Busy, busy, busy....

Hey All,
Sorry it's been so long since I've written. We have been soooooooo busy over here. I wish I could tell you a huge long list of exciting things we've been busy doing but what's been keeping us so busy isn't really that exciting.
Daniel is working Monday to Thursday, 10am-7pm with only a HALF HOUR lunch break, Friday (even though it's like the start of the Jewish Holy Day) they work 9am - 2pm (No-one can explain what the point of FOUR hours is) and then ALSO SUNDAY, 10am - 5pm. The people aren't that nice, the customers are AWEFUL and the pay isn't great (well, it's OK since he's working so many bloody hours, but...). Daniel is worth so much more than what he's doing right now. He is so much better than how he is being treated and he is more Qualified than all his superiors. He is shown little respect and the only thanks he's given is a $10 gift voucher to a very expensive Kosher Deli. He's in hell, Guys. If you're the praying type, pray that he has the strength to make it through because he is miserable.
So, his past month has been desperately trying not to want to kill himself, seeing friends when we can afford it, spending quality time with each other when we can’t and occasionally buying himself something small to cheer himself up… He has made a few friends at B + H and we went out for BBQ with them after work last Wednesday. It was fun. In his department (which is like the only department with non-Hasidic Jews, or – SHOCK, HORROR, lord-forbid non-Jews. I don’t know why. I’m just glad Daniel’s found a couple of guys he can hang out with) there are a few guys who I think we’ll start hanging out with a fair bit more. I think the next adventure (the last one was to go to a restaurant with a tin shed roof (I know, in New York CITY) called Sleazy Joe’s BBQ and Booze – It was AWESOME!!!!!!) is to go see the movie ‘Snakes on a Plane’.
As for me, I’ve started my new job this week as a personal assistant. My duties are numerous and varied, but I do the job well and the hours are good. My boss is nice and her girlfriend is absolutely lovely, so that makes it good too…
Sorry, don’t have any exciting news. Desperately missing everyone. In a bit of a depressed funk (and the weather isn’t helping – it is FALL here, SUDDENLY – we’ve had constant cold and rain for the last… feels like a week), so I’ll write again soon when I’m in a more chipper mood.
I do love and miss you all.
Write us a letter or something, to cheer us up, you guys. Hope everyone is reading this happy and healthy. We send all our love!!!
Taliesen and Daniel.

Pardon my spelling

It just occurred to me that I published that last post without running spell-check.... I'm under a LOT of stress people.
Sorry and please pardon any errors....
While I'm here, More photos....


This is me and Dad when he visited about a month ago. We are sitting at the bar of my old workplace - BXL Cafe, Times Square.


This is Daniel and Dad at the Museum of Modern Art. It was really cool and we saw some amazing pieces.... Daniel also had the best coffee he's found in NYC at their roof-top cafe.


And, finally, one last pic of the international love-birds you all miss and love so much!!!!!
Love you guys!!!!!

Living the Dream

So, yep. Here we are... In New York City!!!! (this photo was actually taken, what seems like MONTHS ago, on the day Daniel arrived)... We are happy and we do love it here. It's starting to feel like this is our life, people. Like this is our home, where we belong.... for now at least.
We are missing our families in Australia more than ANYTHING right now. It comes and goes in waves and the last few days/week or so has been really tough. Daniel's a little depressed about this job he now has and because the money hasn't started rolling in yet, it's hard to see the bright side...

