My bags are packed, I'm ready to go*

Have you guys tried this?

It's this cool little thing whereby you can search for places by average temperature. How brilliant is that?!

(In case you're wondering where all this is coming from, Adelaide's heat wave is over, and it has occurred to me that I may not be properly warm again until summer kicks in again sometime around November.)

After searching for places with an average temperature of between 25 and 40 degrees, I have concluded that I am moving to the Caribbean. (Honourable mentions to Egypt, Florida, Greece, Spain, and the UAE. Nice try.) Who wants to come with?

*In hindsight, this may cause some title repitition problems in around 106 days 18 hours and 9 minutes, but we'll deal with that then, mkay?

Dear Work

Dear Manager-Type People,

When you WAKE SOMEONE UP and want to ask them a FAVOUR, you might want to NOT MAKE FUN OF THEM in the process. And also, if you want to get really crazy, maybe you could apologise for waking them up.

Love, Missy.


Dear Payroll-Type People,

Yes, I did in fact want that extra time and a half for working on Easter Saturday, because, as it happens, I worked on Easter Saturday.

Love, Missy.


Attention Customers,

Our fold tables have been completely re-folded and look absolutely perfect. Please make your way over there at your early convenience and fuck them right up.

Thank you for shopping at ASS.

So Not

Last year I did so well. I was focussed and motivated (mostly) and prepared.

Now? I've lost it. My study mojo has gone to shit.

After being pulled over by the cops last night for riding unregistered, I got a bus to uni this morning that got me there with about thirty seconds to spare.

First class, we were discussing a book. As everyone I was chatting to on msn last night knows, I was totally bragging about having read a book for uni. Um, genius? Wrong book.

Next class, bring two essays and look at a bunch of websites. After a mad dash to the computer room I had two (fairly irrelevent to the task) essays. "So guys, what did you get out of the websites?" Uh, me? Yeah not much, y'know?

Luckily the topic of conversation was essay writing and structure, which, as we know, I can fucking rock.

I made it work only fifteen minutes late (thanks, buses) and Friday afternoons at the centre are hell fun, as it turned out. I rock the petrol station shop person as well.

We do need to work on the study habit thing, however.

I AM a student AKA So many questions

The BA Office ladies overrode whatever system wouldn't let me enrol and signed me up for all my classes. In about five minutes. WOOHOO!!!

Question: Why couldn't you have done this weeks ago?

My name was recorded by the dude on the train who wouldn't let me travel on a student ticket because my Flinders student ID was not valid (then, it is now) and my international student ID wasn't acceptable.

Question: Isn't the point of an international student ID that it's valid anywhere?
Question: How about you don't sell tickets to people without valid ID so they don't end up ON A TRAIN with no money and no ticket?
Question: If that chick hadn't given me change, what would you have done?

Question: Is that even how you spell the word 'question'? QUESTion. KEWSTyun. KooWESTeeon.

Happy Easter!

As I said, this is my first Easter on my own. Last Easter was my first away from home, but my boys came down to visit me and have lots of fun and go on Easter-egg hunts and Aldinga Beach hunts.

Easter at home means chocolate, scones, and lots of church.

I remember I managed to get out of Holy Thursday mass at the end there. Work? Basketball? Teenage tantrum? Something like that. Good Friday was always long and freaking hot. Ironically, we got out of church on Saturday, the day that we usually had to go. I actually really liked Easter Sunday, because, dude, it's Easter.

First, there would be Easter eggs. The Easter Bunny always left some for our cousins as well, which was nice of him. Then there was mass, which was always ridiculously early in the morning but everyone was wearing pretty colours and there were always heaps of our friends there and everyone was happy. Then, THEN, we would go to the cousins' house for morning tea. And not just any morning tea - scones. (We will come back to this.) And of course there would be Easter eggs for us there as well. (Does that seem weird to anyone else? Like, why didn't ours all show up in our fridge and theirs in their fridge? And how did the Easter Bunny make sure it all balanced out? So many questions.) And we would be tortured by oldies music and jokes and maybe go for a swim or watch a movie and definitely eat a lot of chocolate. (I was actually always slow on eating chocolate after that first day. I stretched it out for a good long time. Anyone else do that?)

This year was just a little bit different. I had uni and work all day Thursday. Friday, Jess and Eric came over. They and the housemates played Risk while I watched the Friends marathon. We got fish and chips for dinner then the boys watched Rambo while Jess and I watched The Patriot. Then we all watched some poker championship thing. (A lot of watching here. But hey! It's a holiday.)

Saturday, I worked all day. On the way home I went to Coles who were shut (bastards). Which means no scones for me. Seriously, that is what Easter means to me. Scones, fresh from the oven. Even if I had to burn make them myself.

Unfortunately, that was not to be. Instead, I slept in Easter Sunday til like midday. (Oh yeah, I've still got it.) Talked to the boys. For breakfast - cheating on scones with hot cross buns. My plans for the rest of the day include tv, internet, and straightening my hair for tomorrow (Oakbank races).

