html">to visit the Netherlands</a> three times, and yet none of those trips were the right time of year. Not to despair though, because I've heard a rumour that there is a region in northern Washington, famous for its tulip festival every April. You can be sure where we'll be headed one weekend soon.<br />
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The other fantasy of mine is connected to <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2011/03/my-japanese-heart.html">my love of all things Japanese</a>, and that is to partake in <i>hanami</i> - the viewing of cherry blossoms. All the images I've seen over the years of spring in Japan have me wishing I could jump on the next plane there, and follow the <i>sakura</i> (cherry blossom) trail from south to north as they bloom.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Van Gogh's </i>Almond Blossoms<i> (source: <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Almond_Blossoms">Wikipedia</a>)</i></td></tr>
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In a strange little hybrid twist, I even bought myself a print of Van Gogh's <i>Almond Blossoms, </i>after being captivated by it in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, way back in 1999. Wanting to save it until I had the spare cash to splash on getting it framed properly, I carried that damn print (along with another Van Gogh print) - rolled up in its special box for travellers - from home to home. London to Brighton, to Melbourne, then to Sydney, when I was finally feeling both settled and flush enough to give those prints the frames and wall space they deserved... only five years later. I'm not kidding when I say I procrastinate. This print followed us to the US, and has a special place on our bedroom wall.<br />
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I don't know when I'll get to Japan, so yesterday we did the next best thing and visited the University of Washington campus to see the <a href="http://www.washington.edu/news/2014/03/13/2014-uw-cherry-tree-watch-bloom-at-15-percent-mark/">cherry blossoms in their Quad</a>. Of course, we didn't realise at the time, but arborists had declared that weekend to be the best time to see the cherry blossoms, in bloom at 100%. I think every second person in Seattle had the same idea as us - it was insanely busy.<br />
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It was also insanely beautiful.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-9379996817405958892014-03-18T15:12:00.000-07:002014-03-18T15:12:34.988-07:00SprungIt appears that the last batch of photos I shared here were completely snow-related. I love the snow - it'll take a lot for that novelty to wear off - but I'm also happy to see some more sunshine light at the end of this wintery tunnel I've been existing in.<br />
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I know, I know... winter is much harsher elsewhere and I just need to get over myself. I was talking the other day to someone from Colorado, and had moved to Seattle six years ago. She sang praises of the much milder winters here, and I realised I needed some perspective. Still, after a few winters in Southern California, a bit of adjustment to Pacific Northwestern winters is required. Not going to beat myself up over that.<br />
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Anyhow, I've been meaning to come and update on life here. I've <strike>conquered</strike> tackled a couple of major fears of mine (I intend to write about), I've officially changed jobs, the girls have had long-overdue haircuts, a black eye and suspected broken nose (thankfully not), and we've been flat out selling Girl Scout cookies. Have I mentioned I co-lead the Faery's Brownies troop? Yeah, enough with the laughing. I'll get around to writing about how <i>that</i> eventuated, some day.<br />
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In the mean time, let's play photo catch-ups.<br />
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The chop for the Faery was fairly drastic, but one I'd been pushing for some time (daily tangle dramas and all that). She'd resisted in the past, and I didn't want to force it... thankfully she agreed to try it, and loves it. Mornings are <i>so</i> much easier now.<br />
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A week later, Miss Pie also wanted a chop, and she wanted drastic too. Sadly for her, <i>I</i> wasn't ready, so we compromised. I'm not prepared yet to say goodbye to the lighter curls on the end, as I have a feeling it won't grow back that way. Given that her hair doesn't have the tangle-issues of her sister's, I kind of want to cling to that baby hair a little longer.<br />
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New boots, as the ones I'd bought her in October already had holes. Here's hoping these last longer.<br />
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The black eye and suspected broken nose I mentioned? She had managed to fall <i>up</i> our stair case one evening. The huge swelling the next day was enough to warrant a visit to the doctor's for a check over, but nothing serious - apart from resembling a bout in a boxing ring.<br />
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A glimpse of spring weather, at one of the beaches in our neck of the woods. Winter? Go away.<br />
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We have a case of backyard envy (at a lovely friend's house). Mind you, there is a bear known to amble through their next door neighbour's yard, and I think I can live without that.<br />
