10 weeks and counting!

Well as of today there are 10 weeks left and we'll be on a bus on our way to Auckland! Yippee!  Now on top of it, I tried to give away Katie Perry, but after sending her off in such a tramatic way I had to get her back.  We had our french doors open for her to play outside.  At the same time a new family moved in across from us in the same garden and their little girl about 3 came over to play and pet the cat.  Well the cat does not like being chased and the little girl was loud so Katie was trying to run away.  In the meantime the people to pick up the cat shows up with no cage as the cat they were to be passing on to their granddaughter who lives in Auckland.  Now it's a lady with two children with her so I guess she was the grandmother.  We try to get the cat into their car and it doesn't work.  She starts clawing John to get away.  In the end we get the car doors closed and Katie dashed onto their dashboard and looks at me terrified.  I could have cried.  So I tell John to get in their car and we'll help them to their home with Katie.  The cat settles on John's lap.  We get to their home and as soon as we're in their front door there's a bed to the right, Katie runs under it.  We go home.  I cried all day/night.  I just did not like how the whole thing went down.

The next day when John's friend Stephen is here to do some homework with John we start talking about Katie.  I had gotten through the day ok, but of course every time I thought of her tears would come to my eyes.  John finally asked do I want to get her back and we'll take her back with us.  I said yes!  I had to beg him to call though since I didn't have the nerve.  John ran upstairs to make the call and came down and told me the guy said he'd rather not give her back and that Katie was outside playing with the neighbours cat.  Then I said ok, well at least Katie is ok.  About 3 minutes later Johns phone rang to ask if we still wanted the cat back and John said yes please.  The man said ok, but you might need to bring your wife because we let Katie out this morning and she won't and hasn't come back in and we can't find her.  She'd been "lost" all morning.  We hurried over there.  When we got there the grandma pointed out that Katie had been in the neighbours yard all morning, but would go running when she would see her.  So we knew she'd stayed in the area (and hoped).  We started calling, but no luck.  The grandma and her granddaughter went back to their home and we spent the next hour in the wind and cold calling and calling.  We drove around the block and back.  When we got back we went back into the neighbour's yard and finally we heard Katie's meowing!  What a sigh of relief that I could have cried.

So we've taken Katie to our apartment and now looking into the possibility/cost of taking her back with us.  So far one quote is up to 3100 NZD!  It's crazy expensive. If only Mike our flatmate or Stephen would take her I'd feel better about the whole thing, but otherwise I feel we need to take her.  I normally don't like cats, but I really love this one. 

Otherwise things are going well with us.  I told my boss before the holidays we would be leaving, but of course I had a better reason (which I am not putting here yet) as to why we were leaving).  He was very happy for me and it went really well.  I plan to tell my colleagues when I go back to work.

Still no news regarding keys and my apartment in Stockholm - a real pain and very immature reaction from the guy there, but hopefully it will get settled even if it only happens right before we get back.

I can't wait to be back in my apartment again in Stockholm and actually have a real holiday!