Three down, one to go.

Scary/funny/insane to think that I'm one exam away from culminating my study abroad experience. Today was my first exam-- PR. Exams in Australia = INSANE. But more on that, later. Let's take a look at the weekend's shenanigans first.

We didn't end up going on the dolphin cruise on Friday... it was all booked for the afternoon, and we weren't about to get up at six a.m. just to check out some dolphins, when there was the exact same cruise offered the next day at a much more reasonable hour. As a result, nothing very exciting came about on Friday. I spent some time at the shops, had lunch and a cupcake at the little cafe deal, and that was about it. Saturday was a whole 'nother story though.

Despite the fact that we were scheduled for the afternoon cruise, we still got up pretty early to take the bus into town. From there, Diane, Rach and I waited around for a while to grab a second bus to Queenscliff. It was an absolutely gorgeous day for such an adventure... about 3o, which is warmer than it's ever been during my time here. Blue skies for the most part, too. We ended up getting to the dock a bit before one, and were immediately sized up for wetsuits. After that, it was only a matter of minutes before we were on our way for our three and a half hour tour. Naturally the idea of a three hour boat tour got my Giligan senses tingling, but needless to say, I am not currently stranded on a deserted isle. The boat did somewhat resemble the S.S. Minnow, though. True story.

After a short cruise on the net-protrusion-thing (I don't know what else to call it, but it stuck off the side of the boat, and was like a giant hammock for you to hang out on. Of course, I spent a good deal of the trip there.), our first top was an introductory snorkel around some rocks in the middle of the bay. We donned our fins and masks, and proceeded to freeze our butts off. Baltic. We spent most of the dive in fits of laughter, trying to keep our faces and feet (the only parts not covered by the wetsuit) out of the water. It may have been gorgeous outside, but that didn't mean jack to the water temperature gods. One day of beautiful weather does not, by any means, make up for three seasons of chilliness. Aside from the cold, there wasn't anything entirely remarkable about our first dive. We saw a starfish and a few others, but it was nothing compared to my last dive in the Great Barrier Reef. Such is life. So, we got out of the water, attempted to sun ourselves and dry off a bit, and were off to our next destination: Seal Island.

Okay, so it wasn't really called Seal Island, but it very well could have been. It was more like Seal Outpost In The Middle Of The Water. Either way, it was completely awesome. There were probably between 3o and 5o male seals just hanging out there. A few babies, some guys that had to be over 3oo kilos... some lounging, some barking, some trying to push each other into the water. Seeing as seals are probably my favorite marine animal, I was pretty pumped about the whole ordeal. The cold wasn't as bad the second time around, and when you looked under water, you could see seals twisting and turning all around, chasing each other, doing flips, and generally enjoying themselves. I took a decent amount of pictures with my underwater camera, and we even posed for one in the water right near the post. The seals could be snarky little bastards, though. More than a handful of times, you'd hear someone scream through their snorkel because they'd turned their head and were faced with a seal bearing its teeth, no more than a foot away. Kindof really hilarious. I definitely enjoyed myself, and I'm super pumped about seeing the pictures. We're due to pick them up tomorrow.

Dolphin sighting was next on our boating agenda, but not before another new Aussie experience: the Duck Spa. Basically, this consisted of hanging off the back of the boat onto the duck board, and having the boat pull you as the motion from the propeller created a "spa." Only in Australia. After our spa experience, Diane, Rach and I camped out on the top deck of the boat, attempting to spot dolphins. I saw a few within a few minutes, but by the time we'd turned around, they disappeared. We cruised for a half hour or so before our guide called us down to say that they'd spotted some dolphins in the shallows, and we should get ready to jump in. Now, how exactly do you snorkel with wild dolphins, when they move much faster than you, and aren't really prone to staying in one spot? Why, you hang on to a rope and get towed by the boat! I know, it sounds ridiculous. Well, it was ridiculous, but it was also completely worth it. Everything was a bit hectic at first... the guys on the boat were shouting at us, and pointing in every different direction trying to get us to see the dolphins, while simultaneously telling us to keep our heads in the water. The first one I saw was sort of far away, and I wasn't necessarily impressed. It certainly picked up from there, though. The dolphins went from crossing underneath us to swimming directly next to us. There were a pair of them, then three, four, and five. All basically within arms reach, flipping around, looking up at you and squeaking. Believe me, it was no easy task hanging on to the rope for dear life as the boat churned along while also trying to take pictures, but I think I managed to get at least a few good ones. It was so completely amazing seeing these dolphins swim right beside us, look over at us, then dart off, only to return to the pod moments later. At one point, I looked up out of the water and saw one flip through the air, like something you'd see at SeaWorld. To have that kind of experience with animals outside captivity is remarkable. When we finally got back on the boat, I couldn't stop shivering, but I also couldn't stop smiling. Our guides told us that they never see that many dolphins in the shallows for such an extended period of time like that, and we had been extremely lucky to be a part of it. It was certainly an experience.