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Bruiser, yo.</div>
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Flowers, cookies, and gap-teethed little girls selling the cookies. What's not to love?<br />
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Sunday morning coffee in the sun. I'll have more of that, please.<br />
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Lake Washington, with peekaboo snow-capped Olympic mountains in the distance.<br />
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We are more than just a little excited to have daylight savings back again.<br />
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I am also more than just a little bit in love with the way that the buildings all around Pike Place are lined above with daffodils.<br />
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These tulips took a bus ride home with me from Pike Place Markets, because who could resist?<br />
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More Lake Washington, more mountains, plus downtown Seattle peeking through.<br />
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Last of all, I have taken a gazillion photos of all the pink and white cherry blossoms around town. Between those and all the daffodils, it's feeling like spring. Finally.</div>
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-1507190178851272552014-02-25T15:28:00.002-08:002014-02-25T15:28:22.879-08:00One door closes...When I 're-entered' the workforce three months ago, I was looking forward to having some adult interaction and time out of the house that didn't revolve around preschool or elementary school routines, or plain old grocery shopping. Starting on a minimum wage of $9.42 an hour, with part-time shifts, I knew I wouldn't be bringing home riches but told myself it would be a good way of easing back into work again.<br />
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The shifts I was hired to do were from 6-10pm, three nights a week, and longer shifts on Saturdays when I was available. This was perfect because it gave J time to get home from work (still a rush for him) and be with the Faery and Miss Pie. My financial contribution to our household would be tiny, but at least my self-esteem would feel a little better about the status quo. Even better, it was within walking distance so tussles over who would get the car on Saturdays weren't an issue.<br />
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On my first day - in the deli department of a national supermarket chain - warning bells sounded when several other staff members asked which department I'd be in, and then expressed no surprise, mentioning a high staff turnover in the deli department. High staff turnovers are not usually a good sign, are they?<br />
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However, I was determined to make it work. I enjoyed chatting to the other team members as we worked, and hearing various life stories. Likewise with the customers. It was one of the things I enjoyed about my time as a pub wench in London, too. I used to mentally file away little details about characters I met, for that book I planned to write.<br />
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On my third day, I was given seven large garbage pails to hose out. Bins that each had a good week's worth of chicken juice, flaked off meat, old cheese and sandwich bar scraps stuck to the inside. I don't need to describe the smell, or vomit factor. On that shift, I realised the job was going to be a little harder to like than I'd anticipated.<br />
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Over the next couple of months, though, I gradually got used to the tasks I had to perform on those evening closing shifts. Customer service was only a small part of it, as sales tend to taper off after 8pm. Much of the job was about cleaning the deli and getting it ready for the next day. Pulling apart meat and cheese slicers to clean, washing dishes, discarding the day-old pre-made sandwiches, washing dishes, hosing down large chopping boards, washing dishes, cleaning out the hot soup counter, washing dishes, wiping the greasy fingerprints and spills from the many windows of the display cases, washing dishes, emptying the garbage, washing dishes, and cleaning the floors.<br />
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Good times. You don't want to know what the soles of my shoes looked like at the end of each shift, or how my apron smelled. My muscles ached in ways they hadn't in many years.<br />
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Do I sound like a princess? I hope not. I certainly never felt that I was too good for the job. I viewed it as honest work, humbling, and a good reminder of how lucky I am - that for many people, this was how they earned a living, and it was their only option.<br />
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The strange thing is, even though I wasn't exactly <i>loving</i> it, I was determined to make it work. I've never walked out of a job - I've always finished on good terms, because I was either moving to a new city, or into a new field, professionally.<br />
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The customers seemed to dig that I'm Australian (a novelty, <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2011/01/ozzy-ozzy-ozzy.html">compared to my London pub days</a>), and overall feedback from upper management was that they were all super happy with me. "... best new hire in a long time", was one quote.<br />