Wow, that was long. What are your Easter traditions? What do you need to have for it to feel like Easter? And are you any good at making scones?

PS: No Easter eggs magically showed up in my fridge this morning. But the Housemate did bring some home from work yesterday which he then left out all loose in the door of the fridge. I'm thinking they will 'magically' disappear before he gets home today.

Lessons and Observations for the Week

I composed a lovely bullet-pointed post sometime. Maybe on the bus or when I was having a nap. I don't remember what it was but it was awesome. It went something like this:

A game where people don't even score any goals can still be kind of exciting.

It can also be a bit boring. (You can tell this because even the boys are admiring the sunset over the stadium instead of that awesome kick thing that player dude just did.)

Adelaide does know how to rain. Very very coldly. (Incidentally, how can it be only 16 degrees at 5 in the afternoon? That should not be legal.)

Plan a better way to get home than 'we can walk it.' There may not be a 'we' and then where will you be? (Ans: At the hall. Under Jollan's loft bed. Thanks hun, so much.)

People will give you Easter eggs around Easter time. Like at the Hall, at uni. Not at work though. I feel ripped off. Maybe on Saturday.

This will be my first Easter in my new house. Also my first Easter all on my lonesome. Do you think the Easter Bunny will find me?

The End

After 15 days in a row of over 35 degree* temperatures, looks like Adelaide has realised it's not actually meant to be having summer anymore.



Damn. I'll miss you, summer.

*95°F. I think the maxiumum we got up to was around 41/42°C - 106°F.

Last(?) First Day

BA Office (Wednesday): Sure, no worries. It should take about a day, and then you'll be able to enrol.
Me (Thursday): *Tries unsuccessfully to enrol*
Me (Friday): *Tries unsuccessfully to enrol*
Me (Friday): *Goes to class, not yet enrolled*

I'm not holding my breath, BA Office.

Maybe I just wasn't in a very receptive mood (after all, 9am Friday is not my best time) but I do not like the people in my classes.

They are all creative writing or drama people. Which means they think they are so creative and individual. They pride themselves being all left-wing and un-mainstream, but you know what guys? If you're ALL doing it, it stops being individual and becomes mainstream. They believe they're so free-thinking, yet all the while they are trying to impose their way as the only right way of thinking.

Plus, they're all old and/or fashion challenged. Seriously, how am I meant to work with these people?

It'd be an Honour

I re-got a signature. I re-filled in the form. I re-handed it in. They'll get back to me.

I went to buy the book of readings for the first class. But wait, I don't have a student card so I can't. But I can't get a student card because I'm not enrolled. I could provide my timetable, but hang on. I don't have one those either cos I can't enrol. The solution? Get a letter from my Honours convenor. Who has nothing better to do than write letters for me that I could have gone around a corner and written for all the effort it took and all the attention they paid to the letter, once it was procured.

I decided to be a good little Honours student and do the readings. Before class even. What I didn't take into account is that there are EIGHT. For ONE CLASS. For the FIRST WEEK. Which means I just did forty-five pages of readings. And suddenly, ten thousand words doesn't seem like that much to write at all.

My New Favourite Show

I had never seen an episode until I moved in, but Whose Line Is It Anyway? has to be our most-watched show. I am now in love with Wayne Brady.

This clip (or rather, Ryan Stiles's verse) is freaking hilarious. Unlike myself, he is not a fan of the Hoedown.

Heat Wave

Ok, I bow down to the heatiness that is Adelaide.

Darwin can do it more consistently and wayy more humidly, but when Adelaide decides to be hot, it really goes for it.

From ABC News:

Adelaide will get its longest hot spell since records began if the temperature gets above 35 degrees Celsius today.
[It did.]
Adelaide has sweltered through an eight-day heat wave eight times in the past, but there has never been a nine-day run.
[Until now. And here's the kicker...]
The hot weather is expected to continue for another week.

You know what this means! Beach, pool, and more beach!

Adelaide Cup

Living With Boys

Lesson One: Supposing a boy is considerate enough to ask if you need the bathroom.

The answer, always always always, is "YES! YES I DO. AND I AM GOING THERE RIGHT NOW."

This is true even if you have no need of the bathroom and do not in fact think you will need it at any time in the near or distant future.

Bathroom. Going. Right now. Definitely not later.

Never Mind

So, the discussion about the strip club turned out to be academic. (Wow, strip club and academic in the same sentence, who'da thought?)

The Lads have decided that it should be a Lads Night. Which ... I said that right at the start (and not just because I was being a chickenshit about going).

We have been invited to partake of the festivities ... AFTER midnight.

Some of the girls (not me, see above re: chickenshit) got a bit offended at being disinvited, and declined the generous timeslot we'd been offered.

So we're going to the movies. That'll show 'em.

O-Week: Again, Some More

Here's the rest of the week:

The Tonsley:



Hannah's 19th:



Benny's "18th":



The Fringe Festival:



The Cricket:



(Ok, so the photos are on The Pom's camera. But you get the idea. We were busy, ya with me?)