We bid our dolphin friends adieu as they swam just ahead of our boat (like in the movies!), and headed back to the dock. I was completely frozen... I couldn't get my teeth to stop chattering. We made it back to the marina not long after, changed, swatted many a bug, and wandered through town a bit before catching the bus back to Geelong. It was an incredibly tiring, but also awesome day. I made Diane and Rach tacos for dinner, then Janis came over and we watched what we thought was our last episode of House. I slept quite well Saturday night.

Sunday was the first real day of study I partook in. Oddly enough, it was the last day of study week. I spent the day finalizing research and writing my paper on paranoia and conspiracy in one of the books we'd read for lit class, After. I think it turned out rather well. And I finished at a reasonable hour, too! I think I got to bed sometime around 3 a.m. Considering it wasn't due until 5 p.m. yesterday, I'd say that's pretty good. Must've been the pancakes Erin made for breakfast. Aside from the completion of the essay, nothing monumental went down on Sunday-day. Sunday-night, however, I made a series of incredibly awesome discoveries that I will now share with you. First, the Halloween party I thought I was going to have to miss out on due to exams... well, I'll probably be able to go now! My exam isn't until 2, so I figure I can at least dress up and stop by for a bit. My dad's e-mails were also the source of copious good news, in the form of Guitar Hero III acquisition, Keith Primeau's ice hockey team, and the fact that I'll have the opportunity to coach hockey when I get back. And, lest we forget, I found the final two episodes of House s3 on the network! Finally, we can have closure. And we will, tonite. Ahh, that show has taken over my life, and I'm totally okay with it.

Yesterday equated to copious amounts of studying for my PR final. I was surprisingly productive! I definitely thought yesterday would be one of those days where I intend to do a great deal of work, but only really accomplish a small sliver of what I wanted. I made comprehensive guide of everything I thought I'd need to know for the exam (pretty accurate, in retrospect) and studied for pretty much the entire day. I took a time-out only to drop off my lit assignment, grab a bit of lunch, go to caf, and watch Californication. Ohh, David Duchovny and threesomes involving two dudes.... of course they did. Had a bit of trouble getting to sleep after the coffee/tea intake that went down during the day, but such is life. On a side note: I'm about to murder every single one of those damn birds that sound like you're stepping on them when they crow. They sit outside my room and yell all day and all night, and I've had about enough of them. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for conservation of wildlife and the like... just not during studytime. Thanks.

So, we're up to today: my first exam experience. I get up at 8:3o for my 9:15 exam, brush my teeth, wash my face, eat my breakky, and head to the gym. I didn't know why they were holding the exam in the gym... but now I do. The gym was set up into perfect columns and rows, with over 4oo kids taking all sorts of exams. It was completely insane. Having followed what it looked like everyone else was doing, I dropped off my bag, reviewed my notes one last time, and walked into the exam, armed with my two pens. Apparently I also needed a pencil and my student ID. Oops. Needless to say, I played the hopeless international kid card and had everything figured out without much effort, but it was still a bit nerve racking at first. And so, for the next three hours, I wrote about nine pages for my PR exam. Altogether, it wasn't really terribly difficult... just long. And the setting was insane. In. Sane.

My post-exam day has been spent making fried rice, watching the Golden Girls, and pondering if I should start revision for history yet. Yeah, it's not tomorrow, so that's gonna stay at "no" for the time being. Caf's in a couple hours, and then we're watching our final two episode of House afterwards. Tomorrow is Halloween! We're going into town during the day, Janis's departure dinner is that night, and the party is afterward. Hmm, maybe I should be studying, then. In due time. I think I'll keep jamming to my Fall Out Boy/Michael Jackson/Backstreet Boys playlist for now. I call it-- the depth of pop music. Right.

That's all I've got for you. Until further notice... laterdays!

+K+

Two hundred degrees, that's why they call me Mister Farenheit

Seriously now... Queen. Freddy Mercury rules ++, and don't you forget it.

So yes, I report to you in the full swing of study week. Thus far, the only studying I have done has been my own personal scholarly exploration into Fortean studies, supernatural phenomenon, and the usual conspiracy business. Yesterday I went to the library and checked out a few books on said topics: Paul Davies' Are We Alone?, a philosophical look on how the human population of Earth would react if extraterrestrial contact was actually made, Loren Coleman's Mysterious America, the aforementioned Fortean text focusing mainly on cryptozoology and other assorted paranormal phenomenon, and The Supernatural and You! by R. Brasch. I haven't gotten to this one yet, but it sounds promising. And, of course, I'm still working on Conspiracy Culture for my lit paper, so that makes four. Hah, I'd make Mulder proud. Not so much Scully, though, but you never know. Definitely not season one Scully.

I spent yesterday afternoon/evening reading the first two books, one by the Ponds over lunch, and the other curled up in my bed. Fascinating works, if you're at all interested. House was last night, too. I was into it. Foreman's back! Now, to get Chase and Cameron back into things. I miss the Ducklings being together with House. Nothing else too extreme went down yesterday, just kindof relaxing, reading, and the creation of a few more delicious desktop wallpapers in the night hours.

