Hello! This is my first time to ever officially "blog," so hang with me as I learn the ropes. I know, I know; I am getting a late start. That way, you'll have no doubt that it is really me writing this, in case you were in doubt. However, it is true that we're almost halfway through our adventure at this point, so I have some catch up entries to write.
I think I'll start with our living arrangements. We have settled in here pretty well. We're really enjoying our rental house. It is about half the size of our A2 house with 3 bedrooms, 1 shower, wood floors, high ceilings, and closer quarters with neighbors. The furnishings are sparse; we bought a few used items from the friend of a friend here and a couple things from IKEA. The girls have to share a room, which I think they like as they have shoved their beds together to make one big bed in the middle of the room. We're also negotiating life with just 1 car. David occasionally braves the buses here. We enjoy being able to walk more in the course of our day-to-day lives. The girls walk to and from their school, 1 km. 1 way, and there is a shopping area about 7 minutes walk the other direction. I've joined Curves to keep up with some work outs, and that is a 5 minute walk.
One thing we've learned from this scaled back lifestyle is that we don't need all our "stuff" to be happy. We are really enjoying this minimalist lifestyle. There's somthing to be said for having fewer belongings to care for and being able to vacuum your entire house in 20 minutes. The greatest drawback of this living arrangement is the closer quarters with neighbors. We have a tap dancer to the south of us with a propensity to leave the windows open and a small sometimes yappy dog to the north. We're getting used to these noises now, and compared to the spontaneous and rather inelegant squawking of passing cockatoos, they're nothing. However, David and I do wonder just what neighbors can hear of our arguments, not that we ever argue. . . .
To come: In order to provide a more accurate picture of life here in Adelaide, Australia, the following topics will need to be addressed: driving in Adelaide, attempts to get a cup of decaf coffee at Adelaide coffee shops, spider encounters, reflections on exactly what constitutes this language"English," the Anglican church we're attending here, kids' transitioning to schools, our 2 week trip to New Zealand. . . . So, stay tuned. ..
2 comments:
I'm staying tuned for sure...I'm so excited that one of my favorites has started a blog! I don't think I want my babe to read this blog, though, because we already fight with him enough over all of the stuff he wants to pitch. (Not that we ever fight....) I would like a more minimalist lifestyle, too, but it is so hard to part with existing stuff that has been given to you, you have spent money on, or that has sentimental value!!! Maybe we should just leave it all and come live next door to you in Australia...
Well, the entry was too long for me to include a couple other ideas, one of which is that this more minimal lifestyle is probably unsustainable. I had that thought, but now I can't remember exactly why. . .Probably related to hospitality. I like having people over and want them to feel comfortable. And yes, items of sentimental value are important to have around too. We brought a few with us to help us feel more at home, like each bed here has one of my mom's handmade quilts on it.
You could come live in the tap dancer's house!
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