Now I Get It

Now do you remember why it is so much better to have YOUR bed to YOURself?

A little something called sleep.

I swear, I am getting the masking-tape line happening if the people-staying-over-after-BBQs thing keeps up.

Be Careful

You should always listen to your friends. They are always right.

Even when "You could get hurt" sounds a lot like "You might get in too deep considering there's a limited time-frame here."

You should know that they're psychic and are actually saying "He could decide that you might get hurt and therefore yell at you for being a typical woman even though you had no intention of getting hurt and JUST WANTED TO HAVE SOME FUN DAMMIT."

They may also be saying "He could decide that you have made him violate some kind of guy code and therefore... No actually, he won't reach a conclusion, you will have to end it and then pretend that we're all best mates from now on."

Screw you, all my friends, for being right. But thank you so so much for listening to my rant at 2/3/4am. You are the best.

How Crazy Is Too Crazy?

As part of The Pom's Aussie Reunion Tour, he and 'the lads' are having one big reunion night at the Crazy Horse.

Two things:
1. The Crazy Horse is a strip club.
2. 'The lads' also includes girls of his acquaintance, which in turn includes me.

My question is, do I go to the Crazy Horse?

On the one hand, it's Reunion Night.
On the other, it's a strip club. They're degrading to women or whatever.
On the I Am Running Out Of Hands hand, it could be hilarious.
On the Over To You hand, I can't make a decision without your input.

Horse or not? Supply valid reasons to support your arguement. Or bribe me with booze. ("Ooh! Booze at the Horse!")

Also, have you ever been to a strip club? Why and how and would you go back or would you never ever go in the first place?

The World Is Crazy

- SuperTiff.com has been hijacked! Stop by for some babbling. (Everyone: We get that here, durrrrr.)

- We walked to Brighton today. For everyone NOT in Adelaide, that is a long way. Not as long as Jetty Bar to home, but long. Especially in 40 degree heat. (FENIA: That is HOT.)

- The BA Office has sent me two letters, in which they:

(a) offered me admission to the BA [which ... I already have] and subsequently informed me that
(b) graduation is in April [which ... first of all, I want to do Honours, not graduate, and second of all, you just offered me admission, think I'm going to get through four years in two months?] and also were happy to tell me that
(c) I am eligible to apply for Honours [which ... I ALREADY DID THAT].

So I've filled out the form that I already filled out and gave to them, and now I have to see the convenor I already saw, and hand the form in at my their earliest convenience.

HOPEFULLY, after all that, they will then send me a letter telling me I'm in. For reals this time. No seriously.

O-Week: Jetty Bar

I did not know at the time but these photos from Jetty Bar sum up the week pretty well.

This did not seem like a very important moment (and it certainly doesn't look like it) but this was the first time HM and I went out with the Pommy Bastard. The Pom had lived at the Hall a few years ago, was mates with HM, and is back for two months for a visit.

That afternoon, HM had introduced us and was all, "The Pom's going to be staying with us for a few nights." And so began the awesomest week ever.



Part A: Introducing ... the Brown O-Group Leaders! Scav Hunt is one of the best parts of O-Week. And Shelle and HaMad did a great job getting their group to do all the tasks as a group. Good work chickies.

Part B: I miss you guys! It is strange not being down the hall from anyone anymore (except HM I guess) but we're making sure we make an effort. Love ya's!



You would not believe how much walking we did this week. This night we walked home from Jetty Bar - it's a Scav Hunt task, not that I got anything out of it. But I didn't do it while I was at the Hall so now that I've done it I'm really allowed to leave.



We also walked home from the Tonsley, Shags, and all over the city. I'm tired. But even though O-Week is over, we have things planned for every day this week. Blame The Pom.

O-Week: Bush Dance

So begins my (hell late but you'll forgive me) O-Week 2008 Recap.

The Housemate (henceforth 'HM') and I didn't actually go to Bush Dance.

Instead, we stayed in and watched the cricket and Sarah Connor.



We also got dressed up in cowboy hats and sang (him) and danced (me) to Home Among The Gum Trees.



Yeah Bush Dance!

Devastated

Dear Ms [Missy]

[Blah blah blah] received your application [blah blah blah] regret to inform you that your request has been denied.

[You may now proceed to one or more of the following:
a) have an aneurysm
b) burst into tears
c) sit for a full minute trying to process what in the hell is going on.]

Sincerely
BA Office [Life-ruiners].

I did then proceed to option D which was to go to the BA Office and demand request that they explain themselves.

One administrative error and a heart attack later, they will be looking at my file and sending me a letter later in the week to tell me I'm back in.

I fricking hope.

Just so you know I'm still alive

We've just had O-Week.

We've had Hall events to crash, Pommy Bastards staying with us, lots of drinking. It's been bloody awesome, but I am hell tired.

I am chilling tonight with NO alcohol, maybe an episode of Sarah Connor, and sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep.