Canada Day Party!!

Keith and I were flat out busy from the moment we got up this morning until the crew started to arrive around 4-4:30pm. Keith hung our 5 large Canadian Flags and smaller ones around the house and yard, picked up the BBQ meat and a ton of ice for the beer, got the beer ready, whipped up the moose milk, and a ton of other things while I cut fruit and veggies, made macaroni salad, macaroons, cheese tray, and we prepared the kabobs.

Bungy and Moe were the first to arrive and they were kitted out in an Austin Powers costume and the other Shrek - two different sides of our talented Canadian Mike Myers. I believe I mentioned in a previous blog about Fancy Dress and how it's a big thing here to go to parties in costume. Well the boys were on a mission to find anything Canadian they could. Bungy had actually ordered a moose costume (how perfect!) online but it didn't arrive in time, so he swung for the Austin Powers costume.

Andy and Holly arrived in costume as well. Andy as a famous Canadian tennis player (can't remember who Andy said it was) and Holly as Avril Lavigne. I forgot to mention that Keith also went the costume route and dressed in his hockey gear! It was great. I went as myself since I'm already Canadian and dressed in a red shirt to help. Maybe I was the Canadian Flag....red and white. Haha. Justin arrived as a true Canadian snowboarder with his touque on and snow board in hand.

The most awaited guest being Speedy (aka Allen) and his girlfriend Rachel arrived with Speedy being decked out as a Canadian Mountie! It was awesome! He had been talking about this costume he ordered online for weeks so we were all anxious to see it. It was definitely the highlight of the party. The rest of the crew, Kev, Simon (aka Blu), Rachel, Sid and his wife Katherine and their two girls Amy & Elly) didn't dress up. I was happy about that as I didn't stand out. Some of the guys were entertained to put on Keith's work jacket and wedge - who doesn't want to be a Canadian Officer right? Haha.

Since it poured rain all day we hung out inside until the sun snuck out for a little while in the evening. Then we headed out and played around with the soccer ball, football, and frisbee. Keith whipped up the food on the BBQ and we realized later we forgot to serve the excellent chilli he made the night before. Whoops! The Canadian Beer (Molson Canadian and Moosehead Green) and the moose milk were the other highlights of the party (aside from Speedy's costume!). For those of you who don't know what moose milk is, it's a Canadian Navy tradition and is a fantastic and potent drink of Dark Rum, Vodka, Bailey's, Tia Maria or Kahlua, vanilla ice cream, and nutmeg. Keith mixed together a liter of each of the above and it was the perfect amount for the night. It was also a kick you in the ass drink because we used the 100 proof (50% I think) Vodka and it was a strong mixture. But tasty! All the guys have had it while at sea at some point when they visit the Canadian ships so they were excited we were serving it.

During the evening I made a call to Mom and had a few of the guys talk to her. She was entertained. Then another highlight was getting Dad on the webcam and having a video chat with him and everyone here! They were amazed that we were talking to my Dad in Canada and it was so clear! It was fantastic! Now Dad has met mostly everyone and he hasn't even been here yet! Towards the end of the night we went to Big T's for dancing. Good times!

Here are some of the pictures of the day. The people in order are: Justin, Katherine, Moe as Shrek, Justin, Sid and his girls, Kev & I, Elly, Amy, Speedy & Rachel, Speedy & Keith, Andy & Holly, Me, Simon, and Bungy.

DIY Stuff

Ran into Trago Mills again to pick up more frames and pictures. Keith finished work around 1pm so I picked him and Speedy up and drove Speedy home. We spent the afternoon with house stuff (or DIY - Do It Yourself - as it's called here) - he mowing the lawn and trimming the hedge and me hanging pictures. Getting a bit further with decoration but still working on it. Thought I would have been finished awhile ago, but it's taking longer than expected. Oh well, atleast we have some more pictures on the wall now. I hung the family/friends pictures that I finished yesterday on the wall going up the stairs. It looks really good and definitely adds a homey feeling.

Our Friday evening was riveting as we spent it grocery shopping and making chilli! Picked up everything we needed for the party so all we have to get tomorrow is ice.

Another Interview

Got a call for another interview! The day I registered with Concorde Recruitment, Claire put my CV forwad for a Project Manager/Account Handler position in Falmouth. I really didn't think I'd get a call for it, but I did! I have the interview on Wednesday morning. It's with a design firm called Aukett, Brockliss Guy. They require a Project Manager for a 9 month term working 4 days a week! How sweet would that be? The 4 days a week, not the 9 month term. However, the position I believe is out of my league and although I'm excited to get an interview, I don't expect I will get this job. In reading the experience required, I don't have all the experience they're asking for and I'm sure they'll be able to find someone who does. So, in other words, I'm nervous as hell to go to this interview because I don't like to look like a clown not being able to answer questions about experience I don't have. Haha. Could be interesting!

What Am I Doing Wrong?

