I voted

Hi everyone,

I sent off my federal write-in absentee ballot today. I hope to complete the state one too, but just in case there is a delay I wanted to make sure I mailed in my vote for Obama. I also faxed some paperwork to the Thurston County auditor...I think all bases have been covered for now!

Sara and Nik are off to Christchurch for five days or so, so Rory and I have the house to ourselves. We plan to celebrate by eating dinners in the living room, watching terrible telly, and using their bathroom to take baths in. Our little ensuite just has a shower, and I miss taking baths every now and then. I'll miss them, but it is always nice to get some peace and quiet for a few days.

Several people have mistaken me for being Irish. It keeps happening, so I decided that the following equation must hold true:
85% American accent + 10% English accent and grammar + 5% Kiwi slang and grammar + speaking really quickly (the Grunenfelder way!) = Irish accent.

Love, Amy

Happy birthday, Stef!

Hi,

I wanted to wish Stefany a very happy birthday! (And I'll be giving you a call in a bit...)

As of today, there is only a four hour time difference between NZ and Seattle. When you guys 'fall back', there will only be three...hooray!

I'm almost fully recovered from my head cold. It was a nasty one...

Oh, and my computer seems to be broken, or at least the screen is. Thank goodness we still have Rory's!

Phew, now that the news is out of the way, I can tell you about our lazy weekend. On Friday we went out to Malaysian food here in Island Bay, and it was delicious. I love that places here are BYO, which means for just a small corkage fee you can bring in your own wine. It really lowers the cost of eating out. Yesterday we stuck around home and took it easy, as Rory had a sore throat and was hoping to avert the dreaded head cold. I think the plan might have been successful, as he seems much better today. It is sunny, too, so hopefully we'll find an outdoor activity for the rest of the day.

Love you all,
Amy

Paranoia

Hi,

Can everybody please do me a favor? Just to give me a little peace of mind? Make sure you have a bit of food stashed away, and some water, or even plant a garden. Please?

Things in the States don't seem to be going well, at least from our view here in Oceania. This bailout is highway robbery, and they are set to print at least $700 billion more dollars. Inflation is going to go sky high, and the American dollar will be weakened even further.

I'm not an expert, but I feel like I understand enough of the situation to be concerned. I'd feel much better knowing that my loved ones are paying attention, and are prepared.

Hopefully you don't consider me stark raving mad.

Love, Amy

Crappy couple of days

Hi everyone,

First of all, I'm ill and had to stay home from work. My throat, nose, head, and ears all hurt, and I ache all over.

Secondly, there is an indefinite bus strike. Rory went out and waited for the bus, and was lucky enough to have a kind stranger pick him up and drive him into the city centre. Nik is planning on retrieving Rory and Sara tonight, but traffic is going to be a nightmare, and what about tomorrow?

I was feeling so impressed with the bus service, despite a mid-day 'stop work' every now and then. I just used them as an excuse to hang out around town for a few hours, and I didn't let them bother me. But this is something else entirely. Rory and I don't have a car or bikes (not that I'd feel comfortable biking in Wellington's streets anyways), and to walk to the city centre would take at least a few hours. We rely entirely on the bus system, and now they have decided to walk out.

I don't have sick or annual leave days yet. If I can't get to work, I don't get paid. To top things off, it is extremely windy (with a severe gale warning on) and not the right conditions for walking anywhere.

The bus drivers are looking for an 8% pay increase, and the company has offered them 7%. The average NZ increase was only 3.5%. I always try to be friendly toward the drivers, but it might be a little more difficult from now on.

This sucks.

Love, Ames

More pictures of Island Bay

Hi everyone,

We had a low-key weekend. The weather sort of decides our activities, and it wasn't ideal for most of it. Saturday was chore day: laundry, tending to my herb garden, cleaning our room, reorganizing the closet. We took a short trip into Newtown, but spent most of the day at home. I made goulash, we drank Aussie wine, and we finished the day by watching 'Some Like it Hot.'

Today was supposed to be our out-and-about day, but it ended up being extremely windy. We managed a walk up to our viewpoint and then over the hill to Happy Valley, but it was slow going and very tiring. We didn't walk as many miles as we usually do on Sunday, but I feel just as exhausted! At one point I really couldn't walk into the wind; it was just too strong. The above pictures were taken at Oku Reserve, our favorite viewpoint. It is so beautiful up there, and we always have the place to ourselves.

Will write again soon.

