I'm On a Boat, I'm On a Boat, Everybody Look at Me 'Cause I'm Sailing On a Boat

This past weekend was incredible! I'd say it ranks in my top 5 weekends of all time. I don't know exactly what to say so you know why I think that, it just was. It felt awesome to go on a mini vacation to a place I knew nothing about and on a trip I hadn't planned and to be doing it with MOTH Dude, Croc, and the Teacher. I liked that I just had to pack my stuff and show up and we'd figure out exactly where we were going when we got there.

We did so much cool stuff- fished, took the little boat out, knee boarded, innertubed, wake boarded, traveled up and down the river system, and hung out in the water off a sandy beach.

We also saw so much cool stuff- a baby hammerhead shark (which we threw back in the water alive but it came back and actually pulled one of the rods off the boat and got tangled around the anchor line and drowned and we didn't realize it until the next morning when we went to pull up the anchor), tons of jellyfish, and a few times a day we'd have sea eagles fly over and screech at us.

Houseboats are rad because you go out on the little boat for awhile while people were wakeboaring or kneeboarding and then when everyone's tired you just head back to your floating house to do whatever you want. It was also rad that when we got tired of where we were "living" we could say, "Next!" and find a new place to "live". If you get the chance to go houseboating, especially on the Hawkesbury River, I'd highly recommend doing it. I loved it even more than I thought I would!

Tonight We're All Still Young at Heart

Image from barringtonriversideretreate.com.au

Saturday morning I woke up with a headache so bad it made my eyes water! I had to suck it up though as we had a 2 and a half hour drive ahead of us to it out to Gloucester, where the Runner and the Smooth Talker were getting married. I was able to find some headache medicine right before we left and that seemed to knock the headache out pretty well.

It was a pretty drive and MOTH and I had fun in the car and talked about how it felt like road tripping in America. We were the first to arrive at the cabins we were all going to be staying at for the night and had our pick of the 4 so we chose the one with the best view of the river below. Not long after, our bunk mates The Farmer and Tinkerbell (who hates this pseudonym and whom I still need to think up another one for) arrived and after them came LC, Bob Marley, the Hairdresser, the Soccer Player, Croc, and the Teacher. All the boys hung out on the porch drinking beer and making a trip down to feel the water while us girls took over the main bedroom of our cabin and the Hairdresser very nicely did all of our hair for us. We then got dressed and started to head out for the ceremony. I started to feel a bit headachey again before we left, but figured it was just because I was a little overheated.

The ceremony was at a beautiful hill overlooking the whole valley and town of Gloucester. The Runner teared up as she walked down the aisle and I teared up with her. It was a short and simple ceremony, but by the time it was over, I was starting to feel really sick to my stomach so I told MOTH Dude I needed to go sit in the car in some air conditioning for awhile. Being a good guy, he left the after ceremony drinks, pictures, and canapes to check on me a few times. After a while, the air conditioning just wasn't doing it for me so I stumbled out of our car and very classily got down on my knees in my pretty dress and heels and puked behind a tree. I felt better for a few minutes so I went down and joined our friends again. But then I started to not feel so great again and MOTH offered to take me in to town to try and find some medicine so I wouldn't be sick all night. We made it in to town just as the last grocery store was closing. I explained to them how I had just been sick and could I please run in for some quick medicine. They don't have much variety in grocery stores here like they do in the U.S. but we grabbed whatever we thought might help me. I took some Alka Seltzer that was supposed to be for headaches and upset stomachs. About that time, our friends arrived in town to go to the pub to wait for the reception to start. MOTH got me a gingerale and I sat outside with the girls trying to get some air. I felt bad for MOTH having to keep missing out on the fun so he went inside to play pool with the other boys. Twice I ran out to in front of the pub to try and catch a bit of breeze to make me nausea go away. Finally, (TMI coming up so beware if you're squeamish) I couldn't hold it any longer and I did 3 big heaves in to a planter outside of the pub. I'm sure I just looked like a hot mess and a bad drunk to anyone who saw, but I couldn't help it, nor could I face puking in the pub's bathroom. MOTH came out just as I finished and I started crying. I felt so awful and just wanted to go back to the cabin to lie down. He convinced me to wash my face and grab some fries aka chips to eat and that seemed to do the trick.

It was then time for the reception. It was a fun night with everyone else doing lots of drinking (I was driving, plus nothing sounded worse than drinking on top of having already been sick) and dancing and taking scandalous and funny pictures together.