Tuesday was a fun sort of day. I spent the bulk of the afternoon researching and booking everything for the remainder of the Farewell Tour. I'm pretty hyped for it. Pirate Cruise is confirmed, as is another two day excursion in Fiji. My life is awesome. Also, further bonus material manifested in the return of my lost key. Ten points for not having to pay $1oo to get the lock changed! Siq mosh. Diane, Rach and I went to the movies on Tuesday night, too. They saw Death at a Funeral and I saw Michael Clayton, because I'm a sucker for George Clooney. It didn't disappoint-- he was in a suit in almost every scene, sported the 5 o'clock shadow more than a handful of times, and the plot was laden with conspiracy and lawyers. Pretty much the recipe for my kind of entertainment, right? Granted, I had no idea what was going on in the first half of the movie, but it all came together very nicely. I rate it as E for Enjoyable, especially if you've got a thing for Gorgeous George.

And, we're back to Monday. Lunch at B-Bar was a good time... I bought the kids a round of cookies, haha. Janis told us she's leaving on the second, which is quite sad, but such is life. Rach and I headed to rock climbing after lunch, and only got mildly wet walking in the sporadic rain. It ended up being an awesome time, though. It's an awesome workout, hah. We were both hurting, but all the better because of it. I learned how to properly belay, and I didn't drop Rach once! She was impressed, as was I for her reciprocating belaying tactics. I think we'll definitely have to go back before I leave. We got caf when we came back, and then it was Californication later on.

Such is how my study week has gone thus far. Pretty low key, all things considered, but I've found ways of entertaining myself throughout. Today I actually did some work-- wrote most of my AusToday written supplement to my presentation last week and handed that in. Talked to the fam in the morning, too. They rule, and I can't wait for Thanksgiving in four weeks. Sweet turkey action, dude!

Tomorrow Diane, Rach and I are scheduled to go to Queenscliff and swim with dolphins, or something to that nature. Sounds like a good time to me. I'm just hoping the weather gets better-- it's pretty rainy and gross right now, but such are Victorian weather patterns.

I don't really have much else for you right now... oh, wait, if you're into Anderson Cooper and/or built dudez, czech this out:




Hellooooo Andy! Where'd those guns come from? Armed & fabulous, indeed. Yeah, props to Priya for sharing... I see your 'goo' and raise you a passionate 'EHHH!'

Okay, that being said, I think I'm going to watch an episode of X-Files before caf. So until next time... Trust No One!

+K+

Study Break Does Not Equal Studying

Which is why Rachel and I are going rock climbing in about an hour. I'm pretty pumped about it, it's been a while since I've scaled some walls. Should be a good time, I'm thinking.

But before we get too involved with this week's upcoming events, I feel I should talk more about the weekend... because it was quite a fantastic time. I left off with Friday morning-ish, before our meeting. Well, they didn't end up giving us lunch at our meeting, so after a little debriefing about what life will probably be like when we get back to our respective home countries, I joined Jens, Jess and Austin for lunch at B-Bar. Good food, good company. Things took a turn for the better when Janis and Rach arrived, though. They pointed out to me the previously unknown glory that is Strongbow for $3.8o. That was all it took. I finished my salad and knocked back a few Strongbows over good conversation with the kids who've become my family for the last four months. Smuggled out one last cider, picked up my AusToday paper (HD), and went back to my room. There wasn't anything particularly interesting happening in Evatt 2, so I grabbed my last Strongbow from the fridge downstairs, and wandered to the Ponds, where I laid in the grass, listening to Saves the Day, and drinking Strongbow in the beautiful Victoria sun. Yeah, it was a good afternoon. I made my way back to my room after a solid hour of contemplating just how much I love life, and fell asleep shortly thereafter. Timecheck: 3 p.m.

Now, you may remember that our lovely Barton Ball was also scheduled for Friday night. Yeah... I woke up at 6:47 p.m. The buses left at 7. This did not bode well for me. I got lucky, though, there was another set of buses going at 7:3o, so I quickly showered, got dressed, and made it down to the bus stop looking relatively presentable before the second set of buses left. The Ball was a blast and a half. Open bar, featuring champ&orange. We were double fisting at first... why, I don't know. I got a few pretty excellent pictures with my favorite kids, had quite a few good laughs, and completely enjoyed myself, despite the fact that I was in a dress and heels. In retrospect, it has been agreed upon by the general resi consensus that everyone got ridiculously messy. All in good fun, though. There was an after party at Home House, but at that point, few people were in any sort of form for consuming any more alcohol. I ended up taking a cab home with Jake, hanging out with him for a little while, then having to call security to let me back into my room because some jerk stole $2o and my room key from my camera bag. That was the only downside to an otherwise brilliant evening.

After achieving the new milestone of being completely drunk twice (two times... one two) in one day, I didn't do much on yesterday or Saturday. I wasn't hungover (surprisingly), but otherwise didn't have the motivation to do much of anything. I watched Pirates of the Caribbean Saturday morning while making and eating some mac and cheese, then wandered to the store with Rach, swapping only mildly embarrassing stories from the previous evening's shenanigans. We reunited that evening for dinner with Janis, Diane, Heather and Robin, and watched another couple of [H]ouse episodes. Nothing too extreme, though. I came back, and wasn't ready to go to sleep, so I scanned the network for some more cinematic greatness. Sunday didn't stray too differently from Saturday. I wandered around bothering people who were trying to legitimately get work done. Janis and I made caramel popcorn while watching American Pie, and Rach and I sat around in our pajamas while watching bike racing. Sometimes days like that are just necessary. I watched The Number 13 with Kayla and her friend, then, after some unit shuffling, watched an episode and a half of [H]ouse with the usuals. We've only got one episode left! What are we supposed to do now?! We must find the final two episodes... even though we've seen them months ago. We must remain committed.

