and are we there yet?

Well, today is my last day in Australia.

It doesn't even feel real. It's still hard to believe I'm actually here, let alone that I won't be tomorrow.

I suddenly got cold feet. I'm not ready to leave yet. Four months isn't enough time.

This past week was the best that anyone could hope for. It was hot and sunny, and I went to the beach every day. I thought my last week would be about trying to jam-pack it full of things I hadn't done yet. But I found that all I really wanted to do was be with friends and family. Things like going out to breakfast, or participating in a Harry Potter marathon, or walking around the beach became highlights of my whole trip.

I don't want to leave this.

But I do at the same time. Four months is too short to be in Australia, but it's a long time to be away from home. Not just like, home-where-my-house-is-home. But home like, home-where-my-family-is and home-where-my-friends-are and home-where-my-country-is.

This is the most bittersweet experience of my life. Both ends are so extreme.

But first I'm taking the Ring to Mordor going to New Zealand. See you guys after I battle some Ringwraiths, fight off a giant spider and climb Mount Doom.

current song: Are We There Yet by Ingrid Michaelson

we are the tourists in the cafes

Today in class, we watched this short movie called The Story of Stuff. It's this woman who researched how all our 'stuff' is made, and where it goes once we throw it away. You all should watch it here. It's so interesting, and brings up a lot of issues we don't think about very much. I don't think everything she's saying here is gospel truth. But it definitely got me thinking.

After the movie we had a discussion, and someone brought up this quote from Saturday by Ian McEwan. It's kind of long.

"How restful it must once have been, in another age, to be prosperous and believe that an all-knowing supernatural force had allotted people to their stations in life. And not see how the belief served your own prosperity- a form of anosopnosia, a useful psychiatric term for a lack of awareness of ones own condition. Now we think we do see, how do things stand? after the ruinous experiments of the lately deceased century, after so much vile behavior, so many deaths, a queasy agnosticism has settled around these matters of justice and redistributed wealth. No more big ideas. The world must improve, if at all, by tiny steps."

Things don't operate the way they should. The world doesn't work like it was created to. Some people have nothing and some people have too much. We watch the tragedies of the world happen on the news from our dinner tables and often can't motivate ourselves to do anything about it. I don't know where my shirt was made, or who made it and whether or not they have enough food. I don't know if the person who sold it to me was paid fairly and I don't know where it will go once I finally give it up. Isn't that a problem?

I don't know exactly what I even think about all this yet. Or what I think I should do with it. But what I really want is for you to watch that movie and read that quote and tell me what you think.

current song: Camera Talk by Local Natives

this night is winding down

Tomorrow I start my last week of classes here. Then it's a free week in Sydney. Then it's a week in New Zealand. Then it's home. And now that the end is near, it feels like it's taking forever to get here. When I feel like I can't wait to be home, November 20th just hovers in the back of my mind, and refuses to budge. Everyone keeps saying that our time is running out so quickly, but to me it kind of feels like it's suddenly slowed down.

In our ASC classes, we're starting to 'process' all of the things we've learned/seen/experienced here and figuring out what we do with it all. We seriously have the best discussions in those class, and I'm going to hate going back to normal class where no one wants to contribute. But we were talking about the idea of mobility and stability. And I've been sitting here staring at the screen because it's so hard to summarize those ideas in just a few sentences. One story we read, though, sums it up really well.

There was this pastor, and he was trying to balance working locally in his church with taking national speaking engagements. In this, God spoke to him and said, "Stay home and do your knitting." Stop thinking about going out to save the world and start thinking about serving where you are.

Four months ago, that is exactly what I didn't want. But now I think I get it. Staying home with the knitting isn't very exciting, and you struggle against boredom and ambition, but it's good. And it's necessary.

It's kind of weird that God calls us to stay where we are sometimes. It doesn't fit in our box. It isn't what we think 'God's call' is. Before this experience, it was hard for me to believe that with mobility and stability, one isn't better than the other. Maybe because I thought I hadn't experienced mobility. Now I have, and I love it and it's great. I've had an amazing time in Australia. But I am looking forward to being in the same place for a while, and appreciating it. It'll be good to be somewhere where I have a connection to the place. I would like to be home and do my knitting. And hopefully I won't change my wind after a couple weeks.

Recently I've been trying to do cool things, which is a good goal to have. Thursday I went to Bar Me with some friends/family to see our friend Phebe Starr play a show, and it was really great. Part of me felt like I was back at the student union at Taylor at an IFC show. The musicians were amazing, but Phebe definitely tickled those ivories. Check her out.

I went to a Sci-Fi film festival with some friends and saw a Finnish movie about an evil(?) Santa Claus. And it actually was really good, really well made, and really funny. If you can, watch it. Rare Exports.

current song: After Hours by We Are Scientists [Do you guys get that I do this because I use the lyrics in the title of each post? I hate thinking of titles for this. So this was an easy compromise. But I do love all the songs I post, and I hope you listen to them all as you read.]

sipping life down

I WANT:
-To eat Mexican food.
-To wear different clothes.
-To see my family.
-To have fun with my best friends.
-To eat Honey Bunches of Oats.
[You have no idea how hard it was to make this list not all about food]
-To have my room.
-Assignments to be done.

Mostly what I am really ready for is to be comfortable. I don't want to feel like I'm in someone else's house or at other people's schools anymore. It's been almost 4 months of being out of my comfort zone. And that's been great and I have been able to feel somewhat 'at home' here. But it isn't the same as my home. I'm really looking forward to being with my friends who really know me, and not having to ask directions everywhere I go.

