Elsja Down Under

Sun and Snow July 27, 2008

Morning:

Andrew and I drove up to this beach where we ate lunch. We were wearing jeans and short sleeve shirts. The sky looked like this (ok maybe a few little clouds). It was beautiful. We planned on walking around a bit but we were both a little too hungover and we didn’t feel like paying $5.00/ hour for parking. So… we decided to head home.

 

 

Afternoon:

When we got home, I was very tired (aka hungover) so I laid on the bed with the sun beating in. It was so warm and sunny on my back that I fell asleep easily (with my shoes on). Only to be woken up later to the sound of thunder…

Evening:

After the lighting and thunder all afternoon, we watched the news and saw pictures like this. It didn’t get like this where we live, but it did about 15 minutes away from us!! Evidently it’s not snow… it’s “soft hail.” But really… does it even matter? It’s white and cold.

 

Just another day in Sydney.

A Work in Progress July 24, 2008

So my geeky forum is still a work in progress… BUT… it’s up and running! Woohoo. I still have a lot to learn and things to modify but I figure I may as well put it out there so people can start checking it out!

Like I said before, 99.999% of you will have no interest in this forum whatsoever- BUT, if any of you happen to stumble upon this blog (or even read it regularly) and know someone who is dating or married to a pilot, please please please pass along the following link.

www.lovemypilot.com

The girl who runs the ex-pat forum I’m a member of said it took her forum years to really take off, so I have to be patient. At least it can be a hobby and something to keep me busy (not that I really need to spend any more time on the internet). Yay nerdy Elsja!

A New Project July 22, 2008

I’ve started a new project. I’ve migrated into uber geekdom by starting my own nerdy online forum. I’ve been inspired by my other geeky Americans in Australia forum so I decided I’d create my own place to waste time online! It’s still a work in progress, but it’s coming along. Unfortunately I’d say 100% of my readers (all 10 of you) will really have no interest in my nerd club whatsoever. That is because it is tailored to people who are dating or are married to pilots. Hey… I didn’t really have any other topics that I could think of. This will take the time I waste on the internet to a whole new level. I don’t exactly know what I’m getting myself into here… but hey- it can be a hobby of sorts. I even bought a domain name. Now I just have to find people who actually want to join!

I’ll let you all know when it’s up and running. I don’t know why I’ll let you know since none of you have any interest unless you date a pilot. But still… I’ll let you know. Just because.

Ok you can all start making fun of me now.

A Weekend of Firsts July 19, 2008

So I get to check another item off my 101 list… FINALLY. Friday Andrew and I walked across the Harbour Bridge (#37)! The whole walk, from where we parked the car…across the bridge… back across and back to the car took an hour exactly. Not too bad. There were some great views, but it was pretty crowded with Pilgrims! Pilgrims? Not the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria type pilgrims- more like the Muslims flocking to Mecca to worship type pilgrims. In this case it’s Catholics flocking to Sydney to worship Jesus. Evidently when the Pope comes to town, it’s a pretty big deal. Have people in the US even heard anything about the World Youth Day Week madness that has taken over the city here? I’ve tried to refrain from blogging about this but the red and orange backpacks are taking over the world. I found it interesting to see parades of people from different countries walking around waving their country flags. I’ve never seen so many foreign tourists in one place since the last time I went to Disneyland.

Another first for me occurred on Friday night. I played Guitar Hero FINALLY! After a few glasses of wine, staring at the screen of moving colored notes made me quite dizzy and nauseous so I could only play a few rounds. I’m not very good. But at least I didn’t get booed off stage each time (only once).

Last night we went to a charity trivia night… seriously- why don’t they have these in the US? They are so fun! Although you’ve never felt so dumb in your life until you play trivia in a foreign country and have NO idea who or what the questions are even referring to. It wasn’t all bad though, I did know a few things that no one else knew!… I knew what D.C. stands for in Washington D.C. and I knew the century that the declaration of Independence was signed. I did my country proud. I also knew the answer to one of the questions about an Aussie singer that no one else knew. Too bad they all thought I was wrong and I was outvoted. Well they should have listened to me because I was RIGHT! I found a flaw in one of the questions though… they played the song “Heaven is a Place on Earth” and they said it was the Bangles… ummm that song is SOOO not the Bangles. DUH. That was a bit annoying.

Trivia is great. And speaking of trivia… can any of you unscramble the following COLOR (yet another question that i figured out because I’m a genius…I had no help- so neither should you… don’t cheat and type anything into google you slackers).

REIHOTEPLO

Can you figure it out?

Goon of Fortune July 15, 2008

How to play Goon of Fortune

1. Hang “goon” (a.k.a. cask bag of wine taken out of the box) with pegs (a.k.a. clothespins) from a Hills Hoist (a.k.a. washing line)

2. Spin the Hills Hoist

3. If it lands on you… you drink

Simple.

