First Draft Completed… Kinda :)

The beast that has been dominating my life is almost dead! As of today I have another 8 weekdays/ working days until my paper is due.  That count is leaving out weekends which I have been reserving for fun and I am also planning on turning the paper in a day early because the day the paper is due, Todd, Al, his new girlfriend, some other mates from Todd’s work and I are headed up to Moreton Island (near Brisbane) for a weekend of camping, snorkeling, hiking etc :) 

My paper has turned out better than I expected despite the fact that the marketing/ film industry is drastically changing right now and so I read about something every day that I want to include in my paper.  This issue translates to my paper as I am currently 400 words away from the word limit and I have yet to add in an intro, conclusion or review of sources.  I am sure that I will have to edit a ton but I have a strange fetish for editing so here comes the fun part! I have actually really enjoyed writing this paper and everything I have learned has made me really excited for the changes that are occurring in the industry.  Marketers and Hollywood studios are realizing that in order to survive, they have to cater products to specific demographics again.  This is a tactic that has been used before but then forgotten for the past 30 years or so with the saturation of blockbusters in the market and their hope that these movies would just appeal to everyone.  Anywhoo if anyone wants to read it, now or when it is in its final draft just let me know! Btw, brief overview in case you have NO idea what I am talking about: my dissertation is a review of the changes in marketing/ distribution/ exhibition in the Hollywood TV/ movie industry with specific focus on the 1920s/ 30s and the present.  It’s more interesting than it sounds, I promise! Ha ha

In other news, my constant search for new recipes has led to an amazing new routine.  Every day at 5 (sometimes earlier) I stop my work for the day and start to cook dinner.  This has given me a deadline each day to work towards, pushing me harder and giving Todd and I (or whomever I am cooking for) a nice reward! I love this cooking time.  I love looking at a recipe and choosing not to follow it, or following some aspects of it, or (in rare cases) following it to a T.  One of my most recent ventures I did follow very specifically (well kinda) because it required making a pie crust.  Actually, I didn’t follow it very well at all because I was making it gluten free but I did follow it as close as possible!  This slightly stressful/ nerve-wracking  recipe turned into an amazing butternut pumpkin and caramelized onion galette.  I found the recipe at smitten kitchen; (another variation on my part; pumpkin instead of squash because of availability issues) which I highly recommend y’all visit.  Super amazing stuff and fairly easy to make.  The pastry did turn out a little funky because of the gluten-freeness (not in taste, just in look) but the entire thing was really really good.  It is funny because I am always watching Todd’s face very carefully to see if he likes it or not and this was a definite success.  Poor Todd, my constant guinea pig, although I haven’t killed him yet! 

Mom and Jan come in 44 days and we have quite an adventure planned! Our travels include Melbourne, Tassie, Sydney and Airlie Beach (great barrier reef) and I can’t wait to explore new areas and show off places I have already been.  I can tell already that they last 2 ½ months are going to fly by WAY too quick :(

The problem with homework and having other things to do besides this blog is that I forget important things that I wanted to talk about.   All in favor of me skipping schoolwork so I can just focus on writing? Mmk :)
Becky was here in the month of Monday holidays.  Half of the Mondays we had off because of public holidays and one of those days was Anzac Day.  Since I am so used to quoting sources at this point because of my paper I will plug Wikipedia and state that “Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand, and is commemorated by both countries on 25 April every year to honour members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli in Turkey during World War I. It now more broadly commemorates all those who died and served in military operations for their countries.” (don’t worry, I usually reference my works properly and I don’t use Wikipedia :) ) 

There are many traditions on Anzac Day including playing two-up at all pubs, surf clubs etc and dawn services.  Originally, Todd, Becky and I were planning on bike riding down to Currumbin for the supposedly best and biggest dawn service on the coast.  It started at 5am or so and we would have had to be up at 3 in order to bike the 13K.  Well the night before we got a little crazy and were playing cards with some of Todd’s friends, Stef and Kristy, so we ended up deciding to sleep more that 3 ½ hours and we drove down to Coolie (Coolangata) for the service instead.  This is the city I have mentioned many times (where the airport is, good surfing, Al’s place etc).  

