09 August 2010

Last Night

You will have to forgive the cliche, but I truly cannot believe that three months has come and gone so quickly. I'm sitting out on the balcony for what will be the last time for at least a while, and though I have many, many thoughts, feelings, and memories swirling around in my mind, I would rather mark this occasion by thanking everyone who helped make this period of my life as enjoyable as it was. Also with a brief musical playlist.

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3
4
5
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Well folks, thanks for going on this journey with me. I am planning on continuing this blog in the future, as I have found writing many of the entries extremely satisfying. But even so, I feel like this marks a significant moment in my life for a number of reasons... so I think I will leave you all for now with a quote:

"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in that gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat." -Theodore Roosevelt

...and, predictably, a cat.

28 July 2010

30 Things...

...to do before I'm 30

OK, so here are the rules. Each item is something I haven't done before, and something that I believe is a realistically attainable goal. Also, I have tried for the most part to avoid things based largely on the opinions and actions of other people (e.g. writing a novel is something I can do on my own; writing a best-selling novel depends on other peoples opinions). Obviously there are a huge number of things that could go on here, but I picked the first ones that popped into my head.

The list is presented in no particular order, and some items I deemed a bit too personal to include on the public list (if you really want to know them, you can ask me and I'll consider sharing).

  • -Omitted-
  • -Omitted-
  • Get a tattoo
  • Write a novel
  • Spend a week in the woods (or other wilderness type place)
  • -Omitted-
  • Get a PhD
  • Cook my way through a cookbook
  • Learn to play an instrument passably well
  • Become proficient in a martial art
  • Eat at a 5 star restaurant
  • Read at least half of 'The Great Books'
  • Visit every continent (still have to get to Africa and Antarctica)
  • -Omitted-
  • Give away or sell all my excess junk after graduation
  • Save (in some form) at least $15,000 (AUS)
  • Go on a date without regard to cost
  • See a country music act live in concert
  • Learn to ride something with 4 legs or less than 4 wheels (bikes don't count)
  • Travel to Uluru
  • Become fit enough to pass this.
  • Put together a GOOD bag and BOAT.
  • Swim naked in the Pacific Ocean
  • Give blood
  • Purchase some land
  • Fly in a helicopter
  • Have a research paper published
  • -Omitted-
  • Drive a car faster than 100 mph
  • Grow and eat my own food
Go on and make your own list (post it in the comments, if you like/anyone still reads this)! Stay tuned in 9 years for a recap of this and 40 things I'll do before I'm 40.

17 July 2010

21 years of Austen

Whenever I have a birthday, I get a little reflective*. So instead of taking the time to write an original blog post for my birthday, instead I'm going to just take you all on a magical journey over the past 21 years. Grab a beer and strap yourselves in ladies and gentleman, we're approaching 88mph, and where we're going... we don't need roads**.

July 17, 1989 - Year 0
Chart-Topping Song: If You Don't Know Me By Now - Simply Red
Honestly my birth will probably be what historians consider the most momentous event to occur on this day, so lets just leave it at that and move on.

July 17, 1990 - Year 1
Chart-Topping Song: Step By Step - New Kids on the Block
Several days earlier, 'Ghost' -the highest grossing movie of the year, was released. This no doubt precipitated my lifelong appreciation for the works of Patrick Swayze

July 17, 1991 - Year 2
Chart-Topping Song: Rush Rush - Paula Abdul
'Point Break' was released about this time. I think this says it all. Patrick Swayze had firmly made an impression upon my infant mind.

July 17, 1992 - Year 3
Chart-Topping Song: Jump - Kris Kross
Three awful, awful movies released in honor of my third birthday: 'Honey, I Blew up the Kid,' 'Man Trouble,' and 'A Stranger Among Us'

July 17, 1993 - Year 4
Chart-Topping Song: Weak - SMV
Just to recap, over these 4 years the world's population increased by 350 million! An interesting side note, if someone tells you these days that you are '1 in a million' there are almost 7000 people just like you.

July 17, 1994 - Year 5
Chart-Topping Song: I Swear - All-4-One
According to wikipedia, no significant events occurred between May 10 - August 12. So I guess its time for a VUVUZELA BREAK!!! BZZZZZzzzzzZZZZZzzz

July 17, 1995 - Year 6
Chart-Topping Song: Waterfalls - TLC
Boosted by optimism that I could make it 6 years in defiance of Natural Selection, the Nasdaq closes above 1000 (8000 too small for a really good link sadly) for the first time.

