It's The Most Wonderful Time For A Beer

 

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like...Sunburn?

The sun is high in the sky, and I'm spending my day off lazing around a swimming pool. There are 22 days to go until Christmas and I can safely ask the question...

Where there hell has this year gone?! 

It feels like just a couple of months ago that I was lounging around on Coconut beach, and only a few weeks ago that I completed my little cycle trip around the country. It does seem like an eternity ago that my job title was "Teacher". Safe to say I'm not in a rush to get back into that one...

UPDATES! 

• My work, Pet Care Cambodia, is going great! I have my regular pup, Grover, who I walk three times a week. Got a couple of cat sitting bookings for next month, been to a puppy play date, and getting a lot of audience for the Facebook face (according to the stats). The next two weeks I'm housesitting for one of my Cambo Besties, Rakhee. I'm hanging out with her pups, Bean and Scruffy and the kitties, Peaches and Monkey.

• Talking of work, I've been hanging out with the cutest kid for the last couple weeks...and getting paid for it?! His name is Will and he fully cracks me up. We talk about stuff in English...mostly dinosaurs and yoghurt. We do some maths, maybe some swimming. I've also been teaching essay writing to him, Mum. Whilst looking after animals is great fun, it's not exactly going to buy me a new 2020 plate moto any time soon. So the extra couple of $$ is well received. And they're a great family.

• I haven't been on the bicycle as much as I'd like. As work gets busier my bicycle has become more of a mode of transport. I head out for at least a 50km fun ride once a week though. 

• 2020 has been the year that has shocked everyone. When my Dad broke the news to me that my brother had started cooking, HELL NO. I would've believed a global pandemic happening than Craig being able to cook anything more than an oven pizza. Alas, it's true. My brother has coined an apron and oven mitts. Doubt he'll be in a chef hat anytime soon, but hell WHO KNOWS. Because, there's one other thing if you said to me a year ago I would've laughed in your face. Here we are, 2020, what a year!-play some dramatic music here-. I have a boyfriend. 

I know, I know! 

Pick your jaws up off the floor. Who'd have thought!

Ironically, I'm getting near the end of the first draft of my book and it's basically a written version of my personal mantra "fries before guys". So the timing seems quite funny as I'm getting steps closer to releasing some information bout myself to the public world. 

But hey- enough about me, more about him. He's awesome. 

Okay, that's all you're getting. Oh- and he's American. 

But he can't help that.

Scruffy and Bean being cuties

So, that's all the bulletpoint updates on my seemingly smooth life...

I'll give you one bad point so y'all can feel a bit better that it's not all cheap drinks and sunshine. 

Last week was Thanksgiving. You know, that Turkey day they love so much in the States. Now I'm dating someone from that side of the world I have to pretend it's a big deal (like his American Football fantasy league). We decided to pop to our local and have some pumpkin pie (and turkey etc for him), have a couple of bevvies and enjoy the festivities. I know they take it seriously there so I want to make sure it's a seamless day. I'm walking the pups and decide to take a rest so they can grab some water. I feel an itch on my neck. "What's that?" I think to myself...

I look at my hands and it's only covered in 

BUGS. 

SO MANY BUGS.

Not just any bugs.

Bugs with a big butt and tiny head. 

Similar to what you'd find in a child's hair, or burrowing under your skin, or...IN YOUR BED. 

Yep, I had all these suspicious-looking bugs all. over. me. 

This on its own is no worries. But then my mind flashes to WHAT HAVE I TOUCHED? and I realise they must be all over my apartment, all over my friends' house, I needed to have a shower, I was covered with blood-sucking parasites. I needed a shower. I needed to get home. I just lost it. 

Luckily for me, my boyfriend was understanding (even when I went to show him them all and they decided to disappear...I'm not going crazy I swear!). Of course, I had to still make Thanksgiving all about me...

With everything in my apartment, my friends' house and I all washed and cleaned and successfully bug-free Icouldfinally devour the pumpkin pie... only 7 hours late. 
Turns out, they weren;t even bedbugs. 

DAMN. 

So yeah, my happy life has its downfalls, I guess. 

More positively from my first Thanksgiving experience, I had (veggie)dinner around a friends house (it was amazing). She had a gratuity wall where we had to write things we were thankful for. I just didn't know when to stop. 

I'm getting paid to hang out with animals, I have a lovely little house with a lovely little garden, I play sports at least once a week, I'm surrounded by some truly amazing people. I have food on my plate. My friends and family are all in good health and have a roof over their heads. My gut activity is fairly normal. My suspected case of pink eye is on the mend. I didn't fall over on my run this week, unlike last weeks...

I always feel selfish to say all the positive things, especially when literally the rest of the world is living in this Post-Apocolypicic reality where you can't give hugs, can't have groups of more than five, but you can grab a cheeky one at 'Spoons. 

Life is great! 

Sending all the posi vibes out to the rest of the world, but more importantly than posi vibes, I'll send out the recommendation to everyone to move to Cambo as soon as you can! 

R-L Me, Grover, Bong, Scruffy, Bean, J

In ourshortshorts...

Dan's festival themed birthday! 

Me and birthday boy Dan!