Aaaaahhhhhh....just spoke to Concorde Recruitment and once again, no luck. Apparently, it was down to me and another girl. Why do I keep getting so close? Reflex Marine unfortunately didn't provide Concorde with any feedback, so I don't know why the other girl was chosen over me. I just might have to be a 'lady of leisure' afterall since it doesn't seem I'm meant to work here! However, I would go mad not working while I'm here. Well, if I can think of an up side to this, I don't believe I would have been very challenged in this position and it would not have furthered my career as much as I'd like. But the team environment would have been great - that's what I was most interested in - to have a close knit group like at Jacques. I'm hoping to take back to Canada as much experience as I can to roll into a career in HR when I return. That would be my goal, however I've been told by a few recruiters that HR positions are few and far between in Cornwall, so I might not have much luck with that plan. Anyway, back to the drawing board! I'm a believer in fate, but this is getting a bit ridiculous!

I think Keith and I are going out for Indian food tonight, so that'll be good. I think I might have to have a drink or two! After his night out with the course last night, he's a bit bagged and might not be up for drinks!

No Word Yet

I just added the post for our Sunday journey below.

It's 4:30pm and I have not heard back from Reflex. Not sure if this is a good thing. I would just like to know the outcome. I would imagine I should hear from them tomorrow since the lady said they would let me know today. Frustrating though just waiting. Oh well, I'll keep you posted!

Keith had his welcome to the course outing tonight. Not sure who puts the outing on, but they do it for all new courses and at the end of the courses. A bus picked them up and took them to a pub in Truro. He arrived home at 2am with one of the guys who couldn't make it back to the base, so he crashed here. After Truro, they went out in Helston - I didn't think there would be a pub open that late on a Tuesday here - but apparently they found one. He's gonna be tired tomorrow!

Reflex Marine Interview

Had my interview today for the Admin Assistant position at Reflex Marine. It's hard to even call it an interview really it was so easy and relaxed. It was with one lady and she was very down to earth and relaxed. She basically talked about the company and how the office works and only asked me one question...tell me about yourself. The position is very entry level and has the usual basic admin duties, but it would also involve all kinds of projects from different departments. Well, it's funny to say departments because the company is very small....only 14 people! And only 6 or 7 of them work in this office, the others are in other countries. I won't go into great detail, unless I'm lucky enough to get the position, but the company sounds great to work for even if the position may not be spectacular. I'll know tomorrow if I was successful. I do worry that I may not be. Maybe because that's my luck lately, but I fear I might be overqualified for the position and she won't want to hire me for that reason. Her main objective is to hire someone who fits with the team, so hopefully I have the matching personality. I'm keeping my fingers crossed, but am prepared for the worst.

I'll post Sundays details tomorrow when I have a chance.

RAF & Allied Forces Service

This morning we left Dale & Lauren's just before 9am to travel to Plymouth for the Royal Air Force and Allied Forces Service Keith was asked to lay a Canadian wreath at. We arrived around 10:30am and were greeted by so many friendly people. Keith was like a celebrity or royalty! It was crazy! As soon as the people/vets saw his Canadian insignia on his uniform, they were introducing themselves and it seemed each of them had a story about Canada to tell us. When Keith would mention he was from Halifax, many spoke about the Halifax British Bomber used in the Second World War. We also met a lady and her husband who are 81, and 84 respectively who just had their 60th wedding anniversary and both were involved in WWII. She even showed us a picture from her wallet of the two of them dressed in uniform in the 1940's. Wow. This lady ran a mile last year to raise money for a cause and plays rugby with her grandchildren. What a lady!

Two members of local parliament also introduced themselves as they wanted to be friendly with the Canadian representative and tell us about their journey to Halifax a few weeks prior to meet with the big wigs in Finance. Did I mention I'm not a fan of politicians? They just eminate a sneaky, I'm being nice to you to get a vote feel. The organizer of the service, Doug Taylor who is probably retired military drug us around introduing us to people and bought us coffee and bisquits. He seemed to really feel the need to entertain and host us. He even wore a tattered Labatt Blue hat! As he pointed this out to us I giggled as it seemed he wore it for Keith's benefit. We also met British Air Marshal Stephen Dalton who I later learned was a General. Holy cow! I knew he was of a higher rank, but I was guessing Colonel - I felt very low on the totem pole after that.

The service was very similar to Remembrance Day as it is an annual service of commemoration and thanksgiving. There were representatives from various countries - Norway, France, South Africa, and of course a Yank. We met the Norway and France reps. Most of these people represent their country as a Military/Defence Attaché. I even laid flowers during the service, as one of the lady organizers who met us handed them to me and I was the last to lay. It was very neat because as I approached the memorial the band and parade were doing their close and I was in the middle of it all. Afterwards, Keith was a celebrity again with a few people taking his picture and more wanting to meet him.

I forgot to ask someone to take our picture with my camera, so this is all we got. It was a fantastic day...even though it rained during the service and they had issues with their sound system. Definitely a humbling experience.

On the drive home (2 hours) we grabbed some food at The Norway Inn, a pub just outside Truro. I had fish and chips and I swear they servied me the whole cod, it took up almost the whole plate. Good food and a place to return to for sure.

