August 26

I took one last shower and then left my shampoo, etc with a note in the bathroom saying Free! I moved out at the same time as the new girl from London. I had to make a couple trips to the front desk to turn in all my sheets and stuff. Then I checked out, with the same guy who checked me in. Pretty silly.

Then I clicked my shoes together 3 times and repeated, "There's no place like home, there's no place like home!"

Kidding, I struggled with all of my bags to the train station and went off to the airport! Goodbye Brisbane... Don't know when we will ever meet again.... sigh.

August 25

Today is my last day in Brisbane! I had a doctor appointment so that she could put the implant in my arm. There was the doctor and a nurse who didn't seem to do anything but watch and hold my hand. It wasn't too bad at all. Just as the doctor warned, it was the local anesthesia that stung/hurt the most. The actual implant didn't hurt much at all. Before I knew it, they bandaged me up and I was ready to go! So, I went to get some chai before class and had my last class. The professor didn't get through all of the material so he said that he was going to make another class next week. GREAT. Oh well. I'm sure it won't matter too much.. After class, everyone said goodbye to me outside and we took some photos. Then we all went to the Red Room and ate some lunch together, I guess just prolonging the goodbye.. =( It didn't really feel like it was my last day. It just sort-of felt like all the other days, so it was very surreal. Then everyone went their separate ways and I reluctantly went back to my hostel. I got my suitcases out of storage and repacked them for the rest of the afternoon. I was supposed to meet up with Lina and Jillian for Salsa, but Lina was busy working on a paper, so only Jillian could come out. Neither of us really felt like going to bars, so we went to Max Brenner's and then took the train to the Barracks to watch a movie - Friends with Benefits. It was nice to have a quiet evening. Then home and bed! My last night in the hostel!!

Roommates: A German moved in to take Denmark's place, plus the girl from London and the German thong-wearer above me. I had to apologize to them all for taking up so much room with all of my suitcases.

August 24

Woke up kind of early because everyone else woke up a little early. But it’s just as well because I had to get up and go to campus. I headed there early, not really sure why, but carried another few books to the library. Then, I sat in the doctor’s office, waiting for my appointment. I was 30 minutes early and my appointment was 30 minutes late. But at least she gave me ample time when I met with her. She answered all my questions and seemed very positive about the implant contraceptive, so I decided to go with it, even though it was a bit more money than I thought it would be in Australia. She wrote me a prescription, then I took it straight to the Pharmacy and filled it. Then didn’t have much else to hang around for, so I came back to my hostel and made some breakfast. Someone’s syrup had dripped all over my bag and some of my food. How annoying. Came back to my room and read my last two books, which went super fast. I didn’t end up needing them! Whoo. I was so happy to be done earlier than expected, I would’ve hated feeling like I was rushing to try to get everything done. I went on the internet for an hour and then watched a movie – True Grit. Then I arranged with Manuel and Jane to meet for dinner. Manuel pushed Japanese/Korean. I suggested Chinese. Then Jane wanted me to try Thai. So I agreed to Japanese/Korean. I don’t want to offend Jane by not liking Thai! =( I would feel bad. I ate an apple just in case, because I was nervous about not liking it. Then I headed to the Valley to meet them. It was actually pretty good - BBQ, but it was expensive. Conversation was pretty dead, but oh well. At least I got to hang out with them outside of class to give them an extra goodbye. It feels so weird that I am leaving in two days. I still feel like a local here, so I can’t imagine that I’m not going to see this place again. Anyway, then I came back to the hostel and showered and went to bed early...

Roommates: The girl from London moved out, tonight is Denmark’s last night, so she’s getting drunk in the bar with all of her friends. The German girl who sleeps above me walks around in her thong, weird. And is very restless at night, shakes the whole bed. Kind of annoying.  

August 23

Woke up with a headache (I hate wine) and the Japanese and Canadian moving out. They both decided to move into a place together. How funny and random!! Today is laundry day, so I took a shower and as soon as I had chugged enough water, I gathered my clothes and put them in the wash. Then I went to the grocery store and got a bottle of Powerade, so that I could get cashback to pay the $2 I was short on for the dryer... Then I talked to my boyfriend and fought with him because my phone ran out of batteries last night and I didn’t say goodnight/let him know I made it safely home. Ugh. I fought with him for most of the day and didn’t get much studying done until he went to sleep. Then I studied for a while and got through quite a few books. Only 2 more to go!

Roommates: Denmark, Canada and Japan moved out so they could get an apartment together. A German girl from across the hall moved in above me and another chick from London, who was nice, but only here for 1 night. 

August 22

On Monday, I studied for most of the day, and then went to meet Clare on campus. I dropped off 8 library books and didn’t pick any up! I think I had some to pick up, but I can’t get any more new books, so they’ll just have to be forgotten. It felt good. Then I met Clare at the Red Room for a couple glasses of wine. Then her awesome soon-to-be hubby came and picked us up and drove us to their apartment. He made dinner while we chatted on the patio with some Champagne. The dinner he made was excellent. Just a simple chicken roast with an assortment of veggies and a delicious saffron, black truffle polenta. No big deal. WHAT. It was amazing. The chicken tasted like chicken, everything was just so flavourful and nothing overpowered the other. I don’t even like black truffles, but the polenta was incredible. He said it was because usually people make the truffle flavor the main flavor, when they shouldn’t. It should just compliment other flavors. So true! I hate it when it’s too much. But this was perfect. Anyway, then we had a glass of red wine and we decided to watch a movie while he put together a menu.. So, we watched a chick flick – The Holiday. Then I knew after the movie was my cue to go. I didn’t want to overstay my welcome like last time. So, I headed out and walked over to the train station and caught a train back into the city. Waiting for the train, I got a little sad about life and my sister. By the time I made it back to my hostel, I decided to seek out my roommate, who seems to be good at making sullen people happier. So, I went to the bar, looking for her. Ended up finding the guy that she usually hangs out with, so I walked up to him and he put a ball in my hand. I guess I was perfect timing for the next beer pong tourney and he needed a teammate. So, I played beer pong, but I’m terrible at it and ended up knocking over two of the cups, which pretty much lost the game for us. Great. Then he went to go smoke a cigarette and the other two guys who we were playing against started teasing me for losing. I found out one was Canadian (funny, because I hadn’t known before and I see him all the time), and so I tried to talk to him about that, but suddenly it turned into a making fun of America conversation and both of them were chiming in, not letting me say anything or defend my country. I felt like absolute shit and was getting furious. I didn’t know what else to do, so I just grabbed my coat and stormed out of the bar without looking back. Then I headed down the stairs and couldn’t find my room key between my purse, sweater, jacket, scarf, etc. And it was raining on me, with no cover as I struggled to find my key. So I kinda just lost it and started feeling really bad. Finally found my key in my jacket pocket and went to my room, where the Canadian girl was and I mumbled to her something about never feeling so ashamed to be an American. Then I got ready for bed and brushed my teeth. My Denmark roommate saw me in the bathroom, saw how upset I was and was telling me “Aww, they didn’t mean anything by it”, but I wouldn’t listen. I just wanted to get away and go to bed, so I went to the room and tried to go to sleep. The Canadian roommate chatted with me for a bit and I calmed down..

Roommates: Same, Same.

August 21

Today we got a notice on our door that they would be cleaning and spraying our rooms for pests, just part of a regular thing to make sure they don't get anything. So, we had to put everything on beds. What a hassle, especially because we did that only a few days ago for their standard cleaning. It was also cold and rainy, so I couldn't sunbathe. I made breakfast, went on internet for a while, then came back, showered, and they still hadn’t done our rooms. Ugh. Because it was rainy, everyone filled the lounge so I couldn’t study anywhere. I decided to walk downtown for a pedicure, then back, made some dinner and by then they had finally finished with our room. So, I moved all of my stuff back into place and studied for the rest of the night because I felt so unproductive earlier. 

Roommates: Same group - Denmark, Canada, Japan.

August 20

I studied during the day, then went out early to Limes Hotel for fireworks with Lina, Jillian, and Lina's friends, Travis and Mia. It was really busy and we only had a few drinks. I wanted to meet up with Christian who was supposed to be heading across the street, but Lina and Jillian were tired, so I went home with them. Back by midnight. Super Lame.

Roommates: Same group - Denmark, Canada and Japan

August 19

Tried to sunbathe, but it was too cold. Walked with my two new roommates (Canada and Germany) and went shopping downtown. I bought a skirt, 2 tank tops, a going out top, bandeaus, and gold shoes all for $140. Then I went home and went to go make lunch but saw that my plate got stolen! WTF Right out of my bag!! Like, Ok if you want to use it, but then put it back at least! And I wonder why they didn't take the rest of my dishes, too. Just the plate. Ugh. That means I won’t get $2 back at the end and now I have to use my bowl as my plate. Oh well. Then I studied for a bit, showered, talked to the Canadian about a bunch of things and then went out to Victory with Jillian. But I was supposed to meet all of my classmates. It was really hard trying to mix the friend groups because I didn't know what to talk about. Oh well. My classmates started dancing, so I ended up sneaking out early. 

Roommates: Denmark, Canada and new quiet girl from Japan that doesn't speak much English. 

August 18

Today was a busy day! I turned in a bunch of library books, checked out 4 more. Then I bought a plug, got chai, and went to class. We had a guest lecturer, Ian Patterson. During the break, I helped Antonella who has missed the first several weeks of class. Then, I headed to meet with Jan about the financial aid lady. Christian, Lina and Jillian all met me and we discussed all of the problems for over an hour. It felt really good to get EVERYTHING off our chests and the woman did not seem to have any idea that these things had happened. I really hope that things change for the better and other students don't have to go through what we went through. Then I walked with the girls to the health clinic because Lina needed to see someone and I had an appointment. The doctor I met with wasn't very helpful at all and didn't tell me much about this new birth control I was looking into. Instead she just told me that if I was interested in it, I needed to schedule an appointment with another doctor. So, I did, but I'm really running out of time to get this done if I want to do it in Australia, before I go back. Then, I dropped off the books I borrowed from Roy Ballantyne in his office and he was meeting with someone so I didn't get a chance to talk to him, which is OK because I didn't really need to. Then went home and studied for a bit. Later, I went out to Salsa with girls and Christian and Gerardo and Umberto from Peru.