There was a tiny bit of drama at the end of the night when we went to say good bye to the bride. I told her that I know I'm flakey so it may have seemed that that was what I was doing the weekend before when I missed her bachelorette party, but that I had been sick with other stomach issues. I told her about being sick that night. She didn't seem to believe me and had some issues about our cabins, as well. It was sad to see her upset on her wedding night and upset at me/the other girls(?) specifically because we hadn't actually done anything wrong and it was a shame that people were telling her crappy things about us. I guess you can't be in a group our size without a bit of drama between everyone every once in a while, though. Hopefully she came away believing what we had said, but I'm not sure. I hope to speak to her when she gets back from her honeymoon to reiterate that we didn't say anything negative about her, her bachelorette party, or her choice of accommodation for us-there was just a lot of confusion and third party misinformation.

After the reception, we all headed back to hang out at the cabin and decompress from the night. At the stroke of midnight, we roused the Farmer from his room and sang Happy Birthday to him. The rest of us made it in to bed between 1 and 1:30.

In the morning, we got up waaaaaaay too early (7:30!!) and sat out on the porch again and watched the river. We then made breakfast, packed up, and all headed down to the river where MOTH and the Soccer Player took an unintentional, that turned in to intentional, dip in the river.

I don't think anyone wanted to go and we discussed getting a big house together somewhere at the beach to share sometime soon. We then got in to our separate cars and headed home. Other than being sick and the bit of drama that unfolded, it was a fantastic weekend away!

The Time Has Come for Colds and Overcoats

This is the Father's Day Card Boyfriend sent to my Dad, saying it reminded him of me!

It probably feels that way, but this blog isn't turning in to a recipe blog, I promise. It's just for now, while the weather sways between sunny and kindof warmish and freezing and overcast/rainy there aren't a whole lot of adventures going on in my life. Plus, I'm really trying to focus on finding on job so that doesn't make for very exciting days, either.

Boyfriend's name has been resolved, sortof. I'd prefer to call him Beau because it means both handsome and someone's sweetheart which Boyfriend is and it's also a guy's name so it'd be easy just to start referring to him as that, but after reading everyone's suggestions in the comments he would like to be called MOTH Dude, like some sort of super hero! He has been thinking up a MOTH Dude theme song, contemplating what sort of outfit MOTH Dude should wear, and even referring to himself (in public!) as MOTH Dude to drive me crazy!

Friday night MOTH Dude and I headed out to an uncelebratory dinner for me not getting the job. There is a SsS BBQ Barn not far from us and we've been wanting to try it because they serve ribs. It wasn't that great and we won't be going back. I ordered a margarita and it tasted like a frozen lemonade, I don't think there was any tequila in it at all. The ribs fell of the bone, but there was less than you'd get at Tony Roma's in Sydney and they needed more sauce. MOTH Dude was starving so he ordered a damper roll that was $5 and the size of a bread roll! We were full when we left, but not satisfied and for $87 you want to leave a place satisfied!

After that, we went over to the Soccer Player and the Hairdresser's place and hung out with them and the baby and it was just a fun, relaxed night sitting around talking and watching the football game on in the background.

Saturday morning we got up and went to the Farmer's Market at The Entrance with MOTH's parents. It was a beautiful day and although the market was super crowded and more expensive and had less produce than I am used to, it was nice that after we were done shopping that we could sit on the walkway with our feet hanging over the water and look for schools of fish swimming by. Saturday night, we went over to the Farmer and Tinkerbell's house and it was another fun, relaxed night of sitting around and talking with friends.

Sunday morning, I slept in super later, while MOTH actually got up early and was productive. He went out for a dive at one of the local beaches and it was so cute to see him when he got home because he was bursting with excitement and happiness over all that he had seen. He told me all about it then proceeded to pass out for 3 hours, while I baked up a storm for our weekly dinner at his grandparents' house.

And that was our weekend! Now it's Monday, nearly noon my time and I'm waiting for my family to get back from dinner so I can call my Dad for Father's Day. I'm also working on finishing up my contracting job for the University my Mom is working for and I've got soup started in the Crocpot. So yeah, it's not a recipe blog, but I do have another recipe for you all today. Now a) I claim to not eat pork, but I ate ribs the other day and there is ham in this soup, so I guess I go through phases and b) Yes, I know ham and lentil soup sounds kind of yuck/boring, but it's actually really, really good! One of our family friends threw this together with stuff she found in our fridge the day after Easter and I was skeptical at first, but after having a taste I was hooked and had been craving it ever since! It's really cheap and easy to make, which is a bonus, too! MOTH and I both agreed that the soup kind of tastes like smokey Mexican beans.