July 17, 1996 - Year 7
Chart-Topping Song: How Do U Want It - 2Pac (one of his few prehumous releases)
This entire month seemed to be full of depressing headlines, go look them up if you really want, or you could take a break and grab another beer! I did!

July 17, 1997 - Year 8
Chart-Topping Song: I'll be Missing You - A few people
The F.W. Woolworth Company Closed! After 117 years of Business! Tragedy!

July 17, 1998 - Year 9
Chart-Topping Song: The Boy is Mine - Brandy and Monica (relax ladies! there is enough of Austen to go around)
The last Russian Czar and his family were finally buried in the St. Catherine Chapel. Also, the Mask of Zorro was released! So that's exciting.

July 17, 1999 - Year 10
Chart-Topping Song: Bills, Bills, Bills - Destiny's Child
I couldn't tell you when (my memory for events in my own life inspired at least one film), but this was around the time when I moved to Australia. Also that whole Y2K thing was happening (because as any educated person could tell you, when you reset the clock on your microwave, your house explodes).

July 17, 2000 - Year 11
Chart-Topping Song: Everything You Want - Vertical Horizon (*cryptic smile*)
A few days later, the Pokemon movie would be released. I loved those little guys. Back when I was a kid we just had 151 Pokemon, and had to walk five miles to school, uphill both ways...

July 17, 2001 - Year 12
Chart-Topping Song: U Remind Me - Usher
Blowing the closure of the F.W. Woolworth company out of the water, this day saw the inauguration of the replica of the Altamira Caves!

July 17, 2002 - Year 13
Chart-Topping Song: Hot in Herre - Nelly
Yeah if you were ever a 13 year old boy, you would know that song really speaks volumes about your mentality. We'll leave it at that.

July 17, 2003 - Year 14
Chart-Topping Song: Crazy in Love - Beyonce
Everyone should take this opportunity to have another drink and take a minute to remember that most famous of harpsichordists, Rosalyn Tureck.

July 17, 2004 - Year 15
Chart-Topping Song: Burn - Usher
Nothing against Usher, but lets take this moment to take a look at the Country music songs that topped their respective charts on my birthdays.
1989: In a Letter to You - Eddy Raven
1990: The Dance - Garth Brooks
1991: Don't Rock the Jukebox - Alan Jackson
1992: I Saw the Light - Wynonna
1993: Chattahoochee - Alan Jackson
1994: Foolish Pride - Travis Tritt
1995: Sold (The Grundy County Auction Incident) - John Michael Montgomery
1996: No One Needs to Know - Shania Twain
1997: It's Your Love - Tim McGraw & Faith Hill
1998: The Shoes You're Wearing - Clint Black
1999: Amazed - Lonestar
2000: I Hope You Dance - Lee Ann Womack
2001: I'm Already There - Lonestar
2002: I'm Gonna Miss Her (The Fishin' Song) - Brad Paisley
2003: Beer for My Horses - Toby Keith & Willie Nelson
This last song deserves some special attention, since it was actually the first country song I heard while flipping through my car radio, which got me interested in the whole genre which I now love. We'll include them from now on, to add some twang to our history.
Country Chart-Topping Song: Live Like You were Dying - Tim McGraw

July 17, 2005 - Year 16
Chart-Topping Song: We Belong Together - Mariah Carey
Country Chart-Topping Song: Fast Cars & Freedom - Rascal Flatts
While I was 16, I got fired from my first real job, rejected from 3 of the 4 Universities I applied to, and dumped by the first girl I really liked in a romantic way. But it wasn't all fun and games! I also graduated from high school a bit early -a choice that would have some really far-reaching and important consequences for me, all of them good. This year deserves another drink folks. I hope you are keeping up!

July 17, 2006 - Year 17
Chart-Topping Song: Promiscuous - Nelly Furtado
Country Chart-Topping Song: Summertime - Kenny Chesney
Joined Sigma Nu. Enough said.

July 17, 2007 - Year 18
Chart-Topping Song: Umbrella - Rihanna
Country Chart-Topping Song: Lucky Man - Montgomery Gentry
Had a great birthday party in Sydney Australia, one that I will be loosely recreating in a few hours. Also, 18 was the year when I declared my majors (Math, then Physics, then Environmental Science), decided to stop being fat and lazy, and move on to just lazy, and decided that sleep was a useless luxury that I could not afford (naps on the other hand...)

