Weekend Dishes

I am not sure how it has happened but it seems Graham and I have used nearly every dish we have in the house in the space of 24 hours. No we did not have guests or even cook anything fancy! I am just surprised. I did see Graham eating scrambled eggs from a LARGE kitchen mixing bowl yesterday, so that should have been an indication that there was a bigger problem going on. But boys are boys and somethings I rather just watch in horror then get to the bottom of it.

I have a long afternoon of dish washing before me and I am not looking forward to it in the summer heat.

I am nearly 30 and there are somethings I thought I would have by now. One of them being a dish washer. Being a girl who grew up pretty spoiled I never had to do a lot of dishes. Always had a dish washer and most other luxury items such as cloths driers, and air conditioners. Everywhere I look I see my peers using luxury items. Not even realising they are using an item of such domestic bliss. This being said I am creating a short list of items I would like to have before I turn 30.

• A good oven, my entire married life I have not had an oven that works the way it was meant to. In Indiana we had the oven that only half worked (bottom element only), then in Sydney we had no oven for 3 years. Now in Perth I have what could be the worlds smallest oven, and only has one setting. HOT HOT HOT burn to a crisp hot. To cook cup cakes or any pastry I must pre heat the oven and then take the cake out every time I see the elements turn back on or the cake will be burnt. This means sitting next to the oven for about an hour and half taking the cake in and out, in and out.
• A Car, I have been car less for nearly 5 years. I do not feel a car is an essential item, but I do like to have freedom to travel outside of the limits of public transport or my legs can take me. I also just like to drive. But that's the problem isn't it. We all like to drive, and too many of us drive everywhere. At home in the USA this is a big problem. Growing citys would benefit from investing in public transport people like to take. All the same I would love to have a car for the weekends, and for going to buy heavy things from the store. Of the items I would never like to take on a bus again include: An ironing board, a microwave, 30 lbs of flour, and a weeks worth of food supplies. Wouldn't it be great to have a car to move such items around town. That would be great!
• A dishwasher, My Aunt Gretchen once shared with me the diary of my Grandmother from 1961. In it she wrote of her joy when she was given her first dishwasher. You know the old kind that had two hoses. One for the tap and one for the sink drain. You just hooked it up when you wanted to use it. Although it was an early model and did little more then just spray the dishes with dirty water she was over joyed at this new technology. I believe I will feel the same when a dishwasher finally graces my kitchen.
• A Cloths Dryer, I love soft towels. There is only one way to get soft towels. By using a dryer. If you hang dry your towels they will feel crisp like paper and free you from your weekly luffa treatment in the first dry off. They are ruff and crispy. Need I say more. YES I DO. I do not mind hanging most of cloths to dry outside. But in the winter it becomes a problem. I now live in a place where it rains all winter long. Its hard to hang things to dry in the rain. That means hanging cloths all over our little apartment, and it takes nearly 2 days to dry a pair of jeans, one day for most other items. God forbid you wanted to wash your sheets. We do have a ceiling fan now though and we could hang them off that I guess. But still, a Cloths Dryer sure would make life better.

For now I will keep the list short. But one has to be grateful for what they have, and I can not tell you how grateful I am for the things I do have. It took us a long time to get both a couch and a TV in Australia and now we do, those things are great!! I am just saying I miss "the good life". Those little things that make it a little nicer, a little faster, and a little cleaner. So I have 1.5 years to get these items under our roof. Lets see how I go. But until then I am sure I have it lots better then some!

On the Mend and the Meds

Hey All,

So I got the surgery done and over with. Waiting to be put under really put the anxiety meter at an all new high. The thing that really did it was right before they put the mask on my face the head nurse was asking me some general questions. Whats your name, birth date, and what are you having done today? I said " Mary Wolfla, 7/12/81, (yes is backwards on this side of the earth, just like the toilet bowl water flowing the other way) and I am getting my tonsils out." The nurse gave me a blank stare and said, something like ( I was going under) " Oh are you sure, just your tonsils?" And bang a massive spike in the anxiety and then I was knocked out. I think that may have been why when I woke up in the recovery room I nearly jumped out of the bed. The nurse next to me had to hold me down. And it must have been a site cause another nurse came running to her assistance!

