Week One of Couch Surfing

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So I spent my first week with my dear friends, Di and Hillary. They have a wonderful home in Essex Junction, and fortunately for me, I didn't have to sleep on a couch...they had a spare bedroom that I was able to stay in.

I honestly though that I would miss my 'alone' time, but quickly realized that I still could obtain that even with roommates. The transition seemed much easier than I thought...I didn't miss my condo one bit. I don't know if that's because the last month that I lived there was consumed by dealing with a basement that was flooding (never had a problem the entire 13 years that I lived there...not until after I signed my contract) or because I was dealing with the stress of moving while also ending my school year. It probably also had something to do with the fact that Di and Hillary made me feel right a home from the moment I 'moved in'.

The first big 'life style' change that I encountered was no TV. I thought for sure it would kill me to not be able to watch TV on a nightly basis. To my surprised I actually enjoyed not having the constant noise and the complete time suck that comes with having one around and on. I also viewed it as practice for when I get over to Thailand...I'm not sure that there'll be much English speaking television available over there...I might as well get use to it now. I found that I filled the void with multiple trips to Brattleboro, along with listening to music and reading.

Di and Hillary have 4 cats who I have become quite attached to. Annabelle is a beautiful long haired grey cat who is pretty timid...although she came out and allowed me to feed her, she kept her distance. I knew I had won her over one even when she walked by me and brushed up against me. I reached down to pet her and was surprised that she didn't dash off...instead she sat there and let me rub her head for a brief moment. Then there was Emmie and Zora who spent every evening sleeping on the same bed that I slept in. Zora was a snuggle bug who would sleep right up against me. Emmie started out that way, but quickly realized that I moved around a lot in my sleep so moved to the end of the bed where she wouldn't be disturbed. The last, but certainly not the least was Felix...He is a sweet cat who has his own special needs...he has a difficult time with eating. He needs to be fed often and only a little at a time. He wouldn't sleep with me, but he would often come into my room in the morning while I was making the bed or doing laundry. He was mostly interested in catch large ground beetle or eating.

At the end of the first week, I started to transition all of my belongings to my friend Chris' house. I'll be staying with him for the month of July. I quickly realized that I was going to miss living with Di and Hillary...I fortunately was invited to house & cat sit for the weekend which helped me to gradually transition to Chris and Christine's place. Next week I'll fill you in on my new place.

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Photos

My home for the first week
I often shared my bed with Emmie and Zora. I think the fact that I moved around a lot at night kept them awake...They didn't seem to mind though. Emmie finally got smart and started sleeping at the end of the bed.

Felix (the cat)
I love this little guy...He was the great bug catcher. I'm not talking lady bugs either, big freaking monstrous ground beetles! They were disgusting. He often would bring them into the house as a present! We would then capture (save) the beetle and release it back outside.

Photo 3
Di and Hillary have a beautiful garden filled with a lot of veggies and flowers.