Friday, April 5
Today is my 6 weekiversay of being in Australia!
Well I know it's been forever since I last posted, and I'm so sorry about that.
The highlights since then have been: Cooper and Sarah had birthdays, Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday at Hillsong, Redback Racing Newsletter release, my first footy game and meat pie, Sydney Royal Easter Show, first movie and first solo mall shopping trip, getting registered for my Fall 2013 classes at RPI, and finally, my Australian library card! Wow, I have been busy : )
So Cooper and Sarah are now each a year older than when I left. It wasn't so hard missing their actual birthdays, but it is hard to not regularly catch up, or just hear what Sarah learned at school each day. As Cooper and Sarah have both started working at 16 Handles, they each are having to juggle work, school, and their 2nd jobs. (Sounds like child labor, but it's not; they both love their jobs). Feeling like I'm missing out on the daily stuff has been hard, but they are both having to make decisions that show me how responsible they are. It is good to hear that Sarah still likes to talk to me when she makes certain decisions. (Love you Sarah).
Celebrating Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday (definitely Easter and not Resurrection) at Hillsong really made me miss Clearview CMA. Not only the sermon and hymns, but also the people. I was reading a book, saw this quote, and thought it expressed pretty well the way I feel: "church dismissal, that time immediately following worship service when folks milled around the foyer visiting, too full of love and peace to leave." That common bond isn't so common and easy to find. So, needless to say, I am hoping to visit more churches soon.
One of the things that I have really enjoyed here is working with the Redback Racing team. The first task I completed was editing the newsletter. Most of you know I love reading, so I had an amazing time reworking sentences and punctuation. It was also a really great way to spend time getting to know other team members, so it was good in many ways. It is also exciting for me to hear that the Rensselaer Motorsport team is preparing for Rollout on April 8th. This is the night that they present the finished car, and thank all of our sponsors. This year it takes place in EMPAC, and for those of you that know Troy, it is the big, funny shaped building on the hill that overlooks the river. It is a really big success and honor that RPI is letting us use EMPAC to present what we have worked so hard on!
I have had this whole week off, but had to work a little on a group project.
I attended my first footy game (National Rugby League) on Monday, and also had my first meat pie! Their meat pie is the equivalent of our nachos or hot dog at a sporting event. The game was fantastic, and the team we were rooting for (Sydney Roosters) won, 50 to 0! It was a great game with great company. The meat pie was pretty good, but very messy to eat.
Wednesday I went to the Sydney Royal Easter Show, which reminded me of the New York State Fair. It started years ago when farmers would bring their livestock and produce to show off. It has since morphed into a "regular fair" with carnival rides and shows. I did see and admire the livestock, produce, and various foods (free samples are always a win). One of the things that set the Show apart was one of the traditions of buying show bags. A show bag is basically a themed bag, with samples of various products. They had over 300 different show bag themes, with the majority being candy bags. I got a show bag for a magazine company, but its supposed retail value was over $400, and I paid $15. I love participating in things that make me feel like an Australian ; ) The Easter Show takes place at the Sydney Olympic Park, so it was very cool to get to walk around that. I also attended the "psycho sideshow" which had several different acts perform things chainsaw juggling, and contortionists. I also saw the rodeo which had 2 teams, New South Wales and Queensland, going against each other in various events. New South Wales started the night out 3 points behind because the rodeo was a continuation of all the other nights. As I went on the last day of the show, it was their last chance at winning. They won the night by 3 points, which meant Queensland and New South Wales tied overall. The other show that I saw was the fireworks finale, which included fire dancers and fire breathers!
Yesterday I went to the local mall to shop (because I can't go for to long without shopping) and I also saw the new movie The Host. I was really excited to see the movie, because I absolutely loved the book, but I was very disappointed in the movie. I'm usually ok with the books to movie conversions, but I was really not happy with this one. I then went to the food court, and our KFC is way better than KFC here. (Not a big surprise, but still different). After shopping in Target, Kmart, and a few boutique stores I headed home. It still surprises me how expensive things are here. Kmart's prices are just like home, but Target is a lot more pricey.
At 2am (11am at home) I had to register for my Fall classes at RPI. Because I didn't have Internet at 2am, my amazing mother was able to register me! I got all but one necessary class, and am now waiting to hear back from my advisor to see if she can help me get in. Although I am loving having more free time here (shockingly, not working 3 part time jobs does give you more free time) planning for the fall, and in turn, spring semester, has really had me thinking about what I am going to do after I graduate. I have been doing a lot of thinking and praying, but all of my options are still out there. When I get back I will have some serious decisions to make.
So, today I have headed to the local library where I got a library card, and am simply enjoying the free wifi, and being surrounded by books! I'm going to go look around and enjoy myself ; )
Until Later,
Kaitlyn
