HREinternational’s Weblog

Well, one thing is for sure. I’m very inconsistent when it comes to keeping up with this blog. But, I’m having quite possibly the laziest day I’ve had in  months – it’s 7 p.m. and i’m still in my pajamas from this morning (i probably shouldn’t admit that, but oh well). Anyway, the point is – one can only watch so much tv, iron, clean…. anything to keep from having to go outside. it’s COLD. So, i was going through some pictures that sasha took or our trip to Australia last November and I realized i never even did anything with those pics. no one has seen them and now they’re gathering virtual dust… so I figure i can write a little update and post a few of those and some other random pics i have.

Update on life in the UK… well, not surprisingly, winter is cold. It gets as cold in Amador (where i’m from) but not in southern california, which is where i’ve lived for most of my adult life. To be honest, i don’t mind it for the most part. As long as it isn’t raining and i have enough clothes – i don’t really have an appropriate wardrobe for winter over here, so i have to pack on the layers. The biggest drawback is that it makes me even lazier than i already was. If i step outside and find it’s chilly, i just stay in. I’ll tell myself i’m going to go for a walk in 2 hours – ok, two more hours – ok, before it gets dark… ok, tomorrow. Then it’s the same story all over again the next day. just plain lazy.

I have found a few more things I really like over here – weekly delivery of organic fruits and vegetables from this site called Abel & Cole. I’ve only gotten it once so far, but it’s good so i’ll keep getting it i think. There is also a Farmer’s Market pretty close to where I live in Windsor too, but it’s only once a month and I forget about it mosts of the time, then miss it. Another thing I really like is this spicy butternut squash and sweet potato soup by a company called Covent Garden. It is just the best. And, I finally found a good creamer for my coffee. That challenge was just solved last week – I had tried everything in the store and I think this is new… it’s called “Breakfast Milk” – sort of a mix between milk and light cream. I sort of miss my vanilla creamer from home, but i’ve now at least found something that works…. these are the things that consume way too much of my time, but in the end make my day. it probably sounds pathetic, but i’ll tell you – moving to a new place where very little is the same and everything is new and confusing – it takes a while to find things i like.

I haven’t found a gym i like yet – they’re all really expensive and not really what i’m looking for. I miss my gym in Dana Point. it’s the only gym I’ve ever belonged to that i was truly motivated to go to. It’s probably a mistake to try to find the Windsor equivalent, but i’m still looking and asking around. As an alternative, I have a Wii game called “House Party”… i think it’s meant for kids actually, but I remember someone once telling me how his kids would play “Dance Dance Revolution” on their Wii or Playstation or whatever and come up all sweaty and exhausted and it sort of stuck with me. House Party is pretty much the same thing. I tried it for the first time today – you know, as an alternative to going to a gym (ridiculous, i know, but it’s better than being a couch potato). Oh my God. I don’t even have words to describe what a complete idiot i look like – I have a big mirror in my living room so i can see myself the whole time. it’s awful. But funny.

The cats are here – they made it over here alive and not too traumatized. They’re back to their old selves and if anything, maybe the tiniest bit mellower. Blue is actually sitting on the couch next to me right now which is new. They both generally keep their distance when it comes to napping. I put some stools by the front window and they jump up there and stare out the window a lot. Sometimes I feel like i’m being mean by not letting them go outside. Great. Just one more thing to feel guilty about.

Time to fix dinner -  spicy butternut squash soup. Good times. I may have to crack into one of my last remaining bottles of wine tonight too. I’m not going anywhere and I don’t really have any friends over here who are all that interested in wine, so I think that enjoying it by myself is a good idea. My brother told me how to download movies to my computer today so i have the new 007 movie to watch tonight. I missed it in the theaters and it isnt’ out on dvd yet, so i’m excited to see it.

I hope I can motivate myself to get out of the house tomorrow, even if it’s for just a couple hours. Cold weather makes it tough – now watch, it’ll rain. Oh well. I should at least get points for good intentions, right?

H

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