Bow Chicka Wow Wow

That song is stuck in my head.
Okay, so I promised Kayk I'd do a lovely little post tonight, so here. I'm posting. Done.
What's been happening? I have a beautiful new "Dani Feel Good Wall," which looks fantastic, with a bunch of cute and funny pictures strewn about. It brightens up the room.
What else? Not much else going on. Kinda tired. Had a sweet Unofficial a while back.
Went to my first footy game last night. I had a conversation with Nick Maxwell, captain of the Collingwood team.
Me: "Hey, Nick."
Nick: "Hey, how are you going?"
Me: "Good."
Nick: "Good luck."
Me: "Thanks!"'
We're so gonna be best friends soon.
I got to also take a little picture with the Geelong cat and St. Kilda (yay!) Saint.
Another wonderful thing about Australia is that you can bring any non-glass/can food or beverage in like it's whatever to sporting events. I love it. And the in-MCG food isn't horribly priced. Tom's a part of the MCC -- aka Fancy Footy Club-- where you get fantastic seats for a discount, so we were really up close. Apparently, his dad was telling me that he had to put Tom and his sister on the waiting list 16 years ago because you have to wait for people to die so you can replace them in this club. Crazy, no?
My new favorite phrase to use is "cold as" or "expensive as" or (insert word) as. Really, it's a superlative and it doesn't make sense (cold as what?!) but I like it and use it frequently.
I went to Tom's vineyard a bit back (sorry this isn't in order) out in Castlemaine -- the countryside--- and it was absolutely gorgeous. His parents gave me lots of wine and we walked through the vineyard and it was wonderful. I named his chickens, too. Mrs. Gertrude Clucksworthy and Miss Georgette Hensickle.
This weekend we were all supposed to go to Ocean Grove and go camping, but the weather got icks, so we're planning for two weeks from now. Great Ocean Road next weekend!
Also, all plans are set for the Easter Break Adventure with Paul and Susan. Three days in Sydney, three days in Cairns, a day in Brisbane, and three days on Fraser Island with tours and such. So cool. It's costing me a pretty penny, but hey, I'm in Australia, right?
I miss Reeses. Hilary just gave me one that her friend's mom sent her. They don't sell them here. :(
I love Hilary. Such a good roommate and the best stories. And she's really wise, too. Good listener, good advice. All around wonderful girl. I'm glad I have her, opposed to some other Americans here.
Overall, all of the Americans and Australia are kind and funny and interested in knowing me. I love coming across a funny pronounciation ("conDOHM") and trying to muster up a good accent. You should hear me say "Australia." So good at it. ("'Straiya!")
In any case, I'm behind on my work and it's quarter till 2, so I best jet. xx

Things I Miss List

Real American chunky peanut butter
Jimmy John's
One World breadsticks
Everything Dsigs
Nutrigrain bars
Free MTD buses
Degrassi
Family
Friends
Not spending tons of money
Ikenberry
My bestie
Pringles not costing $7
Roomski
My mom's chopino
Watching Harry Potter all the time
Secret Life
The multigrain bread we get at home
Special K Fruit and Yogurt (because they only have the original kind here. what is that?)
Driving


Among other things.

Bromance is Better than Nomance

I’m making good friends here, getting closer with Tom, Drew, and Eugene particularly, although I also seem to hang with Marita and Emily in the Bat Cave often. They’re nice guys and we get along really well. I don’t go out often, so they stay in with me and we talk and watch movies and play cards. And they teach me Aussie lingo and aren’t afraid to comment honestly when I ask them about clothes. I feel like most guys offer an “I dunno,” but here it seems they’re making a more honest effort.

Another thing I really like about Australia is how comfortable guys are with their masculinity. Shorts for guys tend to be a lot shorter, sometimes pink or yellow, and some guys wore neon tights to Fluoro Night. Drew said it’s common for guys to send “xx” (or “kiss kiss”) at the end of messages too. When I told him that most guys in America probably wouldn’t feel comfortable with that, the guys replied “Bromance is better than nomance.” Well said.

Today, I went to a few classes – my Australian history class in the morning. We talked about Anzac Day and Australia Day and what it means to “be Australian” or “unAustralian.” For instance, it was unAustralian for this one Aussie woman to diss Steve Irwin. And it was unAustralian when an Aussie footy player decided to go coach a Brit team. And it was unAustralian for this one company to check up on its employees when they were taking Monday and Friday sickies.

In my Marketing class, I was definitely the biggest talker. I’m the only Marketing major, which was a little strange, and the only American. We talked about branding and promotion and did this taste test experiment thing. The prof was pretty chill. Oh, and another thing. It’s uncommon to call your superior by anything other than their first name. So, your teacher, you call him Bob. Not Prof/Mr. Smith.

I left my Finance class early because it was dull and they record the lecture and post it online. In any case, the guy goes WAAAY too fast with his math.

I’ve been Skyping often lately and usually grab a random Mary’s Aussie to “say something Australian” to the Skyper. “Ello, mate. How you going?” is what I usually get. It’s nice to see familiar faces and remember what my American life is like. Sometimes, it’s easy to forget.

The best call was with David. I miss hanging out with him, and when people mention their siblings, I automatically start ranting about David. I tell them how he makes me laugh and we watch Harry Potter and he always tells me that he loves me and we’re really close. And then I miss him. Absence definitely makes the heart grow fonder. People used to always say that when you aren’t living together, you get so much closer with your siblings, and it’s true. I hated David in high school, and now he’s one of my favorite people and I talk to him everyday in Champaign. No one knows you better than someone who was raised with you.

Today, “Bells Will Be Ringing” – that overplayed Christmas song my mom is obsessed with – came on my shuffle. I wasn’t annoyed. It was more of a “Awww….”

Tomorrow is Unofficial and Paul and I are splitting a handle for the occasion. First we have a Turn, which I had no idea about, (I realize now that I have to tell Laura… damn. I really, really wanted to see her tomorrow…) and then we’re off to Puggs. I’ll do my best to take pictures. And not get sick.

Speaking of sick, I’m feeling a little under the weather lately. If there’s one thing I miss about home, it’s how my momma takes care of me. Moms make everything better, especially when you’re sick. And I’ve been sick before in Champaign, but being all the way across the world is a little unsettling. Of course, I can take care of myself, so it’s all good. Emily squeezed some lemons and made me tea and Tom kept checking up on me and said he’d pick me up some throat lozenges tomorrow, so it’s all good. Oh, friends. What would I do without them?

But I miss my brothers. All the Vajizzler threads go out and I make sure to scan through them everyday. It’s my little piece of Dsig home that I can hold onto. When I was Skyping Hannah, Eugene asked her if she went Greek and she said “no.” I asked him if he remembered my frat’s name and he muttered “Delta….something Pi. Delta…Sigma Pi?” Hannah was like “Oh yeah. You’ll be hearing a lot about them.”

So true. It’s a little sad how attached I am to Dsigs. It’s my everything in Champaign. Pretty much my entire college experience and I don’t know how I would even survive at uni without it. Which is why, in a bittersweet way, I’m kind of glad I left my new-I semester, so I could get away and just miss it and not let it absorb me again. Because someday there won’t be Dsigs and I shouldn’t lean on it as a crutch as much as I do.

Anyway, I have class at 9 tomorrow, so it’s best I go to bed. Catch you later, blogosphere. Good afternoon, America. Good night, Australia.