Pinewood

I recently found a photo on the internet of 'Pinewood Orchards', which is where I grew up in Ottawa. I was a wee apple blossom back in those days...I was doing some research on Kanata, as I have some friends from Melbourne visiting Ottawa/Kanata next month, and I came across this pic in the archives.

Luca

We bought Luca a new collar and ID tag. We are slowly getting her use to the idea that we're moving to Sydney. She got a clean bill of health from the vet and hopefully she won't fret too much during the whole ordeal. She will stay in a cattery for a few days during the 'packing phase' and then she will be shipped up to Sydney, where we'll meet her in our new residence (where ever that may be)...the adventure continues.

Work Station

As I'm leaving my job, I thought I'd add this photo of my work station (Metropolitan Ambulance Service). I sat at the 'reception desk' of the CEO's office. 24 June would have been my thrid year anniversary. Like I want to be reminded...? Notice the pic of Judy and Barbra on the far right! My daily inspiration. There is a photo of David, Jason, Tim and Simon, taken at ICE cafe, as my screen saver - our Saturday morning ritual for the last five years...It will be very difficult leaving them behind.

Free Again

Today I handed in my resignation. My last day is 18 April. I'm so excited. I've started to tell everyone at work. I get to enjoy Easter in Melbourne before leaving. I might as well get paid for the public holidays. It's a great relief to say I'm leaving. The move is quite a dramatic way to exit!It's stressful thinking about the little details and some of the major ones too, like renting out our apartment but like Alan says, 'everything will fall into place'. I shouldn't stress so much. Alan is so happy and can't wait to get started in his new role as Business Unit Manager at MSD. He leaves for Sydney 11 April, so I'll be alone for a week or so before joining him.
The city is a buzz of excitement due to the Commonwealth Games. The Queen is in town and the spectacular opening ceremony should be good. We saw the rehearsal on Monday night with Simon and his boy, Glen. I hope it doesn't rain.
Alan is in Sydney for a few days, on business. Both Medired work and PLWHA. Which is a good opportunity to get reaquainted with Sydney and make some extra cash for our new adventure. I have no plans this week but I have a cold, so I'll be getting some extra zzz's before the weekend.

Chill Out

Saturday morning we drove up to Daylesford for the weekend. We stayed at Fae's house on East St. It's an adorable little home, decorated with the most exquisite taste. We relaxed in her backyard reading newspapers under a huge tree. We then hooked up with Mark, Brett and Andrew for drinks at Peppers. They drove up with some friends, Troy and Ceaton who were lots of fun. We sat on the lawn getting quite drunk and watching the crowd wonder by. It was very civilised with lots of eye candy to look at. There was live music, which wasn't too overbearing. We then had a disco nap back at Fae's house, before heading to the Palais for dinner & a show - a delicious meal & drag extravaganza. We met up with the boys and had a fun night. We couldn't sit at the same table but we did meet a fantastic Lesbian couple who were a lot of fun. Quite interestingly, we had a lot in common. Unfortunately the other gay couple were too quiet, even for me! Like most drag shows, it went on and on and on. But it finally finished amidst multi coloured feather boas. We had the most delightful sleep too - no trams, traffic, neighbours or lights to keep us awake. This morning we had breakfast out, and headed to the Carnival. It was a lot of fun. Better than last year for some reason. Instead of Babba, a Kylie impersonated performed, singing songs, (with her own voice) and had real professional dancers. There were plenty of familiar faces and again, lots of eye candy. We had fun dropping the bomb or spreading the news that we were moving to Sydney.
Alan drove to Daylesford and I drove back. We love our little car. We left Daylesford at 4:30pm and arrived in Melbourne by 5:45pm. Of course it's another stinking hot day. It was a fun weekend - we have Monday off, so we're looking forward to doing nothing. We may catch up with Fae as she returned from Sydney and will be staying in town til tomorrow. Too bad Shayne couldn't join us...Jason & David went away for the weekend too and weren't available. We also ran into Suzie who was working at the PLWHA stand. Alan ran into his boss and told him the news about the new job and moving to Sydney. Basically resigning in the middle of Chill Out.

Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore

We have some great news. Alan got the job in Sydney at Merc as a Business Unit Manager. He received the call on Friday evening. We're both very excited. He should be very proud. It's a great salary package and they will make every effort to make the whole transition as simple as possible for us. They haven't decided on a start date, nor has Alan signed the contracts but we suspect we'll move in 4 - 6 weeks?! We want to live in Homebush Bay as Alan's office is in Sth Granville. It will be a major culture shock from our time in Sydney back in the mid-late nineties, but we're ready to grow up and try something new...? We'll check out the different possibilities and neighbourhoods. We have time to find out what works best in terms of traffic/commuting. Our friends in Sydney are excited; however our friends in Melbourne are not so happy...We hope to rent out our apartment, and Luca will join us in Sydney once we're settled.

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Capote

Saw it - Loved it. The downward spiral of Capote's life is evident after watching this movie about Truman's six year project, In Cold Blood. I think it consumed him and turned him into an alcoholic. I think I will name my next pet, Truman. Phillip will definitely win the Oscar. I've decided to forgo soccer and stay home to watch the Red Carpet Special and the Oscars which start at 8pm.

La Vie Boheme

It's been a stressful week but things have settled and I have the day off, which means only one thing - movies. I'm going to see Capote.
On Saturday night we saw RENT with Shayne and Michael. I loved the stage play but I read a review that said the movie is as relevant as Grease by today's standards. The music is still great; however I thought the music came across better in the stage play. So needless to say, I'm listening to the soundtrak as we speak...
Tonight I'm watching the OSCARS - it's like Xmas darlings. I just hope I don't hear anything on the news that will give away the best kept secret in Hollywood by accident. The Aussie news will broadcast the winners before we get the telecast, which really bugs me. Anyway, I'll play soccer this evening (Alan may join us again) and do some domestic stuff too if I have time. And I need to write a letter to Skip!