You Will Need

1. Crocpot

2. 2 Tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

3. 1 Medium Brown Onion

4. 1 Heading Tablespoon of Minced Garlic

5. 1 Large or 2 Medium Ham Hocks

6. 1.5 Liters of Chicken Broth (I use a brand called Massel)

7. 1 Bag of Green Lentils, I think the bag is about 300 grams? or maybe 1.5 cups worth, dried

8. Blender

What To Do

1. Turn your Crocpot on to high and add Olive Oil.

2. Chop up the Onion and add that and the Garlic to the Oil. Let sit for a few minutes, I don't know if this really sautes them or not since Crocpots cook at such a low heat, but I like to pretend it does anyway.

3. Throw in your Ham Hock(s).

4. Add .5-1 Liter of the Chicken Broth.

5. Let the Ham Hock(s) simmer away on low for 6 hours. Meanwhile, soak your Lentils in water for 6-7 hours (can also be done before hand and soaked the night before).

6. Add Lentils to Broth and turn up to high for 2-3 hours, until Lentils are soft and all meat is falling off the bones.

7. Fish out the bone and fat.

8. Scoop half of the Lentils, Ham, and Broth out and into a blender and blend on a medium setting for about 15 seconds.

9. Pour the blended stuff back in with the Broth and other Lentils and mix the two batches together.

10. Serve with hot bread.

We got 6 HUGE servings out of this.

M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E

Image via http://travelcuts.files.wordpress.com/2008/05/mickey_minnie_disneyland.jpg

Sorry I've been M.I.A. again for a few days, but I've been visiting the happiest place on Earth! Boyfriend and I traveled down to Orange County to meet up with some of his friends from Australia who have been staying in Park City, Utah and the husband has been working as a ski instructor. It was a big three days as we drove for 7 hours Monday, saw my Grandpa who had just been admitted to the hospital, then took Boyfriend's friends to dinner at this Mexican food place in Santa Ana that my family has been going to since my parents were teenagers. Tuesday we got up and did Disneyland and California Adventures all day and then hung out with Bun's family that night. It was so nice to be with them all again because I used to spend a lot of time at their houses and it felt like old times and really comforting to just be hanging with them and listening to their funny stories again. Wednesday we got up and the friends met us in Huntington Beach, where we had breakfast at the best local place, Sugar Shack. We then walked down to Jack's, where I used to work, and I actually saw someone who worked there when I did and had been good friends with and we had a good chat and gossip session and I also got to chat with one of the owners and congratulate him on how well the business was doing (they have opened 2 new stores since I've left and there is another one opening later this year). We then walked out on the pier and saw schools of fish, some dolphins, and a sealion. The weather was incredible the whole time we were there: it's the middle of winter and it was about 74 degrees! Watching the surfers and how clean the water looked (for once), I got the biggest urge to be out there surfing with my sister again. I would love to be there for a week in summer to do just that with her...maybe someday. We then took PCH up to Crystal Cove State Beach and Boyfriend and the friends got shakes from the Shake Shack (we seem to have lots of "shacks" around, don't we?) and then it was time for us to take off. Boyfriend had picked out a skateboard earlier in the day so we rushed back to Huntington to pick that up and then we got driving. It took us about 7 hours to get home and we were exhausted when we pulled in at about 10:20 last night. Since then, I've heard the coyotes run past our house late last night and we had a 4.1 earthquake rattle the house this morning. I'm just about to head out with Dad and Boyfriend to the campground to do some "treasure hunting", my first time this whole trip!

E.T.A.: Does anybody else find it creepy when couples take their honeymoon at Disneyland? If while planning our wedding my fiance suggested Disneyland/world/a Disney cruise a big red flag would go off in my head. Honeymoons are for laying on the beach and making sweet, sweet love not walking around in silly mouse ears and getting autographs from Chip and Dale and Princess Jasmine!

