Missing Manhattan, KS...

Yep. That's right. After years of wanting to back in Australia, I miss Manhattan, KS. Not just the town, but the friends we made there, both socially and through K-State (although, almost everyone in Manhattan is connected to K-State). It was a lovely place to live.

Life in Manhattan wasn't always easy for us, but it became home. Even if we were keen to come back to Australia, Jimmy remembers living in Manhattan, not Brisbane or Warwick. It was nice to move into a space that was all ours, even if it was without essentials like a sewing machine, extensive art supplies, bicycle related tools and equipment or an electric drill.

But there were some nice distractions: different infrastructure, different bird life, unexpected insects, squirrels, geocaching, and coffee... Arrow Coffee Co became a home away from home and we became used to ordering 8 or 12 ounce lattes, which are almost a meal in and of themselves. Food combinations of peanut butter and chocolate,, or savory with maple syrup became part of our diet.

We've been back in Australia just over 8 weeks now and it's lovely to be back, but I can't help but wish we were going back to Manhattan in time for autumn fall or winter, even though it was so cold and dry that I had eczema for the first time in my life. This Warwick winter is much milder than I remember the winters being and it's a little disappointing, even if there was never any chance of snow.

I miss my job in Manhattan. My job was great, it really was the perfect mix of lab work and research and writing, and because the work was so interesting, I was too busy to be homesick, which was an added benefit. But it's not just the work that I'm missing, it's the people I worked with: my boss, his lab group, and the K-State staff. The people of Grain Science and Industry are a lovely bunch and it was a pleasure to be a part of the department.

I miss the daily, weekly and seasonal rhythms of our life, even if it meant time away from Jimmy, because he gained so much from his time at daycare and I gained a lot from working - not just returning to the work force or keeping my mind off being homesick, but a wonderful group of friends too. 

We're all missing the routine of the working week, even if Michael and I would have liked more time with Jimmy. We're currently getting lots of Jimmy time to make up for it, and while we're hoping something comes through work-wise, we're enjoying our little boy and (most of) his shenanigans. 

I miss the prairies and the Flint Hills, the native grasses and wildflowers (and I cannot believe that I haven't shared our last Konza Prairie visit - it was worth the heat, insect bites, and effort to get out there).

While living in Manhattan, KS, Michael and I felt that the seasonal and cultural festivals celebrated in both Australia and USA made sense: it made sense to celebrate Christmas or the Winter Solstice (or both!) because the days became longer, even if they grew colder; and spring (and therefore Easter) really was a time of rebirth and renewal.

It was fun to start developing our own rituals around the seasons and not have time clash with broader society - I mean really, why do many Australians celebrate rebirth and fertility (whether they know it or not) with eggs and rabbits at the beginning of autumn and Halloween in the middle of spring? I'm not questioning people who celebrate Easter as a religious holiday, it's just that, in Australia, the cooler air and slightly shorter days do not inspire rebirth or fertility.

There is a lot to like about Manhattan, KS. From the people to the climate, it's an easy place to live. Yes, it would have been easier if we'd owned a car, but bicycles offer a nice perspective and connectedness that comes from being in the fresh air. We made friends with some of the bus drivers and bus trips to the Discovery Center or library became a weekly highlight, especially once Jimmy started going to daycare.  

It's nice to be back in Warwick, sharing my old home town with Jimmy, but Brisbane and Manhattan are home. What makes a place home? I haven't worked that one out yet, but I'm leaning towards familiarity and friends. And we miss our friends in Manhattan, more than the place, but it's a package deal.

Manhattan we miss you. 

Thank you for having us.

We look forward to seeing you again soon.

Missing/enjoying: Spring showers...

I really, really like spring in Manhattan. Once the fear of tornadoes wears off, we are left with comfortable days, light showers and scattered storms.

And puddles.

Lots of puddles for jumping in, especially after school and work, so that we don't have to worry about gumboots that are no longer water tight or wet and muddy clothes.

Everything turns green and flowers, and the air smells fresh and clean and a little sweet. There might have been muddy or wet (or both!) clothes in need of washing every day, but when it was so nice outside and we didn't have to worry about the extreme cold of winter or the extreme heat of summer.

I think spring has become my favourite season and I miss the cooler weather, now that we are definitely in summer with days over 30C, and forecasts for 36C by the end of the week...

