one morning last week Dwayne and I were at a  Tim Hortons drive-thru waiting to grab some coffee.  it was a morning like any other, waiting in the long line of cars, anxiously awaiting that caffeine hit.  when finally arriving to the window the lady hands us our coffees and proceeds to tell us that the car ahead of us has paid our bill with a “have a great day”.

as you can imagine, we both sort of paused for a moment, taking in the information, as if it were something difficult to understand.  Dwayne asks her why they would do that and she informs us that the last 6 or 7 cars have done just that.  naturally, Dwayne asks what the bill is for the car behind us, pays the lady for them and away we go.

I wonder how long it actually went on for, who broke the chain and just took their coffee for free, but we’ll never know.  such a small thing, but it started off the day in such a way that made you want to be good and kind to all those around you, even perfect strangers.  I wish we all felt that way more often.

when we walked out the door it was surprisingly windy and almost balmy outside.  the sky was filled with strange colors that it felt like in the movies when you know a storm is coming.

work today was like any other orange filled day.  very windy outside but really nothing too out of the ordinary.  in the arvo the wind really picked up and by 2:3pm it killed the power to the plant.  everything went silent when we noticed just how windy it was outside and took a wander out to see what was going on.

as soon as you walked out the door you were hit by a wall of sand flying in your face, the whole sky was sand colored, not a touch of blue in the sky, and even the huge bins that hold the bulk oranges were being blown over by the strong winds.  again, I have never seen anything like this in my life, it was almost exciting and wonderful to see something so powerful, we obviously didn’t feel threatened.

the power never did go back on so that was the end of our work day.  it started to drizzle on top of everything on our way home, and the sun also decided to peak out which created this odd scenery.  there were trees knocked over on the roads but the highlight was definately seeing this….

we have been lucky enough to see 2 full rainbows while here in Australia, but never have I seen one like this.  I’m not sure the picures do it justice, it was full and the colors were so vibrant, you could make out every band of color it was so thick.  it only lasted about 30 minutes, but as far as rainbows go, I think that’s pretty good.

this evening we didn’t get up to much, just picked up some groceries for the week, went over to the internet cafe to get up that last blog, post some pics, write a few messages….. but I wanted to start writing as often as possible if I can these days, so I don’t miss big gaps in my experiences here.

also I wanted to show you just a little part of what I do at work……….

these were off to Guam I believe, most of the ones we have been packing lately are off to the States, so somewhere, someone is unpacking a box lovingly, caringly and proudly packed by yours truely!

that’s it for now, I’ve got 7 hours and 14 minutes of sleep with my name on it.

big hugs,  M

you will be happy to know I am no longer in the business of nail picking and have moved up in the world and now pack oranges!  (yippy!)  currently Joyce and I are working in an orange packing plant, packing all sorts of oranges, manderines, grapefruit and sometimes lemons. (just to spice things up a bit)  we have been working there for just over a week now and as you can imagine are much happier to be out of the elements and no longer doing that dirty dirty work.

unfortunately for the boys, this is only womens work (they say the men are too hard on the fruit) and so they have been out of work for a little while.  since they have been off they decided to take a quick trip out to Melbs for a few nights (Joyce and I couldn’t have been more jealous, truely) but it’s been nice to come home to men prepping dinner.

to answer a few questions I have had recently about my experiences here, as I’m sure more of you had the same questions, I just haven’t had a chance to chat with you as of late……

we only made $12/hr nail picking
we did not get lunch provided
the fields were our toilets
we rarely got proper lunch breaks or water breaks
no, I don’t have any pictures of us looking like rednecks

we now make $17.90/hr packing fruit
no, we don’t wrap the maderines in that green paper you get in the boxes during the holidays
we are still staying in the same hostel

so things are looking a bit up, in terms of the job situation, but it’s still pretty small town here and not much going on outside of work. we have gone to the cinema a few times now, seen Terminator and Transformers, The Proposal and I Love You Man, waiting to see the new Harry Potter and a few others.  other than that, theres a few local pubs that are alright, Joyce and I sang at kareoke night a week back, but as we are trying to same money, we stay in more often that not.

I really should be taking more pictures but I’ve been getting a little sick and to be honest with you, after work, I’m just drained and pretty lazy, just can’t be fussed to get out there and take some. you have no idea how much effort it felt like I had to put into just writing this blog and uploading the pics for this blog.  at work we are allowed to listen to our ipods, and even putting new music on that to entertain myself all day felt like such a chore. (now that’s true laziness, that or it really is draining and tiring)

I think I will try and take my camera out tomorrow morning on the drive out to work to catch a sunrise for you all, show you what I see every morning on my way to work, it’s quite beautiful actually.

