Kuma stinks. I don't know what it is with kitten pooh but man, does it reek after he takes a dump. Sick! The smell is nauseating. Needless to say I'm not overly inclined to have him on my lap after he has visited the box.

Today was a day of many accomplishments for me. I was supposed to "rest" because I wasn't feeling so well, but I felt like I wanted to get a lot done...you know...lots of odds and ends stuff. Once Kuma and Andrew were off to the vet I opened the windows to let some fresh air in and to try and get rid of the curry smell in the house. I like curry, but not overly fond of the smell lingering on if you know what I mean. I took advantage of the fact that Kuma was not here because, for some totally dumb reason, the houses here don't have screens on their windows = Kuma has an easy chance to escape. I have no idea why they don't put screens on here...they still have mosquitoes and flies and moths and other insects that can come in just like in Canada.....anyways this is another rant which I will save for another time.

So I aired out the house today. My mom called and we talked for over an hour which was good fun. I heard all of the news of the fam. My mom sounds good and I'm glad. She just got in touch with this guy that she dated when she was 17 and hasn't seen or heard from since, so she is enjoying talking with him again!

Andrew and I went to his friend's son's first birthday party and they sent us home with a HUGE box of kiwi fruit (I sure wished I had a deep freeze!). We ate some and gave a lot away and I made kiwi fruit muffins today and pureed the rest and stuck them in the freezer. The muffins are tasty and if you want the recipe I would be happy to share the wealth!

It was so windy outside which makes for a good laundry day so I did a couple of loads. I also vaccumed up a couple of spiders which somehow snuck their way into our place. Yeah, so it has been a day of much progress. I called immigration again and this time the girl that I talked to offered to have my case worker contact me. "YES PLEASE!" was my eager reply so I should hear from him soon about what is going on with my application. Andrew and I need to buy a new car and we don't have a lot of cash so we are eagerly waiting for my work permit to come back, not only so that I can work, but also so that we can be reimbursed for my flight back to Canada AND claim some of my medical costs. There's a lot riding on this work permit I tell you. ALOT!

I started reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (thanks for the suggestion Karey!) and I really like it. I recommend it as well. Karey, you might like to read The Concubine's Children by Denise Chong if you are interested. It talks about a girl and her mother's and her grandmother's experiences in Chinatown in Vancouver and Nanaimo and Victoria!

It is getting colder here. I finally brought out the flannel pjs the other night because it is really, really cold at night. The houses here do not have central heating so this winter Andrew and I are relying on his gas heater. This whole lack of house heating business is going to take some getting used to. It's not even winter yet! I'll have to wear a lot of layers I think.

I'm freezing so I'm going to go and make a cup of tea.