Concerning Autumn, Work, Delightful Things, and Car Trouble

 Life in my new place is becoming more usual and quite a lot less unfamiliar.  I now know my way around pretty well; it turns out the best way to get your bearings is to get lost.  Many times.  It does help to have a map, though, and I am lucky enough to have thoughtful landlords who had an extra one on their hands which they gifted/lent to me.  The upside of getting lost is that the scenery is something else.        This is the most glorious autumn I have ever seen.  The trees are blooming with colour; scarlets (my favourites), burnt oranges, golds, and greens blend together on the sides of the road and make the world look like a painting.  The leaves have been fluttering down onto the hood of my car every time I park it at home, so that when I go to leave, I drive away and the wind picks them up and sends them flying behind me.  It's kind of fun.
 I've fallen into my place at work, I think.  Getting used to new ways of doing things took a little time, but I'm pretty confident that I've picked everything up now.  The new team I've joined was extremely welcoming and is very helpful.  My new manager is really nice and makes jokes even when she's too busy to do anything else.
 I've discovered that the best time to come up with fantastic story ideas is when I'm in the back room at work, methodically unpacking stock.  I had what I like to think of as a minor epiphany the other day when I was hanging pea coats.  I have a whole pile of finished but need rewriting/half finished/barely begun/scattered ideas waiting for me to pick them up again.  I'm hoping I will get some more time to write in November.
 Recently my "days off" have turned into "days filling in for sick people at work", which has been just fine by me; more hours is exactly what I need, and I like feeling that I'm helping out.
 All right, enough about work.  There's a darling bookshop in town about a fifteen minute walk away, and a pretty exciting thrift store (exciting because I discovered a set of Pickwick Papers, the lovely green centennial edition, for $2 each!).  It's like a treasure hunt going into that part of town.  If I go to the library, I don't even have to pay for the treasures I find.  I've been getting Broadway musicals like My Fair Lady and Cinderella to listen to in the car on my way to and from work, and it is positively delightful.
 I've been having car troubles, but luckily the Canadian Tire around here is just down the street, so I'm taking it in for the second time tomorrow and I'm planning on strolling around my favourite little area of town while I wait for it.  Or perhaps I will just sit and read.

Rainy Day

After almost a whole week of driving, a week of settling in, a week of work, a weekend of visiting with family and friends, and another week of work, the internet finally works.

I never thought it would take so much calling and being stood up by technicians and confusing interactions with internet providers, but we do finally have functioning internet, so here I am typing an update on our presently hectic lives.

My husband is finally able to get all the information he needs to do his work, and I can finally contact my lovely family and friends.  Thank God for internet that works.

Okay.  Rant over.

Today it was raining and I went to the library; a very cosy mix.  I used my umbrella for the first time since moving out here and rejoiced in the sound of the rain pattering on it as I splashed through the puddles in my black fall boots.  The rain reminds me of home, so though I grumble on the outside sometimes, I absolutely love it.  I picked up a piano book of Tchaikovsky (our landlords have offered me the use of their piano whenever I wish and I feel as joyful as Beth must have when Mr. Lawrence gave her the use of his), and a whole mess of dvds to watch whilst I knit my projects.

I have discovered a post box not far from our little home; I can walk there in fifteen minutes.  That has also contributed to my current good mood.  I look forward to popping my letters in it and knowing they will wiz across the continent, even across the sea, to the people I love.

So far, today is a very good day.

Now I am going to have some delicious tea a lovely new friend gave me.  It even came in an owl tin.  Yes, there is such a thing as perfection!

Sunday of Bow Ties

 My husband and I are moving across the country, as I mentioned in my last post, and today was our second to last Sunday at our church.  Our priest will be gone next Sunday, so, unbeknownst to us, the parish organized a going away party for us.  As I was standing in our choir singing, I started to notice the overwhelming amount of men wearing bow-ties (my husband is a connoisseur of them).  At first I passed it off as coincidence, but as more people arrived wearing them, I realized something was going on.

After our church service ended, our priest announced that in honour of our leaving, the Bow-Tie Brethren would have a photo taken on the steps outside.  Even my little cousin wore a blue bow-tie with boats on it (it became increasingly damp as he sucked on it, but oh, how adorable he looked).

This was not the end of the surprises, however.  My dearest mum and dad had a cake made for us that said "All our love and prayers, Emily and Michael.".  It was so sweet and I cannot express how loved we felt today.

I was given a whole set of bamboo knitting needles and a cute polka-dot case for them, and I had to stop myself from squealing with delight.  I have been wishing for a set of my own for a long while now.  It was a very meaningful gift and one that I will treasure my whole life.

