The Life of a Bogan - part 1

Sunday January 9^th, 2011. I was sitting on top of a ferry to the Great Barrier Reef airport, looking at the deep blue water reflecting from the sky across the Whitsunday Islands, reminiscing on the past 3 weeks. As I was sulking about the end of a great adventure, one of my best friends turned to me and put it in perspective for me.

“You know – the last 3 weeks I could have been sitting on my couch, playing video games and relaxing from the hell of finals. And you know what – I’d be completely content with that. But instead, here I am with you – in this gorgeous paradise – sad that I’m probably never going to see any of these people again. But what’s better - Being content because I’m completely unaware of what I’m missing out on? Or completely broken up about the fact that I have to say goodbye to this wonderful place? I say the latter. And that’s just what you have to deal with, Patty, it’s the life of a bogan. You have the highs where you get to experience things completely unfathomable to other people, but you have to deal with the lows as well. It’s the life of a traveler, you always have to say goodbye.”

I can’t begin to describe the last 3 weeks of my life. Honestly, I think the only people that will ever truly understand my experiences will be the people I traveled with – but I’ll do the best to tell you the highlights. Dave Matthews has a good lyric “Turns out it’s not where, but who you are with that really matters”. I love this quote, however I really think I got the best of both worlds on this trip. Chris, Kyle, Em and I began our road trip on a 7 hour drive to Mount Kosciusko in New South Wales. It was Boxing Day and we were already thoroughly worn out from our 3 day Christmas extravaganza together. Its funny how close you can come to people from sharing a holiday away from home together – we had already become a family and were sad to leave one of our members behind, “Cousin Josh”. Despite our bodies already telling us noooo, we were in great spirits. I’m not known to enjoy car rides, but I have to say that this trip up the east coast of Australia was an unforgettable one and I don't regret one minute of the 32 hours of driving.

December 28^th – 30^th, 2010. It’s sad to say the only kangaroos I saw this trip were road kill. Ya bummer....but other than this slightly depressing site, the views up this mountain were breathtaking. If in the states, the last 2 hour drive to Thredbo probably would have been cut in half by a big road carved up the middle of the mountain. The Aussies, however, are known in many aspects to appreciate the environment and keep it in it’s natural beauty – soooo instead of a nice drive, we trusted our lives to Chris as he did multiple 180s up the winding narrow paths through the dark woods. It’s currently summertime, but as we were driving into “the largest ski resort in Australia” (aka tiny mountain town with one street) I could imagine the winter village it turns into during the cold snowy months. Cabins set among the creeks, cobble stones lined with Christmas lights…it was the Christmas wonderland I’d been waiting for! The next day was spent climbing one of the 7 summits of the world!!! The scenery was nothing I’d seen before – very peaceful with rock pools everywhere and no animals in sight. I felt like I was in the Lion King after Mufasa had died, a quiet safari but beautiful at the same time. Climbing the highest summit in Australia, check that off my bucket list!

December 30^th – January 1^st, 2010. Sydney, Australia. The ride into Sydney was a pretty easy one until about 20 minutes outside the city and wait – Em left her wallet back at Macca's almost 2 hours ago. We weren’t all too thrilled about the 4 hour detour, but ONLY in Australia would a person spot a girl crying in the parking lot, make the connection about Kyle Melling walking down the side of the highway in desperate search and stop their car to help them out. Emily had left her wallet on top of the car, so as we drove out of the fast food place onto the on-ramp her wallet and all of her belongings flew into the air. An Australian woman spotted the wallet has she drove past. She stopped and pointed Kyle to the right direction 1oo feet away. Em’s wallet (although run over and “slightly” torn) and all of her money/credit cards were found after a quite amusing Easter egg hunt along the highway. Success. We finally got into Sydney and met our jet lagged friend Jeff at his cousin’s gorgeous condo overlooking the harbor. We had a fun night relaxing and dancing on the beach of Bondi Bay before calling it a night to rest for the next days festivities. How can I describe my NYE in Sydney? – really only by my constant feeling of “wow, where the heck am I?!” Sydney was unbelievable. Throughout the day, Kyle kept putting it nicely – “OH.MY.GOD. I just went to the bathroom in the SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE. I POOPED in the opera house!!” “OHHH.MY.GOD. I’m drinking by the Sydney harbor bridge. I have a BEER by the Sydney harbor bridge!!” We explored the city all day, amongst many pub crawls and beers in the park, and somehow made it to a point under the bridge to watch the midnight fireworks. Popping a bottle of champagne with 3 best friends at midnight on NYE in one of the coolest places in the world, doesn’t get better than that :)

Good Arvo!

"Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body; but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, red wine in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming..."

There are a few obvious cultural differences I learned and was quick to adapt to when I first moved to Australia. For one, coffee and alcohol lingo. As a lover of both these types of beverages, this was a must.

Many times I've tried to order a standard coffee with skim milk, but failed and ended up with an extremely bitter espresso or long black (espresso with water). Now, my wiser self knows to order a cappo or a skinny mocha because let's face it -the Starbucks cheap coffee that I used to crave is known as "watered down processed coffee" (as my workplace so kindly put it) and no one is going to serve this. Since coffee knowledge is a must in order to work in hospitality in Australia, I've been given numerous lessons at work....so now onto bigger and better things! I can make a cappo, latte, mocha, mochachino, long black, short black, affogato, baby chino....I can even make them strong/weak/hot/skinny...impressed yet?! Just still working on the burnt milk I get criticized for once every other day...

Alcohol lingo is pretty simple. Pitcher = jug. I've gotten used to it, but unfortunately - the "jug" jokes em and I get every so often by creepy men while waitressing aren't quite so funny. A pint of beer here looks smaller than I think it should be, but this is probably due to the fact that a pint averages to about 8 AU dollars...so watch out, your spare cash can disappear pretty quickly! Schooner - glass smaller than a pint. Pot - looks like a toddler's size cup....and yes, I judge any man who orders this.

Other cultural differences I thought I'd get used to pretty quickly, but unfortunately still haven't quite caught on...

1. Driving on the opposite side of the road. This will be interesting when we rent our car in two weeks...but what really gets me is the driver being on the right side of the car. I STILL, 3 whole months later, try and hop into a cab on the wrong side! I've definitely scared cab drivers one too many times for my liking. Also, passing people on the sidewalk has the same rules. Over and over again I play the game with the person walking towards me of who will pass to the left or pass to the right....haha let me tell you, this can get pretttty awkward.

2. I love the Aussie accent, as well as the English and Irish (when I can understand them). But some words are sooo funny! Aluminum is pronounced "AL-YOU-min-ME-Um" and my personal favorite - Oregano, which is pronounced like origami with an "0" at the end. When I move back home, I don't think I'll ever continue to say tomato sauce instead of ketchup, or prawn instead of shrimp....haha but for now I've conformed just so I don't have to deal with the judgemental stares.

3. Different sayings:

• "How you going?" This took me long enough to figure out that people were asking me "how I was doing" rather than a mumbled question asking where I was heading...
• "Ta. Ta" Ummmm excuse me?!? I was completely confused when people nodded there head at me and said ta....now, I feel bad how during my first days of waiting tables I reacted with a weird, confused look before walking away. "Ta" means thank you.
• Aussies shorten everything. Brekky = breakfast. Footy = football. Arvo = Afternoon. Stubby = short beer bottle. Swimsuit = swimmies. Standard rule of thumb, take off the ending of a word and add a 'y' or "ies" ending.
• Beautiful. You? BEAUtiful! The sunset? BEAUtiful! This sausage roll? BEAUtiful!!!! Aussies love this word, and especially when it comes to describing food!
• "What's the craick??" This is Irish, but I decided to mention it anyways. I'm pretty sure it means "What's the fun?" or "what are you up to". I've recently learned that when there's not much going on a good response is to say, "ehh, not much craick mate". Or I think this is what you're supposed to say....I'm still working on it.

