1/14/2014

First day in private practice. I didn't actually do anything because my provider number hasn't come through. Instead I learned the computer system and policies and got to leave early. I used my time to take Damien out to lunch and to get my iPad fixed, it had gotten cracked coming back from my new years get away. Then I tried to go to bed early because 2 early morning in a row is just too many. 

1/13/2015

Today was my first day of work. It was fun but I had to keep catching myself and not saying that I was a student. I started today in a nursing home in Altona. It's about 40 minutes door to door. The nursing staff was very helpful as I was trying to learn patient names. It's not hard work and the residents have the ability to be so inspiring. After work I went climbing. Our climbing group is getting bigger and I climbed with a new friend who is very technically good. I worked really hard but wasn't hitting the same numbers that I'm used to. I blame work for making my feet sore before I even started. 

1/12/2015

I had my ice cream party on Saturday it was fun. The final flavour list was: hokey pokey, party cake, mint chocolate cookie, cardamom&cinamon, carrot habanero, avocado coconut, strawberry balsamic, cherry vanilla, coffee crunch, mango sorbet and sweet corn. 

Other than that I have been playing power grid quite a bit. Damien got me 4 more maps for my birthday so we have played all 4. I have won 3 of them :) 

Damien and I also went on a nice 21km run yesterday in the heat. It was hard but rewarding. Today I've just been wrapping up paperwork before I start work tomorrow!

1/8/2015

Yesterday I had a big day for my birthday. I got up early and Damien and I went to peninsula hot springs south of mornington. It's about an hour long drive away. The weather was quite warm so the hot springs were relaxing and the cold pools were refreshing. Next we went to lunch at a German/Czech restraunt. It was lovely. Then down to point Napean the eastern side of the heads of port Phillip bay. We ran the 2.8km to the end in 100degree heat. At the end we went into the tunnels which were cool and refreshing. I flew my kite off the end for about 5 minutes until I tried to move. We ran back to the car where we enjoyed water and air conditioning on full blast. From there we headed to SunnyRudge strawberry farm to pick some strawberries. They limit you to 1 box, so we each got one. The farm also had fantastic strawberry ice cream. On our way back to Melbourne we stopped at authur's seat to admire the view and have a rest. Next we went to a rose garden in mornington. There was a large variety and they were all beautiful. We also stopped for gelato in mornington and I got rum rasin in a sprinkle cone.  We got back to Melbourne late and made made ice cream for my birthday party on Saturday. 

Today we had a quiet day. Chores, errands, and making more ice cream. I submitted my Visa application and Damien got a recruitment call. So pretty good day. We also moved Damien's fridge inside so that there is more room for ice cream inside. 

1/4/2015

I am trying to get things organised but I keep finding that people are either still on holidays or just getting back so paperwork is a bit backed up. Today I did a bit of shopping and saw the hobbit. I also made birthday cake ice cream since my birthday is Wednesday.

1/3/2015

Yesterday we biked back to Melbourne. Damien went with me and we took the long route to Drouin which was 83km. It was very hot, around 96F so I went pretty slowly. We took our first stop 6km in where we went to the state coal mine. Being from West Virginia, I was under impressed but my friends really liked it and it was interesting to contrast the two types of mining management. After the mine we continued on for around 30km to Bena when we were hoping for a stop but there wasn't anything there. All we found was a blinds shop where the owner was kind enough to give us some water. We continued on 10km to Powong where we got food and stood in the freezer to cool down. It was magical. After refilling water bottles we got back on the road and continued to Drouin. We got in around 7:30pm and had dinner at an Italian cafe before catching the 8:45pm train home. When I got in the door at 11:30 I turned on the air conditioning, took a shower, and fell asleep. 

Today was a bit more relaxed. I woke up and went to pick up my luggage from Dan who had brought it back for me. We had lunch and helped him clean out his garden before heading home. This afternoon I skyped and talked to friends from the US. Then I organised a birthday party/ice cream eating contest for Saturday and started making ice cream. Mmmm

12/1/2015

New Year's Day and our last day at the beach. We were up early and made poached eggs and sausage for breakfast. Then we had a round of ticket to ride, which I won. Followed by a trip to the beach where we played ultimate frisby. It started to rain around 2 so Dan and I went for an ocean swim and a run while everyone else went back to the house. Ange and Dave went home this evening and the rest of us played an epic game of 500 lasting almost 20 rounds with scores ranging from -480 to 539 and then finally ending when one team hit -500. 

Then we went back to the beach for a final swim and Damo and I enjoyed the sunset. For dinner we had a great assortment of leftovers and played powergrid. Then early bed to allow for early breakfast and packing.