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.