I fell in love with her, my little Surfer Girl

I lived a very privileged life growing up...I went to a private school, had a couple of cars passed on to me by my parents (including a Jag that I trashed only a few weeks after receiving my license...that's kind of a fun story to tell, I might post about it some time), and I didn't have to work through high school. I was free to hang out on weekends and surf and after school was also spent at the beach or doing homework and just hanging out. It was a very rude awakening then for little princess me when the summer I graduated high school my Dad told me it was time to find myself a job. I figured I would just continue to hang out, collect allowance, and attend college for 12 or whatever hours a week. I bitched and cried and didn't want to get one. The truth is, I hate change. I was overwhelmed at the thought of starting college and getting a job for the first time all at once. So I searched and searched and got an interview at Target and got the job, but then decided I didn't want to work there at all. I spread my search out further and decided since I was planning on moving to Huntington Beach, I might as well look for a job there. I ended up getting called in for interviews at both the Jack's Newport location and the Jack's Huntington location. I was skinnier then and thought I looked cute in a surf brand tank, some jeans, and some Reef sandals, but when I was offered the job at the Huntington location the manager was like "We wear mostly t-shirts and jeans here, nothing too revealing" so I took it to mean I wasn't allowed to wear my tank top anymore. It blew my mind to then see what the girls from the girls' store would get away with wearing and I laughed later when my friend Crystal told me she had basically been told the only thing that we weren't allowed to show up in was just our bathing suits.

Anyway, so I started work the day before I started my first day of college and I was nervous. I didn't know the protocals. I didn't know if I had to ask permission to use the bathroom quickly or anything and I wanted to do a good job (because while I am lazy off the job, I like to do a really good job when I am working). The first month and a half were pretty boring; I either guarded the dressing rooms to make sure people weren't stealing stuff/hooking up in them or worked one of the sections of the store folding shirts and helping customers find stuff. I was stoked when I got asked to work on the registers and that's when I started loving the job. The girls I worked with: Jen, Crystal, and K-10 were so much fun and it was so cute to see who in the store had a crush on which girl (one of the couples that developed then is still together now, 5 years later!). There was also one boy, Hung, who worked the registers and he was in with all the owners and friends with all their sons/nephews. Once I started working the registers, I also got to know the boys who sold the boards and wetsuits better. One by one my girls started leaving to start school somewhere else or to get married or whatever. Hung went to work in the main office and develop the Jack's website ( http://www.jackssurfboards.com/) and I was left to take over as the head cashier. At this point, I got to know all the owners really well and stopped being afraid of them. I still miss getting harassed by Bob, Ron, Little Mike, Sean, and Jamal (all co-owners) and Moe (the security guard) at least once a shift. I also got to start ordering some of the merchandise for the front counters, along with Bob's permission.

A year had passed and I thought I'd leave Jack's and do surf lessons instead as the pay was better and it meant never having to work until 10:00pm (we were open from 8am-10pm, every day of the year except Christmas). I worked my last day and then went away to chaperone a surf trip to Fiji with my old surf team. Over there I realized I wanted to come back and work at Jack's so I came back with my tail between my legs and asked for my job back. I think I got punished and put back on the floor for a little bit, but then the big yearly comp, the U.S. Open of Surfing, came to town and they needed all hands on deck and I got thrown back on a register.

Time passed and I was kindof goofing off at school and doing the bare minimum. I was still passing and still getting good grades, but I was doing school around work rather than working around school. It got to be that I had worked at Jack's for about a year and a half, only half the people or less that I had originally started with were still there and those were mostly managers or guys who had been working the surfboard section for a few years.

I remember one day these two giggly girls came strolling in to the store with their arms linked together. One had wavy, red hair and the other had long, super straight, dark brown hair. I rolled my eyes and was like "who hired the high school chicks again?" I think I even asked my friend Heidi about them...like who they were, what their deal was and all that. Turns out, they'd soon become my best friends at the shop. On my 20th birthday I trained Bri on the registers and really liked her personality. From there I looked forward to seeing her on shift and hanging out with her and then once she had warmed up to me, her friend Katie did, as well.

A few months later, Nae was back from her first year away at college and I had probably the best summer of my life. Nae came to work at the shop and we had so much fun working together along with Heidi, Bri, and Katie. The time seemed to fly by and we were the cool kids at work so we got away with plenty. We were friends with the managers, like Cheyne, Kenny, and Peter, as well as with nephew's/sons of the owners like Hemzeh and Akram and they'd all hang out near the counter and joke and gossip with us all day, too. At night, I'd head to Bun's apartment and drink a lot and I found out as I stumbled around her pool area one night that Bri and Katie lived just about 5 doors down from her in the same apartment building! Other nights we would pick up Heidi and her and Nae and I would go to parties at Kenny and Geoff's place to hang with everyone from work. I was single at this point and it was just fun to hang out with all my friends and not worry about my stupid exboyfriend. I really can't explain it now or make it seem as fun as it was, I guess, in this post, but it was a great time in my life.