Okay, the kids just called to yell at me because I'm late to B-Bar for lunch, so I've got to rock and roll. Until next time...

+K+

Weird.

I'm done classes. Done, finished, finito. All I have left is one 2ooo word essay, one write-up on a presentation I already did (and nailed, thank you very much), and two final exams, both of which I have extensive knowledge on already. I'm into it, kinda.

I don't think I'm quite ready to be done yet. I mean, I know I'm going to bask in the glory that is no scholastic commitment for a solid two months +, but classes being done mean that I'm almost done my time in Australia. A bloody tragedy if I've ever heard one. And it's just starting to get really, consistently nice out here, too.

Good news is, I've officially booked my post-semester adventures! The Farewell Tour is as follows:
November 7-13: Whitsunday Islands, QLD.
November 1o-12: Pegasus Pirate Cruise on the Great Barrier Reef
November 13-16: Brisbane, QLD.
November 15: First Annual Steve Irwin Day at the Australia Zoo
November 16-2o: Fiji

I fly out of Fiji at 1o:5o p.m. on the 2oth. And I arrive back in Killadelphia at 6:31 a.m. on the 21st. Don't question the international dateline... it knows no boundaries of time and space. So yes, I have all of my flights booked for this, and I'm in the process of securing my spot on the Pirate Cruise. I'm thinking my post-semester adventures are going to be pretty damn amazing. A Farewell Tour if there ever was one.

That's probably been the most exciting thing that's gone down so far this week. I've had a pretty extreme lack of class. Nothing Monday, nothing Tuesday, a 45 minute debriefing on Wednesday, and the usual business for Thursday. I had my Australia Today presentation on globalization yesterday afternoon. Globalization is ridiculous. Apparently I did a good job. Yesterday was a day for gratification and a general padding of my self-esteem as a competent student. Aside from the glowing praise for my presentation, I got my history paper back-- a second HD, deemed "another very impressive piece of undergrad writing." I am a foreign policy master. Got my "Rarely is an argument without external references so sophisticated in its analysis of the text as yours is" lit paper back, too. Okay, I'll stop patting myself on the back now. All's I'm saying is it's nice to hear how awesome you are every once in a while. It also makes me wonder what kind of student I'd be if I legitimately applied myself. Well, with remarks like that, would you feel obligated to work harder? Didn't think so.

Tonite is our Barton Ball. I bought a dress over the weekend, and my ticket on Wednesday. I'm pretty pumped about it. It's nice getting dressed up every once in a while.

Other assorted things that are currently bringing a smile to my face: The KGB Line (whoever came up with the name deeeefinitely achieves hero status in my eyes), the 4-o slaughter of the Devils (on paper, at least) that just went down courtesy of the boys in orange and black, the continuing assault on the network re: my black jellybean music taste, Rocky Votolato's "Suicide Medicine" album, the tribal cap House wore in the episode that aired on Wednesday, American Beauty... I just watched it last night, and it probably changed my life, aaand, generally, how awesome the 2oo7-o8 season is going for my boys... especially compared to how things were this time last year. I shudder at the thought of a repeat of our abysmal start in 2oo6.

I have to go to our Farewell Meeting/Lunch (at least I hope they're feeding us) now, so that's it for me. I'm sure I'll have a few stories from the Ball and the upcoming "study break" shenanigans. So until then...

+K+

And when you scan the radio, I hope this song will guide you home...

Boy, do I have a knack for making really, ridiculously good playlists. No lies, if you can give me a genre and/or mood you're interested in (that remotely reflects my questionable taste in music), I promise you I'll make you something you physically won't be able to stop listening to. I've just recently crafted something entitled ".dniwnu" (read it backwards), and it's beautifully reflecting how I'm feeling right now. Mellow, a bit anxious with a mildly heavy heart, but mostly just relaxed.

Today marked the beginning of the last week of classes at Deakin University. Funny, because I didn't actually have any classes. Don't have any tomorrow, either. But today's lack of educational time didn't stop me from trying to go to class, no. I attempted to go to both PR and History today, but both did not happen. Apparently, I was told of this before hand. Multiple times. It's remarkable that I maintain any sort of respectable GPA in college, what, with my goldfish-esq attention span. I can only wonder what I'd be able to accomplish if I could actually listen to and retain more than 30% of anything going on around me at any point in time.

