Settling in....

We have officially moved into our semi-permanent home in Edinburgh. Semi-permanent because we have signed a 6-month (only) lease. This short-term 6-month lease is rather common around here it seems. It is almost unheard of in the States, I believe? Anyway, we are hoping to purchase an apartment after our current lease is up.... We'll see how feasible that is as we draw closer! Properties are very very very expensive, to say the least! But at the rate property prices are appreciating in Edinburgh (~8-10%, 14-20% in certain areas!) in the past few years, it is definitely silly to sink money into rent.

This current apartment is smaller in terms of square footage (by my VISUAL estimate - what do I know??) but definitely 5 times more storage space! Tall ceiling, real hardwood floors, tall & deep windows, fantastic views from the 2nd floor (or rather 3rd floor in American terms). I am not sure what the occasion is but we are currently being entertained by fireworks in the near distance as I type and gaze out onto the horizon! Offset by all that is the 2-faucet-1-foot-deep sink in the bathroom, low water pressure shower in the bathroom (takes me about 20-30 minutes in the shower when I have to wash my hair!), toilet that takes a half hour to fill up, no tumble dryer, no central heating (yes, we rely purely on space heaters!), and no shelves in the mini refrigerator. Anyhow, we have managed to set up TV and broadband (hooray!) as well as mobile phones for each of us. We are starting to feel a bit more settled and not so displaced after unpacking and have a permanent address to call home (albeit for about 6 months).

Kitchen

Bathroom (note the foot-deep sink and two-faucets)

Washer and mini fridge (that does not have shelves)

Bedroom (and great view from the bed - can only enjoy it when I get to sleep in on the weekends)...

Living room (also with a view from our desk/dining table)

Our heater/dryer/pseudo fire place..

Dear lovely followers & fans....

I know I have been absent for a while now.... my sincerest apologies!!! The last couple of weeks have been really hectic for us. We are in the process of moving from one place to another. It's a new sort of challenge for us - moving without a car!! Anyway, not to mention I realised we have probably spent more than $100 (yieks!!!) on internet fees in about 3/4 weeks so we really had to cut back on our internet usage to really critical stuff.

Anyway, I am happy to report that we have finally managed to secure mobile phones for the two of us (as oppose to the costly pay-as-you-go phones) as well as broadband connection (as of this Friday we hope). We move into our new place this Thursday - can't wait. It's about time we unpack!!!! I think some of my clothes are going to have permanent creases on them now, folded in the vacuum sealed bags for 2 months!

Anyhow, hopefully you'll be getting more frequent updates with pictures in the near future. Don't give up on me yet!! :-)

Cheers - JQ

Job offer accepted!

You are hearing it from me even before Dylan gets the news! Well, he's at work right now and there's no way to reach him....Anyhow, yes, the company increased the salary by a slight margin. But the 6-month temp to perm contact remains. The reason I am accepting the temp to perm offer is because they don't have a position at the level I am looking for but they are want to get me off the market while they work out a position for me. They are going to put me on a fast track consideration for a manager position in 6 months when I come on board as a permanent staff. I suppose that's an investment of time (and there's some financial sacrifices as well since I won't be eligible for pension, bonus, car etc.) on my part with this company. It's not the optimal scenario but it's not the worse as well. I start work Monday - Oct. 15th. The honeymoon period is over! Just as well :-) since I am getting really bored. TV watching and window shopping is starting to get really really old!

Job offer & new lease

I was informed on Friday that I got the job offer. However the terms are not what I expected. The salary is not so bad but they will not bring me on on a permanent basis to start. They want a temp to perm term. I am not too happy about that. I don't ever remember having to come on board to any company in the States on a temp to perm basis. Until I am on board as a permanent employee, I am not going to receive any sort of benefits from the company i.e. bonus, private health insurance, paid vacation days etc. etc.. I am counter-offering on Monday morning for a shorter temp period as well as a higher pay (sadly it'll still be lower than what I was earning in the States - I seem to be regressing in my career in the last year or so!). Anyway, needless to say, lots of prayers required on our end. The hours are great and the people seem really really nice. Ultimately, it's God's will where I'll end up working, ya?

Meanwhile, we found a "home" on Thursday night! We signed a 6-month lease at a place that is slightly less 'posh' than where we are now but for almost GBP200 less a month! It's also smaller than where we are now but it's only for 6 months. It'll allow us to save up some money to buy something after 6 months. So we trust that this is the right move! But since property (rental or for sale) goes away in a matter of hours (max couple of days), we had to come to a compromise with our landlord as to when we'll start the lease. We officially have the place from Oct. 11th, a 2 week overlap over our current short-term let! That said, if anyone can make it here between Oct. 12 - Oct. 24, you'll have a one bedroom apartment all to yourselves as our guests!! Do have a serious think about it, ya? :-)

2nd Interview...

Sorry for the short burst of update (again, due to very limited internet access)....I just completed the online test Diageo required me to take. I think I did it as best as I could....we'll see what happens. I will have my 2nd interview tomorrow (@ 8a.m.) with a lady named Michelle McDonald. Please pray for me - for peace and wisdom! And for God to soften Michelle's heart! ha!

As for Dylan....it's status quo. He's still teaching at Basil. Nothing new to report. We are heading down to Durham, England (our original destination!!) to meet with Prof. Brown this Friday by train. Cost of train ride - £43 for two. We will get to visit where Harry Potter was filmed and the quaint little town of Durham that we've heard so much about and saw so many pictures over the internet when we thought we were moving there!!

We attended a home (bible study) group on Monday night. What a breath of fresh air....we felt alive again. We've both been starving for fellowship with other Christian brothers and sisters in Christ and this was the perfect group. People were very friendly, biblically grounded, ages from twenties to fifties. They were extremely kind to us, just as Christ commended us to be, especially to our bro/sis in Christ. It reminded me of the good ole times with the Real Food crowd at Grace Church back in CT!! I had a smile on my face all night after the study and it lasted throughout the next day and so on. :-) This group of people are from a different church than the one we've been attending (St.John's). They belong to a church fondly known as St. P's & St.G's (St. Paul's and St. George's). We will try to locate the church for this coming Sunday. Their main church building, which is right here in town, is under construction. The temporary meeting place is quite off the way (outskirts of town - we'll have to take the bus) but we're determine to make it this Sunday.

That's all for now. I have to jet before the librarian comes over and gives me a stern look....worse still, take away my privilege of using their computers for good! Cheers!

Intriguing discoveries....

I know it's trivial but these are some of the best discoveries we had as of late....

Man-size tissues!!! Check them out! Note how much bigger they are compared to the normal size tissue paper! It is quite useful if you run out of toilet paper or paper towel!!

Next item - lavender scented toilet paper! So cool! It makes the whole bathroom smells so good! A dual purpose toilet paper - air freshener and toilet paper. Hhhmmmm.....(don't forget to turn the scent button on in your computer to smell it - :-) )

Pictures of Apartment #2

Here you go....I've finally made it somewhat presentable and took some pictures yesterday (he he he).

note the single faucet on the kitchen sink!

HOWEVER, though the bathroom is fitted with a "single" faucet, the hot and cold water still come out in separate stream??!!! Do take note of our high-tech solution to the problem! :-)