Day 4: In which Plans are made

As per plan, today was pretty quiet. We fixed up our CVs and sent out a few job apps, and our top flat choice is still available. We live in hope!

Most excitingly, Claire and I have Made Plans. These Plans include making the move to Wellington on Saturday. We have bus plans and two nights accommodation in a hostel, and then, barring any extenuating circumstances, we are going to view the flat and then move in. Bam. There are no beds, but there's a secondhand shop nearby that apparently sells and delivers decent beds. Comparison shopping seems to indicate that it's not going to run us up too badly, and the flat is cheap enough between the two of us that it'd be worth it.

We'll also apply to a job recruitment agency down there, and hopefully our speedy fingers will type us into a job. Pip said that she got a job within a week so, again, here's to hoping.

Other than that, Claire and I did make ourselves dinner, which was less successful than it could have been. It was one of those dehydrogenated soup bases that you add water to and simmer for ages, but we decided to get tricky and add some pasta noodles and vegetables. Well. We were fine in theory, but the timing could have used some work. By the end, we were hungry, the noodles were bloated with soup and the lentils were still a tad crunchy. Also, I burned the toast.

(Leftovers went into our Really Useful Box, which can be used in a truly insane range of temperatures. Hoorah!)

All was well in the world, though. Over our crunchy-overcooked-undercooked-and-also-a-little-burnt-perhaps-we-should-have-added-raw-for-a-bit-of-variety meal, Claire and I chatted with Helen, our fellow bridge companion, and we have tentative plans to museum it up tomorrow. Helen, incidentally, is one of those people who can pack up and GO GO GO! She's from England, just traveled South America, and now she's in New Zealand for six months. She got here a few days ago, and this weekend she'll be bussing it up to the Bay of Islands on Sunday to work on a farm for some seasonal work. Zoom! Hopefully we keep in touch, because that is one interesting lady.

Also, this is totally frivolous and not worthy of note, but Claire and I watched the pilot of Sherlock, the Moffat and Gatiss modern remake of Sherlock Holmes, and it was awesome. I suspect this wasn't picked up to be a full series because of too much other interference (House, the Guy Ritchie Holmes), but this one managed to ground itself and its approach to the canon quite securely. On top of that, the dialogue was quick and snappy, and I know it would appeal to a lot of people. Really fun, and I'd recommend a viewing if possible.

(An aside: It also really made me miss London. Stupid details like the sidewalks and streetlights hit me right in the chest. Auckland feels like a big city -- sometimes -- but it's a really generic one. The country has a ton of history but this city seems like it just grew skyscrapers because it could. I look forward to Wellington.)

Tomorrow: Museum, possible Food Festival, and who knows what!