Tuesday
Another day, another cockroach! I went to empty put the dishwasher on last night and there it was, crawling amongst the cups. Whilst my skin turned inside out and off my bones, I shrieked but bravely, so bravely, reached for the bug spray and gave him what for. The awful thing is, he’s a German one, which means there’s more of the little bastards. Bug pro-lifers I apologise. As we’ve been sprayed the roaches will be making their way out of their hiding places. Why can’t they go die somewhere else, or die where they hide? Wait, that would mean in the dishwasher, I don’t want them dead in there either. FML.
I had a restless night thinking they’d all be coming for me under the doors. Our mattress is still on the floor, so I’ve not got a bit of respite from the floor! I will get over it, once I’ve arranged a second company to come over and give us the full work. WHY DID WE MOVE HERE.
In other news, our ship freight is arriving next week. Which is wonderful news. Currently, we’re living very minimally which has its upsides (lack of clutter, a feeling of extra space) but to have all our things from home will be so sweet and very welcome. I shall embrace my oversized kitchen table and all my jumpers (my beloved jumpers that I lived in back home) that I won’t need until at least October. Bummer.
Friday
I’ve managed to inhale season 6 of Love is Blind (the US version) I swore to myself that I would NOT be bingeing anything during the day, strictly post 5 pm but that’s gone out the window since I’m not working. I have no motivation at all! I feel lazy, and small, and I want to hide under my duvet. I’m assuming this is normal behaviour when you move abroad?
I also feel like a total bellend, as our Hoover hasn’t yet arrived, I had FOOLISHLY decided to reach out to the neighbours via our resident portal. I’m cringing even writing this. I asked if anyone would be so kind (those words! Who am I? Mary Poppins?) to loan us a ‘Vacuum’ for an hour, that I’d return it empty etc. I mentioned that I was from the UK (well I needed to explain where ‘be so kind’ might come from) anyway, who could resist such an adorable request? Tell me who? It turns out every single resident because NOT ONE PERSON replied. Not one. Now I’ve got to be forever shamed and reminded of my post each time I go on the portal. The neighbours will run in the opposite direction when they see me and warn others ‘Don’t make eye contact with her, she asked for something FREAK’. I feel humiliated and how dare I ask people you don’t know a favour – that’ll teach me. Bellend!
Sunday
Uffft. It’s been a heavy weekend of drinking, if you’re worried I’m becoming an alcoholic don’t worry, I am too. Friday night we caught up with Az’s work pal and his wife, the second time we’d all hung out together so it started all rather civilised. We went to a brewery near to where they live. As the beers flowed and the night wore on, they suggested a nightcap (I don’t think they used that term) at theirs. Great! Being invited to a house, which wasn’t ours was a lovely change. Mike and Maria soon offered us an impressive list of drinks, I opted for a ‘Godfather’ (albeit a take on it) Whiskey, Amaretto with cherries. OMG. If you like these drinks and haven’t tried them together, you’re welcome. Cue 2 hours later and we were in an Uber home, I don’t remember the ride, but I do remember getting in the door and playing this song (I can’t stop singing it) and entertained Az with a drunken pretend strip that involved me stacking it over the armchair, it was time for bed.
Saturday was waking up wondering if I had been runover in the night, with a banging head a disgusting dirty hungover and a craving for the Golden Arches. Conveniently there is a McDonald's a 5-minute walk away, when I walked in, sweating whiskey and bad life choices and needing to inhale the menu immediately, a girl turned to me and said “Girl, you are SO cute”! It made my day, I couldn’t have looked as rough as I felt. Charlotte is seeing me! I practically skipped out of the place wondering that this city wasn’t so bad after all, laugh out loud.
Sunday morning was a group walk with women who have moved to Charlotte (fuck tonnes of them, including me) I found the group on Facebook and thought how wholesome. I’m going to find my community. I left the house with a normal amount of trepidation, Az wished me luck and it felt like the first day of school. I love connecting and chatting but when approaching the group there had to be over 50 women, I gingerly put myself at the end and started introducing myself. As we got walking I got nattering to a woman a couple of years older than me, who lives locally and as I began talking to her at a million miles an hour with questions to rival a journalist on speed, I found out she had travelled to London, absolutely loved it, had a couple of kids and from there we got into a more natural flow. We exchanged numbers and will go out next week I hope.
Sunday afternoon- not content with bashing my liver to oblivion, Az wanted to go to our local dive bar, with real people, who have lived a bit longer, who aren’t in activewear and are interested. We got there mid-afternoon and we sat at the bar, only in the movies have I seen people have a beer alongside a shot of bourbon. But there, in real life, a woman supped on her beer and steadily and impressively was repeatedly having her bourbon replenished. We got talking to more or less everyone in the bar “I could listen to you all day” I mean, it’s nice, isn’t it? I got talking to a lovely woman, also a hairdresser (HANDY) and we’ve exchanged numbers. Before long, I’m going to rule the school with a fresh wave of bleach. We disgracefully left the bar at 730pm and picked up a Taco Bell. The American dream. Prayers, broccoli and sleep are needed next week.