I’m sure it comes as no surprise that I’m missing home, missing family more than anything.  my original ticket takes me home for August, which I’m obviously going to have to change, but there are parts of me that toy with the idea of just coming home already.  I know I’m being silly, while I’m standing at work, hauling box after box of maderines thinking to myself “is a 2nd year VISA really worth all this effort?” because I know once I got there and got all my catching up and family fill, I will be kicking myself for giving it up, but, one is allowed wishful thinking.

I did get around to chatting with Matty and it made me hopeful for things that may be when I come back home, or things that may grow and become something.  (I know, who would have thought talking to Matt would bring about that sort of feeling, hehe) I don’t want to say too much but I’ve been tinkering with the idea of pushing the wedding planning full time, making Matt my in house photog, somehow getting Katho in on the planning side as well and starting a sibling business.  I already thought of names for out little imaginary business (Katho, that’s mainly for you, as I’ve already told Matty etc…. he can fill you in) so that makes me hopeful, and I have a really good feeling about it.

anyways, I wish I had more to update you on, Mildura is quite….. quite actually, so not much to report.  we entertain ourselves but creating impromtu parties out of random things we have laying around…….. Marku bought a cake and a tea set, so we decided to watch Alice in Wonderland and have a Tea Party………

and we had some balloons kicking around and were bored one night while having some drinks…. and there weren’t that many people around, so we decided to make some new friends……….

yes, these are the things lower yourself to when in a small boring little town, haha

Just a few pics of us around town and in the hostel…… of course, missing you all as always, big hugs!

M

bogan (plural bogans)

1. (Australian) A person who is, or is perceived to be, unsophisticated or of a lower class background, more or less analogous to the British term chav or US American term redneck.
2. (New Zealand) An anglo-celtic member of a lower socioeconomic group historically classified by the wearing of black jumpers, or black concert T-shirts. Bogans often drive larger cars and are often referred to as petrolheads.
3. (North Western Ontario) A slang word for a Native person typically perceived as having gangster ties.

We have made it through our first 6 days of work, rained out for 2 and probably another until work starts up again.  When Peter first told us about the job, he described it as the worst job you will ever have in your life with the biggest prick for a boss.  Well, he was 50% correct.

The part Peter was right about…….. What our job entails is in the simplest way of putting it, pulling nails and pulling down covers.  We are surrounded by farms here in Milura and a fair chuck of them being grape farms.  When the warmer months come they cover the grape vines with covers so as to not dry out the grapes.  When the winter comes, the covers need to be removed, and that`s where we come in.  We walk through acres and acres of farm land pulling out nails, pulling down the covers and laying the flat so they can be rolled up to be used again next season.  Sounds simple enough, but you can imagine how filthy the work can be, the nails are rusted in and extremely difficult to pull out at times, the tender skin on our fingers and arms are not prepared for the vines and nails tearing us up, and our undisciplined muscles are not prepared to pull down and carry heavy tarps.  Not only that, waking up when the stars are still out, and getting in when they are ready to come back out is not exactly a dream job.

The part Peter was wrong about……… our boss, Gavin, is actually a pretty nice guy.  None of the farm hands are exactly what you would called well educated and refined, they are pretty much what you would expect from a stereotypical farmer.  Work hard and they will give you respect, slack off for just a second and expect to get the sack.

Over the weekend Gavin brought us to a farm that is 2 hours away from our hostel to cover a farm that was 60 acres.  I never did end up learning the name of the town but we stayed onsite (in what I would think of as a little aluminum sheds you would see in your backyard) and worked for 2 days.  In any other circumstance seeing that much farm land would be quite a sight to see, but when you know will be working all that land, you sorta cringe inside.  The only highlight of the trip was seeing the starts at night.  I`ve never looked up in the sky and seen so many stars.

We are finally back in the hostel and more rain came in giving us a few much needed days off.  All our of feet and hands are sore and swollen, cut and needing some good r `n r.  Only 1 week down and I really don`t know how I`ll survive 3 months of this.  Good thing is that this work is almost over, all the covers are almost off and we will have to find some other form of work.

Some good news, I`ve had 2 interviews with Coke, for the Olympic Torch Relay Team, a 3rd interview tomorrow, which would bring me home for the games, but not exactly home as I would be travelling with the torch across Canada.  Bad news is even if I got the job I’d be away again over Christmas and New Years but it’s an amazing opportunity and I hope all goes well.

Feels like it’s been ages since I’ve talked to my family back home, probably because it has been.  Dylan and I have been busy doing tours around Melbs, just taking in the city and just working a couple days a week prior to coming here.

I’ll post a bunch of pictures here at the end, as an update on what I’ve been up to these past few months…… sorry it’s so delayed, missing you all terribly, wish it wasn’t so expensive to come home for a visit.