Halfway through the summer the owners me to help out and help manage the girls' store for some shifts. There was a newly hired manager in the girls' store that didn't fit in to the Jack's mode of things, in my opinion. Not looks wise because I'm not the stereotypical blonde surfer girl that you'd think would be working at a surf shop either, but just she'd make the girls do dumb stuff like write about their shift after it was done, like "I liked this about today's shift....I didn't like this about today's shift..." and I thought it was dumb, corny, and unnecessary. So being immature and 20, I wrote her a note saying I thought these end of shift notes were dumb and wasting our girls' time, I mean they were working 8 hours for minimum wage and then they were supposed to write a mini diary entry each day when they were done? Lame! So I think I was promptly sent back to my head cashier position at the main store. I don't think I really got in trouble, the summer season was just over so they were slowing down at their store and didn't need my help. Not two weeks later this newly hire manager got fired for taking in dodgey checks from her friends for a significant amount of merchandise...dumbass!

That was another thing that blew my mind: how many people got fired for stealing or doing dumb stuff like that. I think retail jobs are like that in general. I never took anything, not even a bar of wax or stickers or anything without permission. I got good discounts on all the things I wanted so stealing just never seemed worth it to me, but to lots of people the appeal of all that cool stuff sitting around was too tempting.

Anyway, so summer ended and Nae had gone back to school and by this time I had been accepted to the University out here so I knew my time at Jack's was coming to an end. Those last four months were still a lot of fun. I looked forward to coming in and seeing all my friends and sad that it was going to end. Katie, Bri, and I started calling our crew the "Jack's Elite Crew" and on my last shift with them I brought in cookies and shirts that I had made for them with their names and Jack's Elite Crew on them. They also threw me a party at their place with everyone from the shop pretty much coming. I got sloppy drunk, I think I asked Cheyne to make out a few times, and then drove him and Hung home with my friend Patty and as we were walking to our car I decided I would do a sneak run and jump on to Hung's back and instead jumped on him and knocked him over...I was so embarassed when I remembered the next day and again when I saw him a few days later. But in general I thought it was so cool that the girls had thrown me a party and everyone had turned out (whether it was for me or just for a party didn't matter, they were there). Leaving was really sad, but I thought I'd be back that summer to start working again and told everyone as much. I ended up not coming back to the U.S. until that Thanksgiving when I went back to Jack's and asked if I could work the season for them. The boys were all still there, but by that time Bri and Katie had found other jobs and Heidi had had a baby!

I still look back on my time at Jack's as one of the best times in general in my life. I was part of the family and it was a big, crazy, fun family to be a part of. I'm still friends with Bri and Katie and try and see them whenever I go home. Bri and I talk a lot over email and she had even asked me to be in her wedding (but I couldn't because I didn't have enough money to go home this past May)! I haven't talked to Heidi since right after she had her baby, but I'd love to get in contact with her again and I know Katie still talks to her so maybe there is some hope there. Just recently Cheyne added me on Facebook and through him I found Hung, and my other friend Peter just popped up in my "People You May Know" feature. I don't talk to any of them on there, but it's nice to just have that link to them still and know that I could talk to them if I wanted to. I'd also love to pop in and see the owners at some point because they were all really good guys and I miss them and their advice.

Like I said, this post doesn't do it justice because I don't have any really crazy stories to tell (well, except for this time this guy K-Rod "borrowed" my phone and took it in to the bathroom and took 5 pictures of himself posing in his underwear on my phone for me, or the time Nick and Aaron Carter came to the store, or the time I rang up one of the lesser known Jackass guys, or the time when we made fun of someone's girlfriend for wearing Barbie pink blush really heavily, or every week when the handicapped group would come in and their care taker would hit on one of the other cashier's and tell her how he'd like her to check out his studio and how he'd like to paint her) but overall it was just the whole experience of working there that was great and I will always look back on that time very, very fondly.

Wastin' Away Again in Margaritaville

Saturday afternoon Boyfriend and I got ready and headed down to meet Stylez and Turk for a fun night of Mexican and booze, or as we call it: a Mexibooze night, and karaoke. We were running late and so was Stylez so once we got there we started our walk to find a cab into Glebe and to the restaurant- The Flying Fajita Sistas. Once there, we met up with another friend whom Stylez, Turk, and Boyfriend had all worked with waaaaay back in the day and his girlfriend. Stylez and I immediately ordered margaritas and the boys ordered Dos Equis (XX) in honor of my Dad because that is what he always gets when he has Mexican food. The drinks came and they were fantastic. I feel like I probably gulped mine down but it was the best margarita I have had in a long time. We ordered an appetizer for the table and I really liked the cheese dip (top right yellow), smokey salsa (top left red), and the bean dip (bottom right white and brown) which was just like beans you'd get as a side dish at a CA Mexican place. Of course the lighting was awful in both places we went so I've had to borrow other people's pictures

that I found online.

