Winter in Australia is awesome

I have hit a crossroads in my life. I finally took the time to figure out when exactly I will be done with classes and when exactly I will be coming home. While I miss my friends and family terribly and can't wait to get home to them, I'm also amazed at how fast time is going and everything I still have left I want to do. When I first signed up for this degree, it was called a 6-month course finishing at the end of December. The original plan was for my parents to visit somewhere in the middle, and then Eric was going to come spend Christmas, New Years and my birthday here in Australia and then we'd fly home together. When I got here, I figured out that the last day of exams was November 14. Spending an extra month and a half here traveling and partying would have been pretty awesome, but sadly my whole 15 months of work didn't exactly leave me with much money to work with. So, original plan was canned and the parents decided to come right after exams and travel with me for about 3 weeks before heading back to the States. I have now come to find out that I have no real final exams in my classes, just huge projects due the last week of classes. Which means I will actually be done with school on October 23. Talk about a short degree. In literally 13 weeks I will have earned a Graduate Certificate. That's almost shorter than summer school! Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining. But that does give me a little more room for planning, frugally of course.

Last week I won a $10 flight. Its one way and I can choose to go to Sydney, Rockhampton, Mackay or the Whitsundays. I chose to see the Whitsundays. I was really hoping I could get to Hamilton Island so I could punch the guy that won the Best Job in the World contest that I lost . . . but fortunately for him, accommodation there is way out of my range. You may have won the contest and gotten 6 months paid vacation in Australia, but I still made it here. So take that, British guy. Instead of Hamilton Island, I'm looking into some sailing trips around the islands. Its pretty much like a hostel on the water. You stay on bunk beds on the boat, they stop for snorkeling and diving, stop at various beachs, all meals are cooked on board and you can bring your own alcohol. I'd say thats a win. And if I can try to win another $10 flight it will cut down on my costs that much more. I'm puttin a lot of eggs in that basket, the MTV basket (quote from Talledega Nights). This trip is really exciting to me because it will be like when I first arrived in Australia and knew no one. It really forces you to meet new people.
This past weekend I spent Saturday at the Lagoon with Eugen and Wolfgang. We got our tan on and swam in the somewhat warmer lagoon. We ended the afternoon with a snack and some beers at the Boardwalk. And to think, I'm already this tan and its still winter . . . wait til I get home. :) I went out with the boys (and Hanne of course) Saturday night. We danced the night away and ended up at my favorite bar, the Down Under. They play my American music which is SO much better than techno. I am extremely thankful techno has not caught on in the US like it has everywhere else. Its ok in small doses, but strobe lights, fog machines and music that fast is not really my thing. We ended up losing Wolfgang/Wolverine which had me extremely worried, but the other guys reassured me he'd be fine and sure enough he showed up the next afternoon.
This week I'm working on planning out most of my weekends left here so I can get the most out of my trip. I really only have about 8 weekends left to travel. We're planning a paintball excursion soon and I can't wait. In my two experiences playing, I won both times and never got shot. That is until Eric decided to shoot me when we weren't playing so I could "see what it felt like." Lets just say I got the nickname "Psycho" last time I played and I was the only girl. This weekend its off to Hervey Bay for Whale Watching!! For now I need to focus on my presentation Thursday and catch up on some reading for class.

Let the countdown begin . . . 95 days

this week in the life of kennan . . .

One project down and two more presentations to go. On top of all the work I've been doing lately, I've also been fighting off another cold. I bit the bullet and finally bought some medicine, which to my horror tastes exactly like jager. Let me tell you how delicious that is first thing in the morning.

Pole dancing Tuesday was exciting yet again. We practiced the moves from last week and then learned "the lollipop" spin. We also started trying to put the moves together into a routine. Sadly, our teacher told me a pole costs at least $300 so it doesn't look I'll be purchasing one in the near future . . . But at least I still have about 2 more months of classes left.

Thursday night after a long day of class, Jackie and I headed to a local Irish pub for a drink. Hanne met us later and we enjoyed some wine on the balcony. After Jackie left, Hanne and I were approached by "the army guys." They were loud and rowdy, but pretty entertaining. For a while I talked with one of the guys about Iraq and mainly about you Jeff. Since you're my only friend in Iraq, that pretty much makes you a celebrity. I then found out that my new army friend owns a boat and happens to be a cretified scuba instructor. JACKPOT. He offered to take us out on his boat to go scuba diving. Hanne is not certified, but he offered to get her certified for free if she gave him a kiss. So of course she did. . . that's my girl. There are currently killer whales around the coast which is not common and I'd love to go see them. We'll see if that works out. My whale watching trip with school is next weekend and I can't wait!! I've never seen a whale so that should be a good time.

We have a new addition to our family, and its a black acoustic guitar. Magically, the company actually sent us a second guitar by accident, woo hoo!! Maybe I'll try to learn a few strings before I come home. Also, my frugality reached another new low. While in the shower the other night, my razor handle snapped. I guess that means its a little old. Too bad I'm not sure where to buy a new one. I've tried two stores so far with no luck, so my new mini razor and I are gonna have to work something out.

