Progress Report

Yesterday's flat hunting went reasonably well considering. We did a lot of driving but only saw three places in the end. The first had stone floors which put Heather off straight away. The second was a long way out but very smart. It was sort of a 'community' with communal laundry rooms, a swimming pool, an off-shore deck and so on. Both of these places were on the pricey side - almost as much as I'm used to paying in Brighton or Guildford although far more spacious.

The third place cost a third less rent, was quite a way north of the office and smelled of stale cigarette smoke despite a fresh lick of paint. Regardless, we've told the landlord that we'll take it. It's available right away and we're done with living in a hotel room. It may not be ideal but the area, Ballard, seems nice and the contract is month-to-month which means we can easily change our minds. (Most places expect at least a six-month contract.) We see the landlord tomorrow morning. Then we do battle with the Black Friday bargain hunters!

This is actually my second Thanksgiving in the States. My trip to see Heather last year was around this time also. Back then, we were guests of Mary Ellen's family in Fountain Hills. This year we had to make do with restaurant food at McCormick's Fish House & Bar. In truth, it wasn't half bad except that there was only one portion per person. A proper Thanksgiving should be at least three or four. As it was, we left the building unaided.

Today was my Mum's 60th birthday and she sounded quite sloshed by the time I spoke to her. Perhaps she'll post some pictures of her celebrations (hint, hint). Sadly, Heather also found out this morning that her Grandpa passed away. He'd been in decline for some time so it wasn't a huge shock or anything. However, it does mean that Owain never met any of his great grandparents.

If we move tomorrow or check into a different hotel, I may not have internet for a while but I'll try and gets some photos of the flat ASAP.