Energizer Bunny Olivia

We spent the afternoon at The Waie Inn, which is about 20 minutes from Dale & Lauren's. It's a fantastic place. It has a pool, squash courts, bar with snooker and pool tables, skittles games (like a minature wooden bowling lane with a mattress at the end to stop the ball and pins - kinda funny!), a huge kids play area like at McDonalds, and a few outdoor activities (it was raining so we didn't check those out).

We had a great time. The boys played squash while Lauren and Olivia swam and since I didn't have a bathing suit (or swimming costume as it's called here - hehe) I went back and forth between the two. The boys went for a swin after their game and Olivia had a great time playing in the water with her Mom, Dad and Uncle. Afterwards it was time for the kids play area which surprisingly took a long time to tire Olivia out. We had a blast. Yes, we. Lauren, Dale, and I were all in the middle of the play areas, up and down the slides, and in the ball pit (whatever you call the rooms kids play in that are filled with plastic balls and you get lost in them). It was good times. To finish off the day, Keith and Dale enjoyed a beer over a game of Snooker.

The evening involved more great food and relaxation. As much as I tried to convince Lauren it was the perfect time to go into labour (since we're all together) it didn't happen. Her due date is this Friday and she's still carrying high, so I guess we'll see how long it takes the newest Esliger to enter the world. Hopefully, he/she won't be as relaxed as his/her uncle and decide there's no rush. Lauren still looks great and has gotten a bit bigger since the last time we saw her the end of last month. She says she's still feeling great. Hopefully whenever we decide we're ready to have babies, I'll have great pregnancies like her.

Off To Chulmleigh

Happy 60th Birthday Uncle Steve! Wish I could be home to celebrate for that one and to torture him for getting old. Hehe.

Keith finished work before lunch today and we headed off to Chulmleigh around 3pm. Arrived at Dale and Lauren's around supper time. Olivia doesn't stop getting any cuter! It's been about 3-4 weeks since we've seen her and she can say more words now and she's a smart little cookie. She enjoys dragging her target (me, Keith, or Emma) to whatever she wants us to see and then entertaining us for as long as we'll stay. She has a deck of que cards with animals on them and she can rhyme them all off and even do some of the noises they make. The cutest things she says are strawberry, turtle, and book. She loves Keith. His name is hard for her to pronounce but she makes a go at it often calling for him. It's priceless. Even more priceless to see his face light up when she says it.

Emma arrived from Coventry around 8:30 just as we were enjoying Lauren's famous chilli pizza. It's sooo good. We relaxed for the evening enjoying each other's company.

Happy Birthday Nan!

Today is my Nan Hardy's birthday. Dad is treating her to dinner out as usual - she loves her birthday just to get to spend time with Dad. Dad is going to stop into his place on their way and get her on the webcam with me. I can't wait! She is going to be amazed at this technology.

I don't think it's going to stop raining - ever. It has been raining for several days now and looking at the forecast it looks like it's going to continue into atleast early to mid next week! It's somewhat bizarre because it has been raining, and at times it pours really hard, and every few hours the sun peeks through and it stops. Then not long after it starts all over again. It just has to go away!

This morning I went to Pool/Camborne to do some more shopping. Went to Homebase and the big Tesco Extra that I'm in love with (well for a store here). Wasn't totally successful, but did find some cushions that were on sale so I grabbed them. They were pretty much what I was looking for. This afternoon I went back to Falmouth to Trago. It was open this time! Haha. However, I was not successful at all this time. Quite the contrary from a few days ago when I could barely carry all the stuff I bought. Not sure if I mentioned this before but it is really hard to find 11x14 frames here and finding them in black I believe is impossible. Not sure if it's easy at home as I don't think I've had to shop for them, but atleast at home I was close to several stores to expand my options. I have looked in a bunch of places but without any luck. I think it's time to do the good ole shop online thing that I seem to be getting used to. After Trago I went to B&Q and picked up a wall mounted shelf I've been looking at. Not sure if it's going to work in the livingroom, but I'm gonna take a shot. Hopefully it does because I don't want to put this thing together to take it back apart to return it.

Keith and a few of his work buddies did a 10k hike today. Once again, they were finished early - around 9:30am today, so they entered a contest/race the military gym was putting on. There were a bunch of teams and they were all dropped off at St. Michael's Mount to finish at Praa Sands. Keith tells me it didn't rain at all while they were hiking, but it blew a gale because they were doing part of the coastal trail. It was a bit tough, but they finished in good time.

Decorating & Soggy Weather

Keith had a very early day finishing at 10am with the instructors having nothing for them to do. Tough day! I spent the day staring at the livingroom hoping for some sort of inspiration. And I got some! I did a bit of rearranging and hung a few pictures. Keith wasn't interested in helping, so I went to it and bravely drove some nails into the wall and hung the pictures on my own. I did a good job if I do say so myself. So now we have pictures on half of the livingroom. Tomorrow I'll work on the other half.

We took a drive into Falmouth after supper to go to Trago that closed at 5:30pm. Not such a successful trip. I thought the store sign I read yesterday said open until 9:30pm. Clearly, I was cross eyed when I read it. On the walk back to the car the heavens opened up and we got soaked. Keith was excited he came along for the journey. It's been a very soggy week.

