Easter Events

Easter was quite an event this year. My house decided we were going to prepare an Easter brunch detailed with an Easter egg hunt and festive hats. I was in charge of the lamb roast which sounded a little intimidating, but I was willing to take it on. It actually was a lot easier than I anticipated. I prepared the roast, popped it in the oven, went on a run and showered just in time to pull it out of the oven ready to be carved. It ended up being very delicious. Along side of our lamb we had potatoes, deviled eggs, fruit salad and bread bunnies that Martina and I prepared the night before. We had some friends join us in our party and it turned out to be a lovely time.

That night we were invited over to my friend Andrew's parents house (The Wrisleys) for dinner. They were kind enough to invite all of his orphan friends (people without families around) over for an Easter dinner (4 orphans in all). We had an exceptional meal (which I was still full from earlier in the day) that his mom prepared. While I was in food comma we watched the opening game of Major League Baseball, Yankees vs Red Sox. Watching baseball has become so much more interesting since Nik has been in my life. This was the first MLB game I have watched since we have been together and I really enjoyed it. 

Even though I was away from my loved ones, I was able to have a great day with my new friends in my new life. 

New Roomies

Kim and Sean are the couple I live with. He owns the house and works for DeMarini Baseball Bats (a little ironic) as an engineer. He was just in China for work, so today was actually the first day I met him. He was so kind to bring a couple scarfs back for me. I couldn't believe how generous that was and unexpected. Sean has a dog named Abby, she is a Weimerheimer. She is a cutie and has so far gotten along well with Wanda. They were even playing the other night, it was so adorable. Abby was a little concerned when I moved in. I think I took her room, so she would stand in my room and give out little barks to let me know she wasn't so happy. I think she has already adapted because she now will just hangout without any concern. Kim is a student at Lewis and Clark and will be finishing her undergrad this semester. She works at Safeway part-time downtown and has some interesting stories to tell about her job. She is also from Sun Valley, ID, believe it or not. So far, both have been so welcoming and easy to get along with.

                      

Martina is my other roommate. She is from Austria and is finishing up her graduate degree this semester at University of Portland (the school Nik got his undergrad at). She knows about 5 languages including German. She has been so helpful with the move and has really made an effort to make me feel like part of the house.

The roomies eat a lot of meals together and I have to say this is something I am getting used to. I am so used to just worrying about me, that I don't think about the rest of the house. I keep things simple. If I am hungry I eat the easiest thing (usually a Clifbar and maybe some fruit). Martina was appalled at this and said that I am not allowed to have more than one Clifbar a day. She makes everything from scratch and sets the table for all the meals. I really do appreciate this. She has already taught me how to cook so many things, I am thinking I might have to kick the Clifbar diet. Besides, I don't want to be the bad roommate and not participate in the household gatherings. I really could not have asked for a better setup.

Gotta Love Skype

Since Nik and I are obviously not able to see each other for quite sometime we have had to resort to other forms of communication. Welcome Skype!! I know most of you have heard of it and probably use it, but for me this is really the first time I have had to use it as a main form of communication. Skype is video conferencing done over the internet. Truly I don't know how people did long distance before there was such a thing. It has made the transition much easier being able to see each other everyday.

Nik is showing me his new Untouchables hat

Don't get me wrong I would much rather have Nik here, but since I don't have a choice I will take the video. The other day I was talking to Nik and he mentions that I have to remove the picture behind me. In my new room there is an Andy Warhol painting of a gun on the wall (it came with the room). When I am talking to Nik, he sees the gun in the background, but from his perspective it looks like the gun is pointing at my head. He didn't like that, so he asked me to remove the painting. My intention was to remove it from the beginning (not a huge gun fan), but when he said that, it was promptly removed. We laughed about it, but the gun had to go.

Kinder Eggs

Before Nik left, his mom gave me a chocolate egg from Germany. They are called Kinder Eggs. Inside there is a little toy and sometimes there are toys that you have to put together. The toys can be very intricate, so they are not allowed in the US due to being a choking hazard. Kim, my roommate said, " Kids in the US aren't smart enough to handled them." That made me laugh. Since his family has traveled all over, they had brought some back from their last trip and Gail happened to have one for me and Nik. I opened mine on the way up to Portland. The chocolate was delicious, but I was a little disappointed that my toy didn't do anything cool. It was just an egyptian princess holding a pot of something. I did, however, find it kind of sentimental that Nik and I opened the egg together and he was in fact going to Germany soon. I decided to keep the little thing, just as a reminder of that time.

Well, this morning I was talking to Nik online and he holds up this same little toy. For a second, I thought he must have grabbed it before he left because he wanted it, but in fact he found it in the house he is living in. I couldn't believe we have the same one. There are so many of these toys the odds of having the same one is rare. Now it means so much more to me. He was sweet by saying, "It means good fortune and safe travels for us." I think he was just indulging me, but it was very sweet and a huge coincedence.