On a cruise about in Williamstown, Dylan and I saw this boat, the Castlemaine and you could go on and tour the ship, so we did, more pics on  my facebook.

Dylan goofing around on the boat…….

More Dylan, more goofing around =)

Dylan and I on a quick little $5 boat cruise around the harbour in Williamstown.  We got to sit on the front of the boat, best seat in the house if not for it being freezing and windy out, but was still worth it.

Wish there were more pics for the mo, but there aren’t…. I’ll try to be more diciplined in taking out the cam and shooting more =)

Missing you all! *hugs*

What has changed, (too much!)……. well, let’s start off with the big stuff.

I’m now in Mildura, which is a 7 hour train/bus ride away from Melbourne.  This is one of the most visited areas for backpackers looking for harvesting and farm work.  We (‘we’ being Joyce, Mark, Dylan and I) have all come here looking for work in order to extend our visa’s for another year.  We arrived here on the 24th and are sharing a room in a hostel.

the celebrations………. May 23rd

Yes, Mel is another year older.  Dylan and I started off with a low key lunch in town in Yarraville.  It was a pleasantly warm and sunny day in comparison to the weather we had been getting in Melbs.  (it’s funny because I joked the night before, bundled up in many layers that I wish it would just warm up for one night, so I can wear a dress out on my birthday) We spent most of the day (and pretty much the whole week prior) sorting out and packing all of our (and by our I mean my) crap, purging as much as possible before the trip.  It took up a better part of the day making sure all of our bags were packed and ready to head out the door as we knew at 6am the next morning was not a time to be fiddling with them.

By the time 5pm rolled around Dan and Jess were home and ready to pop open some celebratory, birthday, farewell, bon voyage bubbly.  We played some arrows and started the night in the backyard.  Earlier in the day I had made reservations at one of my favourite Korean restaurants in Collingwood called Goshen for 8pm.  Jess and I got all dolled up and managed to get away with wearing dresses without being chilly (not sure if it was the bubbly or weather keeping us warm) and by the time we left for the restaurant we had gotten through 3 bottles of champagne.

We ate some magnificent food (I think Dylan’s pallet is continuing to expand as this trip continues) paired with 2 bottles of wine and managed to go to 2 more bars down Smith Street before deciding that drinking any more alcohol and getting any less sleep might not be the brightest idea.  We managed to get into bed by 2am.

Jess, Dan and I in the back of the cab…..

Dylan and I just outside Goshen…….

Dylan and I again, just a little more cheeky……….

Me as a walrus…….

the travels…….. May 24th

We took a train for 4 1/1 hrs from Melbourne to an area called Swan Hill, then a bus from Swan Hill to Mildura for 2 1/2 hrs.  In past I never had any problems with travel sickness in cars or buses or trains but recently I haven’t been able to stomach it. (3 guesses why but you’ll only need one)  We got into Mildura at about 4pm.

The hostel we are staying at is called the Stopover, which is a working hostel.  Peter, the hostel owner, picked us up from the station and took us over to the hostel.  As it’s a working hostel, Peter finds his customers work on the farms in the area, and not even 4 hours after arriving did he let us know that we were getting sent off to a farm the next morning.  (talk about service, it’s pretty unheard of.  Most at the hostel waited a week or two before getting work) And a 6:05am start to boot!

the first day of work……… May 25th

We were all glad to get started but had no idea what we were getting ourselves into.  Alarm goes off at 5am and we are out the door my 5:45, it’s still dark outside and the starts are shining bright.

We hop into a van with 3 other backpackers from other hostels and drive an hour out of the city into another called Robinvale.  On the drive in there were lightening bolts on the horizon, but the sun rises and the day starts.  We still have no real idea what we are here to do.  In the end, we have packing tape wrapped over and over around our thumbs and pointing fingers, on both hands, dirt over all our clothes, hair and face……. all from picking nails out of the tarps that cover the grape vines.  I’ll have to take a picutre of our hands wrapped in tape, it’s a sight to see.  When the guys in the van first told us to do it we were told it was our ‘safety gear’.

It started off looking like it was going to be a beautiful day but the dark clouds roll in and we only manage to be out there for an hour before we are told the rain is coming and we are packing it in.  On the bright side 1 day down on the 3 months we need to do.

In all honesty though, there was a 5 minute moment right at the beginning, where a nail pierced through my so called ‘safety gear’ and pricked my finger, the blood loosened the tape around my finger and all I could think to myself was….`what the hell am I doing here, I hate this, I hate this place,  I don`t want to do this for 3 months, I don`t want to do this another 3 minutes! I don`t want to be in Australia anymore, I just wanna go home.` There are parts of those thoughts that are still with me, parts that have passed, but I still question how I`m going to make it through this.

first day off………… May 26th

First real day in Mildura and getting a real look around.  It`s not the town you expect in your head.  It`s quite a pretty town, with some real character.