I already miss spring showers in Manhattan, not just because of the heat, but also because going home to Australia means that we will not experience such variation in seasons again, and that makes me a little sad... Hopefully we'll find some spring showers in Australia before too long.

The first photos was taken by me, all the other photos were taken by Michael.

Missing/Enjoying: Fresh air...

It might be difficult to tell, but I took this photo in winter. January to be precise. And yes, the windows were wide open.

No, I'm not crazy.

Ok, maybe I am, I am from Queensland, Australia, after all.

Now, coming from Queensland, I know a few things about the cold - mostly that the novelty is nice, even if I feel I need to sit on a heater just to stay warm. Having lived in the tropics and subtropics for the best part of the last 10 years, I know a lot more about living in hot, humid climates. The most important thing to remember is when to open the windows and curtains or blinds.

In winter, in Warwick, Queensland, I have memories of my parents opening windows for short periods during the warmest part of the day and usually on the sheltered or sunny side of the house. The windows were shut tight an hour or two (or three) before the sun went down, and might not open the next day. In summer, east facing windows were shut and curtains drawn after 8 am and opened after midday, when the windows and curtains on the west side of the house were closed up. In Brisbane it was relatively easy to do the same thing, although in summer we would open the house up once the sun was down, to let the heat out.

This practice allowed for some fresh air coming into the home, most of the year. And it was good. It wasn't until last summer, our first in Manhattan, KS, that I realised how much I like sleeping with windows open when night time temperatures are above 20 C (~70 F). I realised this because there were many nights when we couldn't open the windows because it was either raining or hotter outside than inside, even if we were only 'cooling' the place to ~30 C (85 F). We would sleep with the ceiling fan moving the hot, heavy air around while we stewed in our sweat.

Summer passed, and there was a brief period in the autumn fall when we could leave the windows open just a little, without getting a chill. And then it was winter proper.... and it was cooooold - Queenslanders know nothing*. The apartment was closed up, stuffy even, so every chance I had, I opened those east facing windows until the thermostat hit 15.555 C (60 F) and then I'd close the place up again.

It was worth it.

And now it's summer again. And it can be really, really hot - over 38 C (100 F) in-the-shade hot. And our apartment faces east. It's on the top story. There's a concrete carpark outside. Oh and the hottest part of the day is around 2-3 pm, sometimes later. Hot-box much? Some days there's nothing else to do but close the windows and blinds and turn on the A/C....

Initially, just like last summer, we were 'cooling' the place to ~30 C, but Jimmy and I were still sweaty, cranky creatures in the stuffy hot-box. So, after a few really, really hot days, I turned the A/C to 28 C and it made a huge difference. The apartment was still warm, but the temperature much more bearable, and we weren't sweating anywhere near as much. Even Michael noted that the 2 degrees Celsius made a huge difference. And no, the A/C doesn't seem to be working harder to maintain the lower temperature.

But the funny thing is that when the day is mild and the maximum hovers around 30 C, it is actually nice having the windows open, letting the air flow through the apartment, and having the noise of the day drift in and out. The apartment might be hotter than it would be if we closed the place up and turned on the A/C, but there is just something about fresh air.

Hot or cold, fresh air is what it is: fresh. And I like it. I miss being able to sleep with a window open 9+ months of the year, but we're aiming to move back to Brisbane, so I'll enjoy the dramatic changes in the air, when they come... in a few months... In the meantime, there is always the A/C to keep us from melting, even if it means no fresh air for a few days.



*Ok, ok, so there has been a cold snap across Australia, and there has been snow in parts of Queensland, but 3 days is nothing compared to 3 months. Just saying.

Missing/Enjoying: Birds...

One of highlights of every phone call, Facetime, or Skype, with our loved ones back in Australia is the birds in the background. They come through clearest when we're catching up with my parents (aka Granny and Pop), probably because my parents in a quiet and well treed part of the country.

And it reminds Michael and I of our old home in Brisbane where we would get currawongs and kookaburras (and native crows, which are much more annoying than the ones here in Manhattan). And we miss them.

