these days.

i've been finding it more difficult to blog as the days play out our stint in melbourne. it's partially because my writing has been uninspired, and partially because i feel life as i currently know it has nothing on the past six months and is therefore a drag. i am trying to change/correct this.

five days a week, on my way to work, i walk past this window with a creepy manequin in the corner. i know it's there, but i still get scared every time. every. time. i think it has to do with the fact that it's still dark and i have watched far too many scary movies. i also have three shadows on said walk, because of the positioning of the street lights.. they have made me jump on occasion. i am such a wuss.

when i get to work, there is a stereo in the closet by the grill that plays radio hits while i work. i enjoy music to pass the time however i have quickly discovered that their station of choice plays 3 songs, repeatedly. they are: the 'new' kings of leon song which was great until the zillionth time.. some techno crap.. and some song about san fransisco that i unfortunately know all the words to, because there are five of them. this begins at 6am and continues throughout my 7.5 hour shift.

usually when i get home i shower, eat lunch, and either call canada or take a nap. the afternoon is spent at the library, a park, or hanging at home with or without the roomies. week nights i'm in bed around 10. weekends 10:30.. (it's tough abruptly changing sleep habits!) on occasion my phone will ring. it's usually stacy or melissa asking if i would like to meet them at the library, a park, or at home. we've found a few good second-hand shops which tend to slip into the agenda every now and then.

last night i went to see attack in black and moneen at a little venue not far from our place. also, today chris mccrae joined the melbourne network and we found ourselves wandering around the soundwave grounds watching music by the likes of minus the bear, every time i die, say anything, new found glory, saves the day and such.. we arrived late and i missed an acoustic set from none other than mike herrera. i have let the family down, but mostly just myself.

regardless, these last few days shake routine which is nice.

innings and outings.

the misery signals show sunday night was so much fun. really great to see a familiar face and watch some good music.. and it worked out so well, because of anywhere they could've been playing in the city, the venue was a 10 minute walk from our place. bonus.

getting back into the groove of work this week wasn't bad at all, until wednesday hit. tuesday night we went out for cheap movies and watched "he's just not that into you." we had some good laughs and overall enjoyed it. complete chick flick, but i'm sure that's obvious from the title. so, half way to the weekend and waking before the sun started to wear me down. i don't think i did a thing that evening except call home, went to bed early, and re-fueled for the rest of the week. now the problem is i can hardly make it past 10pm on weekends and i'm absolutely spent.

friday evening we met up with heidi and clare for indian food at a little restaurant a few blocks from their place. a bottle of wine, good company, and good food. recipe for a fantastic evening.

and yesterday, stacy's friend jesse and her boyfriend luke came to stay with us for the night. originally from kenora, she's been living out here for over a year and is going to school close to adelaide. we went out for food and drinks with them last night and are just gearing up for pancakes and a movie. best day ever.

life in general.

first thing's first: neither stacy nor i are working for the other balwin at present. it is for the best. stacy and melissa are continuing into '09 with more english teaching; both are tutoring mostly korean students, choosing the hours, and are getting paid a decent wage. melissa is also working a few shifts at a cafe downtown called "schnitz". i myself work monday to friday at a little place a 10 minute walk from our house.. it's a cafe slash sandwich shop slash burger and springroll joint slash pasta and noodle lunch extraordinaire, ran by a chinese couple. i am up at 5am every week day.. and ssslowly adjusting into a morning routine. it's pretty killer.

tuesday was stacy's birthday, and instead of going out and doing something exciting.. we spent the evening in our room, in bed, watching 'friends' on her laptop. it was phenomenal. i was asleep by 10. we are planning a proper celebration for the near future.

yesterday was valentine's day and so the girls got all dolled up in sweet dresses we second-hand bought this week, went for a vietnamese feast, and out for some drinks. our first social excursion as a trio since we've got to the city, almost a month ago! about time.

and tonight misery signals are in town so we are going to check out the show. i'm pumped.

the 5th baldwin brother.

over the weekend we met up with clare and heidi, two girls we spent a lot of time with while in sihanoukville, cambodia! they're living here now, in a suburb just over so we're looking forward to spending more time with them. it was great reminiscing on life in cambodia and mutual friends whereabouts.. also, on sunday night i got to see the hold steady for free. kind of great.

we were employed on monday morning, and as of tuesday afternoon were once again unemployed. for the first time in my life i quit a job for reasons other than changing cities. [it's kind of a great feeling, but i'll try not to make a habit out of it..] all three of us got jobs at a company called zest, campaigning for a charity called amnesty international.. we stood on the street for 8 hours a day trying to get people to sign up for at least two years to a charity i knew very little about besides the few lines i memorized in order to get other people interested.. basically, i became that one person everyone hates.. the one you try and dodge while you're walking down the sidewalk. i heard every excuse in the book, some familiar, some just impressive. the reasons for leaving were simple: morals were shot, i felt the company didn't have the charity's best intentions at heart.. and, i couldn't go to work every day knowing how much i would dislike myself had i been any other person walking by me.. so, i quit.

today stacy and i had a trial run at a restaurant just a few blocks down. our boss is an exact duplicate of alec baldwin. he's italian, and from first impressions, he's not very nice. although i have to assume, because he spoke less than 5 words to either of us.. so, stacy starts tonight at 6 and i'm in tomorrow at 6. should be interesting, hopefully it's good. (if not, i'll just quit!)