Roommates: Denmark, Canadian moved in, whoo! And a tall, blonde girl from Germany

August 17

Today was the Ekka holiday. I tried to sunbathe, but it was cold so I went back inside and talked to my boyfriend for a while. Then I studied and was very productive and got quite a bit done.

Roommates: Denmark stayed, English Girls moved out. No one took their place. So, we had the place to ourselves! Whee.

August 16

Today is the day before Ekka, one of Brisbane's biggest holidays. A year ago today is one that I would love to block out in my memory. Haha Oh well. I didn’t go to the TSA meeting since the last one I went to was worthless. I studied for most of the day. Then convinced Lina and Jillian to go to Mexican food!  We went to Guzman y Gomez, then tried Agave for some drinks, across the street. It had some really disgusting Sangria that tasted like watered down cranapple juice. Horrible. Then I went home and met up with Jillian to go out to the bars. Even though it's a Tuesday, everyone goes out because tomorrow is a holiday, so it's really like a Friday! We went to the Victory downtown and then got some pizza and that was about it. Kinda boring. 

Roommates: Denmark and Two English girls

August 15

Sunbathed, studied for most of the day. As usual. 

Roommates: Denmark, plus two English girls moved in. They were nice. One was very organized the other was a little slow. But insisted she wasn’t slow/stupid, just got easily distracted. She seemed a little bit of a space case to me. 

August 14

I studied all day, then went out with Jillian in the evening. We went to get burgers in the South Bank and catch up on life, then got Max Brenner's chocolate chai and walked around the city until late. 

Roommates: Denmark stayed, Taiwainese girl said it was her last night and asked if I could take a photo with her. So I did my standard wannabe Asian Peace Sign. I looked half-asleep in it because I was already in bed when she asked. Oh well. She seemed to be satisfied.  

August 13

Sunbathed for a couple hours, then talked to my mom, then studied a really crappy, slow book all afternoon and evening. Ugh. Boring day.

Roommates: English girl moved out in the morning. Denmark goes out and gets drunk every night. Taiwainese is always asleep from 11pm-10am. I guess she's jetlagged.

August 12

Too cold to sunbathe. I guess I can't complain since it is Winter here in Brisbane! I ended up sitting on internet for most of the day, emailing to schedule a meeting with Jan (the financial aid lady's boss) and lecture Jillian about boys. Then I studied for a while. Friends cancelled on going out again, so I studied in the evening. 

Roommates: Denmark, English Katy and Taiwanese

August 11

Woke up early for class, then bought a chai while I waited.. As I was sitting outside the room, reviewing my presentation notes, I felt something on the back of my neck, so I rubbed it away and when I looked down at my hands, I saw a dead, crumpled spider!!! OMG, It definitely felt like it pricked me, so I felt around on my neck a little. I panicked a bit and when Jane came to class, I asked her to look at my neck. She said it was red, but just looked like I had rubbed it, not like a big spider bite. I watched myself for the rest of class, thinking Ok, just don't pass out before my presentation!! Ack. Anyway, I felt ok. The place of the bite felt a little numb, but it didn't feel like it was affecting my whole body, so I guess it was OK, not one of the deadly spiders... My presentation went well and then I went by the clinic to schedule a doctor's appointment. Not for the bite, but to ask about a new form of birth control that I heard about from the English girl - an implant in your arm that lasts 3 years! After, I went back to the hostel, skyped with my parents and boyfriend, then studied for the rest of the day. I watched a couple movies in the evening and was supposed to go out, but my friends cancelled on me. Oh well. 

Roommates: German moved out. Taiwanese girl moved in. English girl was supposed to move out a couple days ago, but didn’t. So who knows when she’s leaving. I guess Denmark and I are the semi-permanent residents. After 3 days in a row of working at the bar, Denmark quit. She hated it and the booty shorts they made her wear! haha

August 10

I wished my mom a happy birthday because it's the 9th back in the states. Then I laid out in the sun for a bit. I had library books due today, but I decided not to turn them in because it would cost the exact same in bus fare as the late fee would be. I decided my time was more valuable. I studied all day and worked on my presentation for my thesis that is coming up! 

Roommates: All the same. English girl talks to me while I’m trying to study which is a nice break, but also distracting. 

August 9

Money got deposited, Finally!! But I don't care, I'm still going to demand a meeting to get our main contact fired or something. She's totally inept and has screwed up everyone's money from the US... This is war!! Then I had a TSA meeting, which was totally worthless. I have officially transitioned out. I didn't do anything but sit on my phone and send emails during the meeting. I had nothing to contribute. I don't think I'll go again. I studied in library until class, then went for a second, but when the class moved to the computer lab to do something I had already done, I walked the other direction and just went home early to study.

Roommates: All the same. English girl and German are very nice. 

August 8

I woke up at 6am on Clare’s couch with the worst headache of my life and stumbled back to the hostel on the bus. Thought I was going to have to tell the driver to pull over so I could puke outside the bus, but I made it to my stop and then stumbled to bed. After a long shower, I made myself some food and then watched a couple of movies. With no food left and still no Financial Aid money, I went to the store and used my credit card again. I got an email from the financial aid people saying it should be deposited, but no money. Very frustrating. Then, I studied for a bit and got a good night’s rest.

Roommates: Both Germans moved out, Denmark stayed and 1 English girl, Katy moved in, as well as 1 other nice German. Denmark got a job working in the bar of the hostel. She has to work long hours and wear booty shorts. 

August 7

In the morning, I sunbathed for a bit, then studied in the afternoon for a while. The usual routine. Then, I got ready and bussed over to Toowong to meet Clare for dinner. I bought wine at the bottle shop and then walked with Clare to her apartment. We drank the first bottle and then ate dinner that she made. It was Chicken with honey, sesame and mustard, super delicious.. We just talked and talked and talked for hours about everything, mostly serious stuff like my sister and her friend and working hard and getting through hard times. It was refreshing to be able to talk to her about things so candidly. Before I knew it, it was already midnight and so I watched a movie and passed out at her house (no more busses on a Sunday night). Whoops

Roommates: New German moved out, Denmark stayed and other German who lives above me stayed. 

August 6

Today was sunny, so I sunbathed for a while, then studied for the rest of the afternoon. I also wrote a complaint letter to UQ financial department because I still have yet to receive any moneys from them and every semester seems to be a hassle. I'm sick of it. I'm not going to just sit idle until I get my money anymore and then forget about it. I want changes!! In the evening, when I went to make dinner, I discovered that my ravioli had been stolen! WTF. I can't believe someone would steal my whole package of ravioli! So, I ate ramen for dinner because I'm avoiding going to the store until I get money from financial aid. I talked to my boyfriend for a while because he was mad at me for something I did before I knew him and then studied a bit more before bed.

Roommates: Denmark, German and another German. The one with the boyfriend moved out, but another one took her place.

August 5

The girls who went to sleep at 8pm decided to wake up super early and instead of being quiet like most people, they both rifled through a bunch plastic bags with their stuff for a while. WHAT THE HELL... Take it outside, get ready quickly and quietly! Jesus... So, because I was awake, I decided to go catch a few rays of sun on the sun deck. I put on my bikini, took my towel and staked out a prime spot near the pool... Then I made some breakfast and went out to enjoy the sun... Except it was very overcast and gray! UGH. I stayed out there for an hour and this nice Canadian guy who’s been at the hostel for a while sat with me. Then I gave up when it started drizzling and went downstairs to study for the rest of the day.

Ate an early dinner and then went on the internet for a while. Now, I’m back in my room to study a bit more before bed time.

Roommates: Same foursome. Denmark and two loud Germans... I think the German girls are staying for a few days. One is staying for 4 at least until her boyfriend meets her, then they are moving into a private room... They’re OK, as long as they don’t make a lot of noise tomorrow. I just don’t like how messy the room feels. I miss the days when it was just Denmark and me. 

August 4

I tried to sleep in as late as possible, but it just wasn’t working. I had to get up for class. Ugh. So, I dragged myself out of bed and got dressed, not happy about my long day... I turned in a bunch of linbrary books went to class and the professor basically talked the whole time about my meeting with him and MY topic – Dark Tourism, to give examples for the class. Embarrassing. Everyone seems to have some pretty good topics, I’m impressed. Especially ‘cuz mine took a lot of research to develop, but they just came up with awesome topics on their own.

After class was the TSA Welcome Lunch, so I walked down there with my classmates and joined TSA... I ate some cookies right away and mingled with friends. Haha Didn’t really do anything important. Then I ate some free pizza and Christian tried to get a volleyball game started, so I went with him to try to recruit more people. Pretty soon we had about 6 people on either side, so I went back to sit down and text my boyfriend. We packed up a little early and I quickly volunteered to take the volleyballs back to the gym, which meant I didn’t have to do much else! Haha. While I was at the gym, I saw that the entire pool was being dug up so I decided to try and get a refund for my pool credits! They submitted the request – yes! I’ll get that money back.