No big plans for the weekend. Mainly just relaxing by the lagoon and working on my tan. Ahh winter is rough here, isn't it?

I'm finally getting to do some really fun designing in classes. Here are a few of the ads I've gotten to create so far. Buildin up that portfolio, not that it will matter much when I'm working at McDonalds . . . kidding kidding, I'm gonna get an awesome job when I get home (fingers crossed)

Breweries, Poolage and Rugby

This weekend was ridiculous to put it mildly. Friday night I decided not to go out to a) save money and b) so I could spend some time studying for my test on Monday. I studied for a few hours when I got home from class and then Hanne came over to join in our roomie dance party followed by a movie. At one point she was out on our porch and the neighbor yelled over asking what we were doing that night. She said we were listening to music and about to watch a movie. He then asked a question about our house and here is how the conversation proceeded:

"Sorry mate, I don't live here." - hanne
"Wait, you're not the American girl?" - guy
"No, why does my voice sound fat?"- hanne
"Oh yea, forgot about that . . ." - guy

And that is why I love Hanne . . . We then all watched Borat together and I laughed almost as hard as I did the first time I saw it. I was a little bummed Friday night because Saturday I had planned on going to the XXXX brewery with some of the guys and when I looked online all the tickets were sold out. But the roomies and I made plans to spend the day down by the lagoon so not a bad trade. As we were on the bus heading to the lagoon Saturday afternoon we passed Ivar who was walking home. I called him and he explained that they had already purchased my ticket so I needed to get over to the guys house so I could catch the cab with them. Oh snap. I got off at the next stop and then ran over a mile in the pounding heat to get to the house in time. I arrived sweaty and out of breath, but I made it. We then headed off to the brewery for our tour.

I came to find out later that this trip was an all guys trip. Just goes to show you that I have and always will be one of the guys. We were slightly late to the tour and missed the history, but it was really interesting to see all the machines and smell all the separate ingredients that go into making the beer. Also, Queensland had a huge drought problem a while ago and the brewery recently converted almost all of its machines to use recycled water and cut down on their consumption as a company. It was a multi-million dollar endeavor but they are now one of the most efficient brewerys in Australia. Now onto the good part. With the tour we got 4 mini beers to try out the different kinds. They also had their XXX brand which can only be purchased at that bar. There was a guy in our tour group wearing a dress, half of a set of pink fluffy handcuffs and penis antlers. Obviously a bachelor party. At the bar I chatted them up, took some funny pictures and ultimately scored 3 more free drinks. Maybe I should write a book about that cause I tend to be pretty good at getting free drinks . . . not to brag or anything. They offered free drinks all night if I came to the bar they were going to later, but I politely declined. At the end of our brewery adventure the French girls that hang out with us occasionally showed up at the brewery. Coincidence or stalking . . . you decide.Our next phase of the adventure was to find a grill and a pool somewhere. We ended up going to the French girls' place and cooking out, drinking and enjoyed their heated pool. It was fabulous and the pool felt like bath water. After a few hours there we had to catch a cab back home to change and head to the Gabba for the rugby game. This rugby was very different than the other game I went to. There was no passing back with your foot and not much tackling. But that didn't stop us from having fun. As we drank our cokes mixed with carefully snuck in whiskey, we cheered on our Brisbane Lions. I happened to wear the color of the opposing team, but I explained to those around us I was cheering for the Lions. I tried 3 different times to start the wave before someone politely informed me that the wave is not allowed in stadiums in Australia. Ooops. We then made new friends and invited them to our after party.

The after party was our typically awesome house party. Drinking games galore and loud music. I had my first sleepover since being in Australia, it was Hanne of course. Needless to say, Sunday was absolutely miserable. I got up and showered and then laid back in bed. At 3pm I moved to the couch to try to encourage my studying. I met Jackie on campus for a group study session later and then called it an early night with a movie and bed.

The test today wasn't too bad and hopefully I did well. I then headed over to the DaVinci museum exhibit. It was such a cool museum. It shows all of DaVinci's drawings and even has some of his machines built so that you can play with them and see how they work. I took pictures which will be on facebook later. The coolest was his parachute invention which someone actually created exactly to his designs proportions and tried it. He said it was a perfect jump. DaVinci designed so many things hundreds of years before other people caught on. What a genious. A glorious ride on the City Cat home and I'm now relaxing out of the ridiculous heat. Record high in Brisbane today, 32 degrees Celcius. Holy hotness . . .

That one, not so much . . .

Tonight was a good night in. Actually, the party is still going, but I'm gonna try to go to bed at a decent hour (aka before 2am) so I can make it to the lagoon early and work on my tan. Hanne came over to hang out with me and the guys tonight. Btw, frozen pizzas here are $4 . . . hell yea. So we ate pizza and drank red wine. Then we all gathered around and watched Borat. It is still one of the funniest movies I've ever seen. I first saw this movie in the theater with my dad and brother-in-law the day after Thanksgiving. Lets just say the naked man scene made me feel a little awkward, but my dad laughed hysterically. I don't think he's seen Bruno yet, but I'm not sure he'll think its as funny as Borat.

