To froth or not to froth.

I dig my toes into the sand, The ocean looks like a thousand diamonds strewn across a blue blanket, I lean against the wind, pretend that I am weightless, and in this moment I am happy, happy. -Incubus
Today Sweet Tangerine took her first maiden voyage into the Coral Sea. It was magic. After two weeks on a surf trip up the coast I feel alot more comfortable surfing on my own. Gerroa, Yamba and Byron Bay were our destinations of choice. I could completely fib here and paint an insane image of clear skys and perfect surf conditions, however that is far from accurate. It rained all but 4 days and the waves were generally crappy and actually non-existant for 2. Needless to say, I got bigger waves in my bath tub. After a severe case of cabin fever, I went out for a little bit to catch the back end of some whitewash. Desperate, yes. The trip was still deemed a success, fun was had and great friends were made.
The term "frothing" is one surfy term that I have become quite familiar with, though I may not ever fully understand which bloak came up with it(?) Froth: - (to describe how you react when you see something of extreme coolness. Taken from the condition that dogs get called rabies, when foam starts coming from their mouth). . . .that's not the only thing animals do when they get excited, but I suppose "Dude Im totally peeing" never caught on as a catch phrase. Ok so the last part is a little nutty, but I think surfers can go a little mad, much like a frothing dog.I do like froth on my coffee so Im going with that one! Anywho, I messed my knee up pretty bad on the trip somehow. I've let it rest and gave myself until today to heal. Finally got to go out this morning and yes, frothing. The weather could not be more perfect. The water is crystal clear and not a cloud to be seen.I was so excited this morning to wax up my new board and walk down to Freshwater, permanent smile all day. Paddling out I felt like my eyes couldn't open wide enough to take it all in. Life at its finest. The shorter board will take a little getting used to but I'll definately be able to grow with it. Ahh can't wait to wake up and do it again, and again, and again. Nice holiday but good to be back!

Life on a vine

The 16 days I just spent living on a vineyard in South Australia have literally flown by. Quite possibly because I feel like I've known the Ness' my whole life. This family has a love that you can't help but be drawn to. This is a part of Oz that I could have only experienced by living it. This part of the country is glorious to say the least, vineyards and green fields as far as the eye can see. Peaceful, slow, simple. The constant wine buzz definately helps the atmosphere, I've been downing my fair share of the good Lord's grape juice! I'll be really honest now though, I don't know how many more times I can say goodbye. It's very easy for me to give all the love I have in my heart to the good people I meet, but turning around and leaving them is getting harder and harder every time I have to do it. Especially because I know good and well I might not see these wonderful people ever again. In certain situations I can be very good at guarding my emotions and keeping a careful watch on where I let my heart wonder. It's my internal defense mechanism, my way of protecting myself. So far it has proved to be a successful way of convincing myself of my own independence, however my walls have slowly been chipping away on this trip. Does love ever run out or is it truely an infinate supply? Adios to the South, thank you for such a lovely visit. Hope to see you again one day.Geese, this wine is really making me emmotional. . . Onward to a two week surf excursion up the east coast, time to detox!

I made it! I'm officially living the life that I could have only made up in my mind. This could be the most sureal feeling I will ever have. It's also a bit scary, almost like it's too perfect and I should be waiting on something rediculous to completely knock me upside down. As I've always said though, things happen for reasons we may never know. Having the faith to be undeniably ok with this idea is something that only now I am comfortable with.
I live on a peninsula on the northern beaches of Sydney called Queenscliff. A five minute walk to Manly beach on the right and the same distance to Freshwater on the left. The most incredible surf town vibe. Cool cafes and shops, friendly people, active lifestyle and insane beach atmosphere. The Hodson's (family I live with) are a super laid back couple that I've allready become great friends with. Emily could very well be the cutest ten month old little girl I've ever seen, super happy little thing. The house is prime location and I have my own huge balcony overlooking the ocean and city. At the moment I have my doors open and Im listening to the neighbor's party, which I don't mind at all considering they have an acoustic reggae band playing. It is a sweet world we live in, seek and you shall find! Hopefully my travel tales will inspire others to keep pushing until they find what they're looking for. Take action! Learning to trust your instinct is only perfected with downfall.