You can go quite stir crazy sitting in the hostel so we went for a walk to explore a park that was about a 10 minute walk away…….. here is the view……..

Marku, Dylan, Joyce and I…….

This is the various water levels over the years….. and you can tell they are really in a drought….

Marku near a random structure in the park……..

Maru and Dylan walking and chatting in the sunlight……

and it`s 11pm, another 6am day of work tomorrow so I really should have my arse in bed by now, but I felt the need to get some thing down, as it has been so long….. and it is a big change………

I still have so much to tell you…….. tomorrow maybe, it`s bed time now.

it’s Anna’s last weekend with us here.  she’s finished her contract with work and will be going back home to Detriot.  this weekend and last we’ve tried to make the most of our remaining together and have had some good nights on the town, trying out new places she’s been meaning to go and trying to infuse some of Melbournes great fashion into her wardrobe to bring home with her.  (well, let’s face it, a girl never needs another excuse to go shopping)

Here are a few pics from our most recent outings…….

seems to be a time of endings as my work contract with the Australian Open ended this week as well.  3 of the longest months in my working career….. the 2 weeks that the tournament was running I did 139 hours, in the 43+ degree heat, on my feet, running around all day.  but the pain fades quickly and when I get up on Monday morning and don’t have to be at work, as much as I will love the sleep in I don’t know that I’ll quite know what to do with myself.  i’ve been living and breathing that place for what seems like so long now that I’m not going to feel right for a little while not being there.  even having the weekends off feels strange to me.

it’s not really the end though, I’ve already been asked to work 2 days next week, finishing off some odd jobs, and possibly managing the retail operations for the Fed Cup in April.  what is Fed Cup you ask?  here’s a little info (The Fed Cup is the highest team event for women in tennis. It is the women’s equivalent of the Davis Cup and was launched in 1963 to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the International Tennis Federation.  Australia is one of only four nations to have competed in all Fed Cup competitions and first tasted success in 1964. Another quickly followed the next year with a further five titles won in the period between 1968 and 1974.)  so really, it may not all be over quite yet, which is nice.

Here are a few pics from us out for drinks on our last day at work……

Nathalie, (my boss) and Nicole, the other assistant and my partner in crime

Nic and Maddie, one of my staff in the Nike outlet

Dimitra and Ashlee, two of the other girls in the department

Fontaine and Nic, just the three assisants, all our last day at work

 I’m sure you’ve heard about the bushfires here, and I’ve been so involved at work and don’t have a tv, don’t listen to the radio or read the paper that I had no idea of the real magnitude of it all.  there have been a number of days where the city is covered in a haze of smoke, and you can smell it, and I feel terrible for not knowing more (and not trying to know more anyways) but thankfully it hasn’t affected my life here and I’m safe. (that’s for you ma!)

Jess and I finally had a housewarming of sorts, had a few people over and played some beer pong. (google it if you aren’t in the know)  we took a trip out to Bunnings (which is like Rona or Home Depot) and got a few things for the backyard.  we got these cute little fire pots and a few tiki torches just to give our conrete jungle in the back a little more atmosphere for the party.  since the last picture I took of the backyard we have since aquired a bistro set, a few plastic tables, a couple camping chairs and two hammocks. (one of which Jess broke, but to her defence we did find them on the side of the road and took them home, and to her dismay when we were laying on them in the backyard, her’s ripped right down the middle leaving her with a bruise on her arm and me laughing histerically at her)

I never did win a game of beer pong…..

I have also gotten a new bed frame off a site that’s the australian version of craigslist.  it’s old and worn in and kinda reminded me of the house which is why it feels like it fits so well here.  anything modern would have felt out of place.  after getting the new bed it seemed only fitting to get new pillow cases so now my bed feels pretty.  Jess asks me why i get things like that, home things, when we aren’t really staying forever, but I feel like those are the things that make you feel like you are home, the comforts of your own things in your own space.  I may not stay here forever but I still want to feel like this is my place, where I live and it is my home, even if just for now.

my new pillowcases, and cheap too, only $4 each! they kinda remind me of Kathy for some reason….. and yes I have 6 pillows, but when you find them for cheap it’s hard to resist being comfy!

and just a peek at the bedframe, since it’s not really visible anyways….. and yup Kathy, my doona cover is wood grain pattern…..

speaking of feeling at home, i’ve definitely become aclimatized in these 4 months.  I wouldn’t know how to survive if i was back home right now, with it having just snowed a few days ago….. it’s the end of Feb people!  why is it still snowing? (matt says it’s the snow gods calling him to the mountain)  I still amaze even myself when it’s over 30 degrees outside and I’m in jeans and a jumper and not dripping in sweat.

