The Blog

I still have not had a waffle yet. Call me crazy, but I just haven't been in the mood when I walk by one of the many little waffle stands that are on the streets. I see people with their waffle wrapped in paper happily munching away and I haven't thought to myself, "wow...I really want what they have." So--I am waiting until I am in the mood, I want my first waffle to really delight my tastebuds and to really satisfy my stomach. Yesterday nor today was that day.

Weekends. I have my weekends free from 10am on Saturday till 5pm on Sundays. This gives me time to wander the city, to sleep, to watch french television, and to meet people. Yesterday I walked a great deal. How far I am not really sure. I have decided I need to invest in a pedometer (is that the right word?) so that I can track my distances that way when I come home in the evenings I can feel accomplished and healthy. I can also brag to the few people that I talk to about how far I walked. Back on point though, I walked and did some shopping and some sitting. I just like to sit and watch people and write in my journal my initial thoughts about people and things. One thing I noticed about the cars here is that some of the cars have strange interior upholstry. At home, I have actually thought before how dull our car upholstry can be, but being here and seeing some crazily patterned car upholstry I realize that might just be the best move to keep it plain and simple. Crazy car upholstry can be outdated and look tacky. It's a much better idea to make car upholstry plain and if you want something jazzy go out and buy some seat covers. ....those are the kind of stupid thoughts I have while sitting and watching.

I am still usually tired for a good part of the day. I guess maybe it is still a little bit of jet lag. It is tough work to keep up with kids all day though. Playing kitchen can be draining. Probably not the best idea to walk all over on my day off and wear my poor feet out. I have actually used the public transportation, but I prefer to walk every where because you see more that way and notice things you wouldn't notice on the metro or the bus. Once I get walking out of my system I will start using the public transportation more and venture further out.

So, I think I am realizing that I have worked in an office for far too long. My last two jobs have been doing office work (may not sound like a lot, but I am young and have not had that many jobs yet). Office work is not as crazy as child care. A major adjustment needs to take place. Files never talked back. Excel spreadsheets and publisher items just waited for my every click and command. Drama of the office was somewhat ignorable (particularly as a student employee). Ah...children. They have lungs, strong little lungs. They have nails, teeth, and hair. They can tap into your heart and than play with your emotions. Needless to say...I am still getting the hang of my new job. During the day I hang out with the little one and we play ball and kitchen--both things I can handle pretty well. I had a fondness for plastic food in my day too, so I can understand. He takes a three hour nap in which I get to read, write, eat, and watch TV. And then....the others come home. The house becomes alive with yelling, running, crying, and excitement. This will take some getting used to. By this time of the day my energy is spent and I just want to eat my dinner and escape from the world. I must push onward though. And so I try...and now I am needed downstairs.

Bonjour!

Here I am in my little apartment at the top of the house in Brussels, Belgium. Usually I am looking at the 'wall of hats', so I thought I would try a few on every now and then to share with you. Today is Saturday, my first day off, but it has been pouring down rain so I went to lunch with the family and walked around a little bit until I could no longer handle my unbrella getting blown about. I still have a lot more exploring to do--I am hoping that tomorrow will be sunnier or at least dryer. This afternoon we are going to a music shop to look at guitars for Daphne (the youngest daughter) and I hope to purchase a guitar stand for my guitar.

I haven't felt much like writing since I have been here and really don't feel much like writing at the moment. I want to keep everyone up to date though and since I am not much more in the mood for e-mailing I thought this would be the easiest way.

The sun just came out! The weather is very unpredictable here.

I have arrived. So far so good. I made it safely to Brussels on Tuesday...they asked me no questions at customs except, "Is Brussels your final destination for the day?" I answered yes and they let me through with a very tiny stamp on my passport.





This is the bed in my apartment. Notice the window.

Well, I'm ready to go. My flight doesn't leave until this evening, so I am just sorta trying to clear all my thoughts and finish up last minute things before I have to leave for the drive to the airport. It's strange to think that tomorrow this time I will be in Belgium. I will try to keep this updated and let people know I made it safely.