July 17, 2008 - Year 19
Chart-Topping Song: I Kissed a Girl - Katy Pery
Country Chart-Topping Song: Back When I Knew it All - Montgomery Gentry
I think I realized more about myself this year than all of the previous years combined. My political views started to evolve (catalyzed by my reading of Atlas Shrugged), I started learning how to lead, and how to work hard. Most notably, I fell in love for the first time. I think this is when I first started gaining a glimpse of the man I wanted to be, the image of which is still coming into focus for me.

July 17, 2009 - Year 20
Chart-Topping Song: I Gotta Feeling - Black Eyed Peas
Country Chart-Topping Song: Then - Brad Paisley
If I learned what love felt like when I was 19, I learned what losing it felt like when I was 20. There was pain, from a number of sources and people, and not in small amounts. This may sound overly theatrical, but I was going through Hell. I kept on going. I hurt, more than I think I ever had, but I learned how to overcome it. I feel stronger now than I have ever been, by every definition of strength. But enough seriousness! New drink! Or Bacon!

July 17, 2010 - Year 21
Chart-Topping Song: California Gurls - Katy Pery (really? >_<)
Country Chart-Topping Song: Rain is a Good Thing - Luke Bryan
Well we made it safely back to the present. We had some tunes, some tears, some laughter, some cheers (see what I did there?). I can't wait to see what this year will bring, and thanks to all of you who have taken the ride with me so far -and God bless everyone who didn't quite make it this far.

-Austen

*Since I was born, the earth has traveled almost 12.6 billion miles around the sun. Source: Science!
**Or sobriety.

05 July 2010

We interrupt this blog to offer our own completely useless comments

Hello all of Austen's friends and people who choose to read this blog simply because they are bored out of their mind. We were granted the wonderful honor of being guest bloggers this week. Some brief introductions, we are Kat and Jill and we decided about a month ago to take an impulse trip to visit Australia...why exactly? Who knows, but we did.

First off a huge thank you to our gracious host, Austen! I'm pretty sure he would like it if we used our blog post to talk about how wonderful he is, but really you all should already know about that.

Now, on to Sydney, which, by the way, is pretty much the BEST place on EARTH!
1) Koalas/animals in general
2) Shopping (specifically coats)
3) Botanical Gardens
4) Harbor view from the ferries
We've pretty much decided that we are going to live here forever.

I suppose we can talk a bit more about the first two items on our "favorites list." Today we adventured over to Darling Harbor (twice actually because someone* forgot the tickets) to visit Wildlife World. After surviving the terrors of the bug/HUGE spider section, we came to the cute, fuzzy section. Something to know, Koalas don't enjoy the rain, so it probably wasn't the grandest idea to go to the park on a rainy day. However there was a brief break in the rain where we got to go in and snuggle with the koalas. Okay, so maybe not snuggle, but we did get to touch them which was pretty damn neat...
-aside
Kat: Is neat the right word?
Jill: Awesomely amazing and fantastical.
Basically we want a pet koala now and are actively seeking ways to get one past customs.

Item #2, Shopping. No one in Sydney wears hoodies, sweatshirts, or the like. They all wear fitted coats. Naturally, since remember, we are going to live here one day, we needed to buy coats as well. Yesterday we decided to skip Plan A: walk, Plan B: Gardens and Museum, and jump to Plan C: Spend all the money we have in our wallets (and then some).

Finding shopping centers was surprisingly difficult. You must first find a random alleyway that leads to a random staircase or escalator, which will then lead to to a completely random and unexpected shopping center (which is pretty much always underground). You must then navigate through the underground corridors until you find a suitable store. Jill got lucky and found a coat in the first shop we stepped into, called Passion. It took me about 20 shops and 1 day to find mine.

Since you made it this far in our fairly pointless blog post we might as well tell you about our coats. Jill's knee length jacket is a vibrant shade of blue, so crisp it puts the clear waters off the coast of Australia to shame. It does however have a butt flap that is secured with a button. Clearly a necessity. I opted for a waist-length coat with asymmetric buttons and 3 quarter sleeves. I can't say its black color is anywhere near as fantastic as Jill's coat, but at least I don't have a butt flap.

We could probably go on for hours about how delightful it is here, but we aren't allowed to go to bed until this post is complete, so we'll have to cut it short. In short, Sydney is awesome, koalas are adorable, and a fitted coat is a must.

-Jill and Kat


*yes, that was me (Kat)

04 July 2010

GUEST POST ALERT!