I DON'T WANT:
-To leave Australia.
-To leave my friends and family here.
-To even think about fitting my stuff in my suitcase.
-To have to drive places.
-To leave Sydney summer for Upland winter.

There are really 2 things I hate about leaving. One of them is feeling like I wasn't able to experience everything here in Sydney before I leave. The days are going by so fast and with classes and service placement, it's so hard to try to get to everything. I know there's no way I'll see all there is so see, but I don't want to leave wishing I had done more. The other thing I hate thinking about is leaving all the other people in the ASC group. My experience with the other students here with me was different than I expected, but I love the community we've developed. And I know that no matter how well we stay in touch, we won't ever be able to go back to what we have here, and that makes me a little sad.

It's a strange mix of feelings now. I'm so ready to be home, but I hate thinking about leaving here. Right now I just want to live it up and really enjoy my final weeks in Sydney. And speaking of living it up, I am off to the beach.

current song: Tomorrow Comes a Day Too Soon by Flogging Molly

the other side shows through

So it's a $110 fine to get caught riding a bus without a valid ticket.

Not that I know from experience.

Okay, so I do know from experience. Sort of.

Here's the story: When we first got to Australia, our director gave us little yellow passes, smaller than a credit card. They got us onto all the public transportation in Sydney, basically. You pretty much couldn't go anywhere without one, unless you wanted to shell out 3+ dollars per bus, train or ferry ride. And if we lost it and had to replace it, it was about 530 bucks. Did not want to lose one of these puppies.

Knowing that I have a tendency to lose important things, I have been pretty obsessed with knowing where my bus pass is. Like, checking for it in my bag every few minutes and having a miniature panic attack when I don't find it right away. But I feel that it's a great testament to my growing maturity and ability to be a responsible adult that I haven't lost it yet. Feel free to congratulate me.

But last Wednesday, some friends and I were going to Hillsong for their college ministry. We were walking to the train station where a shuttle comes to pick up other Hillsong-goers, when we decided to hop on a bus for a couple blocks to save ourselves some time. Getting on the bus, I take out my yellow pass, plop it in the ticket machine and wait for it to pop back up, like I've done millions of time. Except it doesn't pop back up.

My first reaction, honestly, was, "Well, I knew something was going to happen to it. I'm glad it isn't my fault." But then questions like 'How will I get home tonight?' and 'Will I have to become a hermit and never leave home?' started popping up in my head. The bus driver was pretty great about it, really. He gave me something with the bus depot's phone number, and wrote me a little note explaining the situation to show other bus drivers until I could get my pass back.

So we go to Hillsong and come back to catch a train so we can catch a bus. And it's probably a miracle that all the train ticket lanes were open, and no one had to use a pass. After that free train, we got to the bus stop and stepped on the first one that came.

This bus driver was not so nice. Well, in retrospect he actually was. I showed him the card the other guy gave me and explain what had happened. He just sighed and was like, "Well, if Revenue [I still have no idea what/who Revenue actually is] gets on and you don't have a valid ticket, you'll get fined $110." And when I asked him the likelihood of that, he just shrugged. So I just shrugged and decided to risk it. So it's pretty cool of him to just let me on the bus.

But happy ending: I didn't get fined or anything. And I got my ticket back the next day. The nicest people in Australia, by the way, work at the bus depot. All in all, it was a valuable experience.

Other than that, I've been doing things to put off homework, getting buried with more assignments, and then procrastinating more. These past few days I've done some pretty cool stuff while I was procrastinating. Some of us went to Luna Park, which is kind of like a creepy version of Coney Island. I went to Watson's Bay again with my friend Joann. Walked from Bondi Beach to Coogee Beach with cousins and friends, and took my first swim in the Australian Pacific! Which was probably the coldest thing of my life. But it was a beautiful day and it had to be done.

So this week I'm not allowing myself to have any fun. At least, until all my assignments are done. I actually should be reading right now. Let me tell you, doing homework in Australia is the worst. Especially since it's finally warm and sunny and amazing outside and I am in a library, looking at it through windows. But hey, that's just more motivation to get it done as fast as possible.

current song: Sugar Blue by Jeff Finlin

clouds came tumbling down

Oh man, I feel like I’ve done so much stuff since the last update. But a lot of what I’ve done looks boring and flat when it’s printed on a page… or illuminated on a screen. There’s been a lot of fun conversations, chill hang outs and movie marathons. It’s nice to be able to just chill out with everyone; we don’t get to do it that often. Whenever we get together, it’s so much work and we always have a plan and have something to do or experience. I’ve missed just hanging out with friends, so it’s been really good to be able to do that.

But I have done some pretty cool stuff. Last weekend, a bunch of us went to Featherdale Wildlife Park, which is pretty much a petting zoo with kangaroos. Yes. Petting kangaroos. And wombats, and wallabies, and emus, and koalas, and dingoes and other assorted Australian animals. I feel like it’s just one of those things I had to do while I’m here. How can I come back to the states and say, “No, I went all the way to Australia and didn’t touch a koala.” Unavoidable. But it was great fun.

