Bag Snatched From Apartment

Forget Poseidon - Hermes seems to have it in for me. Someone has stolen something while I was in the apartment. :(

I have just moved into a new apartment (more on that later) with a huge amount of help from Emily. We were tired from all the moving and cleaning so decided to have a 30-minute afternoon nap. When we woke up we noticed:

1. One of my boots had been moved from 'near the door' to 'blocking the passageway to the door'.
2. The front door was unlocked, presumably left that way by us when we came into the apartment.
3. Emily's red MEC shoulder bag was missing, including her Nintendo DS, all her games, and a whackload of Pocky.

It looks like, between 2.15pm and 2.45pm, someone opened the (unlocked) front door, saw Emily's shoulder bag on the floor just past my boots, grabbed it and ran. They didn't bother to come into the apartment, else they would have stolen my camera or wallet.

I'll notify the landlady, but I'm not planning to notify the police any time soon. It's frustrating that Emily's DS was stolen, but the odds of the police finding a "red DS with no distinguishing marks" or "some packets of Pocky" are extremely slim.

Final Move from Australia

With the help of friends in Australia, there are now 5 boxes of my stuff in transit to Canada. I don't know when they'll get here, what shape they'll be in, or whether Canadian Customs will charge me duty for importing. As it says in this email:

Your boxes were collected today by TNT, each box labeled with your address in Canada. Their eventual destination is now in hands of the gods.
Janos.

Lets see if Poseidon likes me or not. :D

New Years Resolution

I just realised that, without thinking of it, I had established some New Years resolutions for myself. I had been traveling so much I'd hardly realised we'd entered the new year! So here they are:

• Fix the hunch in my back. I've always had a curve to my upper spine, and let my shoulders slope downwards. Now, on my daily walk to/from work I make sure to hold my shoulders back and up. With some effort I'll rebuild the muscles there. It's already feeling much more comfortable than it used to.
• Lose some weight. I don't want to hit summer with a belly or flabby butt. Yes, I'm male, but these things still concern me.
• Cook more food. This doesn't run counter to the previous point. I want to cook more of my meals, and start baking more things. Anzac Biscuits are the next on my list.
• Be nicer to people. There's a lot more I could do for the people who are really close to me, and some of them I can actually help. I have to do what I can.
• Start saving for retirement. I have to remember there's no compulsory superannuation here, and I haven't really started saving for retirement yet. I need to pour some money into RRSP (the Canadian's superannuation-like tax-shelter for retirement money). One great thing is I can pour money in there, make a big tax savings, and then potentially use that money for an eventual house purchase! No such plans yet, but I like the flexibility.

There's even more resolutions I've made this year, but I can hardly list them all. I'm just surprised I didn't notice beforehand that I was making all these promises to myself.

First Snowfall (For Vancouver)

Emily came to visit last weekend (she scored herself a job interview here in Vancouver). The day she arrived, it was nice, clear weather. We hadn't had any really cold weather yet this winter. Then, out of nowhere, it snowed for 2 days straight.

Immediately after she left, Vancouver received a tropical weather system from Hawaii (yes, really) that lifted temperatures about 15c. We have to assume the weather was just trying to make her feel at home. Weird. :)

Semi-Final Plans

I'm hoping as many people as possible read this. Emily and I have finalised our travel plans for visiting Australia. I know people are going to be busy around this time of year, and we're not staying too long, but if anyone is around and wants to meet up, let me know! :) Our travel plans are:

20th December	Arrive in Sydney (morning flight)
20th to 27th or 28th	Muswellbrook (parent's house)
27th or 28th to 31st	Wollongong (Farzad's place)
New Years Eve	Sydney Harbour (stay awake all night)
1st to 3rd	Katoomba (youth hostel)
3rd to 9th	Urunga (camping with parents)
9th to 13th	Sydney (youth hostel)
13th January	Leave from Sydney (mid-afternoon flight)

I might be able to use my old mobile SIM, so will be available on 0407 133 683. If that doesn't work, then I'll be available on my Canadian number +1 778 858 5480.