Almost a month.

[ophelia_no_yume]

Imagine that? I've been in Australia for almost a month now...
Thoughts so far:

• I hate winter. I'm excited about the prospect of spring soon, now that we're finally getting up from the 40's and 50's to a much happier 61 degrees F today. Yay. Weird to think about Christmas summer vacation though... Christmas dinner = shrimp on the barbie?!! Maybe.
  
  
• I've been in classes at La Trobe for a full 2 weeks now and as I came in mid-year (July is second semester, school usually starts in February) I now realize that I have put myself at a bit of a disadvantage due to not taking Intro to International Relations first semester which would help me quick a bit tackling historical, economical, and global problems that I face in my two ridiculously hard classes: Security in a Borderless World and International Relations of the Asia-Pacific. I think my Security class is too hard for me and I'm probably going to pop into the Globalization and Governance class on Monday to see if I want to switch into it... Wish me luck!
  
  
• I'm still chafing at just how bad the internet is over here. It's still driving me nuts and I can't even use Skype because the quality is so bad. Downloading takes daaaaays and my internet is capped. I hate the net here so bloody much!!
  
  
• I am happy to be back in yoga classes again. I took a month break and it showed, or at least I felt it. I'm not sure if my Intermediate Hatha class will continue because there are only 5 students and we need at least 7 but at least it looks like my Ashtanga class is ok. Also weird to think about the fact that I just might be the best student in those classes compared to being the worst in my beginning Hatha classes in Japan.
  
  
• Melbourne is serious about two things: coffee and chocolate. I don't think I've had so many lattes in quite a while and the chocolate cafes here are just divine!! I'm excited about the prospect of hitting up the Lindt cafe next weekend!!
  
  
• And speaking of food - the food here is pretty good, too. I love the diversity!!
  
  
• I am currently jobless. I have been jobless since quitting ECC back in June. Soon I will have to rely wholly on my student loan money to get me through schooling and that is not a prospect I like. However, being 26 and in Grad school I really would like to find some sort of job that isn't a barista, waitress, sales clerk, or other low-wage job that won't help my resume any. Ideally I'm realizing that I think it would be good to work part-time at some sort of NGO (non-governmental org.) because I just might want to do that kind of work when I graduate school next year. Maybe some sort of organization like Greenpeace, WWF (wildlife guys, not wrestling), or in some capacity to a UN organization or governmental agency for humanitarian or environmental issues.
  
  
• It's hard making friends any where you go in the world. It was difficult in L.A., Osaka, and difficult here as well. I really miss some of the good friends I've left behind whether it was Jessica and Mike in the desert, the OB group in L.A. or Meagan, Ashton, and Paul in Osaka. I know with time all of this will come again but starting out again is hard and you spend so much time of your day alone when not in class. I miss everyone a lot.

In general I'm doing ok. I like Melbourne quite a bit even if it has a smaller city feel than Osaka or L.A. All in all life is going down its slow meandering path to an as-of-yet unseen horizon.