Dylan is coming next month and I believe he’s going to be in for a shocker for the weather.  he’ll eat it up, he loves warm weather so I’m hoping it stays nice until he gets here.  I think the summer is supposed to be over just as he’s arriving but who knows these days with global warming etc.  but more than anything it will be nice to have a piece of home here in Melbourne, a familiar face. 

Oh!  Kat boyfriend John from back home finally came to visit and they got engaged!  and Jess has been seeing John’s cousin Dan (who lives here) and they have been away a few times travelling and camping etc.  I keep asking myself what is up with my girls all hooked up and I’m like the 5th wheel?  at least before I had Anna, just her and I the single girls and now she’s leaving and I’m devo!

and I’m also devestated that I’m missing Taliyah’s first birthday, it just feels unfair.  I missed the phillipines with my family and now I’m missing this?  I love being here and I love my life right now but those are perfect examples of why I would never stay here for too long.  I hate missing occasions like that am I’m missing that kid so so much.  by the time I go back home, she’ll be at least a year and a half, and she’ll be big, and…. (matt jokes that by that time she’ll be walking, and talking, and driving and partying)

Well it’s 1:30 in the morning, on a Sunday night, and no work to get up for in the morning but I’m meeting Jess, Kat and Anna from breakie in the city for one last meal together, just the 4 girls at 9am, which means I really should get my butt in bed and sleeping.  I know I haven’t really re-capped all that happend in between the last blog and now but, it’s a start to catching up and getting back into the blogging mode.

blog again soon, and of course, as always, missing you all

M  xoxo

so that explains the ‘a lot exhausted’ part, but as for the ‘guilt ridden’, well, it has been over 4 weeks since I’ve blogged and it’s now gotten to a point where there’s so much to tell and so much to show, this one should be a novel! (also, re-reading that last blog, and all the spelling and grammatical mistakes, I hang my head in shame…. I blame feeling under the weather at the time)

I haven’t written since the holidays, not even about new years eve etc etc…… I honestly don’t even know where to begin. I guess the most logical and easiest place would be with the tennis.

It’s amazing how many people come to see the event. the first day we opened, I honestly had never seen so many people crammed into one place ever in my life. the atmosphere is top and everyone is so happy to be here, but as with most events when you are working the back end, you live in your own little bubble and kinda lose sight of the event as a whole. there were many a time when I forgot I was even at tennis.

this last week we have had record temperatures of 43+ degree weather for 3 days straight, which has made working very interesting. most of our marquees have a/c but when it gets to that temperature, and all the body heat in the stores, you still find yourself sweating all day long regardless of what you do. I think I’ve just come to terms with the fact that all glamour goes out the window and there’s no avoiding feeling hot and sticky all day long. (I apologise in advance for the pictures, my computer is on the fritz and I haven’t had a chance to photoshop them….. ) one of the many uniforms I had to wear during the event…… at first you hate it, but after the event is over and you are trying to figure out what to wear in the morning, you start to miss it.

I haven’t seen much tennis despite being here 12+ hours a day, I’ve seen many a player in the hallways, Baghdatis, Serena, Venus, James Blake I’ve seen quite a few times, Nadal…….. but not much tennis in play. I did however get to see the Federer/Roddick match with John, a friend from the hostel, which was amazing because living in Canada, it’s not exactly like we have many opportunities to go to a Grand Slam, let alone watch some of the best players in tennis. It was a little sureal being there, just seeing them on the court. It was a great match and I’m really glad I got a chance to take one in. still wish Roddick got in at least one set, but I’m still not complaining. (again, I apologise for the crap pics but I just can’t get onto my computer to make them prettier, they are kinda rough but better than nothing)

John trying to get me to take a pic of him with Fed in the back…. but not really supposed to be in the aisle…… yeah, I broke under the pressure, this was the best shot I got, terrible! (but yes, that is Fed just over his right shoulder)

after the win…….

I’m sure I’ll get to elaborating more on the tennis but as for the moment, I’m pretty sick of it all, so I’m going to try and think back on what else I have been up to other than work.

I haven’t been to the beach too often, did get out to Brighton Beach which was nice, again, with some people from the hostel. it’s a nice little beach that has rows of these little huts that people keep their kiteboards etc in all year round.

Funny, I didn’t know I bought a shop in Brighton…….

funny, didn’t know I got a car either……

a few other friends and I made an attempt at another beach day, but when we left the house it seemed to be getting colder and colder, so we decided to stop by the South Melbourne market to just take a peek around. Matt (a fellow canuck, but from Montreal) found some micro brew beer from back home and just had to have it.