Re-located

The next big Australian move has begun. I am now Sydney's newest resident and could not be any happier. I feel the most intense feeling of peace and thankfulness. Brisbane was a great experince, it seemed to give me time to catch my breath, save up and regroup. I was safe and could not have found a more caring family to have lived with. However, three months away from the ocean was long enough for this beach bum.On my first day of Coogee Beach exploration I found a quaint little book shop on the main road. What I found next seemed to be some sort of sign, for me at least.
In a tiny book shop in a small beach town all the way in Australia I found "Letters from Point Clear". For me it's these simple moments that can put the biggest grin on my face. It felt like someone was saying, "Home will always be there waiting, keep living it up!" And that is exactly what I plan on doing.
In a beautifully written letter from the Brown's when I left, Paul Coelho was quoted in saying; "The universe will conspire to bring you all that you want." It allready has, and I am forever grateful. Australia Round Two: to be continued. . .

40 million and still going. . .

Today my dad informed me that the oil could be reaching Mobile Bay on wednesday.I've never felt so helpless, especially being on the other side of the world from this horrific disaster. It can also be seen as a blessing being so far away, at least I don't have to be there to witness any of it. I can only imagine what 40 million gallons of oil is going to do to our coastline and seafood industries. That's what home is to me, a day at the beach, fishing long afternoons in the gulf and an abundant selection of fresh seafood. What is happening? The thick crude oil covering the white sandy beaches, dead dolphins, birds and sealife are images I can only pray never to see up close. My heart goes out to the shrimpers, fisherman and any others in the seafood industries that will be completely out of work for the next 10 years. It's easy to turn a blind eye when you don't care about an issue at hand, but my home coast happens to be something I hold very close to my heart. There is already close to 40 million gallons of oil floating in the gulf of mexico, the worst part is it's still going. They can't stop it and efforts to clean it are failing. "Figure out how to cut the damn thing off", one of my favorite quotes from a Louisiana fisherman. Plain and simple.Already six weeks into the initial explosion and there is no guarantee this spill will be stopped by august. Democrats and Republicans alike are both in agreement that we need to seriously step it up! It also makes me agry to sit here and watch world news correspondants arguing over this issue in their fancy buisness attire, they have no idea of the good people and environment it's effecting. Pointing fingers at this point isn't going to help anything, it just diverts the focus. We know who's fault it is and we also know who has the most control over efforts to solve it.
Fact: Happier than ever to be on the clean coasts of Australia this summer, never taking it for granted!

Brisbane and so on. . .

Welp, as if things couldn't be going any better. I will officially be living on the beaches of Sydney (Queenscliff)come July. A five minute walk to Manly Beach, great running along the coast and surfing galore. I will be keeping a nine month old little girl named Emily whose parents I've allready skyped and seem to be super chill and sweet. I will have a ton of free time and the whole month of september/october to travel and see anything I might have missed along the way. Seriously looking forward to this one, especially after I buy a board!
Brisbane is absolutely great so far, no complaining here. The boys keep me company when they're not at school, so far "the crepe game" is an all time hit, don't ask. Basically I run after them and if I catch them they roll on the ground like a crepe and have to name a filling (chocolate, sugar, berries etc.)I seriously think I could be slightly delusional when I come up with some of these things. But if I wear them out it only takes one good book to put them into snooze mode by the end of the day. Easy cheesy.
It feels good to be back in a routine of some sort. The Koala Conservation Park is right up the street. It's the largest Koala reservation in the world. Incredible bike trails and hiking paths through beautiful wildlife. Note:Kookabura's sound like monkeys (slightly annoying at 5am) and the rainbow parakeet is magical to see fly in front of you. I wake up every morning with a fresh cuppa (coffee) and a long run or bike at the park. My new favorite song for the uphill part is Men at Work-got to keep on moving,download if you havent allready.
South Bank is my favorite part of town. Hung out at the man-made beach which is smack in the middle and then watched sunset over the city from the Goodwill Bridge. The walk back was the best part, the promanade runs between the river and cultural gardens. The arbor overhead provides a canopy of fuscia flowers and glowing paper lanterns. If this place hasn't been in a movie, it will be soon. I wonder how many proposals happen there? There is always a pluster of different cultures wondering around as aimlessly as me. This place gives new meaning to perfectly lonely, so relaxing. The live music every evening is the cherry on top. Modern, hip and just plain entertaining. Hopefully headed soon to the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast which are both convieniently located outside of Brisbane. That will have to be a blog in and of itself. Untill then my friends, "nothing to do, nowhere to be, a simple little kind of free. . . i'm perfectly lonely."

Sweet Spontaneity!