I would just like to apologize for missing last week's post, I blame it entirely on my two guests from America, Kat and Jill. They will sometime in the next few days be making a guest post, wherein I'm sure they will explain how sorry they are to have deprived you of me for a whole week!

I would like to direct your attention here. For no reason other than it makes me smile.

20 June 2010

'A' is for Team

The first thing you need to do is find the most BAMF outfit you have, and put it on. Go ahead, I'll wait. OK now listen to this. Congratulations, you are now cleared to read this blog post. I'd lik
e to give kudos to Rebecca for making this possible. She generously donated her free ticket to 'La Premiere,' without which I probably would have done something productive with last Friday night, and that would have been truly tragic.

Instead of saving kittens, or fighting crime, or solving the international fiscal crisis, as I typically do on my nights off, I decided that I deserved some R&R, and took one of the most charming people I know out on a date:

Perhaps charming is the wrong word.

Despite the company, the whole experience was really pleasant. Now the free ticket included a free soda, and free popcorn, which was in and of itself quite fantastic. You get to sit in a balcony overlooking the common-folk (who are in considerably less comfortable conditions), in a chair of mildly ridiculous proportions. However, the real special touch to all of this is that they let you order food and, more importantly, wine to be delivered during the movie. The burger and chips were satisfying, but I have concluded that 1 bottle of red wine is precisely the correct amount required to make most nights out a supremely satisfying experience.

Also, they were showing a movie called 'The A-team' during all of this, and that was pretty good as well.

BONUS: Before and after shots of my self-administered haircut (points will be rewarded to anyone who can determine the correct temporal arrangement of the pictures)
.


14 June 2010

The Culinarian I

Hey kids, welcome to the first installment of:
Where I use a minimal budget, and even less talent to cook food that many would describe as both 'easy to make' and 'edible'! More like incredible!

In today's episode, we're going to turn this:

Into this:
That's right, with a few simple steps, you too can turn a boring set of ingredients into a delicious Breakfast Melt. The total cost of the ingredients (not including condiments and other things of that nature) should not exceed $6 or $7. Remember, whenever possible, buy generic brand items.

What you will need:
  • Salt, Pepper, spices to taste (I used garlic salt)
  • Olive oil
  • Tomato Sauce (or 'Ketchup' for those in the states)
  • 3 Eggs
  • 1 Can Baked Beans
  • 1 Can Corned Beef
  • 1 bag Frozen Steak Fries
  • Cheese
What you need to do:
  1. Microwave 2 large handfuls* of steak fries until mostly thawed (probably ~1:30); mash thoroughly
  2. Add corned beef to mashed steak fries, microwave for 1:00 (you have now created 'corned beef hash')
  3. Add olive oil to pan, turn stove on to some appropriate egg cooking temperature
  4. Add corned beef hash to pan, once you hear crackling, add eggs**
  5. Mix thoroughly, keep turning over to allow eggs to cook well
  6. Concurrently, microwave baked beans for about 2 min. add half to bottom of deep dish, cover liberally with tomato sauce
  7. Once eggs are cooked into corned beef hash, layer this on top of the baked beans in the deep dish with another helping of tomato sauce on top. Keep making alternating layers until the dish is full
  8. Add cheese to top, microwave whole thing until cheese is melted and dish is hot throughout (~1 min. should do it)
  9. For attractive serving, carefully moderate portion from deep dish, and serve with something healthy (vegetables probably)
  10. For fun serving, overturn dish onto plate, dig in right away (see above)
If you have a cheap, easy recipe you want me to attempt cooking, let me know! Who knows when The Culinarian will strike again...

*I don't cook with standard units of measurements. Neither should you!
**I recommend cracking the eggshells and using the interior liquid portion of the egg only, but that's just my personal preference

09 June 2010

Melbourne: City of Quality

Melbourne was quite an experience, to say the least. Both for the city itself and the personal events that occurred there. I won't mention anything about the latter except as they pertain to my mindset as I explored the former. Suffice to say that I was not in a stellar mood following the first evening, but despite that I really did enjoy Melbourne itself and getting to hang out with everyone I met/knew there.

