Go carting, working and skiing, oh my ;)

I must confess that it's hard to remember what I've been up to for the last three weeks (in fact, it's hard to remember what I did last week) so please bear with me and I apologize in advance for the disjointed thoughts :)

The new team at the office and I went go karting two weeks ago.  It seems the team won $1,000 dollars in a talent contest a few months ago and they'd planned a team building event; go karting and dinner out afterwards.  I can't say that I finished in the top three but I had a great time racing around the track at 45-50km/hr.  We had dinner at a local restaurant near the office.  It seems that meals cooked in the claypots are the "thing" at this restaurant and so we all had claypot dinners...very yummy ;)  A cab ride home that night; I was the first at the office the next day ;)  Work, in general, has been going okay.  A lot more bureaucracy than I'm used to and a lot more wasted time chasing after people but I'm enjoying it and I'm working with some nice people.  The happy thing is that I get paid to go there, on a weekly basis, which is awesome!!  For those in the industry, AUM is shortened to FUM (Funds under management) and they actually say it as if it was a word...makes me laugh ;) 

The weather is slowly turning here and I've been happy with the lovely sunny days that happen to pop up periodically (imagine spring in Toronto, intermingled with more rain and grayness then in characteristic of Toronto).  I spent a day at the beach last Sunday, relaxing, people watching and enjoying the peacefulness of being near the water.  I even put my toes in the ocean, despite the lack of freezing here, it was damn cold ;)  You get these great sandwiches (and meat pies) at these cute little bakeries which make fantastic snacks!!  I'm not sure but I think that I've put on a few pounds since I arrived....

Two buddies and I went up skiing this past weekend to a place called Mt. Buller.  It's about 240km out of Melbourne, which, based on the speed limits, takes an arduous three and a quarter hours to traverse.  Upon arrival, we boarded up and took to the slopes or "the snow" as Aussie's call it.  I questionned on Friday why they called it "the snow" which invoked the question "What else you'd call it?!"....of course, when I explained that we had snow right outside our doors in winter, the individual realized that "going to the snow" would seem like a silly saying in such circumstances :-)  The conditions were comparable with Blue Mountain in mid-late March but I had a great time skiing with the gents.  It's funny how we appreciate things more when it's not readily available...  I may even go again which is hysterical as most who know me know that I'm definitely *not* an avid skier or boarder :)  Nicole - it felt odd being on the slopes without your lovely mauze ensemble that I always borrow ;)

The crew with whom I've hooked up with for trivia is really great!!!  They're a lot of fun and they're smart - we've come in second the last two weeks which involves winning pitchers of beer...not something that I'd ever complain about ;)  Generally, it has nothing to do with me or my efforts but I'm still happy to come along and drink and socialize :)  I'm out almost every night of the week, (don't worry Dad, I'm making a point of having at least one night in to relax and sleep well to avoid my "smokers" cough), meeting new people or connecting with those I have met previously which is great....as I've mentioned before, I feel very settled here in my short time frame ;) 

Some great Aussie expressions:
pash - a passionate kiss (Gene had to clarify after providing the definition for a pash, according to him, you don't pash your grandmother or your mother ;)
How'r u going? - A short form of "How are you doing?"...most interestingly, the correct response is "Going fine"
Ta - thanks (oddly, this annoys me slightly)
DFO - direct factory outlet...I think it's funny that "outlet" wasn't short enough for them
The "G" which is short for MCG which is short for the Melbourne Cricket Ground....as short as it can be ;)
root - to have sex...  Peter was telling me about how he howled when he came to Canada and found "Roots"...

Ash and I are discussing going to Tasmania for a week or two after my contract is over in October (he needs a holiday) and it seems like I should have one too ;)  Anyhow, I'll keep you posted if I end up there in a few weeks.

Miss you all back home ;)

Sarah

Anne-Marie - I've been meaning to e-mail you about their "grilled cheese sandwiches" :)  They butter the inside of the bread and then put it in a "griller" which effectively squishes the bread and melts the cheese at the same time.  Then, when it's appropriately squished, they offer to butter the outside for you and wrap it up in a bag.  I'm missing Piazza Manna...odd what you miss ;)  I was also missing ice cream up and until a few days ago when I bought some.  It was almost two months without it....withdrawal was getting bad :)