Then I took the bus down to the South Bank and waited 30 minutes for Jillian and Lina to meet me at the Gallery of Modern Art because Jillian really wanted to see the Surrealism exhibit. I wasn’t in a very good mood because I had sand in my pants from volleyball, the exhibit was $16 and I still don’t have any student loan money from the school.. UGH. Plus it’s Lina’s birthday which means that I would have to shell out money for drinks and dinner, etc. for her. Jillian bought her museum ticket, which left me hanging a little bit... But after the exhibit we decided to go to Max Brenner’s Chocolate Bar for a sweet snack... So, I paid for Lina’s food there. I decided that we were adults and could eat dessert before dinner, but that turned out not to be such a good idea because then we all ended up feeling sick and didn’t want to go out salsa dancing (which is just as well because I was tired anyway). Plus, my boyfriend was already making a big stink about it and my increased involvement in TSA. Ugh.

Roommates: Denmark and I are holding down the fort, but then two separate German girls came in and one was jetlagged, so she decided to go to sleep at 8pm! UGH. So I went to go watch a dumb movie in the hostel’s theatre and then went to bed early. They both have a lot of stuff, so our room feels REALLY full and messy! =(

August 3

I slept in and then went to campus because I had a meeting with my professor about my topic for my thesis. He was able to do what I wanted, which was narrow it down to one topic and work with me on what I need to do in order to find some theoretical underpinnings. We met for an hour and it was good, some confusing, but I really appreciate him and the time he took to discuss with me. Although, he said he was going to call me out and make me say what I learned in class tomorrow. UGH. Then I tried to meet with my old Professor, who I thought had experience in researching this topic, but she wasn’t around, so I emailed her instead. I went home and talked to my boyfriend for a while, made dinner and then researched and read an entire book for my thesis. I gotta get through a bunch of books in not very many days! Ack

Roommates: Denmark girl. 

August 2

Of course the one day I have to wake up semi-early, I don’t get a good night’s sleep. At 1:30am, the one crawled into bed with the one above me and they started talking. And the one (the annoying one) can’t whisper! The other was trying to tell her to whisper, but she wasn’t doing a very good job at it. A couple times, I shushed them, but it was no use, I woke up frequently throughout the night and then again at 5am, when they had to pack up at leave for the train. Hopefully they won’t be coming back...

I went to a TSA meeting in the morning and then was going to stay on campus and study for a few hours until my class at 4pm, but I was just too tired. So I checked out a few books from the library and came back to the hostel to nap. My 4pm class is the online class anyway, so I technically don’t have to go to lectures. Plus it was a guest lecturer anyway. I woke up and it was 2:30pm, right when the kitchen is closed for cleaning, so I watched the last 10 minutes of a movie and the very beginning of Lord of the Rings, then made some food and read a few articles for my Education class. Then I watched the end of Lord of the Rings and made dinner, then read a bit for my thesis and bed!

Roommates: Lesbos moved out, Denmark stayed. 

August 1

Had breakfast and then studied all day for my thesis... Then I watched a couple movies in the evening because I didn’t want to be in my room.

Roommates: The Lesbians came back! WHAT! Of all the rooms they have to come back to mine?! UGH. I thought I was done with them. Denmark girl stayed, so the Lesbos were restricted to the top bunks and one of them (The annoying Chip-eater) is now sick, and chose the bunk above me, of course! They napped ALL day, cuddling with each other, so I avoided my room at all costs. 

July 31

Boring day, just researched for my thesis and then watched movies in the evening. Apparently Jillian told me that she had my GoCard. I have no idea when we exchanged goCards, but apparently we’ve been using each others on the bus system for a while, because I had hers and was using it after she left for California, in June. Ugh. But then apparently I lost hers and she has mine, but somehow doesn’t have my ID and health card, etc. It’s a big mystery which I don’t think we will ever figure out. Haha Anyway, after the movie, I ate a late dinner and then went to bed. Not very exciting.

Roommates: Denmark girl stayed and a British girl moved in for one night. Even though we aren’t supposed to have alcohol in the room, she had two beers, so she offered me the 2^nd and we sat and talked, drinking warm beer on the floor for a bit. 

July 30

Not sore today, so thank goodness, but I slept like crap. Kept waking up every few hours.. Got to talk to my boyfriend a bit about his birthday festivities, then showered and ate breakfast. I renewed my stay at the hostel for another 2 weeks because I had only paid until the end of July. I guess it’s OK living here. I’m getting used to it. Don’t really have any other options and haven’t felt the desire to look for other options. If I can stand 2 weeks, I can stand another few. I spent some time on the computer, skyping my mom and helping Jillian with some research.. It was a pretty boring day. Then I went to the grocery store and took a nap. Cooked dinner and came back downstairs to research a bit for my thesis and then relaxed by trying to play chess. I haven’t really tried to play since I learned as a kid (and only played one or two games then). So, I put the computer on beginner and tried to practice a bit. Lost one game, won the 2^nd. I think I’m just too impulsive for Chess. I am so reactive and only think of one or two moves ahead, if that! I’m sure it just takes practice, but man, it is tedious! I’m not sure I enjoy it. Anyway, then it was bedtime, so went to sleep. Boring day.

Roommates: The Aussie girls moved out, but the girl from Denmark stayed. I thought she was only staying one or two nights, but she has more stuff than I do, so maybe she’ll be my roommate for longer than I thought! Oh well. She’s nice enough. 

July 29

Tried to sleep in, while everyone moved out. Then called my boyfriend to wish him a happy birthday and tell him about my night. Then I called the taxi company to report the accident. The guy was pretty rude and basically said that the drivers are not employed by him, they are independent and just affiliated with the brand. He recommended I fill out a police report because it’s between me and the driver, not me and the taxi company. Fine, whatever. So, I got ready to go to campus and stopped by the Police station on the way. I asked to fill out a police report and he asked me to explain what happened. Then he told me that if I want to file a report, I’m making an accusation and the driver has the right to contest it, so basically it has to be proven that he was at fault, get witness testimonies, and a judge will decide, in court. 3-6 months. Kind of ridiculous. I said I didn’t want to go through all that trouble, I have no bodily injuries, just wanted to document it. He said that was the only way, so I guess I will just drop it because obviously it’s not worth it and say no harm, no foul and mistakes happen. Oh well.

Went to campus and got the rest of my prescription at the pharmacy. The pharmacist seemed really sad to see me go and asked me all kinds of questions. It was really nice, but I had no clue she even knew who I was before then! Weird. Anyway, then I went to the library and turned in my photo essay for the Italy class, which I feel OK about. It’s not due until Monday, but I’m not going to make any more changes, so I’d rather just get it over with and not have to worry about it anymore. Then I sent Clare some of the photos I didn’t use because she lost her camera. Seems like a lot of shit happens to her that prevents her from doing assignments. Whatever, I’ll bail her out this time, because losing a camera is pretty shitty and could happen to me. Then, I researched a bunch for my independent tourism report topics and tried to narrow them down, but got stuck... Ugh. I really can’t decide! Oh well. Then I headed home and made some dinner and read some more about the topics.

I’m a little sore today, not sure if it’s whiplash or just being out late and sleeping in a crappy bed... Whatever, I’m sure it’ll go away tomorrow.

New Roommates: One girl from Denmark who just took her ex-boyfriend of 5 years to the airport. She says she misses him. And two Aussies in town to visit friends. They “dolled” themselves up, which means they ended up looking like trash and went out. I don’t understand girl’s style these days. It just looks really cheap and trashy to me. Every day, new people make the following observations about the room: 1. They make fun of the plastic pillows and 2. They are baffled about how to get up to the top bunk (there are no ladders, basically, they are just two beds stacked on top of each other). They debate about the best tactic and sometimes I offer advice. Sometimes they climb up the foot of the bed and OVER the high footboard, sometimes they stand on my bed or the edge of my bed, sometimes they do a combination... This time I didn’t and the Aussie girl tried to literally hurdle herself up by jumping. She failed and hit her foot against the side pretty hard and then TRIED AGAIN! What!? I told her to just stand on my bed next time so she doesn’t hurt herself. Very weird.  

July 28

I thought the Lesbian couple was going to stay because I heard them mention something about being here Friday, but they moved out. I quickly got up and left for school, and ended up being 30 minutes early. So I withdrew the very last of my money and bought a chai latte and waffle for breakfast. Then walked to class with Manuel. After about 15 minutes into our class, our professor still hadn’t showed up. Weird. Everyone else seemed content to wait for him, chatting, but I figured out that he must be in the wrong room.. So, I used the room phone to call for help. They confirmed that we were in the right room, then transferred me to the BEL faculty, where the Advisor said she had seen him leave 30 minutes ago! I told her to call him, so she called me back and told me he was on his way. Weird. Anyway, class started and I forgot how much I like this professor. He’s kind of no-bullshit, but also laid back and talks to us like real people, and explains things fairly well. He just talked to us about what we were scared about, regarding the upcoming report and then through that gave us some structure and beginning points. He also treats us like masters students. He doesn’t baby us and he skips over major parts and says  “I expect you to figure this out because you’re in a masters program.” Anyway, it was good, but I need to have my topic by next week, so I’m a little scared. It’s moving fast. Good thing I can concentrate on this class!!