Then this Monday was Labour Day, alright! Long weekend! Saturday there was a jazz festival in Manly that we went to, and it was great even though we didn’t listen to much music. Manly is beautiful, definitely one of my favorite spots. If I lived in Sydney, I would want to live in Manly. We went exploring along the beach and came to an amazing lookout on a bluff, and right when we got there it started pouring rain and the wind blew the water off the ocean right into our faces. It was a crazy couple of minutes yelling and running around and really having great fun.

Today, we had an optional class where we went back to Manly for a tour of the Quarantine Station. Ships of immigrants stopped there before coming into Australia and if there were contagious diseases onboard, they were all stopped and had to stay in Manly for 40 days. It was just so interesting to hear about the history of the place, and I feel like writing it all here would be ultra boring. Because even though I loved hearing about it and seeing all the buildings, it would turn into a lame history textbook here. Ghost Hunters International did a show there, staying in the mortuary and trying to find ghosts. Guess what, they found them. My friend and I were talking about going back on Halloween, and try to find some ghosts.

In other news, I made an Australian To-Do List, full of things I want to do and places I want to go before my time’s up here. And it is a pretty hefty list. I’m slowly crossing things off, but definitely looking forward to completing it.
Okay, sorry this blog seems a little lame. Most of what I’ve been doing lately is homework, which is even lamer. It’s just that time of the semester when everything is due soon. If I thought it was hard to be focused on homework in Upland, Indiana, it is a thousand times harder in Sydney, Australia. But just a few weeks, and all my major assignments will be done with and it will be time for more fun.

current song: Landed by Ben Folds

longing for the view behind the fence

I love stories. I think stories are my favorite things in the world.

I love spending hours with books, and getting lost in someone else’s imagination. I’m a firm believer that you can’t like a book if you’ve only read it once. I even like books I hate, because at least they made me have an opinion on them.

But really, my favorite thing is sitting with friends and family, and listening to them tell their stories and adventures. And it’s pretty safe to say that I know and am related to some of the most interesting people in the world, and their stories are the best I’ve ever heard. And I wish they were mine.

There comes a point where I’m tired of listening and want to do some talking. And when that time comes, I don’t have much to say.

Maybe you’re one of those people that always have stories to tell. But maybe you’re like me and haven’t had many adventures yet. But I decided to change that.

So I came to Australia for life-changing experiences.

And it frustrates me that there are people here content to have a normal semester. It’s like they came for the photo ops, and don’t want anything else. But I don’t want to be like that. I want more than a profile picture with a koala. I want experiences. I want stories. I want drama. I want my exploits here to require courage. I want people to hear my stories and be affected like other people’s stories have affected me.

I want adventures.

But adventures don’t just happen to you. Dwarves don’t knock on your door and invite you on a journey. You don’t come home to a tollbooth waiting in your room. People don’t break down your door and tell you you’re a wizard.

I’ve come to realize, or maybe come to accept, you have to make your own adventures sometimes. And I feel like I haven’t done much about that. I’m sitting around, waiting for the wardrobe I’ve opened a thousand times before to suddenly lead somewhere new. And I’ve finally gotten tired of it. I am going to have adventures, and if I have to I’m going to make them myself. That’s what I want to do.

I’m halfway in. I’ve gotten comfortable. Now I want to get crazy. I want this half of the semester to look different.

I don’t really know how to go about creating adventures, so I’m just going to wing it.

Here’s hoping this blog will get a lot more interesting soon.

current song: Memories & Dust by Josh Pyke

my eyes are small, but they have seen

OUTBACK.

No seriously. Think about it. The Australian Outback.

I can’t even begin to comprehend that I went there last week. It’s like one of those places I never really believed existed. When you talk about it at home, or see it in movies, it’s in the same category as Narnia or Middle Earth or something. It’s a place you’ve heard so much about, but will never get to see.

We drove for about a day and a half, which sounds intense until you find out we stopped about every hour and a half for morning tea/lunch/afternoon tea/dinner. The bus rides were actually pretty great. We watched Australian classics like Strictly Ballroom, Bran Nue Dae, The Dish, and Australia, had good conversations and bounced along the red dirt roads until we reached our final destination of Trilby Station.

TRILBY STATION FACTS
1. Liz and Gary are the only 2 permanent residents
2. They’ve been on Trilby for about 30 years
3. They have around 20,000 sheep
4. They live on 500 sq mi of land. That’s the size of Rhode Island.
5. The closest town has a population of 36
6. If Liz wants to go into town, she has to plan it months in advance
7. 2,000 tourists visit Trilby Station every year

It was so crazy to hear about their life. They talk about flying the plane to round up sheep, being trapped on their property when the river floods, teaching their kids to drive at age 6 like it’s normal to them. And the crazy thing about it is that it IS normal to them. I can’t comprehend what it would be to live like that. Gary said that his job required working 8 days a week. But he and Liz love their life. We asked what the worst part of living in the definition of the middle of nowhere was, and he said, “There is no worst part.” And when we asked him how hard it would be for him to take a vacation he said, “Why would I ever want to do that?” It takes a certain kind of person to live like that, to say the least. But Gary and Liz were (surprisingly) totally normal. They were really down to earth and funny. If you ran into them on the sidewalk (not that you would, seeing how they rarely leave their own property) you’d never guess they live so incredibly different than you.

Our time at Trilby was so great; there really was a ton to do. In our free time we went canoeing, played in the mud, walked, climbed trees, threw boomerangs, and fished for yabbies, which are the Australian version of crawdads. But the best times were when we just sat around the campfire and talked.