After that we ordered our dinners and Boyfriend and I shared a fajita platter for two. He chose snapper and I chose shrimp for my meat. We also decided to order a litre of white sangria for the table. The snapper and the shrimp were so delicious, like "WHOA" they were so good! The tortillas were just "Meh" that came with it, Guzmen y Gomez has better ones, and I wasn't a fan of the black beans or rice that came as part of the meal. I really wished they would have served more of the "bean dip" instead. The waitresses were really, really dumb and would come to ask if we needed water or anything and then when we asked for more booze were told someone else would have to come and get our drinks (this wasn't a bus person or a person under 18 so I dunno why she couldn't have) and they didn't know basic stuff like they threw in a bunch of tortillas in to two warmers instead of 4 for the 4 of us who got fajitas but didn't tell us that and handed them to the people with two single orders rather than one for me and Boyfriend and one for them to split and then couldn't tell us how many tortillas we were each supposed to get with our meal when we were then trying to divy the tortillas out. I thought the sangria was just "Meh", as well. I had wanted to try sangria and now I have, but I wish I would've gotten another margarita instead. If you go on a warm night, I'd suggest asking to sit out back; they've got the cutest little patio area to sit out in. Tuesday is Taco Tuesday and they do $3 tacos and I'm pretty sure $3 shots of tequila. All in all I can't wait to go back for margaritas, the snapper, the shrimp, and the bean dip. Check them out at http://www.flyingfajitasistas.com.au/ or they are located at 66 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe.

After dinner, we hopped in to another cab that took us in to the heart of the city to the karaoke place- Echo Point. It's run by Japanese people and has lots of Japanese snacks and drinks to buy from the front desk. It isn't like normal karaoke because you order private rooms to sing in, rather than do it in a room full of strangers. We had about 10 people hanging out in ours. There is just a tv, a karaoke machine, coffee table, a black light, and some comfy seats built into the walls in the room and you punch in the songs you want to do and go for it. I had fun watching everyone sing. I did not take a turn on the mic. Some of the girls sang love songs, the boys sang a bunch of random stuff from Prince to Metallica to the Prodigy, and Stylez, Turk and Boyfriend normally sang as a threesome and chose cool punk/alternative songs like GreenDay, Weezer, and Blink. I even got Boyfriend and Stylez to sing me a duet of "I'm the One Who Wants to Be with You" by Mr. Big! It was $16-$17 for each of us for a 3 hour session, I think. It's a fun way to spend a night every once in awhile. If you are a karaoke fanatic then you should take a group of friends to Echo Point. They've got all their songs listed on their website (I think they've got over 1,000 to choose from) (http://www.echopoint.com.au/), too, so you can have your set list picked out for the night before you arrive like Boyfriend's one friend did!

I don't normally keep track of Boyfriend's drinking because I'm not his parole officer (before you ask, no, he doesn't really have a parole officer) and I figure he can handle himself and he knows his limit, but I maybe should've been a little vigilant on Saturday night because he was drinking sake, which he's only had a couple of times before and always during a meal. He ended up getting drunker than I realized on that and beer and when we headed back to Turk and Stylez's place and went to bed, he immediately had to get up and be sick. All in all he was probably up about 6 times puking through out the night, but at least he was really neat about it and didn't get it all over their super cute house!

In the morning he was still feeling crappy, but felt a little better because Turk and Stylez hadn't heard him being sick or been kept up by it like I thought they might have because it seemed to echo all across the downstairs of their house, where their spare bathroom and guest bedroom is. We decided to go to a local place for breakfast and they thought maybe it was best to just bring us breakfast back or to at least drive over, but I thought the walk in the fresh air might do Boyfriend some good. Right before we left, he had to make a quick dash to the bathroom to be sick again and then he said he felt lots better. The walk through their neighborhood was really nice. No one was out, it was a quiet Sunday morning and the view if you turned and looked was of the Sydney skyline, CentrePoint Tower, and the tops of the Harbour Bridge. We sat inside because all the outside seats were taken and Boyfriend made it through breakfast feeling just ok. We walked back to Turk and Stylez's place, chatted a bit longer, then hit the road.