The reason I came to write this random blog - Last month, I started working at a catering company called Food & Desire. The company is well renowned and holds events for many celebrities and upscale business parties. (Kasey Tympanick - I think this should be another reason for you to come visit!) The main venue is this BEAUtiful building in Albert Park - palm trees line the front entrance, a deck wraps around along the backside, and it's location is perfect...right on the lake with a breathtaking view of the skyline of Melbourne CBD. In the times I've worked there, I've catered for weddings, bat mitzvahs, disco balls, cocktails parties....and everytime I've experienced the feeling of "holy crap, I can't believe I'm here right now". I've had so many different experiences - from funny misunderstands and awkward conversations...to fist pumping at a music festival...bartending at a beach wedding by St. Kilda pier...to listening to the Australian Girl's Choir at an event during sunset over Albert Park lake...these are moments I would have never gotten to have if I wasn't here, right now. SO...even though I like to complain that I have to go into work on a Saturday night or that it's not going to snow this Christmas or that I miss my family....how great can life sometimes be?? So next time you're stressed at work or worried about getting your holiday shopping finished in time...take a step back and a deep breathe, you may realize that your day might not be so bad after all!

Cheerio, g'day, cheers, good arvo and talk to you soon! xo

Christmas in July

September. October. November....and now DECEMBER. I can't really grasp that I've now lived in Melbourne for over 4 months....some days it feels like I just got here, other days it feels like I've been here for ages. The weather doesn't really make it easy to tell how much time has passed either. I've now experienced my hottest day in Australia - 32 degrees celsius (97 degrees F), but all too quickly it was raining and back to 16 degrees (60 degrees F) by the end of the week. I travel across the world and I STILL live in the unpredictable weather of Columbus, Ohio. Haha typical.

The holiday season snuck up on me this year - most likely because it's warm outside and Melbourne's Christmas decorations look to me more like 4th of July has taken over the city rather than Santa Claus is coming to town. I just finished my Christmas shopping last week in the city; I was walking in the rain and looking at the palm trees decorated with red and silver stars....and that's when it really hit me on all the traditions I'll be missing out on this year.

Upper Arlington's night out before Thanksgiving. My dad's initiation into the drunken santa club. Black Friday with my mom and sisters. Christmas cookies - fighting over the fact that I want to make more this year, then never actually having time. Rudy getting lost in the snow trails. Falala lifetime with my mom. Scarfs. Mittens. Cold weather. Spiked hot chocolate by the fire. Picking out the Christmas tree. Four Families Christmas Party. Secret Santa. My mom's cooking. Looking for Christmas lights with Kel. My Ipod filled with 108 Christmas songs. Christmas Eve Party. Sneaking more baileys in Grandma Rita's drink. Family. The Night Before Christmas. Mimosas. Board games all day. Crying that the day is already over...

There are endless traditions that we create each year, some we keep close by for the years to come and some are just there to make funny stories. I've had my mopey moment, so now it's time to embrace the new traditions and memories I have yet to create. Christmas in Australia - santa hats and red "swimmies" on the beach, good friends (one flying all the way from Ohio to see us...can't wait to see you, Kyle Melling!!!), drinks and cooking a Christmas dinner full of American/Canadian/English traditions...yorkshire pudding with roast turkey this year??? Should be interesting!

My holiday season started out with an American gathering for Thanksgiving. Six of us got together to drink, listen to Christmas music all day and make our first Thanksgiving meal without adult supervision. Well, the stuffing of the turkey and taking out it's "giblets" was pretty disgusting...but I survived! Considering what Megan and I thought was going to be a disaster as we desperately searched the isles of 3 grocery stores the previous day (Aussies don't believe in canned pumpkin or cranberries).....Thanksgiving this year turned out to be one of the most fun I've celebrated so far! A pounding headache at work the next day and a pretty bad burn from the oven (warning - don't try to balance red wine and a hot pan at the same time) were basically my only regrets.

Sooooo...as I've continued to be lacking with communication and many of you have been asking...what have I been up to this past month?? Working, aussie rap concerts, working more, music festivals, still trying to get my mom to figure out the time change, making good friends and better friendships, reuniting with old friends (Shout out, Megan Ware), discovering scary spiders, coping with Melbourne weather and embracing new traditions.

