New Zealand: week 5- July 10-16

Friday July 10

Emerald actually came home early from camp and since all of us would be busy on Saturday, the two of us combined forces and got the house work done. I went to the store and it was really nice out…until I started home, and then it was noticeably cooler. We had brinner (breakfast for dinner), which is one of my favorite meals to have when I'm over at the Prewitt home in Little Rock. We even made banana and walnut pancakes like I have at the Prewitt's. I'd also like to point out that not all potatoes are made equal…I found this out when I attempted to make hash-browns. I ended up letting Emerald take over cooking the bacon since every time it popped I would shriek.

Saturday July 11

One month, ALREADY. Wow. I started my first shift at Sal's today. I only worked until 15:00 and it went by so quickly. It didn't get that busy, but it was a nice shift. I don't think I really have anything I should be afraid of like I thought I would. I mean, the menu is pretty small and straightforward, as is the POS and food procedures. I took the bus home and actually beat the family home which I was surprised.  I was in the middle of making cheese biscuits like Jasmine made once before when they finally got home. We had minced meat pie which I don't remember having before now, but it was good. I'm not sure if Suz remembered me saying I love anything lemon or if it was luck, but she brought home little lemon meringue pies…I love lemon treats! We watched Exodus and all agreed it was an interesting take on the story. I found it amusing the actor playing Moses (a Hebrew) is named Christian. Haha.

Sunday July 12

Today I worked 11-16:00. It was a bit slower today than the day before, but we always find ways to keep busy so that's good. I was in such a hyper mood, and even more so because of the music we get to listen to. Yesterday it was Janet Jackson station on Pandora; today it was Kanye (but like more popular songs rather than rappy songs…if that makes sense because not everybody is into rap like me hah) and The Strokes on Pandora. Totally grooving all day long. I'm really into my book because I spent an hour reading before bed. I'm looking forward to finishing because I plan to watch the movie…it's been so long! Memories. I was considering going to a concert (Yellowcard and Mayday Parade), but it was really more than I was wanting to pay for a band I like but not in love with if that makes any sense. Maybe I'll go to see The Used when they are in South East Asia in the next couple of months. We'll see what happens.

Monday July 13

After spending the morning half of my day chillin', I decided I'd go on a little walk and then make my way to the grocery store. Really what I wanted to do was go to this second-hand shop where I'd noticed a cute dress that I passed by one day while riding the bus. It was at this shop where I've found some cute dresses, but they're proud of their used clothes (pricey) so I passed on that dress. Today was no different. The dress I saw from the bus turned out to be ugly. Oh, well. I didn't need a dress anyway. I popped into a few of these cheap as* stores and kind of laughed. You know those cheap, kinda crap quality, but it'll do in a pinch things you buy on Amazon? That's basically what these stores are. I was pretty excited, however, to find the phone case I'm currently using for about the same as I paid on Amazon. Woo! After fiddlin' around in those stores, I headed to the market to buy stuff to make for dinner. I have been wanting to make lemon chicken with green beans and potatoes. My friend, Amber, made this a long time ago and I loved it. I found a recipe online and the comments weren't that great for it so I made a few adjustments (didn't add as much lemon, and included mushrooms and almond slices). Turned out really well! I also tried to make a brownie from scratch. It was mostly sugar & butter and cooked kind of weird (a bit burnt on top, crispy on edges, and soggy middle). Maybe I didn't mix it right. Next time.

(*you may have noticed an asterisk by "as" earlier. This was not a cute was of censoring "ass" or an abbreviation for "as shit" like I assumed it meant…this is just a way of describing something. Cool as, big as, stupid as, and so on with out a follow up word. I guess you can think of it like when people say "wanna go with?" And the sentence ends with "with" and doesn't indicate with who or whom. I was going to mention that in my month review but forgot.)

Tuesday July 14

I forgot what working longer than 4-5 hour shifts were like. In order for me to be at work by 11:15, I have to leave the house by 9:45 so I have time to walk to the bus stop & have buffer room in case it shows up a bit early. I get to work just before 11 so that's good. It was a pretty good day. Worked with a girl I hadn't worked with yet & she was friendly. I worked until 18:00 and had to be at the bus stop by 18:15. I'm sitting there minding my own business in the back of the bus near the rear doors when this smelly weirdo gets on. He sits behind me and whispers at me, "excuse me, hey, do you have some change?" Ugh. I partially make eye contact and say, "no, sorry," and start reading again. He keeps it up for a moment or two longer but I just ignore him. Inside, I'm secretly having a paranoid mild panic attack thinking he's probably got a knife and is gonna stab me. I know, this isn't rational, but you never know. Lesson learned: at night, ride in the front, closer to the driver. He hopped around from seat to seat in the back and pulled out this bag of what I thought might be pee, but later asked another passenger what they thought it was and their answer seemed more likely- wine. Dude even started smoking on the bus just before his stop. I was just glad he got off the bus before me. Oh, the joys of public transportation.

Wednesday July 15

I had an all day shift today 11:00-21:00, with an hour break and not including the hour and a half meeting after we closed. I think I can now say that I have worked with everybody employed there and I like them all. Today was easy going and busy because it was "Wing Wednesday," meaning that you can buy one large order of wings and get the second one free. During the day it was a nice pace, but at night it ramped up and got a bit hectic. But we made it and sold out of wings right near closing, so yay us! We had a store meeting and I got to meet one of the owners of the Sal's franchise. I'm a nerd and I enjoy meetings because it gets everyone on the same page. If you don't have a team that works together, then you're going to fail. This is a new store, and I hope it succeeds like the other stores in Auckland. It's doing very well so far and with this team I feel like it absolutely will.

Thursday July 16

What a week! I forgot to mention that I got my first paycheck! It was only for the hours I worked Saturday and Sunday, but hey, still exciting! Soon I won't be dipping into my bank accounts back home and can start relying solely on what I have here. I had intentions to go out today. I even got ready and everything…walked out the door…and it was sprinkling. Womp-womp. I should've just gone because it never actually rained. Oh, well. I ended up making some cinnamon rolls instead. I finished my book, so after dinner we were talking about watching a movie so naturally I suggested "Friend Green Tomatoes." Ah, to relive memories of my favorite movie. However, I'm sure it goes without saying…the book was better.

Sorry there's no pictures this week. Since I'm off this weekend, perhaps I'll go out and take some for next week's update. Yet another week to be proud of :) Here's a song by a band from New Zealand called Avalanche City. It's a really beautiful song, so take a listen. Enjoy!