Couldn't sleep upstairs in Michael's bed, it just felt wrong, so I got about 2 hours of sleep! Ugh. Tried to sleep in as late as possible which meant skipping breakfast and headed to school.
Tutorial was rough, because I forgot to do homework, but I still spoke up in class. Then my class was a little interesting. The professor always tries to spice things up by talking about a very unique event at the beginning of class. Last week he talked about an ugly-face competition. This week it was an Air Sex Contest. It's kind of like Air-Guitar, but you mime the actions of having sex and climaxing. He always shows funny photos and other details of the contest. I read over the details and loudly commented "ONLY 2 MINUTES?!??" Everyone laughed. The Aussie girls in the back laughed hardest, and the professor laughed too. After about a minute of laughing I got a bit embarrassed that I had made such a joke. The professor said, "Hey now, you girls always give us guys a hard time!!" Then he tried to move on, but had to pause because he was still chuckling about it. The rest of the class was boring. He discussed Social Capital, which is an interesting concept (it's the value in human connection, essentially). But he's always talking about these grandiose concepts instead of how they actually relate to events (last week we discussed multi-culturalism instead of talking about cultural events). Obviously, they are related to the topic at hand, but I think I'd like a bit more learning in that class.
Then off to the American professor's class. I was nervous for the speakers and my stomach was tied in knots thinking about how nervous I'm going to be next week right before I have to present. AHH. Oh well. I thought my white skirt was OK with white undies, but turns out it was more see-through than I thought and you could totally see my underwear line! How embarrassing. I was trying to cover it all day. haha.
Got home and to my delight, Lina's room was apparently dry enough to replaster, so her wall is essentially done!! That means we're back on schedule to finish by the end of this week. Michael was over today and is currently sleeping in his office while I have his bed, just for tonight. I was too lazy to make dinner, and since I hadn't eaten anything all day, I was going to walk down to Rosalie to eat some dinner. Jillian was heading off to school, but suddenly felt a little panicky, so she decided she couldn't ignore it and try to go to school, so she joined me and I distracted her while we walked down to pick up some food and walked back! That's about it...
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
March 28
I was woken up early by a knock on my door - the contractors, of course! Luckily it was only an hour before my alarm went off, so moved the rest of my stuff out of my room while they started on Lina's room. They made pretty quick work of her furniture and carpet and before I was even making breakfast, they were ripping plaster off her wall. Soon the stench of mold filled the air and we all watched in awe as they peeled away plaster with dark mold growing to expose a wall of wet cement blocks!
It was pretty gross and smelled awful, so we scurried upstairs and shut all of the doors. They said it will take about 2 weeks to dry out, so I was pretty bummed about that. At least Michael is letting us stay upstairs while all this is going on. I just hope it'll get over with soon, so that we can get on with our lives.
I went to campus for my TSA meeting, which was short! Yipee. We are probably going to do a joint event with Wasabi to get donations for Japan sometime in April. Hiro came dressed in a traditional black yukata, funeral attire. He said he found out 2 more of his friends died, making a total of 5 of his friends that have died. Pretty crazy.
Then I headed home. I ran into the construction guys as they were leaving and they told me it's already drying out a bit, so maybe it'll be dry before too long and to just keep the fans on it. They also said the tiling should be done by the end of the week. That's good news and made me feel a little better than I did when I left. Italked to my boyfriend for a while, cooked dinner upstairs (weird to use someone else's kitchen) and worked on TSA for a bit. Now early to bed! (or maybe a movie)
It was pretty gross and smelled awful, so we scurried upstairs and shut all of the doors. They said it will take about 2 weeks to dry out, so I was pretty bummed about that. At least Michael is letting us stay upstairs while all this is going on. I just hope it'll get over with soon, so that we can get on with our lives.
I went to campus for my TSA meeting, which was short! Yipee. We are probably going to do a joint event with Wasabi to get donations for Japan sometime in April. Hiro came dressed in a traditional black yukata, funeral attire. He said he found out 2 more of his friends died, making a total of 5 of his friends that have died. Pretty crazy.
Then I headed home. I ran into the construction guys as they were leaving and they told me it's already drying out a bit, so maybe it'll be dry before too long and to just keep the fans on it. They also said the tiling should be done by the end of the week. That's good news and made me feel a little better than I did when I left. Italked to my boyfriend for a while, cooked dinner upstairs (weird to use someone else's kitchen) and worked on TSA for a bit. Now early to bed! (or maybe a movie)
Sunday, March 27, 2011
March 27
To make up for yesterday, I worked on some assignments all day (and talked to my mom and boyfriend for a while). So did Jillian and Lina. We are definitely getting back into the groove of studying nonstop. UGH.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
March 26
Woke up at 5:30am and patched things up with my boyfriend, then basically did NOTHING all day. I sent a few emails for TSA, but probably should've done more work... Oh well. There's always tomorrow.
March 25
The beginning of my 4 day weekends! Woke up hung over and it only got worse. I didn't even feel that drunk!! Jillian says that it's because we're not 23 anymore. Fuck getting old. Tried to drink water, eat and take advil, but by 1pm, it was worse than ever!! So, we headed out to eat some greasy lunch and pick up items at the grocery store.
Usually Fridays are my skype date time, but I thought it was at 3pm, so I made sure to leave with enough time to be back by then. Apparently in my hung-over state, I didn't hear that we actually scheduled it for 2pm, so I was already on my way when I figured out this error! Whoops. I felt awful, told Jillian how much this means to my sweet boyfriend, but we continued on.. Eating some greasy french fries and chicken strips killed my hang-over immediately, then we got ingredients to make Jalapeno Popper dip for Travis's Fiesta. We missed the bus, and had to take a cab back and so I was even late for my original 3pm time and my boyfriend was rightfully furious. Jillian made her awesome dip and I tried to smooth things over. She realized she didn't have a key ingredient - Mayo, so Lina and I headed to the store in the Ute, which was convenient because I had to run to the post office anyway.
Got ready and headed to Travis's fiesta which was pretty far on the other side of town. It was pretty mellow with a mix of people, but nice to enjoy some good company. Got back by midnight because we were all exhausted from the night before.
Usually Fridays are my skype date time, but I thought it was at 3pm, so I made sure to leave with enough time to be back by then. Apparently in my hung-over state, I didn't hear that we actually scheduled it for 2pm, so I was already on my way when I figured out this error! Whoops. I felt awful, told Jillian how much this means to my sweet boyfriend, but we continued on.. Eating some greasy french fries and chicken strips killed my hang-over immediately, then we got ingredients to make Jalapeno Popper dip for Travis's Fiesta. We missed the bus, and had to take a cab back and so I was even late for my original 3pm time and my boyfriend was rightfully furious. Jillian made her awesome dip and I tried to smooth things over. She realized she didn't have a key ingredient - Mayo, so Lina and I headed to the store in the Ute, which was convenient because I had to run to the post office anyway.
Got ready and headed to Travis's fiesta which was pretty far on the other side of town. It was pretty mellow with a mix of people, but nice to enjoy some good company. Got back by midnight because we were all exhausted from the night before.
March 24
Thursday, I had a 10am meeting with my group for EVNT7000, where we discussed what industries are inter-related to the events industry. Then we got carried away making our diagram silly so that it would be interesting. I think we've come up with a concept, but not sure yet. We started running out of time and since the presentation is due after the paper, we focused on divvying up the rest of the work. Not too bad, the whole assignment is 2,000 words, so it's definitely do-able. I'm going to need to focus these next few weeks to get stuff done, though.
Then off to our really boring class on Research Methods where the professor talked about the assignment the entire time. While my friends had their lab, I got a bite to eat and called my boyfriend. Our lab has homework which I can't figure out why since we aren't graded on it, but luckily no one else finished it either, so we finished it during the lab. Phew.