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Then in January, word trickled down to me that the corporate office was changing the evening shift to 5-9pm, instead of 6-10pm. <i>Would I be able to start at 5 instead? </i>And the answer was no, as I'd made it <i>very </i>clear when I was first hired - 6pm was the absolute earliest I could start. J is often in meetings until 5pm, we have no family in town to watch the girls, and a babysitter would cost more than my wages.... so, nope. No can do.<br />
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That's when my shifts began to dry up. I was still scheduled for Saturdays, and the occasional weekday 6-10pm shift, once or twice a fortnight. They could never explain to me why those hours were still possible sometimes, but not regularly anymore. Every time I asked, the deli manager (who wrote the schedules) told me her hands were tied and she had to go by what the head office told her for shift times. I went over her, to upper management, and they all gave me the same spiel: they really wanted to keep me on and would do their best to find more hours for me.<br />
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I heard that spiel many times over the last month, but nothing changed. My pay period for last week was for a single four-hour shift. After the weekly union fees were deducted, I received fifteen dollars. FIFTEEN dollars for FOUR hours of busting my arse.<br />
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I'm not a princess... I'm also not a slave. That amount of money was just plain offensive, and I felt a strong urge to place my fist through a wall (or the deli manager's face) when I saw that pay slip.<br />
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With no guarantees of increased hours, I resigned on Saturday, and finished my final shift last night. I have better ways to spend four-hour chunks of my time, and decided that tutoring - even babysitting - would be preferable. I didn't want to have to quit... but I feel better for it. Much better.<br />
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The funny thing is that a day after I resigned, I was offered another job. Things have a way of working out okay, don't they?<br />
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Once I'd realised they were in no hurry to give me back my initial shifts, I began looking online to see what other local jobs were out there. As luck would have it, another nearby supermarket had a number of vacancies so I put in a general application, thinking anything there would be better anyway. It's a bit of a groovy store, with an emphasis on local produce and higher-end products - a little like Whole Foods. A bit on the posh side, but so much nicer.<br />
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I was called in for an interview shortly before I decided to call it quits where I'd been. They loved me, I loved them, and it looks like I'll be working... in their deli. I had to laugh when I was offered the position. The silver lining is that they pay more by the hour, and are keen to give me more hours than the last place. Also exciting - they have a cleaning crew for the deli so that I can just focus on customer service instead of breaking my back. Most importantly, everybody there seems super happy. It's right by the Faery's school, so I've often popped in to grab last minute things for dinner, or coffee and cake after school. I've always liked the atmosphere there, so I have a feeling I'll be much happier.<br />
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Wish me luck.Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-56059243807264944032014-02-18T15:18:00.001-08:002014-02-18T15:18:54.667-08:00BluesThe winter fucking blues.<br />
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Ugh.<br />
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They seem to have crept up on me, but they're here. It's cold, it's grey, it's wet and windy - to be expected for this corner of the world, at this time of the year, yes. But it feels like it's been cold, grey, wet and windy for five months now. Oh wait, that's because it <i>has</i> been. With a good couple of months more to go.<br />
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Ugh.<br />
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This morning I received an email from Shutterfly, about a free offer of 101 prints. This is perfect for catching up on the backlog of photos I need printed for our photo album, and an offer that I occasionally take up, so I opened up our iPhoto library to start compiling.<br />
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The trouble was, it had been a while since I last got a big batch printed and so I needed to dig out the fat envelopes sitting next to our photo albums - still waiting to be dated and ordered, then placed in an album - to see where I was up to in the backlog.<br />
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The photos I've just sorted through were from November 2011 to August 2012. From memory, when I received them I was happy to (then) be only a year behind in printing photos... and then promptly placed them next to the albums, delaying the dating (which I like to do, in case the photos get misplaced or handed over to the Faery and Miss Pie down the track, so that they'll know how old they were).<br />
