Wow...

Ok, so I know I've been horrible and haven't been posting lately, but so much has been going on I think most of you will understand. Let's see... there's the damage to the house in Houston, the camping trip, the rally, the car, and the expedition to talk about! That's a lot of catching up to do... unfortunately, it's 10:24 and I have to go to bed for work tomorrow! I will post soon and get you all up to date. I promise. ;)

AAARGH!

I'm losing my mind...

We are going camping to find it.

Be back Sunday night.

We don't like Ike

We got news yesterday that our house was damaged by Hurricane Ike. Our renters tried to stay at the house but ended up having to leave on Saturday due to some damage to the roof of our house. Nic and I are bummed and it's definitely hard to see your house like that and not be able to do anything about it. Our Realtors are awesome people and are already on the ball (I'm not sure why it's underlining some and not other bits, and I'm too tired to figure it out...). We have already started the claims procedure with our insurance people, so hopefully everything will be fixed soon! Anyway- here's pictures so you know what I'm talking about (remember the carpet was new, the paint was new... etc).

The above is the right side tree in our back yard...

This is the same tree, but from the other side. The poor thing got torn apart.

Here's pretty much the only part of the fence still standing.

Here's part of the roof that will need to be fixed. This is the back of the house.

Here's the fence, or what used to be the fence. The little girl's power wheels made me sad...

Here's the tree on our gutters (that we had just fixed!)

Here's more branches

This is one of the bedrooms, I'm not sure which one exactly. The renters tore up the carpet so the house wouldn't stink and it was sopping wet (I have AWESOME renters!)

Here is the hallway that leads to most of the rooms and the hall closet.

Here's another room... again, not sure which one.

More roof damage, this is the right side.

Here's the back fence.

This is the left side of the house, it's not too bad.

This is the ceiling that leads to the hallway I think.

Here's one of the door frames. I'm told that all the doors don't close anymore.

Another door frame.

And one more for good measure ;)

This is another problem with the roof, I think it's on the back. I don't know.

Here's pile of shingles from my house... These are just the ones that were on the ground on the side :(

Here's the carpet from one of the rooms.

Here's the big ass hole on the side of my house... Yay for the renters putting up a tarp to protect it!

One of our tree/bushes fell over :(

Another spot to fix (obviously on the front of the house).

Here's some branches they collected.

Here's the side yard... you can see the tree/bush (I dunno) that got uprooted.

This actually isn't my fence, it's my neighbors but I thought I'd add it in anyway.

Here's just some debris...

Anyway- I'm off to work, I'll post more later. I'm glad everyone is safe!

This is the life!

Nic and I have been having a great time lately... we've been busy, but we have been enjoying it.

I have now been working for about two and a half weeks and I am so happy to be doing so. It is so great to be contributing and doing more than just housework. It was a great experience but I'm certainly happy to be back in the working world. It definitely helps conversational matters some around here... I think Nic is happy to have a break from hearing about what happened on Desperate Housewives and my woes with the washing machine. At least there are some interesting stories to tell now. This week at work is going to be a little bit crazy for me seeing as there will be only half the staff (literally) in the office. I already have stuff sitting on my desk waiting for me... it's been on my brain since Friday. Oh well, it will get done when I get there.

Nic is due to have an interesting week at work as well... he is renewing his offshore certifications this week. He had his physical on Friday and is doing his survival courses Mon-Wed this week. It's pretty much the same as the last time he did them in Louisiana, only they are supposed to be a little bit harder for the North Sea than they are in the Gulf. For those of you who didn't hear about it last time he did it, basically it's a course on first aid, safety procedures etc. and includes an almost amusement park-ish ride in a crashing helicopter. They strap you in the helicopter and then dunk it in the water and you have to get yourself out... a few times. I think it would be really fun, but it's practical too. At least now I know that if the helicopter were to crash (God forbid) he'd be able to get himself out if he was still conscious.

Let's see... what else are we doing? Wednesday is our meet night with the Aberdeen Scoobies, and then this weekend is the camping trip with the same crew. We are still really looking forward to that- especially since now Ian and Jacqui have offered us their tent! We had left ours in the storage unit in Houston and were planning on buying a cheapy one here... but now we don't have to! YAY for great friends. We went out with them both Saturday and Sunday (Saturday was Ian's birthday) and today (Sunday) we met them in town for tea (dinner). They are really fun to be around and we always have a good time. We also walked around town a little picking up little things here and there (like cookware for the camping trip).

On another note- my grandparents got the internet this weekend! How exciting/cute is that?! I'm so proud of them for trying new things and am glad to have another way to communicate and keep in touch with them now.

I just heard the dryer buzz so I'd better switch over the laundry- it's been a busy week and the clothes have been piling up. I still have two more loads to do before bed and haven't started ironing yet.... I'm dropping the ball.

In need of a little shut eye!

We have been staying up too late too often recently and my brain is starting to take notice. I'm thinking really slowly today and it takes me twice the time to do pretty much anything. So, if I'm not making sense don't hold me to anything... I just thought it was time for an update.

Work is going really well. I like my new job a lot and have really settled in. I'm actually not really doing what they hired me to do, as now I've been trained in a different position basically which is fine by me. This way I'm busy all day and I'm not bored or shredding papers like I was the first day. They've already asked me if I can stay on longer (as I was only supposed to be there until the 24th of September) but now I'm there until the 24th of October. The operations manager (Sharon) is having a surgery done, so I'll stay on while she's on medical leave to help get stuff done. It's all good, I really like the people there so it isn't a problem. There are only a few of us in the office (Amii, Sharon, Mandy, Fiona, Linda, George and myself). We have a good time while we are working and it's been nice to make some work buddies.

Other than that, we've been going to movies and hanging out with people. Last Thursday we hung out with Stavros, Fi, Cameron and Lisa. Friday it was the Fugro bunch (about twenty people from the office)- as we went out to dinner and then to a few pubs. Saturday it was Stavros, Fi, Ian, Jacqui and Allert. Sunday we relaxed at home a little bit and caught up on the laundry. Monday and Wednesday we hung out with Bob. Today we had dinner with Miller and Trevor. I am really ready for a relaxing weekend with minimal activities since we've been packing everyone in and staying up late every night. I think Tuesday was the earliest we went to bed and then it was 12:30 or so. Other than Tuesday, we haven't gone to bed before 1:30... and since I am now up and getting ready at 6:30 it's getting to me.

Let's see.... OOH! We are going to go camping on the 20th and the 21st with the Aberdeen Scoobies (the subaru club here in Aberdeen). I can't wait, neither can Nic. We are going to do a nice drive each day, then camp at night. The first night I think we are staying somewhere Fort Williams, which is beautiful. I am really excited about it... not only to meet all the new people that we have kind of gotten to know on the forums, but to see more of beautiful Scotland. I'll definitely bring the camera and be taking pictures.

Ok, it's now ten till 9 and I'm exhausted so I think I'm turning in for the night.