I spent the first night at La Trobe University for a 'scribble party' from which I learned two important things:
  1. The quality of on-campus parties is one of the few areas where the USA has Australia beat.
  2. Four Jager bombs and a pitcher of beer may be a good way to start a night, but are not the wisest way to conclude one.
My next day was considerably less eventful, as I didn't feel all that well and ended up sleeping a bunch, but I still managed to climb a few rock-walls despite myself. The next day I spent basically just walking around Melbourne with Eileen, who deserves a special shout out for hosting me for a few nights, and introducing me to a bunch of her friends. She showed me a lot of places, but what sticks out is the Shrine of Remembrance, which was truly stunning. I think standing on top of that building in the rain, looking out over the whole city, filled me with such tranquility and peace that it ended up being the emotional high point of the entire trip*.

The last day I walked around solo, and spent a lot of time in the art gallery. I also visited St. Francis (stayed for a bit of the evening mass, and let me say that sermons delivered in an Australian accent are more humorous than they ought to be). Soon I found my way into a English-style** bar next to an old (now indoor) shot-tower. Some drinks and a lot of cash later I had made friends with a few bartenders and a number of locals, who decided at some point that I was ready to go to the airport, where I slept until my 7AM flight.

I wouldn't feel right without mentioning the main thing that distinguishes Melbourne as a city; that unique touch that sets it apart as a cultural powerhouse. The 7-11. There are multiple locations where you can stand outside of a 7-11... and see another 7-11. Incredible.

*I get this feeling generally from any solemn building, be it a war memorial or some sort of religious construction -in this case though I think it was the contrast to how I had been feeling that made it so spectacular.
**A pint is the correct volume for beer consumption, in case you didn't know

03 June 2010

Random Stuff

I figured I should mention now that I'm settling into a rather packed schedule that I plan on updating this once weekly, probably on Sunday. I'll be out of town visiting Melbourne this weekend, so the next full post will be Monday or Tuesday. However, to amuse you in the short term, here is a list of random things I've seen since arriving in Sydney:

  • A man standing in the middle of the road wearing a shabby old suit and holding the helm of a small ship. This was quite far from any major body of water.
  • About a dozen people in Green Man Suits dancing around Martin Place, each one lettered 'W,' 'n,' 'e,' 'g,' 'i' or 'r.' I can only imagine that they were attempting to say 'Erg Win' -Hooray rowing!
  • Two full grown adults beating one another with pool noodles on street corner near a shopping mall. They seemed to be genuinely upset with one another.
  • An extreme closeup of a magpie as it slapped me in the face with its wing in a flyby attack, after which it perched on a fence and started yelling at me.
  • A fifty-year-old man trying to hit on a Uni student on the bus by talking about power rangers; specifically how his 'favorite' was the silver ranger because he was "you know, not like... an earthling."
Next up: Why Sydney > Melbourne!

27 May 2010

Coffee

Caffeine is a hell of a drug. From this article, it provides the following benefits*:
  • Improves cognition, memory, and ability to perform complex tasks
  • Protects against Parkinson's, Alzheimer's diseases, Type II diabetes
  • Prevents brain degeneration, cognitive decline due to aging
  • Makes you happy! Alert! Use excessive exclamation points!
  • Increases aerobic endurance
  • Grants the ability to shoot laser beams out of your pores
  • ANTIOXIDENTS! (I don't know what these are, but word is they're good for you)
My favorite method of obtaining caffeine is also the most common in the United States; coffee. Ignoring the incredibly inanity of the Starbucks ordering system (where sizes are Tall, Large, and Twenty), I can go into any restaurant and ask for a Coffee, and have at least some idea of what they will serve. As a result of this coddling, its taken me a while to get to the naming customs here, and so I've compiled some useful information from my own experience and a little internet research.

Simply asking for a 'Coffee' will likely provoke more questioning from whoever you order from (especially if you try this on the average pedestrian), but you could end up with a Long Black (which is a shot of Espresso with about twice that in water, sort of like a Cafe Americano), a Flat White (Basically a no foam latte), a Cappuccino, or instant coffee. You will almost definitely not get a 'standard' percolated black coffee.

Also available is the Short Black (just an Espresso shot), the Short Macchiato (a Short Black with a dash of cold milk), a Long Macchiato (WILD CARD... usually involves Espresso and some sort of Milk; or could be an Italian adult movie star), the Cold Coffee (iced coffee), and the Iced Coffee (a delicious coffee-milkshake sort of thing) which is my favorite.

If anyone things for a moment that this seems a bit overly complicated, I will merely draw your attention to the Grande Double Light Soy Iced White Chocolate Mocha; which you can actually order at Starbucks without being laughed at from behind the counter**.

*One of these may not be true. Bonus points if you can figure out which one it is!