Love, Amy

Wall-E

Hi everyone,

Another quick week! My job has been going well, and I go to 20 hours per week starting Monday. It is only an extra half hour per day, but there is definitely enough to do that the time will come in handy. I've got a new, full-size desk and new office supplies, and I've enjoyed getting to know everyone. Michelle said that I'll be able to take some free writing courses, which will look great on my CV (and I've heard they are good fun!). One of our trainers is a writer for Flight of the Conchords, so hopefully I can take one of his classes.

Rory's office is treating everyone to Wall-E tonight. It is Pixar's latest film, and it is just coming out here, months after it did in the US. I'll catch a bus back into town soon, meet Rory for some Lebanese food, and then head to the cinema. I'm looking forward to it!

Life is pretty good. Wellington has really grown on me, especially the size of the city. I'm always finding new shops and restaurants, but you can walk across town in just about 20 minutes. It is also funny how you run into people you know wherever you go. Rory and I have perfected our morning routine and catch the 'Express' bus every morning, and we always see our coworkers out and about in town before we get to our stop. The bus system is really impressive here.

I can't believe that tomorrow is Friday already. We don't have any plans at the point, but as long as it is sunny, there is plenty left to explore.

Love, Amy

Scorching Bay

Hi everyone,

We had another sunny weekend here. I hope this means it is spring!

Yesterday I read on the deck all day. I finished "Lovely Bones," a Kiwi novel and Peter Jackson's next project. The book was pretty difficult to read, but I'm glad I did.

Today we took another long walk. We took two connecting buses to get out to east Welly, and then walked up the coast to Scorching Bay. It is known as the best swimming beach in the area, and I can see why. The water was perfectly clear and still, and the sand was soft. I can't wait to go back in summer. We had lunch at a cafe and then went to Oriental Bay for a quick walk, but it was pretty crowded there. I much prefer Island Bay.

Love, Ames

Plain English Awards evening

Hi everyone,

The big awards night was on Thursday night, and I'm exhausted!

I found out that Rory would be able to attend only a few hours before the event, so I ran around town shopping for a tie, shirt, belt, trousers, and shoes. Then I hurried home, got ready, delivered the clothes to Rory, and ran to Shed 5 at about 6:00 so that I could help with tickets. We drank some champagne and then sat down, and I was supposed to be the host of the table (since I'm a WriteGroup employee). That part was difficult, since I was so new.

Dinner was lovely. I had grilled fish and prawns in curry sauce, and Rory had chicken. The group at our table began complaining and asked me to write everything down for my boss, so that was a bit of a downer. To be fair, it was an extremely expensive evening, and it didn't include much alcohol. Everyone was really nice to me, and one woman even encouraged me to send her my CV, since she has connections to the fisheries.

The whole evening didn't end until about 11:30. Nik and Sara wanted to stay a bit longer, so Rory and I got a taxi home. I only got about five hours of sleep, so I was pretty worthless on Friday. Luckily, almost everyone was in the same boat.

I'm glad I went. It was surreal to be at such a fancy event, when only four months ago we showed up with backpacks. It was MC'd by a well-known Kiwi TV personality, and there were many important Wellngtonians there. It was fun to be included in the company photos.

Miss you all.

Love, Ames

And a few more

Hello again,

Here are a few more piccies from yesterday. Today was a good day at work, and there are only three more working days until our big formal Awards night. I'm on a hunt for fancy shoes...but instead I came home with a beautiful vintage belt. Ah, well. ;)

Rory is playing Grand Theft Auto, and we just made some peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. I love baking, it makes the place feel very homey. We also have bowls of fruit, vases of flowers, fresh herbs in the kitchen, and and a new compost bin outside. I really love the lifestyle here.

Love, Amy

Red Rocks Reserve...amazing!

Hi everyone,

We had a really great Sunday.

We started off with lunch at The Bach Cafe, and then continued walking past Owhiro Bay to the Red Rocks Marine Reserve. It was stunning, and I can't believe how lucky we are to be within walking distance of such beauty!

I posted a random sampling of photos. The one of me laying down is supposed to be silly...I was trying to lay like a seal, with the seals. I'll probably post more pictures tomorrow.

Love, Amy

Hiking in Island Bay

Hi everyone,

We discovered a beautiful hike just ten minutes from our door. It takes you to two lookout spots, facing Island Bay and then Owhiro Bay and the South Island. It was stunning, and I can't wait to take a picnic up there in summer!