As a group, we took a couple tours of the property. We drove where the iconic red dirt was and had a time of reflection where we were supposed to write letters to ourselves and I may or may not have drawn a picture instead. We walked around the buildings with Liz and she told us what it was like to shear 20,000 sheep. We drove out for photo ops, and abandoned cars, busses and houses.

One night we were there, we met a real live kangaroo hunter. Wayne. He was total Aussie, through and through. We pretty much bombarded him with questions, saw his ‘roo huntin’ truck and gun, and then talked him into going out and shooting a kangaroo and bringing it back to show us. And he did.

KANGAROO HUNTING FACTS
1. You have to be qualified/licensed/something to kill kangaroos.
2. You get so many tags, and that's how many you’re allowed.
3. You have to shoot them in the head, or you can’t sell them.
4. You can shoot for human consumption or pet food.
5. Once you shoot a kangaroo, you have to cut its head off, cut its feet off, take out some organs and then hang it up on your truck.
6. If you shoot a kangaroo with a Joey, you have to kill it, too.

The dead kangaroo was, not surprisingly, gross. It was kind of cool, and we got to see inside it and touch it and stuff. But in the end, it was just another dead rat in a dumpster behind a Chinese restaurant. Name that movie.

Probably my favorite part of the trip was every night, we all got around the campfire and took turns telling each other our life stories. It wasn’t like a long, detailed story. Mostly we mentioned defining moments, or turning points, or themes in our lives. I just loved hearing about everyone’s life. We have a lot of discussions in class, and you get to know people’s opinions, but this is all the stuff that really matters. Hearing about everyone’s joys and pains really made me look at everyone differently, like I never really knew them at all. One of my favorite things was when one girl looked around at all of us and said, “We’re all just a bunch of broken vessels.” I think that’s beautiful. And for one of the first times on this trip I thought, “It’s going to kill me to leave these people.”

I feel like this whole experience was about things too big for me to understand. I can’t imagine what 20,000 sheep look like or how big 500 square miles is. I can’t imagine what it would be like to walk for weeks and never see another human being. I can’t count how many stars I saw in the sky and I can’t describe the feeling of being swallowed up by empty space.

God is so big, you guys. I don’t even know. But when I was there, I could see for miles in every direction. And I could see the whole sky at once. And I was overwhelmed with the vastness. You can’t measure how deep or how high or how wide it is. You’re just totally swallowed up in space. And it’s so hard to articulate how it makes you feel or what you’re thinking then. So just go there and find out for yourself.




current song: Everything Glorious by David Crowder Band

look out the window, the birds are composing

Spring Break 2010! A couple of us Americans (me, Mariah, Hannah and Callie) went with Hannah and Callie's host-parents to some cabins in Jamberoo up in the mountains. It was so much great fun, and packed full of stuff. Here it is, Letterman style.

TOP TEN THINGS ABOUT SB2010

1. Seeing the amazing views. Australia is probably the most beautiful place I've ever been. Scratch that. No probably. It IS the most beautiful place. Jamberoo is in the mountains, which aren't really mountains. They aren't very big, but they feel really big when you walk up them. Regardless, it was incredible."I want to see mountains again, Gandalf!"



2. Milking a goat. The caretaker of Ben Rickets, the nature preserve our cabin was on, lived across the street from us, and when we went to greet her on arrival, we invited us back the next morning for the 8:00 am goat-milking. It was harder than expected, but I had success. While we were walking around her property, brushing goats, and milking cows, and looking around the mountain, I thought "I could totally live up her and milk goats for the rest of my life." And about ten minutes later I was like, "Nevermind." But still, a valuable experience. And I learned a life lesson. You never know when you'll need to milk a goat.

3. Being in Jurassic Park. We went to Minnamurra rain forest for the morning on Tuesday and took a little hike. I was expecting a velociraptor to cross my path at any moment. Definitely my best experience in a rain forest. It was incredibly beautiful, and totally worth the super steep and sometimes slippery hike.



4. Being able to breath without inhaling bus exhaust. Not hearing traffic, beeping pedestrian signs, cell phones, people. Being surrounded by trees instead of buildings. Seeing 342709382470123856987 stars at night. So I guess nature, in general.


5. Wombat hunting. Callie was obsessed with finding a wombat on our trip. There are a ton around, but they're pretty shy and nocturnal. But one morning, low and behold, a wombat had done some digging under our cabin. We saw plenty of more wombat holes and tracks, but they remained elusive.

6. Being in a cabin. I loved our cabin. It was super small, super cute, and super in general. We had a little wood stove to keep us warm, little bunks, and a little kitchen where we had amazing mountain food. Like bacon and eggs and Aussie hamburgers. And kangaroo spaghetti. It was great fun to look out the window and see trees everywhere, and get woken up by kookaburras instead of airplanes.

7. Kiama Blowhole. Kiama is a little town near Jamberoo that has great beaches for surfing, and also a blowhole. A blowhole, boys and girls, is a hole in the rock on the shore. And when the huge waves crash around, they hit the hole and BAM go straight up in the air. It was pretty cool. There were cliffs and rocks that we climbed all over, and the view was incredible. The ocean was such a beautiful blue.



8. Bushwalking. Our last morning in Jamberoo we went for a walk out in the bush. It was pretty great, and I'm not even going to try and pretend like I didn't imagine myself in Middle Earth. Australia's landscape is so bizarre, and so different than anywhere else that it's so hard to accept that it's normal, you know? The jungle, the mountains, the ocean, the fields, I could get used to any of that. But Australia is all sandy, but there are plants growing in it, and really tall grasses, and really tall twisty trees randomly sticking out. It's just crazy.