After class, I went to the library for a bit and got a few books on the topics I am interested in, then I headed home and read for an hour or so about each of the topics. Showered, tried to skype with both my mom and Steven, but that failed because the internet was too slow or something. Then made some dinner and took a 20 minute nap. Then I got ready to meet Lina for Salsa dancing at Cloudland. I headed out around 7:30 and as I was crossing the street to meet her at the barracks, I got hit by a car!!! I waited for the green walk sign, was halfway across the intersection and then I heard people on the sidewalk say “LOOK OUT!” I turned and saw a taxi cab coming straight for me. He was breaking, I screamed, and took a couple steps away, but I knew it wasn’t enough and I thought, Oh shit. This is going to be really bad. Hospital, death, paralysed?! I put my hand out and braced myself because I knew he was going to hit me. I’m not quite sure what happened when he did hit me, I think maybe I put my hand out and bounced off with my hand, because I don’t feel the impact of it anywhere on my body. He did hit me though, because I went flying, half way out of my shoes and for a second I thought I could land it. I thought I could just stumble forward and not fall, but I stepped on the heel of my shoe wrong and suddenly I was falling. I got up pretty quickly because I didn’t want to be in the middle of the street and because I was flashing onlookers with my short dress. They all asked if I was OK and I screamed at the taxi driver to pull over. He pulled over immediately and then a bus behind him pulled up and blocked the intersection, honking. But I wasn’t going to let the taxi go any further and I demanded his information. He pulled it out quickly and I started to copy down the information into my phone. Other people got the cab number and license plate. By this time the other side of traffic had a green light and were honking. The taxi driver asked for my information, but I told him I was going to the Barracks and he could go around the block and get it from me there. Then a man gave me his name and number (a witness) and so did one of the other young people. The young people walked me to the barracks and waited a bit with me... I was still shaking and the adrenaline was rushing. I let them go to where they needed to get to and Lina came a few minutes later. No taxi, so I left with Lina and told her what happened. I can’t believe it, but I have no scratches, no bruises, nothing! I feel pretty lucky to have escaped this experience with ZERO injuries.

Anyway, then off to the Valley, where we met up with some of her friends (who are from Phoenix) and Christian came. Dancing, drinking (me mostly watching the dancing) and catching up with Lina and Christian. At one point this guy came and sat down, but when I came back from the bathroom, he got up. Then when I was sitting alone and everyone else was dancing he came and sat down again. Most people ask “hey, can I sit here, or can I sit here until your friends get back”, but he didn’t. Then when everyone came back, he still didn’t move. I went to go to the bathroom, when I came back, I said, excuse me, that’s my seat. He ignored me and pretended not to hear me. Then Christian was trying to level with him and I was still talking to him and he said to me basically, something like fuck off, I’m talking to him. Lina shouted “Don’t talk to my friend like that!” And then I let him have it. I yelled at him some more and he continued to ignore and say that he didn’t have to move. I went outside and got security, who at first made fun of me for my Californian accent and then helped. He ignored them at first and then finally they were able to kick him out. Pretty funny. But I think Lina and I scared the others with our sudden bitchiness. Oh well. Don’t mess with us!! The rest of the night was good, then Lina drove me home and I stumbled into a full room of sleeping people...

Roommates: Lesbian couple out, 2 German girls and 1 Aussie in for one night. 

July 27

The Irish girls moved out and left their straightener! SCORE. I ended up sleeping until about 12:30! Ugh. Then I woke up and thought – shit! I am supposed to help out TSA with their booth! So, I got up, got dressed and headed over there, making apologies on the way for only coming for the last couple hours. But, it was OK. At least I showed up (I thought about flaking since an hour and a half isn’t really worth it). Some of the others totally flaked – bad! Ugh. Anyway, I didn’t have to do much, just stand around. And then walk with them to put away stuff. At the end of the day, I took the new member sheets and said I would input them into the computer. I didn’t attend last year, so Katya did this (and did a crappy job, I might add), so I figured what goes around comes around, and it was my turn. I picked up a couple assignments from last semester. Then went to the Pharmacy to get a sleep aid. I can’t keep doing this and tomorrow I have class in the morning, so I need a good night’s sleep. Surprisingly, they asked me a bunch of questions, I guess they didn’t want me lying or something.

Got back to the hostel, made a quick lunch/dinner and entered all of the new members into a database. Then I watched a movie – Nanny McPhee. I’m surprised how many guys watch these really dumb movies. They must be as bored as I am! Haha Got a snack and then headed downstairs to write for a while before bed.

New Roommates: They moved in after I was asleep, a lesbian couple. They were pretty loud and woke me up. There was also a bunch of noise in the hallway until late that kept me up. But one of the new girls started eating chips and it was probably the most annoying thing ever, jamming her hand into the crinkly bag, pulling out one chip and then chomping on it loudly with her mouth open. Chew with your mouth closed, woman. And put a bunch of chips into your hand, don't go reaching into the noisy bag EVERYTIME. Have a LITTLE respect!!! Then, pretty awake and annoyed, they had the nerve to start fooling around. That's the last thing I want to hear - kissy noises and girly giggles! UGH. But luckily, after a while, they stopped and I finally fell back asleep. 

July 26

Got up, ate some breakfast and then decided to head to school a few hours early and do a couple things before my class. As I was walking there, Jillian texts me and invites me to Guzman y Gomez with Lina. Too bad I just ate. But I went anyway, because I wanted to catch up with them and wasn’t doing anything better. So, I met them at the McDonalds in Milton and Lina picked me up and we went over to eat. I didn’t order anything but it was nice to talk to them and hear about their lives. It seems so weird that we were once super close and knew everything there was to know. Now, it feels so distant. Very sad. Anyway, then Lina was nice enough to drop me off at campus, and I still had a couple hours to kill before class, so I downloaded some articles.. My class started at 4pm, and it was weird being in a different major. Many people knew each other, I had to explain to every new person I met that I was just taking the class as an elective. I sat between a girl from Iran and a girl from Pakistan. Pretty crazy. The class seems good and I like the teacher. I asked a few questions. I will definitely attend the lectures in addition to reading the material because it is a good review of what is important. The Education classes seem easy, but I shouldn’t judge, I’m not exactly taking the most difficult curriculum either. On the way home, I met a guy from Afghanistan. He has a background in Public Health and is studying Public Policy here at UQ. He hopes to take the information back to his country and make it a better place. Sounds really inspirational! I felt a little guilty saying, hi, I’m from the US. My people bombed your people. Sorry about that! =( Oh well, then I made some dinner and watched the 9 o’clock movie – Prince of Persia. Then, bed. Or at least I tried. But I couldn’t go to sleep until around 5:30am! Ugh. This is really bad.

Same roommates – the Irish Trio. But it felt like I had the room to myself because they didn’t stumble in until 5am! 

July 25

Sleeping schedule is still off. Check out is at 10am, so I got woken up by roommates moving out from 9am-10am. Then everyday at 11am, this girl comes down the hall: Knock, Knock “Room Check” Knock, Knock “Room Check”.... etc. I think I get about 4 of those before she comes to my door. It’s one of the most annoying things ever, but it’s a good wake-up call. I think I’ve been asleep almost every time she’s done it. Then, around noon or a little after, the cleaning lady begins to clean the bathroom and goes room by room “House Keeping” in the same fashion as Room Check girl, emptying trash and vacuuming. I usually get out of bed by the time this happens and try to exit my room so she can do this without me watching.

Today’s goal was to send a card and possibly gift for Steven’s birthday. So, I took his present down to the post office. Bought a card and some wrapping. Wrote a letter and the card, waited in line at the post office, and got to the front of the line. She asked me what I was shipping. I told her what the present was and she said “Oh we can’t ship that. It’s considered Dangerous Goods.” I was flabbergast. Uhh what?! Well, what am I supposed to do, I asked? It’s a gift! She said she didn’t know, but they definitely couldn’t send it. She suggested I try an outside courier service (like DHL or FedEx). I’ve seen both trucks around Brisbane, but there are NO offices except for at the airport. UGH. I was almost in tears, but she said there was nothing she could do. Then, to make matters worse, I was about 40 cents short on the cost of the stamp for the card and the stupid box that I now didn’t even need! She let it slide, but clearly I was her problem-customer at the end of her shift. I felt bad. I called FedEx and made sure they would ship my item. They said yes, because it was only one of these “dangerous goods”. Stupid Australia. But, there were no offices, I would have to call to schedule a pick up. He gave me the location of a mail boxes etc, but after a wild goose chase, it wasn’t there. I think it’s just a pick-up location, not an actual shop. Ugh! Hungry and irritable, I went back to my hostel and searched online for the cost to ship it with FedEx. Their quote: $100. WHAT?! The thing is small, how can this be!? I’m now kicking myself because what I should’ve done is just bought it online and had it shipped from the US to Steven in time for his birthday, but I got anxious and wanted to buy it in Dubai when I got the idea (plus, it was a little cheaper in Dubai). But now all of this is making me regret it, because he won’t have anything to open on his birthday. He says he doesn’t care, but I do and I’m a tiny bit worried he will buy this for himself in the meantime. Anyway, Now, I’ll have to hand-carry it back to the states, what a pain in the butt.

Then, I went to the grocery store and bought a couple items I was missing, showered and made myself an early dinner. I edited my photo essay (I think it’s nearly complete?). And, I read for my online class, which starts tomorrow. I initially thought the work-load was daunting and that it would take much longer than anticipated to do, but it only took a few hours to read through most of the material.

New Roommates: 3 Irish girls with names I can’t pronounce, staying 2 nights on their way down to Sydney.

July 24

Slept in for a while, then made some lunch and found that something had leaked in my bag, I guess someone moved it and the pesto sauce tipped over making everything oily. Cleaned that up, then made some lunch. Then I worked on my photo essay for a while and cleaned the room and stored my two big bags to make room for new roommates. Then watched the end of Gabriel (really bad) and the evening feature: Love Actually. I remember not being as impressed as everyone else and still kind of wasn’t, I think because there were some really downer love stories, but I guess it was OK. Anyway, slow day, slow night. My hostel life pretty much consists of trying to achieve one or two things per day. Today was to crank out my photo essay before school starts and get those bags out of my room.

Full house of Roommates: Girl I went to Colombian Party with, plus two girls from London.

July 23

My current sleep pattern due to jetlag is quite annoying. I go to sleep anywhere from 10-midnight, then wake up at 3am, can’t sleep until about 6am, then sleep until around noon. Ugh. Anyway, I worked on my photo essay during the day, then went to Rosalie for a late lunch at the Burrito Bar, a new place I was excited had opened up while I was gone. It wasn’t good, which I was relieved at because it means I won’t want to go out of my way to Rosalie for it very often.