The Anzac Day dawn service was extremely impressive.  It was set against a bay leading into the ocean and throughout the service we watched the sun rise as speakers discussed the bravery of the Diggers (slang term for Australian and New Zealand soldiers) and the other soldiers still fighting today.  Dawn services occur all over Australia (there were 3 happening between Mermaid Beach and Coolie where we went) and they all contain the following elements: introduction, hymn, prayer, an address, laying of wreaths, recitation, the playing of "The Last Post", a minute of silence, "Reveille", and the playing of both New Zealand and Australian national anthems.  As we discussed later, Becky and I stood there linked arm and arm both thought about how respectful and well done the service was.  There was no more than 150 people and we were all linked together in this incredible spot to pay tribute to fallen soldiers.  I have never experienced something so simple and considerate in relation to Veterans Day in the states.  I would say my only experience that comes close is during Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) at Hillel, all 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust are remembered as their name is read aloud in a continuous cycle that often lasts for 28 hours or so.  In any case, standing there watching the Anzac Day dawn service unfold made me think about what an incredible country I have been living in the past year and how much I will miss elements of it when I go home.  

Of course Australians cannot have a remembrance day or a holiday in general without some extra hubbub at the local pub.  For Anzac Day the key event is a game called two-up, the simplest form of gambling ever.  The game is played as so: one person calls out an amount they are betting such as $5.00 on heads and then someone else in the pub that is standing around in the circle will take that bet and say $5.00 on tails.  The spinner (the person flipping the coins) flips three coins in the air and best 2 out of 3 wins that round.  Nothing more complicated than that! Of course one can lose a lot of money very quickly this way (not that gambling in general is a big money maker).  This game is only played on Anzac Day in remembrance of the Diggers as they played this game to pass the time in the trenches.  We didn’t actually play any two-up as we ended up going water skiing later that day and then passing out early because of our crazy card session the night before ;) but it was really fun to learn about another unique Australian tradition. 

Ps. Happy Mother’s Day to all you special women out there! :) 

Long overdue updates!

Time definitely speeds up when you want it to slow down… the whole idea that minutes and seconds are a finite  measurement is all BS I say! Everything seems to speed up as I approach deadlines: my paper, going home, more visitors (which is the best part of that list).  The end of Becky’s stay was absolutely marvelous.  We had a good mix of study time and play time and managed to knock off nearly everything on the list of things that Becky wanted to do.  We went and pet a kangaroo and she held a koala, made Mexican food, ate TOO MUCH Mexican food, made and devoured golden syrup dumplings, went to Burleigh Heads, ate some Smiths Crisps (best potato chips around), ate steak, went to Byron Bay, made curried carrot soup (inspired by this soup we had in New Zealand) and last but not least, made and ate a ton of oatmeal cookies! My goodness I had no idea that our list was basically comprised of food… well we ate and conquered and are all the happier for it! :)  It was wonderful to have such an incredible friend experience my life here with me for a whole month.  We didn’t even get tired of each other one little bit and I promise we are still friends (in fact we talked today).  Becky is such a kind person and my friends really loved having her around.  I think they didn’t want her to leave just as much as me! The final week or so Becky started a list of differentiations in object names/ phrases between American English and Australian English and I am going to “borrow” her list, add to it, and post it at the end of this blog. 

It is weird to think of this chapter of my life closing soon.  I have met some incredible people and I hope that I will stay connected with some of them as I move back.  I remember that when I left some of my friends warned me that I was going to meet all these amazing people and then have to say good bye to them.   Therefore, the friendship/ effort wouldn’t be worth it but I have learned that sometimes the best friendships are formed when there is so much more at stake.  Come on, who wants to life to be easy, right?

In other news… I can now officially say that Todd is certifiably insane.  Two days ago we walked some of the Kokoda Challenge track that he completed last year.  For those who don’t remember/know, the Kokoda Challenge is a 96K hiking race in which the competitors walk the 96K track in one go, no sleeping.  It took Todd and his team 28 hours and I remember that last year when he returned from this insanity, he looked like death… ha ha.  Well on Monday Todd and I walked 13K of that track and I was feeling ok by the end but definitely ready to go home and eat and go to bed.  I have no idea how he managed to walk those mountains for 28 hours!  I have already had so much respect for his athleticism and slight craziness but now that I have walked a few miles in his shoes, I have to say that I will never be as crazy as him : )

2nd half of New Zealand

There is something truly magical about taking a photograph.  I think we all have an innate part of our self that is drawn to a specific scene that we just must capture on film.  For me, and many others, it is the ocean and the sun.  The sun and the light/ darkness that it creates is something I have always loved to take pictures of.  Ask Todd, he is constantly giving me grief for taking so many pictures of the sun instead of more important things like my friends :)  Todd is drawn to people and I am drawn to the sun and the water and the beautiful symbiotic relationship between the two.  In any case, Becky and I woke up at 5:30, which is actually sleeping in for me, and walked to the tip of the Queenstown bay in order to watch the sun rise over the mountains.  It was so beautiful and calm and we froze our fingers while happily clicking away.  The rest of our voyage consisted of eating at a lot of amazing restaurants and visiting the cute little souvenir and knick knack shops in Queenstown and Arrowtown (the gold mining town near by).New Zealand was absolutely beautiful and I definitely hope I get to return at some point to do some more exploring!!