Headed back home and we decided to go out for Salsa dancing at Cloudland! It was fun, even though I was only forced to dance a couple of dances. Lina's class-mate, Travis met up with us and Jillian had one glass too many on an empty stomach, so toward the end of the night it was clear when to take her home! =) I spent another couple hours awake talking to my boyfriend about why he gets jealous when I go out/have single friends. Silliness.
Here is Jillian and me at Cloudland:
Then off to our really boring class on Research Methods where the professor talked about the assignment the entire time. While my friends had their lab, I got a bite to eat and called my boyfriend. Our lab has homework which I can't figure out why since we aren't graded on it, but luckily no one else finished it either, so we finished it during the lab. Phew.
Headed back home and we decided to go out for Salsa dancing at Cloudland! It was fun, even though I was only forced to dance a couple of dances. Lina's class-mate, Travis met up with us and Jillian had one glass too many on an empty stomach, so toward the end of the night it was clear when to take her home! =) I spent another couple hours awake talking to my boyfriend about why he gets jealous when I go out/have single friends. Silliness.
Here is Jillian and me at Cloudland:
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
March 23
Wednesdays are my new long-day, because I have a group project meeting at 9am and am not finished with my last class until 5pm. On the way out the door, I got an email from our landlord stating that he'd like to move furniture out of our room to finally start repairing it from the mold damage. I left my room in a not good state - with underwear and clothes and stuff on my bed. But I had no time to prepare my room for the move that was apparently going to take place this afternoon! So, I sent back an email saying how it would be impossible for me to move stuff today with my school schedule. Like all emails I write, it was very straight-forward and didn't waste words on niceties (fluff). My correspondence often comes off as harsher than I intend. I tried to remove any parts that were mean and leave it as neutral as I could. But apparently that wasn't enough because halfway through the day (luckily between classes), he replied back and completely overreacted, ending with essentially "if you want to move out, you can!" I really loathe when people do that, because it seems immature to threaten a relationship so prematurely. I guess I under-estimated exactly how stressed he has been trying to deal with all of this, so my email offended him greatly. Of course, I didn't intend to do so and certainly didn't expect such a dramatic response. I chatted with Jillian and agreed on an apology email that I sent back pretty quickly to try to remedy the situation. But he didn't respond to that. I'm not sure if that means he's still mad or what. Jillian seems to think so and when we discussed it later, she made me feel horrible and that it was all my fault. Hopefully things are OK, but I'm not quite sure because Michael is pretty bad at communication, so we're left guessing...
My last class ended at 5pm and trying to get home during rush-hour is the worst. We sat on Coronation Drive for over an hour and when I finally got downtown, it was already 6:15pm. I had to wait another 30 minutes for our regularly late bus, which then sat in traffic on the way out of town... I got home around 7:30, exhausted, starving and completely depleted of all energy. I made dinner, did some school work and before I knew it, it was already late! Whew! What a day.
My last class ended at 5pm and trying to get home during rush-hour is the worst. We sat on Coronation Drive for over an hour and when I finally got downtown, it was already 6:15pm. I had to wait another 30 minutes for our regularly late bus, which then sat in traffic on the way out of town... I got home around 7:30, exhausted, starving and completely depleted of all energy. I made dinner, did some school work and before I knew it, it was already late! Whew! What a day.
March 22
Tuesdays aren't as long now that my meetings are on Mondays, but they're still pretty bad. I woke up early and all the milk was sour, so I didn't have a quick cereal breakfast. Instead I made eggs, and then had to rush off to school after responding to emails from my boyfriend. Tutorial was OK, then Events class where the teacher is really fun, but doesn't seem to teach very much in class. Most of his lectures end up going into tangent stories and very broadly cover events. He never gives breaks, but then lets us out early, so all of us walk downstairs to our next class and sit outside the door for 20 minutes. The next class, on Service Management, is my favorite and we had the first of a continuous series of 3-minute presentations from students in the class. My group's is due in a couple weeks and I will be the presenter. 50% of the grade on my shoulders while I have to speak in front of a class of about 200 for 180 seconds! Yikes. I was nervous for all of the speakers today, but they all did REALLY well, so the competition is going to be tough!
I headed home after class, happy to be off early, and got to talk to my boyfriend for a while. Lina hung out at our place for a while, so it was really nice to see her, since most of her days are spent next door at her boyfriend's house. I ended up falling asleep for a couple hours in the evening, but luckily was able to go to bed at a decent hour.
I headed home after class, happy to be off early, and got to talk to my boyfriend for a while. Lina hung out at our place for a while, so it was really nice to see her, since most of her days are spent next door at her boyfriend's house. I ended up falling asleep for a couple hours in the evening, but luckily was able to go to bed at a decent hour.
Monday, March 21, 2011
March 21
Monday, Monday! I slept in and then hurried off to my TSA meeting where we discussed how we are going to collaborate with other societies for our Japanese Relief Funds! It was a good meeting and I left in a pretty good mood. Stopped at the ATM and post office on the way home...
I'm not used to the humidity. When I look outside and see gray, I think it's going to be cold, so I wear jeans. But then I start sweating on the walk to the bustop! UGH. And even worse, when you walk inside to air-conditioning, it's freezing cold. The extremities are going to make me sick!
For the rest of the day, I skyped with my boyfriend and then cooked dinner, did some work for TSA and classes, then movie before bed!
I'm not used to the humidity. When I look outside and see gray, I think it's going to be cold, so I wear jeans. But then I start sweating on the walk to the bustop! UGH. And even worse, when you walk inside to air-conditioning, it's freezing cold. The extremities are going to make me sick!
For the rest of the day, I skyped with my boyfriend and then cooked dinner, did some work for TSA and classes, then movie before bed!
March 20
We probably should've gone to the market on a different day than Sunday because the buses don't come very often, but Jillian and I decided that we needed to pick up a few essentials. So, after skyping with my mom, we headed on the 1:16pm bus. It arrived a couple blocks from the grocery store at 1:25pm, leaving us about 20 minutes to shop for our items before the next bus came at 1:48 (if we missed that, we'd have to wait an entire hour for the 2:48 bus!). So, we pretended it was a Supermarket Sweep and split up the list, racing through the store and meeting back at the cashier. It was a little fun, and we made it with about 10 minutes to spare!! That was pretty much the highlight of our day. Then we went back to studying non-stop for our classes. Oh, and we found a baby gecko in our living room, so small! But we couldn't catch him.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
March 19
It rained all day and Michael said that this is probably the last hot weekend. UGGH. It can't be turning into fall/winter already!! We all stayed in today and read for our classes. I skyped with my boyfriend in the morning, then walked to the post office box in the rain (but it was still fairly warm out!). Later, Lina, Jillian and I went to the new Mexican place in Rosalie and it wasn't very good. Surprise, Surprise. Oh well. At least we had some roommate time together!
Friday, March 18, 2011
March 18
Felt good to sleep in! I made myself some breakfast and then decided to walk into Rosalie to get a couple things at the grocery store (and I had to go to the post-box, too). So, I walked down and discovered that the little mini grocer was closed for renovations after the flood! Duh! I guess I hadn't noticed that they're not back up and running yet. Ugh. Oh well, at least I got out of the house for a bit. So, I headed back and took a shower then caught up on emails and school work for the rest of the day. I had a skype date with my boyfriend in the afternoon, which was frankly disappointing. I think I put too much expectation that it's going to be magical and then it's not, so I'm disappointed. Oh well. Hopefully we can find a groove, since so far we seem to work so well in spite of that and the major distance issue. I still have pretty high hopes for us, so we'll see. Jillian and I discovered another gecko in the kitchen. But this one is a baby, so maybe more harmless than the last one! haha Anyway, then I watched a couple movies before bed.