We then transitioned into our typical dance party. Wolfgang played his awful techno, and then I slyly changed it to my music. 80s, rap and rock and roll. SOOOOO much better than techno. Hanne and I also decided to name the gecko family that we've discovered at our house. They've been outside a few nights in a row, and one even invaded our house the other night. The daddy is named P Diddy and the momma we originally named Svetlana because its a whorish name in Russian. But Eugene's brother dates a girl named Svetlana, so we had to change her name to Mishka which happens to be the vodka the guys are drinking tonight. And the baby, well his name is Baby Cakes. Wolfgang continues to terrorize the geckos by capturing them for pictures, but they're troopers and keep coming back.

The guys are currently trying to rap to Kid Rock . . . and on that note, I'm hittin the sack. Good night, good night, parting is such sweet sorrow

I'm gonna kayak home

Nothing makes a girl feel sexier than getting hollered at by a cab driver while walking home.
I just have one question . . . if you take me to dinner, do I have to pay you when we get there?

A few weeks ago I sent our landlords an email with this picture. I wanted to emphasize how ridiculously dirty our common area was. I also mentioned that we each had to pay a $50 fee for cleaning when we moved in . . . Well pictures speak louder than words. This morning as I was gettin ready to head to campus, I heard a knock at the door. I waited to see if one of the guys would answer, but of course they didn't. I was delighted to find two guys ready and willing to deep clean our carpets. I am currently sitting on our couch in the living room, with my bare feet on the floor. :) Great Success!!

Now, onto what I've been doing the past few days. One word: school. I thought with having been in school for 18 years of my life, this whole graduate certificate wouldn't be that hard. Well, its proving to be pretty hard. Not because the material is hard, but because I have presentations in three classes, I have two midterms and ridiculously long and time consuming final projects in all 4 classes. Plus, I'm in Australia and I'm trying to see and experience as much as I can. Its daunting, but I guess I could use a good challenge.

I also want to give a shoutout to my girls. Even though I am 14 hours ahead and thousands of miles away, we still pretty much talk daily. I wanted to figure out exactly how many miles away I am so I google mapped North Carolina to Brisbane, Australia. Here is what I got:

I might need to train a little for #29. Hahaha. Gotta love that people at Google have such a good sense of humor.

As for the weekend, its shaping up to be pretty exciting. Friday I'll probably stay in and get some studying done for my test on Monday (blah). But Saturday, in the afternoon I'm heading over to XXXX Brewery for a brewery tour, lunch and tasting with a few of the guys. Then Saturday night is the last home game for the Brisbane Lions, a rugby team whose stadium is less than 10 minute walk from our house. We already bought our tickets and have a huge group going together. Stadium style rugby and pregaming . . . woot woot!

Lastly, I need to vent . . .

The other night the guys and I were discussing our last names and what they mean. The most interesting story would be Ivar. There are 5 people in his immediate family, and they have 4 last names. They are all named in Icelandic tradition. So, Ivar's last name is Boson because he is the son of Bo. His sister is Bo(some word that means daughter), etc.

And now for Eiler. My last name was originally from a medieval given name, composed of the elements AGIL (edge, point of a weapon) and HARD (brave, hardy and strong). It was a name given to a warrior or soldier. It was also a named used by Jews, meaning 'husband.' Awesome, mom and dad. Not only did you give me a predominantly male first name, I also have a manly last name and a deep voice that probes doctors to ask if I'm sick or if I always sound like that. Thank god for my womanly curves cause you didn't give me much else to work with. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my name. But, it does get a little annoying when you get letters threatening you for not signing up for the draft and emails addresssed to Mr. Eiler. Not to mention my high school nickname of "Barry White." True story.

summertime, and the livin is easy

Ahh summer.

I was a little sad I was gonna miss out on summer in North Carolina this year, but I guess Australia isn't a bad trade. Not to mention its winter here and I already have the makings of a sweet tan. But nothing can top that feeling I get as soon as the wind starts smelling like the beach and that overwhelming feeling of finally being home. I realize I'm not really from the beach and I grew up in Greensboro, but the beach holds my fondest memories from when I was a kid, and feels more like home than anywhere else. Its my greatest memories with my family, and no matter where I live, Atlantic Beach will always be home.

One of our regular spots at the beach is Shackleford. Its a quick 10 minute boat ride from my parents house and we just anchor the boat in, break out the brewskies and float in the water or lay on the beach. There are wild horses there which still excite me even though I've seen them a million times. Its peaceful and beautiful . . . I guess its just "our place."