I got a new roommate who mentioned she was going to a Colombian Independence Day Party! I don’t know how I always end up doing Colombian stuff, but I texted Christian and asked if he wanted to go with me. It sounded fun – DJ, Dancing, Colombian Food, bar, etc. So, I got ready and went with her to that! It was in the West End and we walked there, which was actually a lot closer than I thought it was going to be (but still pretty far).

I walked in and it kinda looked like a middle school dance. Empty dance floor a few people sitting, cheesy DJ lighting.... I texted Christian to let him know it might not be the most happening place, then got some food – delicious empanadas! Yummm.. The main event was of course dancing and that’s what my roommate came for, she even brought her dancing shoes. I don’t dance much, obviously and rejected about 10 guys that asked me. Finally, I danced with her friend, but was terrible. Man, I can’t even do a simple 1,2 step. What the hell is wrong with me?!

This 5 year old boy came up and said “You look very pretty tonight.” Then walked away. It made my head spin – what?! Who is that little man?! What a charmer! At least he’s not asking me to dance. Who taught this little guy these moves?! So suave. The rest of the night, he would walk by and stare at me. I even talked to him once and asked his name (Daniel, I think) and he looked down my shirt! WHAT?! He’s a ladies man already! Anyway, there were authentic dance performances and they sung the Colombian National Anthem, which was probably the best part of the night. Then as it was ending, we walked back to the hostel. We got back around 2 or 2:30, so of course I couldn’t go to sleep until around 5am. UGH.

July 22

Today, I went to go get my bags that were being stored at Matt’s house. Took my regular bus over to Bardon and as I had arranged with Matt, his basement was unlocked, so I let myself in and found the bags. I knew I had my giant bag and my backpack, but forgot about my school bag full of books! Ugh. The big bag was heavier than I remembered, but I got them out. I emailed my professor for my online course and asked when/how I would be provided with this CD of course material and then informed me it had already been sent to the address on file (Michael’s house!). Ugh. But luckily, both the professor and Matt got back to me around the same time, so I was able to kill two birds with one stone. Michael wasn’t home, but his employees were working in his office, so I knocked on the door and they handed me my package, too easy!! I took the bus back home and struggled up the hill (I think I can, I think I can) with my bags of stuff and loaded them into my small hostel room and began to reorganize them in order to prepare a couple for storage. I also worked on my photo essay for my Italy class and watched the evening movie: Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.

I got a roommate for the evening, some older woman who came to visit friends and while at her friend’s party, met some guy who talked about killing people. She got a little freaked by this weirdo and decided to leave the party and stay at a hostel. Very odd. I found her a little weird as well. I mean, I don’t blame her for her reaction, but just saying that strange things tend to happen to strange people... Weirdness attracts weirdness if you catch my drift. 

July 21

I arrived into Brisbane after midnight. By the time I got my bag and cleared customs, it was about 2am and the trains into the city had stopped running, so I booked the shared van. They waited for our entire flight to get out, so they could make one trip. I arrived at my hostel around 2:30am. They lost my reservation, so I showed them the email on my phone. The 6 person female dorm was booked, so they gave me the 4 person dorm instead. Good deal. Luckily, I was the only person in the room that night, so I didn’t disturb anyone when I got in. Maybe this would be a good sign and I’d be alone in this room a lot?! One can hope..

Anyway, I slept in until about noon. Then I got dressed and headed over to the University, signed some paperwork for the Financial Aid office, ate lunch, did some stuff on the internet, got a replacement ID card and then headed home. On the way home, I bought a beach towel (the hostel doesn’t give towels, you have to buy one for $10, plus I need one for the beach if I plan to go a lot in the next month). I also bought a new Student Bus Pass, then went to the grocery store for some food.

The hostel has a GIANT kitchen - 6 stovetops, 3 double-basin sinks, and a wall of refrigerator space, which was conveniently FULL of everyone’s bags of food. I labelled mine and crammed it into the fridge. I didn’t have any cash for the deposit for a set of dishes from the hostel (it seems they make you pay for a bunch of weird things), so I gave them my key in order to borrow a set for the evening. Then I returned them shortly after dinner. The hostel also has free movies (5 different features per day!), but I wasn’t interested in any of the features for this evening. Internet here is free, but doesn’t work in my room, ugh.

I got two roommates, one from Germany the other from Brazil, but they only stayed one night. 

June 21

I feel like today has just been waiting around until I get to leave... All I did was do some laundry, finish up packing and now I'm heading off to have drinks with my friends to celebrate my last night in Brisbane! =(

I'm going to miss living here, but not going to miss all of the drama that's happened.

Tomorrow, I head east and travel around the world for 1 month exactly. I'll go to Hawaii for a few hours, then California for a little over a week, then Italy for 2 and a half weeks, then Dubai for a night on the way back to Brisbane... I must be crazy.

June 20

I went to sleep early last night to get a good night's sleep before my exam, but instead I ended up waking up several times during the night and having lots of dreams, so no rest. =( In my final dream right before I woke up, I was a superhero fighting my villain in the air, above the ocean and I had lots of cool powers. You'd think it would be very cool, but I was actually stressed in my dream, struggling to get this other guy off of me. Anyway, then I got up and went to my final exam. It was different questions than on the study guide, but once I figured out what he wanted from us, the answers came pretty easily. So, it wasn't too bad. I bullshitted one question that I didn't know the answer to, but I think I got pretty close, so hopefully I'll get some points for that. I think I did pretty well on the rest of the test, maybe got a good score. We'll see.

Then I went to lunch with some of my friends and went home... I talked to my boyfriend for a bit, and then started packing, because I still feel pretty disorganized and like there's a lot to do. Before I knew it, I had packed away almost everything, even clothes to wear to sleep and tomorrow! =( Not sure what I'm going to do now. I also have laundry to do tomorrow, so I don't know where that stuff is going to fit... I guess I'll have to do some rearranging tomorrow. Then, I didn't feel like editing my essay, so I watched a couple movies instead.

June 19

I was so tired so I tried to sleep in as late as possible, but then got up and started writing my paper. This is it. The last day I have to work on it before I need to start focusing on packing, etc! And my exam is tomorrow! Ack. I worked for a few hours straight and finished it. I just have the abstract and editing left to do... I also booked my stopover in Dubai and a hotel, so that's all settled. Just have to figure out my first two days in Rome and then where I'm going to stay when I get back to Brisbane! haha. Ugh.

Now, it's about 9pm, time to cram for my exam tomorrow and get to bed early!

June 18

The Divorcee said she would've taken me up to see the sunshine coast, if I didn't have school work to finish, but she did invite Michael and I to dinner tonight. She said she would cook Spaghetti Bolognese - Mmm, my favorite! So, I worked on my paper all afternoon and finished by dinner time. She came home late and didn't have anything but take-out. Oh well! We still enjoyed it and the company. Found out a little bit more about her and she told us some stories of when she visited California. It was nice to relax and not think about my paper for a while. After dinner, I studied for my exam a bit and went to bed.

June 17

Done with all of the reading for my paper, now time to start writing. And it's already Friday, so at some point I have to do some studying before Monday's exam!! Ack! This means I have to write roughly 1,000+ words each day, plus study. Then pack between Monday and when I leave on Wednesday. I'm starting to feel a little stressed. I skyped with my mom, and my boyfriend, which always eats up half my day, but I still was able to knock out 1,000+ words for the paper in a reasonable time! I'm becoming pretty good/speedy at researching and writing these papers... yay! Hopefully I can get everything done in time! I am working on this paper, trying to get it done, but I need to remember that it is last on the priority list. First is the test on Monday, then packing, THEN if worse comes to worse, I can work on the paper a bit in California (although I hope not!!). UGH.

June 16

All day today, I read journal articles for my paper and became an expert on all of the environmental challenges of Venice. Sheesh. During breaks, I researched for my upcoming travel vacations and sent emails. I also called my mom for a bit, then messed around on this new program called Prezi.com, which makes your presentations more dynamic... Ooh! Since I have to do a presentation for the Italy class (topic TBD), I will use that program to make it more interesting than just a PowerPoint. Since I won't be there to deliver it, it will be good to have it move and stay interesting!

June 15

Today, I had to go back to campus for the TSA elections. I am not sure how many people would show up. We invite all of the members, but I've heard in the past usually it's just the committee and candidates voting... And that's exactly what happened. Except half the candidates aren't members, so they technically cannot vote, even for themselves. It was stressful because a lot of my friends were running, even some against each other. The whole process was pretty disorganized, but oh well. They gave mini speeches and then we voted on each position. During which, I was writing notes to Heather asking how the process would work. I've been panicked about it since my friends expect me to vote for them and I don't want to necessarily vote for them. =( We did silent ballots, but unfortunately, Heather read them right in front of everyone, whispered but everyone heard. Which was terrible, because Krysty won unanimously so it was obvious that I did not vote for my friend, Andy. He was furious and I was so embarrassed, I could barely even look at him! Then my friend, Christian won and Hans... Then Secretary had no contenders, so I made a small speech about how important the role is. One girl (who we were secretly hoping would run) decided to join and Andy, despite friends pushing him, said no. So, she won. Yay. I was very happy with the results and thought that the best people won. But I was very afraid that Andy would be so upset he would never speak to me again.

I rode the bus home with Christian and discussed a bit with him, mostly about the program and our disappointments. I told him I would be moving away next semester... Then I went to the store in Rosalie on my way home to pick up a couple groceries and walked home. Luckily Andy did text me, which means he was mad, but will get over it. He said some immature stuff, but whatever. As long as he's not going to ignore me for the rest of the year.

I spent the rest of the afternoon conducting business for TSA - sending emails announcing the winners, congratulating the winners, condolences to the losers, etc... With the rest of the evening, I read a bunch of journal articles for the paper I have to write, and talked to my boyfriend before sleep.