March 17
I slept in because my class doesn't start until noon on Thursdays. It was very dry material, but research methods always is. I was feeling pretty exhausted. Lina and Jillian headed off to an Irish pub for St. Patty's Day and I thought about meeting them after, but knew I wasn't going to get out of school until late. I made the mistake of asking our professor a question about something after class and he talked my ear off for about 15 minutes about research and how exciting it is. No offense, sir, but I don't want to get a PhD and become a professor, so I'm not really interested in it that much. Ugh. I tried to pick up some assignments from the previous semester, but they didn't have them, so I just drank a milkshake while I waited for our lab to start. In the lab, we also got assigned homework. I feel bitter about this! Why on earth do I have to do this "practice work" if we aren't graded? It seems so pointless!! UGH. It's just a waste of time. But oh well, then I met up with Jane and Manuel for another group project meeting, but we only briefly chatted about one of our projects. Then it was 5pm and I headed home in rush hour as usual. Traffic around the city has been much worse these days because the city cat ferry service isn't running (due to the floods).
The girls told me to go home and change before I met up with them, but when I got home, I was feeling lazy and stressed about assignments (and I also didn't want to go out and spend money on drinks). So I stayed in. I looked over to see the kitchen gecko crawling in my room and zip into my closet! Nooo!!! His little beady eyes stared at me before he zoomed over my socks!! Gross! I tried to move him, but he went further in and then I panicked - what if he runs under my bed?! Then I'll never be able to get him out.. And then, what if he crawls on my face in the middle of the night! Ahhh. So, I closed my other two closet doors and got a bowl to attack! I moved the things off the bottom of my closet and cornered him. Twice, I almost got him into the bowl, but once, I didn't know and he accidentally fell out. Then he scurried for my bed! UGH. He climbed on the wall behind my headboard and my bed is too heavy to move, so I just left him there and was going to wait for him to come out. I sat on the other end of my bed, working on school work until I almost gave up and was about to go to bed, but the girls came home. They decided to help me and we waged an all out attack on this gecko. They completely destroyed my bed which made me frustrated, because that's what I DIDN'T want to do... But, armed with a flashlight a stick and a bowl, after about 30 minutes of chasing him from one corner of the bed to the other, we go him to run out and I slammed the bowl on top of him!! Then we used the cutting board to slide it under there and carried him outside. "And stay out!" Jillian yelled at him! Whew! What a workout. But at least I can sleep with peace of mind, now.
The girls told me to go home and change before I met up with them, but when I got home, I was feeling lazy and stressed about assignments (and I also didn't want to go out and spend money on drinks). So I stayed in. I looked over to see the kitchen gecko crawling in my room and zip into my closet! Nooo!!! His little beady eyes stared at me before he zoomed over my socks!! Gross! I tried to move him, but he went further in and then I panicked - what if he runs under my bed?! Then I'll never be able to get him out.. And then, what if he crawls on my face in the middle of the night! Ahhh. So, I closed my other two closet doors and got a bowl to attack! I moved the things off the bottom of my closet and cornered him. Twice, I almost got him into the bowl, but once, I didn't know and he accidentally fell out. Then he scurried for my bed! UGH. He climbed on the wall behind my headboard and my bed is too heavy to move, so I just left him there and was going to wait for him to come out. I sat on the other end of my bed, working on school work until I almost gave up and was about to go to bed, but the girls came home. They decided to help me and we waged an all out attack on this gecko. They completely destroyed my bed which made me frustrated, because that's what I DIDN'T want to do... But, armed with a flashlight a stick and a bowl, after about 30 minutes of chasing him from one corner of the bed to the other, we go him to run out and I slammed the bowl on top of him!! Then we used the cutting board to slide it under there and carried him outside. "And stay out!" Jillian yelled at him! Whew! What a workout. But at least I can sleep with peace of mind, now.
March 16
Wednesdays are also long, especially now that I have a group meeting at 9am! Ugh. So, I woke up early for that, and dreaded the long day to come. It was a bit confusing to find our meeting, but finally we did. We did some introductions and found out that we all have significant others, some followed their boyfriend or girlfriend when they moved here! Crazy. That seems over-the-top to me. Anyway, our group meeting went pretty well. We all get along and have the same understanding of the article. I am going to be doing the 3-minute presentation in class, which I expected. Whatever. Hopefully I can do it well. I'm usually pretty confident and then end up being nervous at the end. =(
Then I had an hour break where I printed stuff in the library before class. The class was soo boring, I was falling asleep and I felt bad because I think the professor saw me closing my eyes. Oh well. After class, I tried to nap in the grass, but of course, I couldn't sleep! Ugh! I hate that about me. So, I went back to the computer lab before my tutorial started. Same boring professor. Whatever. We got out early and I headed downtown to pick up some supplies at a stationary store, but the first one I went to was closed. Luckily the 2nd one was just about to close and I got exactly what I needed - it was perfect! Then home, where I worked on my project for my boyfriend and made some dinner and sleep at around 1:30am. Ugh
Then I had an hour break where I printed stuff in the library before class. The class was soo boring, I was falling asleep and I felt bad because I think the professor saw me closing my eyes. Oh well. After class, I tried to nap in the grass, but of course, I couldn't sleep! Ugh! I hate that about me. So, I went back to the computer lab before my tutorial started. Same boring professor. Whatever. We got out early and I headed downtown to pick up some supplies at a stationary store, but the first one I went to was closed. Luckily the 2nd one was just about to close and I got exactly what I needed - it was perfect! Then home, where I worked on my project for my boyfriend and made some dinner and sleep at around 1:30am. Ugh
March 15
Tuesdays are so hard. I woke up early, showered and ate breakfast, then got ready for school. As I am pulling my books together, Lina screams from the kitchen and suddenly there is an uproar in the kitchen. "What is it!?" I'm shouting back at them, thinking it must be a spider or ants or something. But when I walk in, I see surrounding the garbage can a ton of maggots, writhing and wiggling!! It was disgusting. I have ZERO idea how I possibly could have traipsed through them as I fixed myself some cereal, and ate at the counter next to them, without ever looking down to see them! I was completely grossed out. Lina says that they are caused from leaving meat in the trashcan for too long. I know that I took the trash out on Saturday when I cleaned the kitchen, so it's only been a few days. With all of the heat, a couple of flies got inside, so I'm sure that caused things to happen very quickly. Unfortunately (or fortunately!), I had to catch the bus and go to classes, but I felt awful leaving them with a mess to clean up! They were supposed to head to Straddie today, so I know this delayed their departure. I was beating myself up on the bus about it and most of the day, feeling awful that I was partly responsible and they were stuck cleaning it. Lina barely even lives here anymore, so it definitely wasn't something she threw away! =(
Anyway, I left about 20 minutes early, because I needed to print out a couple things in the computer lab. We don't have a printer, so I was unable to print the worksheet homework assignment for my tutorial. I typed it in Word and was going to print it, but because of rush hour and the buses, I arrived with 5 minutes to get to class! Ridiculous. There was nothing I could do. So, I told the tutor that I don't have a printer and didn't get a chance to print it. She was of course not too worried since most people didn't even do it, so she let this assignment slide. While my group-mates signed us up for a presentation date, I rushed off to our next class to get seats. Then we sat through a boring class that was supposed to be about cultural events, but he ended up talking about multi-culturalism the whole time. I'm not quite sure how that relates to event management, but whatever. This professor never takes a break midway through, he'd rather talk straight through and then let us out a few minutes early. So, I had about 10 minutes extra to go snag a chai and pastry twist to snack on. The next class was fun and interesting as always, so I felt a bit rejuvenated.
Then off to my TSA meeting, where I reported on the feedback from our event yesterday (I knew there was something else I wanted to print! Damn!) and discussed upcoming events. The president of our org is from one of the worst hit towns in Japan and so he has been pretty worried about friends and family in these recent days after the earthquake/tsunami. He had spoken to his parents once, but lost touch with them and hadn't heard from them in a few days, so he was very worried. The school was helping him search and luckily he reported today that he had received word that they are safe. Hiro is visibly very stressed about all of it, so I'm concerned, but he said that he's going to continue his studies and involvement in TSA as long as he can stand it. He also mentioned of partnering with the Japanese Student Association and other International societies on campus to build a joint effort in a fund-raising campaign for Japan. It's a great idea and looks like it will take off. My concern is the added work from having to organize something like this. Oh well. Not much choice in the matter.
Exhausted, I headed home. I was feeling pretty run down from the day, so luckily my boyfriend was there for me and let me call him to talk. That made me feel better. Then the girls, who were coming back from Stradbroke island invited me out to dinner at our favorite greek place in the west end. I guess we were all still feeling pretty grossed out by our kitchen despite the fact that we (they) bleached the floors.. So, I had a little pre-drink that took the edge off of the day, and headed to eat some delicious feta and souvlaki! All of that was just what I needed to decompress. I wish all bad days could end with nurturing from a boyfriend, a little drink, good food and friends!
Anyway, I left about 20 minutes early, because I needed to print out a couple things in the computer lab. We don't have a printer, so I was unable to print the worksheet homework assignment for my tutorial. I typed it in Word and was going to print it, but because of rush hour and the buses, I arrived with 5 minutes to get to class! Ridiculous. There was nothing I could do. So, I told the tutor that I don't have a printer and didn't get a chance to print it. She was of course not too worried since most people didn't even do it, so she let this assignment slide. While my group-mates signed us up for a presentation date, I rushed off to our next class to get seats. Then we sat through a boring class that was supposed to be about cultural events, but he ended up talking about multi-culturalism the whole time. I'm not quite sure how that relates to event management, but whatever. This professor never takes a break midway through, he'd rather talk straight through and then let us out a few minutes early. So, I had about 10 minutes extra to go snag a chai and pastry twist to snack on. The next class was fun and interesting as always, so I felt a bit rejuvenated.
Then off to my TSA meeting, where I reported on the feedback from our event yesterday (I knew there was something else I wanted to print! Damn!) and discussed upcoming events. The president of our org is from one of the worst hit towns in Japan and so he has been pretty worried about friends and family in these recent days after the earthquake/tsunami. He had spoken to his parents once, but lost touch with them and hadn't heard from them in a few days, so he was very worried. The school was helping him search and luckily he reported today that he had received word that they are safe. Hiro is visibly very stressed about all of it, so I'm concerned, but he said that he's going to continue his studies and involvement in TSA as long as he can stand it. He also mentioned of partnering with the Japanese Student Association and other International societies on campus to build a joint effort in a fund-raising campaign for Japan. It's a great idea and looks like it will take off. My concern is the added work from having to organize something like this. Oh well. Not much choice in the matter.
Exhausted, I headed home. I was feeling pretty run down from the day, so luckily my boyfriend was there for me and let me call him to talk. That made me feel better. Then the girls, who were coming back from Stradbroke island invited me out to dinner at our favorite greek place in the west end. I guess we were all still feeling pretty grossed out by our kitchen despite the fact that we (they) bleached the floors.. So, I had a little pre-drink that took the edge off of the day, and headed to eat some delicious feta and souvlaki! All of that was just what I needed to decompress. I wish all bad days could end with nurturing from a boyfriend, a little drink, good food and friends!
March 14
On Monday, I don't have classes, but I did have an event for the Tourism Student Association. It was a hotel meeting at the 5-star Emporium Hotel in the Valley. It took a while to take a bus there and find the place, but luckily I left early. There was only about 14 of us, a small group, but the event went surprisingly well. We got a tour of the hotel, rooms, kitchen, event space, etc. which was followed by a question and answer session. Students asked some pretty pointed questions and the hotel was very informative. I found it pretty useful for our major and was surprised more people don't attend these functions!
After that, I had to go to Ashgrove for a package that was left for me at the post office. I had ordered books from school and since there was free home delivery, I opted for that. But since the post-man couldn't find me or no one was home or something, they left it at the post office. Normally, packages get held at the Paddington Post Office, which is inconvenient because it's up the hill, but this one was mysteriously left in Ashgrove (even farther away and not on the way from campus to my house!). So, I had to figure out the two buses to get there and it took an hour to get there and an hour to then take 2 buses back home! What a waste of my day. Silly me. Last semester I didn't even really buy books for classes, don't know why I decided to this time!
The rest of the day, I worked on TSA stuff and other school work. The tutor for one of my classes emailed us at about 8pm and asked us to do some homework that would be due at 9am the next morning! I rushed through it, knowing that most people wouldn't even get the email or have enough time to do it. I don't understand the concept of homework that we aren't graded for. Why would I waste my time doing something I'm not assessed on?? But of course, I did it because I don't want to look like a bad student in class. I ate dinner at about 10pm and then worked for the rest of the evening on a project for my boyfriend, until about 1am...
After that, I had to go to Ashgrove for a package that was left for me at the post office. I had ordered books from school and since there was free home delivery, I opted for that. But since the post-man couldn't find me or no one was home or something, they left it at the post office. Normally, packages get held at the Paddington Post Office, which is inconvenient because it's up the hill, but this one was mysteriously left in Ashgrove (even farther away and not on the way from campus to my house!). So, I had to figure out the two buses to get there and it took an hour to get there and an hour to then take 2 buses back home! What a waste of my day. Silly me. Last semester I didn't even really buy books for classes, don't know why I decided to this time!
The rest of the day, I worked on TSA stuff and other school work. The tutor for one of my classes emailed us at about 8pm and asked us to do some homework that would be due at 9am the next morning! I rushed through it, knowing that most people wouldn't even get the email or have enough time to do it. I don't understand the concept of homework that we aren't graded for. Why would I waste my time doing something I'm not assessed on?? But of course, I did it because I don't want to look like a bad student in class. I ate dinner at about 10pm and then worked for the rest of the evening on a project for my boyfriend, until about 1am...
Monday, March 14, 2011
March 13
Caught up on a bunch of reading for class today, very boring. Our friend, Gabby came over to pick up some stuff she had stored at our house over the school break. So, we caught up with her and discussed what had happened in the past couple months, etc. She owed me some money from Thailand, so she finally paid me back! Whoo! But Jillian warned me that there've been some fake bills going around, especially the yellow $50 bills. She quickly checked mine and told me that indeed I had received a counterfeit. I guess on the real bills, the name is listed under the photo, but in the fakes, there's no name. She told me she had gotten a fake bill from a gas station ATM recently and spent it. Most Aussies don't even know about this problem which is apparently pretty rampant, so we'll just act dumb and go along using it as legitimate tender. We met up with my friends from California for dinner because they are leaving tomorrow and I immediately used my counterfeit $50 to pay for the bill, making it the restaurant's problem!
Then, on our way home, the taxi-driver tried to screw us over! We started going the wrong way, toward Ashgrove, but I justified it in my mind that he was going to get on the freeway or something. Then I watched him continue to Ashgrove, ignoring two of his GPS's directions! So, I yelled at him and said that we were going the wrong way! He said he was just following his directions and I pointed out that he wasn't. So, he turned and we went over by Caxton St, and up Milton, the right way. But then we didn't turn into Milton, we kept going straight. By this time I had already told him that I am familiar with the price of a taxi from the valley to our house and it's usually $16 (the meter already read $15 and we weren't close to home) and I told him that I wasn't going to pay more than that because he was taking us the wrong way. But he went straight through Milton and around over by the circle to get to our house. Very weird. I'm not sure why he was wasting his gas. I guess Vietnam isn't the only place where they try to screw you over! Ugh.
Apparently our mold situation will be fixed soon. The insurance company is processing the claim, so we should get stuff fixed in the next couple weeks. =(
Then, on our way home, the taxi-driver tried to screw us over! We started going the wrong way, toward Ashgrove, but I justified it in my mind that he was going to get on the freeway or something. Then I watched him continue to Ashgrove, ignoring two of his GPS's directions! So, I yelled at him and said that we were going the wrong way! He said he was just following his directions and I pointed out that he wasn't. So, he turned and we went over by Caxton St, and up Milton, the right way. But then we didn't turn into Milton, we kept going straight. By this time I had already told him that I am familiar with the price of a taxi from the valley to our house and it's usually $16 (the meter already read $15 and we weren't close to home) and I told him that I wasn't going to pay more than that because he was taking us the wrong way. But he went straight through Milton and around over by the circle to get to our house. Very weird. I'm not sure why he was wasting his gas. I guess Vietnam isn't the only place where they try to screw you over! Ugh.
Apparently our mold situation will be fixed soon. The insurance company is processing the claim, so we should get stuff fixed in the next couple weeks. =(
Saturday, March 12, 2011
March 12
Today I slept in and caught up on reading for school. It's pretty nice to have 4 day weekends!
While I was cooking dinner, I saw a gecko run across the wall. He ran up into the corner and I watched him for a bit, hoping he wouldn't try to get into the food I was making! Then he came down a little lower, and slipped behind the oven! It must've been hot in there because I was cooking on the stove. I was afraid the whole time that he would either come out the bottom and run across my feet or jump into the pan! But he stayed in there. I saw him later in the evening and tried to catch him, but he ran across the kitchen and under the fridge, so I can't catch him anymore. I don't know how I'm ever going to be able to chase him away! Guess I'll just act like I did in SE Asia and ignore him. =(
While I was cooking dinner, I saw a gecko run across the wall. He ran up into the corner and I watched him for a bit, hoping he wouldn't try to get into the food I was making! Then he came down a little lower, and slipped behind the oven! It must've been hot in there because I was cooking on the stove. I was afraid the whole time that he would either come out the bottom and run across my feet or jump into the pan! But he stayed in there. I saw him later in the evening and tried to catch him, but he ran across the kitchen and under the fridge, so I can't catch him anymore. I don't know how I'm ever going to be able to chase him away! Guess I'll just act like I did in SE Asia and ignore him. =(
March 11
On Fridays I don't have class, but I woke up pretty early because I was a bit hungover from the night before. We have no food in the house, so I went to the store. I didn't go to Coles because I was feeling lazy going on my own. I just went to the IGA market in Milton. I knew it was more expensive, but didn't remember how much more until I walked in and saw some ridiculous prices! UGH! Oh well, too late, I was already there. So, I did some shopping and got a bunch of stuff for the week, then trekked it all home on the bus. The kitchen is filthy and had ants, so before I even could make breakfast, I felt like I had to clean the kitchen. So, I did that, then immediately made it dirty by cooking a big breakfast. Then I decided to relax for most of the day and skype with my boyfriend. In the evening, Jillian and I went out with Bronwyn, who happens to be our landlord's ex girlfriend. She invited us and we did like her while they were dating, but they were very wrong for each other. I think he wants someone who's ready to settle down and she definitely wasn't ready for that. Anyway, we got the OK from Michael and met her in the West End for some drinks at the Archive. I invited my new American friend, Christian, but he didn't come until late and by then most of Bronwyn's friends had left and we were bored. So, we went home pretty early. Not an exciting night. Oh well.
Friday, March 11, 2011
March 10
Thursday I didn't have a seminar in the morning, which I was happy about, so I got to sleep in and then go to my noon class on research methods. It's pretty boring material and I'm a bit scared how much statistical analysis it's going to require, but oh well. We basically learned the same stuff we did last week, which was odd and then he told us to draw a picture of a house, tree, mountains, sun, river and snake! After we were finished he told us it was a personality test and what each of the items "represents":
House - Detail is your willingness to settle down or lack of detail means that you always want to travel, etc.
Tree - Represents your social connections. Lots of detail/branches means that you have lots of friends, big tree shape with no detail means you have lots of acquaintances but few that you consider super close.
Mountains - The ups and downs in your life, sharp peaks and deep valleys or everything's groovy with rolling hills?
Sun - Size represents your energy level and the rays represent your willingness to give to others.
River - This is the amount of control you have over your life. A river that goes up and down on the page, means that you have little control, one that goes across the page means lots of control
Snake - This represents sexuality. And the wiggles represent how sexy you are.
Here's my drawing:
My friend Andy drew a snake that covered more than half of the page, and breathed fire and was quite scary! We all laughed hysterically when we found out what it meant.
After class, I headed home and didn't have much time before I got ready to go out for Andy's International Students BBQ. There were only about 14 of us there, but very mixed: 3 Thai, 2 Tawainese, 2 Korean, 2 French and 2 American. There is finally another American in my class and so I was happy to meet him and get to talk in regular American English instead of broken Asian-accented English! haha. We went out to the bars afterwards and then I headed home in a taxi around midnight.
House - Detail is your willingness to settle down or lack of detail means that you always want to travel, etc.
Tree - Represents your social connections. Lots of detail/branches means that you have lots of friends, big tree shape with no detail means you have lots of acquaintances but few that you consider super close.
Mountains - The ups and downs in your life, sharp peaks and deep valleys or everything's groovy with rolling hills?
Sun - Size represents your energy level and the rays represent your willingness to give to others.
River - This is the amount of control you have over your life. A river that goes up and down on the page, means that you have little control, one that goes across the page means lots of control
Snake - This represents sexuality. And the wiggles represent how sexy you are.
Here's my drawing:
My friend Andy drew a snake that covered more than half of the page, and breathed fire and was quite scary! We all laughed hysterically when we found out what it meant.
After class, I headed home and didn't have much time before I got ready to go out for Andy's International Students BBQ. There were only about 14 of us there, but very mixed: 3 Thai, 2 Tawainese, 2 Korean, 2 French and 2 American. There is finally another American in my class and so I was happy to meet him and get to talk in regular American English instead of broken Asian-accented English! haha. We went out to the bars afterwards and then I headed home in a taxi around midnight.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
March 9
Woke up early to construction outside our window. UGH. But then I was feeling so lazy and dreading my class. I cut it pretty close to the bus departure time, but luckily got up and rushed out the door in time. Class was atrocious and boring. It's about Business Events. There are so many types of events - life cycle, sporting, business, cultural, festivals, etc, etc. Why is there a whole class dedicated to Business Events and not any of the others?! It's so boring. Oh well. Then I ate some lunch with Jane and discussed what we would take next semester. She said that the Entrepreneurial class I'd been excited about was actually pretty lousy and that she was going to go sit in on a lecture for the Business School's Entrepreneurial class. So, I agreed to go with her and we went to our tutorial with our same favorite teacher to discuss more on the assessments. After, we walked to the business class and I sat there for about 20 minutes. I finally decided that I need to compare to our program's course and can't do that until next semester. So I think I will go to both classes in the first week and decide which I want to take then! Yay. Back home, I caught up on a bunch of miscellaneous to-do's, ate dinner and tried to relax a bit.
March 8
Tuesdays are my hard days this semester. I woke up in time for my 9am seminar, which was decent. Then had classes back to back. They were good and I'm still enjoying them more than my other classes on Wed and Thurs. My 2nd professor now calls me "LA" because he forgot I was from Redondo. Weird. I guess he's going to end up calling out all of the people he knows in every class! Ugh. Even though I was starving, I headed straight for my TSA meeting after class, which was an hour and a half. Came home, took an hour break to talk to my boyfriend on skype (and make food), then I worked for the rest of the night on TSA work and school stuff. I was exhausted and burnt out by midnight. I guess it's good that I enjoy these two classes or else I'd be less inclined to go to them each week.