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This means I've just finished the excruciating process of putting about a hundred photos in order and writing dates on their backs - necessitating a trip down memory lane.<br />
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The majority of the photos were from the winter period of 2011-2012, and the contrast between life in Washington and life in California has never felt so stark. The photos were full of blue skies, palm trees, turquoise swimming pools, sun-kissed limbs and golden-freckled faces. T-shirts and skirts weren't just theoretical, they were actually worn on warmer days in winter.<br />
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It didn't take long today for it to start physically hurting as I picked up each printed photo. Life in L.A. wasn't perfect, but it was still pretty sweet.<br />
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I've been trying to convince myself for some time that life in Seattle is better for us. J's the happiest he's ever been with a job, our finances are slowly improving, the air is cleaner, the schools are better... and let's not forget the coffee.<br />
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However, it's harder to focus on those things lately. Perhaps I'm just being an ungrateful whiner, but all I seem to focus on right now is the cold crappy weather, that I have little in the way of friends here, and that my current job is one that I don't particularly love.<br />
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I'm <i>not</i> feeling happier here. I think I was happier <i>there</i>.<br />
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I <i>want</i> to be happier <i>here</i>.<br />
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I don't know what the solution is, but all I want to do is eat my feelings with pastries, doughnuts and chocolate. That's part of the problem, I know. I need to get into exercise again, but the weather isn't exactly inspiring me, and the yoga classes I've looked into seem to clash with school.<br />
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Meanwhile, I continue to put on the happy face I'm so good at putting on, because that's what I do.<br />
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Maybe it's time I googled Vitamin D lamps...<br />
<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-1829718260691399002014-02-11T13:53:00.000-08:002014-02-11T13:53:41.135-08:00February snowOur <a href="http://amadworld.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-boy-who-cried-snow.html">first snow day</a> in Seattle was a good six weeks ago, but we finally had another dumping of snow last weekend. It had the good sense to start around dinner time on Saturday evening, and continued through the night, so the girls knew before bed that they'd be waking up to a morning of sledding, snowball fights, and snowmen. Needless to say, there was a <i>lot</i> of excitement here. We Australians are easily impressed by snow.<br />
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Sadly, drizzles of rain kicked in on Sunday afternoon, gradually getting heavier - pretty much washing away all but the biggest piles of snow overnight. Monday morning was back to the usual status quo, but I was happy with the amount of snow play we were able to have. I did learn, though, that I should pull my finger out and get some adequate snow gear for myself. Jeans and rain boots <i>do not</i> cut it. Procrastination is my middle name, if you haven't figured that out yet...<br />
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At this point, my DSLR's battery died. Lucky for me I had my phone as well. I have been Instagramming for days now, but I'll spare you the monotony. The following two are my favourite iPhone pics.<br />
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I hope that from wherever you are sitting to read this, you are warmer than us!Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-1588607970821481162014-01-30T16:41:00.000-08:002014-01-30T16:41:14.290-08:00A bangWith only one day of January to go, and zero posts here from me so far, it's safe to say that 2014 has started with somewhat of a bang.<br />
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Not only have I been trying to settle into some kind of groove with my new working hours (about to change, but that's a story for another time), we've also played host to family and friends visiting from both Australia and Los Angeles.<br />
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The first celebration, though, was Miss Pie turning the big FOUR. It was a fairly low-key event, but one that kept repeating with various visitors bearing gifts. Lucky kid. The thing that made her feel most special on the day, however, was when the candle-lit cake (lemon-cream cheese with butter icing) came out. Hell, I wished <i>I</i> was four again.<br />
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That same evening, my brother and sister-in-law arrived for a stay. We spent the next few days cramming in some sightseeing - mainly places I hadn't been to before.<br />