The weekend was a pretty excellent time, though. Certainly worth a mention. I believe I last left off with Friday. I spent a bit of time consulting the on-campus travel agent, STA, who managed to get my hopes higher than a kite, only to smash them into the ground only minutes later. The damn girl taunted me with flights back to the States for under a grand, then told me said flight did not exist. Right. I ran halfway to the stores to catch up with Diane and Rach, purchased two cakes while being pushed in a shopping cart by Rachel (reminded me of the good old days of Easter egg left feet and food shopping with Sam in Troy), and made it back to campus in time for a shower and some more jammers before sleepover time presented itself. Yes, we're 20-22 year old semi-college educated young women, and we decided to have a sleepover party. It ended up being a stunning success.

Our celebration began with a three course meal, and followed with copious amounts of television, movies, and alcohol for the majority of the group. Robin, Heather and Diane represented the latter category to the fullest extent, which definitely made for a hilarious time. Our set-up was quite brilliant, really. Janis, Diane and I brought our mattresses into the Evatt 2 common room, which acted as our base camp for the evening. There were even pillow fights involved! I have the photographs to prove it. We're such girls.

The evening obviously took its toll on us-- we didn't get up until about one on Saturday. Hah. I can only wonder what my housemates must've thought of the crew of internationals sleeping in the common room well into the afternoon. This did not hinder our events, though. We celebrated breakfast after the lunch hour with pancakes and eggs. Quite the delicacy. After an early episode of [H]ouse (great episode, btw), we parted ways sometime around three. I then took it upon myself to celebrate the glorious X-Files holiday of Ten Thirteen by watching back-to-back episodes of the X-Files. Times five. Some may call this a waste of time, but nay. I call it a tribute to the greatest television show to ever exist. I can't wait 'til the XF2 movie comes out. They're due to start filming in December. Mulder and Scully reunited again to combat the dark forces of government conspiracy and visitors from the Reticulan galaxy? Sign me up.

Sunday was a bit more eventful in the realm of actually physically doing... anything. After following my boys' home opener victory(!!), I went to the gym for a bit in the afternoon, showered, then went into town to have a look around for dresses for the upcoming Barton Ball. There's something incredibly redeeming in listening to headphones while observing the world around you. I discovered a few new places in Geelong, and did actually (surprisingly) find a dress that I think will work quite well for Friday's dance. I wandered down to the waterfront afterwards, and ate my PB&J linner while people watching and journaling. Walked back up to the bus stop after a short stint beside the Carousel, in hopes of catching the next bus back to campus. No such luck. I'd missed the last bus to Deakin. This left me with two options: single-handedly pay for the $20-ish cab back to campus, or walk the 8-10 odd miles back. So, with the soothing sounds of Cake to guide me, off I walked.

Now, don't get too disgusted with my choices; I eventually caught a ride back. I had contemplated hitchhiking, or asking randoms if they were heading my way (I was in a skirt, it probably wouldn't have been out of the question to get a ride from someone. Australians are generally nice like that.)... but decided against it. I walked at least three or four miles to the shopping centre in the next town over, picked up some pesto and veggies for tea, then hopped the 18 bus which took me to Waurn Ponds Shopping Centre. It was another mile and a half-ish walk back to campus from there. Not too bad... I made it back just as the sun was going down. Cooked up some tea, watched some Boston Legal, and consulted Rach on the evening's events. Janis, Diane and Jen had gone to Ballarat for the day (and had a celebrity encounter in the form of former *NSYNC-er Joey Fatone), and they were too tired for the evening's dose of [H]ouse. So, Rach and I opted for a movie to pass the remainder of the evening. We watched Se7en. Pretty intense stuff. We parted ways sometime around midnight, and I spent the rest of my night watching Idle Hands, the awesomely bad horror/comedy starring Devon Sawa (swoooon) and Seth Green.

And so we're left with today's events. As I mentioned before, I had two classes that didn't actually happen... and that's about it. I spent some more time at the travel agent in a flawed attempt at getting my act together, but only succeeded in coming to the conclusion that I'm not going anywhere for study break. I had originally intended to trek to New Zealand, but it's just too expensive and too difficult to get around for the limited amount of time I would have. I'm not too concerned; this leaves the upcoming week with plenty of time for Victoria-sploring, in the form of beach time (maybe a surf, even?), skydiving, and Melbourne. Which leaves post-semester adventures to the Whitsundays, Brisbane (& surrounding areas), and Fiji. I'm not making any promises, but as of right now, my return date and time to the States is looking like it'll be in the wee hours of November 20. I'll confirm sometime in the near future... I think tomorrow's going to consist of booking all of said travel, as well as another trek into town with the British kid.

That's about all I've got for you for now. Oh, I thought I'd provide some further evidence for my godawful taste in music for you, in the form of my weekly last.fm chart:



Yep, that's right. You've got power pop, sugary kid's music, 9o's altrock, mellow brit alternative stuff, hardcore, indiepunk, a female brit vocalist, alt-folk-rock-punk, pop punk, and (admittedly) bad rap. I truly am a disgrace to the greater music listening community. Ah well, I embrace it.

But right now, I think it's time for me to focus my attention back to the lyrical stylings of Damien Rice and the artists accompanying the .dniwnu playlist. So until next time....

+K+



Didn’t get a lot in class, but I know it don't come in a shot glass

Ahh, Rehab. Great song. Three cheers for new music, new toys, and a much needed change of pace!

