It's now been exactly two weeks since I arrived here, even though it somehow seems longer. Three weeks ago, I was hanging out at the Moka House, and here I am...unable to find a decent latté anywhere, but definitely enjoying the fact that I spent Monday, November 12th, at the beach. Yes, Monday. It's a holiday here (Remembrance Day long weekend).

We have found ourselves a car. Finally. It's a bit of a piece of you-know-what, but it has a trunk large enough for me to buy an ironing board, which was really my main concern. I'm pretty excited to be able to grocery shop for more than one meal at a time. Besides which, we need furniture in a bad way and are pretty lost without a way to get it home, once found. Most people buy their furniture used here, since the turnover is so huge with people coming and going all the time, but the problem is - how to get it home? So long as we stay away from gargantuan, mammoth furniture, we'll be OK for now.

My first week of work went well at IBILF. My boss is great, the work is good, I loooove the location (though I was pretty spoiled for location in Ottawa too), and even though the office itself seems to have some sort of love affair with the colour beige and computer systems that channel 1999, I'm generally enjoying my days there so far. And that's all I'm going to say about work, since a) it doesn't really define my life here (though it does fund it), and b) I don't want to get fired for having a blog. That is so cliché.

Speaking of cliché, Kurt and I have traded in our mornings at Starbucks for morning runs. I'm sure that if there were a Starbucks here, this wouldn't have happened, but there isn't, so we've been hitting the road a few times a week, easing back into it so as not to scare my knee. Prior to this move, we were the ultimate snooze-button-hitters. We had it down to an art and, even though the initial alarm would go off at 6:30 or so, wouldn't usually roll out of bed until less than 20 minutes before we had to be out the door. We even went so far as to shower at night to save us that step in the morning, thus buying us precious time. And now? Casually jogging down the road at 6:20 a.m. We're starting slooooow, so it was more of a walk/run, but it's our third time out since we moved into the apartment and so far, so good. The sun is rising while we're on our way back, s0 we can see it lighting everything up. The sky does amazing things here at sunrise and sunset. If I could run effectively with my camera, I would take photos of it. We walk on our "rest" days, so maybe the camera will make an appearance tomorrow. We come home and still have plenty of time to shower, change, eat breakfast and walk to the ferry.

Speaking of my camera, it has gotten a workout. I am so happy that I decided to buy it when I did, even though it would have been even cheaper if I'd waited until the dollar hit $1.10, but then, I don't have any Canadian money anymore, so does it matter? Plus, I'd pay a fortune in shipping and then duties here...anyways....I'm glad that I already have it because it's been averaging about 60-100 shots every time I take it out. And, thanks to my awesome camera bag recommended to me by my awesome fellow Nikonian, Shan, it can go pretty much anywhere. It's especially great for the scooter. Everywhere I turn, there seems to be another calendar-worthy shot. To the point that if I posted them all, I would bore everyone to tears with various views of sand, waves, rocks, Kris, Kris and Kurt, Kurt etc., so I'll only put the best of up. You're welcome.

We just came off of a long weekend, which we spent pretty much just relaxing. We hadn't done that together since...oh...June, so it felt great to just watch shows on the laptops, do some cooking (the Rebar cookbook came with), do some exploring and hiking and planning out what we need for the apartment. Currently, our furniture list is as follows:

1 craptastic air mattress.

We're hoping that this will be a very different story after a big liquidation sale at one of the local Fairmonts, but we'll see how it goes. It may be a madhouse, but we need things badly, so we're hoping to score some deals.

We went out for the first time on Friday night. I mean, OUT out. We had dinner at a great restaurant downtown with my new Aussie friend and then the three of us headed to a local...I don't even know what you would call it. I do know that I had a latté there the morning I started work (not tasty). And then, apparently, at night, this place morphs into a nightclub...of sorts. You walk in through the café, where you are met by a middle-aged woman who sells drink tickets for $5 and ushers you into the "yard" behind the café (through a door opened by a security guard) and you suddenly find yourself at what appears to be some sort of happening backyard party. You seriously feel like you're at your friend's backyard party, and their mom is home. There was a DJ, who played songs twice consecutively if people cheered loudly enough when it came on the first time ("Way I Are" is very hot here right now, not unlike EVERYWHERE). There were some seriously questionable - one might even wonder if legal - dance moves. There were ex-pats everywhere, mingled in with the locals. Thigh-high socks are apparently also hot here right now. It was awesome. I was still dressed in my work clothes, which made dancing a bit awkward, so we pretty much just observed. Hilarious. We met up with a friend of a friend (who I only knew through Facebook prior to Friday) and some of her friends, most of whom were Canadians, most of whom were from Ottawa. And randomly, Quebec City. Everyone is so friendly here. So many of us are in the same boat, so everyone is eager to meet people, network, etc. There seems to be a lot going on, all the time. After that, we headed home. We had the bike downtown and weren't sure how long it would take us, but as it turns out, only 25 minutes. So long as one of us is sober, that is.

I digress. Good times.