I can't guarantee I'll ever catch up on what happened pre-Wellington, but thank goodness Mariah was around to keep track of that. Now, however, it's all on me. So let me start with a list of cool things that happened during my 7-ish months in Wellington:
1. We stayed way longer than we meant to
We only meant to stay in Wellington until August 20th. We actually stayed until October 28th. How many regrets do I have? NONE! What's the point of a working holiday if we can't be flexible?! We decided that, due to reasons in the next point, as well as the fact that I loved my job and didn't want to go yet, we should stay longer. We extended more than once, thoroughly confusing my parents whenever I Skyped with them, but finally the date is here: October 28th. Ferry tickets are booked, a campsite is booked, and I am jobless, so... there's no turning back now!2. Dejan got a green card
Oh yeah, this tiny piece of news... Dejan casually applied for the U.S. diversity visa, a lottery with very slim chances, and he ACTUALLY GOT IT. We kept it a secret until his interview last week, but this was another reason for our extended stay in Wellington. He's been officially approved and we're making long term plans -- I, for one, will be moving back to Minneapolis at the end of March, and Dejan will join sometime that summer.3. I had my favorite job so far
My time at the YMCA was awesome. It was difficult and frustrating and so hilarious, and the people I worked with are amazing. I learned tons and feel much more prepared in case I pursue a similar line of work in the States. I saw those kids every day for nearly seven months, and saying goodbye was terribly sad. I plan on returning to Wellington in a few months just to say hello once more!4. I wrote a bunch of ebooks
With my part-time YMCA job paying the bills, I managed to save up for my Christmas flights home (and back) via writing. This is also my running excuse for whenever I don't blog enough -- I've been a tad burnt out from my other writing, which I have to prioritize or else I can't come home for Christmas. Pretty good excuse, am I right?!?The exciting part about the writing is that I've managed to get a job writing short travel ebooks, and my name is actually on them as the writer. If you've ever tried freelance writing, you know this is a big deal. You can find all of the books here, although I've only written a few of them. You can ask me for deets. The money doesn't go to me, by the way, so feel no obligation to buy the books unless you're actually interested.
5. Pier left us :'(
To our extreme sadness, Dejan and I had to say goodbye to Pier in September. He went back to the UK to study. I don't want to write any more about it because we miss him too much!!6. That whole van thing
Remember that one time Dejan and I bought a van, thanks to Mariah's selfless picture-taking back in April? Well, we still have it. I've named it (him?) Doc. I keep forgetting to take a photo, but once we're all packed up I'll be sure to do that. Doc is a '92 Toyota Emina, and runs pretty okay for being nearly the same age as me. Doc will be our new home for our future travels, and I couldn't be more excited about it!!! But more on that later.7. We joined a fancy gym
Since Dejan and I have both been struggling with back/neck problems, probably due to all of our hours of hunched freelancing on tiny, tiny, tiny laptops, we decided to pay some extra doll hairs to join the local gym. It was fancy and cool, and I'd like to say I'm in the best shape of my life! That would be a lie, of course, but maybe it staved off the inevitable, gummy-induced obesity for a little while longer.And that's pretty much it! We had a cozy routine here in Wellington, but we're now more than ready to begin adventuring again. Can't wait to tell you all about it!
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