And now to shatter my peaceful memories. I got an interesting email from my cousin yesterday. It seems he has a friend who was out in a helicopter near my parents house on the coast for a boat shoot. He took some pretty interesting pictures, right off the edge of Shackleford.That, my friends, is what 300-400 sharks looks like. And to think I was worried about swimming in the water here in Australia. Granted, a 6ft nurse shark doesn't compare to a 25 ft Great White . . . but if I was getting attacked I think the type of shark would be the least of my worries. These pictures are also just a day after good ol daddio jumped off his boat to untie his line. Dad, I think you're one shark might have had some buddies you couldn't see. You're one lucky SOB, so stay out of the water. When I come back to the states it will be winter. Not really boating season and definitely not swimming season. And I'm sure by the time summer rolls around next year I will have regained my confidence in the water and jump right in. But for now, thats freakin scary.

So, today I headed over the the dive shop I've been meaning to go to for a few weeks now. Its walking distance from my house and has all the extras I might need for a dive and they also plan trips. Here in Australia I'm required by law to have a whistle and a safety sausage (a floating orange marker to signal I need help) to go diving. No offense, but I don't think my whistle would scare away a shark. So in addition to those items I bought this . . .Now, technically this is not for shark killing. Its in case I get tangled in a line, in rubbish along the bottom, or some other obstacle that keeps me from getting to the surface. BUT, in the event that I were ever attacked, I would much rather stab a shark in the eye with this than my finger. In honor of my beloved yellow xterra that died earlier this year, I have named my knife Zing. Its kinda like owning a handgun. You hope you never have to use it, but in the event that you do, you're damn glad you purchased it. I've never owned a handgun, but I assume thats what it feels like. Mom, I hope you can rest a little easier knowing I'll have this strapped to me when I'm diving. Maybe you should buy one for dad since he thinks he's invincible, I think it'd be a lot more helpful than his waterproof cell phone.

Lastly, some of you may know that I plan on writing a book at some point during my life. It was just going to be Momisms, but the Grandmaisms have started taking the cake lately. This book will be about my family, mainly my mother and grandmother, and the absolutely ridiculous things that come out of their mouths. For instance, while in Africa having breakfast one morning my mother announced to us "I think these eggs come from some kind of bird." Good one mom. Or theres the time I was having a going away dinner before I left for China and my grandmother asked if I was taking a train or plane to get there. The list goes on, and I may only sell 20 copies to my family, but it will make us laugh for years to come. So, I shall share with you the latest Grandmaism . . .

My mom called my grandmother the other day to check on her and make sure she had gone to eat lunch. She doesn’t cook for herself much anymore so my mom likes to make sure she’s eating. My grandmother then explained that she hadn’t gone to lunch because she had to go to a meeting. The meeting was for all the residents to voice their opinions about their rooms and if they wanted any changes. Everyone was at the meeting, including most of the staff and many residents. To this entire group my grandmother announced that she wanted the garbage that flies over her head at night to be removed because she was scared it would fall on her. . . All the other little ladies at Wellspring are now terrified that their garbage will start flying over their heads at night too. Sorry Wellspring, welcome to my family.

i see you windin and grindin up on that pole . . .

Sometimes I wonder if I'm adopted cause I'm just so "out there." And then I remember, my family is freakin crazy and that's exactly where I come from.

Early on in my relationship with Eric I sat him down and told him to run. When he asked what I was talking about I explained that no one in their right mind would choose to be a part of my family and he should run before it was too late. Its already too late for me, but I'm actually thankful for that.

I got an email from my mom today. It was about my dad and his fishing escapades. Lately he has really enjoyed fishing for sharks. On this particular morning, his line got caught in the propeller. Keep in mind he had been fishing for sharks so he already saw one in the water near the boat. A normal person would cut the line and count his losses. But not frugal daddy (guess that's where I get it from). He decided he needed to get in the ocean, unwind the line from the propeller and then get back in the boat . . . all this with a shark in the water. Being the safety freak that he is, he took his waterproof cellphone so he could "call for help" in case the shark got him. Considering he has to have our cell phone numbers taped to the back of his phone so he can call us, I'm not sure it would have done him much good. Regardless, the shark wasn't hungry, he got the line undone and saved his fly which he is extremely proud of but also killed his "waterproof" phone. And some of you question my spring break plans . . . but at least I'm swimming with sharks while in a cage.

On top of this, my mom got a tattoo. Pause: Now for my tattoo story. I'd always wanted one and had been working on the design for years. I didn't feel like I had a legit reason to get one, so I never actually followed through with it. Well, about 3 years ago I lost one of my best friends. And I decided that on her birthday that following year, I would finally get my tattoo and incorporate her memory into it. I designed it myself and got it done on Dec 21, 2007. I have a history of passing out when it comes to needles and I felt a pass out coming on during the tat. I told the guys I was getting ready to pass out and one of them popped a lifesaver in my mouth. I now know why they are called lifesavers. The burst of sugar brought me right back, and for the rest of my tattoo, Eric sat there and fed me lifesavers. What a fabulous discovery. I was absolutely terrified to tell my parents about my tattoo so I kept it a secret for a long time. Their biggest argument was that people at work would judge me if they saw it. So, I played the whole "i'm uncomfortable with my weight" game and bought a tankini. I spent the whole weekend at the beach with the parents and they didn't see the tattoo at all. That Sunday, before heading home, I announced "By the way, I got my tattoo, I've had it the whole time since I've been here and none of you noticed."