What?? Isn’t that how everyone spends their Monday mornings at 1:30am??

I’ll Miss Her July 9, 2008

Today my sweet poochie Emmi had to be put to sleep.

She got cancer a few months ago and while they did remove a lot of it, it grew back and then some. She started having problems breathing due to tumors developing in her throat and chest so the doctor felt it would be best to put her to sleep so she wasn’t suffering anymore. Pain of cancer can be controlled, but if you can’t breath- there’s not much to help with that discomfort. My mom though it would be better to be with her there as she passed, rather than having her possibly suffocate all alone at the house one day while my parents were at work.

I thought I may get to see her one more time when I go home in a few weeks, but now I won’t be able to. I remember the day I picked her out at the pet shop and I put towels down ALL over my bedroom floor so she could sleep in there without getting pee on the carpet.

I’ll miss my little dog. She had a long good life and was a sweet little friend.

Late Night Safari at The Cross July 6, 2008

Saturday I experienced my first REAL night out in the Cross (King’s Cross is a sleezy area of overpriced bars/clubs…for you Americanos). And oh what an experience that was. I like to relate my experience to that of a wild safari in Africa. There were so many wild creatures out that I just wanted to snap photos of them all. Unlike animals who just graze in the wild and ignore you when you snap your photos, these creatures probably would attack- so I had to refrain. So unfortunately I’m lacking photos of the 8 billion freakish girls wearing mini-skirts in the winter. I missed dozens of prostitues, such a shame. I missed taking a picture of the club we went to… or rather the name of the club. It was called Favella- and if any of you have been to Brazil, you would know that naming your club “Favella” is like naming your club “Ghetto” or “Bario” or something along those lines. Luckily the inside of this Brazillian ghetto club was MUCH nicer than the name- although I do think I was one of 3 blondes in the entire place- so I didn’t exactly fit in.  I was only able to capture a few other pics, but my memories will last forever.

We started our journey realllllly roughing it. Imagine camping in tents with no showers, no beds, etc. in the middle of the African desert… well that’s what it was like at Wes’ new house when we had to eat dinner and drink on the floor with no chairs!! I’m amazed I was tough enough for that one!

Here are Andrew and I about 5 hours into our “safari”

We found a watering hole to quench our thirst on our long journey… it was a beautiful site in the middle of the wild:

Evidently it’s mating season. Kate was lucky enough to come across these animals in heat- so we snapped a shot to share with the world!

While I didn’t manage to get a photo of Favella, I did find this quaint spot. Charming right? A little beautiful gem… like an oasis in the heat of the desert.

And lastly… on our adventure home (and it WAS an adventure)- we stumbled across the greatest find in all of the wildnerness… DEL TACO FRIES. Ok- it’s not really Del Taco… but the fries were good enough to be- it was the most beautiful site of the night. But I didn’t order any. I just stole a few of Ben’s. Thanks Ben.

What a night!!

California and Your Wussy Traffic Laws July 3, 2008

I’ve heard more people complaining (or maybe they are just commenting) on the law that went into effect yesterday making it illegal to drive with a hand held cell phone. Evidently the penalty for this is $20 bucks or something.

Goodness, poor California. Twenty whole dollars??? You want to experience some REAL traffic laws, move to Sydney. Take a look at some of the laws and penatlies here!

Talking on the phone while driving

Penalty in CA: $20.00

Penalty in Sydney: $230.00! Yes… TWO HUNDRED AND THIRTY BUCKS! that includes talking, texting, or even turning the phone off and on!

New drivers aren’t even legally allowed to use ANY phone- headset or not!

You also get demerit points. As an experienced driver you get up to 12 points in 3 years. Sooo lets put this into perspective… For this offense of driving while talking on the phone… or HOLDING the phone for that matter- you can get 3 points (a quarter of your license). . Do this on a holiday weekend (points are doubled on holidays) and there’s 6 points or half your license.

A $20.00 fine isn’t sounding too bad right about now.

Driving without a seat belt

Penalty in CA: $20.00

Penalty in Sydney: $243.00! Yes… TWO HUNDRED AND FORTY THREE BUCKS!! annnnd… that’s just for the driver. If you have another passenger without a seatbelt the fine goes up to $486.

For this same offense of driving without a seat belt, you earn 3 points. If you happen to get caught on a holiday weekend, you are basically halfway to losing your license…remember, we’re talking about driving without a seatbelt here.

So… what happens if you and a friend (so 2 people) are in your car, driving along on a holiday weekend, minding your own business, no seat belts… and you get caught?? YOU LOSE YOUR LICENSE!!!!

No, I’m not joking.

Don’t get me started on the speed cameras, red light cameras and $150 parking fines!!!

And people wonder why I’m afraid to drive in this country!!!