Tomorrow Megan leaves to go back to the states, which not only makes me really sad but nervous for the two new roommates we will have to meet. On the bright side - one of my favorite people in the world comes to visit next week for Christmas!! Two more weeks of Carlisle street, then off to a New Year's vacation up the coast with Emily, Kyle and Chris!! So cheers to the holiday season and to whatever new or old tradition this year may bring you :)

Missing everyone back home, xoxo

Give It Love

Last week I had a pretty bizarre experience...I was able to live through Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010...TWICE. I literally left for my airport shuttle at 9:30 am from St. Kilda, Melbourne and arrived to the (not so friendly and a bit smelly) LA airport halfway across the world at 9:30 Am the same morning. The concept of time traveling sounds pretty cool, but by the time I spent 5 days celebrating Meg's wedding and then had to skip November 8th on my return trip back to Australia...I was pretty exhausted! Granted, I also didn't have my best friend sitting next to me with 4 glasses of champagne - instead I was scrunched between two fairly large business men right next to the lavatories in the back of economy seating. (What happened to the nice concept of bumping up attractive and lonely looking 23 yr old girls to first class?!) Even with the exhaustion and sheer confusion on what day/time it was for about a week....traveling back and forth across the world in this short amount of time was more than worth it. Not only do I now feel more like a worldly traveler, I got to witness a dream event....Meg and Matt's wedding :)

Meg's destination wedding in Philadelphia was truly amazing. I seriously feel sorry for anyone getting married this year....sorry, but I don't know how you're going to top this one off! It started off a little rough for me on Wednesday, as I fell asleep in the midst of counting 200 wedding biscotti for Meg and she called me a walking zombie. BUT after a few glasses of wine and the rest of my family/friends arrived I was alive and ready to go! Even the "stressful" preparations were fun...acting like assembly line workers with my mom, Mrs. Dobek and Mo Hurley will always stick out in my memory. The wedding day perfect - my sister looked breathtaking in her long lace gown and wedding veil, the ceremony was something from "The Sound of Music", bridal party pictures up the Rocky Steps were hilarious, cocktail hour in a science exhibit couldn't be MORE like Meghan and finally ending the day with a party in the great hall of the Franklin Institute could only be described as "class".

Much more than the main event, it's the little moments that we remember the most. Kelley and Jake's wedding was over 5 years ago and we still talk about my mom dancing in the basement of the church and almost knocking down the Crucifix with a bottle of champagne, laugh about Steven Dobek (the best man) found trying to take a swim at 5am and poke fun of my drunken Advent calender incident. Luckily, I didn't find myself wiping out on the dance floor this time around! Moments from this past week that will always stick out in my memory:

• Driving around the city with my sisters and laughing until we cry about some inside jokes
• Mace's pub! Of course, in all the places in Philadelphia my family goes to the hole-in-the-wall Irish pub around the corner from the hotel 3 nights in a row
• Girls dinner with Mo and Mrs. Dobek at The Continental...as Meg put it - "I think that was the first dinner we ever had with absolutely NO drama!"
• The wedding director at rehearsal. "Ummmm so what do you want the ushers to do??" Meg's response - "To usher people...?" I give Meg a lot of credit for remaining calm at this lady who clearly wasn't right in the head.
• Chasing after the trolley after the rehearsal dinner and Kel thinking it was funny to leave me behind.
• Wardrobe malfunctions....at least we had Mrs. Reed, phew
• My Dad walking Meg down the isle....Matt's reaction
• FREEZING during bridal pictures and the group of Asians snapping a million photos of us
• Dancing all night long to the live band and looking up at the enormous Benjamin Franklin statue...."beer is God's way of telling us he loves us"
• Finding myself getting the number of the gay florist couple so we can hang out the next time I visit Cape Cod
• After party (Mace's pub...of course) and somehow ending up with Katie and Amy Davis, my cousin Tommy, the best man and my Mom at 4:30 Am getting calzones delivered to the 22nd floor of our hotel.....how we pulled that one off - I have no idea

My dad couldn't have put it in better words:

"Life is a sensory overload as we try to manage the present, remember the past and plan for the future. A few events in life occur only once. Some events occur rarely, some yearly and some events frequently. This wedding was one of the rare moments when life stood still for a few seconds. It provided for a reflection of ourselves and of our visions for those who come after us. It was a renewel of our life's most important gifts, our future life and present family."

