I realised it’s been quite some time since I wrote a blog so figured I should catch everyone up on life here in Australia. Like most people around the world, life is pretty simple these days and we are staying pretty close to home. Since my university moved to on-line teaching in March, I have been working from home. Rob helped me to set up a pretty fabulous workspace.
Plus, my office overlooks our gorgeous backyard so I get to spend my day looking at palm trees and listening to kookaburras.
I think I could be happy working from home from now on, though I will admit, I do sometimes miss the casual lunch catch-ups with my wonderful colleagues.
Since lockdown started, Rob has been walking to and along the beach every day. I’m a bit jealous that he gets to see that glorious view daily, but I’m lucky enough to be able to take it in every Saturday and Sunday. I find the sea breeze and sand on my feet really grounds me and reminds me too of why we made the choice to move here.
We’ve had a few things to celebrate these past few months. I turned 45 early in July. It’s so crazy to realise I’m that old already! Rob had been planning a trip away to celebrate, but obviously that plan was quashed. So instead, he spoiled me with a fabulous meal that included my favourite wine and a homemade cheesecake.
At the end of July, we celebrated 18 years of marriage and our three year anniversary of being here in Australia. It’s hard to believe it’s been three years already! We figured the double occasion was worthy enough to break out our dwindling stash of Caesar mix. If these international travel bans keep up, we may just have to start importing it!
We have also been having a lot of bonfires these past few months. We’ve had rain a little more regularly here (still not enough, but way more than our first few years here) so we’re feeling more comfortable having contained fires in the yard when the winds are low. It’s winter here so the nights have been a bit cooler so perfect temperatures to sit by the fire. It feels a lot like August and September evenings in Canada when camping.
We also learned to play a new game – backgammon. Thank you YouTube for explaining the rules! I remember my dad playing this game when I was a kid but for whatever reason, I never took time to learn. It’s been a fun way to spend some of our evenings.
So as you can see, life has been good, but not exactly newsworthy. We haven’t yet returned to going out to restaurants and cafes. Even though we don’t have any cases where we live, it just doesn’t feel like a necessary thing to do, especially when Rob continues to spoil us with his amazing culinary skills.
And of course, his bartending skills are as good as ever.
Cheers to everyone back in Canada. We think of you often and send you our love. Stay safe x