We were only able to take one photo before the camera ran out of batteries, and this is it. Focus on the snow in the mountains and the beautiful view, and not me!

If the weather holds we are going to Red Rocks to see the seals tomorrow. It should be about 8 or 9 km round trip, so a nice day walk. I'm charging my camera tonight, so that we can take more piccies. Oh, and I'm also starting my herb garden too, and I bought parsley, mint, coriander, and chives this morning at the Garden Centre.

Love, Amy

Beer Festival?

Hi everybody,

It is once again Saturday morning. Seriously, I can't believe how quickly the weeks go by. Rory is still sleeping and I'm sitting by the dining room windows, watching the rain fall...

I finished my third week at Write. I've been given all sorts of tasks, and my latest was making mock-up calendars for 2009, so that the trainers can choose an annual leave plan. The job might be random, but at least it offers variety! Fridays are always nice because the weekly office meetings take about an hour out of my 3.5 hour day. There also serve some nice chocolate biscuits (cookies).

The WriteGroup has such a feminine atmosphere, it is almost humorous. One of my jobs for next week is to put together a "trainer emergency kit" for when they are traveling, and this is to include lipstick, pantyhose, sewing kit, etc. The receptionist and I will actually have to go on a shopping expedition for these things...should be a laugh!

There is a beer festival called "Beervana" on today, but I'm not sure if we are going yet. It is $25 just for entry, and then you have to pay for all of the samples. It sounds a bit steep. Last night we went out to our local Thai restuarant in Island Bay, and it was delicious. Fridays seem to be either smorgasboard nights with Nik and Sara or date nights with just Rory and I, but either way it is a nice way to end the week.

I still need to take some pictures...

Love, Amy

WriteGroup Conference and Awards

Hi all,

As always, the week is flying! The biggest news I have is that I've been invited to attend the WriteGroup Conference and Awards Dinner next week (on September 11th, coincidentally). It is a formal affair at a posh waterfront restaurant called Shed 11, and as a new employee of Write I get to go for free. We will have international speakers about Plain English and then give out our annual awards to organizations who have produced the best websites and documents. This is the largest event of the year for the WriteGroup, so I was lucky to get hired when I did. There will be a gourmet dinner and champagne included!

Of course, it meant that I needed to find formal attire. The buses weren't running until 4pm because of a union meeting, so I used the delay as an excuse to shop. I was looking for a dress, but I ended up with a fancy, shimmery skirt and two shirts to layer as a top. I showed Sara tonight and she approved...and I only spent 23 dollars for the whole ensemble. This is pretty impressive considering that one of the shirts is from Trelise Cooper, THE most famous NZ designer.

That is another thing...almost everything I buy is made in NZ. I remember seeing American made clothing when I was young, but I had gotten used to all of my clothes being made in China. There is a real push here to support NZ manufacturing companies, and the clothes that I buy here are some of the most beautiful I've ever owned. I wonder if America will revert back to producing goods, if the dollar falls much further?

I'm feeling pretty happy with things in general. We had communal meals with Nik and Sara the last two nights, which is always nice. I made apple crumble for dessert (the best recipe is on the BBC website).

Will write again soon,
love,
Amy

Start of another week

Hi there,

We had a pretty quiet weekend. The weather was a bit cold on Saturday, and on Sunday I was feeling a little under the weather, so we weren't able to hike to Owhiro to see the seals. There is always next time!

Michelle has returned to work, and I'm back to researching clients and competing training companies for her. I get to work in Excel, which takes me back to my Parker Pen days (which I really do miss sometimes). The time still flies, and I've started taking lunches with me, since I clock off at about 12:30 pm. A typical morning usually looks something like this: 7:10 alarm, shower, porridge and internet time with Rory, finish getting ready, leave the house at 8:10, catch the bus at 8:20, and then arrive into work at 8:50. From there I work a fast 3.5 hour shift, have lunch, say goodbye, and I'm free before 1. It all feels rather luxurious.

The fashion night was fun, but the clothes were way out of my price range. I did have some nice conversations with my coworkers, though, and that was the whole reason I was there anyways. It turns out that the PA (Personal Assistant) to the CEO is from Edinburgh, and even has a flat that might be available when it comes time for Rory and I to go back to the UK. The world is so small, it boggles my mind sometimes.

I need to take some photos, as I haven't taken any since our day at the zoo. Hopefully next time I'll post some, even if they are just silly ones.

Miss you.

Love, Amy