**Ask the same person for a 'Large Iced Coffee' though and they stare at you like an idiot. Starbucks is silly.

PS: Unrelated to the rest of this post, there was a beautiful rainbow over Sydney this morning, framed perfectly by my balcony. It made me quite happy that I had slept in through my alarm, otherwise I might have missed it.

24 May 2010

"Winter"

It's technically winter down under, which naturally means that the weather is only better than Rochester's about 80% of the time (here is a great picture of Lake Ontario near Rochester, which I assume was probably taken in late April, and the bike was stolen soon after).

It's been raining for about a week on and off, but it still hasn't dropped below 55F. As anyone who has lived in Rochester would know, this is shorts and t-shirts weather. For some reason though, people in Australia are all bundled up; I've even seen people in hats, gloves and scarves! The daylight hours certainly remind me of winter though; the sun rises at about quarter to 7AM, but sets a little before 5PM!

This means that yesterday, when I had to wake up several times before my hungover body allowed me to actually start performing the simplest of tasks, I got to experience a grand total of 2.5 hours of natural illumination. For perspective, that's shorter than the movie Gladiator (General to slave to gladiator to oh dear I've run out of daylight)*. Of course, that does segue nicely into a brief description of Friday night.

Now, I work at a fantastic institution (well it has been for the few days I've worked so far), but I was still not at all prepared for the extremely nice surprise on Friday of having my boss take all of us out for some very nice steaks and drinks at a nearby pub! On top of that, I ran into some of my Australian friends who were attending a 21st birthday celebration one floor up. So after all of my co-workers left (all of them are older and much more responsible than I), and I had imbibed probably a bit more than necessary, I crashed the party upstairs only to find I knew the party girl from my time in the Australian youth choir (I was never that good, but its a nice video).

A few reels of my memory are missing from that point on, but I got home safe and sound, met a bunch of nice people, and graciously let a friend know that her "teeth were too straight". I'm a nice guy like that.

*On an only barely related note, the longest song ever is much longer than that.

20 May 2010

Home Alone

My dad left for the states today, and though its not the first time I have been living on my own, this is the most independent I have been. I have no familial contacts within a thousand miles, I'm working pretty much full time, and I'm pretty much allowed to do whatever I want. This newfound freedom has led me to several major realizations:
  1. I can be naked anytime I like.
  2. I am terrible at shopping for food.
  3. Seriously, anytime! I'm naked right now.*
I have know about the second point for some time, but it was driven home tonight when I attempted to shop for food. I had in mind that I needed to buy some milk, and possibly some other items of an edible, and by those rather loose standards I was completely successful. Upon unpacking my groceries however, I began to wonder if my methodology or standards leave something to be desired. I'll let you be the judge:


What I ended up with (in no order):
- Half a kilo of canned salmon (generic brand)
- Canned 4 bean mix (sale)
- Canned corn (generic brand and on sale)
- 3x Various Soups (sale)
- 1L Moisturizer (something I actually needed... I get dry elbows OK?)
- 1 Full kilo of cereal (on a clearance sale, cheaper than the smallest box)
- 'Rustic Cut Potatoes' (on clearance sale)
- 3L Milk (what I set out to buy! also, generic brand)

What do you think?

*You clicked on the link, didn't you? I know, I'm hard to resist.

17 May 2010

Thunderstorms

It has rained more in the past two days in Sydney than it did in the previous month combined. I feel obligated to make quick crack about bringing some Rochester weather down under, but in this case, I am not bothered in the slightest.

Aside from the always appreciated presence of precipitation in Australia (there always seems to be one drought or another here), I really love rainstorms of any kind (so does the country music genre). There is something so refreshing and cleansing feeling about them that always seems to put me in a good mood. Foremost of these are good old fashioned thunderstorms. And we are having some great thunderstorms right about now.

Something about them just fills me with a sense of awe and wonder, seeing the power of nature expressed in such a beautiful yet tumultuous fashion. I feel incredibly invigorated by them, especially when I get the chance to stand outside in the fury of the storm, and feel the rain pelt down on me; its a sense of freedom.