Got a call from Concorde Recruitment yesterday about an Admin Assistant position they thought I'd be interested in. I told them to go ahead and forward my CV and today they called me for an interview. I'm set to meet the company, Reflex Marine on Monday at 3pm.

Decorating & More Shopping

I am determined to get atleast the livingroom decorated before the end of the month. I am tired of looking at bare walls and shopping, but never buying anything. Yesterday, I decided to do a bit of a switch-a-roo with curtains to start the process. I'm a big believer in using what you've got first. Just because the crazy green and pink printed curtains don't look good in the livingroom, doesn't mean they won't look fabulous in the diningroom! Haha. Well crazy enough those damn ugly curtains actually match the ugly green covered chairs we have in the diningroom. I wouldn't have guessed. And the light colored curtains in the diningroom are perfect for the livingroom. Excellent swap. I also yanked down the curtains hanging around the door as they were the same lovely green and pink. I brought a pair of nice shiny brown curtains from home that I think will look great instead. All the curtains have an odd way of hanging (not on a curtain rod, but strange hooks) and the problem with the brown curtains is they're made for a rod. So here comes Martha trying to finagle some kind of way to get them to hang. I figured out something that works - I guess. It's a bit of a process though so I only have one curtain hanging at the moment. Maybe I'll start a new trend. Haha.

Now that I've exhausted our 'already have' resources, I went shopping. Headed to Falmouth to Trago Mills and spent an hour finding the right pictures. Bought 2 large (60 x 80cm) colorful prints, one frame for now, and two other pictures which will be for the downstairs bathroom and the other for the hallway or livingroom. Also bought a rug for the livingroom. It's a sharp looking rug, but trying to decide if it works or not. The blue carpet throughout the entire house makes it hard to match anything to - especially when you don't want to use the color blue. I think this house was part of the Smurfs Dynasty with its carpet and curtains. Next I went to B&Q and picked up two lamp shades, a rich brown for the livingroom and a cool glass one for the front entry. Attempted finding cushions at Asda, but to no avail. So now we have some new decorations, all I need is some of Keith's time to hang the pictures.

Beer, Flags & Shopping

Keith and I are hosting a Canada Day party on June 30th to show the Brits what Canada Day is all about. Drinking. Haha. To prepare, we are continuing to add to our Canada paraphenalia by ordering five 3'x5' flags! Not sure where these are going, but there will be no doubt on Saturday the 30th that we're Canadians! The whole married patch will be well aware! I was quite surprised in my endeavor to find Canadian flags that there are numerous online UK stores to purchase a wide variety of world flags from. I figured I'd be lucky to find one store located in the UK, but I was actually able to compare pricing of several and go with the best option. Who'da thought!? We should have them by Wednesday.

I have learned that I am terrible at social timelines. I don't realize how close an event or occasion is until it's too late to prepare properly. I'm like this for birthdays as well. So yet again, the Canada Day preparations are right on schedule - behind schedule. We realized over the weekend that it's only 2 weeks away and time to get our butts in gear. I contacted the detachment at Daws Hill regarding beer orders (they stock Canadian beer - Keiths & Sleemans) on Friday and they were all out of Keiths already. We opted out of Sleemans. We were disappointed we wouldn't have any Canadian beer - what kind of Canada Day party can we host without Canadian beer?? I was determined there had to be a way. I spent along time surfing the net trying to find a UK based company with Canadian beer - way too expensive to ship from Canada. After a few hours of searching, I was about to give up when I fell upon the Canada Shop in London. This shop is wonderful! They have a bunch of Canadian (some are probably American products that we Canadians love) products and they ship right to your door. It's a little pricey, but worth it if you've got a craving for home. AND they have beer!!! They carry Molson Canadian (perfect for Canada Day - maybe not in taste), Moosehead Green, and Sleeman's. So I ordered up a 24 of Molson and a 24 of Moose. We're gonna have to take a collection at the door on Canada Day to pay for these beer! Haha. The lady told me we'd have them by Monday. Sweet!

About this Canada Shop - http://www.canadashop.uk.com/ - I realized some other items we cannot get here and some I will definitely miss. Wunderbars, Coffee Crisp, Eatmore bars, and twizzlers to name a few. It's just not right. I have updated our list so you can have a look. Other things I am already missing are Shake N' Bake and Crisco Shortening! Haha. they also sell Kraft Dinner for a low price of £1.95! That's over $4.00!! I'm thinking I should start up a Canada store myself! Even so, it's nice to know there's a place in the country we can get comforts of home if need be.

During the afternoon I went to Woolworths and bought picture frames and a duvet cover. I was sceptacle that the cover would fit due to the different sizing here, but it fits. I had to get a King size to fit our Queen size duvet. The cover is red and goes nicely with the damn blue curtains hanging in all the bedrooms. Not sure if I'm keeping it for this reason as I think it may be a hard red to match to other curtains. We'll see.