*Off the Coast of Somewhere Beautiful*

I apologize for this very much overdue blog. The past few weeks I've been struggling with incorporating my old life back home into my new life in Australia...and communication with family and friends has been lacking because of it. I've always been the "organized" one of the group - I have my color coded planner outlining study schedules, tasks that MUST be done, tasks that SHOULD be done and even day to day activities. My god, one day I almost caught myself writing down: "things to do: shower!" I know....completely embarrassing. I like to make plans and know where things are heading. Well, last year in Columbus this type of lifestyle finally got a little too boring for me. I spent more time throughout my dietetic internship stressing about my studies and where my life was heading than actually enjoying the fact that I lived in a fabulous apartment downtown, right around the corner from my family and friends that I love. I'm 23, why should I feel old or bored when really - my life is just beginning!!

I'm also an over thinker...surprise surprise. When I was accepted into my internship in Columbus verses my other hopeful prospects in Boston or Charleston...I was constantly thinking "well how does this change things? what would my life have been like in Boston?" What if. What if. What if. Luckily enough, I had my best friend come along for the ride in Columbus. Em and I are in many ways complete opposites - which is why our friendship remains so strong. Last year, when I was stressing about my internship and had the idea in the back of my mind to move abroad....I had a best friend living with me that simply came home one day and was like "hey, I'm doing this". If it wasn't for both her spontaneous and fearless personality, I don't think I'd ever have the courage to do this....and look where I've ended up!! Christa just sent Emily and I both a card that read, "Life begins at the end of your comfort zone." This couldn't be more true. Life is a complete adventure for me right now. I look back on my quick conversations to my mom...as I'm literally sprinting to work...and they're absolutely hilarious. The "how are you going" question (yes, in Australia it is 'going' not 'doing') turns into "well I ran out of clothes so I need to go to the laundry mat, a homeless man took my package - don't worry just the food not the necklace, the landlord yelled at me 5 times about my overdue rent, my Swedish roommates won't stop playing Madonna downstairs, there's a new mouse in my kitchen....but no worries mom, everything's great! - going out with friends after work - can't talk!" This lifestyle couldn't be MORE different from my comfortable, day to day lifestyle back in Columbus.

Emily's last blog was called Sliding Doors, titled after one of my favorite movies. We were talking about this movie the other day because I felt like I had reenacted one of the opening scenes. I was SPRINTING down Southern Cross Station to catch a tram to meet a dietitian. Let me preface this - the week before I completely forgot about our coffee date and stood this woman up...who was going out of HER way to meet me. Fail. She for some reason, very kindly decided to reschedule. I couldn't miss this train. I literally jumped off the escalator onto the platform and squeezed into the doors as the were sliding shut. Phew, I made it. The movie is based on the question people ask themselves, "what if". What if Emily didn't move to Columbus? What if I didn't come to Australia? The over thinker in me could go mad by constantly disputing which decisions would lead me where...which brings me back to my first apology for lack of updates. For once, I'm trying to not think about the "what if" and instead, live in the 'now'. I'm running around like crazy, still attempting to be my organized self, but also trying to live in the moment and enjoy my life in the present.

Two weekends ago, Emily and I traveled up to Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast. We went to visit our friend, Corey, who we met on the plane ride over to Australia. Random right?! Who knew that a random coincidence of sitting next to an 24 year old Aussie on the plane would lead to great friendships and a weekend of experiences that would never have occurred otherwise. To sum up: I learned "the proper" way to eat Vegemite; watched Corey, his friends and world champion wake boarders compete; stayed in a penthouse suite overlooking the Sunshine Coast; drove to Somerset dam in the middle of what looked like the"safari" of Victoria; boated until the engine burst; rope swung into water full of dead fish; played more Jenga than I ever have in my life; saw an owl and learned how to wake board!

One month ago I could have given you a deadline of when I'm coming back home. Now, I have no idea. Honestly, I don't even want to be bothered thinking about it. The decision will eventually come soon enough - and for now I am enjoying this beautiful place with the great friends I'm able to share it with. If I could give any advice to friends and family, it would be to step out of your comfort zone and take a chance. It might be a scary, confusing path...but you never know where it might lead or who it might lead you to!

Missing everyone back home, oh and see you in one week :)

In the land of footy and breaky...

"Fear less, hope more; whine less, breathe more; Talk less, say more; Hate less, love more; And all good things are yours."

