The long overdue New Zealand post

Hey, two years and three days ago me. My last post was on 12 May 2013. The way I wrote that date is the way it is written in New Zealand (day goes before month). I've been living here for 15 months now and have grown accustomed. Though it can still be confusing at times when you're writing it numerically. You have to write the date a lot in life, I find.

I'm currently waiting to hear back about a job I interviewed for last week that I'm excited about and that I'm praying will keep me here a while longer. It's been an interesting 15 months to say the least. I also feel like I'm just starting to really enjoy/settle into my life here, so I'm doing my darndest to hang on to that for a while. Life is short and all that jazz. If I can't...well I don't know. The possibility of having to start over is daunting, and quite frankly, unwelcome. I'm not ready to go yet. I hope God feels the same.  

I've been living in what's been dubbed "the coolest little capital in the world" for a little over a year now. Wellington is NZ's capital city - population 200 or so thousand. I liken it to a smaller Seattle with hints of Portland and San Francisco. Having lived in Seattle for 14 years prior, and SF being one of my fav cities, maybe you can see its appeal. 

Pic from my first visit to Wellington

That said, did I move clear across the world just to pick up in another city that reminded me of home? The answer is...I don't know. I'd only visited Auckland on a 4-day trip 6 months prior to making the move here, and I didn't know where I ultimately wanted to land before travelling the country some more. But, after travelling around the country for a couple months between house sitting, couch-surfing and taking a tour of the North and South Islands that involved sleeping in no less than 16 hostels, it became clear that I was incredibly ready for a place to call home.

Wellington was an overnight stop on the aforementioned tour, and after an afternoon spent exploring the city centre it became clear to me that I wanted to give living there a go. I'd also heard great things about it despite its other claim to fame as being one of the world's windiest cities - "Windy Welly" as it's colloquially known. 

Geographically, NZ is comprised of two islands - North and South - separated by the Cook Strait which connects the Tasman Sea and South Pacific Ocean. You can fly between them of course, or take a 3-hour ferry journey with gorgeous views if the weather Gods are in your favor. 

To be continued...

5 Things: Fall Update

I love the fall. (So does everybody though, right?) Weather-wise, Seattle has been having an amazing late summer—early fall and I am all the happier for it.

A few things I'd like to share, in no particular order.

1. I quit Facebook for a while last month. It was only like 25 days or something, but it was refreshing and I felt a lot more productive during that time. Sometimes I will become fixated on the page of a friend, looking at their old photos, catching up on their lives. Some of these "friends" however are people I never actually see in real life. Then before I know it an hour has passed but at least I know what "Shannon" from high school has been up to the past 4 years! Who cares, Facebook, you crazy time suck. However, whether I like it or not, Facebook has become a big part of our lives (over 1 bazillion users) and the way we communicate; birthday invitations, other invitations, random bits about what people are doing on the daily. Is it important to know what the girl I may never see again from high school is up to? Probably not. But my friend who's taking a trip for a few weeks and what they did on it? Probably.

2. I've been reading more books lately. It's admittedly taken a very long time for me to recover from all of the reading that was forced upon me in college, effectively killing my desire to read for pleasure. I used to be an avid reader and wrote a few short stories growing up, but I think school really did a number on me and I started to think of reading long books or novels as a chore. A friend's mom recommended I start with some light reads to get back into it. Over the summer I read The Jane Austen Book Club, The Fifty Shades trilogy (don't judge), skimmed Steinbeck A Life in Letters (this book is massive), Paris I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down, Paris in Love (I was on a Paris kick), Is Everyone Hanging out Without Me (a very silly, quick read by Mindy Kaling) and I just started Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn. I have Cloud Atlas (there's a movie coming out soon based on this) and What the Dog Saw by Malcolm Gladwell in the queue.

3. A few weeks ago I went to an open audition for the casting of supernumeraries for the upcoming production Beethoven's Fidelio at Seattle Opera. Everyone who went to the audition made the cut as they were casting for a large group of "townspeople" for the final scene. I've been to rehearsals a few times a week since, and opening night is this Saturday. I'm maybe onstage for five minutes, but it's fun being a part of the action with the chorus and principals. Here's a little video about what we're doing.

4. A friend is saying goodbye to Seattle in a couple weeks after finishing his Ph.D. (congrats, F!). He had a fun going away party on Saturday night. As much as I thought I was ready for him to leave, I'm really going to miss him.

5. I am planning an extended trip to New Zealand next year. More about that in the coming months.