June 14

There's still no internet. Supposedly it's something wrong with Telstra and they said it will be fixed around 7pm TONIGHT. Ugh. Luckily, I had to go to campus all day today, so it wasn't too bad. I had TSA interviews for a few hours, meeting new candidates for next semester. There are a LOT of good people. It was hard because I knew some of them through my classes, so it was hard to be unbiased. I think my friend Andy wanted me to give him preferential treatment, but as a TSA officer, I can't. I have to do what's best for the organization. I felt a little caught in the middle, like asking straight up interview questions to my friends.. Oh well. Hopefully they understand. My boyfriend got mad at me for a joke I made on facebook. Man, I just can't win these days. I wasn't trying to piss him off and somehow I failed. I don't know, I guess I'm just not on top of my game lately and need to back off. UGH.

I got a pizza during my hour break and then headed to a study group for my exam which was kind of worthless. I'd already done all of the work for the last group and compiled all of the data, so they didn't really tell me much new. That ended after 7 and then I bussed into the city, but by the time I got there, I had JUST missed my bus to home and they only come once every hour that late! So, I didn't really want to sit there for an hour and on top of that some homeless/drunk guy made 1 comment to me, so I stuck my arm out and hailed a cab to take me home. $15, annoying.

Back at home, I replied to some emails regarding my Venice class trip and fed Banjo. It's really creepy being here all alone. I keep thinking I hear noises, but it's probably just the dog. I went up to feed him and the gate was open, but not much. I don't know if Banjo got it open or someone else opened it or what, but that didn't help with my irrational fears that some one is out to get me! haha

June 13

I fell asleep at 10pm last night, then woke up at 4am. UGH. But I went back to sleep around 7 or 8 until 11am. So, with what was left of my day, I studied for my exam, tried to avoid Michael and wondered when the Divorcee was going to move in. I also had no internet for most of the day, but luckily my studying could be done without the internet and it was sort-of good because it made me focus. Kind-of. I watched a movie as a reward and then tried to go to sleep at a decent hour.

June 12

Set my alarm and helped Jillian move some of her stuff next door to Matt's house for storage. She wasn't able to get ahold of him to tell him we were coming, but she assumed the door would be unlocked. It wasn't! We found a key, but it didn't fit, so we ended up having to leave the stuff by the door. Hopefully she'll tell him later and he'll be nice enough to move it inside. I still have two suitcases that I need to take over there who knows when! =( Guess I'll have to get his email and coordinate that. Ack. Then, I said goodbye to Jillian and she took off for the airport. Just me left!!! =( I closed up the living room and kitchen, since it will soon be someone elses. It feels weird to have someone else come live in what was MY space like right in front of me. I've really been dreading this next week because I'll be here alone, and have to go upstairs to Michael's area for everything. Also feels weird not to reap the benefits of cleaning! haha I feel like I just cleaned all day yesterday and now I have to use the most unclean place ever.

Anyway, I tried to go back to sleep, but pretty soon after, Michael came downstairs and started banging around. He was hard at work, painting the bathroom. He said he couldn't find the color of Lina's room, so he decided to paint the bathroom with this color instead. I didn't want to tell him that the light gray in Lina's room has been completely used up. I'll just play dumb if he asks because I wasn't around when they did any of that. His problem. He is really the worst at time-management. He is gone for work 80% of the time, so he doesn't have time to buy fresh groceries or clean his house. He doesn't have time to get things done around the house in time for this woman to move in, so instead he rushes to do it on her move-in day. Now her wall is going to smell like fresh paint when she moves in, plus, it's going to be a very sloppy paint job, because he is rushing to get it taken care of. Thanks for never doing ANYTHING while we lived there!! =(

I went upstairs to make some breakfast and was so disgusted by everything that I didn't spend long up there. My biggest pet peeve is dirty dishes, especially when you have a dishwasher, which is funny because I was terrible about it when I was a kid. I just don't see how someone with a dishwasher lets things pile up so badly (but again, we're dealing with some time management issues)... Anyway, I cleaned a pan so I could use it, then made some eggs. I don't even want my stuff touching his. Everything was sticky... Then I cleaned the dishes I used (because the dishwasher was full) and retreated back downstairs.

Then, I studied for a bit, but talked to my boyfriend and we fought again. Awesome. Basically, I feel like I'm doing everything wrong. So, I ended up feeling like I'm totally undeserving of a boyfriend at all and further just felt incredibly alone since I can't even go cry to Jillian... haha I miss her already, we grew pretty close and I really enjoyed our relationship. Sure, we will still be friends, but it will never be the same. It's just one of those things... We won't see each other as much and it's likely that we'll just grow apart with all the distractions back home. Even Lina, who I thought would be a lifelong friend, is off doing other stuff and I never see her much anymore. I feel like I came so far and now suddenly I'm back to the beginning. Still not a scrap of furniture to my name, moving to a new place with no network, no job, etc. It's going to be pretty hard.

For the rest of the day, I studied, walked to Rosalie for some take-out, and watched a movie. Pretty standard stuff.

June 11

From what I can remember of talking to my boyfriend last night and this morning, things seemed better. We already seemed more excited to talk to one another. So, hopefully it will be OK.
Some of the people I met last night were going to watch the hockey game this morning at the Pig and Whistle, but when I woke up, I sure wasn't feeling like going back out to a bar. I especially didn't want to rush to get ready and then end up missing half the game. So I decided to forgo the game and hang out, relaxing at home. I was also nervous because today is Jillian's last day and we still have to clean the apartment, so I was getting stressed about when that was going to happen. Jillian packed, I cleaned the bathroom, then I decided to pack a bunch of stuff too. It looks like I'll have to leave a couple bags here, which I'm not happy about, but it will save a couple hundred bucks... So, I started trying to figure out what I would need to bring home, what I wanted to leave, etc.

Took a break from packing and Jillian and I cleaned the kitchen, cleaned out the food in the fridge and cabinets, etc. I mopped the floors while Jillian finished packing. UGH What a day. My back was hurting from all that, so we finished off our vodka and decided to go out to dinner. It was already pretty late, though. So we just headed downtown and ate at a random little place on Queen St. Mall. Food was standard, not good, not bad. We shared bruschetta, pizza and a burger! Then we walked around in the rain and I had never been inside the Treasury Casino, so we went there for a pit stop, walked around, then walked back down Queen St. Mall. We headed over to the Winterfest at King George Square, but it was already closed for the evening.  Oh well. Then we walked back and decided there wasn't much else to do, so we took a cab back home. It was kind of shitty weather, otherwise I'm sure Jillian wanted to enjoy the city a little more, one last time... Oh well. As with all things - anticlimactic. We headed home and I was exhausted, so I went to bed soon after.

June 10

I slept in pretty late and then had a skype date with my boyfriend, which was probably one of the worst skype calls I've ever had. Just awkwardness, felt like neither of us were that into it. Jillian went to campus to buy some books and I was supposed to meet her afterwards for ice skating, but she said that her friend's party was starting early, so she came home instead. By that time I was fighting with my boyfriend about things. Guess the honeymoon stage is over! UGH. Things have just seemed off ever since he left a few weeks ago and I'm not sure what it is, but it's like we've talked less and haven't even been that excited when we do talk. Maybe we are just taking each other for granted. I know he was busy for a week and so was I, but since I've finished my assignments, I've been pretty bored lately. And stressed about housing... Who knows, maybe we just need to focus more on appreciating each other. Jillian was having guy issues as well, so we had a few drinks at home, made a quick dinner, then headed out to her friend's party.

It was a back-yard party and I wore heels, so I was trying to hold them out of the grass for most of the night. It was good to meet some of her school friends, many of them were American or Canadian. So, I was able to talk with them easily... Jillian's ex-boyfriend showed up, which was pretty awkward for a while. Then, we walked to the West End, to a bar. We had a drink there, but Jillian and I were pretty tired, so we decided to head out. Got some pizza and fries to eat on the way home and then talked about the night for a while, and about Jillian's ex. Poor girl. I know it was hard on her to see him one last time. And it made her realize some things, but I'm really proud that she did realize them because now it feels like she can start to get over it, in a healthy way. Then I talked to my boyfriend and went to sleep.

June 9

Jillian and I went to the Powerhouse today to see the World Press Photo exhibit of award-winning photographs from 2010. There were some very powerful and disturbing images, depicting some of the tragedies of 2010 - Haiti earthquake, Floods in Pakistan, stampeding crowds at the Love Fest etc. In fact, most were quite visually disturbing and because they wanted to  black off those photographs for an audience of 15+, they were all grouped together. I've never really noticed the importance of gallery layout before, but this one was noticeably not very good. Some of the captions were in the corners, meaning you would have to block another photograph to read it, spacially people were constantly bumping into each other or in the way. It was quite cumbersome. Again, with all of the most graphically disturbing clumped into one room, the others were spread along hallway walls upstairs and next to the cafe, making them seem less important. In fact, Jillian brought up a good point that the show and in fact all of the contest photos seemed to be dominated by negative things. Where are the uplifting, positive influential images?!

Afterwards, we took the city cat back to the CBD and ate breakfast at the Pancake Manor. We had both only been there once, and now I know why. I like the idea of it better than the food. Oh well.

Back at home, I took a nap while Jillian began to pack up all of her stuff. This evening was supposed to be the opening of the Winter Wonderland in King George Square, complete with ice skating! Jillian and I really wanted to go, but I guess they weren't quite finished with it, so they pushed it back to open the next day. No harm. Jillian and I have lots of booze to finish before we leave at home, so we put a big dent in our Capt Morgan and I watched a movie..

June 8

Slept in and then caught up on TSA stuff all morning. Afterwards, I worked on my part for the exam study group.. Then I watched half of a movie before it stopped buffering. =( Oh well.