9. Glowworms. These are the coolest things ever. During a walk at around 8:30 at night, we took a little detour off the road about ten feet, shine our flashlights around and then turned them off. And then there were fifty jillion glowworms surrounding us. It was like the sky was full of stars, and it was right in front of our noses. I feel like every time I look at the sky now, I'm just going to think, "Yeah, but it's not as cool as those glowworms."

10. Not being at school. I know I've kind of said this before, but not living in a dorm or at school makes college feel so different. I don't get to spend a whole lot of time with my friends and classmates outside of class, or unless we're doing some activity that we planed. There isn't very much room for just hanging out. But I got to spend time with friends, and we just sat around and played cards, and it was great.

I tried to put pictures here, so if it doesn't work I'm sorry that I never paid attention to CSS or HTML or whatever in class.

current song: Your Love is Strong by Jon Foreman

hey- down along the road

Before I came to Australia, everybody asked me one of two questions:
1. Are you going to drink Foster's?
2. Are you going to go to Hillsong?

I have done one of them. And since we aren't allowed to drink alcohol and I haven't even seen Foster's here, take a wild guess which one. Yes. I went to Hillsong church. Sort of.

I went to their college group. Which is way bigger than the church I go to at school. It was pretty crazy. And we weren't even at the 'real' Hillsong, it was the "City" branch, because the real church is mega-huge and 'out west,' apparently. I'll get around to that one sometime, but the college group is good enough for me now.

The worship, as you probably can guess, was really cool. Super loud, laser lights, great musicians, all Hillsong originals. And most people down here would describe it as a charismatic church. I really don't know much about different denominations or anything, and I was kind of expecting it to be like my church at home. But it definitely was charismatic. Anytime people weren't singing the lyrics to a song, they were singing their own song, or praying out loud, or just singing praises. It totally caught me off guard at first, but it was a really cool feeling to be standing there and totally surrounded by people praying and praising.

I did get to meet some people too, which surprised me because it was such a big service. But everyone I saw was really into becoming friends and getting involved and giving free coffee and filling out the welcome card. It was kind of nice, not gonna lie.

Even though it was a good service, and I do plan on going back again, I don't really think Hillsong is the church for me. Two or three years ago, I think I would have been ecstatic to go somewhere like it. The music and 'rock show' qualities were all really new to me then, and it changed the way I saw worship. I was so excited to have fun and excitement in worship music, and I thought I would never be content with a church that didn't have that.

But after getting used to chapel at Taylor and my church there, Exit 59, I don't think it's my scene anymore. I like small settings and never feeling like just a face in a crowd. I like the humility and realness of it. I like that it feels unrehearsed.

I think that I used to think a great worship experience was fueled by loud music and fog machines, and I still like that sometimes. But I don't need it anymore. I found out that God is still God without a bass guitar acting as a defibrillator.

And I don't mean to sound snobby or like I think my way is the best way. And I still love the concert feeling and exciting worship churches like Hillsong offers. I just don't want it every week anymore.

Other than church, I've been to another art museum and the ZOO. Besides the norm (zebras, monkeys, giraffes) they had koalas, echidnas, a komodo dragon, and wombats. And tasmanian devils, which are not at all like the cartoon and are really mean, even though they look kind of cuddly. There were a bunch of kangaroos, but they're pretty much old news by now. NOT. I don't think I'll ever get tired of them. The zoo had a 'walkabout' part, and you went on this little path and bam, pack of kangaroos to your right. Like, two feet away. Not even a fence to stop you from snuggling with one. I was really tempted. But didn't want any Australians to think, 'Oh, there goes another crazy tourist, snuggling a kangaroo.' Also, kangaroos look pretty ferocious. I'm pretty sure they could kick me into a coma in nothing flat.

After a long and wearying battle with my camera battery and it's charger, it finally works again! That experience has given me a new lease on life. Not really. But it has given me a new lease on taking pictures, and I want to take a million of everything. So maybe that means maybe I might finally get around to putting some up? But for the time being, there are like a zillion on facebook.

current song: Johnny Appleseed by Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros

glad to be here

JIMINY CHRISTMAS.

I've been so busy lately. And putting off updating this because I was busy. And then putting it off because I've been putting it off. Geez Louise.

So last Friday our little band of Americans took to Canberra, the capital of Australia. Our schedules were packed to the max; the day we got there we visited the New Zealand, Indonesian and USA embassies and learned about foreign relations, got snacks, etc. It was actually pretty interesting, and definitely sparked great discussions later. We were asked a lot of questions like how we felt Americans were viewed here, and whether or not that stereotype was true. We also listened to the Green Day song 'American Idiot' and had a huge discussion on how we felt about the song. In short, we didn't like it.