Received parcels from Chris & Vern today. Thanks! Keith's Gran sent a quilt she made for us and a wedding card. Thanks Gran! Chris also sent some goodies for the much anticipated arrival of Dale & Lauren's bump. Not much longer! That reminds me, if any of the NB crew is looking to send anything to Dale & Lauren, they can send it to us via Belleville and we'll give it to them. This saves you heaps on international shipping charges. Please address the box to Keith as follows:

Capt. JK Esliger
CFSU (E) Det Daws Hill
PO Box 5051, Stn Forces
Belleville, ON K8N 5W6

Then just send us an email to give us the heads up not to open it. We'll only keep it if it fits Keith. Don't write anything on the box pertaining to Dale or Lauren as they'll catch on to this brilliant scheme and we'll be in trouble.

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day Dad!! And Gampie, Vern, Dale, and all of my friends who are daddies. I hope you had a great day! Today is also Krista's 29th birthday! Happy Birthday Krista! Only one more year to go....

What an exciting day of cleaning! I can barely contain myself from the excitement. That's about all she wrote today. The highlight of my day was talking to Dad on Skype and Matthew came in during that time and I got to talk to them both and watch Dad open his gift from the boys. It made me feel like I was right there with them. I love Skype!

Night Out In Falmouth

Met up with Pete McCormick and some of his buddies at a pub called The Chain Locker. Disturbing name, but nice pub right on the waterfront with an outdoor patio. Closest thing we have to the Lower Deck here, minus the music. Live music isn't a big thing here, surprisingly enough. How can you have a pub without music? Well here, it's very rare to have music. Disappointing! However, it is the Sea Shanty Festival in Falmouth so there was a bit of singing and the outdoor patio was packed. The festival helps to raise money for the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI). The RNLI is a charity that provides a 24 hour life saving service around the UK and Republic of Ireland.

Pete is a Brit who just came back to Culdrose last year after 2.5 years in Shearwater. He and Keith knew each other from work and I met him one night at the mess just before he left Canada. He was celebrating his 36th birthday so several of his friends were out as well. Another friend, being Edward who had also spent 2 years in Shearwater several years back. It was great to have people to talk to about the good times at the Deck, the Triangle, and just Halifax and Canada in general. Edward had even been to Ingonish during his posting! After the pub we went to a very small bar called Rumors. I swear this was someone's basement. Very odd. Not a place I'm in a rush to get back to.

Had a great night meeting more people and laughing with Pete as he's such a hoot.

Registered With Concorde Recruitment

Went into Truro today to register with Concorde Recruitment. I love some of these Brits - they're such characters. And some so much like East Coasters in their personalities and sense of humor. For the most part people are welcoming and friendly, but some are even more so and immediately you feel comfortable with them and like you've known them for years. The lady that I dealt with was wonderful and so down to earth. Her parents had actually just visited Halifax and PEI last summer and loved it. But who wouldn't right? I decided to register not only for permanent work, but for temp as well. I figured, why not. Might be fun to have a few temp jobs here and there before a perm one. She also forwarded my CV (resume) for one of the perm jobs she thought I might be a fit for. Guess we'll see how it goes.

Quite the rain today. I swear the heavens opened up a few times. Coming back from Truro I had to put the high speed wipers on and in several areas I think I drove through a lagoon! By the time I was back home it stopped and I drove Keith to the bike shop to pick up his motorbike. It's finally somewhat road ready - well except for UK registration and insurance - minor details! Haha. Someday he may actually be able to ride it.

We whipped up some scallop and prawn kabobs for supper on the barby and relaxed with a few drinks for the night.

Shipping Sucks

What a process to ship a parcel! Had the parcel ready to go directly to Canada (I wanted to see how much it would cost before I went through the detachment) and headed to the Post Office. Holy cow... £40! That's about $90!! Thank God for Daws Hill (the detachment)! However, there's quite the process to prepare a package to be sent through them. But well worth it! All packages have to be wrapped in brown paper, with the Canadian address on it, a customs declaration attached to it, and a cheque written out to Receiver General of Canada attached to it (this pays for the Canadian postage from Belleville to the destination), then it's wrapped again in brown paper and addressed to the Postmaster at the detachment. Then back to the post office again to ship via Royal Mail. Once the Postmaster receives it, he removes the outer wrap, determines the cost for shipping within Canada, completes the checque total, and then its loaded on the weekly Thursday flight to go to Canada. Wow! Painful, but worth it!

Got a call today from another agency asking me if I'd be interested in a Branch Manager (car rental company) position. This position is in Plymouth - 2 hours away! It's not what I would be interested in anyway - I've had enough of working at car rental agencies.

Angie called today! So great to hear her voice. It's always exciting to pick up the phone and there's a Canadian voice on the other end. We chatted for awhile, then she had to get back to work.

Not sure what the evening holds, but probably another quiet one.

No Go Again and Again

Keith had a rough day at work. Arrived home at 10am to get ready to go golfing with the boys. Good deal! His course being a bit behind because of the two courses ahead of them, has caused them to be not so busy. So some days are pretty quiet and they're able to finish early or they can put an activity together to keep them entertained. Today was golf.

I spent the afternoon finishing off the shopping for Matthew's birthday gift. Yes, it is late, but that's normal. Poor guy - he's used to it! Had to pick up a few things for Nanny Hardy's birthday gift and a few trinkets for Father's Day. Put the package together in the evening and got the big ass thing ready for shipping. Scared to see what this will cost! Good thing we have a set up with the Canadian Detachment outside London - we can ship our packages to them and we get free shipping back to Canada.