Boyfriend's Dad's birthday is this week, so is Nae's, and Bob just moved in to his new place so we figured while we were close, we might as well hit up Ikea...the only one in NSW, I think. I was in heaven once we got inside! Boyfriend seemed to pick up a bit, too, and we had fun looking at all the neatly designed furniture and bedding and stuff they had. Boyfriend especially liked all the kitchen designs they had displayed. We came away with some office and home stuff for Boyfriend, a funny little present for Nae, lots of new kitchen stuff for Bob, struck out on stuff for his Dad, and got me a vase for $4 and a couch cover that I had wanted when I bought my couch 3 years ago since the couch is white and was the cheapest one they had, but didn't think I could afford it then (in the last year my couch has suddenly looked thrashed so it was awesome that we could buy a black cover for it that would better hide stains). We also had to have a look at all the good Swedish food they had at the food shop past the registers and bought some yummy cookies, blueberry concentrate drink, a non-alcoholic pear cider, a Daime chocolate bar that Stylez recommended, and some salted black licorice (yuck!) that Turk recommended, as well as the meatballs, at the last minute, because everyone else in line had at least one bag of them and Turk had said they were delicious, too.

We got back on the road and Boyfriend was not feeling so great. He asked if he got us out of the City could I manage the drive on the freeway home? I have never driven more than about 10 miles maybe and never on the freeway so I was a bit nervous, but said if he just rested and didn't fall asleep on me, I'd do it. Once I got going, it was as easy as driving on the regular side of the road, and soon, I was passing slow pokes. The drive took about an hour and we got home just as it was getting dark. We basically had time to unload the car, go to the bathroom, and then we were back on the road to Nan and Pop's for Sunday dinner...this week a bbq for Boyfriend's Dad's birthday. Lots of the cousins were there and they brought their babies with them and it was good to catch up with the girls and have a cuddle and a play with the babies. The one little girl is about 1 and a half years old and is so smart- she remembered my name after the first time I played with her and still remembers me months later and always calls out "Little D, Little D" to get my attention and get me to come play with her. For some reason she was afraid of Boyfriend last night and would run away or hide her face in my shoulder anytime he came near! Don't they say that kids and dogs can sense when someone is evil? Haha, just kidding Babe!

It turned out to be one of those weekends that are so jam packed you don't feel as if you've had a real weekend, but I love those and had a great time! Today I put my tutoring ad in two of the local papers and one will run on Wednesday and Friday in the one paper and the other will be delivered in to people's mailboxes in the area later in the month. I'm so excited and can't wait to see how many calls I get! Fingers crossed for me guys because I really could use the income.

Oh yeah, and check out Stylez's stuff at reJENerate (link up the top) she's got a blog, a website, and stuff on Etsy. I saw some of her bags lying around at her house and their are some cute ones right now. She also has been doing custom bridal and bridal party clutches that are cool and fun and match without being too matchy, if you know what I mean. She will have an order from me if I ever take a stroll down the aisle!

Sunrise, Sunset

I'm hoping to get pictures and go in to more detail then, but Boyfriend and I had a really great weekend. We were up with the sunrise on Friday morning to drive down to Sydney so that Boyfriend could go on two different scuba dives. Then Saturday we spent the whole day out on the sand dunes of Stockton Beach 4 Wheel Driving with Croc and the Teacher and their family. Although it was freezing, we sat and watched the sunset and it lit up the clouds in to an amazing red color. Saturday night we went to the Farmer and Tinkerbell's house with Croc and the Teacher and LC and Bob Marley were there, too. It was just a nice, mellow night hanging out and talking and I'm sure I impressed the Teacher and Croc with my driving skills when we gave them a lift home.

As we were driving to do errands on Sunday morning, Boyfriend and I talked about what a great group of friends we have and it's really, really true and to have such nice and awesome people in my life makes me so happy!

Hopefully pictures that I took from the dunes will be emailed to me soon and I'll post them and give you guys more details our adventures and the many animals we ended up seeing. Hope you are enjoying yourself where ever you are...I am wishing for some warm, California summer weather right now, but instead I am bundled up inside with the heater on and it's raining.