I'm meeting this woman on Friday whose personal assistant I'm looking at becoming. My friend Fel is her personal assistant and Fel has to go back to Australia for a few months to sort out work visa stuff. She is putting me up for the job while she's gone, and maybe perminantly.... Or, at least until some High-Powered Producer needs me to become HIS or her personal assistant!!!!! Anyway, it sounds like it would be a pretty sweet job and I'd get N.Y. personal assistant experience.... Anyway, it's not waitressing....
Daniel is trying not to be miserable at B+H, but in honesty, I think he loves having somewhere to go and something to do each day. And it doesn't hurt that the something comes with a paycheque...(hopefully...soon) He'll be fine. We're in a bit of a bind, financially, though. We're waiting on payments and paychecks to come through and I just realized that we won't have the money to pay a couple of things that were due on the 1st until the 18th. I'm a little worried. On the 18th, we will have Hundreds of dollars more than we need but it means asking people we owe, like the Bank and Optus and the Gym to wait ANOTHER two weeks. It feels so lame, Dad. To know that we have the money to pay all our bills but to not HAVE THE MONEY!!!!!!!! It's really putting Daniel on edge and making him fight-ready 24/7. I guess it's not doing great things to me and my stress-levels, either... Not at all fun. God, I hate this. I know it's only for a short time, but, FAR OUT!!!! It just seems un-neccessarily hard. Like Fate said, "Now, I know things are hard right now and I know you guys are strong and can fight through it all, but let's just see what'll happen if I do THIS!!!!!!!!!" It really isn't cool.
But, as always, we'll struggle through. We are going to carve out a little place for ourselves in this city... So HELP ME GOD!!!! WE WILL DO IT!!!!!!!
Anyway, miss you all madly. Oh, so much.
Can't wait to hear from/see you, all of you!!!!!
All our love, as always.
Taliesen.

Daniel Runs on Dunkin'

Well, here we are guys, making a life for ourselves - SSOOOOOOOO weird. We are starting (Daniel included) to feel not like tourists. It's sinking in that this is real. Is that strange??
It is indeed true. Daniel Runs on Dunkin.... and Taliesen is sadly a slave to Starbucks. I'm talking people, about us settling.... down, that is. What I am referring to is the daily (or weekly, as our finances have dictated) routine that one establishes when one makes a home somewhere. The slogan for Dunkin Donuts, everyone, is "America Runs on Dunkin". Daniel has started self-professing that "Daniel Runs on Dunkin". I am at a loss, people. The man who boy-cotted Starbucks in Sydney, due to it's globalization and attempted monopoly of the coffee market, has now succummed to the Donut Conglomerate (one on every corner in NYC) of Dunkin Donuts. Not for the donuts, mind you, although he does agree that they are the best things in THE WORLD, but for the COFFEE. He says that it's ALWAYS burned, and always a latte when he orders a Capuccino, but at least it's reliable and drinkable and in the end (I think he's been forced to lower his standards) "good". Just FYI, Dad, he DID try Starbucks and he said that it was no better than Dunkin.... I am still, especially in this extreme heat, addicted to the Starbucks Frapaccino.... sorry.
So, here's what's happened in the last month. Both Daniel and I have started new jobs... Myself at another (I know - cringe) restaurant (although this one is very upscale and I'm - well, I will be, making very good money). Daniel at a soul-sucking, spirit-crushing, life-destroying retail camera store. But it's good money - or it will be, and he'll get medical after a couple of months - VERY IMPORTANT for the diabetic....
We are both waiting on our first paychecks, which in this country, you don't get for, like, weeks after you start. So, that sucks. However, soon, we should be saving quite well.
Saving for our first REAL own apartment. That's what we can't wait for. We are DYING to ship our stuff over from Australia and make a home but it's looking like another few weeks before we can do that. BBbbbbvvvvvvvvvvvvv.
We HAVE, however, MOVED!!!!!!! We have a home. Well, it's someone else's home and we rent a room. But it's a BIG room and it has air conditioning and it's ALL OURS!!!!!!
We couldn't be happier. It's in a beautiful part of Manhattan with parks and restaurant and a healthfood store on one corner, a starbucks on the other, and a cinema and a Dunkin Donuts down the road. It's Fabulous.
Anyway. Wish us luck with finally getting all the money that's owed to us (so broke at the moment) for work we've done - that BBC job that Daniel did?? GREAT - he had the BEST time. Met Andy Kauffman's dad.... still hasn't been paid.... bbbvvvvvvv.
New York is a great city. But, it's hard to survive here. It's true. "If you can make it there (here), you'll make it anywhere... It's up to YOU, NEW YORK.... NEW YOOOOOOOOOOOORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!".
Love, as always, Taliesen and Dan.