Yes, things are well at the Ponds. Well, except for the weather, but even that's due to change. I've successfully overcome my 36 hours of sleeplessness. The last few days have treated me pretty well, actually. On Wednesday, I received the greatly anticipated package containing my new toy. Dude... the iPod Touch is crazy awesome. After taking the greatest of precautions, I began the careful selection of songs and pictures that would occupy the 16 gigs of glory. A few hours later, I'd filled it about halfway with music, and experienced only minor difficulties in uploading the pictures. Sweeeeeet. Still haven't figured out the whole video deal, though. If any of you out there in blogland know how to operate the video feature on iTunes, especially in the realm of uploading things onto iPods, shout me a holla. I'd be much obliged. So yes, playing with Strokey (that's what I named him... cause he's an iPod touch...) has been a fun little distraction to occupy the free time that has again flooded my life.

For those of you keeping up with my musical tastes, I'm still listening to Hilary Duff entirely too much. However, Metamorphosis is now circulating with Mika's "Life in Cartoon Motion," and OKGo's "Oh No." Throw in a little Oasis and a bit more gangsta rap every once in a while, and that's what my ears are digging. I believe I've successfully analogized my musical tastes to that of a licorice jelly bean. A brilliant delicacy to a select few, but to most... just plain awful.

Yesterday was fun. Woke up with a smile on my face after a fun little dream... I've found more and more I'm remembering my dreams when I wake up, which makes me really, really happy. I see it as a great way to psychoanalyze myself. Plus, some of the stuff my subconscious comes up with is just plain entertaining. Had the usual class-load... nothing earth shattering there. One more week of classes = insanity. After class things started to pick up, though. I watched some more Daria/Boston Legal on lappy (a nice change of pace to my dvd collection, which I love dearly, but has become relatively exhausted during my stay here) after class. I was then informed about our "Barton College Dinner," which ended up being a quite hilarious time. In essence, it's caf, but a whole lot better, and with speakers and awards and booze. They had some pretty excellent cheesecake, which I definitely approved of. The food was good, but the company was better-- Erin, Kayla, Karina and Diane made it an interesting two hours. After dinner, we returned to our respective units while making MarioKart references, and I did my part to improve the cumulative musical taste of Australia by sharing my music with Erin. We chatted for a while with Kayla, and I revealed my passion for all things Steve Irwin. I'm talking everything from the representation of Australia in international relations to the Croc Car and the devastating loss of Night Rescue Steve at Hamilton. They were shocked, but not quite appalled. Despite my best efforts, sometimes I can be so American. This was one of those times.

Jake came over just as we were starting to play SingStar, which is Erin's beloved karaoke game. Being the true thug that I am, I opted for "Baby Got Back," and aced it. MC PEK lives on! Jake and I hung out for the remainder of the evening, swapping stories and going on reconnaissance missions. We had every intention of finding something exciting and adventurous to do, but no such luck. Our best attempt lasted about three minutes, when we hunted down Justin through covert facebooking. But that just resulted in sitting in his hallway and talking about everything from porn to polar bears to evading authority and Christmastime reindeer herds. I like Jake; we always have the most interesting conversations. Mostly his stories and me saying "Are you serious?," but it's still immensely entertaining. Having legitimate conversations with Jake, Weasel and Justin proved to be a refreshing change of pace from sitting in front of a computer and/or tv watching television show reruns. We were due to go to the beach today, but considering it's barely 12 degrees, the conditions just aren't in our favor. Some other time, I do hope.

I've amassed a mini-list of things I want to do in the next odd month. It ranges from skydiving to wasting the rest of my DeakinCard money on an evening of debauchery with the herd. I'm pretty excited to have it all manifest. We've got another notable event going on today: our Girls Night Sleepover! I'm pretty pumped about it all. Rach, Diane and I are going to go to the store in an hour and a half or so to get our supplies. I'm told we'll be having dinner, dessert, movies, and drinks. I'm into it. I've also got the task of legitimately planning my study break and final tour trips this weekend. This mandates a trek to the travel office to see if they can give me any insight on how to handle such a matter. Hopefully it won't be too difficult.

In non-Australia notables: GO FLYERS! 8-2 against the Canucks?! Way to go, boys! Ah, I do miss them.

I suppose that's all I've got for you for now. Hopefully I'll have some more stories after the Girls Night, and whatever manifests itself over the weekend. So until then...

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In the past 48 hours, I've had five cups of coffee, one energy drink, four cups of tea, written about six thousand words in the form of three essays, and gotten about six hours of sleep, none of which occurred in the last 3o hours. Don't you love the end of semesters?

Yes, I know, I have absolutely no right to complain. But I wear my procrastination like a badge... I pride myself in being able to produce quality work under pressure. I'm completely serious when I say that I do my best work hours before an assignment is due. Any earlier than the night before, I can't collect my thoughts and motivate myself to actually get anything worthwhile done. I've tried it, and my writing suffers immensely. Granted, I can hardly see straight now from lack of sleep, but such is life.