Tell All Your Friends

I do have a few good friends back home, Bun, my godsisters, my friend B from the surf shop, but I also had a lot of really shitty, awful friends, too. Even Nae says so. They let me be pathetic and got me in to some scandalous situations I would’ve rather not been in, not that it’s all their fault, but they helped. The friends here don’t really talk crap about each other, the relationships are stable, and everyone is just happy to get together and hang out. It doesn’t need to be a thing or out making a scene. There is no drama, well not a whole lot of drama, and I like that. These people seem genuine and true. I never come away from hanging out with them feeling stupid, like I’ve done something wrong, or feeling bad about myself. My “friends” from back home made me feel that way a lot. I know right, how could I even call them friends if that’s how they left me feeling? So here’s a run down of all the great people I’ve met through S:

Croc Dundee: A funny, loud guy. The center of attention. Would do anything for his friends. The first night I met him I jumped in to his freezing cold pool naked on a dare and super drunk. He makes you feel safe in unsafe situations, like he knows what he is doing. He has been dating the Teacher for about two years now and they are about to get married! Croc has also lost a crap load of weight in the last year or so and looks amazing these days.

The Teacher: A really nice girl. She also seems like she would do anything for her friends. Not whom I would have first imagined Croc with, but they just work together and seem to have fun. She gives good teaching advice, is easy to talk to, and is a really funny drunk. I’m jealous that she gets to get married before I do!

The Soccer Player: Can drink you under the table, tells some funny tall tales, was part of the dare to get me naked that first night when S was passed out-to get out of paying me, he jumped in naked, too, is a nice guy and married to the nicest girl I know-the Hairdresser

The Hairdresser: I was afraid of the Hairdresser the first time I met her because the night before meeting her was the night her fiancé (at the time) and I had jumped in the pool naked together, not like touching, but he had drunkenly seen me naked and I saw a tall nakey silhouette of him. The Hairdresser has never spoken a single bad word against any of her friends that I have heard, she is also a really great listener, her favorite phrase is “How funny” and she loves to drink and laugh and have a good time. She is also a really really hard worker and owns her own business, which I think is legit for someone my age.

The Farmer: A really sweet and quiet guy. He adores his wife, Tinkerbell, and Baby, we’ll call him Junior since he and the Farmer have the same name. He is so nice to them and seems like an awesome Dad when you watch him with Junior. He’s really proud of the little guy already. He has the best laugh and the best dance skills once you get him going!

Tinkerbell: She just had Junior not even a year ago and she has the most banging body again. I haven’t had a kid yet and she’s got a body 100x better than mine. She was really intimidating, at first, cause she’s the alpha female of the group-all the guys have known her since they were kids, so I was nervous around her wanting to make a good impression. She is sassy and funny and I love when she laughs at the random things I say. She is also a very funny drunk and she loves to go out dancing and it is funny to see her drunk with her sisters cause they all start dancing.

The Smooth Talker: The Smooth Talker doesn’t hang out very often. He is a very funny guy and really cute, all the girls have little crushes on him. I think it’s because he lives up to his name, he is definitely a smooth talker, he makes you feel good and important and like the only person in the room when you are talking. It is a nice feeling. He is also one funny guy. He was the only one to show up for the impromptu surprise birthday lunch S threw for me last year (awkward for Smooth Talker for sure, but he played it off nicely)! (Great planning on S’s part by the way-he messaged everyone that morning to come to lunch-lots of our friends work on Saturdays, but still a sweet thought) He dates The Runner, who also doesn’t hang often, but is so bitchy and funny, she holds a special place in my heart.

The Runner: Gorgeous, always laughs at herself for being so tall, was on the Australian running team and won a medal (am I wrong?) at the Commonwealth Games the last time they were held, is bitchy, bitingly funny, and gives awesome advice and good perspective on things, she is also like her boyfriend in that she makes you feel special and important when she is talking to you, we’re supposed to start working out together-intimidating! I’ll be huffing and puffing and she’ll be running laps around me!

Bob Marley: Bob Marley is a quiet guy, too, that’s why he and the Farmer get along so well I think. He is nice and I always used to be worried that he didn’t like me hanging out with LC. I like when I can make him laugh, or smirk is more like it, because normally he is so mellow. He is about to be a daddy for the first time and I think is totally stressed over that, but has made some big changes in his life for LC and the little bundle of joy and I think that is nice and responsible of him to do.

LC: My best friend in the group. Originally wanted to get to know me because I was from the OC. She is hilarious and bitchy, I call her the HBIC sometimes (the head bitch in charge). I’m glad that she decided she wanted to be friends. I accidentally cast a spell on her that made her get pregnant on a trip a way, I said jokingly that they would go away and she would get knocked up, then when she got back and before we knew she had someone growing in her, I got her really drunk on margaritas at my Mexican party. I’m an awful friend. I’m sorry LC and I’m glad we are still friends!

Those are the key players, there are other friends who we see with the group sometimes, but most weekends these are the people you can find me and S hanging out with. Next time I talk about them, I’ll have to talk about some of the adventures we’ve been on together.