Hospital conditions where great under the private system here in Perth. I had a nice BIG room, not that I needed it and my own bathroom and shower. Although I found the hill down into the bathroom a little odd. I don't know why you would put an incline into a bathroom in a hospital, but what do I know. I was given the most wonderful pain drugs which was fine and dandy until I decided I did not need to use the morphine pump anymore and then got sick to my tummy for the rest of the night. What was I thinking.

Graham and our dear friend Rick brought me home the next day and the following week is a blur of tears, pain, and general feeling of here I go again dizziness followed by waking up on the arm chair never realizing I even fell asleep. I hope childbirth does not include this part of the recovery cause I have no idea how mothers could deal with that. But most Mothers I know are extremely strong and proud woman and would never tell me anyways as I guess it is best to find out on one's own. ( I am only saying this as the TV told me today that most woman have lost 90% of their eggs by the age of 30, great thats just around the corner) So I better get serious.

Its been a week today from the tonsil extraction and I am on the mend. I plan to go back to work this week as long as no one expects me to talk at length about anything or (which can be hard when you work with senior citizens who can not hear, meaning you must yell most of the time, see Mom I knew that loud voice would come in handy) or be forced to eat large amounts of food. Eating is still not going that well.

But I hope by next week this time I will once again be able to yell a little more and eat some much missed food. Like corn on the cob, BBQ chicken, Spicy anything, and candy candy candy!

TONSILS OUCH

So I am getting my tonsils out in the morning. I am being a grown up about it too. Calling a cab at 5:30am to take me to the hospital, all by myself. No one to hold my hand or rub my back. Just me and the poor nurses who are forced to work at such an early hour of the morning.

Then I am going to sit around until they decide it is time to drug me up and knock me out for a short snip snip of the tonsils. My doc told me I could look forward to a morphine drip when I wake up. That only made me feel more nervous.

Actually, this is the first time I have had a body part removed (other then my wisdom teeth, but I never got to know them). Never to be a part of me again. I know its not like I am losing a hand, arm, leg or foot. But I have known my tonsils in a way most people never get to know their tonsils. They have been sore, and yucky for as long as I can remember. I can tell when they are getting infected and know the process it takes to make them feel better like the back of my hand. Details of which I don't think you really want to know, but it involves hot salty water and puss.

I think I am a purest of a certain kind. I never wanted my body altered by way of piercings or tattoos. Even my ear lobs are the same as the day I was born. My mother has been asking me to get the gap in my front teeth fixed for years (and my husband agrees) but that gap is a part of me just like my nose is. So thinking about getting my old enemies (my tonsils) out makes me well.... kind of uneasy, and strangely a little sad. I know, I am happy to be done with all the pain and bother. But still... its a part of me.

Well I better pack my overnight bag and get my papers in order. I am off on an adventure tomorrow. And in a few hours I will know what its like to live tonsil free! Here I go.

A Sunday at the Dog Beach

This Sunday Graham and I got up early and headed out to the beach. Being new to Perth we where not sure what beach to go to, so we just drove over to the coast a little north of Fremantle and kept on driving until we found a parking spot along the beach road. It was a hot day so many people had the same idea as us and it took awhile to find a place to park the car we had borrowed.

Upon arriving at the beach we noticed right away that something was different. there where about 200 hundred people at the beach and 3 times as many dogs. I mean for everyone one person on the beach (and it was busy) there was three dogs. I could not believe it. Dogs of every kind, all running free without leaches. Graham and I dropped our towels and headed for the water, it was cool and refreshing. We then spent the morning watching the nearly 600 dogs play, swim, fight, and chase each other. Many dogs where in the water with their owners, swimming along side, leaping over breaking waves. Some dogs completely ignoring their owners and running free like bandits on the sand, swimming with whom ever they choose. I have never seen so many dogs in one place in all my life, it was truly a site to see.