Plenty of reasons to smile in Geelong since the last update, though! First thing's first... how cute are the Flyers this year? My boys are 1-1 right now after kicking off the season in Western Canada. Right now, they're team building. Check out the pictures on the website... downright adorable. I can't wait to return to the Wachovia Center and see them in all their not-last-place glory. Bummer about the Phils getting swept, but such is life as a Philadelphia sports fan. Does anyone else find it a bit lame that our baseball team is called the Philadelphia Phillies? Like, couldn't we come up with anything better than the shortened version of our city's name? All of our pro teams have names that seep with history... except the Flyers. Way to go, boys... way to bring some originality to the town. Yeah, these are the thoughts that run through my head after being awake for 3o hours.

Back to Australia. As I promised myself before writing the three aforementioned godforsaken yawn banquets (I made time to do lots of important stuff amidst such dedication to procrastination... in this gangsta nation... yeah, pretty much everything except for productive work in and of itself), I spent most of today seeking out potential travel destinations for both study break and post-semester adventures. I figure it's about time I start looking, so I drew myself up a little map of the South Pacific, figured out what, exactly, I want to do, and had a blast. I've found a pretty sweet deal in going to New Zealand over study break, then heading to the Whitsundays, Brisbane and Fiji after I finish my finals. Ya know, keep the adventure and the relaxation segregated. Separate but equal, mind you.

Other mentionables come in the form of assorted acquisitions. I'm talking DC++, which equates to mucho new jammers and even Boston Legal season three for this kid!! Ah, I watched the "Shirley Schmidt-ho" episode before caf... soo good. Quite sorry I'm missing the start of season four at home, but you know how these things go. I've also acquired a unexplainable new-found passion for the lyrical stylings of Hilary Duff. She's currently rotating on repeat with Mika, my "blood WHAT." collection, and any sort of mash-ups I can find. I offer no explanation for my actions, but I do sincerely apologize to the global community of people with functioning eardrums.

I talked to Sam today, too. Guitar Hero III for the Wii? SIGN ME UP.

I'm sure there are other things worth discussing, but I can't bring them to mind right now. Right now my allegiance lies in staying awake for the next ten minutes, so I can join up with the regulars and get an overdue fix of [H]OUSE. He was being a jerk in the last two episodes, I hope that changes. Also, I found a few candid shots of Hugh Laurie's post-Emmy piano performance, and fell in love. Pssh, like I wasn't in love before. I turned them (and a series of other pictures) into some new desktop backgrounds, and put 'em on facebook in our "The best part of my day is having a cup of tea and watching House" group, if you're interested. All in the name of procrastination, this I promise.

The remainder of the week looks promising. New [H]OUSE tomorrow, quite possibly adventuring "out" for the first time in a long time on Thursday night, Girls Night on Friday, and beach adventures with Jake on Saturday. Gnar gnar!

Alright, awesome, time for House and then maybe, just maybe some sleep. So until I've successfully achieved REM...

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This is what it's come to.

This is how much I don't want to be doing work right now. Today, I've spent an hour at the gym, took my time making a delicious sandwich, watched an episode of Boston Legal, moaned and complained about work with some of the other kids in my unit, played around on photoshop (but didn't even make anything that worthwhile), and now I'm sitting here with the book in front of me, updating about nothing because nothing's happened, eating frozen raspberries and listening to theme songs.

Right now I'm up to the Beverly Hillbillies. I never even watched the Beverly Hillbillies. The raspberries are alright, though.

Yeah, this week has been immensely boring. Mostly because I've been flat broke, courtesy of the best trip EVER., and I've got a few rather large assignments hanging over my head. Erin just called me out on not doing work. She knocked on my door and asked what I was doing, and it's a bit hard to play off actually doing work when you've got a blog page window open, and the theme song to "Boy Meets World" playing rather loudly in the background. Right.

I'll try to think up something interesting for you, since you're kind enough to stop by the blogspot. Ahh, here's something. I managed to reconnect with one of the dominant figures in my Garnet Valley High School experience via e-mail-- the one and only Lieutenant Commander Trabocco. Mr. Trabocco, if you've googled yourself again and are reading this, it was a pleasure chatting with you.

[H]OUSE season four premiered on Wednesday night. It was pretty excellent. It's strange watching House with commercials. I guess we got spoiled.

I'm growing tired of this four seasons in one day business we've got going on here. I was told I'd be in shorts and a t-shirt come September, and last time I checked my calender, it's October and I've got the heater on. Oh, I know, pity party for the girl in Australia. Again, I spoiled myself with north Queensland's tropical atmosphere. It was totally worth it, though.

Seriously though, I don't have anything else to say. I've got less than a month left at Deakin, I suppose that's worth mentioning. I just want to get these essays out of the way, and then I'll be free of any demanding assignments until after study break. I can get back to doing fun things, like watching too much television without guilt, and planning more adventures. So, that being said, I'm going to get back to my reading and outlining. Wish me luck and send me love.

So, until next time, better watch out for those man-eating jackrabbits, and that killer cacti...

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Woah, hey-e-yay, what can I do?

Ohh, Saves the Day. It's that spring-to-summer weather we've got over here, I can't help but throw on Through Being Cool. It's pretty much mandatory, I swear.

