am I actually... busy!?

What a busy, busy week!! I started training this week and it has been, hmm... a lot? The women's team trains almost twice as much as the men's team and so I found myself leaving for practice more often than Steve! Too bad I don't get paid twice as much. As much as I enjoy playing volleyball (and training, I suppose) it's a lot more fun if there's a paycheck at the end of the month SO, I'm going to stick it out for a few weeks, make them absolutely NEED me... and then demand millions. Of lei. And bani. (One lei is about 40 cents, and one bani is 1/100 of that, so yup, a million lei would be okay.) It's going pretty well though, the training; the coach barks a lot, doesn't talk too much (hasn't said more than two words to me) and runs some interesting drills: "Play set. No block." That's a fun one, because some of the girls on the team can absolutely smoke the ball... and I'm pretty sure it could put a crater in my face. Besides being a bit sore here and there (shoulder especially, no surprise there) I'm doing okay. I'm a little slow - laterally that is, pah! - and well, okay. I'm a little slow. The skills all came back pretty quickly (like riding a bike?) and I'm doing not too bad for not having played indoor in two years. Hurray. So, I think I'll stick out the charity blocking and spiking for a few weeks and then see if they can offer me anything. I know I'm helping the team and making things better, but twice a day is a big commitment.

We finally enjoyed some home-cooked meals this week! Yay! The team graciously (NOT) gave Steve one pot (with lid) and one frying pan and promised that more was on its way. (NOT.) SO, yesterday we hit up Carrefour and bought the bare essentials for a working kitchen: Lasagna pan/casserole dish, pizza tray/cookie sheet, big bowl, small pot, drinking glasses, sharp knife, veggie peeler, corkscrew and a strainer. We're also thinking about splurging and getting a toaster AND a hand blender guy. We have bought SO much kitchen stuff over the years... I don't want to think about it. But yum, good, home-cooked meals are on the horizon. And when Steve wants to cook we can just go to the Flora. Ha! Funny joke. We CAN still go to the Flora though, if we don't feel like cooking. We hit the place up last night for an extra special meal: the band was playing AND we were served a meal that I've never had before - beets, egg noodles, fries and a greasy chicken breast. That, I have had before but the rest - carbo loading city - was a first. The band was playing what we assumed to be traditional Romanian music, and it sounded like frenzied noise to us; it made me think of a movie where someone is rushing around here and there on fast forward while crazed music sets the tempo for an uncomfortable, rushed reality. It didn't make eating too pleasant - or maybe it was the food. Anyways, it was interesting.

I wanted to talk about the AMAZING bakery down the street and about the food situation - supermarket exploration - one of my favourite things about being in a new country - but guess what. I have to get ready for practice. The last one of the week - tomorrow is game day for the men and for the women, so I'll be cheering... but first, sleeping in!