a general update
infrared photo from a bike ride... i need to lose weight. ;(
....!!! i haven't forgotten about this place again already, just been so busy lately and when i'm not busy i tend to veg out....
for those of you that someone STILL check this lj but didn't see my last post because it's friends only, i've decided to try and start updating my lj again. written records of your life are way valuable to someone like me who has a memory retention problem and i regret not having kept up my lj over the past year+.
anyway, i guess a (BRIEF!) update about life in general is in order.
some of you may remember me applying for a partner visa way back in July 2011... well, in September 2012 that visa was FINALLY granted. having the visa granted was a HUGE weight off my back because it meant that i could remain in Australia, at least until the next visa. the whole application process was really tough, but that was only Part 1. in July 2013 i will have to submit Part 2 of the visa, the part that could get me permanent residency. until then, i'm free to work without limitation and i have access to medicare. i'm not looking forward to having to deal with another application in July, but i have my fingers crossed that the processing of that application wont take another year.
on the job front, things haven't been that great. i've been without work limitations since July 2011, but no one has wanted to hire me.... until Sept. 2012, there was the risk that my visa application could be rejected and i could be kicked out of the country at any time, so honestly i understand no one wanting to hire me. it's been really hard, though, sending out application after application and only getting 2 interviews out of them all. i soon gave up and, with encouragement from David's parents, started my own business.
before you go "wow, your own business?! that's great!", it really hasn't been all that great. thanks to David's mom giving me a part-time contract to do work for her business, i've had some steady income, but aside from that.... i've just had to take any work that i could and haven't had the leisure to be able to be selective in what i do. what i really want the business to be is a photography business, but right now i can't get that kind of work. i've had one client for whom i did product photography + a website, but that's it. :( i'm gradually getting tired of doing work that doesn't particularly interest me... i'm trying to get the courage to try and take this photography thing seriously. the trouble is, the more i research becoming a pro photographer, the more daunting and costly it seems.
sigh.
right now i'm in a slump and dragging my feet all over the place.... i need to pick myself up and make the time to work towards what i want to accomplish. :/
in other job news, i am still volunteering as a photographer at the RSPCA (humane society & animal shelter) once a week. on top of that, i've been fortunate enough to land a short teaching job at a university. in January/February i'll be teaching a summer intensive course on Esperanto at the Institute of Modern Languages, which is part of the University of Queensland. i'm really excited about getting to teach again, but i'm also crazy nervous. the class is open to the public, so anyone 16yrs and up can attend and i've never taught this age range before. :/ plus, i've never taught anything but basic English! actually, it's still kind of up in the air as to whether the class will actually go ahead as a min. of 8 people must register for it to not be cancelled. registration ends Dec. 10th, so hopefully i'll hear how many people registered then..... either way, i haven't even started lesson planning yet, but am intending to work hard on it throughout December.
on top of all this, until recently i had a 3rd (4th??) job as a Director for the national Esperanto association.... D: thank god that job is over because i could barely juggle it all....
on the home front, David, myself and the cats have been doing ok. there are times when i want to throttle David like Homer does Bart, but that's normal, right??? D; we moved into a townhouse in Jan. 2012 after MUCH rental agency drama at our last apartment. the new place is great and i even have a little garden now. :D
some (probably few) of you may know that i have serious driving anxiety due to an accident that i had in 2004.... i haven't owned a car since i lost mine in 2004 and thus have only rarely been behind the wheel. you would think that after 8 years i'd finally be over what happened and wouldn't have any issues driving (aside from the occasional forgotten road rule/sign), but no.... driving is still a stressful thing for me. lately, however, i have been working on overcoming this fear. David lets me drive his car and i've been trying to drive at least once a week for the past couple of months. i'm getting better at calming my nerves, but the anxiety is still there and i hate driving in unfamiliar territory. hopefully if i keep at this, i'll be completely better by this time next year... my goal is to be able to drive 80km south on the highway to a nature park that i really love but hate going to via public transportation. :x
anyway....! D: i think that's enough up a general update for now. i'm sure a million things have been left out, but oh well.