March 7
On Monday, we packed up and took a cab to the airport. Again, I was reminded how much I got screwed over to check my bag and was angry... My friends went to a hostel in Fortitude Valley while Jillian and I headed home. I caught up on school work and emails, etc. then met up with my friends in the Valley for a couple drinks and some dinner. Jillian wanted to go out more, but since I have an early class, I called it a night and so we bussed back home. For some reason, I was in such a good mood when I got back home. I always enjoy my time with Jillian and we didn't even have that great of conversation, but was just happy to be out with her, laughing about random stuff. I was exhausted so ended up falling asleep pretty early!
March 6
We signed up for a tour to see the Blue Mountains on Sunday, so we set our alarms for early and took a tour bus out to the Blue Mountains. It was a little chilly today, so I'm glad that we had such a nice beach day and a cooler day to go hiking. The area is very pretty, I didn't realize it was mesas instead of typical conical mountains. We got some good views and photos:
The last photo is of the "Three Sisters" rock formation. When we got back (late) from the tour, Kelly and Athena and I went out to dinner at an Austrian place called Una's. It was alright. Then to bed early because we were exhausted all day for some reason.
The last photo is of the "Three Sisters" rock formation. When we got back (late) from the tour, Kelly and Athena and I went out to dinner at an Austrian place called Una's. It was alright. Then to bed early because we were exhausted all day for some reason.
March 5
After a night on the town in Sydney, we slept in. When we finally got up, we walked down to Harry's Pie Shop, which is famous in Sydney for delicious Meat Pies! I ordered a beef pie with mashed peas on top! Yumm.
We tried walking to Darling Harbour, but I got a text from my classmate that the Mardi Gras Parade was starting earlier than expected. So, we freaked out a little bit and headed back to our hostel before realizing that we still had lots of time. So, we rested and then took our time getting ready. We chugged some beer before leaving and then around 5pm, we walked to a spot near Oxford St for our view of the parade. Here's Jillian in costume!
Here's all of us, waiting on the sidelines:
We waited amongst a group of older people, an old Spanish lady, and a group of deaf people. The Spanish lady kept coming in and out of the front row because her back hurt to stand for long periods of time. We tolerated it and saved her spot for her, but were still a bit annoyed she would get this privilege. I think us Americans were too loud for the hard-of-hearing people because they spent some of it, covering their ears.
Some 3 hours later, the parade started and it was a jumble of color and nudity and diversity and beauty!! Fabulous floats and costumes and synchronized dances, awesome music!
After the parade, people poured into the streets and we walked toward Oxford to find a bar or something. But every bar was already full, so we decided to eat instead. We had to get up early the next morning, so we headed home after that and were in bed by about 12:30am.
Here's a photo of me:
We tried walking to Darling Harbour, but I got a text from my classmate that the Mardi Gras Parade was starting earlier than expected. So, we freaked out a little bit and headed back to our hostel before realizing that we still had lots of time. So, we rested and then took our time getting ready. We chugged some beer before leaving and then around 5pm, we walked to a spot near Oxford St for our view of the parade. Here's Jillian in costume!
Here's all of us, waiting on the sidelines:
We waited amongst a group of older people, an old Spanish lady, and a group of deaf people. The Spanish lady kept coming in and out of the front row because her back hurt to stand for long periods of time. We tolerated it and saved her spot for her, but were still a bit annoyed she would get this privilege. I think us Americans were too loud for the hard-of-hearing people because they spent some of it, covering their ears.
Some 3 hours later, the parade started and it was a jumble of color and nudity and diversity and beauty!! Fabulous floats and costumes and synchronized dances, awesome music!
Here's a photo of me:
March 4
In the morning, we woke up and met up with our respective friends. Jillian, Kelly, Athena and I went to the Royal Botanical Gardens for a free tour. Lina and Lina also went, but I think they wanted to be alone because they refused to plan anything with us. The tour was pretty boring because the guy talked very slowly, but at least it was a relaxing day in the park! In the gardens, there are bats that hang from trees everywhere, in the daylight! I guess they moved to the park and never left, so it's been a bit of a hassle for the park. They're pretty creepy.
Here's a photo of the park:
Then we walked to the Sydney Opera House and Circular Quay to see the Harbour Bridge:
We took a train back to our hostel, got into our bikini's and headed to Bondi Beach for the afternoon! It was the perfect day for the beach! Beautiful blue sky, sunny and warm, but not too hot! We laid on the sand for a while before the official festivities began - the Bondi Beach Drag Races. I met up with one of my classmates, Nate, for a short bit. He's from China and this is his first time seeing such festivities. Before the events, he asked me, "What does 'drag' mean?" I laughed, thinking if he doesn't know what drag is before this weekend, then he might be in for the shock of his life!
The Drag Races are a bunch of silly races and competitions for ridiculously dressed Drag Queens. The host made the show with all of his/her jokes and commentary. They had a 3-heeled race, a purse throwing competition, a sand-castle competition, etc. It was great fun and a good show!
Afterwards, everyone headed for the buses, so we decided to get a drink and a bite to eat at a local pizza place. We still struggled to find a bus, but finally made it back to our hostel. Athena called it an early night, but Jillian and Kelly and I went out for a night on the town. The bars by our hostel were pretty empty, so we cabbed over to the gay district and went to a place called Stonewall, where we danced with a bunch of gay boys.
Here's a photo of the park:
Then we walked to the Sydney Opera House and Circular Quay to see the Harbour Bridge:
We took a train back to our hostel, got into our bikini's and headed to Bondi Beach for the afternoon! It was the perfect day for the beach! Beautiful blue sky, sunny and warm, but not too hot! We laid on the sand for a while before the official festivities began - the Bondi Beach Drag Races. I met up with one of my classmates, Nate, for a short bit. He's from China and this is his first time seeing such festivities. Before the events, he asked me, "What does 'drag' mean?" I laughed, thinking if he doesn't know what drag is before this weekend, then he might be in for the shock of his life!
The Drag Races are a bunch of silly races and competitions for ridiculously dressed Drag Queens. The host made the show with all of his/her jokes and commentary. They had a 3-heeled race, a purse throwing competition, a sand-castle competition, etc. It was great fun and a good show!
Afterwards, everyone headed for the buses, so we decided to get a drink and a bite to eat at a local pizza place. We still struggled to find a bus, but finally made it back to our hostel. Athena called it an early night, but Jillian and Kelly and I went out for a night on the town. The bars by our hostel were pretty empty, so we cabbed over to the gay district and went to a place called Stonewall, where we danced with a bunch of gay boys.
March 3
On Thursday, I went to my 4th and final class of the week - Research Methods. It's as boring as it sounds and the professor doesn't make it much better. I got called out as "California" for a while and even got caught texting in class when he asked me some question about the US education system! Whoops. Then he felt bad and asked my name. I said, "Kate." He said, "Not Katie?" I said, "Not Katie." Then he told some weird story about how his niece is just Kate, too. Ok, whatever.
After class, I had a couple of obligations. We got out a bit early, so I thought I'd head over to the office of my ex-professor from last semester, Lisa. During the semester, I helped her with a list of stuff to see in LA when she visited and ever since, well, I sorta became a suck-up (not that that's any different than usual - most teachers know me, think I'm friendly and lively and still give me average marks). Anyway, she's young and I like her, so I facebooked her that I missed her teaching. She asked if I wanted to come talk to her undergrads about my experiences with Volunteer Tourism and I thought what a fabulous opportunity to share that and maybe promote New Hope, where I volunteered at in Cambodia! Soo, I went to drop by her office to discuss this with her, but my TSA President was already there talking to her about his PhD application or thesis or something. I only had about 10 minutes to spare before all of us were supposed to be at a School of Tourism Welcome event (just snacks and mingling). So, I barely got to talk to her on the walk over to that event, but it sounds like it's a go! And she even asked if they could do a little write-up about me for the School's newsletter. I was like sure, why not!
