Author Archives: waggadventure

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About waggadventure

Canadians newly relocated to Australia.

Creature comforts : Part 2 – Settling in

It is kind of weird, but with all the things we had to do to get the house organized, one of the first things we did was put up art. Anyone who knew our Edmonton house would remember that the … Continue reading

Posted in art, Australia, cats, family, Moving, Riverina, rural life, small town culture, wagga | 2 Comments

Creature comforts: Part 1 – Unloading

Regular readers will remember that it was a long time ago…several posts ago in blog terms…that we talked about our furniture being packed into the sea can and starting its long, slow journey to Australia. And now, more than 11 … Continue reading

Posted in art, Australia, cats, decluttering, Moving | Leave a comment

How to speak Australian, Part 3

Yes, it’s another installment of our popular feature on the Australian language. In fact, the phrase ‘how to speak Australian’ is a common Google search that sends people to our blog (welcome strangers!). Most days, our lives proceed as normal… … Continue reading

Posted in bogans, bug spray, cat litter, cats, cooking, ferals, food, pet supplies, rissoles, spiders, Uncategorized, wine | 1 Comment

Show me the pie…

Wagga is often referred to as a ‘country town’, but it is a city, despite the fact that we can hear sheep from our house, drive past goats on the way to the uni, and see kangaroos on campus. If … Continue reading

Posted in agriculture, Australia, fall fairs, kelpies, pie, Riverina, rural life, sheep, sheep dogs, sheep shearing, shows, small town culture, Uncategorized, wagga | 2 Comments

This little piggy…

One cold day in January a couple of years ago, while Lisa was off at a conference (somewhere much warmer), Dan almost ran over a coyote on 119 Street in Edmonton, alongside the U of A farm. It was still … Continue reading

Posted in agriculture, beef, cheese, farmers market, food, kangaroo, market, pie, pistachios, sausage, vegetables, wine | Leave a comment

Comfort creatures: Herding cats – the homecoming edition, Part 2

We brought the kitties home to the new house that was (almost) ready for them. Couples who are having children often prepare a room for the baby; we kitted out the mostly empty house as best we could for our … Continue reading

Posted in aclimatizing, Australia, birds, Bob's Birdz-n-pets, cat litter, cats, cultural differences, food, pet supplies, Petbarn, spiders | Leave a comment

Comfort creatures: Herding cats – the homecoming edition, Part 1

This is a song about being happy! Feel free to listen to it as you read. Our family is finally all together here in our new home. Our kitties arrived yesterday, after a month in, as MO calls it, Kitty … Continue reading

Posted in airport, Australia, Canada, cats, family, Qantas, quarantine, travel, wagga | 2 Comments

Peter Parker to the rescue

Every morning, Dan gets up, puts on his robe, shakes out his slippers and walks to the pantry, where he grabs a can of bug spray and goes on patrol, all the while singing Spiderman, spiderman, does whatever a spider … Continue reading

Posted in Australia, danger, gardening, spiders | 3 Comments

How to cook Australian

Many cultures have a strong connection to cooking with fire. Americans think that what they do – slow roasting on a fire – is real barbecue. Canadians think that quick hot cooking on a grill is barbecue. Argentines cook huge … Continue reading

Posted in Australia, bogans, cooking, cultural differences, food, language, Riverina, sausage, small town culture, wagga | 7 Comments

Every shop = Op Shop

When we were selling our house in Edmonton, we went through the retail mating ritual of offer -> counter offer -> counter counter offer -> bottom line response -> desperate ‘one more try’ counter offer -> ‘fuck off’ response. We … Continue reading

Posted in Australia, Canada, cultural differences, money, small town culture, Uncategorized | 2 Comments