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We hung out at the <a href="http://www.empmuseum.org/">EMP Museum</a>, where they had a <a href="http://www.empmuseum.org/at-the-museum/current-exhibits/nirvana-taking-punk-to-the-masses.aspx">Nirvana exhibit</a>. My brother, J, and myself, were (were?... still!) all massive fans of Nirvana so it was a pretty special afternoon. Bonus sightings were the <a href="http://www.empmuseum.org/at-the-museum/current-exhibits/fantasy-worlds-of-myth-and-magic.aspx">Fantasy exhibit</a>, complete with Jim Henson's hand-scribbled notes, one of David Bowie's costumes from The Labyrinth (I was obsessed with that movie as a kid), and the Lion's costume from The Wizard of Oz. As if that wasn't enough, we discovered the <a href="http://www.empmuseum.org/at-the-museum/current-exhibits/icons-of-science-fiction.aspx">Sci-fi exhibit</a> - Christopher Reeve's Superman costume, Star Trek memorabilia, and more from Dr Who. Knowing what science fiction buffs our soon-to-be-visiting friends from L.A. are, we knew we'd be back the following week.<br />
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Another new experience for me was the (downtown) <a href="https://www.undergroundtour.com/about/index.html">Underground Tour</a> at Pioneer Square. I'd had no idea about the history of the pioneers in Seattle, and it was interesting to learn about how the underground passages came to be, when they'd been the original open streets. There is some <a href="https://www.undergroundtour.com/about/history.html">bizarre history</a> behind Seattle's early days.<br />
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After my brother's visit was done and dusted, we welcomed our friends from L.A. Their daughter is the Faery's 'BFF', and they have another child the same age as Miss Pie. Get-togethers with these guys is pretty much as good as it gets, as we share a lot of the same interests but also get introduced to new things to love - through them - whether it's food, movies, TV shows, or books.<br />
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After six months of feeling a little (socially) isolated in Seattle, it was wonderful to spend time with our friends again. Their entire visit was a blur of chasing four-year-olds, eating, story-telling, more sightseeing, more eating, and late nights with four kids doing their best to evade us at bed time. What made me happiest, though, was witnessing the joy that the Faery felt to be with her little soul mate. The two of them giggled about nonsensical things, late into the nights, and it was incredibly sweet. Understandably, there were many tears when it was time for our friends to leave.<br />
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Of course - in that entire period of sightseeing with family and friends - do you think we saw the blue sky just once? Nope. Seattle did what Seattle typically does at this time of year, but I was pretty mad when the sun came out in full force the very day our friends flew back to L.A. A day earlier - when we'd been up the top of the Space Needle - would have been nice. Ah well.<br />
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After a run of dreary grey - but busy - weekends, we finally had a full three days of sunshine. We soaked it up by discovering another local beach and park (including views of Mt Rainier that guarantee I'll be frequenting the place in warmer weather and Instagramming my little heart out), and a trip to the zoo.<br />
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I looked at our calendar the other day, and was in genuine shock when I asked J where January had gone. I'm hoping February will be gentler, but I wouldn't redo January for the world. The time we spent with loved ones was more than worth it, and my soul was a thousand times happier for a week or so. In the mean time, I need to start putting those pennies aside for a trip down to California...Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-54431309508553044672013-12-31T09:00:00.000-08:002013-12-31T09:00:00.838-08:00The belated-everything editionThis is the murky post where I remember that - oops - November was the 3rd anniversary of this blog, and I was fully intending to write about that. A month ago.<br />
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It's also the murky post where I share pretty photos of a festive nature from the lead up to Christmas.<br />
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It's the post where I briefly mention how crazy these last few weeks have especially been - starting a new job, having my wisdom teeth extracted (timing, right?), playing host to family members that visited, and officially breaking in my new role as (co-) Girl Scouts Brownie troop leader. Who knows, I may even touch more on this another day. God only knows, I've been meaning to write about several of these things for some time now.<br />
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It's the post where I quickly rave about the wonderful little trip downtown that we made on Christmas Eve, in the hope of wearing out the girls nicely for the night. It's where I share a pic or two from Christmas Day, and wax lyrical about the beautiful outing we had the next day to Gas Works Park. Okay, 'wax lyical' <i>might</i> be a tad exaggerated... but you get the idea.<br />
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It's also the post where I throw in the fact that we have visits in January from more family, and close friends from L.A... and I wonder about how the hell people work, live life, entertain, host, and find the time to blog? Regularly? It may be my way of excusing the upcoming lack of posts - unless I have an insomniac episode, in which case, blogging will be perfectly easy to fit in. I'll see what I can do.<br />
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In mean time, here are some photos... see you in 2014.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-66984764003502254562013-12-30T15:29:00.000-08:002013-12-30T15:29:55.445-08:00The boy who cried snow<br />
