I'm sorry if there are any Australians reading this...please do not take offense, but I don't get Vegemite. In fact, I think its pretty nasty. I tried it. I tried it by itself. I tried it on a cracker, I even tried it with butter. I just don't like it. Is it fermented yeast or something like that?? It doesn't even sound good!
Anyway, before I get any comments saying something like "then go home, yankee!" I will move on. At least I tried it, that has to count for something!
As you can perhaps tell, I have been sitting here tonight mulling over even more differences that I learning exist between Australia and the United States. I am afraid that it is getting harder for me to spot them, so I wonder if I have discovered them all or if I am not noticing anymore. If its the latter, then does that mean I am assimilating to the culture?? And if so, is that a good thing??
I am realizing that Australia is closer to Eurpoean culture, IMHO, than it is to US culture. As least as far as fashion and music. There are a lot more European, mostly British, artists on the radio. And it seems that there is a several month delay from music being released in the US and then released here. I think, I could be wrong. I'm not totally up on the music scene these days, I am mostly still clinging to my Lillith Fair days and, egad!, I am listening to more and more country. no, I can't write that...oh well, I did. I'll leave it, why should I be ashamed?
Speaking of country, I learned that Keith Urban, whom I adore, YES I DO, and I'm not afraid to admit it, is not actually from Australia!! I couldn't believe it! That's what CMT told me, they are trustworthy, are they not? Nope, he's actually a Kiwi, he's from New Zealand. And so is Russell Crowe. I know for sure the US media says he's from Oz.
And here is something interesting, a few weeks ago, in Jo's Kinder class, we had a guest who played the Didgeridoo for us. I loved it. I guess its actually quite difficult to play, but this guy was really good. At least to me, but I guess I wouldn't really know the difference, now would I? And even more interestingly, he was light skinned, as in what I would call a caucasian person, but he is of aboriginal descent. I learned that day that there are aboriginals that are actually quite light skinned. In my education in the united states...uh, that's not true, I guess, let me rephrase...since the extent of my education on aboriginals is from Crocodile Dundee, I had a definate image in mind when I thought of aboriginals. Is is aborigines or aboriginals? I think here, they prefer to be referenced by there language group, am I saying that right? If anyone reading this happens to know, please give me a clue. I would like to get it right.
Oh, I hear that one of the kids has woken up, I'll return...
It's only July...
Wow, I guess its been a long time since I have last posted. Why is that? Hmmm. Probably because I have been going through a bit of a funk. I've been a bit depressed for the past six weeks and only now feel that I am coming out of it. We have been here for just over three months now and I think that I have been dealing with the realization that we are here long term. Its hard for me to say this, but I have been missing the United States and all that comes with it. What do I miss?
My family: My mom and dad, my sister and brother and their significant others.
My cats: It would be really great to have a pet here.
Summertime: yeah, it would be really great to have some summertime right now!
Eat N Park: yep, I can't believe it either. Esto really misses the bottomless coffee cup. The fancyshmancy coffees are okay, but they are not bottomless!! And neither are the sodas or the tea water...no wait, I think in one restaurant I did get a refill of hot water but I may have been charged for it, I did not check the bill.
What else? My clothes dryer and my washer that doesn't eat my clothes, but that really isn't specific to Australia.
My friends: Although I have made some really great friends here in Australia already, I really do miss Tahisha and Heather and Laura and Addie and I had many friendships in the making that I had to leave behind.
Cool Whip! When I get home, I am going to go buy a big tub of Cool Whip, go sit on Tahisha's front porch (maybe I'll share it with her, but probably not) and watch people drive down the right side of the street while I eat that fluffy white heaven by the spoonful. Oh! And I just remembered my favorite peanut butter, what was it called...oh, I'll have to think of it and get someone to send me some!!
There are many other things I miss but I suppose its not good to go on about them so I will try to focus more on the positives of living here because there certainly are many. I have been able to find other homeschooling moms through the internet here in Victoria and I am very excited about that. Oz does not have the homeschooling community that the US does, but it seems to be going that way. I didn't know if I was going to homeschool Jo or not, but now I feel confident that I can while we are here so I have started again.
Since my last post we have travelled out the of the city again for the Queen's Birthday weekend. We went to Mornington Peninsula. For all you Americans reading this, you should now that we didn't visit a Peninsula, we actually visited a peninSHula, or at least that's how many people say it here. They also say chamomile like cam-oh-mile as opposed to our cam-oh-meel. And one friend had the audacity to say that they are right! HA! Whatev-ah!!!
