Comforts of Home

Erik just returned from a ten day trip to the States, where he was able to stock us up on some of our favorite U.S. products. Obviously we've had to make the transition to using different items while living abroad, but there are just a few things from home that we tend to miss on a daily basis. We were able to purchase just about everything online and had the items shipped to Erik's brother's house in Denver, where Erik could pack them into one of his allotted checked bags. A few items that made the trip across the Pacific Ocean were the TIDE to-go pen, Kenra mousse (my hair can't live without it and it's not sold here!), Aleve (there may be a comparable option in Oz, but all of the medicines have different names), aftershave for E (costs about 4 times as much here, ha!), lint rollers (I have yet to find a brand in Oz that actually works well!), and one of my favorite all time treats as a surprise from the hubby, Junior Mints! I also provided Erik with a wish list of liquor (he was allowed to bring 2.25 liters of booze back to Oz duty-free), and I actually have to thank my father-in-law for the liquor store run that he made on the last day of Erik's trip. :)

$51 for this purchase in the States. Would have cost about $110  in Oz.
Also haven't seen whipped cream vodka anywhere here...the Aussies don't know what they are missing!

If you are wondering why I did not make the trip to the U.S. with Erik, he was over there for a conference, and I actually had to work (in ordinary circumstances I'd be disappointed about this, but the fact that I've found enjoyable, consistent work is a blessing at this point!). He spent 5 days in Little Rock and then was able to fly to Denver to enjoy a weekend of skiing with his family before leaving the U.S. of A. Unfortunately his flight from Denver to L.A. ended up getting cancelled, requiring American Airlines to re-book him on a United flight, but the flight did not arrive early enough for him to make his flight from LAX to Melbourne. However, we are SO lucky to have a wonderful friend living in L.A., and she was able to provide Erik with a day's worth of entertainment while he was stuck on the West Coast.

In addition to Erik's arrival, we also welcomed a short-term "roommate" last week... a Canadian who is also a post-doctoral fellow at Victoria University. We thought it would be nice to help him get settled in Melbourne, as our hosts did for us when we first arrived. Andrew is a super friendly guy, so it's been an easy transition to have him around. At the moment he is searching for a place to stay a bit closer to the city, all while he gets used to the Aussie lingo, public transport, and the weather. When we talk to him it actually makes us realize how many adjustments we've made since arriving, and it seems like ages ago because we have learned so much since then!

For the most part we laid low this weekend and just enjoyed each other's company. We were thinking about heading to St. Kilda to watch the inaugural Ironman Melbourne race, as we knew a few people competing, but opted to have a lazy day around the house instead. On Saturday, Erik played in his first footy game, at which he received numerous compliments about how well he played. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned this before, but if not, I am working part-time with a footy team this season. During my initial meeting with the coach, Erik was running a workout on the field (he had driven me to the meeting...as this was when I was terrified to drive...I've come a long way with driving on the other side of the road!). The coach noticed him and asked if he had ever played footy before. I told him about Erik's background with American football and track, which led to the coach talking to Erik about joining the team. He decided he would give it a try, attended a few practices, and actually ended up enjoying himself. The team is quite a mix of guys, but I'd guess that Erik is one of the oldest. Even though he hasn't picked up all of the skills yet, he is one of more fit guys out on the field, and I think that helps improve his level of play. Even after yesterday's game, Erik still does not know all of the rules (nor do I!), but his teammates and coaches certainly think that he has the potential to be a decent footy player judging from comments made to me about his performance. From an athletic training standpoint, footy is different because you can actually run on the field while the game is still going on. So if I see a guy limping a bit, I can jog out and ask if he's okay or if he needs to come out and get his ankle taped (or strapped, as they say!), all while play is continuing. It is an extremely physical game, therefore, there are often many injuries, so I'm thinking that I'm going to be quite busy on Saturdays throughout the footy season.

I also crashed my bike AGAIN this week. It was minor compared to my first crash, but it definitely shook me up a bit. It had recently rained and I slipped on wet tram tracks while trying to cross them on my road bike. Fortunately my knee is okay (it has literally just recovered from the first crash), and the only major damage I sustained was a vicious bruise to the shin, a bit of a hip abrasion/bruise, and some neck pain. The response of on-lookers was totally different with this crash, and Erik was with me so that helped as well. The people behind us stopped and insisted on giving me band-aids and antiseptic spray and wanted to know if they could do anything else. Another driver moved Erik's bike out of the street, as he had stopped to help me. It was a complete 180 from when drivers were driving around me lying in the intersection a few months ago! Unfortunately, the crash occurred on a road where I have to bike to get pretty much anywhere, so the crash will not be easily forgotten. Erik and I have actually tried to work on some strategies about how best to handle biking on that road, because it's not easy with the traffic, the tram tracks, and some uneven seams in the concrete. I do know that I'll be writing a letter to the council about the dangers of biking on that specific road (Erik crashed in that exact same spot a few months ago, so it's not just me!), though I'm not sure that will elicit any response. In the meantime, perhaps this time I really have learned my lesson about staying away from anything metal while riding a bike!