There are also, at least for me, something very sexy about them. Add some thunder and lightning to anything involving a pretty girl, and it makes it that much more exciting. If you'll indulge me*, allow me to write briefly about what I still consider one of my best kisses (and trust me, there are a number of top-notch contenders):

I was on a mission trip to Ohio, and we were all staying at some sort of bible camp while we rebuilt some local houses that had been damaged by storms/flooding. Now, I was walking around the camp grounds with a friend; a fairly cute redhead. We had gotten a fair distance from the main hall when a superb summer thunderstorm suddenly came up and started drenching us. After agreeing that we were in no particular hurry to do so, we started heading back at an extremely casual pace. We soon happened upon a nice little footbridge spanning a little river, and right when we got to the center I think both of us were a little taken by the moment.

Warm rain was coming down in buckets; both of us at this point were entirely soaked to the bone. The river had swollen from a little trickle of water to a comparative deluge, and it was just approaching dusk so that the main light was from the lighting which streaked down through the sky. Without saying anything, we turned to each other and our eyes met. That wonderful moment of knowing you are about to kiss washed over both of us with the rain, and she leaped up and wrapped her legs around me and I suppose the ending is pretty clear.

That was the only time that something happened between us, and we haven't really kept in touch, but I'll always appreciate that memory.

If by some miracle you are still reading, I also had a fantastic first day at work, and won a little award from the Physics department at UR, so generally speaking, things are going pretty well.

*Or even if you won't, its my blog after all :P

15 May 2010

Crowe vs. Cream

Australian fast food is relatively expensive. The basic 'Hungry Jack's'* Whopper meal weighs in at about a whopping (painfully obvious pun intended) $8 AUS. That about equivalent to 6 McDoubles (or 3 McGangBangs)! However, the one area where it can't be beat, pricewise, is with its soft serve ice cream cones. At the same place, you can get one of these fully palatable sugary delights for 50 cents.

That is, for the non-math inclined, about a half dollar. While that sinks in, let's talk about Russell Crowe for a bit. Specifically, his portrayal of the (apparently half-Irish) Robin Hood. This in turn will mandate an additional tangent (don't worry, I'm keeping track).

I have a very bad habit of prejudging films. That is to say, I usually 'know' whether or not I will enjoy a movie before I even buy my ticket. Fortunately, I am also usually right about my anticipated enjoyment. But occasionally I have the rare and often enjoyable moment where I am completely off the mark about a feature. For example, everyone -myself included- knew Catwoman was going to be awful. However, upon viewing it, it turned out to be fairly tolerable, and exceeded my expectations so much that I truly enjoyed the experience. On the other hand, despite popular opinion, Napoleon Dynamite kind of sucked (be honest, when was the last time you even considered watching it?) and so it was a real downer.

Back to Russel channeling Robin, I didn't really expect much, and was therefore extremely pleasantly surprised. It was much more than the 'Gladiator in England' I expected it to be, and I actually found myself laughing out loud at some of the humour (humor, for those in the States). Of course, my Dad and I saw it in a swanky downtown theatre (theater**), so it cost us about $17 AUS ($15 US**) per ticket.

Which brings us (finally) back to the topic of this post. I can now say with scientific certainty, that an evening with Russell Crowe for two is exactly worth 68 ice cream cones. The difference is of course that one is enough to satisfy two dozen men and women, and the other is a bunch of ice cream cones.

*Hungry Jack's ~ Burger King
** briefly consider the acronym replacement for 'those in the States' and if you don't chuckle, you are probably not a boy

14 May 2010

I am Batman

The terms "Flying Fox" and "Fruit Bat" (he's magically delicious!) have very different connotations in my mind, though in fact they are synonymous terms for what is in my mind the much cooler sounding "Megabat" (also, this). Despite the awe-inducing imagery evoked by the latter term, from their appearance I have to say the flying fox seems the most accurate term.

I've always felt that, Batman excluded, bats get an undeservedly bad rap; they are almost always portrayed as blood-sucking creatures of the night, or some other unpleasant and terrifying stereotype. Though certainly some species would fall into that category, and many bats do carry diseases that can be fatal to humans (or at the very least, ruin your day), flying foxes at least seem to me fairly endearing animals.

Evidence: Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C; The defense rests.

However, when I step out on my balcony in the morning wearing nothing but pajamas and general sense of drowsiness for a cup of coffee*, and have a great hairy black creature seemingly from the Blackest Pits of the Abyss fly straight towards me, and out into the morning air, I begin to see where these stereotypes might have come from.

Of course, life in Sydney is not all fun and games and being surprised by giant winged foxes. There are some really great (and some really awful) places to dine in and around Sydney. The Japanese restaurant where I was taken last night by a good friend most definitely fell in the former category. After dinner we walked through Chinatown, and I was able to enjoy the textural paradox that is bubble tea. The night ended with drinks on the balcony, watching foxes fly over the Botanic Gardens.

