It's been a while...

I know, I know, it's been a while since you've heard from me.

I kept thinking I need to update my blog, but I feel like I have nothing worthwhile to say.
(On a sidenote, my friend Elise & I were discussing our different personalities- she always says "I think..." and I always say "I feel..." I'm definitely a feeler.)

I have been busy however.

Last week I had my first trip to Bankstown for an academic advising session at uni.
The week before, Mum & I had taken a little tiki tour to Bankstown.

Tiki tour (noun):
taking the roundabout way to get somewhere



And I didn't like what I saw when we got there.

The university campus is in the middle of an industrial area, and I don't know if it was the lack of green or fresh air or what, but I had a massive reaction which basically resulted in me throwing an adult version of a temper tantrum and telling Mum "I don't want to come here!"

Um yeah. I kind of don't have a choice in the matter.

It's Bankstown or bust.


So, Monday morning rolls around and I have to trek out to Bankstown in time to be there by 9.30am. I set my alarm for 6.30, but as always happens, refuse to get up and end up being late. I didn't leave the house until 7.10am. You would think leaving nearly two and a half hours of travelling time would be enough.

But if you thought that, then you obviously haven't experienced the phenomenon that is called Sydney Traffic.

I barely get onto the freeway, 15 minutes from my house, and it's gridlock.


All


the


way


there.



Fun fun fun. Nothing stresses me out like traffic. City traffic especially.

Add to the mix the potential of running late?


Let's just say I wasn't in the best of moods.



Turns out, I get there a full 45 minutes early. By some sort of miracle, I have time to spare.

So, I decide to head to the nearest shopping centre. I've got 45 minutes, might as well acquaint myself with the area. Turns out, I've been to this particular mall before, because we have had dance eisteddfods at the town hall across the road.

Feeling all confident, I plug the location into Tom Tom and head off.

Except I miss a turn.

Now I've only got 20 minutes to spare before I have to be back at uni.

No worries. I can totally make it.

Except the car park's packed and I have to drive all the way up to the top to find a park.

And then I have to find a Commonwealth Bank ATM to take money out.

And then I freak out because someone told me that this particular ATM has been fitted with a card reader scam thing, and so I want to take all my money out of my account so 'they' can't steal it, and this takes time.

And then I have to find the Muffin Break, and hope to goodness that they sell gluten free muffins, because otherwise this whole exercise has been a complete and utter waste of time.

(They do.)

By the time I speed walk back to my car, it's like 9.25am. The session starts at 9.30.

And I'm 15 minutes away.


Stress mounting, I navigate my way back (okay, Tom Tom does it for me).

I pull into uni, and of course, of course, the car park is full.


At this point, I seriously considered damning it all to hell and driving straight back home.

But I was like No, No, I did not drive all the way out here just to drive straight back.

So I swing into a car park that is seriously like two hundred metres away from the building I need to be in, and speed walk to the lecture hall that the session is in.

I walk into the room behind another girl who was in the same predicament; thankfully she went first because there's nothing like opening the door and having two to three hundred pairs of eyes swivel to check you out as you walk in all non chalantly and try to find an empty seat anywhere.

(I hope by now you get the sense of what it's like to be a university student- fraught with challenges to your self esteem haha!)



I tell you all of this for one reason:

So you can empathise with me when I tell you this next part.


I sit down, get out my notebook and pen.

Forty-five minutes later (and this was supposed to be a two hour session), I haven't learnt anything new.

They basically re-hashed everything they told us in a letter they sent out in December. Except they had a slideshow to go with it.


Two hours of traffic, one round of getting lost, two rounds of driving in vain to find carparks, many hours taken off my life from stress... all for a mandatory information session that told me nothing new.


It must have been a test of dedication. Let's test these post-grad students, make sure they've got the patience to be teachers.

There's a slight chance I may have failed.

Claryse's 21st Birthday Party

(also entitled "The post with the most pictures ever" and "The reason I haven't blogged in FOREVER - because uploading all these photos takes time"!

A few weeks ago in January, my friend Claryse celebrated her 21st birthday by throwing a "Hollywood Glamour" costume party.

Everyone who came went to lots of effort with their costumes, as evidenced by the (many) pictures below. (I was Official Photographer for the night)


The venue:
(looking out onto the river)






Claryse, the birthday girl

Claryse's family

The guests arrive...

Laura (Audrey Hepburn), Elisha (Charlie Chaplin) & me (Ava Gardner)



Keisha & me



Claryse, Keisha, Me

Elise & Claryse on the red carpet

Haylee, me, Claryse (we went to New York together in April)





Elise with James Dean

Claryse with family friends Adam & Sam (Grace Kelly)

Claryse & Bella (Shirley Temple)

School friends



Girl friends from school: Keisha, Elise, me, Claryse, Laura, Sam, Katy

Dancing friends

Darcy, Gemma, Brooke (from dancing)

Ashlea, Elise, Jacinta (more dancing girls)



Caitlin & Shannon (both from dancing; Caitlin tore her ACL a few weeks ago!)

Church friends

Girls from church

Jess & Polly



Elisha & Laura

Sam & Mitch



Polly & Alex

Adam & Keisha (I'm going to be a bridesmaid in their wedding in April)

Alex with his alter ego

Luke & Alicia (Claryse's sister; yes we have the same name!)

Charlie Chaplin x 2 : Eric (Claryse's stepdad) & Elisha

The fun begins... we take over the dance floor!

Claryse & Laura

Elise & me

Me & Laura

The cake

Blowing out the candles

Cutting the cake

Eating the cake

Bella (Shirley Temple) tries out a cupcake

All partied out: Elise, Claryse, me, Laura

Australia Day

Today is Australia Day!

I love Australia Day! We get a public holiday and everyone is relaxed and has BBQ lunches.

Last night I slept over my friend Laura's house with 2 other friends, and we stayed up til 4am talking (well, Laura fell asleep on the couch at 2am). This morning, I got up first and spent some time sitting outside and reading.

When the others got up, we had a late breakfast and then in true Aussie style, we went to Laura's friend's house for a BBQ and a swim.



I even wore blue & red swimmers - the colours on the Aussie flag

And of course- the quintessential Aussie thongs! (Although mine are black!)

Lots of people go the beach, but today it was so hot! Even in the pool, we were all fighting to stay in the shade because it was so hot and sunny!

I may be convinced to go the beach next year, but only if I can get one of these:

Tonight we are going to the Penrith Regatta Centre to watch the fireworks. There's always lots of people there, but it's worth braving the crowds for! The Australia Day fireworks are awesome! vIt's always the perfect way to wrap up a fun day!

My friend Claryse

Pretty sure my friend Claryse will kill me (or at least inflict serious injury) for doing this (yes, she reads my blog. Sometimes.)



But I'm doing it anyway. I'm bad like that. Mwa-ha-ha-ha!


Her 21st birthday was on Wednesday, and to celebrate we had a little outing, and went to the city. I took some awesome photos of her in the Royal Botanic Gardens, but this one by far is my absolute fave.

She doesn't like it. I told her, "You are blind, woman! You.look.awesome."

Anyway, I'm proud of this photo.

Even if she isn't!

Rhonda & Gareth's Wedding

Myles & Rhonda arriving for the ceremony

Rhonda & Gareth make it official

Neil & his niece Rhonda

The groom, groomsmen & "best woman"



The bride & bridesmaids



Outside the church


The first dance