From New Zealand I have headed directly into hermit mode as I am working 8 hours or so a day on my dissertation.  It is coming along nicely and I am desperately trying to only work during the week so I can have my weekends free!

Last Sunday, Todd and I biked to the Carrara Markets, an outdoor farmers/ random stuff market, and then biked to Pac Fair where we watched “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.”  It is a Swedish movie based on the Millennium series by Steig Larson and we both thought the movie was just incredible.  It is a pity that Hollywood feels the need to remake this film because the story was edited perfectly and the acting was superb.  I highly recommend it! 5 gold stars, two thumbs up, etc :)

My bike has been an absolute life saver.  I use it daily and bike to the gym and the market and home and back, round and round in circles.  It has saved me so much time and money and I love how I must be helping my carbon footprint at least a little ;) Seriously though, best present ever!

Some updated count downs:

9 days till Becky leaves :(  

42 days till my paper is due

71 days till Mom and Jan arrive!

110 days till I go home  

SEASONS!!! :)

On the Gold Coast, I miss seasons. Not that I have ever really experienced them in my years growing up in LA but I miss seasons. New Zealand has seasons and right now the land is slowly transforming into the red, gold and brown colored pallet of fall. I love visiting the east coast and experiencing the change and I loved the subtle changes in my four years at Berkeley. This is the first time in four years when I have felt that summer is NEVER going to end and the sun is going to blaze forever. If you can’t tell already, I am not a huge fan of the constant heat. I love getting bundled up in layers in order to experience the crisp, fresh air that greats you outside. In New Zealand, I am a bundled up marshmallow and I love it! Becky and I often walk down the street arm in arm in order to keep our heat recirculating between us :)

We arrived in Christchurch on Sunday afternoon and took a shuttle to our hotel that was located 30 min from the center of town. After taking a significant amount of pictures of our gorgeous room, Becky and I jumped into a bus and got off at the center of town that is located near a beautiful stone cathedral. We were supposed to meet Kate and Deb back at the hotel in an hour and a half for dinner so we knew that we only had a small amount of time before we had to catch the next bus back. Consequently, we walked in a small 4 block radius away from the bus stop because we were both timid and nervous about missing dinner… we love to eat! Honestly, I would say that our trip so far has rotated around our meals and I am not complaining AT ALL because the meals have been incredible! That night for dinner Becky and I shared a Morrocan lamb pizza which was delicious (and our breakfast the next morning) and Deb ordered a curried carrot soup that I can not wait to try and reproduce at home. We crashed hard after a short adventure into the sauna where we met a couple headed out to Queenstown on the same 8:35am flight that we were on. Becky and I set my alarm for 5am fully intending to go for a walk in the hotel gardens but when we awoke we realized that the sun was not yet up and fell back to sleep only to awake at the time when we were supposed to be downstairs… oops… We quickly flew into action and were downstairs only 10 minutes late without leaving one item behind (at least nothing we have noticed so far!)

I slept for the entire flight to Queenstown and when we arrived we were greeted by the crisp fall air. I happily put on my fleece sweatshirt and crammed into a cab for the spectacular drive along the Queenstown Bay to our accommodations: the Glebe Hotel. I write this blog sitting next to the fire in a huge and beautifully decorated living room with the mountains and lights of the town clearly visible through the enormous glass doors surrounding me. We are staying on the 5^th floor in the penthouse courtesy of one of Deb’s friends from home. He owns a vineyard that we went to visit today called Gibbston Valley which was located in a beautiful tree lined valley. Look it up :) The apartment is incredible but the views and the mountains around Queenstown are breathtaking and ever changing. Becky and I keep dashing outside onto the deck in order to capture some different light on the lake or the cloud rimmed mountains. The silhouettes are very unique due to the sharp jagged mountains that seem to drop off into the sky. I think Cradle Mtn in Tasmania had the same jagged appearance and this association has me itching to climb these mountains. The slightly rainy weather and my lack of preparedness means that I will not be putting my head in the clouds but Todd, you and I are coming back and climbing some of the big ones! It is a must!! ;)

SYDNEY!!! Finally... I know :)

So since I am going to New Zealand tomorrow I figured I better get Sydney out of the way or my writing is REALLY going to back up. It was so amazing to show Steph and Anna around my new home. I really enjoyed seeing them get excited about the things I got excited about when I first got here. I know that I am so lucky to be briefly living in such an amazing place and I am reminded of my good fortune through them.