My dad's response? "Does it say 'I love my daddy'?"

"Of course!"

"Well, ok then."

Long story short, they saw it, they thought it was actually pretty but still were pissed I got a tattoo. Oh well, thats life. All my mom got was her eye liner tattooed on so its not really a big deal, but I thought I'd leave you in anticipation for a while.

Now, onto the exciting story. I'm a born stripper. Not really, but I have a natural talent for pole dancing. It is an AMAZING upper body workout. We had about 6-7 girls on our pole that were all beginners so we didn't get much time practicing, but my arms are sore from just that short class. And it is fun!! The girls beside us in the intermediate class were doing moves that would make my momma cringe . . . but I'm workin my way there. I understand why its such a popular workout class. Its doing something tabu that no working woman would ever get the chance to learn, and here we are learning how to work a pole. I tried to convince my roommates to invest in one for the house (I told them I'd teach classes to girls they invited over) but they didn't bite. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to stick to my Tuesday classes. I am hooked though, and will go every Tuesday that I can. I'm not sure the mom and pops would appreciate an amatuer pole installation . . . but maybe if I move in with Kat . . .

Spontaneous

–adjective: given to acting upon sudden impulses

I had no plans for this weekend. I wanted to catch up on sleep, laundry and school work. Jeff thought this lack of planning would affect our blog war. Well, I momentarily forgot that my life is ALWAYS exciting and even if I don't make plans, they somehow seem to find me.

After class Thursday I rushed home to get ready so Hanne and I could go out for Ladies Night. We headed to a bar down the street from my house called the Chalk Hotel. I walk by it daily and it always looks so cool so I've really wanted to try it out. This is the same place that randomly had snow outside one night and had a stripper pole class another night. So we arrived and sat out on the porch enjoying the night air, and beverages of course. I wanted to find out more about this pole dancing class so I asked the security guard about it. He doesn't work Tuesday nights so he got the manager for me. He explained that it was a free workout class held for an hour on Tuesday nights and it has become so popular that they have started doing two classes now. He also said all of the girls he's talked to have said its a fabulous workout. Done and done. With the way the economy is going in the US, a girl has to have options ya know? No mom, I am not going to become a stripper. But next Tuesday Hanne and I are going to check out the class and see what all the hype is about.

I then headed up to the bar to get a new round of drinks, which were on the house courtesy of the manager. I may not have that spark from college, but I haven't lost it completely :) By the time I came back to the table, Hanne had chatted up a few guys and when I walked up and introduced myself they said "Are you from North Carolina too?" Explanation: Hanne told me that for fun sometimes she tells people she's from NC. And people actually believe her because her English is quite good. Obviously, anyone from the states would immediately know she was lying, but these were Aussies and bought it hook, line and sinker. I then explained that yes, I was from NC but Hanne was actually from Norway and her accent didn't even come close to my Southern twang. We all had a good laugh and continued chatting. The main guys we talked to were David and David. We shall call them David1 and David2 to clarify. They are both engineers/mechanics and design/build racecars for a living. Who'd have thought I'd find Nascar guys in Australia. One of the other Aussies had a strong accent along with a strong mumble and communication was a little impossible. At one point I finally said, "Look, I know we speak the same language, but I can't understand anything you say." He then told me that his friends don't understand him either most of the time. I suggested pronunciating.

As the night was coming to a close, our new friends asked if we would like to join them the next day out at the Gold Coast to go jet skiing, tubing and wakeboarding. My eyes met Hanne's and we both smiled at the same time. How unexciting would life be if you didn't do something spontaneous every now and then? We made plans for David1 to pick me up and David2 to pick Hanne up and we'd then travel together to the Gold Coast. We then left Chalk and I put Hanne in a cab so she could get her late night Mickey D's and get home safely.

After a few short hours of sleep, I had my bathing suit on, my sunscreen packed and was ready for our adventure. I received a text from Hanne that read "Love that you're up for spontaneous things!:)" The guys picked each of us up and we arrived at the Gold Coast at about 10:30am and waited for the others to arrive. I was a little worried about what kind of boat would show up. Their friends were not exactly punctual. While we were waiting we sat on the beach by the loading dock and I decided to try to go in the freezing water. I got in to about my waist and decided it was too cold and I couldn't take it. I was then promptly tackled into the freezing water. Didn't see that one coming. . . Two hours later we were finally ready to head out on the boat. And by boat I mean most amazingly decked out sweetest ride I have ever been on. It had red, black and gray leather interior and a sound system most of the guys in my life would kill for. The bar along the top for optimal wake boarding, a cooler hidden under a seat, a removable table we could set up in the middle . . . you get the picture. Or maybe you don't so here's a few.


