Learning Vicariously

Oh the things I am learning vicariously by Erica's move to the UK. I knew a few things, such as petrol is gas. Or a cell phone is called a mobile phone there. I knew a few others as well, like cookies are called biscuits, trucks are lorries (that one makes me laugh like a plural version indicating multiple Aunt Lori's...LOL), the bathroom is called the loo. But Erica is adding to my knowledge of British english almost every day, and I find it all so interesting. Things like a stove top is called a "hob" there. And Erica actually called it a "hob" during our phone conversation yesterday. LOL. She also said that those baking sheets she packed up for the movers are going to be useless as her oven is sized more for a doll house. Oh well....

And one of the most surprising ones to me: the letter "z" is said aloud as "zed".
Erica found that out trying to spell her name at her hostel the first day. It will make me have to think. Oh, I am extremely used to spelling my name. In fact, I generally pronounce our last names as: Kintz K-I-N-T-Z, as if the spelling were a part of it. I like the rhyming lilt of the T-Z. But there it will be K-I-N-T-Zed.
Doesn't have the same appeal to me somehow. ZEEEEE is a light, airy, whimsical sound like a honey bee. ZED is heavy and squat and flat. Oh well....I guess I better at least remember to use it when I visit, or else, as Erica reports, they will spell our name as K-I-N-T-G. And somehow that is even worse than zed. LOL.

Anyway, this is moving day for Stephen and Hannia, so its going to be busy. Her family is all here to help so hopefully the work will go by fast and easy. I KNOW the kids are excited to have their own space again. I will miss them though, even if I can visit by getting in my car and driving a mere 10 minutes to Winterville.
Have a great weekend!

Decorating for the Holidays

Its the first of December, and while I have neither the time nor the energy to actually put up our tree, or decorate our house just yet (I will, I swear), at least I decorated the blog. It feels festive now. Maybe it will help to put me in the mood. I think the biggest holiday downer for us is working for the post office. It almost makes us want to forego any celebrations. BUT...I will NOT let it get me down.

So, Erica reported that her first day on the new job was just fine. It was mainly having ID's made, emails set up, meeting lots of people and touring the campus. Tomorrow she will be picking up her keys and hopefully getting things like utilities all set up. She isn't certain how that will go and whether or not she can actually stay in her new place just yet.......but it will all get sorted out. She seems to be enjoying the adventure of all of it.

I am considering changing the blog up a little. Maybe moving to another blog site, maybe changing the name because I feel like The Fishbowl Chronicles limits the templates and I just feel like using different layouts from time to time. I don't know, but am giving it some thought. For now, I am just going with the holiday scene, nevermind the name. Its a Snowman in a Fish Bowl....LOL. Just use your imagination, I guess.

Also? Tomorrow is Friday!!!! Yay!

Schizophrenic Day

After I got to work today, I checked my phone to see that I had missed a call from a number I didn't recognize. But I had voicemail. I listened to it and lo and behold, it was from Erica!!! My spirits sunk to an all time low as I realized I had missed an opportunity to actually talk to her. Her message said that as she is using this pay for minutes kind of mobile thing until she decides on an actual phone plan (I swear she is already using the word "mobile" instead of cell phone...LOL). And she can use her prepaid minutes to call anywhere, even internationally. How cool. But I was despondent to have missed her.

Later that morning, while I was still in the office, she called back and this time I caught it in time. I was elated. LOL. From despondent and depressed to elated in the time it takes to answer a call. We had a nice chat. She is doing well. She signed a lease for a teeny tiny apartment, and can move in on Friday. Its a 6 month lease though, so if the size really bothers her, she can move in a while after having the chance to figure out more about ideal locations and transit and stuff like that. She says this one seems to be in a great location so far....maybe she will be too busy having fun to care that her place is not much bigger than a walk in closet.

She starts work tomorrow, and had coffee with her new boss today to meet her face to face. The boss is Dutch but mainly grew up in Tennessee, so she is basically American. Maybe that will help ease Erica's transition. All in all, my girl was in good spirits, and although its been much more different than she first imagined, she is figuring it all out. She will be fine.

And then....as it was time to say "I love you" and "Good-bye"....I got that "I'm gonna cry" feeling. Sad and despondent all over again. What an emotional rollercoaster I seem to be on. We still haven't gotten the chance to Skype just yet. First of all, I am not sure how comfortable she is talking on Skype in a hostel full of people. Secondly....by the time I get home, get comfortable and on my computer (I am getting home later and later as we are in the dreaded Christmas rush at work), its almost midnight there and I feel sure Erica is asleep. So, yeah.
But maybe soon, like on a weekend, we can skype her and she can show us around her new place. I hope so.

