After the conference today, I set off with the aim of getting to the electronics store when they re-opened after the 3 hour lunch break/siesta all the stores take every day. I had a lovely walk, but unfortunately, once I got to the store, I realized they (like many other stores) close at 1 pm on Saturday - and don't reopen 'til Monday. That's right - closed Saturday afternoon, and all day Sunday. I am already imagining that this will make running errands tricky when I have to get everything done after work or Saturday mornings! Anyhow, I decided to console myself with some gelato (there are great, plentiful gelato shops all over the city, particularly in El Centro and Parte Vieja). On my way to the gelato shop, I happened upon one of the fabled Chinese shops - the best way I can describe this is a combination between a dollar store and a very, very small Walmart. Basically, they have everything you could ever want for your home, for really, really cheap. Of course the quality is also terrible, but if you need a few things, it doesn't matter so much. My haul today: two trash cans (kitchen + bathroom), broom, dustpan, garbage bags, dish soap, hand soap (X2), storage for my silverware (my apartment has no drawers in the kitchen - design oversight, but now I have a place to put them on the counter), another storage container for the rest of my kitchen utensils (cooking spoons, grater, kitchen shears, etc.), a hamper, 12 regular hangers and 2 pant hangers that hold 4 pairs of pants each (not nearly enough, but makes my closet slightly more organized), a basket with suction cups for the shower, two dish towels, a cheap hairdryer (I'll get a real one once I can get to the electronics shop) and a cutting board. The apartment was supposed to come with a cutting board, but didn't - and I couldn't deal any more without vegetables or being able to cut meat (plus since the counters are brand new, I didn't want to destroy them by cutting stuff up on them). Overall, I feel better about my place. I was able to actually put things away which makes me feel a little bit more like I live here.
I also took out the trash and the recycling (thrilling, I know), but it's very easy and on the way to my bus stop. Basically, there are four dumpsters - glass, plastic/metal, paper/cardboard/styrofoam, and regular trash. The only thing that needs to be bagged is your regular trash - so I carried all the cardboard from the boxes that all my pots in pans came in when I moved in, and dragged them out to the recycling. Not having a closet of trash also helps with the whole "feeling lived in" thing.
I think one thing that's daunting about this place is the sheer quantity of storage space I have. I have never lived in a place where I have so little stuff and so much room to put it! I have a whole closet that is nearly empty - more than half of my entryway "cupboard" is empty - though I might move my shoes in there. I have whole cabinets in the kitchen that are empty, as is the entire entertainment system. I need to either start accumulating things or find cheap/easy ways to decorate ASAP. The empty, white space is part of what makes me crazy.
After I got home from the shopping/trash adventure, I was feeling pretty sorry for myself. I had several hours to fill before an acceptable bedtime, and the time 'til I start work on Monday seemed never ending. I also found out that my direct supervisor will be out of the center Tuesday and Wednesday. Since I'm going to get my residence card Monday (fingers crossed my rental company comes through with the lease!), I probably won't be at the office 'til late afternoon, if I go up at all. This means I probably won't be starting new work 'til after the holiday. I have plenty of old work to finish up, but I was hoping to have something new to throw myself into for the 5 day holiday break. I know I already described how much everything shuts down, but what I didn't realize is that EVERYONE leaves town. Everyone I had talked to in the past few days talked about the trips they were going on, and my supervisor told me today that most everyone is taking off the whole week at work. So anyhow, between this news that I was going to have a quiet week, and worrying about the cat (who is slightly better today, yay!), and feeling homesick for Pete ... I was pretty worried about what I was going to do to occupy myself not just 'til Monday morning, but also next weekend.
After being totally pathetic for a while (and having Pete call me on it - one of the reasons he's the best husband ever), I decided to try to make some plans for next weekend. I e-mailed the girl I met last night (who will be out of town for some of the weekend, to see if she wanted to get together this or next week). I e-mailed my Basque teacher from Chicago who is in town for the holiday to see if she might be available. Then I e-mailed two other post-docs. One of them is going out of town for the holiday - but said she'd like to hang out some time. The other said she is going to be around and will be sure to include me in some of her plans - AND she invited me out for drinks tonight. So, even though I'm a little bit sleepy, I think I'm going to go. Hopefully, it'll be fun, and I won't go too crazy being alone next weekend!
Finally, I think I'm going to be in awesome shape with all the walking I'm doing. I know I won't walk quite as much once I'm working more or less full time, but I've been walking over 5 miles a day, most of which is in hills. I need to get a mat so I can add Pilates and yoga to that list and I'll be all set. :)
I promise my posts will shift more toward life here and less about my whiny adjustment as the time goes on! It's been really interesting to observe differences here in how things are done!
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