Got another bad news phone call from Concorde Recruitment/Cornwall College late this afternoon. Maybe it's not fate afterall for me to work there. I have to say I was somewhat relieved as I wasn't really looking forward to doing payroll again and being in an unorganized department on top of it was not totally appealing. Leanne told me they need someone who can hit the ground running as they're so behind, and since I have no UK payroll experience, it would take time to train me. They need someone they barely need to train, otherwise she said I would have been the perfect person. She tells me she has spoken to the HR Director about me incase any other positions open. She asked me to come into their (Concorde's) office on Friday to register with their agency. I haven't actually registered with them, only applied for jobs. As she spoke to the guy (in the background) that would be meeting me Friday she told him she recommends me for any position in the college and that I'd be an asset to them. She told me she's trying her hardest to find the right fit for me within the college. It's good to know I don't suck anyway and that's why I'm not getting any of these positions. We'll see if anything turns up. Thank God I've got time to find a job!

More Touring For Mark

Keith was off early again today so once again, we checked out some of the pubs in Helston. We went to the Red Lion (apparently this is a popular pub name) for lunch and had a Prawn Bap. What's the hell is that you ask? Baps are buns. No idea where the term comes from but that's what they're called here. So hamburger buns are baps. Prawns seem to be the main seafood here, along with cod. They have prawn flavored everything! Even chips. Bizarre.

Mark had to experience the Blue Anchor and their Spingo, so off we went. I learned (from Keith) on this visit that the men's washroom is basically a trough. How nice! That's how old this place is! Classy!

Lastly, was a tour of Culdrose. Keith took Mark to where they believe he will be working at Depth Maintenance. He is an Aerospace Engineer - so is responsible for managing the guys who fix the aircrafts. That was it for the tour and he was off to Canada.

Another Canadian Exchange Officer!

Mark Kotzer - another Canadian exchange officer - arrived last night. He's here on his Destination Inspection Trip (DIT). He and his family will be arriving here the end of July for a 3 year posting and will be living 4 houses down from us! We're happy to have some Canadians so close. I met Mark a few times in Shearwater when I was bartending, but haven't seen him since then (2000?). I have a feeling we'll be getting to know he and his wife Laura quite well.

I gave Mark the Helston tour as he had a list of things to get done while here. Then we headed into Falmouth for a quick visit so he could purchase a cell phone. Keith was finished work at lunch time so the three of us went to the Rodney Inn for a few beer. I tried their Rattler Cider - this was the first and last time I will experience that bite. Yuck! Since I'm not a beer drinker, I am taking up drinking and tasting a variety of ciders. Some are good and some are not so good! For dinner we checked out a pub we've heard numerous accolades about, the Halzephron Inn. It was a nice pub with good food and after done, Mark was ready to crash due to a bit of jet lag.

Happy Birthday Matthew! Farewell To The Miedemas

Happy 22nd Birthday Matthew!!! I swear I feel older on my brother's birthdays, more than I do on my own!

This morning consisted of some sleeping in after our long day yesterday. Once we were finally alive, I drug Keith in and out of a few souvenir shops - he loved it! Haha. Then we met up with Ian and Becky around lunch time. We vowed there would be little walking today so we hopped on the tube (subway) and went to Kensington where Harrod's of London is. Wow! What a department store. It is 6 levels and has well dressed doorman welcoming you. The store has everything you'd need, at a heafty price tag for most things. Designer perfume, clothes, amazing food hall (court does't seem fancy enough a word for this place), groceries, etc. It was an experience we had to see. It was Keith and Ian's idea really. Hehe.

Hopped back on the tube and went to Picadilly Square so we could find a pub to grab a late lunch. Finally found a really cool pub called Waxy O'Connor's. Quite a large, impressive pub with lots of character. I believe this would turn out to be one of my favorite watering holes if I were living in London. After eating, it was time to go. We were getting very scarse on time at this point. Keith and I said our goodbyes to Ian and Becky and were on our high speed return to the hotel to grab our bags, then off to Paddington Station to catch our train. It didn't happen. Our journey of 2 tube rides, a brisk walk to the hotel, and another to Paddington, we missed our 5pm train by 5 minutes. Whoops! No big deal, a train leaves every hour so we had a bit of time to kill. Simon met us at the train station - actually he gave us the play by play phone calls while we were in transit to the station - calling every few minutes to say he was there, the train is leaving soon, the train has left. At this point we were around the corner from the station. So close! Arrived home at 11:30pm.

Called Matthew with birthday wishes, but he wasn't home. I got to talk to Graham for a half hour - he's never home so this was great! Caught Matthew online just before I headed to bed. So wish the boys could be here with us.

Touring London

We're in London! Yeah!!! And we're here with Becky and Ian!!! Who'da thought when the 4 of us we're having drinks at the Lower Deck 2 years ago that the next time we saw each other would be in London!? Funny how we had to leave our own country to see each other. Haha. This is Ian and Becky on the open topped Sightseeing Tour Bus.