Every possible size imaginable, and aren't the polka dots delightful?!

I am now sitting at home and feeling absolutely and completely blessed.  There are so many wonderful people in my life that love me and they all showed it today.

Even as I say goodbye (for now) to them, I know that I will always have them with me, wherever I go, in my heart.  They will be with me wherever my adventures carry me, and I will always be with them.

I am looking forward to a hamburger barbecue with my family tonight, and while I wait, I'm going to colour in my Disney Princess book (yes, I know I said it was specifically for the trip, but I can't resist, and it's not like I'm going to run out of pages!) and watch Castle.

Perfection in a picture.

What a wonderful, wonderful day.

Book Day

Today was the day I set aside to pack up my books (most of them) in boxes to ship across the country in anticipation of our big move.  I researched carefully how to properly place the books in the boxes and how to prevent damage, whether through books shifting inside or a water drip.  Armed with this knowledge, I set out to the shops this morning to gather my supplies.

Boxes I already had in abundance, thanks to a stop at the liquor store the night before (we were picking up a pack of beer for our Lord of the Rings Risk night, which was SO much fun, by the way.  The game, not getting beer).  I had carefully taken notes in my cute little owl notebook that my mum had given me and had listed exactly what I would need and where I needed to go to get it.

Page One...

and Page Two!

I started at a craft store, which would not have any of what I needed, but it did have a colouring book I wanted.  I got a 600 page Disney princess colouring book for our long drive, and flipping through it is absolutely thrilling.  SO many pictures of my favourite princess, Belle, and many of my other second favourites as well.  I'm so excited!  (I even have a pack of lovely Staedtler colouring pencils!)

Whoops.  Rabbit trail.

So I got all my supplies;

- packing paper & bubble wrap (Home Depot)
- packing tape & regular tape (Staples)
- scissors & plastic bags (already had)

and when I got home I set to work.

I separated all my books into piles according to size and placed them carefully into my prepared boxes.  I am not taking any chances with them.  My logic is, if I have to mail them across the continent, then I'm going to be the one to carefully and lovingly pack them so that I know I've done all I can to ensure they arrive safely.  A tiny bit of me is apprehensive of this big trip for them, but books are shipped all the time and it seems to me, if they are packed properly, then they arrive perfectly fine.

The Boy Next Door, all wrapped up.

Nicely wrapped and ready to go in with its siblings.

Tada!  Spines against spines.

I made a rather chilling discovery as I pulled my books off their shelves, however.  A little munching bookworm had decided my Anne of the Island hardcover was a tasty morsel and took a burrow in it.  Thankfully, it wasn't a particularly special copy to me (although it's all relative, all my books are precious), but my heart raced as I thought of my Enid Blyton Island of Adventure hardcover right next to it.  Thank goodness, when I pulled it out, it showed no signs of bookworm feasts.  I did find the little muncher, though.  He had expired in the hole.  My belief is that he died of gluttony.  He should have known better than to eat a book of mine.  Tsk, tsk.

Was it yummy, little worm?

Very hard to see, but that's the dust he left behind in the corner of the bookshelf.

My book packing adventures have been paused a bit, due to my hot sticky state of being.  I am quite happy with my efforts so far, and am confident that my treasures will travel well padded with packing paper and well wrapped in bags to prevent moisture.

A good day's work, I believe.

Survivors of the bookworm attack.

A Decision

Well...I've joined Nanowrimo.  My plan is to (finally) write a proper book.  Heavens knows what a proper book is, but I am determined to at least finish something that can be called a novel.  I'm not even sure what I'm going to write about.

This should be fun.

The Road Goes Ever On and On

Has it really been a year since my last post?  I have neglected this poor blog for far too long, and it is now time to start up again as I turn the page and start a new chapter in my life.  This past year has been a magical, wonderful whirlwind of life changes.

In April last year, I started courting a wonderful man, to whom I am now married.  He is absolutely amazing and we are going to have so many exciting adventures together.  The first one will be moving across my home country to live near the university he will be attending for five years for a PhD program.

I decided that since I am almost finished my degree, I will have much more time on my hands and what better way to spend that time than chronicling our adventures?

So I will be more faithfully updating and writing.  I'm hoping to start writing properly again.  I have neglected writing for so long that I find I am sounding choppy and unpolished.  I know if I practice it will become better, but I'm really bad at making time.  Hopefully blogging again will be a step towards a book sometime.

As Tolkien has written in a very famous book; "The road goes ever on and on, down from the door where it began."