Happy Birthday Stephen

27 years ago today our one and only son was born. He made our family complete. I just can't believe you are 27 already. Why are you making me so old??? LOL. We love you. I hope you have a wonderful day and a fantastic year ahead.

She made it

Erica made it to York today. The flights were fine but she had a little trouble with the trains. Not to worry, she made it eventually. Now we just hope her bag shows up tomorrow. And then the apartment search commences. I hope she finds something that she loves. And that she gets a British mobile phone number, too. She promises to keep me updated as progress is made. I was just happy to know she made it there safely.

I'm just plain sad

The holiday was a good one, but its over and Erica is boarding her plane to England right about now. I'm sad, and I can't help it. It did help that we had a lot of fun these past few days. We built a huge bonfire last night. We roasted hot dogs, and marshmallows, complete with graham crackers and hershey's chocolate bars. Hannia came up with the idea of wrapping bacon around the roasting sticks, and it was all amazingly delicious.

At some point on Wednesday our cats cornered a tiny baby mouse outside. Jeanne rescued it, and believe it or not Casey has taken it as a pet. The mouse (sex undetermined) is now named "Chipmunk", and is living in a fancy mouse palace that Jeanne bought at Petsmart yesterday. I think Chipmunk hit the mouse-lottery. The last time I saw Chipmunk he was happily snoozing in an overflowing food bowl in his new home. He seemed very content for a little mouse that was on the verge of being murdered by a bunch of cats.

Anyway, Jeanne, Calvin and the girls left just before lunchtime today. Bruce took Erica to RDU airport just after that. She did call me to say that there was absolutely NO line to check in, and security was a breeze. She went a little bit early because we were afraid this being Thanksgiving weekend and all that the lines would be ridiculous. Oh well, better to wait at the gate than to be rushing and panicking that you might miss your flight, right?

Right now, Hannia is visiting her brother and parents in Morrisville, Bruce is driving home from Raleigh, Stephen is writing an article for his job, and the house is so ridiculously quiet. I miss Erica already. But she plans to Skype and email and let me know how its going, how the apartment search goes, and how the new job is when she starts there on Thursday. I will let you know.....and speaking of the house being too quiet....Stephen and Hannia will be moving into their own place here in Greenville. Its temporary, until he figures out which school he might be going to (the applications have all been sent), or what job he might take (still applying, while he is doing this freelance work). But they will be about 10 minutes away, so at least I won't feel too sad about it for now. All I can think about is booking a trip to England in the near future. I just feel like I need to wait until she at least has a place to live first. :(

Thanksgiving: The Aftermath

Following the tradition set last year in Danville, we decided to build a bonfire Thanksgiving night. The feast was mass consumed. The kitchen was reasonably cleaned up, and the weather was perfect. It was too dark to be able to gather much in the way of firewood, although our woods offer tons of it. And there was the free-roaming bear to consider, so nobody was eager to venture too far from the confines of the yard. But a smallish fire was made and we had a nice time. It has been decided that it is to be tradition from now on.....bonfires on Thanksgiving night.



We have spent this afternoon cutting up a huge tree that fell during the hurricane. Its way back at the edge of our property, and now we have enough wood to have a huge proper bonfire tonight. The weather is beautiful, and so we will party round the fire. Maybe I should send somebody out for marshmallows???

After the bonfire, we gathered to watch a heartwarming Thanksgiving movie, recommended by Hannia, called "Thankskilling". Its about a killer demonic turkey with a really foul mouth. Seriously, it was so bad, maybe the worst movie I have ever watched. But it made us laugh hysterically. And so the viewing of "Thankskilling" may also be added to the list of our Thanksgiving traditions. Not for under aged children though as there are moments of turkey porn. I'm not even kidding. LOL!! No way to describe it, you really have to see it for yourself. If you find yourself curious, its available for instant view on Netflix right now. How could you let that opportunity pass you by?



We are excited to find out that there is a "Thankskilling 2" in production right now, and will be available by Thanksgiving 2012. We will definitely have to add that to our list of things that absolutely MUST be celebrated.

I attempted a small amount of Black Friday shopping today. Kohls had a couple of things on sale that I kind of wanted to buy. I walked in to the store, and discovered that the line for checkout was so long it was approximately an hour and a half wait. Um, no way. Not happening. I will just wait and pay full price when I can check out in a matter of minutes. There is nothing that I want that badly. I came straight home, because I give up easily that way. Anyway, I hope everyone is enjoying their weekend. So far, its been a hilarious time. I am sure I will be feeling sad when Erica takes off for the airport tomorrow, but at least I know we sent her off with a bang. It really has been fun. I have my doubts that she will be able to come home for Thanksgiving next year....it will be so sad to watch Thankskilling 2 without her. But we will be sure to save it so she can see it at Christmas time. HAHAHA.....