Evidently the guy who owns the boat, Jamie, is a race car driver and his sponsors gave him the boat. Note to self: I should have been a race car driver. Dad, I'm thinkin you should pick back up that midlife crisis, or at least pass your driving skills on to me. Not only were my expectations met, they were far exceeded. They then pulled out the tube. It wasn't actually a tube, it was the Manta Ray tube that flies through the air. It is actually no longer sold in Australia because too many people were seriously injured riding it. I got some sweet pictures of people riding it, but evidently it had a hole and was deflating so I didn't actually get to ride it. No worries though, I was perfectly content tanning on the boat.
At the end of one of the islands, a huge movie set was up and they were filming. I think it may be for the new Chronicles of Narnia film which has started filming here in Queensland. We spent hours and hours tubing, wakeboarding, jet skiing and beaching. We were those annoying people who played their music too loud and made you extremely jealous because your life was no where close to that exciting. As we watched the sunset over the water, it was finally time to head home. We said goodbye to our new found racing friends and headed back to Brisbane. David1 ordered some pizza for us and then gave us a ride home.
It was a ridiculously fun day that came from a casual conversation at the Chalk Hotel. Maybe I should try not planning out my weekends more often. Although my plans for tomorrow are sleeping, catching up on schoolwork and doing laundry, who knows who I might meet along the way that might just offer me something way more exciting . . .

PS- the guys just headed out on the town and they each knocked on the wall and waved bye as they went past my room. Wolfgang waved and said "Bye Momma" hahaha. They have decided that I'm the momma of the house and thus I have gotten my first nickname in Australia.

Zoos are like men . . .

Once you’ve seen one, you’ve seen em all. But occasionally, one catches your eye cause its a little more interesting than the others. Like the Australia Zoo. Oh and ps- I told you I'd ride a kangaroo . . .

It was pretty awesome and I definitely recommend seeing it. It had more animals than Currumbin and you got to interact with them without paying extra money. The crocodile show was a little disappointing, but I bet it was much cooler when steve was around. Jackie and I spent the whole day there seeing every exhibit, petting koalas and feeding the kangaroos. It was tiring, but worth it.

Tuesday night Hanne came over and we worked on planning Spring Break. And, we bought our tickets to go CAGE DIVING WITH GREAT WHITE SHARKS. It’s official. I go on October 2nd and I can barely control my excitement. Look out Bucket List, I’m kickin your ass. Its also lookin like the trip is gonna be a little pricey so I’m gonna try to get a part-time job. Jackie works for a winery as a server at parties which could be a pretty sweet gig. I’ll keep you updated on the job hunt. Hanne and I stayed up with the roomies until 2am watching movies and drinking wine. It was a glorious night.

Wednesday morning came way too early, but I had to forego sleep to go enjoy Ekka. Ekka is the annual show of Queensland and was formally known as the Royal Queensland Show. Its pretty much like the state fair, but WAY cooler and without deep fried snickers. Jackie and I quickly discovered after arriving that they had free food and wine tasting in one of the buildings. About an hour later we had visited each booth and decided we need to go on a wine tasting tour down in wine country. We then got tattoos. No mom, not a real one, just a fun airbrush one. I chose the Chinese symbol that means “crazy” and it was perfectly fitting. We then met up with Vibeke and headed to the fashion show. It was a lot of fun to watch, and of course to crack on the models. After the show we explored the markets and Vibeke and I got makeovers at the mineral makeup stand. It was fun, but I’m not paying $80 for powder. A lil American fatty food and we were content with our trip. I took the train part of the way home and a bus part of the way but I walked the last bit. It was raining. I’vc been here over a month and haven’t even seen a hint of rain. So I danced the whole way home, and smiled through the rain. Tomorrow it will be 3 years since we lost Natalie and she loved dancing in the rain. I don’t think its just a coincidence that it rained tonight . . . miss you my love.

Tomorrow, its class all day and then Ladies Night with Hanne. I’m laying low this weekend to catch up on work (and sleep) but who knows what might happen between now and then.

He's behind you . . . he's got swine flu

Those would be lyrics to a hilarious song by The Streets, look it up. The swine flu is pretty rampant here right now. Good news is I'm about one swine flu away from my goal weight, so I might just have to go expose myself.

Lets see, where did I leave off. Friday the roomies and I stayed in and had a spontaneous dance party. We all shared our favorite songs from our home countries and danced the night away. The videos on facebook are hilarious and definitely worth a look. Saturday I headed to the lagoon with Wolfgang and we met up with Jackie. It was absolutely beautiful and I love that I can get a great tan in winter here. Ladies, you will be a lil jealous of my sweet tan when I come home in December. While at the lagoon we could see a street performer who put his entire body through a tennis racquet. Most hilarious part of the show: as he pulled it over his chest he said "Now over the first piercing, now the second" and then we he got down to his waist said "and now to go over the third piercing." HAHA Then we took the City Cat home; I love that we can take taxis home on the water and it costs one whole dollar.

