Pictures from Don and Julie's Visit

Here are a couple highlight pictures from my parent's visit to Sydney.


Sydney Swans Game
Illawarra Tree Walk
Manly Beach
Ferry to Manly

There are many more pictures but I wanted to just give a quick sample. They have headed back to the states and I am back to trying to find a job and visa which will let me stay here. So keep your fingers crossed and hopefully I'll have more visitors and be able to have more posts like this!

The End of an Era

Things are changing for me. Two very special items which have served me well for 8 years are now being retired. They have been with me around the world. Through rain and shine, good times and bad. Now they have been replaced.

Yes my zebra print Reefs are being retired after 8 years of service. I bought those Reefs when I visited my friend Steph in San Diego back in 2001. It was only fitting that I bought their replacements when I was shopping with her here in Sydney. Over those 8 years those thongs have been through Europe, Asia and many areas of the states. Their tread was warn down so in rain I was more likely to fall on my face than run to the safety of shelter.

They have been replaced by the oh so popular Havainas. While the new thongs aren't as swish - which means stylish in Australian - they do serve the purpose of being the standard black thong. It will take me a bit of time to wear them in so that they have the same level of fit, however in time that should happen.

I've kept my Reefs just in case I need a black pair during this breaking in period - however will have to force myself to part with my trusty friends.

D&J Update

Mom and Dad have officially walked more than any other time in their lives... which is saying a lot since they used to walk for exercise. I'd say we've averaged around 5K of walking per day in addition to their workouts along the beach. However we have managed to do quite a few things. On our first day of walking we went down to the Opera House, the Rocks, and walked through the botanical gardens.

We've also done the bridge climb - which anyone who comes to Sydney should do, it was amazing! Mom saw the QVB and all it's shopping potential. Yesterday we went to a Swans game where they beat the Carlton Blues - this is Aussie Rules football which they thought was better than American. :) They've done both the walks from Coogee up to Bondi and down to Maroubra.

Today is a dreary rainy day so I'm trying to think of what we should do... I'll try to post some pictures, however the internet sucks here where they're staying and so I'll have to do it from school.

I hope everything is going well back stateside and will keep you posted on they adventures!

Don and Jules are safe in Sydney!

My parents landed yesterday at 6:15 AM and after a busy day have adjusted reasonably quickly to the time change. We started off by going to Bondi Iceburgs for a small breakfast while watching the surfers and swimmers. After a walk along Bondi's famous beach we attempted to get Dad a mobile phone and doing some shopping - both of them interpretted my saying "it's getting colder" as bring long sleeve shirts... They managed to stay awake till 8 PM so are well on their way to adjusting to the time.

Today we are going to venture down into the city and see more of the sites. I'll try to get some pictures off their camera to post them here so people can see and will keep you posted on their adventures.

History finds its way to the internet...

Every now and then I do a google search of myself, mainly to make sure things like my facebook or my space pages don't appear and ruin my chances of ever getting a job... But more and more I am finding weird things from my history that find their way to the internet. The first instance is the state track results which show my discus #11 place finish.

Today I found that someone had posted the results from my 8th grade AAU basketball season. Now at first I was a bit suprised but then once I read the file I was blissfully reminded how fun it was to smash other teams in basketball. This was only because they listed the scores for all the games. I think the closest game was 15 points or so with the other scores being something like 60-10 or 75-8. Oh the good old days. :)

For anyone who might be intersted in sharing my flashback I've put the link below... but for now I will hold this memory close.

http://www.ieaau.org/yakimaleague/1995/Fallleague8thGradegirls1995.pdf

One week and One Presentation to go!!

It seems like it's gone by too quickly but I now have one week left until I'm done studying. This past year has gone by so quickly it's scary, but fingers are crossed in this marking the start of a new phase in life. So far the job hunt has had significant ups and downs and I am following up on some 'warm leads.' Yes, I'm trying to stay here for a bit longer - my guess is that I'm more likely to find a job here than back home.

To make things even more exciting my parents come down in a bit over a week. So I'll get to play tour guide and hang out with them for the 3 weeks that they are here, which is exciting.

Ok I must stop procrastinating and go work on my presentation.