What Won't I Do in the A-U...

If you asked me 5 years ago where I thought I would be today, I never would have told you I would be a week away from moving to Australia. At that point in my life, I had never travelled outside of the US. I probably would have said something along the lines that- I was getting settled in an advertisement career and most likely would be beginning to build a home with “the-man-of-my-dreams”.  

Ever since I was little my parents made the only rule I remember we ever had to follow: “You [us Nota kids] have to wait until you are at least 25 to get married.”  Pretty sure at age 11, 12, & 13 I was in-love with someone EVERY week if it wasn’t someone from BSB surely it was NSYNC. I thought this was a ridiculous rule. Like RI-DIC-U-LOUS and it would never actually apply towards moi. I purposely would tease them that my wedding would be the day Right Before My 25^th- Rules, PSH…  But, of course, I was only joking and knew better if I ever want my Daddy to pay for my wedding day, Wink-Wink.   (In college, I even wrote a persuasive speech on why one should wait until they were at least 25 to get married- I had statistics and graphs backing my parents up! I got an ‘A’ of course; It was my passive way of thanking them for paying for college ;) )

Now that I’m barely 25 (but young enough looking I still get carded! Woo!) I can tell you that is the BEST RULE! Do you know how much I would be missing??? How many adventures I will get to go on. I would be missing A Chance of a Lifetime…   I have the whole rest of my life to fall-in love and get married (especially for how long people are living nowadays!!!) And For Now I’ve Made the choice to see the world while my bones are still healthy, I’m in good health, and I have a sense of adventure and willingness to try anything at least once. Added bonus, at the end of the day too in Australia, I get to do some good and help some people in need. Some of you may not have been made aware but NZ just had few more earthquakes right before Christmas L I cannot imagine their pain and frustrations, and feel like I am going over at what is now a perfect time.

Top Things I want to do in A-U:  (in no particular order…)

1. High Five a Koala Bear (But I promised my friend I would make sure it was handed to me first from a professional Koala Keeper and NOT from the wild L )
2. Purchase Wine from every Vineyard  I go to and send at least a case or two back to the states
3. Spend at least one day a week at the Beach-
4. Try Vegemite but probably only after I’ve gone to a pub after all the recent reactions I’ve heard
5. Learn to Throw a Boomerang
6. Make new friends (EVERYONE seems SOO Nice thus far) and appreciate their culture and style while learning Aussie-slang EX: Garage = Carport
7. Do as much Outside as possible- would love to go camping if the opportunity arises
8. Do weekend trips from Brisbane to other main cities as well as the Great Barrier Reef and do what I do best, get lost and experience it from a non-tourist point of view
9. Play with a Kangaroo
10. And most important to me, Stop every once in a while and Remember to “smell the roses”. I want to be consciously aware of all of my surroundings and embrace it.

 With a week left I am beyond excited! The packing is a bit more then I expected, but it is totally worth it! I look forward to my future endeavors and sharing them with you.

Love. Respect. Experience.

Real Surreal Times

surreal  [suh-ree-uhl, -reel]  adjective:

1. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of surrealism; surrealistic.

2. having the disorienting, hallucinatory quality of a dream; unreal; fantastic

TWENTY-TWO days left in the States and it STILL feels AU is a Dream; at least it’s a damn Good Dream!  (24 days until I actually arrive in Aussie Land meaning,  January 6^th, 2012 will never really exist for me… which also means upon my return- I will relive a day Groundhog Day Style- but Mine will be Awesome...)

I will be moving approximately 8,919.24 MILES AWAY. That is about THREE-HUNDRED AND FORTY MARATHONS with a HALF MARATHON thrown into the mix. REALLY Happy I do not have to run that, but that would sure make for One Elite Club…  Maybe that’s why it doesn’t feel so real- with about three weeks left, I have begun to say my “Until Next Time(s)”.  Hopefully it will begin to seem Real Soon!

I have finally committed to a home in Kelvin Grove. Kind of late but HEY everything else worked out so nicely I wasn’t worried! It is about a 20 min bus ride to work in Brisbane and is hooked up with all the bells and whistles like furniture, necessities, and internet. I have obviously purchased my one-way ticket, received my Visa, and my middle brother, Kevin, bought me a phone to use in Oz. The mobile will only be for my Australian contacts. Anyone I communicate back here will be via Skype or FB but mainly email.