Saturday night was our second big party at the house. We grilled out again and then played cards while we waited for everyone to arrive. Our house is a fabulous party house. We probably had 20-30 people here at one point. We set up beer pong and my team ruled the table. Wolfgang and I won 3 games and then he ditched me saying he wanted to go out on top. Then Jackie stepped in as my partner. We were playing the british guys and one of them was holding his cup of beer and Jackie made it into his cup. Game over right? Well, evidently british guys don't take losing very well and it was also JB's birthday, so after listening to them complain for 5 minutes, I finally let it go. It was a good reign, but there were card games to participate in and dancing to partake in. I met a few Aussies and told them I was searching for a nice Aussie business man with a private jet to fly me around Australia. One guy said he had a toy plane at his mom's house . . . I told him that was nice and politely walked away. I also met our Aussie neighbor. I asked him who plays the trumpet daily and he said it was actually a French horn, and he did. Oops. He also said we kept him up til 4am last Saturday with our party so this time he decided to just come on over and hang out.

I then got the MOST awkward comment of my life. He said "Hearing your voice next door I expected a much fatter American." I don't know if I should be insulted that he thought my voice sounded fat, or flattered that he sort of said I was skinny for an American. I think I'm gonna go with insulted. We had a few casualties of the night. Before everyone arrived, the Germans gave me a lil plastic leprechaun from the Simpsons and said it was for good luck. I stuck him in my Miller Lite coozie and we partied together. At some point, someone decided to steal not only my leprechaun, but also my coozie. These people have no idea how important my coozies are to me, and that will NOT happen again. And if I see someone with my coozie, it will be war. The other casualty of the night was a hole in our bathroom wall, which is now cleverly covered with a specially placed paper reading "Please sit in pee!" . . . might have to talk to the German's about what message they were going for there.

I started losing my voice and getting a cough Saturday and by Sunday my body was done. I spent the day drinking hot tea with honey and watching movies. I did get out of cleaning up after the party though. And my nice roomies made me get out of bed around noon and fed me before I laid back down to try to kick this cold. The presentation today was only slightly awkward, and my voice, although kinda manly, was loud enough for others to hear. I also headed to the doctor who said my temperature wasn't high enough to test for swine flu and recommended some tylenol. Woo hoo!

Now its time for some hot tea with honey and a relaxing evening. . . heading to Australia Zoo in the morning!!!!!!!!!!

Live Hard or Die Trying Jeff . . .

Well, as this blog war unfolds, I must make a rebuttal. For those of you who are out of the loop, here's the history.

As most of you know I used to work at University Directories. The day I started, a girl named Gina started as well. We became fast friends and she is now enjoying my lovely living room furniture until my return to the States. While at UD, Gina began dating Jeff. Last year, just after Thanksgiving, Jeff left for Iraq. While in Iraq he discovered his true talent . . . for blogging. Each week at work I would look forward to a new blog which Gina and I would then chat about. While reading his blog, I remembered that back in college I too had started a blog for a class. After searching I rediscovered my blog which stated "I love graphic design and could literally stay up until 4am just playing with Photoshop. I also don't want to sit in a cubicle all day working with graphics." And then I realized . . . that was exactly my job. So I restarted my blog as a way to revamp the fun in my life. My blogs were rare and spread out, but a fun way to waste the time and hold me accountable for making my life more exciting. And now that I am in Australia for grad school, my life has taken a more exciting turn. Hence, my blogging has increased.

Jeff and I have continued to read each others blogs and occasionally chat on facebook because our time zones are a little more in sync. And that, my friends, is how the blog war originated. It was more of a passing joke, but it has taken a definitive tone. He has decided to take my challenge and he has a serious complex with losing. Which means, I'm in for a fight. But I take your challenge Jeff. You may be fighting a real war right now, but I can be a stubborn female dog when challenged. So . . . bring it. Lucky for me, I'm not running for political office, I'm just writing about my life to entertain those from home. And, lets be honest, my life is kinda funny. I'm also in Australia, which is an adventure in itself. We have very different blogs, but I think in the end they compliment each other. So come at me with your fingers, nails and teeth. But KNOW this . . .

My dad always says "You catch more flies with honey." And in all honesty, I completely respect that you are fighting for our country in that horrible place. So rather than come at you from the dark side, I will crush you with better stories, more entertaining adventures and pictures that will blow our viewers away. You want a war, you got a war.

This is not for the faint of heart. For those of you who are not squemish and can handle the tragedies of warfare and would like watch as this battle unfolds, here is Jeff's link: http://bensonjwright.blogspot.com/

Jeff, in closing I have one last thing to say to you . . .
"The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It is a very mean and nasty place. It will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me or nobody is going to hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard you hit, it is about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward, how much can you take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done!"

Oh and ps - I have 10 followers and you only have 8 . . . just saying

oh the weather outside is frightful . . .

Jeff, you may have a complex with never losing . . . but you've met your match in this blog war.

It snowed today. Don't believe me? A picture will be posted at the end of this blog. Moving on, I am hugely excited about upcoming festivities. School is starting to get really busy, but I'm really enjoying my classes and excited about my projects coming up. I'm totally gonna rock this degree. But lets be honest, school isn't fun to blog about. So on to the good stuff.