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Over the last month, there have been three separate occasions where the weather app on my phone predicted snow. Each time, we all got our hopes up, only to be disappointed the next day when the snow never eventuated, or the little snow icon changed to a boring old cloud or rain icon. Boo.<br />
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The last time that little snow icon popped up, we tried not to get too excited. It was probably just another false alarm, right? Still, when I woke up in the early hours of the morning for a loo visit, I couldn't help but peek through my bedroom window's blinds... and when I saw a soft white glow covering the trees and road below, I <i>had</i> to wake up J to show him. We couldn't tell if the snow was still falling or not, so we tiptoed into the girls' room for a better look out their window, where the street lamp would answer our question.<br />
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It <i>was</i> still falling, and we stood watching for a minute, hushed whispers as we discussed how we'd spend the day (I was pretty sure that school would be cancelled). As we whispered, our voices must have woken the Faery because she stirred, saw us looking out of her window, and then sprang out of bed to see the snow.<br />
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It was still early, so in attempt to keep Miss Pie from waking, we offered a space in our bed to the Faery. She eagerly accepted, but spent the next hour tossing and turning - too excited about her first proper snow day to let sleep pull her back in.<br />
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After a while, I accepted that I, too, was a little too revved up to fall asleep again, so I switched my phone on and found two recorded messages from the school district. The first one had been left at 6am, and notified that school would be starting two hours later than usual. I almost deleted the next message without listening, thinking it would be the same, but then saw it had been left at 7.20am, so I listened. Due to 'worsening weather', school was cancelled. It was supposed to have been the last day of school before the Christmas break, and the Faery was a little bummed not to give her card and gift to her teacher, but the lure of snow play outweighed any bad feelings there (and her teacher emailed all the parents with the loveliest thoughts and sentiments for the students to read about their hard work so far).<br />
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For part of their Christmas presents, J and I had bought some snow/cold weather boots and mittens/gloves for the girls. We decided that they may as well receive them early, so as they ate their breakfast, I hurriedly wrapped the gifts in our closet, and then presented them.<br />
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Then, thermal underwear on and new snow accessories in check, we headed outside. I only had rain boots for myself, which I discovered do <i>not</i> keep feet warm enough, but it was worth it. We had snow ball fights, I took photos, the girls built a snowman with J, I took more photos, then we shovelled snow from our sloped driveway and found a bag of chunky salt to spread, worried about slush freezing to ice later. Then we piled on more layers of coats and walked to our local park and embarked on more snowball fights and snowman-building... along with dozens of other kids. It turns out that baseball fields are an excellent source of endless snowball-rolling, and snow-forts.<br />
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Eventually we decided to head home again, and passing the last cul-de-sac before our street, found a number of the Faery's classmates on their sleds, so home was delayed a little longer while the Faery and Miss Pie joined in and took turns on various sleds. As we walked home, the Faery chatted about how the weather app had wrongly forecast snow a few times, so she hadn't really believed that it would snow on this day: <i>Mum, it's like the boy who cried wolf, but instead, it was the boy who cried snow!</i><br />
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By midday, the swirls of snow had given way to soft rain. By the end of the day, much of the snow had melted, and by the following day, the only evidence of snow were the occasional piles left where the biggest shovel-fuls and snowmen had been scattered around town. Just grey skies and drizzle, business as usual. We were all a little sad, but it was a fabulous start to our Christmas break and I'm crossing my fingers that we get more snow, locally, this winter.Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-30953381876326487552013-12-08T18:22:00.000-08:002013-12-08T18:22:17.606-08:00Ch-ch-ch-changesYesterday, I looked out my bathroom window and noticed a very long icicle suspended from one of the down pipes. <i>That</i> is how cold it is now. Nonetheless, I got a small thrill from seeing this - I hadn't seen any icicles in real life since our trip to Sweden more than ten years ago.<br />