The next day we went to the National Portrait Gallery, National Museum, National Art Museum and the Australian War Memorial. Little busy. The portrait gallery was cool, but I pretty much didn't know any of the people so it was not the easiest thing to be interested in many of them. The National Museum was pretty neat, and it looked like it was built with K'nex. Art museum was excellent, though. We only had about an hour to look around and it definitely was not enough. I recognized a lot of the paintings there, but I think my favorite was the one they had by Jackson Pollock. Especially because we discussed him in a class at Taylor last semester and it really made me like his artwork more (never EVER thought I'd have any speck of gladness that I took Com Sem 2, but there it was). The painting was pretty massive, and I just stared at it. Part of me was like, 'Yes, I appreciate this art,' and the other part was like, 'I feel so cool standing here appreciating this art.'(Hannah Beers: looking at paintings in an art museum by yourself needs to go on your Romantic Things list). I think the War Memorial was my favorite though. I love history, and there was so much stuff there. I really had no idea about Australia's involvement in any wars at all, but they've been in a lot. Pretty much alongside the US since they've been a country. It was a little depressing, especially since we had just watched the saddest Australian war movie ever, Gallipoli, but definitely interesting.

Canberra has a reputation for being really... boring. And I can see that. There wasn't too much of a social scene there, and it was kind of in the middle of nowhere despite it being a city. But I really enjoyed the time we spent there. We stayed at a hostel and it was great being able to hang out with everyone not at school. Living in separate homes we don't really get to all be together outside of class. Everyone was chilling, eating pizza, playing board games. It felt like being in college again.

Oh my gosh, this is like a novel. So long. So I'll just leave it at that and write more later. Just to keep you interested: I finally went to Hillsong! But do NOT have the energy/motivation to talk about it now. Also, I should upload some pictures to this I guess. I might get on that.

current song: 2080 by Yeasayer

all about where and when

AUSTRALIAN FOOD I LIKE
1. Fish and chips
2. Weetbix
3. Kangaroo pizza
4. Muesli Bars
5. Wedges with sour cream and sweet chili
6. Thai food
7. Peanut butter and nutella sandwiches


MY FAVORITE AUSTRALIAN PLACES TO GO (SO FAR)
1. Royal Botanical Gardens
-so huge and beautiful. and a great view of the Opera House and Harbour Bridge
2. Manly
-the beaches are awesome, and it has such a laid back feeling
3. George Street
-everything is on, off of, or close to George Street
4. Hyde Park
-every time I walk through here, I feel like it's the park from 101 Dalmatians
5. Glebe Markets
-so many cool things to buy. I could never get sick of them.
6. Macquarie Street
-a zillion historical buildings and museums and statues.

I WISH AUSTRALIA HAD...
1. Mexican food
2. Speedy internet
3. 110 voltage
4. Unhealthy cereal
5. Central heat

THINGS I DO IN AUSTRALIA INSTEAD OF HOMEWORK
1. Take a walk around the bay near home
2. Explore the city
3. Make playlists to listen to while exploring the city
4. Write blogs


PLACES IN AUSTRALIA WITH THE BEST NAMES
1. Wagga Wagga
2. Woollomooloo
3. Wollongong


THINGS I WANT TO BUY TO FIT IN IN AUSTRALIA
1. Leggings
-girls really wear leggings every day. everyone is so trendy, no sweatpants in sight.
2. Flowery dresses
-to wear with the leggings, of course

PEOPLE I WISH WERE HERE WITH ME
1. Everyone
-Really. Every time I go somewhere I want to show people. Australia is going so good, there are so many cool things to experience here. I feel like I can't keep it to myself. I wish all my family and friends could come visit and have a little taste of what life is like here.


current song: Great DJ by The Ting Tings

tell me where all the days have gone

I touched a sea urchin AND I ate kangaroo. So many events in my life.

Some of us Americans went to the Sydney Aquarium Wednesday afternoon, and it was all kinds of cool. I saw a PLATYPUS in real life for the first time. It’s probably one of the weirdest animals on the planet. There were dugongs, which I don’t know how they’re different than manatees. Except they’re like, 4 times bigger. There was this shallow pool full of stuff you could touch, and that's where I petted my first sea urchin. And there were a ton of sharks. I think that may have been my favorite. There were 2 huge tanks of fish/sting rays/sharks/dugongs with tunnels underneath so you could walk around and look up and see everything swimming over top of you. And then for the grand finale there was this gigantic tank where you walked through a TUNNEL and saw fish on all sides and above and below. It was definitely cool. It’s really hard to not go to a place like that and think about how creative God is.

After that, we met more people at a pub in The Rocks for some good old-fashioned kangaroo pizza. Seriously. It was so good. Definitely made the Top Three Best Pizzas Emily Luttrull Has Ever Eaten list. Everyone describes kangaroo meat as ‘gamey’ and ‘deer-like,’ but the only time I remember having deer was in spaghetti form, so I can’t really confirm that. It was kind of tough and kind of delicious. A lot delicious.

Thursday I went to camp! Wesley (which is the school I go to here. Have I said that? Wesley Institute is a really small arts school, and they teach dancing, drama, graphic design, or theology. It’s super small, like 400 students small, but a really great place) puts on a spiritual-renewal-retreat every year. All the Americans with a good number of Australian students went out to a camp to do sessions, worship and fellowship. It was a great time. To be honest, the sessions were a little… lacking. But the worship was phenomenal, some of the best I’ve experienced. And we broke into small groups and created skits to perform for everyone. Not to brag, but I probably should mention that my group won first place with our sequel producing movie company skit. It was so much fun putting it together with everyone.

About now is the time I should start working on papers and assignments and everything else. But it’s so hard to get motivated, because I’m totally still in summer mode. And I’m in Sydney, Australia and homework is the last thing I want to experience in my free time. But hey, if I get it all done now there’ll be time for the beaches when it’s warm, right?

current song: Mistress Mabel by The Fratellis

take the sun off the shelf

Aaaugh, I feel like there have been so many happenings, but actually not really.