I'm just realizing how much stuff I have to pack. I even have a sleeping bag that will take up half a suitcase! Ahhh. I think I'm going to have an extra bag. This is going to be expensive. ugh.

June 7

On Tuesday, I had sort-of a busy day. I went to campus for a group meeting. It didn't take long and there wasn't much discussion, just divided up the questions into 4 parts and luckily I took charge of it so I could call dibs on the same allotment of questions for both groups I am in (one I have to do questions 15-28 and the other 22-28!). Then I had a break in between meetings so I tried to go see the Financial Advisor, but she was out of town, so that didn't quite work out. Afterwards, I had a TSA meeting, where we discussed future candidates and my replacement. I got a text from Jillian saying that Michael came to talk to her and told her that a woman might be coming by to look at the place and might want to move in quickly, which would mean that I may have to use the upstairs kitchen and bathroom for my last couple weeks here. I'm sorry... WHAT? I'm getting kicked out of my space early?? This is ridiculous.. It just seems absurd to me. Whatever, there's not much I can do.

So, after the meeting, I came home and this lady did indeed come over. She looked older, divorced. She toured the place and then talked for a long time with Michael. Meanwhile, I talked to Jillian about jerky politicians, cheating, marriage, etc. All with the door to upstairs open, so I'm sure the recent divorcee heard everything. Oh well. Anyway, then Michael came down and told us that she is moving in, this SUNDAY! The same day Jillian leaves. Should be an interesting day! UGH. And after that, I will sleep in my room, but use the upstairs bathroom and kitchen... He also said he would put up a door between her space and this other area, so she won't see me. And he'll paint the wall in her room. HAHA Yea right! Jillian and I looked at him like REALLY?! First of all, he's said so many things that haven't happened and secondly, if he can get that wall painted in a couple days (even while he's gone on business), then why the FUCK couldn't he have gotten the rest of the house painted during those first 6 months that we were living here?!?! It's a bit of a slap in the face. I'm only slightly relieved that this lady moving in means that I won't get stuck with all of the cleaning by myself. Jillian and I will both have to clean the apartment to get it ready for her. Oh well. It's going to be VERRY awkward living with Michael for 10 days. He should be gone for half of it, but still. UGHHHH.

For the rest of the night, I drank and talked with Jillian about her guy and how she deserves better. Maybe not tonight, but one day I hope she realizes it. She's soo selfless and giving that she doesn't even think it's OK to expect a guy to treat her with respect. I don't know how to tell someone that they deserve it. You gotta believe it 'cuz only then will you act like it and not let guys walk all over you. I have no idea where I learned this. And I'm not perfect, I've got my own relationship issues, I'm sure, so I can't talk, but... The girl is awesome. I hope she knows it.

June 6

Not much planned for today. Slept in, did some laundry, then played around on Photoshop for most of the day, editing photos. Read the last two articles for my exam prep. Jillian made some delicious chicken soup and Michael had us tidy up the downstairs so he could take some photographs to post online. Unfortunately, he wanted to do this RIGHT as Jillian was in the last 30 minutes before her paper was due, so it was kind of the wrong time. But we managed to work it out. Phew. Only a couple more weeks!!

June 5

Woke up because Michael was moving stuff. Tried to sleep in through it, but was pretty unsuccessful. Very angry that this is what woke me up... Anyway, Jillian and I needed to go to the store, desperately. We've been living on scraps for the past week or two! We just missed the bus and on Sundays it's always difficult. Michael luckily offered to drive us there. So, we got a ride with him, then went to go eat breakfast. Went to the store, and caught the bus home. Today is the one and only day that the Governor's House is open to the public for tours! We've lived a few blocks away and never seen it, so we put away groceries and then walked across the large park to the base of the Governor's House. We climbed the steep path through the gardens and when we made it to the top, there were bagpipes playing. What a beautiful day! We walked around the grounds, took a quick tour of the house and then headed back home because Jillian had to finish her paper. Michael kept moving more stuff all over the downstairs, which was pretty distracting, but I read a couple articles and watched a movie...

June 4

I slept for half the day, then read some articles for my final exam. Later, Jillian and I decided to take a break and I was craving Mexican, so we went to Guzman y Gomez. I'd only been there once before and it was really good, not spicy at all. But this time, my mouth was on fire from the "spicy chicken". I wanted to die. Still good, but not as enjoyable. Then we walked back up to the Valley and got a cab downtown to the Tin Billy. Finally, I can return to the Tin Billy!! We got a beer, but the credit card machine only did a minimum of $20, so we had to buy two rounds. WTF. Oh well. We talked about our theory for a bit, then played some pool with some random weirdos. Then cabbed home and I talked to my boyfriend until the wee hours of the morning.

June 3

I slept in really late, then didn't really do much all day. Just organized my computer and read an article for my upcoming exam. I skyped with my boyfriend and that was about it. Michael came home in the evening, so Jillian and I went upstairs to talk to him and let him know that we were leaving. He seemed pretty flexible about it, so I'm relieved. For the month that I'm back in August, I can either rent the room upstairs from him or need to find another temporary accommodation situation through a sublet or hostel or whatever. Gotta decide what I want to do for that... Then, I watched a movie and went to bed really late again. I gotta reset my clock back to normal schedule! Ugh.

June 2

Thursday, it was my last class of the semester, but since I already turned in my report, there was really no point in going to class. So, I slept in and skyped with my mom and Steven. Calculated that it would actually be about the same cost to stay in a hostel or pay rent here until August, so I can give Michael the option about that. I bought my plane ticket to return home at the end of August, making it OFFICIAL. Pretty crazy.

Lina came over for a hot second to pick something up from the bathroom and talk to me. I told her and she sounded sad that I would be gone, but I haven't seen her hardly at ALL this semester, so I didn't expect it to be any different next semester! =(

I received the finished report from Jane in the morning, and I had all day to edit it. 56 pages! I don't know how it can be that long - it's ridiculous! There's no way we need that many appendices, but whatever. I'm not the one printing it. So, I leisurely edited it throughout the day, finishing just before my midnight deadline... That's it - I am officially DONE for this semester!!! Pretty crazy.. (Ok, well I still have a final exam, but close enough. I'm done with my assignments) It's all happening so fast. But I'm excited to be going home.

June 1

I was supposed to have a group meeting in the morning, but I woke up feeling just exhausted... I texted Jane and she hadn't heard from Manuel, so the two of us made an executive decision to postpone until after our class in order to get more sleep! Little did we know that Manuel was already on campus for another group project in the morning. Whoops! Anyway, then we had our last class with Robyn. Whew, finally done that that woman! Manuel volunteered to take the course evaluations to the office (she can't touch them after we fill them out), which means that the three of us essentially volunteered for this job. So, we walked all over campus looking for a building that was torn down. The instruction sheet was wrong! Finally, we found the building was very close to our original class building. UGH! Oh well. So, we sat down in the Student Center and met about our project, despite glares from the staff. Our last group meeting, very sad. I broke the news to them that I wouldn't be around next semester much and they were of course sad. Jane offered to turn in any assignments for me, if I needed, which was super nice. During the meeting, I was so exhausted. Manuel kept laughing because I was so out of it! =(

Then I rushed home and only had a couple hours to finish up my part of the group assignment, before Jane took it offline to revise and do referencing. So, I quickly did the last of my part and wrote the conclusion. I was exhausted from such a long day. And freezing, so I took a shower to warm up. By then it was too late to take a nap, I ended up staying up and watching a movie, then got a second wind.

Jillian met with her thesis advisor today and the advisor gave her some good suggestions and told her she basically didn't have to come back if she didn't want to. But also gave her good reason to come back (to get outside the element when writing). So, Jillian's plan is set, which means I told Jillian my plan and I think she was just shocked that I had done all of that in a couple days because she seemed a little taken aback. Anyway, it should all work out. Soo, with that confirmation from Jillian, I sent an email to TSA and let them know I would not be able to be secretary next semester. It's all coming together, I hesitate to say so easily...

Ended up going to bed late, again.

May 31

I had no morning class, so I slept in and went to my favorite American professor's class. He scared us about the final exam, went over some material, and then we filled out course evaluations. After class, we all discussed study groups and I was invited to two, both of which I wanted to be in. I'll gain two different perspectives! The more the merrier, I say. Off to a TSA meeting, where we discussed the end of the semester and elections for new member positions. Then I went to the Business Faculty and requested a drop-in appointment with the academic advisor (I didn't get a reply to my email). Luckily, he was available, so I sat down and explained my situation and we discussed my options. Basically, I was doing everything I could to search for classes, there were no short-cuts or tricks he could give me. If I didn't find an online course at UQ, I could try to do an online course at one of their affiliated exchange abroad schools or take a summer class instead. I also considered taking a course in my major that I know would be pretty easy (no group projects) and then just not attend half the classes. I did more research when I got home about online courses and was able to find a few realistic options. The most likely is an Education class about identifying youth at risk. It seems easy enough, but I'm not sure if I would rather do a course that's within my major or not. I emailed my mom and surprisingly she was very supportive of those two choices, so they are looking pretty likely. I just need to decide and think about what to do for that month I'm back here, and then find out where Jillian is at with her process, when she's talking to Michael.

Pretty quickly after I finished researching, the internet cut out and was down for the rest of the evening. So, bored, Jillian and I got to talking about religion and life, etc. I love my deep conversations with her! And then suddenly we started developing a theory about life and both got excited about it and continued for the next few hours discussing and analyzing this theory. We thought it was so genius, in fact, that we must be redeveloping someone else's theory. But we wrote it all down anyway. Before we knew it, I looked up and it was 1am! So, with my mind reeling with that and all of the housing stuff, I helped a classmate out with an assignment and then went to bed around 3am! Jeez!

May 30

Feeling a little lonely today...