They were much more pleasant to observe from this distance.

*Expect an entire post at some point soon on the idiosyncrasies of Australian coffee-naming conventions

13 May 2010

Happiness is Australia

After only two days, I'm already amazed at the incredibly positive effect this country has on my general temperament. A rather painful interpersonal issue -no one is really at fault, but its incredibly difficult nonetheless- reared its head once yesterday, and only a couple hours ago today, dragging me down toward the dismal level I have been trying to boost out of for several weeks now.

However, sitting out here on the balcony with this superb view and a very decent* glass of Cabernet Sauvignon, its difficult to care. I'm in a nation I love, with endless possibilities for the next three months. Just looking out over the city and relaxing fills me with a feeling of warm contentment that I lack the eloquence to define.

However, more crudely: at first I was like :), then I was like :'(, and the Sydney made me all :D.

Also, and much more importantly, there is a black and white cat living in my flat complex, who is both extremely adorable and amazingly dumb. I returned home today to find the feline in question lying at the top of a staircase leading down to a courtyard. Now, my affinity for all cat-kind is borderline compulsive, so I naturally reached down and began showering the cat -lets call it 'Steve'- with affection.

Steve began enjoying herself -also, Steve is a girl- immensely. Surprisingly she expressed this enjoyment not only by purring but also by rolling down the stairs one by one, rubbing her face and head against the banister all the way down.

Perhaps this sort of behaviour is typical of Australian animals. Time will tell...

*Author's Note: My taste in wine is questionable at best, but its red and palatable. Wikipedia describes Australian Cabernet Sauvignons as having "intense fruit flavors and subtle minty notes" whatever the hell that means.

12 May 2010

First Night


That rather low quality image above is a rather poor approximation of the gorgeous view from the balcony of my parents' apartment, taken from the equally low quality webcam on my laptop. It doesn't nearly do justice to the incredible beauty of the Sydney cityscape, I will try to get a hold of a proper camera to record it.

The journey over was as pleasant as any 24-hour trip can be. I was the main entertainment for a pair of children sitting a row ahead of me on the last leg of the journey (I would guess one was 4 and the other 2). Regardless of what I was doing -reading, sleeping, eating, attempting unsuccessfully to combine all three- they would merely have to glance at me and they would burst out laughing. I evoke this reaction from from some of my closest friends also.

Also, I would like to give a shout out to everyone's favorite airline, and congratulate them for successfully combine a pork breakfast sausage with a beverage coaster for a delightful 'edible' item that may even have been once part of a pig. At the very least, it provided some amusement when the older member of my audience crammed an entire 'ham slice' into her mouth, turned around to view me, observed that I did in fact still exist and was performing actions of some kind, and proceeded to laugh loudly and forcefully enough to expel said item an impressive distance into the aisle.

According to my Australian cell phone, the time is 6:16PM. According to my internal clock, its currently 4:16AM. Many of you know that this is not an entirely unusual time for me to be awake, but I'm still a little bit groggy.

Compounding this, I'm enjoying what will likely be the first of several beers (VB, a slightly more authentically Australian beer than Fosters). Moreso, I'm enjoying the fact that as of now, I will be able to consume similar beverages legally for the rest of my life. I'm far too tired to head out to the pubs tonight, but I'm a short hop from the seediest district in Sydney, and the public transportation here is top notch, so I anticipate many exciting evenings.

But for now at least, I bid you all a very fond farewell, and hope that at least one person besides myself is reading this :D

10 May 2010

Austen Mk. I

Paragon! I quite like the sound of this word, as well as a number of its synonyms... I don't really have a better reason than that for making it the first word of this post.

To be brief (since its 3:09AM and I would really like to get some sleep before I leave for Sydney), I'll be in Australia for the next 3 months, and plan on using this as a vehicle for communicating with all of you (you being my no doubt largely imaginary audience), and as a way for me to record the antics I get up since my memory so often fails me in that respect.

My cell phone will be off for the summer as of this morning, but I'd love to keep in touch with you, and I'll respond to e-mails or by facebook. If anyone wants to Skype with me, let me know!

If anyone cares, the title of this blog is a pun on the rather fitting word 'Ostentatious' (there is nothing like a good pun, and this is nothing like a good pun); the title of the post comes from this interesting find.

The next time I post, I'll be worlds away, and ecstatically content!