Met up with Becky and Ian in Hyde Park just after 10am and the adventure began. We grabbed tickets for The Original London Sightseeing Tour (had to do the total touristy thing!) and we were off. Our first stop was Buckingham Palace. We arrived in time for the Changing Of The Guard. at this time the Palace grounds were packed with people. We waited around for awhile as you could tell something else was about to happen. We got tired of standing and waiting in the heat, so we left. Of course 5 minutes after we left, the parade began. It was the second rehearsal for "Tropping The Colour". It is tradition that the King/Queen have an 'official' birthday the second Saturday of June - this is when the main ceremonial events take place. The parade involves 1000 soldiers, 300 musicians, and 200 horses. To prepare for this event, they rehearse the 2 Saturdays previous. So with our not so wonderful timing, we saw this from our bus stop where we were hopping back on the tour. For what we could see it was quite impressive. This is a picture of the grounds in front of the palace.

Next we saw Big Ben, Westminster Palace, and Westminster Abbey. Now it was time for lunch! Just around the corner is a pub called the Red Lion so we popped in there for some food and celebratory drinks that we're in London together!

After we had our bellies full, we headed to the British Airways London Eye. It is also called the Millennium Wheel as it was built for the turn of the century 1999/2000. It is the world's largest observation wheel and stands 443 feet (135m) high overlooking the River Thames and 40kms on London in every direction. It's quite impressive! Picture is of becky and I on the London Eye overlooking the city.

However, the highlight of the trip was the World Naked Bike Ride UK tour! As we approached Trafalgar Square there were hundreds of naked cyclists riding through the Square! Traffic was stopped and the street was surrounded by thousands in awe of the event. Even the police stood on the sidelines taking it all in. The article on the website states: "around 1,500 UK cyclists and skaters in five cities participated in the fourth worldwide naked protest against oil dependency. On all the rides, full nudity was permitted by the police. There were no arrests. The ride draws attention to the elegant simplicity of the bicycle, highlights the vulnerability of riders in traffic and celebrates the power and individuality of our bodies. It's 'as bare as you dare', so full nudity is not required." If you're interested in signing up here's the website! http://www.worldnakedbikeride.org/uk/

The rest of the day was spent doing A LOT of walking! We checked out a few pubs and went for an evening catamaran cruise on the River Thames where we cruised under the London Bridge and Tower Bridge. It was very relaxing. Around 10pm we were finally hitting a restaurant with our sore feet and tired bodies. We ate at Bella Italia which is where we ate last time in London and is really good Italian food. We weren't long crashing after our food was gone and we were back to our hotels. Picture: We're tired and trying to figure out how to get back home.

Off To London!!!

Had my informal interview/appointment with Cornwall College today. This was the appt to discuss the new HR position opening and for me to get a feel for what the position entailed. The appt consisted of the recruiter from Concorde Recruitment who'd I'd interviewed with before and the Payroll Manager (not sure of exact title). We gabbed in an on campus coffee shop for over an hour while I got a sense of what the upcoming position would entail and they got a feel for me. Unfortunately, this is a payroll position. Although I loved doing payroll at home, I was getting bored and was working towards an HR designation. Currently, the payroll department is in disarray and short staffed. They pay approx 2500 employees (a huge jump from 1400 at Jacques!) and it sounds as if the dept is just in an uproar right now. The Manager is very straight forward and to the point, so wasn't shy in telling it like it is. I get the feeling I would have to learn fast and get the complete baptism by fire introduction. That sounds very daunting and I'm really not interested in a payroll position, but the challenge is appealing and would be a great experience to learn UK payroll. My gut is telling me to take the position if it is offered to me. It's my foot in the door at the second largest employer in Cornwall and closes for Xmas holidays - that's a sweet deal. Another beautiful thing about the UK is that 4 weeks vacation seems to be the required minimum! Excellent! Plus, bank and stat holidays. Not too shabby. At the end of the interview they asked if I would be interested in working in a full time temp capacity as a trial basis until they see how I work out and I see if I want to stay. I said sure. It's something they are trying to clear with the director at the moment, so I should hear from them in a few days. Not getting my hopes up though.

Yesterday, Concorde called me again about another position available at the College! Unfortunately, the position is in St. Austell, an hour away. It was for a Training Coordinator position which sounds interesting. I had to say no - too far to commute. Apparently, the ladies I interviewed with a few weeks back for the Client Services position, passed my CV on to another dept at the college. The job posting was closed and they called asking me to apply. This must be a sign I'm meant to work there! haha.

Keith finished up at lunch time, so he, Simon, and I jumped on the 2:40pm train to London. Arrived around 7:30pm. Took us quite awhile to find the hotel as I only had the directions, not the map. We couldn't find some of the street names, so we had to improvise and eventually found our way. It's such a bizarre feeling to be in a city you have absolutely no bearings in with no idea where you are. We stayed at the Central Park Hotel near Hyde Park. The hotel was pretty good, not a palace, but it was clean and roomy for a hotel in the UK. We took a walk and grabbed some grub at a noodle bar. After dinner we checked out the sights around the area, and I drug Keith in and out of several souvenir shops. He loved it!