Btw.... Nik is doing very well in Germany. He is all settled in and loves his new place. He has his own room and he shares a house with 4 other guys, including Danny (his American teammate). They practice Tuesday through Friday, coach teenage kids Tuesday through Thursday and play a double header every Saturday. He had his first game the first day he got there. He caught the entire game and hit 2 doubles and made a run in. I am so very proud of you Nik.

Check out his blog at Baseball, Beers and Bratwurst

New Home

Yesterday I moved into my new home. I have three roommates, a couple (Sean and Kim) and another girl from Austria (Martina). Funny thing is Martina and Kim speak German, so they might be able to help me with my speaking skills. They are all great people and very welcoming. The house is in North Portland or St. Johns neighborhood. It is a cute up and coming neighborhood with delicious coffee shops, fun places to hangout, many parks to take Wanda and friends near by.

The great thing about this living situation is they do family dinners many times a week and they cook everything from scratch. Also, everything they eat is organic or grass fed. This is going to be a great set up for me, because then I will have the chance to make new friends and feel like I am a part of something in Portland. Yesterday, I wasn't sure what to expect when I moved in, but it turned out to be a fantastic day. Martina went with me to Ikea, so I could get some sheets, hangers and other little things, then we met up with our friend Wanda (pronounced Vunda) and took the dogs for a short run/walk through Cathedral Park. Cathedral Park is under the St. Johns Bridge. It is beautiful and we were lucky to have the nice weather.

Afterwards, Martina and I made dinner. We made chicken stuffed with spinach, goat cheese, sun dried tomatoes and garlic. She also showed me how to make a delicious garlic hummus. Our meal was fantastic and it was definitely a great way to start off at a new place.

So many new things, it is weird to think about how different my life is. Things are coming together though, one step at a time. 

And... He's off

Nik took off yesterday morning from Portland airport. He and his buddy Danny met at the airport at 5 am. Danny played with Nik in college and he is going over with Nik as a pitcher for The Untouchables. The plan was the guys were supposed to fly to Chicago, Toronto, Vienna, Dusseldorf, then take a bus to Paderborn. Well... they got to Chicago which was supposed to be a quick stop and were kicked off the plane. Their flight had been canceled to Toronto. Yikes!! So, Nik spent the day in Chicago trying to figure out how they were going to get to Paderborn. Finally, I am sure with help from his mom, she owns a travel company, he found a flight to London, then onto Dusseldorf. He should be arriving sometime today.

Nik and Danny practicing before their departure

I on the other hand did not do so well with the farewell. I was really bummed to see him go. I will be just fine though, I have some really exciting things to look forward to. I am just waiting until they are set in stone, before I announce them on my blog. So far I am loving my new city, Wanda is too. I should have an update soon on my new home, school and a possible job. 

Moving to Portland

The time has come for me to move on from Reno. That's right, I am moving to Portland. This has been something I have been working towards for quite awhile. I packed up my little Subaru with as much stuff as it could hold, minus a space for Wanda, Nik and his gear for Germany. As you can imagine I didn't have much space. No worries though, I plan on getting situated (find a place to live, a job and get school squared away) before I head back down and pick up the rest of my stuff.

Poor Nik and I have had sinus infections and he lost his voice, so we have been two sickly people trying to get healthy. The funny thing is, whenever he laughs it sounds so funny, I start to laugh, then he keeps laughing and basically we can't stop. So, most of our ride up to Portland yesterday consisted on these uncontrollable laughter attacks. In other words, we had a great ride. Also, along the way, we spotted a gigantic rainbow. I have never seen anything like it. This rainbow was touching ground about 50 feet from the road and about 300 yards on the other side of the freeway. I like to think it was a good omen for my move. Or, maybe I am just going to find a pot of gold.

For the time being, I am staying at the Little's house. Gus and Colleen live in Beaverton in a great home, with their new puppy Ruby. Ruby absolutely loves Wanda so they had a great time of wrestling when we first arrived. Nik and I headed downtown for dinner at our favorite restaurant, Jake's Famous Crawfish, and had a late happy hour meal. We are really doing a great job enjoying every last minute together, and it truly has been a blast.

I am very excited to be up here. I love this city and am looking forward to calling this my home. The ocean and Mt Hood are an hour away. The architecture and vibe of the city are incredible. It is a bike and environmentally friendly city and the culture is very kick back and easy going. All of these attributes are right down my alley. My main goal while I am here is to finish my undergrad and hopefully my masters. I will keep everyone posted on everything that is happening (I am sure there is going to be a lot to write about in the near future).