Anyway, instead of going to the welcome event, I had another commitment, I went to an informational meeting about a possible trip to Venice for a field study program in July. They finally set the price, which means I'll be able to decide. It was exactly what I expected - very expensive. So, I'm still completely undecided about the whole thing. The Pros are that I would get to do one less class in my final semester, this class seems fun and easy, I love any excuse to go to Italy! The Cons are the price, the fact that it's the exact same trip I did with my ex-boyfriend so I wouldn't really see much new, and the fact that it's mostly undergrads (although I don't care too much, probably end up bonding with some of them or the profs). But, I'll have to decide within about a week because that's when a deposit is due.
After that, I rushed home and had about 20 minutes to spare so I could scarf down some food, finish packing essentials and head off to the airport with Jillian! We've been planning this trip to Sydney for a few months - ever since I saw great deals on JetStar for the weekend of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras! But now that it's upon us and I just got back from so many long trips, we are all feeling a bit depleted (of energy, money, etc). We took the bus and train to the airport. When we checked in, the lady said my bag was too heavy. I guess >10 kilos is too much for JetStar. And it didn't even fit in the tiny bin (which is way smaller than an overhead compartment, btw). So, even though my bag is a carry-on anywhere else, she made me check it. Jillian's was under-weight, but also unable to stuff into the stupid size restrictions, so they made her check it too! And then proceeded to charge us $80 to do so! Just when I had sucked it up and handed over my card, the lady said "Now, will you be bringing this same suitcase back to Brisbane on your return flight?!" I was like goddammit! Yes, of course. So, they charged me a 'discounted' rate of $40 to check it on the return. What a rip off. I was livid that I had to pay so much. I mean $120!!! I could've bought a ticket to the expensive Mardi Gras After Party for that much money! Ugh.
Oh well, I ran into my classmate, Jane and we all waited for our flight to Sydney. The girls gave me the window since it was my first time flying into Sydney, which was nice of them because I did get to see the Harbor Bridge and Opera House! We got to Sydney and took a taxi to our hostel. I found my friends from California (Athena and Kelly) who had just arrived that day completely passed out due to jet lag. So, the three of us, plus Lina's friend (also named Lina!) walked down the street to find some food. We ended up just getting some fast food - kabobs and beer and eating it in the hostel lounge before bed.
After class, I had a couple of obligations. We got out a bit early, so I thought I'd head over to the office of my ex-professor from last semester, Lisa. During the semester, I helped her with a list of stuff to see in LA when she visited and ever since, well, I sorta became a suck-up (not that that's any different than usual - most teachers know me, think I'm friendly and lively and still give me average marks). Anyway, she's young and I like her, so I facebooked her that I missed her teaching. She asked if I wanted to come talk to her undergrads about my experiences with Volunteer Tourism and I thought what a fabulous opportunity to share that and maybe promote New Hope, where I volunteered at in Cambodia! Soo, I went to drop by her office to discuss this with her, but my TSA President was already there talking to her about his PhD application or thesis or something. I only had about 10 minutes to spare before all of us were supposed to be at a School of Tourism Welcome event (just snacks and mingling). So, I barely got to talk to her on the walk over to that event, but it sounds like it's a go! And she even asked if they could do a little write-up about me for the School's newsletter. I was like sure, why not!
Anyway, instead of going to the welcome event, I had another commitment, I went to an informational meeting about a possible trip to Venice for a field study program in July. They finally set the price, which means I'll be able to decide. It was exactly what I expected - very expensive. So, I'm still completely undecided about the whole thing. The Pros are that I would get to do one less class in my final semester, this class seems fun and easy, I love any excuse to go to Italy! The Cons are the price, the fact that it's the exact same trip I did with my ex-boyfriend so I wouldn't really see much new, and the fact that it's mostly undergrads (although I don't care too much, probably end up bonding with some of them or the profs). But, I'll have to decide within about a week because that's when a deposit is due.
After that, I rushed home and had about 20 minutes to spare so I could scarf down some food, finish packing essentials and head off to the airport with Jillian! We've been planning this trip to Sydney for a few months - ever since I saw great deals on JetStar for the weekend of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras! But now that it's upon us and I just got back from so many long trips, we are all feeling a bit depleted (of energy, money, etc). We took the bus and train to the airport. When we checked in, the lady said my bag was too heavy. I guess >10 kilos is too much for JetStar. And it didn't even fit in the tiny bin (which is way smaller than an overhead compartment, btw). So, even though my bag is a carry-on anywhere else, she made me check it. Jillian's was under-weight, but also unable to stuff into the stupid size restrictions, so they made her check it too! And then proceeded to charge us $80 to do so! Just when I had sucked it up and handed over my card, the lady said "Now, will you be bringing this same suitcase back to Brisbane on your return flight?!" I was like goddammit! Yes, of course. So, they charged me a 'discounted' rate of $40 to check it on the return. What a rip off. I was livid that I had to pay so much. I mean $120!!! I could've bought a ticket to the expensive Mardi Gras After Party for that much money! Ugh.
Oh well, I ran into my classmate, Jane and we all waited for our flight to Sydney. The girls gave me the window since it was my first time flying into Sydney, which was nice of them because I did get to see the Harbor Bridge and Opera House! We got to Sydney and took a taxi to our hostel. I found my friends from California (Athena and Kelly) who had just arrived that day completely passed out due to jet lag. So, the three of us, plus Lina's friend (also named Lina!) walked down the street to find some food. We ended up just getting some fast food - kabobs and beer and eating it in the hostel lounge before bed.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
March 2
Woke up in the middle of the night to a lightning storm and pouring rain. So I ran outside because my shoes were still drying out. And put them under the porch. After 1 minute of moving shoes, my back was soaking wet! So, I went back to sleep or tried to with distant thunder and the sky lighting up every few seconds!
When I woke up for good, I made myself a hearty breakfast and then went to class. It was with Robyn, who I had for two classes last semester and don't really like. She is pretty boring and talks with a monotone voice. It doesn't help that she is discussing the world of Business Events. Oh well, at least we get to make fun of what she wears and her technical difficulties every week! No seminars this week so I took the bus back home and spent the rest of the afternoon backing up my computer, skyping my family and doing misc stuff.
When I woke up for good, I made myself a hearty breakfast and then went to class. It was with Robyn, who I had for two classes last semester and don't really like. She is pretty boring and talks with a monotone voice. It doesn't help that she is discussing the world of Business Events. Oh well, at least we get to make fun of what she wears and her technical difficulties every week! No seminars this week so I took the bus back home and spent the rest of the afternoon backing up my computer, skyping my family and doing misc stuff.
March 1
First day of School!
Woke up early, and headed off to classes! Today I had Principles of Event Management and International Services Management. Both are going to be fun classes because the professors are lively and funny. They are in nice, new classrooms, which is way better than the old classrooms I had last semester. I got to see all of my friends from classes again. First thing out of their mouths was to ask if I had lost weight! I don't think I've lost weight!? Very weird. In the 2nd course, we have a group project and so of course my friends and I were eying each other, but the Professor had already picked random groups. Luckily, I have 2 Chinese, myself, 1 Aussie, and 1 Canadian. Yay for Westerners! The professor is American and there's one other American guy in the class. The prof. often picks on him and calls him "San Diego". I am now nicknamed"Redondo Beach". Oh well. At least I enjoy participating in class! Both classes seem pretty easy, so I'm looking forward to them.