I heard Jillian briefly this morning, but she must've left early to go to the library with Lina. Without much to do today, I decided to relax, watch movies, whatever. But I couldn't access many movies, so instead I decided to do some preliminary research for a paper I have to write in the next month, before I go on the Italy class trip. I wasn't going to even start thinking about it until after this semester was finished, in a week, but oh well. I made an outline and spent a couple hours searching for journal articles on the topic of environmental challenges in Venice. After that, I was feeling a little neglected by my boyfriend, because he's been pretty busy all weekend, and probably because I'm going a little stir-crazy. I haven't uttered a word today, haven't even seen anyone. Jillian is gone most days, working in the library with Lina, so I don't get to see her much anymore. Both of them will leave in less than a week to go home. I wish I were going home. I have no idea what I'm going to do for the next 20 days here alone. I'm going to go nuts.

When Jillian came home, she dropped some news on me. Because she would be doing an internship and her thesis next semester, she wouldn't be in Brisbane very much of the time. So, I probably should've put two and two together and seen this coming - she's moving out for the 2nd semester. Ahhh. I was shocked at first, maybe because I felt like it was sudden, but as I said, I should've guessed. Anyway, I was a little angry, not just at her but at the fact that I moved here with 2 girls and I thought we would be together the whole year and a half, now I feel like the only sucker left, the one that got ditched. It's so strange how the first semester was perfect... Then 2nd semester everything was difficult in terms of housing. Floods, mold, Lina at her boyfriends, then Lina moved out and the fallout from that, and now Jillian is leaving. Which leaves me here next semester all alone. Although I doubt Michael will work out any kind of deal for just me to live here (plus I don't want to live here anyway), so that means either finding a roommate or finding a new place. Nothing sounded like a good option. Of course I was frustrated for a while, with the why me, why is life so difficult, when's the next shoe going to drop, etc. And I was panicking about options.

Since I was especially homesick, this made me moreso. I don't want to be here if no one else is (I cringe saying that; I've never been one to follow what my friends are doing). Anyway, since I have a thesis and one class next semester (the thesis is mostly independent study, no lectures), I immediately thought, why can't I go home too?! So, I started exploring my options for online, alternative classes. I couldn't find much on the course website, so I shot an email to the academic advisor requesting information about that. Then, feeling very stressed, so stressed that my throat and jaw felt tense, I went to sleep.

May 29

Sunday, I went to breakfast with Jillian and Lina at a delicious place that had a large hot cocoa menu - YUMM. Then, we went to the computer lab at Lina's campus. Apparently there is some loophole in the system that students get $50 printing credit each semester at this computer lab. I thought it was just students within her program, but Jillian verified that it is all UQ students! I don't know why we don't get this at our campus!! So, I went with them, finalized my Research Proposal and printed it out - for free! Holy shit! Too bad I still have credits on my printing card to use up. I think I'll print all of my stuff there. Although, the bus fare might not make it worth it.

Let's see, it costs $3.12 cents round trip to get to Herston campus (for a student fare). So, the break-even point is at 14 printed pages, and that's not even including time. I think most of my papers are about 10-12 pages, so it's not really worth it to get the free printing (unless Lina's driving me one way to the lab (then the break-even is 7 pages). But still, it's usually more convenient for me to just print it between classes than to have to go all the way to a different campus just to print. I guess it makes sense for Jillian who has been going there a lot lately to work on papers...

Anyway, I couldn't concentrate in the lab, because the keyboards were really stiff and loud, so everyone else typing just bugged the hell out of me. I finished up my research proposal and printed it, but then headed home to work on the group project since I needed a couple of library books that I had gotten a few days before.

I went home, but the internet was down ALL AFTERNOON. I did as much work as I could without it, but then I needed to use it for referencing and to upload my work into our group document. It's very annoying that it doesn't work when I need it! I tried to reset the router and modem, connect directly into the modem, etc, but I think the afternoon storm caused an outage with the service provider... Without internet for an unknown time, I freaked. I got soo bored - how do I rely on internet so much! What to do!! I turned on the TV, which only has 3 channels, and cleaned a little, then after a few hours, the internet was back up and running so I finished my assignment for the rest of the evening.

May 28

This is the part of my weekend where days start blurring together because I work straight through. I woke up and plugged away at my paper for a few hours, cranking out a few more sections. Then breakfast and cleaned dishes and back to the paper for a couple more hours and DONE! I think I finished it!! Whoo! It wasn't as bad as I thought. I have to read through it and revise it, but I think that was basically it. I showered, then skyped with my parents for a bit, then decided to take a few hours off and watched a movie. Now it is dinner time and I think I'll either watch another movie or revise my paper. I'm feeling great for being so caught up!

Tomorrow - tackle the group assignment!!

May 27

Friday and the start of my weekend! Yay! I woke up, ate breakfast and had a skype date with my boyfriend, always good to see his face! Then I just started pounding away at my paper. I worked all day, only taking breaks to eat or snack. Jillian was also working all day, so we barely even said hello for the few minutes I saw her. haha! But, I made LOTS of progress on my paper and was feeling great about it. I think I wrote about half of it. Then at night, I finally did talk to Jillian and we sat and had a long conversation about babies and marriage and dating and love and crushes. In that order! Quite backwards! I love my conversations with Jillian, they always develop into so much...

May 26

Got to sleep in for a bit, yess! And talked to my boyfriend for a quick bit before class. He dropped some pretty scary news on me about a friend and it kind of stressed me out for the rest of the day. I took the bus and literally just sat there in a fog about it, nearly missing my bus stop!

I went to class, but really only because I hadn't gone last week and because I wanted to make sure to attend the last two so I could fill out the course evaluation. But I learned in class that they filled it out the week before! Damnit! That was the only reason I came!! Now I can't say all that I wanted to about this class that I hated! Ugh. The professor called me out about my emailed question - great, now he knows who I am (I guess I didn't stand a chance blending in as the only white girl). The rest of class I was totally stressed out and couldn't concentrate. I am stressed about money and how much work I have to do and how unproductive last night seemed and my boyfriend's friend and finally, I invited my boyfriend to my cousin's wedding and even though he has been begging me for months to go, he said NO! I felt so hurt that I had finally decided I wanted him there and he rejected me. I know my family can be intense, so I guess that's why, but I thought he was different. I tried to make myself feel OK about it, convincing myself of this, that and the other thing, but I couldn't shake it. It wasn't until I looked at the email again at the bus stop on the way home and scrolled down to see that he was kidding and of course he wanted to come. PHEW! That took some pressure off my day. A lot, in fact.

Then I went home and got to working on my research proposal. I spent all evening researching articles and reading all about it, feeling pretty productive and educated on the topic!! But I still hadn't really written anything down. Ugh oh well. It's the first step!

May 25

On Wednesday, I went to campus early for a group meeting, where we discussed our parts and all of the strategies we recommended, split up the last few sections and then headed to class. I'm really loving my group. We do a good job, trust each other, always get our parts done on time, and are pretty smart about things. It's nice having a familiarity with each other, so we can trust each other and know that somehow it will get done and it is usually pretty equal.

In class we had a guest lecture talk about event planning software for registration and planning tools. It was more interesting than I thought it would be. My group met after class for another 30 minutes to finish up our discussion on strategies and then we had a question about the assignment. Usually none of us attend the tutorials unless we need to and Jane usually goes to ask questions on behalf of us. So I went on behalf of the group this time and asked our question within the first 5 minutes. But I couldn't leave. So, I sat there and got a few more bits of information, but she kept calling on me "How's my friend from America doing on this section?" I was like ummm we're doing fine, no questions! Annoying. I'm not your friend. At least she likes me now. She didn't last semester, but I got one of the highest grades in the class on the first assignment, so I think she now likes me. Whatever.

Then I went home and worked a little bit on the group project, then started doing some research on my other final assignment - the research proposal. I didn't get much done and felt like I was going around in circles. I emailed the teacher and he emailed me back saying that it would be hard to focus on one company because usually they don't let you have access, especially if you're trying to dig out something negative. Ugh.

May 24

Tuesday and officially back to the grind!! Ugh. I woke up early for class, painful! Filled out an evaluation for my 2nd class of the day, then got a group assignment back - 6! Yay. Most other people in the class seemed to get pretty high scores too, so I think they are just easy graders.  Then class with the American Prof who asked me where I was last week! Whoops. I told him honestly. I don't think he cares. After class, instead of a TSA meeting, like usual, we had a fair and a booth to raise money for Japan! It was from 10-2pm, so unfortunately I couldn't go work the booth, but I came for the last 10 minutes and helped clean up! Haha. Oh well...

Back home on the bus and I talked to my boyfriend for a bit, then worked on a group project for the rest of the evening. 

May 23

I slept in. Mondays - no school! I talked to my boyfriend to make sure he made it home safely. Then talked to my parents for a bit on skype, then worked on a group project...

May 22

Today was my boyfriend's last day in Brisbane. We looked forward to it for soo long, and then the week seemed to fly by. Now, he was already leaving. But it's OK because I will see him in less than a month, so it won't be long of a wait. That probably made the sting of goodbye a little more tolerable. We slept in, then I went with him to the airport, we ate breakfast at the airport. He checked his bag and then we sat around until the very last few minutes before he had to go through security and board his plane.

Then it took me forever to get home. I just missed the train out of the airport, so I had to wait 30 minutes, then just missed the bus to go home, which only comes once every hour on Sundays. So I walked to the grocery store and did a little food shopping. When I finally got home, I found a present on my bed, a stuffed lion. Very cute. My boyfriend is too good to me and spoils me with romantic little gifts! It even talks, with his voice telling me all sorts of sweet little things so I can listen to him say niceties whenever I want.

Then I organized myself for the next couple weeks of work that are ahead of me. It's crunch time to finish all my school work in the next 10 days before the end of the semester. I spent the rest of the evening relaxing, calling it the last of my nights off and vowing to start work tomorrow.