Printer Issues

Keith spent the morning in Falmouth doing wet dinghy drills (part of water survival training) with work. Once finished, he was done for the day.

I spent the morning talking to HP online to get my printer working. A few weeks ago I bought a printer cartridge - which was a process to find as the part numbers here are different. I finally found the proper part number and browsed several online shops for purchase. Last night, I finally ran out of ink and had to replace my Canadian cartridge with the new one I bought. Sounds simple right? Yeah, not quite. Popped the cartridge in and received an error that it was not compatible with this printer. I was impressed. Not taking that as a final answer, I contacted HP via online chat and after a long time (this was a new guy I believe) the problem was fixed. The regional settings of my printer had to be changed. However, then I needed to buy a color cartridge as both cartridges have to be the same (can't use a Canadian cart and a UK cart at the same time). Grabbed one while we were out and now she works like a charm! Until I go back to Canada and have to change it back!

We spent the afternoon running errands and finally getting my ID done for the base. I spent the evening getting pumped about going to London tomorrow!

Gardening

Another amazing day. It was 20 degrees for most of the day and was even 18 degrees at 8:30pm! Keith and I spent the evening outside. I bought a Japanese Maple over the weekend and transplanted it this evening. As you can see I'm quite the gardener! Yeah right! I got Keith to take the pictures so that when the poor shrub dies in a week, atleast I'll have a picture of it. I have somewhat of a green thumb for indoor plants but don't have much experience with outdoor varieties, so we'll see how this works out! And check out my stylish pink gloves - they match my pink flip flops I had on but you can't see. Haha.

Jets!

You'd swear there was an airshow today over Helston. There were 6 jets - 2 Falcons and 4 Hawks that were flying all afternoon preparing for an upcoming airshow. It was amazing! And because we are so close to the air field, they can fly really low over the town and it's incredible to watch.

I tried to take a few pictures from the backyard but it doesn't give you the full feeling of how low they were. That first one is the tree in our backyard and the second is the clothes line to give you an idea. Click on the pictures to get the full view. I'm such a little kid too, when I hear them I'm running through the house tripping over things to get outside to see them! Can't imagine what it's like to fly one of those.

Beautiful afternoon, about 20-22 degrees. Went for a cruise to St. Keverne just to see what was in that direction. Small little village that I basically drove into and turned around. Went into Falmouth to do some shopping. Finally bought a second cell phone so Keith and I no longer have to share one. Yep, you heard me right...Keith has a cell phone! Never thought I'd see the day. But in the UK cell phones (they call them mobiles) are like an extra limb and mostly everyone uses them as their main line.

Not Much

Pretty quiet day with a bit of cleaning, shopping in Pool, and rest and relaxation. And a whole lot of gabbing on the phone. Finally got in touch with Michelle and Dawn. The time difference is making it hard to contact some of my girls - Michelle is 5 hours behind in Ontario and Dawn is 7 hours behind in Calgary! Both of them are going home this summer. Michelle in July for the first time in 3 years (maybe 4) and Dawn in August for the first time in 2 years and I'm missing them! Dammit!

Two Months Today

Oh my God, we've been here 2 months today! Wow, does time fly! Before we know it we'll be saying OMG, two months until we leave. Headed into Falmouth for a few hours of touring the shops. While in Falmouth we grabbed a pasty and I had one of the most bizarre ones I've heard of yet. It was a pasty filled with fish, chips and mushy peas with a splash of vinegar! Haha. I don't know which is more disturbing, the fact that someone invented this or that I bought one and ate it! It actually wasn't that bad, a little dry, but not as bad as it may sound.

Next we headed into Long Rock which is just before Penzance to go to Morrison's. It's another grocery store, but better than Tesco (I think). My first time there was last week so I wanted to take Keith to check it out.

The evening was pretty quiet with relaxing in front of the TV as we were a little bagged from the previous nights alcohol consumption .

Tenant Moves In

Our tenant signed a new lease this morning and provided Trevor with new cheques. He even went to the bank and deposited it into our account for us! How wonderful is he! I'm hoping she moved in without any problems. Seems very strange there is someone else living in our home. I'm jealous! I asked Trevor what we owe him and all he asked for is a few pints at the Celtic Corner (pub by our condo) or in England, wherevere we meet first! We can't thank him enough for being so helpful and accommodating - and we didn't even ask for any of it, he just told us what needed to be done and said he'd do it for us. We're very lucky!

Kyle and Paulette moved to Greenwood today. We're anxiously awaiting the details on the move, their new home, and new jobs. We would have liked them to move a little closer in this direction!

Spent the morning completing the job application I picked up in Penzance. It was very detailed and somewhat painful, but it's done. I headed back to Penzance in the afternoon to drop it off. Keith went golfing with Simon at a course here in Helston for the afternoon. Simon, Kevin, Andy, and Holly came over for a BBQ. Andy is also on course with Keith and Holly is his girlfriend who is an Air Traffic Controller. This was my first time meeting them. Keith BBQ'd up a feast and we over indulged on the good food and lots of drinks. Great night.