Our first full day in Sydney started with a trip to Coles (supermarket) for snacks and then to a bakery for breakfast. Hot cinnamon-y roll in hand we began to walk from Kings Cross to the botanical gardens. We walked through the gardens to get to the Opera house and then towards the Sydney Harbour Bridge. We met up with my friend Miles (from middle school) and traipsed down to the Sydney Fish Market. We were hot, sweaty and tired but quickly became revitalized as we looked around at all the amazing seafood on ice. I think seafood is definitely one of my weaknesses and was the perfect pick me up! Next, we headed to Darling Harbour to walk around and enjoy the $3.50 happy hour drinks. Darling Harbour is just one of the amazing spots in Sydney. Miles says that ¼ of Australians live in this city. It is HUGE and composed of many little pocket communities that change constantly as you walk around the streets.

Anna and Steph were amazing travel companions. We all had the same budgetary concerns and were happy to walk everywhere! Our constant walking led us to early nights and early mornings. My perfect schedule ;)

Second day we headed to Manly beach on a ferry that left from the rocks, this really nice area with museums and outdoor markets. After a puttering 30 minute ride we ended up at Manly beach. We were pretty exhausted from the day before so we relaxed on the beach, got up to find food, relaxed some more, found some ice cream, relaxed some more… repeat :) On the way home we watched loads of sail boats cruise around the bay and then had an amazing last dinner at this restaurant overlooking the water in Darling Harbour. Dessert was another 50 cent soft serve cone from McDonalds while we watched fire works celebrate the end of our amazing trip. We headed to the opera house in order to see it lit up where we were treated with another fire works show over the opera house. It was the perfect ending to a perfect weekend! I miss Steph and Anna tremendously but had an INCREDIBLE time with them!

Ps. I am sorry for this hasty blog. I know it is not top quality but quantity over quality is sometimes necessary ;)

Interlude Before Sydney

I know that Sydney is next in the laundry list of my adventures but I felt that ­­my recent discovery of Australian’s Good Friday/ Easter traditions deserved a jump up the list. In Australia, Easter is almost as important and as big of a holiday as Christmas. Last week Todd asked me if I was planning on getting him anything for Easter. “Uh… no…” I replied, “should I?” He responded by saying that most people get Easter eggs for each person in their family, their boyfriend/ girlfriend and pretty much anyone else important in their life. I know that Americans do observe Easter traditions like hiding Easter eggs and dressing up in their Sunday’s best but Australian traditions are very very different. In Australia, Easter is the biggest camping day of the year. Of course some people go to church and stuff I am sure but the camping sites are choc a block full of people. Becky, Todd and I went for a short one night camping trip yesterday and we passed a few campgrounds that had so many people booked in that it looked like an LA beach in the summer time. On Good Friday, no one eats red meat. I mean no one. It doesn’t matter if you are Christian or not, religious or not, it has become an Australian tradition to only eat fish on Good Friday. Similarly, the only day of the year you cannot buy alcohol in Australia is on duh duh duh duh: Good Friday. One of Al’s friend’s works at a bottle shop and he said the night before Good Friday is absolutely packed. Everyone goes and stocks up because G-d forbid you run out of alcohol on Good Friday! The bars are also closed at midnight the night before Good Friday and open again on Good Friday at midnight. Ahhhhh Australians, you sure do love a good party :)

Speaking of party, Todd and his mates have had a really good reason to party lately.

Last weekend as I am waiting to board my plane from Sydney back to the Gold Coast, a very ecstatic Todd called me to let me know that they broke a world record. After 6 years and 8 attempts they managed to break the previous record of 100 people water skiing behind one boat (a record that had been previously set by a water ski club in Cairns.)

On March 28^th they awoke to the sounds of bag pipes (random I know) and waded into the freezing water. After 80 seconds of holding perfect form and being dragged through the water, 114 skiers managed to stay up for the necessary 1 nautical mile. Todd and his friends from the Horsehead Water Ski Club (the oldest water ski club in Australia) will be in the 2011 Guiness Book of World Record and he has promised to sign loads of copies for me so now you all know what you are getting for Hanukah and Christmas next year ;)