I am just so very excited. I am sure you will hear me repeat myself, but I just feel SO lucky! And believe me this luckiness is beyond going to Australia. I have the BEST Best Friends a girl could ask for. My mom told me when I was little when I grow up, and sure- I’m still growing, I was lucky if I could fill up one-hand with the REAL I-will-be-here-through-Thick-and-Thin-Anything-You-Need-Kind-of-Friends. I currently fill up BOTH Hands and a Couple Toes; SERIOUSLY! And My Family is LEGIT Fabulous! My Dad- he is by far the most intelligent being I have ever met, and the youngest of my three brothers, Rob, definitely got his photo memory. But my daddy (and yes I still call him daddy) has a way of motivating me and influencing me and inspiring me to Do Big Things. Furthermore, he gives me the satisfaction of achieving it on my Own and not Spoon Feeding Me his success. My Mom- absolutely has the most gorgeous soul. She is very patient, encouraging, kind, realistic, sweet, caring, and a woman I know I could always count on and share anything with. My three brothers are beyond Remarkable- they each are unique and bring different qualities to the table I strive for. Shout out to my Oldest, Brad, for just getting Engaged to a Spectacular Young Lady!!! And at the end of the day they ALL Support Me and push me to be the Best as a person. I love and thank them all for being my fan and not denying me of opportunities for whatever reason.

I Will Always Choose an Experience Over a Materialistic Object. Love Respect Experience.

If you could pick anything to do, What would you want To Do? Would you overcome a fear? Visit your local cities tourist attractions? Travel to Italy? Go on a Cruise? Climb a Mountain? Call in Sick from work to spend a day with your Love? See the Olympics? Are you making plans To Do That? If not, Why Not? You do Realize, You Live Once. And No One REALLY Knows What Tomorrow Entails.

“If you really want to do something- You’ll find a way; If you don’t- You’ll find an excuse.”

                     Brisbane                            

Bitter-Sweet

“For everything you miss, you have gained something else, and everything you gain, you lose something else.”

5 weeks from today I leave the states and will begin to live in your tomorrow. What does that mean to you?! WELL- if you are having a bad “today”, feel free to message me via email and I can inform you if tomorrow will be better. I mean with a 15 hour difference (myself being ahead) WE might as well use this to our advantage.  J

What more do I know since the last time we spoke… Not a whole lot. I still do not have a guaranteed home, but I have a few leads- in which I am confident to say at least one of them will suit me!  I have also made a few friends. They all seem sincerely spectacular. I really look forward to this next chapter in my life- although, it really began a couple months back. Its crazy- its like I will be creating my own version of “Eat Pray Love”.  If I had to title mine TODAY it would be my personal motto I have had for a couple of years now, “Love Respect Experience”.

LOVE- I think it’s the most splendid thing. I feel like it really is a feeling that cannot be defined any one way because we all experience/feel it so differently. The way I love my best friends is different than the way I have loved my ex-boyfriends and that is different than the way I love my parents & brothers which is definitely different from the way I love my holidays etc. – Open your Heart.

RESPECT- What comes to my mind when I hear this word is, treat others the way you want to be treated. Treat people with a genuine kindness and if you need to reschedule a-get-together inform them within a timely fashion. But also for example, just because someone has a job you see as a low level position- it does not mean you can demand them to do things for you due to your “authority” PLEASE. Ever, heard of Karma- there is a Yin to every Yang. I guess just be Aware – Open your Eyes.

EXPERIENCE- DO THINGS with YOUR LIFE. Go Skydiving. Fall IN and OUT of Love. Feel/Smell/Taste/See/Listen to the Ocean. Carve a Pumpkin. Volunteer. Pay it Forward. Backpack through Europe and sleep on a Train til your next destination. Buy a Stranger Coffee. Bake a Soufflé. Do a Kind Act for a Friend for No Reason besides Just Because. Just do something with your life so you do not waste time regretting. – Open your Mind.

I look forward to the opportunity to Love, Respect, & Experience Australia.

“In the end, I've come to believe in something I call "The Physics of the Quest." A force in nature governed by laws as real as the laws of gravity. The rule of Quest Physics goes something like this: If you're brave enough to leave behind everything familiar and comforting, which can be anything from your house to bitter, old resentments, and set out on a truth-seeking journey, either externally or internally, and if you are truly willing to regard everything that happens to you on that journey as a clue and if you accept everyone you meet along the way as a teacher and if you are prepared, most of all, to face and forgive some very difficult realities about yourself, then the truth will not be withheld from you. “- Eat Pray Love