On Wednesday Jackie, Hanne and I planned on going to the zoo. Hanne had class until 12 and was going to meet us after class, but then couldn't go last minute. Jackie and I headed to the train station around noon to catch a train. As we went to buy our tickets the extremely nice lady at the ticket counter (sarcasm) said "You can't go to the zoo now." Thanks mom, but I do what I want. The gentleman behind the counter, who was actually nice, then explained that even though the zoo closes at 5pm the last train back to Brisbane leaves at 4:30pm and the shuttle from the zoo starts leaving at 3:30pm and we would only get less than 2 hours in the zoo if we left at noon. So the zoo idea was quickly shut down. Tear.

But I was determined to have fun on my day off, so we got creative. We caught a bus to Mt Cootha which is the highest peak in Brisbane. Its a beautiful lil place with a gift shop, cafe, restaurant and large decks for viewing the city. After pictures we decided to have some wine and desert at the cafe. It was delicious. We then decided we wanted to steal the cute wine glasses. We are absolutely miserable at breaking the law. Which I guess is a good thing. We took them, then thought the waitstaff knew, so we returned them. Lame. We then headed back to Brisbane for a ride on the City Cat. When your city is surrounding a river, it only makes since to have taxis on the water. The views were fabulous and the sunset was awesome. It got a little cold when the sun went down, but still a great adventure.

And now for adventures to come . . . this Saturday will be our next party. So far the guest list is bigger and the games are more creative. I'm expecting big things. And next week is already going to be crazy. Tuesday Jackie and I are ACTUALLY going to the zoo, and we're leaving on the early train so we can be there first thing in the morning. Then Wednesday is our one and only public holiday this semester. It is the first day of Ekka which is a huge 10 day festival here. Wednesday is also race day. By race day, I mean horse racing. YES! I never got to participate in the sorority big hat functions at the horse races down south. Now is my chance to wear one of those ridiculous hats and cheer on the horses. After class ALL DAY Thursday, we're headin out on the town for a night of mischief. The bar of choice is called the Chalk Hotel and its down the street from my house. This bar looks so fun. One night I walked by they had stripper poles up for a workout class. (Its legit, they really have classes for that and claim its a full body workout) Tonight when I walked by, they had snow on the ground and a line down the street. I have got to at least check this place out.

Bring it, Australia

View of the city from Kangaroo Point. So grad school is actually kind of hard . . . I don't think its necessarily harder than Undergrad, but its definitely hard after going a year and a half without school. Or maybe its the fact that I'm in Australia and my class schedules get in the way of traveling, but I'm not sure. I have my first presentation next week and finally printed out some calendars to start planning out all my projects. At Carolina you could print when I first started college free of charge. That was extremely helpful in classes where teachers used power points because you could take notes on the printed out slides and it was much easier to follow. Here, printing is expensive. We've only been in class two weeks and most of us have spent almost $20 on printing. Yikes.

But I do enjoy the extra free time. Granted I have to spend a lot of time doing reading and preparing for class, but its nice to sit outside on a beautiful day, or have time to get in a workout without getting up at 6am like I used to. Operation beach body is in effect. Joining the school gym is outrageously expensive (over $200AUD for a semester). Looks like I'll stick to walking to and from campus every day, going for runs around the city and the occasional strength training. Lets just hope I can keep it up because summer is just around the corner. (Sadly for all my Americans, your summer is coming to a close which means you'll just have to come visit me and stretch out that summer!)

Adventure planning is going along smoothly. This past weekend the roommates and I grilled out on the Barbie and threw a house-warming party at our house. It was a great success and everyone had such a great time. Our porch is even more amazing than I originally thought and we moved all the couches to the porch and had a dance party in the living room. (I did most of the dancing, obviously) Awesome. We've even planned another party for this Saturday because a lot of our friends couldn't come to the party this past weekend. I shall introduce everyone to more American drinking games which have been a hit so far. After a group meeting tomorrow I'm heading to the Australia Zoo with a few girlfriends. I've heard it is one of the best zoos in Australia and I'm so excited. More kangaroos please!!!

Spring Break plans are also going beautifully. Hanne and I decided we're going together and its going to be awesome. While I could probably never top my American spring break trips . . . this one will make it close to the top of the list. Our plan is to fly down to Sydney for a few days and enjoy the city. See the sights, hit up the clubs and try to stay out of trouble. We're then heading across to Adelaide to catch a boat to go DIVING WITH GREAT WHITES. Great odin's raven I'm excited. Sightings aren't guaranteed, but the group we're looking at going with has the highest rate of great white sightings. YES, bring it Australia.

And the mom and the pops are planning their visit and its going to be saweet. They're arriving just after exams end and we have some big plans. They're going to land in Brisbane and see my lovely dwellings, my campus and this city I have come to love. Then we head up to Cairns, the Great Barrier Reef and the Daintree Rainforest. After a few days we then head over to New Zealand to Auckland and then Christ Church. Finally, we'll end our grand adventure in Fiji (AWESOME) for a nice relaxing few days before the big flight back home.

Best quote from our party: "Everything in Mexico ends up in America: Cocaine, Illegal Immigrants, Swine Flu."