I’m starting to get into the swing of things, I think. I’m still into a lot of the touristy things here, and I really want to buy a stuffed kangaroo. I’m glad one of our required classes does stuff like that and takes us on harbor cruises, because it gives me an excuse to do those things without being a total square.

Friday we did a ‘Tribal Warrior’ harbor cruise, where we sailed around Sydney Harbor with the tour guide pointing out historical Aboriginal places. Then we landed on a tiny island and learned some more about the indigenous cultures before having an Aboriginal dance party. Pretty good stuff.

On Saturday I experienced my first, live Australian Football League game. And it is now probably my favorite sport. It is SO crazy, and SO fast, and I had no idea what was happening most of the time. It was great. So many things going on all over the place. Like my cousin Andrew said, it looks like all the players on the field are following a bunch of complex rules. But they aren’t. They’re just running around. It’s kind of like a cross between NFL, Rugby, and Quidditch. But you can punch the ball like a volleyball. And it’s played in an oval. There seriously is no other sport like it.

Sunday was a great day full of family. Just a brief explanation to anyone reading this who isn’t related to me: my second-cousin Andrew lives in Sydney with his wife Kate. Kate has 2 brothers, Paul and Mark. Mark is married to Emily and they have baby Josiah. Emily has a brother Michael. Jeff also is in Sydney, but he’s Andrew’s friend from school. And Andrew’s parents are Jim and Debbie. So on Sunday, EVERYONE got together for a picnic by the wharf in Manly. It was such a beautiful day, and Manly has pretty much the best beaches I’ve ever seen. After lunch, some of us walked around Manly and the shops there before going to church that night.

I really love the church I’ve been going to. Andrew and Kate and Jeff have been going there, and I tagged along last week, but I think I’ll keep up my attendance. The service we go to is pretty small, so the community is really great. I’d love to get to know people there better, and maybe join a small group. Also, they usually have dinner every night after the service. So it’s like a bonus. And the pastor is an Australian version of my brother. For reals. I wish I could show a video comparison. Maybe I can sneak one next week.

Classes are finally all figured out and I think I am really happy with the ones I am officially in. There was a lot of adding and dropping and adding classes. But it’s good. I really like my Rise of Early Christianity class; the professor is pretty great. And I think I’m really going to like Faith and the Contemporary Artist. And since everyone wants to know how Hip Hop dancing is going, it’s going. Ha. We just learned the Roger Rabbit and the running man before going into stepping and locking. I pretty much am not good at them, but I think I’m getting better. I hope I’m getting better. So by the time I’ll come home you’ll probably see me on So You Think You Can Dance.

Also, I’ve just been so thankful for all my friends (and family) back home who are so encouraging and great. I seriously know the best people in the whole world, and am even related to some of them. So thanks so so soooo much everyone for being awesome.

current song: Gloomy by Matt Costa

i'm not really fussed

So you know how as soon as you complain about something it gets better? Yeah.

The past few days have been so busy and good. I don’t know where to begin.

Saturday I spent some time exploring Glebe, which is a suburb really close to the city. Every Saturday there’s a market with handmade purses and jewelry or clothes, and it’s a really trendy part of Sydney. Lots of sunglasses and skinny jeans.

That night I did my first time at my service placement. Every ASC student has to log 35 hours of service with a local mission we’re assigned to. I’m doing mine with Jesus Cares, a food van. We made about 12 million sandwiches before having a short worship/prayer service with the other 8 or so volunteers and then headed into the city. We stopped at 3 places, set up our tables of sandwiches, soup, cake, cookies, tea, coffee and meat pies, handed out food and fellowship, and then packed up and moved out. I haven’t had much experience at all with ministering to homeless. I did help at the Grant Co. Rescue Mission for a little bit, and went to Indianapolis for it once, but I ever really purposefully engaged with homeless before. And it was so much fun. Most of the guys we gave dinner to were regulars, and had become good friends with the Jesus Cares volunteers. And they were so funny, too. One guy, Colin, was all about telling and hearing jokes. And another man was singing and dancing and making everyone laugh. Except for at Woollomooloo, which is a part of Sydney that is apparently a little dodgy. When we stopped there, one of the regular volunteers told me ‘This is a different kind of homeless,’ and I believe her. There was no laughter or singing; people just got their food and left. Bill, the head of Jesus Cares, said that the people there were practically unemployable, and most of them don’t have a lot of hope. It is so strange to see what a huge difference that makes. I’m so glad I was put in this ministry, and I’m really looking forward to going back out and exchanging jokes with Colin.

Tuesday night some Australian friends invited us Americans to an ‘Australian Initiation’ which began with Thai food dinner and ended with licking peanut butter off someone’s foot. We had a night where we all tried classic Australian food like Vegemite, Musk candy/dryer sheets, and Milo among others. After all that, we had some extreme dares where people ate spoonfuls of Vegemite, sang patriotic songs to neighbors and yes, licked peanut butter off feet. Luckily, I didn’t have to do any of those things.