I'm beginning to love this country more and more...not just for the gorgeous beaches and exciting city life, but because of the people I am meeting. Before my move, I spent the summer emailing dietitians about my plans to come to Melbourne in hopes that I could make some good connections. I couldn't believe how kind people were in response to my inquires and how willing they were to help once I got to Australia. However, before I knew it September came and I still felt very lost. I didn't know where to live, let alone how to find a job that could really excite me with the restriction of a working/holiday visa. Everyone knows how dreadful job searching can be - the endless search online, phone calls to grumpy secretaries, email after email to just get one response back - well let me tell you, I randomly called a sports institute in Melbourne and the secretary was the most cheerful person to talk to! In every aspect, people are just willing to help each other out. For the most part, people say "excuse me sweetheart" or "watch it mate!" when I bump into people for awkwardly walking on the "wrong" side of the sidewalk....which I much prefer to the "watch it stupid" look I'd get back home. I may have just gotten really lucky for once, but I have come across some amazing people these past few weeks!

Two weeks ago I met for coffee with Emma Stirling, a dietitian who I'd been in touch all summer. We ended up chatting for two hours and had a great afternoon! Her 8 year old daughter, Lucy, was there as well and I swear she knows more about Twitter than I ever will! Emma is an entrepreneur, editor of her own blog, has a lot of experience in communication and marketing and is very big in the dietetics community! We've decided to keep in touch and work together as much as possible during my time in Melbourne! I'm hoping to help with some projects and attend some dietetic conferences/lectures with her, I couldn't be more thrilled! I was ecstatic to have such a wonderful person reach out to me - so thank you, Emma!

Today I met with a friend of her's, Jo Shinewell, who is a sports dietitian for the Melbourne Footy Club.

Quick Side note - If I haven't mentioned this before, footy is a combination of football, rugby and soccer. It's a huge sport in Australia and the professional season just ended last weekend with the Australian Grand Final. I'm officially a St. Kilda fan since I live in the suburb, haha...well and MY team, the St. Kilda Saints, were in the final! We were in Portsea to watch this "Superbowl-esque" game when it ended in a TIE! Completely bizarre. The rematch was last weekend and we unfortunately were demolished by the obnoxious Collingwood Magpie fans...

Back to Jo - we met today for coffee and chatted about my interest in sports nutrition. Jo was so great to talk to....at one point she mentioned that she has met with dietitians for the New York Giants and New York Jets! Jo offered to let me help her out next month during footy preseason. I'll be helping with "sweat tests" to analyze the nutrition status of the players. From these results, she then creates individual diets for every player on the team (about 46 guys). Again, I kept thanking her over and over - and she looked at me like a was crazy - like this was not a big deal to help me out! It's amazing how one kind gesture to meet someone for coffee can open so many doors to new experiences :)

In the middle of all these great opportunities...I do need to find a way to pay the bills. Emily and I both passed out resumes for waitressing positions last week. It's a great temporary job because, unlike the states, you receive an hourly wage of 15-22 dollars an hour verse relying on tips. I've had a few trials in places ranging from a really cool beach bar to a posh (think posh spice - upperclass) city restaurant on the river....and after the whole "what do I do/where should I try to work?!" dilema, I ended up going with a restaurant called West Beach Bather's Pavillion. It just opened about 6 months ago and is about a 20 minute walk away from our place along the beach. I'd describe it as my surfer's paradise - it's located right on the beach where surfers can walk up for a lunch of fish & chips and families can have their kids run off into the sand. West Beach is open for breaky, lunch and catering/wedding events - so for the most part, no night time shifts for me!! The restuarant is very open with floor to ceiling glass windows/doors looking over the bay and a wrap around patio going out onto the beach. I walk out onto the patio on a sunny day and look at the kite surfers and sailboats in the harbor....and I just can't complain about the fact that I'm a waitress or wearing a very unattractive black apron. I'm serving classic diner style Australian dishes (yes, vegemite included!) and home baked goods, so it's very laid back and nothing too fancy. I'm also in the midst of being taught how to make coffee - a huge deal in Melbourne, as they pride themselves in their skillful coffee making. Seriously, today I got a 20 minute lecture on where the beans come from.... And with dietetic projects hopefully to come, this is great and carefree way to pay bills. Not to mention making some spending money and meeting new people! So as for now, I'm simply serving on the beach with hopefully many sunny days to come :) Cheers!