So, I'm back at the Ponds. Best trip EVER. has concluded. And, by all accounts, it lived up to its name. I suppose I owe it to you to discuss the last two days of adventure before proceeding any further.

Saturday was a day of adventure. The Musketeers decided to split up for the day, each of us wanting to do our own thing. Janis booked a fishing trip, Rach wanted a day to relax, and I, as always, had a thirst for adventure. So, I signed myself up for a mountain biking trek, as mentioned in the previous entry. Woke up early for the seventy billionth day in a row and met the guide, Dan, downstairs at nine. It ended up being just he and I for the day, and he drove the half hour to the mountain. I wasn't sure what to expect, but I had the misguided notion that because I had done quite a bit of cycling in the past year, I'd be quite good at mountain biking. Not so much, really. When it said mountain biking, it meant MOUNTAIN BIKING. No roads, pavement, any of that. I was doing my best to keep up with Dan on dirt paths where, if you veered off by a foot, you'd careen down the mountain. It also didn't help that they decided to swap the brakes on me. In all the riding I've ever done, the right brake has been for the back wheel, and the left controls the front. Not on this bike. As you may imagine, this resulted in me slamming on the right brake in an attempt to stop, and going head-first over the handlebars on more than one occasion. It was quite a workout, lots of ups and downs, riding through creeks, getting whacked by thorny bushes throughout the rainforest... but lots of fun as well. Dan was both informative and accommodating to my novice mountain bike skills. He also found it pretty funny that I kept falling off. Ah well. It was a 15 kilometer trek altogether, with a stop in the middle for a swim in the fresh water river. Unbelievably refreshing. We saw a snake, and came across what I would define as an Aussie bushman and his family. More like an Australian guy camping with his girlfriend and her son, but they were bush-enough for me. Hell, they were listening to "Waltzing Matilda."

I was exhausted, dirty, sweaty, and cut up after the mountain bike adventure... but also quite happy. It was another awesome experience I don't think I'd be able to repeat anywhere else. After Dan dropped me back off at Calypso, I took the opportunity to bask in the beautiful afternoon sun by the pool. Went for a bit of a swim, showered, and walked into town in an attempt to find Rachel and/or a bar where I could watch the Grand Final. I came across much of the latter, but not the former. After grabbing a sandwich at a little side shop, I ended up in P.J. O'Brien's (yes, I know, I always find my way to Irish pubs) to watch the second half of the footy. Geelong was already up by quite a bit. I befriended a trio of Irish boys, and for the next two hours, watched Geelong slaughter Port Adelaide over a bottle or two of Magners. It was fantastic. Port got annhiliated 163-44. It wasn't even close. Naturally, this put me in a good mood for the rest of the day. I mean, I'm from Philly... I don't know the meaning of the phrase "championship team."

After watching the celebration, I went for a walk about Cairns, popping in and out of markets and souvenir shops, picking a few things up for the loved ones at home. Watched the sun set, and walked the twelve blocks back to Calpyso with the sweet sounds of Frank and Dean to guide me. Summer nights always put me in the mood for crooners. Chatted with Rach, Janis and our new French roomate when I got back, then went upstairs and crashed relatively early. Woke up at 8:3o on Sunday and finished watching the episode of X-Files that I'd started the night before. Packed up my stuff (I magically fit everything I'd accumulated into my three bags... an impressive feat) and spent the rest of the morning by the pool, doing a bit of writing, a bit of lounging, and a bit of swimming. We bid adieu to beautiful north Queensland just before noon, heading to the airport. Two flights, a taxi, a train and ten hours later, we were back in Geelong. I've grown weary of long travel days like that... especially when it means leaving tropical weather for rainy, chilly Melbourne. But considering the past ten days' events, I don't really have much to complain about.

After arriving back in Geelong, I unpacked all of my things, did my laundry, got a shower, and called the family. Yeah, I slept well last night. Today has been devoted mostly to uploading pictures onto facebook, going to a rather depressing history class on mass murder and genocide, boxing, dining al fresco with Rach at caf, and the usual Monday night television greatness. Ahh, Californication... you are too good to me. For the thousandth time... David Duchovny, why won't you love me?

Other positive notables include the NL Championship of the Phils (ohh, do I miss those close-ups of Chase Utley. Ladies, you're with me on this one, I know it.), the season premier of House on Wednesday, and, for once, Best Buy's cooperation. Yup, because my iPod was nothing but dysfunctional, I'm getting a brand new one. And, even better, it's the new iPod touch! That'll be quite fun to play with, I think.

Ah, I suppose I should link you up to the semester trek pictures, too.

For Sydney shots, czeck this one out:
http://deakinedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028600&l=e8539&id=17500696

Sydney Aquarium, Brisbane, and Cairns photos are here:
http://deakinedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028638&l=fb564&id=17500696

And, the album you've all been waiting for... my Australia Zoo pictures:
http://deakinedu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2028647&l=57eda&id=17500696

Any comments, questions, or general musings regarding my photographic documentations are greatly appreciated and encouraged. But for now, it's back to the real world for this kid. Which means a bit of reading, but more likely, some X-Files and bed. I'm beat. So until next time...

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