Schneagle

We have been considering a new addition to our family for a while now. We truly believe that Cloud should have a little brother. The only problem is, we can't agree on which puppy to get... until now! We recently discovered the schneagle. It is a cross between a beagle and a miniature schnauzer. They tend to look like a beagle but wire haired and a little bit smaller. SO CUTE!

Unfortunately, schneagle breeders hardly exisit! I definitely can't find a breeder in Australia and there are only a handful in the US. We may have to wait another 2-3 years until we move back. :(

Uncertainty

There is a bit of uncertainty floating around right now. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately), my work has been bought out by another company. With a merger of this size, you just never know what to expect. We are a global company with offices in the San Francisco, Toronto, Hong Kong, Singapore, London, even random places like Peru and etc. B/c it is a global merger, everything takes forever to finalize, especially due to the anti trust laws in the US.

Although we heard about the merger months ago, we still don't know the structure of our company going forward. The headquarters in Australia for the other company is in Melbourne and we are obviously in Sydney. They have a small Syd office of maybe 50 people (I've heard rumors of anywhere from 20 people to 60), most of them being in sales. My question is, do they need two receptionists? Do they even have a receptionist in their small office? If so, which one will they keep? So many questions and no answers to be had.

The only positive side of being laid off would be a really good motivation to get off my butt and find another position more in line with my career goals. Another could be a new opportunity with the company, you never know who many need a new assistant. Hopefully the outcome is a positive one. I can't worry about it yet. Although, not having a job would really put a damper on our life style. We were hoping to take a South East Asia trip sometime next year. I won't have to worry about taking time off but I may not have the funds to go anymore!

Keep you posted.

Chef Ron Won

I was completely can't get off the couch, going to faint if I do, sick last week. I stayed home for 2.5 days and did absolutely nothing but watch Ellen and Friends on TV, re-read book 8 of the Sookie Stackhouse series and cuddled with Cloud on the couch. I attempted to walk the 3 minutes to the grocery store down the street. Bad idea. I was fine until I was walking back up the little hill, literally 30 feet from my doorway, when I started to feel faint. I almost didn't make it.

Even though I wasn't feeling 100%, Ron decided to invite our new friends Stephanie and Donnie over for dinner. This was fine with me because he promised to be Chef Ron Won and make dinner... all 4 courses. I ended up making the two breads (from scratch of course) but true to his word, he did everything else. Including the dishes!

Ron and Stephanie work together at KPMG. They are currently working on a project together and between the two of them and Chris, they keep each other sane. Steph and Donnie are both from the US (Chicago and Denver area) and they are absolutely hilarious. They have the most interesting stories and are always down for anything, even Ron's cooking! Just kidding, Ron, you are a fantastic cook. :)

Here is the menu:
Bruschetta 2 ways (tomato/capsicum/basil/the best balsamic ever and the other was tomato/cucumber/mint/Greek yogurt)
Rocket/roasted beet root/walnut/pancetta salad
Ccrab and leek risotto
Rose water panna cotta with mascerated cherries

It was pretty incredible and I bow down to Chef Ron Won. I do take credit for igniting his interest in cooking!

Adaptation

It is pretty amazing how quickly it takes some people to adapt. I tend to fall into that catagory, except for when it came to Sydney. I thought I did a pretty good job settling in when we first moved. I mastered the train system, hopped on and off buses, walked to the grocery store, decorated (partly) the house, and got a job (!). All of this was accomplished within the first two months of setting foot in Sydney. Not bad if you ask me.

But it was not until recently that I finally felt as if I have truly adapted to living in Sydney. A huge part was due to the fact that I have not made really good friends here yet. Thanks Corrie, Lauren and Robin for ruining it for me. No one can live up to my standards for friendship anymore. I miss you girls terribly and you need to do a better job keeping in touch! Except, you, Lauren, you are the best. Ron and I have meet a few really cool people and have fun going out with them. (Don't worry, no one compared to you guys Erick and Geena!). More on our new friends Stepahnie and Donnie later. They are truly hilarious.

I believe what made me finally feel adapted, is when I go to the grocery store and I no longer freak out at the prices (please refer to my earlier blog on cost of living). I use to have a mini heart attack when I saw the price of bananas or chicken breast. Now, I don't even blink as I put them into my eco friendly canvas bag along with my jar of nutella and container of Harris Farms yogurt. I have come a long way!

This really hit me when Ron and I were watching the final of MasterChef Australia and Matt Moran of Aria produced his chocolate tasting plate. We were debating how much it would cost if you ordered it at his restuarant. According to the website, the chocolate tart dessert is $24. I'm not sure if this is the same as the chocolate tasting plate, but I was pleasently surprised it was only $24! We were thinking it would be upwards of $40 or so. Can you even imagine paying $24 for a dessert? We use to go to Extraordinary Desserts in San Diego for a special night out and their prices were much more affordable at $12.

Anyways, this was just a little blurb about adapting to the cost of living in Sydney.