When we arrived here, 11 months ago, we had no idea how transient the birds would be over the course of the year: We didn't know that the red cardinals and blue jays would disappear, or that we would see Canadian geese flying overhead (yep, that's them in the first picture and yes they make a loud honking noise as they fly). The turkey vultures flew south for the winter and we have seen other large birds in the sky too. But American robins have been constant and the European starlings have been around all winter too (but they're a pest...). And the little Cedar waxwings are just what winter calls for: yellow. Most of these birds here don't have pretty calls or loud laughs, but they are wonderful nonetheless...

So, in celebration of birds that call Manhattan, KS, their home and those that visit, here are some recent-ish pictures Michael and I have taken of locally found birds:

Starlings in tree #2...

Close up of a cold starling...

Startled starlings...

Cedar waxwings are the best...

The robins are pretty too...

The snow has all gone, but the crabapple still attracts birds with its old fruit. We hear them tweeting away some mornings, and hear the occasional woodpecker searching for grubs. Spring is upon us and we're quite taken with how distinct the changing of the seasons is - it's a nice distraction from our homesickness.

Missing/Enjoying: Daylight...

This morning, like most mornings for the last two weeks, sunlight streamed in our living room window, hitting the wall above our dining table from 7:50 am to 8:40 am or thereabouts - our living room window faces east, and is 90 degrees to the right of our dining table. The sun rises before 8 am and is now sets closer to 5:30 pm than it has for, what feels like, a very long time.

I cannot tell you how much of a difference this makes to our routine and mindset. December was a bit of a drag, with the sun rising around 8 am and setting around 4:30 pm. October was a bit the same, until daylight savings were removed. March will probably be a drag too, once daylight savings return. It seems to take us a few weeks to get our heads around the change, but I guess we could just set an alarm...

Coming from Queensland, Australia, it's been a little hard getting used to the changes in daylight over the last 10 months. In Queensland there is no daylight savings, there is basically no twilight, and only an hour or two seasonal change in daylight hours throughout the year - perks of being closer to the equator perhaps.

In a way, I miss the longer days of Queenslands' winter, longer compared to Kansas winter, but there was something about the long summer twilight: people would go out after dinner and bike ride or swim from 8-9:30 pm, making the most of the cooler part of the day. On a few occasions we took Jimmy outside and sat on the grass watching the sun go down and the fireflies light up, and Jimmy would fall asleep in my arms, out for the night. One night we went for a swim after 8 pm, maybe it was closer to 9 pm... either way, it was lovely to swim in the evening, watching fireflies and seeing the stars - Jimmy went to sleep quite easily after that too (unless I'm looking at the whole thing with rose coloured glasses...).

The winter solstice took on special meaning last year, because Michael and I were both over the long nights. And even though it snowed yesterday, and two groundhogs predicted another 6 weeks of winter*, there is no denying that spring is just around the corner, especially when there is sunlight streaming in through the living room window.

*At least two more predicted an early spring, but we're in Kansas, so anything goes! The last week has seen snow and t-shirt weather, with more warm weather and snow on the way...

Missing/Enjoying: babies...

Naps at the Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens.

Once upon a time, like all parents, Michael and I had a little baby. A soft, squishy, immobile, completely dependent, clingy but happy baby. He's gone. I'm not sure where he went, I'm not even sure when he went, but he's been replaced by a little boy, a little boy so full of energy, inquisitiveness, humour, mobility, strength, and independence. 

                         

Sometimes I catch glimpses of my baby, usually at night when he cries because he wants boobie but Mum isn't there, but there is so much boy now.

                        

And it makes me wonder at what my friends' babies are like. Because they are about the same age as Jimmy, so they would all be little boys or little girls now, not babies. Just like Jimmy, but different. I'm sad I'm missing that.

                                            

The other day Jimmy and I were at the Discovery Center with a friend and her now 1 year old (!!), and there was a mother with her 3 children: the eldest was 6 months older than Jimmy and even more boy; the twins were about 6 months younger than Jimmy and so much more baby. And they were the same age Jimmy was when Michael and I brought him to Manhattan, KS. Such a baby, but not!

               

Other friends, in Australia, have added to their families over the last 6 months, and I'm sad to be missing that too, but I know I'll get to meet these little people. Only it will be when they are little people, little boys and girls.

 

        

But seeing that change from baby to boy/girl! That! That is magic! And I am enjoying every day with Jimmy and every glimpse of his Australian friends as they grow. If all babies were like Jimmy, I would have 10. That's how much I am enjoying this boy. Yes, I said it. Boy.