After then we just keep driving and see where it took us and ended up in half moon bay. I really wish my camera battery didn’t die, I got in a few shots of them hanging out and eating, but at this beach there were these amazing rocks and cliffs that the boys proceeded to climb, and Hayley and I got up part ways but decided as they ventured up farther to just pick seashells on the beach instead.

this little boy kept pestering the birds…..

those are the rocks in the background there that the boys climbed…. we only got about half way up…..

what other new city experiences have I gotten into……..

in the city there’s the Royal Botanical Gardens, and in the summer they play movies outside on a huge inflateable screen. Jess, Dan, Kat and I and had a little picnic outside on the grass before the bond movie started. they show the movie on this little grass clearing in the middle of the park, and before the sun was fully down the sky was filled with bats flying across, going to start the hunt or something. bats are very abundant in the city and it’s not the first time we’ve seen them. Jess did some google’ing and found out they are nectar and fruit eating bats…. but none the less they are very big. (I’ll insert the panorama pic of the gardens once my computer is not being such a tard)

in our backyard we have an apricot tree, and at night, bats like to come visit and eat them. for a while it would only be one, maybe two, but as the fruit became more ripe, there would be a new bat every couple of minutes. very creepy when you are trying to eat dinner outside on a nice night and large bats keep flying overhead and landing in your tree.

It’s now mid Feb and I’m trying to think back and fill in the gaps but it’s proving to be quite difficult. I think I’ll end this blog and start another, working from present backwards…… and if I miss anything…. well, you’ll never really know the difference anyways will you, hehe  sorry for the lengthy absence but I promise I’ll try my best not to leave anything out!  =)

the blog title isn’t what you think it means……. my blog page takes stats of how many people view my blog every day….. and most often there’s a few visitors…. but since it’s been so long since I’ve written on…. there was 2 days where the visits were zero…… not good. I actually started another blog in between the last one and this one, and never finished it, and now re-reading it, it can’t just be finished, a new one must be started. and what’s worse is that it feels like it’s been so long and so many things have happened that I can’t just tell you what I’ve been up to day by day, I’ve got to do a kind of re-cap and just skim over everything in the last two weeks!

today was my last day of work before a little holiday break, not back in the office until Monday the 29^th. I’ve only been there two weeks but already I’m having a blast, and I actually said to Jessica tonight after dinner that I was a little sad that I didn’t have work tomorrow. the minute after I said that I was a little surprised at myself, because I can’t recall ever having said that before, or ever feeling that way about a job. my reasoning to her was that I really like the people I work with.

I’ve been sick the last few days, feeling flu-ish, very congested and a very runny nose, which didn’t help when I had to work this weekend. on Wednesday last week, Alicia Keys was playing at our venue (Rod Laver Arena) and I had to be there to do some till training with some staff, didn’t stay for the show, but did hear parts of it, and hear Jordin Sparks as well. I feel like I should tell you all about my job and what I’ve been up to but in truth, it’s all just admin stuff that would just bore you, but I’ll be sure to tell you all the good stuff when the Open is actually running !

feels like an eternity has passed in this last little while, with the new job, the new house…… just a whack of new experiences being thrown at me in a short amount of time. Jess and I were just talking the other day and asking each other…. “how long have we lived here now?” and it’s been only three weeks , but it feels like much much longer. Yesterday we sat and chatted about the house, what we should get to make it feel more homey, and how long we plan to stay here in it etc etc, since we are doing a lease agreement with Phil……. it’s just so hard to decide and I dread the day that I’m going to have to say good bye to her, not for good, but in a sense yeah, for good.

Last Saturday was a wonderful day, strangely. It was pouring rain outside, it has been for the last few days, and the people next door are reno’ing their house so they were up early and banging away, which normally wouldn’t bother me but my window faces out towards their house, very unfortunate when you are trying to sleep in on the weekends. but Jess was up and about and I was starting to feel guilty about being in bed still, and I woke up to find she had made us both tea, and cut us up a fruit plate for breakfast, what a sweet heart! I love living with her, can’t imagine it any other way.

Anna ended up coming over and Kat shortly after and we ended up going out to check out our friendly neighbourhood pub. Phil said that it would probably be pretty quiet and that we’d probably end up being the only girls in there, turned out the restaurant half was being rented out for an Xmas party and the other half….. yes, we were almost the only 4 girls in the bar and there were 2 buck parties going on that night. (stag parties) needless to say we enjoyed the attention and it ended up being a really fun night.

I really haven’t been up to much other than working though, which is fine by me, I embrace the change of pace and am really enjoying the normalcy it brings to my life here in Melbourne. I’m feeling more and more at home in this city which scares me (but more than likely scares my sister worse) because I could see myself staying here for a while. But as for right now, I’m taking it day by day, or work contract by work contract I should say and see where that takes me. Some real deciding factors will be who decides to stay for longer out of the friends I have made so far, and what other work comes my way.