Sorry this is forever long, and I didn’t even get to talk about going around the city on Sunday, or the church I visited, or (most importantly) Dominion: the greatest board/card game invented by the Germans. When I get around to it, I’ll try to put some pictures up so you can all see the sights.

current song: Ruby by the Kaiser Chiefs

son of man, turn your ear

Please forgive. But I’m going to get a little nerdy right now. Really nerdy.
A lot of the time here I feel like Bilbo. Like, exactly like Bilbo in the very beginning of The Hobbit. Not the part where dwarves are invading his house and singing about buried treasure. But when Bilbo is pretty much pushed out the door and forced to join in an adventure. He’s riding along on his little pony in the sunshine and thinking ‘Hey, adventures are pretty fun. I kind of like them.’ But then it starts to rain, and they go into a dark forest, and their food gets all wet and no one is warm. Then Bilbo is like, ‘Okay, adventures maybe aren’t as excellent as I thought. This is pretty hard and not fun at all.’

This adventure that I’m on is hard. Harder than I expected. Maybe one of the hardest things I’ve done. It’s like, I knew what I was getting into, but I didn’t take it seriously. Phrases like “being challenged’ or ‘going out of your comfort zone’ or being ‘forced to rely on God’ all sound like good things you want to have until you actually have them. And then you realize that they are actually challenging, or really uncomfortable, or seriously only having God to rely on.

I know this is an experience that I am going to remember for the rest of my life, and I know that I’ll be so glad I got through this. But now I’m just in the getting-through-it part. I just want to be on the other side of this already.

current song: The Transfiguration by Sufjan Stevens

said the joker to the thief

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL TODAY! I'm in the library right now and in just a few minutes I'll be off to my first and only class today, Hip Hop dancing. Yeah, I know.

Saturday my host-dad Brian drove Kaylee (my roommate) and me all around Sydney. We got to see the famous Bondi Beach and Watson's Bay and La Perouse. Sydney is sooooo big. Sometime soon I hope to put some pictures up, I've only taken about 34822479234 of them already.

Saturday night I got to meet up with my cousins Andrew and Kate and it was so good! It was good to see familiar faces so far away from home. We hung at in Manly (a suburb with hilarious signs like 'Manly Souvenir Shop' and 'Manly Pharmacy') with Kate's brothers and friends. Some Thai food, some Rugby, good times.

current song: All Along the Watchtower by Bob Dylan, but the cover by Eddie Vedder & The Million Dollar Bashers is so good.

so what's the word

WRITTEN FRIDAY JULY 23:

Oh man. I don’t know where to begin.

Well, I’m in Sydney. It’s still hard to believe that I’m here. Even standing next to the Sydney Opera House it doesn’t feel real. I can even see the skyline from my bedroom window. But it’s still too crazy to believe.

We’ve been kept really busy since we’ve gotten here. Like, every minute of the day. We’ve done so much it feels like we’ve been here weeks instead of a few days. There’s a lot of orientation to get through, stuff on safety, classes, grades, money, everything you can think of. It’s exciting to hear about everything we’ll get to do but it’s starting to make me restless. Like, I want to stop hearing about the friends we’ll make and trip we’ll go on and just do it. At the same time, it’s been a little intimidating. There’s so much talk about being uncomfortable and being challenged. And I know that’s what I signed up for. And I appreciate that they aren’t trying to sugar coat the experience. But still. Also there’s so many things to worry about. Exchanging money, getting phones, keeping up with classes, spending enough time with our homestay, getting to know Australians, getting to know our group, doing service placements, trying to figure out the bus system. It’ll be hard getting used to all the differences and trying to keep up, but I’m really excited for like, a month from now when I’ll know what I’m doing and will be able to really enjoy the city.

Yesterday our group went into the city for a scavenger hunt and got to roam all over Sydney. Seeing the sights without really being tourists, although we did go on a sunset harbor cruise. It was really incredible. Everything I’m trying to describe sounds so boring when it’s written out. It’s like the word ‘incredible’ written down is just bland, and I can’t help but read it in a weird, monotone-Ben-Stein voice that makes anything sound boring. And maybe that’s because I’m still battling jet lag and can’t stay focused in orientation, let alone describe the crazy amazing experience walking around Circular Quay was. You’ll just have to take my word for it and see my pictures later.
current song: The East Coast by The Daredevil Christopher Wright

safe and sound

I MADE IT. I'M IN SYDNEY AUSTRALIA.

Pretty exciting stuff, really. And if I had time I would write all about it.
But I don't.
Just know that more is coming.
And for the time being rest assured that I am loving life down under.

day to day, where do you want to be

I was pressured into starting this.

Typico, I don't read blogs. I don't write blogs. I don't enjoy blogs. And I tend to be just a liiiiiittle bit judgy when I do read 'em. Starting this 'blog' makes me a bit of a hypocrite. Blogocrite. But also, I won't be able to be in touch with friends and family as often in a few days and this is just too convenient to pass up.

So here I am. Swallowing my pride, putting my foot in my mouth, biting the bullet, jumping the shark.

Anyway. The name of this thing is really from a book I like called A Million Miles in a Thousand Years. And it's basically about this guy who is writing a movie screenplay based on his own life, and he realizes he has to make some changes to make a good movie, because a lot of the time the life he is living isn't a good story. The whole point of the book is that our lives are just compilations of stories, and we should make them good ones. We should live stories worth hearing, you know? Like, no one wants to see the movie about a guy who desperately desires a new sedan and finally gets to drive off the lot, testing the windshield wipers as he goes. It's about creating inciting incidents that shape the character and writing passion and living life that is worth reading about.

So I guess that's why I'm going to Australia tomorrow.

current song: See the World by Gomez