After class, I headed to the Financial Aid office to talk with the lady there. She apparently screwed up last semester and gave us the full amount for the year, so my only option for a loan is through GradPlus, which charges a much higher interest rate! I didn't like that option and so I declined and will borrow from my mom. I hate the thought of being indebted to my mom, but it's better than crazy interest rates! On my way home, I stopped at the store and bought some food. I'm not quite sure what Jillian has been eating, because there wasn't much in the house. Luckily I ran into her on the bus, so she was able to help me schlep the groceries home!
My room was the least effected by the mold, however there was some growing on my shoes, so all of my shoes are currently in the study. I bought ammonia at the store and spent a good hour wiping my shoes with ammonia to kill all of the nasty mold. I set them out in the waning afternoon sun to dry. Then I put away some laundry and changed the sheets on my bed. Michael bought us summer sheets, but I guess he mixed up my room with Jillian's, so when I tried to put them on, they were too small for my bed. I guess we had never noticed before that I have a bigger bed than Jillian's, which makes no sense because I have the smaller room and my bed takes up so much space in it! I'd rather have the smaller bed and more floor space! Oh well. So, I traded new sheets with Jillian and all is happy. Spent the rest of the evening figuring out a budget, paying tuition, etc. and then I went to bed early.
Woke up early, and headed off to classes! Today I had Principles of Event Management and International Services Management. Both are going to be fun classes because the professors are lively and funny. They are in nice, new classrooms, which is way better than the old classrooms I had last semester. I got to see all of my friends from classes again. First thing out of their mouths was to ask if I had lost weight! I don't think I've lost weight!? Very weird. In the 2nd course, we have a group project and so of course my friends and I were eying each other, but the Professor had already picked random groups. Luckily, I have 2 Chinese, myself, 1 Aussie, and 1 Canadian. Yay for Westerners! The professor is American and there's one other American guy in the class. The prof. often picks on him and calls him "San Diego". I am now nicknamed"Redondo Beach". Oh well. At least I enjoy participating in class! Both classes seem pretty easy, so I'm looking forward to them.
After class, I headed to the Financial Aid office to talk with the lady there. She apparently screwed up last semester and gave us the full amount for the year, so my only option for a loan is through GradPlus, which charges a much higher interest rate! I didn't like that option and so I declined and will borrow from my mom. I hate the thought of being indebted to my mom, but it's better than crazy interest rates! On my way home, I stopped at the store and bought some food. I'm not quite sure what Jillian has been eating, because there wasn't much in the house. Luckily I ran into her on the bus, so she was able to help me schlep the groceries home!
My room was the least effected by the mold, however there was some growing on my shoes, so all of my shoes are currently in the study. I bought ammonia at the store and spent a good hour wiping my shoes with ammonia to kill all of the nasty mold. I set them out in the waning afternoon sun to dry. Then I put away some laundry and changed the sheets on my bed. Michael bought us summer sheets, but I guess he mixed up my room with Jillian's, so when I tried to put them on, they were too small for my bed. I guess we had never noticed before that I have a bigger bed than Jillian's, which makes no sense because I have the smaller room and my bed takes up so much space in it! I'd rather have the smaller bed and more floor space! Oh well. So, I traded new sheets with Jillian and all is happy. Spent the rest of the evening figuring out a budget, paying tuition, etc. and then I went to bed early.
February 28
Had a great week in the states, went skiing in Mammoth, saw my mom for a day, went to a couple hockey games and relaxed a bit with my wonderful boyfriend. Wish I could've stayed longer, but I had to leave in order to make it home in time for my first day of classes. Meanwhile, back here in Brissie, my roommates discovered mold growing in our rooms. It was pretty severe, so they reported to me that Michael was hiring a mold specialist to fumigate the house and also rip out all the carpet to be replaced with tile floors. The fumigation has been done, but not the re-tiling so that will happen probably sometime next week after he gets approval from the insurance company. I guess it's safe to be in our house now, just a hassle because our stuff is all over the place and it's a mess with pieces of carpet torn up. etc.
During the break, I joined an organization with the University called the Tourism Student Association. I will be taking on secretarial duties this next semester. Unfortunately, the meeting was scheduled for the day I arrived back in Brisbane. So, without further ado, I got home and showered right away. Lina was offering a ride to campus with her boyfriend, so I gladly accepted and exactly 4 hours after arriving in Brisbane, I was taking notes in a meeting. What a whirlwind! After the meeting I met with the president to go over my responsibilities as secretary. My main duties are fine, easy secretarial stuff that won't take up much time. However, I am realizing that it might be a bit more work than I intended because of the events. I am expected to go and help out at these events, many of which I already have prior commitments like my family or friends in town. Our first event is next Monday, but when I got home, I looked up my flight information and saw that I will still be in Sydney on Monday! Ack! So, I sent an email about it and felt like a total jerk because I was already flaking on a bunch of stuff. Hopefully he isn't too mad at me!
Then I came home, unpacked, did 3 loads of laundry to dry in the Brisbane heat, did some work for TSA and got organized for my school work. Relaxed by watching an encore showing of the Oscars with Jillian.
During the break, I joined an organization with the University called the Tourism Student Association. I will be taking on secretarial duties this next semester. Unfortunately, the meeting was scheduled for the day I arrived back in Brisbane. So, without further ado, I got home and showered right away. Lina was offering a ride to campus with her boyfriend, so I gladly accepted and exactly 4 hours after arriving in Brisbane, I was taking notes in a meeting. What a whirlwind! After the meeting I met with the president to go over my responsibilities as secretary. My main duties are fine, easy secretarial stuff that won't take up much time. However, I am realizing that it might be a bit more work than I intended because of the events. I am expected to go and help out at these events, many of which I already have prior commitments like my family or friends in town. Our first event is next Monday, but when I got home, I looked up my flight information and saw that I will still be in Sydney on Monday! Ack! So, I sent an email about it and felt like a total jerk because I was already flaking on a bunch of stuff. Hopefully he isn't too mad at me!
Then I came home, unpacked, did 3 loads of laundry to dry in the Brisbane heat, did some work for TSA and got organized for my school work. Relaxed by watching an encore showing of the Oscars with Jillian.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
February 17-18
Our month-long trip through Cambodia and Vietnam for volunteering and sight-seeing was just as rewarding and exhausting as we thought it would be. I was very much looking forward to a relaxing 10 days before school started filled with absolutely nothing. However, over Valentine's Day, my boyfriend decided to buy me a ticket to go back to the states and the only time I could take advantage of such an offer was for this week. I must be crazy to be such a jet-setter! So, I arrived in Brisbane for exactly 16 hours. I went home, showered, unpacked my backpack from Cambodia, re-packed a bag for LA and then stayed up late trying to get ahead with the vacation photos, etc. Then woke up early, hopped in a cab and left for the airport, again!
January 15
Retouched some of my room in the morning, then cleaned my room and packed for Cambodia! Lina had a paper to write, so Jillian and Hilary and I left her alone to study and went out to dinner in the Valley. We ate at some Mexican fast food place that was OK, then had drinks at Cloudland, which is a bar with very cool atmosphere. We were very under-dressed, but because it was early and no one was going out because of the floods, they let us in. We ordered a pitcher of Sangria and sat in the lounge place by the door. The waiter approached our table, and lost his balance causing each wine glass to tip and shatter on our table. He was so embarrassed that the host served us for the rest of the time. However, the host came over to ensure we would get great service, but proceeded to spill wine all over my lap while pouring the first glass. It was a comedy of errors and luckily we were good sports about it. The host told us our next drinks were free, but unfortunately the Sangria jug we had already purchased was too much to finish. We walked around the Valley, then took a bus back home.
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