My life for the last month has been wearing on me to say the least. I've applied to honestly 50+ jobs. I actually got two, but for some reason or another had to call and decline them. Watching my bank account dwindle doesn't help either. I kept thinking to myself, "If I can't get a job, Im going to be stuck in Cairns without getting to really see Australia, I'll run out of money and have to move home". (Not saying Cairns is a bad place to be stuck by any means, but you get the point).Last night I interviewed at what I thought would be THE perfect place, restaurant on the beach a 10 minute bike ride away.
I thought I did fine, but when I was leaving the manager pulled me aside to tell me she didn't think I was experienced enough.(that was total crap), confused and concerned I asked why, "well when you were setting the table you faced the cutting side of the knife the wrong way, and you also carried the drink tray wrong".Like I said total crap. Pretty sure it had more to do with my work visa.
The bike ride home that night was brutal, I felt this intense pressure to start crying but nothing would come out. What now?, there are no more options.I was over it in about two minutes after I reminded myself of how far I've come and what surrounds me! After some prayer and a bottle of wine a thought squirmed its way into action."What about that au pair site my friend gave me a while ago?" It wouldn't hurt to set up a profile and search for some families, considering I've tried everything else. So I did, passed out and thought nothing more of it.
Classified were in the newspaper this morning, today was actually an all time low. I kid you not, I was trying to figure out a way to get a taxi to drive me to a bread bakery to work a 1:30-9am shift. I would have been so happy to do it too, I'd have income so I could start saving up again. Thank GOD it hasn't come to that. I got a call this afternoon, "It's Belinda from the au pair site". I talked to her for about an hour,(no worries she's not a yahoo, actually pretty awesome).So now I am moving to Brisbane, woo hoo! I have the whole bottom floor of their house to myself, dont have to pay for food or rent AND get paid a nice weekly salary. I will be keeping three little boys when they're not in school and get a few days a week off. I also get to travel with them!!! I mean seriously?
No hesitation when opportunity comes a knockin', booking my flight in the morning and will be a Brisbane resident by wednesday. Long story short, EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON, have a little faith. If I hadn't been so beaten down last night I wouldn't have signed up for this. The sooner you learn to see the good in people, the more you will get out of this life! It's ok to take risks as long as you're smart about it. After all, that's how I got here in the first place!

AussieEaster

Started off my Easter with a nice cup of coffee and a walk to church,very convientiently located five minutes up the street. I loved being there, everyone is so happy at Easter mass and the songs were all so cheerful! It was also cool to know that at the same time I was at mass, my family was at Easter Vigil listening to the same thing I was! I got home and finally got to open the package they sent me. I had to duct tape it to my backpack to ride it home from the post office last week, mom said it "wasnt that big", liar. My turtle skills definately came in handy that day! Thanks again for everything!!! All of the essentials, oatmeal, crystal light, sunscreen, panties etc. etc. And an awesome book Ten Poems To Set You Free. Full of great quotes, which I LOVE, and really inspirational stories. Can't wait to dig into this one! Anyways Tammie and I headed to pub around lunch time to watch some footy games with a bunch of friends. The pub has a playground for kids, genious whoever thought up that one! Pretty sure drinking is a sport here in australia, and I definately drank enough to intoxicate a small country. We didn't stop there, we all went back to one of their houses for late night poker and yes more drinking. I love this group! They've all grown up together so the stories are hallarious. Anyways its about 9:30am, just got home and I'm pooped. I had an incredible easter but after I wake up from this nap I'm seriously going to need to go on a five hour run! Oh and definately had to explain that being from the states does NOT make me a yankee! No sir.

Hi. (that was hard?)

I could have kicked myself yesterday. I left on my bike around 4:30 in the afternoon to catch the end of a beautiful day down at Clifton Beach. I tend to gravitate toward this part of the area because it's just far enough away from the hustle and bustle of Palm Cove touirist action. I always feel perfectly removed. I can see the tourism walking the beach but there aren't apartments and restaurants staring me down. So my favorite part of day approaches, 5:30ish. Don't ask me why, I could list a few reasons but none will be able to explain the feeling. It's just before the sun starts its decent into evening. The whitewash foam of the sea turns a bright white, almost blue. There isnt any pink in the sky yet and it only lasts for about thirty minutes but it's magic. It feels fresh and no matter whats going on in those few moments of my day, mark my words I will smile. See right there, I grinned just thinking about it.
It was about this time that I saw a man in the distance. As he approached I noticed he was a true backpacker, around 30 give or take. Boots, boardshorts and an enormous monstrosity of a backpack. As he approached I gave a half ass smile, one of those that just gets you away with not being rude. But as he passed me I couldn't help but completely stare. It wasnt that he was some rediculously attractively guy, but he looked like he had a story. As I contemplated where the hell this kid was going he totally turned around, oops he caught me, awkward! Oops, aw shit I did it again. He must have turned around five times after he passed me sprawled out in the sand. I was so curious, but by now he was too far down the beach for me to say anything. Geese, missed opportunity number five-thousand. I just wanted to know where the hell he was going, and/or coming from. Is one bag all he's had with him, how long has he been gone? Do you speak english?
Oh well, so long Mr.Backpacker I'll never meet, Im sure you had an amazing story. Wish I had the balls to splurt out a hello. I will next time. . . . Imagine if you talked to everyone you sat next to at the bus stop or were waiting in line behind etc. etc. Some would probably really suck and not want to say much but there would always be those few, the one's you could share some common ground with, maybe even a new friend. It's never too late to start saying hi, two letters thats all. It takes longer to blink.