After a long swim Graham and I went for a walk down the beach, but where constantly being cut off by running dogs, or roaming dogs looking for some attention. It made for an interesting beach stroll. We watched in a kind of awe-horror as we saw dog after dog peeing of the same beach towels over and over again. That would be a big surprise after a swim in the ocean, nothing like a pee soaked towel to dry one's self off on. After seeing this we hurried back to our awaiting towels happy to find they where doggy pee free. Although we could not be sure of this as it was a hot day.

I did not have a camera with me on our beach outing but I wish I had (the pics above I found online). It was a beautiful beach, and it made me glad to know there was somewhere for dogs to play in the sand. But I am glad most beaches are off limits to our doggy friends. All the doggy pee and poo was a little off putting. Most owners picked up their pets "droppings"but sadly some did not. I don't know about you, but seeing a gigantic doggy poo floating in the water near where children are playing is a little upsetting. Even more upsetting is noticing that no one around really cares.

But despite all this it was a fantastic outing to the beach. These dogs really knew how to have fun. Graham and I headed home with a big smile, but decided next time we would go to a different beach, one with fewer K9 swimming companions. But next time we are there I will take my camera I promise!

Knowing me..

If you know me well these are a few things you can count on.

• I can not spell.. at all... even simple words, once a friend named Janice had to teach me to spell her name by saying "Mary think of it as JA-nice, then you will never forget". and this proves I did not.
• I am a simple cook. meat, and veg. maybe some pasta.
• I spend a lot of time worrying about things that will never happen.
• I can not sleep unless I read first, it can be for a few minutes, or a few hours, does not matter.
• I love sugar, I was a candy child. I know my parents tried their best to keep sugar out of my diet, but I was a kid, and I was an American and that meant I ate a lot of sugar, I still do, although I have gotten better.
• I do not know my multiplication tables. In 3rd grade I swore to my mother that I could do without knowing my times tables for the rest of my life. For all of third and fourth grade I hated learning them. And to my luck I have not had to use them much in my adult life. Although marrying a human calculator was the best thing I could have ever done.
• I hate it when people are late.
• I am rarely late.
• I use images on my blog that I am sure I have to ask permission for. Hope I do not get caught.
• I still have my childhood stuffed animal "Brownie" He sits on my bedside table!
• I am a proud American
• I love to write letters, and get them in the mail. My mom sends me a letter nearly every day with clippings from home, I have 4 boxes full of her letters. I guess she forgave me for not knowing my multiplication tables.
• I love cats! I would be the crazy cat woman if I had not met Graham, although there is still a chance it could still happen.
• I like to watch The Simpsons every evening at 6pm, and am not sure what life would be like if that stopped.
• Sometimes I want to climb tree's in the park, but don't tell anyone about it. Same with jumping into pools with my cloths on when no one is paying attention.
• I like to think I am a good friend, and I always try my best.
• I would love start my own Children's Theatre Company.

Just felt like sharing. Cheers.

Always I wish there was more time!

This year got off to an exciting start for Graham and I, my Mom and Dad visited us from Indianapolis Indiana. We saw Mom and Dad last in July back in Indiana, so it was great to get to show them our new home in Perth.

Graham and I have a small 2 bedroom apartment in Perth so fitting us all in was an interesting challenge. It did not take long from my Dad to install his ham radio station from our front porch. He tied a long wire antenna to a tall tree on the street and then brought it back to our apartment. It was hanging about 10 feet off the ground from the tree to our front door ( a distance of about 30 feet). I am sure the people living on our street thought it was pretty strange, but in the Wolfla family things like that are normal. He was able to talk to his friends back in Indiana as well as new friends he made in Perth. He even went out to lunch with some of the local hams! It was fun to come home from work and see Dad chatting away on his radios!

I had to work most days of my parents visit (yuck I know). But Mom, Dad, and Graham got to have lots of fun together, they saw nearly all the sites of Perth. Visiting a reptile park, and the Australian Mint. I think Mom enjoyed the more simple things like going to the fruit and vegetable market, and super market the best though. I do have to say our local fruit and veg shop is pretty cool. They sell all kinds of great things, butters, cheeses, meats, candy, baked sweets, its a truly European shop. One could spend hours there and come home with tons of yummy fatty things. I love to visit on Sundays and come home with something spoiling for Sunday dinner.