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Seattle's weather has been a truly mixed bag in recent weeks. The standard grey wet days have been outnumbered by crystal clear skies. There's also been some amazing fog to behold, and now I understand why people liken it to some kind of shapeshifting entity. One morning I drove J to work, and the fog had lifted from when we first got up. After dropping him off in sunshine, I got onto a freeway and headed off to get some errands done. As I merged lanes and checked my rear view mirror, I saw Mt Rainier behind me - clearer and brighter than I'd seen in a month or so. Less than a minute later, I entered such heavy fog that I couldn't see immediately in front of me, and the exit signs couldn't be read. Deep breaths and headlights flicked on, I had to rely on my memory of the route to know when to exit. Then - once I exited - I was fog-free and in sunshine again. Given my dislike of driving on freeways, I was hi-fiving myself when I arrived at my destination.<br />
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In other news, I'm now part of the employed world. After four years out, it's time to start feeling useful again. The more I looked into it, the less of an option teaching is at this point in time. Unlike in Sydney, part-time EFL teaching positions seem to be non-existent - not to mention working hours that fit in with school and preschool. Factor in the costs of after-school care/babysitting, and childcare for Miss Pie and, well, I may as well just be working a minimum wage job on the side instead...<br />
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...which is what is what I'm doing. I'll be working several evenings a week, maybe some Saturday shifts too, and not have to worry about childcare for two kids on different schedules, because J will be home. The hourly rate is less than what I've earned in many, many years, so that's taken a little time to get my head around. Then there's the fact that part of me worries a little about encounters with the school parents in my area - so many of who seem to have high-flying careers, or present the image of the perfect stay-at-home, gym-honed, soccer moms - and may judge me to be less educated than I actually am.<br />
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I <i>was</i> worried at first, but then I thought, fuck it. In this economic climate, plenty of people accept jobs that they may be overqualified for. If there's something wrong with getting out and meeting people a few evenings a week, bringing in some extra dollars, and feeling useful, then so be it. I've been doing training stints over the past week, and surprisingly, enjoying the social side of it - seeing co-workers banter, and realising how I've missed that.<br />
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For legal reasons, I won't be able to identify where I work, or talk shop, so apart from this post it's likely to be a part of my life I'll keep separate from the blog. It's nothing exciting anyway (although who knows where it may lead to), so let's just leave it at that. I just had to mention it because, you know, the first job in four years is <i>kind of</i> a big deal, regardless of what it is. At any rate, it's going to be interesting to compare my work experiences in a third country now.<br />
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So. Here's to winter, trying to keep warm, and employment.<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-67168531778834935722013-11-21T14:37:00.000-08:002013-11-21T14:37:29.536-08:00Frostilicious<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
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After what has felt like endless weeks of dreary grey skies, icy winds, and rain rain rain, I was woken up yesterday by the moonlight peering into our bedroom. Moonlight? Visible moonlight? By the time my alarm went off, the sky was a beautiful mixture of pink and lavender tones.<br />
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Setting off to the bus stop where the Faery catches her school bus, we noticed the the grass was dusted in frost. I made sure to go for a stroll around one of the nearby bays while Miss Pie was at preschool, and I was mesmerised by the frosted, sparkling landscape. This morning was much the same, but with an even thicker frost and white rooftops everywhere.<br />
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This isn't the first time I've encountered heavy frost - after all, J and I spent nearly five years in the U.K. - but when you're in your twenties and rushing to catch the next train to work, sometimes nursing a hangover from the previous night's pub shenanigans, frost isn't really a detail that bleeps largely on the radar. It's there, but not that interesting. Just bloody cold. I do remember one time though, stepping over a puddle and realising it was frozen. Naturally, out of curiosity, I stepped back and onto the puddle... and promptly slipped over onto my arse. I then managed to slip on the exact same puddle two more times that week. Alcohol wasn't even involved; I'm just clumsy at the best of times.<br />
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But I digress. One of the things about having kids is you get to see the world through their eyes. Frost is very much a new thing for my daughters, and to watch them touch it, step on it, and feel the grass crunch beneath their feet... is a lot of fun. I wonder how long the novelty will last?<br />
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Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5961604105772410147.post-78856976612382802013-11-14T20:18:00.000-08:002013-11-14T20:18:00.267-08:00November musings<br />
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<b><i>Ma'am</i></b><br />
