Milestones in Weeks 3 & 4

At exactly three weeks almost to the hour, we hit an important milestone. Drum rolls please…

We found an Asian noodle shop!

We were looking for a place to eat along a main road filled with discount retailers, Checks Cashed, auto repair shops and divey Mexican taquerias when Scott spotted it – the Vietnam Grille – tucked between the Family Dollar Store and the Dollar Tree. You bat an eye and you’d be at Ross Dress for Less.

Their traditional beef noodle soup was as good as any in NYC. Next time I’ll try the grilled pork chop (that’s for you Nat.) From the proprietor we learned that there’s a new Asian market 20 minutes away called Grand Asia Market. I can’t wait to go stock up on noodles and hot sauces.

Which leads to the latest Appliance Update. Our shiny new stove is here but it won’t be hooked up for another couple of weeks when everything else gets in. But with a bit of imagination, we can pretty much make everything with an electric kettle and a counter top Panini grill (grilled veggies, pasta, salmon, polenta, hot dogs, leftover chicken…) that we are considering sending the stove back. Scott observed that we’ve cooked more in our three weeks in Charlotte than in our 2 ½ years in NY.

Even without everything installed, we feel more settled now that we (Scott) have cleared the floors from our piles of stuff, thanks to Scott’s brilliant idea. For $22 a month, we solved our storage problem with a climate controlled 5x5x8 storage unit. Thank goodness for cheap real estate in dodgy neighborhoods.

I was excited to start doing yoga again by taking a couple of classes at the Y. Unfortunately, one instructor could not distinguish between a “cobra” and an “up dog” and the other might as well be teaching boot camp. I’m hopeful though that I’ll eventually find someone I like. In the mean time, I’m enjoying the 1-mile walk to the Y and defying the car-centric culture in Charlotte while trying not to get killed crossing the street. I’ve been warned that fatal accidents happen frequently for pedestrians, who are quite the endangered species around here.

On my (safe) walk back on Friday night, I happened upon the gallery crawl that happens every first Friday. I stopped first at Boulevard, a new outpost of a cute boutique that features jewelry, clothing, organic diapers and other knickknacks from local artisans. I met the owners Car-rr-men – with a vigorous “r” – and Cindy, and Chuck, who owns Common Market which is a deli/liquor store/wine bar/outdoor DJ lounge. Across the street, I toured the Charlotte Art League, a big space with artist studios and exhibit walls for rent and that also offers classes. A couple of blocks away, I discovered a gallery that offers mosaic classes and another that exhibits artsy pottery. I was beginning to feel connected to the neighborhood.

This week the big event was the International Collectibles & Antiques Show at the Metrolina Expo. It was a gigantic bazaar with hundreds of vendors selling all things antique or just plain old. Scott and I held high hopes that we would find nice pieces of furniture – a desk, dresser, kitchen cabinet, book cases – to furnish our place. On the first day we went there, we spent 3 ½ hours and ended up with two mid-century ceramic containers that dentists used to sterilize their equipment. Yesterday, I returned and came back with a telephone from around 1900 to join the ranks of household appliances that are not working. I also came back with a special purchase that Scott won’t know about until he comes back from NY on Tuesday, so I can’t tell you about it here yet. All in all, we are zero out of four on practical purchases, and our hunt continues.

It’s Sunday morning and as I write this, I keep smelling a skunk. I wonder if it has anything to do with the black cat that stalks the parking lot or the hawk that circles above the lot. I’m ruling the possum out as it only comes out at night. I hope it's not in our ventilation. I think I’ll go investigate now.