Over a weekend Mom, Dad, Graham and I went down to one of Australia's most famous wine regions, The Margaret River. And yes, there is a river there although Graham claimed there was not one. We drove over it on the way into town. But don't worry I still thing Graham is perfect, as most commonly claims. Margaret River was beautiful, and I started to wonder why in the heck we did not live there. Its about a 3.5 hour drive from my home in Perth. Its green and on the coast with some really great beaches and reefs. We went to some of the best wineries the region had to offer, and stayed in a cozy hotel near town. Mom spoiled me while in Margaret River and bought me a pain of Birkenstock sandals. I love them! I know I will have them for a long time to come.

Mom and Dad where with us in Perth for the Australia Day public holiday. Its like the 4th of July, but it does not mark the day Australia won its independence from England like the 4th does for us. Instead its more like a "Yay for Australia Day". Australia is still tied to England in some weird ways. The queen is on the money, there is a Union Jack on the Australia flag, and Australia is a member of the Commonwealth. Kind of like being a member of the Queen's Club. Anyways. Australia Day Celebrations happen all over the country on January 26th, there are citizen ceremonies and fireworks, also lots of BBQ's and beer drinking (this is Australia after all). Graham and I took Mom and Dad down to see some fireworks and an air show (with airplanes) on the fore shore (shore line of the city). The fireworks where really cool, and I have to say better then any firework show I have seen in Indianapolis over the years, although the cities are of similar size. We brought a picnic dinner with us and had a few cocktails. It was a great night!

It was easy to get use to having Mom and Dad home with us, so as you can imagine it was hard to see them head home again. Although I suspect our cat Kit did not mind seeing them leave, (traitor). I feel so blessed and am truly lucky to have parents who are willing and able to travel to other end of the earth to see their daughter. Its not an easy trip, from my front door in Perth to my parent's door it takes a little over 34 hours travel time. If you have not traveled this far before, please let me tell you..... Its Far, really far. And only getting longer with the new laws being placed on air travel. But if it keeps us safe, its worth it! I am still waiting on a teleporter though! I hope to be the first commercial buyer of that product!

I am working on a trip home in June of 2010 at the moment to see Mom and Dad, and my girls in Boise. I will keep you posted on how it goes. It maybe just me coming home as Graham is studying non stop this year!

We love and miss you Mom and Dad! Thanks for everything!

Home with out Graham

Graham is in Sydney this week visiting his parents and family and friends. And I am home in Perth. I am so happy he is home and having fun. But I miss him tons. Being home is not the same with out him.

With Graham being away I have realized a few things about myself. 1. I am messy (big news to those who know me well) 2. I have horrible anxiety 3. I can not sleep with out someone else in the house AND 4. the most important thing I have learned; I should never be allowed to live alone.

Now I am not totally alone. I do have Kit cat to keep my company, but mostly he makes the above things worse. He keeps my up at night be making noises I over re-act too. Like Kit jumping on the table sounds just like someone knocking at the door. Or Kit playing with his cat nip toy sounds like someone for surely breaking down the screen door. I then have get up and make sure no one is breaking in. Followed by a 30 minute anxiety attack before I fall back asleep again. Then it starts all over. FUN. I wish I had a turn off button to cure me of this anxiety problem.

My solution to the night time anxiety is to stay up all night reading (or writing blogs) until I pass out. This is not the best solution as I am over tired and have to work in the morning and am also suffering from some form of the flu at the moment (it too is making my life horrid, I have missed 2 days of work so far). Tomorrow, no matter how sick or tired I am I am going to go to work. I can sleep on the train and bus a little, and if it is bad I can always pass out on my desk in the afternoon. At least in an office full of people I can feel safe enough to sleep soundly. Gosh the more I think about this issue the more I think I should see a doctor for some sleeping pills. But I guess its only one week with out Graham home and then it will all be fine again.

Sorry for the depressing nature of this blog. But if anyone has some sleeping hints for me I would love to hear them as I have 6 more nights to go. Yes and I have tried tea before bed, reading The Bible, and watching TV.

Okay.. going to try sleeping again.. fingers crossed!