Anyway, the Mornington Peninshula is very beautiful. We went down for the Winter Wine weekend and went around to some of the wineries to do some wine tasting. I gotta tell you that sometimes Esto and I forget that we don't have the life we once had when we could go wine tasting and eat long luxurious dinners at cute artsy type cafes in distant lands. Yes, we forget and then reality comes rushing back in as we stand, wine glasses in hand trying to understand the poor gentleman who is attempting to explain the history of their vine, all the while pretending that he can't hear our two year old screaming that he's got a poopy. God bless that gentleman's heart for not giving us one of those, "ugh, here come those people with kids who try to live like they still don't have kids" kind of look. Anyway, so any notions we had of a froo-froo, yuppie type of wine weekend went down the toilet with that aforementioned poopy. On the bright side, it keeps us humble!!
Oh, I love my little ones. Elias is talking so much now and Jo is really attempting big words lately. Rather, they aren't big words, so much as they are big concepts. For example, the other day we went to the local video store and we rented, you guessed it, Superman and Batman. Jo was so excited to watch his movie, on the way out he said, "Mommy, I can't wait to watch this movie, I am so excited" to which I replied "I am glad you are excited, I am too. We can watch it together". Jo then said "yes, mommy, it would be a pleasure to watch a movie with you." You can't tell me that ain't cute!!! Last week, Jo was sick and I wasn't giving him any solid foods, but then I finally asked him if he thought his belly was ready for solid food again and he said "yes, mommy, but it would be best to have something that's easy to digest." He's only a little over four!!!! So cute.
Jinkies, I see that I have written a lot for tonight, so I should be off to bed. I'll have to think of some more Aussisms for the next post.
My family: My mom and dad, my sister and brother and their significant others.
My cats: It would be really great to have a pet here.
Summertime: yeah, it would be really great to have some summertime right now!
Eat N Park: yep, I can't believe it either. Esto really misses the bottomless coffee cup. The fancyshmancy coffees are okay, but they are not bottomless!! And neither are the sodas or the tea water...no wait, I think in one restaurant I did get a refill of hot water but I may have been charged for it, I did not check the bill.
What else? My clothes dryer and my washer that doesn't eat my clothes, but that really isn't specific to Australia.
My friends: Although I have made some really great friends here in Australia already, I really do miss Tahisha and Heather and Laura and Addie and I had many friendships in the making that I had to leave behind.
Cool Whip! When I get home, I am going to go buy a big tub of Cool Whip, go sit on Tahisha's front porch (maybe I'll share it with her, but probably not) and watch people drive down the right side of the street while I eat that fluffy white heaven by the spoonful. Oh! And I just remembered my favorite peanut butter, what was it called...oh, I'll have to think of it and get someone to send me some!!
There are many other things I miss but I suppose its not good to go on about them so I will try to focus more on the positives of living here because there certainly are many. I have been able to find other homeschooling moms through the internet here in Victoria and I am very excited about that. Oz does not have the homeschooling community that the US does, but it seems to be going that way. I didn't know if I was going to homeschool Jo or not, but now I feel confident that I can while we are here so I have started again.
Since my last post we have travelled out the of the city again for the Queen's Birthday weekend. We went to Mornington Peninsula. For all you Americans reading this, you should now that we didn't visit a Peninsula, we actually visited a peninSHula, or at least that's how many people say it here. They also say chamomile like cam-oh-mile as opposed to our cam-oh-meel. And one friend had the audacity to say that they are right! HA! Whatev-ah!!!
Anyway, the Mornington Peninshula is very beautiful. We went down for the Winter Wine weekend and went around to some of the wineries to do some wine tasting. I gotta tell you that sometimes Esto and I forget that we don't have the life we once had when we could go wine tasting and eat long luxurious dinners at cute artsy type cafes in distant lands. Yes, we forget and then reality comes rushing back in as we stand, wine glasses in hand trying to understand the poor gentleman who is attempting to explain the history of their vine, all the while pretending that he can't hear our two year old screaming that he's got a poopy. God bless that gentleman's heart for not giving us one of those, "ugh, here come those people with kids who try to live like they still don't have kids" kind of look. Anyway, so any notions we had of a froo-froo, yuppie type of wine weekend went down the toilet with that aforementioned poopy. On the bright side, it keeps us humble!!
Oh, I love my little ones. Elias is talking so much now and Jo is really attempting big words lately. Rather, they aren't big words, so much as they are big concepts. For example, the other day we went to the local video store and we rented, you guessed it, Superman and Batman. Jo was so excited to watch his movie, on the way out he said, "Mommy, I can't wait to watch this movie, I am so excited" to which I replied "I am glad you are excited, I am too. We can watch it together". Jo then said "yes, mommy, it would be a pleasure to watch a movie with you." You can't tell me that ain't cute!!! Last week, Jo was sick and I wasn't giving him any solid foods, but then I finally asked him if he thought his belly was ready for solid food again and he said "yes, mommy, but it would be best to have something that's easy to digest." He's only a little over four!!!! So cute.
Jinkies, I see that I have written a lot for tonight, so I should be off to bed. I'll have to think of some more Aussisms for the next post.
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