(written the next morning) it’s xmas eve and it’s almost 30 degrees outside…… call me scrooge but I’m not really getting that Christmas feeling. don’t get me wrong, I’m in a wonderful mood, it’s absolutely gorgeous outside and I’m not feeling as sick today, I’ve gone out and taken a walk and enjoyed the weather….. but I just don’t feel that holiday spirit.

I have no idea what we are going to get up to tonight, but I don’t really feel like I’m missing out on much because at least I know at home it isn’t Christmas eve yet.

(written after midnight the same day) Jess and I met Kat tonight for dinner. I spent the late afternoon trying to make the house a little more Jewish for Jess since she’s kinda bummed that she hasn’t does anything Hanukah yet, and it’s already 2 days into it. She was pleased when she came home to this in our front hall so it made me happy I could do something for her. (also some pics of Jess and I on our way out to meet Kat)

we called it an early night because we were meant to go over to Kat’s the next day for holiday festivities. Kat’s roommates always host an orphan’s xmas at theirs, and with 16 people there it was nice to have people around, made me forget home for the holidays for a little while at least, but it certainly didn’t FEEL like Christmas having dinner outside on their patio in 30 degree plus weather in summer dresses. It was a nice time and I’m home again by midnight and in my bed writing this. I’ve just looked at some pictures online of Taliyah and the family together and I wish I could have been there. not for good, but just that night, and maybe new years eve.

I know this is a lame blog, time has just been flying and I’ve been so busy as of late, and it will only get busier in January with the Open but I’ll try my hardest to take as many pictures as I can and get some more blogs up than I have recently.

Happy Holidays everyone, I’m missing you all terribly (as always), I’m thinking of you! only a few pics were taken as of late…. I apologise =) oh yeah! and if you haven’t noticed yet, yes, I dyed my hair black, it’s weird, hehehe

……. and everything in put in it’s place (for now at least) and I feel settled into my new room. I finally decided to just dump all my bags out onto the floor to in order to force me to put everything away and not live out of the suite cases any longer. (seems to have worked but this is the before picture, haven’t taken the after picture yet…. soon)

it really feels funny to think that this is my new home. temporarily yes but it is our home, Jess and I, and as we were leaving the house on Sat night to go out and I asked her if she locked the door, it was a nice moment. we have set an official date for our hose warming, December 27^th and have started to ask people if they have plans and if they would like to come. any earlier and I don’t think we would feel comfortable yet, it feels more and more like our house, but still not fully there yet.

it was a pretty clear day outside on Monday, cleaning day, so when I got up I took my camera outside and took some shots of the house, so you can get a look at it. it’s really not that impressive, but it has a ton of character and if you saw it in person it would show a lot better. but this is what I got for you now, so view them with kind eyes, hehe (and don’t judge my photoshop skills, I know there’s another half of a garbage can that shouldn’t be there…. I was in a rush)

79 Railway Place West, Flemington, VIC 3032….. my new address!

this is the view of the front of the house…… dont jude a book by it’s cover, we love it here

this is our front door, I don’t know if it’s the original, but it suits the house

this is the shower room, the toilet is actually a seperate room

this is the view walking into the kitchen area

this is another angle of the kitchen

this is our kitchen table and our stove

this is our laundry room where the washer will be going

this the the back of the house

this is phil’s studio in the back of the house

Monday night I met up with Jess after work at the Safeway and we did a little grocery shopping. (I really shouldn’t call it a little, it was a bitch to carry home the 10 minute plus walk) We were both starving and as you know it’s ridiculous to try to go shopping when hungry, you just want everything! but we did decide on trying something a little different and bought a kangaroo roast that was marinated in herbs and garlic!

on the way home, we saw a bunch of parrots in the trees right near our house. Jess keeps a parrot and a budgie at home so she was in heaven, it totally made her day.

when we got home, we unpacked everything and got to cooking. our stove is gas, and our landlord showed us how to turn it on but for the life of us we couldn’t figure it out so we called Phil for a little help and we got it started. we ended up calling Phil back to ask him if he would like to have dinner with us and he accepted so we made the table for three. Phil was a little leery about the kangaroo when he was carving it for us, it was still quite pink in the middle, he too had never had kangaroo so we all were quite oblivious as to how to cook it or how it should look when it was done. we had potato wedges, with sour cream and sweet chilli sauce, asparagus with balsamic vinegar, an cucumber, tomato, and red onion salad, and our kangaroo roast, and it was all wonderful. Phil has brought over a bottle of wine for dinner as well that was lovely and made here in Victoria. Jess and I will definitely look into having kangaroo again in another dish.

because we had met up so late to go food shopping, and because we took ages in the supermarket, which then made us start dinner late etc etc etc, we didn’t end up eating until about half nine and we chatted for a long while, we didn’t get into bed until about half twelve, and Jess and I both had to get up at 6am for work.

today was my first day, very exciting. I didn’t get much sleep compared to what I normally get but I was eager to start my new job and didn’t have too much of a problem getting up. I was rushing out the door and Jess and I didn’t get to have our morning tea together like we had planned. caught my two trams and got to work with 10 minutes to spare. I really think I’m going to love it there. the people I met today are very like minded people in terms of work interest and ethic as myself and I have a good feeling about my first week. I’ll get more into the nitty gritty of what I do when I actually start doing it, hehe

tonight Jess went out with some friends and I headed home. you’ll get a kick out of this……. living in the hostel, you don’t have keys, you have a key card, which you always have with you because you pretty much always take your wallet with you, even if just for safety reasons. I’m not used to having keys with me all the time and in the rush of getting out this morning, I grabbed my wallet…… but not my keys. not only did I not grab them, but I didn’t realize I hadn’t grabbed them until I was walking to my front door, brilliant mel….! tail between my legs I ended up having to call Phil to come open the door for me, luckily he was able to swing by and do so, which ended up being nice since I was home in the house alone for the night and we ended up just hanging out and chatting.

I’m now sitting in my bed, looking forward to another day at work tomorrow. (how often does anyone say that?) I’m looking at my access pass for work hanging on my door handle, off my Austalian Open 2008 lanyard thinking how fortunate I am for the opportunity, and the future opportunities it may bring. I miss you guys like mad but something like this just wouldn’t be in the cards for me back home.

……. 2^nd night in the new house and my bed arrived today so I’m sleeping alone in my room and I think I need a night light. (or a lamp or something…… it’s kinda creepy being in a new place) last night was our first night in the house and Jess and I slept in her bed in her room. she ended up getting a bed off a girl from her work and my mattress didn’t arrive until tonight so we bunked up together, which both of us were kind of glad since it’s always strange trying to sleep in a new environment by yourself. also feels pretty weird to have this whole queen sized bed to myself, I feel a little spoiled.

tonight was Kat’s birthday, so we put on pretty dresses and went into the city. Jess and Kat went out to a bar/club and funny enough, I’m only moved out of the hostel for one night and, I found myself back there since it was Andrews birthday and Johnno’s last night. I met up with the girls much later in the night and ended up only having one drink with Kat before we all headed home.

it feels like I’ve packed a weeks worth of stuff into the last couple of days.

Thursday night, last night in the hostel (in a way). since I was so much looking forward to it, and I’ve mentioned that Thursday nights never seem to disappoint, I was a little worried that maybe, just maybe this time around it might. during the day I went into the city to find some bed sheets, which ended up being a spectacular find, because the duvet set I found that was meant to be $79, I ended up getting for $28 and they are something that I would actually buy myself if I was back home even, not just something to get me by, which I thought was what I was going to end up with. got back to the hostel and got ready in one of the girls room and proceeded to start the night. Jess had worked all day as well as Anna and I got the feeling early on I was going to be the last one standing at about midnight, and they would get tired and bugger off home. BUT I remembered the night before Rodney had mentioned he had a full bottle of tequila in his room that he did not want and was going to give me. once Jess and I got that in our hands, all bets were off. Thursday nights will live down as the night of all nights in the hostel. (for me anyways)  here are some pics of the boys dressed up for free champagne…….

Friday I did not get up until almost 1pm, and that’s only because I had to do laundry, otherwise I would have been more then happy to spend the day in bed. all things considered (let me rephrase that…… all the tequila considered) I managed to do 3 loads of laundry and move into the new house. Phil stayed to make sure we were settled into the new place, and Jess and I didn’t end up going to bed until quite late. hang overs and all, we moved into the new digs and it was a pretty good feeling.

Saturday Jess got up to meet with Kat in the city and I stayed home to try to get some house stuff sorted. I made my way into town and picked up loads of cleaning supplies, hangers, a bath mat and other random house things we needed. I spent the afternoon with the tunes blasting from my laptop and being domestic, vacuuming, cleaning and sorting out my things.

today, Sunday, is half lazy but half productive. Jess and I cleaned the fridge and kitchen, and then got halfway through re-organizing where everything lives in the cupboards, when Kat comes over, and now we have abandoned the kitchen and it’s in a bit of disarray. I’m sitting here in my bed that still has no fitted sheet, wishing I had taken more pictures last night, a little un-motivated to finish the cleaning with one more day ahead of me before I become a full time employed member of society again, yay!

I think tomorrow will be filled with cleaning and cleaning and more cleaning, some grocery shopping, tram pass to buy…… and more cleaning. OH! and we have a little baby pink Xmas tree in the house, I can’t believe I’m not home for the holidays.