A Starting Point

So this is pretty random but it had such an "aha!" effect on me that I wanted to write about it. I was in church yesterday, not for mass or anything, just reflecting and hangin' out with the G-man, being alone and quiet with my thoughts. But after a little praying I started reading my book and I came across a chapter that hit me. It read as follows:
"I guess it all comes down to deciding how long you want to be happy. If you just want moments of happiness, I suspect pleasure and possessions can satisfy. If you want to be happy for an hour, take a nap. If you want to be happy for a whole day, go shopping. If you want to be happy for a weekend, go fishing. If you want to be happy for a month, TAKE A TRIP TO AUSTRALIA. If you want to be happy for a year, inherit a fortune. But if you want to be happy for a lifetime, find a way to make a difference in other people's lives.Let your life speak"
Weird that he picked Australia to be happy in, I mean I totally get it though.Just because Im across the friggin world doesnt mean I can't help out this community. So with that Im meeting with a youth volunteer group tomorrow to hopefully start helping out in any way I can! This should be a good way to meet people too. Be the change you want to see in the world, right?

Camping under a rising moon

I tend to gravitate towards nature and the good old outdoors, which is probably why this past weekend was so incredible. Friday we loaded up the ute, latched on the boat and headed for Lake Tinaroo, a little over an hours drive inland. Mango and avocado fields lined the roads as we past through the rainforest atmosphere into the wide open counry. Upon arrival Daniel allready had the whole camp set up and ready for enjoyment. What's there to do when everything's allready done?. . .crack some coldies and light up the camp fire! And that we did, all weekend long. I woke up with the sun for coffee and early morning ski sessions, and literally played on the water from sunrise to sunset. Evenings were a sight to see, sitting around the fire drinking, listening to acoustic tunes and stories. The Aboriginal superstitions and travel tales were my favorite topics. I need to read up on my astronomy though, because there were stars upon stars upon stars most of which I couldn't identify. It's funny how you can feel so small and yet so liberated in the same moment. Saturday night we saw satellites in orbit, sailing through the sky and then slowly disappearing.I made myself stay up to watch the moon rise, even though I was exhausted from a full day of wakeboarding, I wasn't about to miss out on it. I'm beyond blessed to have such good people in my life! I like to wonder off alone sometimes, because this is when I can really evaluate the amazing place im in. This all becomes real again, its easy to get caught up in wonderful situations but this gives me time to take a step back and truely appreciate everything that surrounds me.
"All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware", oh so true.

Let it rain!

Why is it that we run from the rain? Is it because we worked way too hard to accoplish an appearance earlier, or maybe the anticipation of drying out is too great for us? Rain is actually embraced and loved here. There is no mad dash for shelter when it starts, no "wait here while i pull the car around", no pause in coversation while you look for an umbrella. Its part of everyday life, nothing is planned around it or rescheduled. Allthough I'm still getting used to it, it makes me laugh and wonder why the heck its ever frowned upon. It forces you to take less time attempting to perfect and more time just enjoying what the day may bring. And I thought I was allready pretty open-minded?. . . feels good not to care!
Today I went down to Palm Cove for the day. It's a quick ride down the street to one of the most beautiful beaches. At the moment you can only swim in designated spots due to deadly jellyfish, but no worries the nets keep them out! Can't pee to cure this stinger! I went on a really long walk and thouroughly soothed my soul in the sunshine. There are little streams that cut through the beaches and into the ocean, it feels really good to lay in them right on the edge of the ocean. My days start at sunrise and I feel so awake! Tomorrow's agenda includes coffee and "brecky" then off to find the cathedral for a little thank you session. And the rain just started again. . . learn to love.

Finally here and settled

Ahh I'm here and honestly still waiting to wake up from a very imaginative dream! It is unreal how beautiful this place is, and the people here are so amazing. Im living in Cairns on the northern beaches. Life is simple and easy, I wouldn't have it any other way. Tammie has been an amazing host and already a great friend! The house is brand new and super eco-friendly, no air-conditioning but the breeze is so nice that you don't need one. Lots of adventures coming up!!!