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For my first few years in the US, whenever someone addressed me as "Ma'am", I couldn't help but turn and look behind me, certain that there must be an older woman standing nearby. <i>Ma'am</i> just isn't used in Australia, so my associations with that word are purely based on American films and TV shows. I certainly never felt like a <i>ma'am</i>... and then the other day as I was on a stroll, a male driver pulled up and asked me for directions. He addressed me as <i>ma'am, </i>and I liked it. I especially love the way people from the South use it so frequently.<br />
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It's one of those words that seems to be used out of respect and politeness, and I've come to appreciate that. Outside of the US, there's a stereotype about Americans being rude and without manners but that hasn't been my experience while living here. I'll admit that I used to hold those same preconceptions about Americans, but living here has changed that.<br />
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<b><i>Nature </i></b><br />
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The current autumnal weather means the grounds are overloaded with leaves, and it's beautiful. About a week ago, we had a huge windstorm overnight which pretty much took our power out for most of the weekend (<i>not cool, Seattle, not cool - <u>especially</u> at this time of year</i>). Something that feels odd at times, though, is sweeping or vacuuming the pine needles that get tracked into our home. For me, pine needles indoors has only ever been in connection with having a real Christmas tree, so - without a Christmas tree in sight yet - I can't help but smile when I find pine needles on our floor.<br />
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Another aspect of living in such a damp environment is the sheer amount of moss everywhere. It makes me grateful to be living in a building which isn't sheltered by trees, as I've seen a lot of green fuzzy rooftops around. In addition to the moss, I've now become aware of lichens - something I'd never really encountered (or at least noticed) in the past. Bare trees are now sprouting lichens up and down their trunks and along branches, and wooden fences are covered the same way. The soft blue-green delicate patterns remind me of snowflakes, and I'm finding myself peering for closer glimpses on my walks.<br />
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Going for walks isn't something I'm doing a great deal of these days. The cold and wet isn't something I've embraced yet, so I'm feeling a little like a hermit. Today, I thought <i>Well, we've got months and months and months of this to go, so it's time to put your big girl panties on and go for a walk in the rain with Miss Pie. </i>Deal with it. Get used to it.<br />
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So we did... and it was even less of an adventure than I'd hoped for. When we left the house, it was lightly raining and although we each had raincoats on, Miss Pie wanted to bring an umbrella too. Part of me was thinking, <i>but if we're going to be locals, we have to learn not to bother with umbrellas... </i>and then the other part of me reminded myself, <i>fuck it, you hate water streaming off the top of your hood and into yours eyes... </i>so the umbrellas won.<br />
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Then only two blocks down the hill, the whining began. Her umbrella was tricky to carry. She didn't want it up. She didn't want it down. She didn't want to carry it. Water was seeping into her boots through brand new holes at the heels (a record time for new boots not lasting). Her socks were getting wet and sticky. She didn't want sticky feet. Her hands were cold. Her mittens were getting wet.<br />
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At that point, we were more than halfway to the destination I had in mind (a French bakery) so I pushed on... and then the mother of all deluges kicked in. No amount of umbrellas or raincoats or functional boots could have kept us comfortably warm or dry. Once we got to the bakery, hot chocolate, coffee and pastries saved the day. We warmed up, watched the rain get even heavier out the windows, thanked our lucky stars that we were inside, and then waited for the rain to ease. The pastries were so good, I was tempted to just spend the entire afternoon there, stuffing my face.<br />
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Thankfully, by the time we made our getaway, the rain <i>did</i> stop. It was a steep hill back home, and I braced myself for even more whining... but with the rain gone, suddenly everything in Miss Pie's world was hunky dory. Puddles to stomp in (wet socks be damned). Slushy piles of leaves to kick. More puddles. More leaves. Water-droplet enhanced spider webs to admire. Gurgling storm water drains to watch.<br />
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The walk back home was the walk I'd been hoping for when we'd first set off.<br />
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I'm not sure how many months of cold wetness I can handle though. People here - other transplants - tell me the first winter is the hardest. Locals - born and bred - laugh and tell me <i>every</i> winter sucks.<br />
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High time I learned to make mulled wine then. I have a feeling I'll be needing it...<br />
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<br />Madeleinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04193070164584925505noreply@blogger.com0