Inspiration

My friend recently posted a note on facebook listing people in her life that she found inspirational. I thought it was such a great idea I have blatantly stolen it for a post.  The order does not relate to when I met you, nor is it anything of importance.  Feel free to skip down to your name or read through them all and wish these people were in your life too because they are awesome.  This list is far from exhaustive so please don’t be mad if you aren’t listed here.

Mom-  Okay, so I know I said the order doesn’t matter but in this particular case it does. You were the first person I ever knew and one who has supported me through everything possible in life.  I know you don’t agree with all the decisions I’ve made but you love me regardless.  And you motivate me to try new things all the time. 

Dad-  As I grew up I realized just how special it is that I had a dad so willing to spend time with us.  You encourage me to follow my passion wherever that leads. I will forever cherish Tin tin, wrestling, adventures while hiking, the “stuff”, … as long as I’m living your baby I’ll be. 

Aimee-  You are the best little sister a girl could ask for.  You are the most loyal compassionate person I know and I have learned so much from you.  Countless times you have known exactly what to say to inspire me to keep going though your hidden notes.   

Robert- Sometimes I forget you’ve had more than your fair set of challenges because you handle them with a maturity beyond your years.  I am very blessed to have a cool little brother who is also a friend.

Laura-  No matter what life throws at you, you always get back up and head into the next step in the journey.  You are positive and hopefully optimistic.

Donna-  My first real friend and the perfect example that no matter how much each of us changed over the years, true friendship surpasses that.  Plus you taught me to play Nintendo.

Ideen-  You aren’t afraid to take a good hard look inward striving to improve while at the same time balancing that with a brave acceptance of yourself and others. You are the most genuine person I have known. Also, you are one hell of a dancer.

Emily-  You listen to people. Really listen in a way that makes them feel like there is nothing else you want to do at that moment then give your undivided attention. 

Nathan-  You treat everyone with the utmost respect.  You care about the person more than any sort of label society may place on them.   

Chloe-  Our first meeting was only a little time ago but your vulnerability through the written word has encouraged me to pour out uncensored feelings.

Tim-  You were a safety net in high school, accepting and never judging. You’ve shown me that it is okay, nay necessary, to act like a kid sometimes.

Sue-  Every challenge that comes your way you attack with boundless determination. Whether work, teaching, dance, motherhood, or singing.  

Tara-  You have taught me what it means to be a good manager, offering praise, support and a place to vent when necessary.

Michelle-  You embrace the unexpected with a contagious enjoyment and take on learning new and creative things with delight.

Jen M.- My other 1/3.  You possess a confidence that comes from being sure of what you want from life.

Maura- It is so obvious that you care so deeply for your friends.  You remember events, ask questions and wait for the answer, and reach out just to check in. You are generous and compassionate.

Jane- My first girlfriend in the City. You helped me survive the mad world of nyc providing distractions, conversations, perseverance, and just a place to chill.   

Annie-  You live your life with wild quirky abandon.  You have the ability to talk to anyone and make them feel comfortable.

Jen S.-  You feel deeply and passionately and share that with those around you. I’m so happy for you that you found a job that allows that amazing side of you to be expressed.

Anna-  I wouldn’t have wanted anyone else by my side navigating the craziness of adolescence and adulthood.  Are we really adults?

Seth-  Possibly the best hug giver I’ve ever known.  You always give an authentic smile, spending the time getting to really know people.

Katie- Your posts always uplift and your outlook on life never ceases to bring a smile to my face and encourage. You’ve demonstrated that sometimes you don’t even need to have met the person to make a difference in their life. 

Julia-  Not only did passing notes in classes help pass the time, our conversations were so easy no matter how complicated or difficult the subject. I learned so much about my opinions from our open and entertaining discussions.

Serge-  I would not have been able to finish the marathon without all the tips you provided after Toastmasters meetings even though I ignored quite a few.  Keep running!

Ryland- Infectious enthusiasm for life- ‘nuf said. In Aussie/Kiwi you would be “Sweet as, bro”

Lara- In a time when many speak of making the world a better place, you put the words into action in a way that encourages others to do the same. Thanks for introducing me to the world of free hugs.

Croix- You are quick to provide an wholehearted word of encouragement for anyone’s endeavors.  Because you have accomplished so much you provide the often needed confidence to know that it is possible.

Kate- You’ve shown me that it is okay to not know the whole story or how it ends but to enjoy the eccentric moments.

Shad-  You demonstrated that faith is not something to just accept but involves asking questions and never giving up on learning.  

Alex-  You are one super cool chick.  You rock confidence, funky, and bubbly all wrapped into one.  I stole your idea, remember – imitation is a form of flattery.  Good luck in the marathon.

"So much of me is made from what I learned from you.

You'll be with me, like a handprint on my heart.

Now whatever way our stories end, 

I know you have re-written mine

By being my friend..." ~Wicked

Hugs

Sometimes all you need is a hug.  Over the weekend I participated in a "Free Hugs" event run by my friend, LA.  I first heard of the event through a YouTube video years ago but had no idea that it was started by an Australian or that I would be doing it at the same location in Pitt Street Mall.

We made signs and stood out for hours giving free hugs to anyone who wanted them.

Some observations:

• We as a society are no longer comfortable with physical contact.  That goes for my friends and I doing the hugging as well.  It took awhile to get comfortable with it, we started by hugging each other a lot. After a full day of hugs, however, I felt like hugging random people on the street and the metro on the way back to my flat even without my sign.
• There were a lot of parents who said that their children never hugged them anymore once they became preteens, teens, and adults themselves. 
• People who didn't want to hug a stranger would sometimes hug the person next to them as a way of getting away from us.  Which is perfectly fine, it didn't matter who was hugging whom, just that the contact was made with someone. 
• People where constantly asking me what we were selling or who we were trying to promote.  The idea that I was not there during a guerilla marketing stunt or wouldn't ask them to make a purchase or donate money was impossible for some to understand. I loved being able to say "No catch, just hoping to brighten up someone's day." and mean it.  
• Even those people who didn't come over would smile.  We could brighten up someone's day.
• There were a lot of people who wanted to take pictures with us. 
• I was shocked at the number of parents who would send their children over.  Not only where they encouraging the children to talk to a stranger but to go up to one holding a sign.
• There was only one creepy guy which out of the number of hugs given that isn't a bad ratio at all.  
• The cutest little girl wanted me to hug her doll, her scooby doo, and a little transformer plastic thing. 
• People would walk into the middle of the square where we were to try and avoid a hugger only to realize that there were more of us and they were now surrounded. 
• People went to the hugger that they felt the most comfortable.
• One old gentleman came over to talk to me multiple times throughout the day because he was lonely and needed someone to talk to.
• A few people grabbed extra signs and joined us for a while.  
• Some people would share how they really needed a hug that day because they were having a bad day. It was great to be able to make a small difference in someones life. 

If you are in Sydney be sure to check it out or start one in your own town! Not only is it a fun experience  it can make a huge difference in someone's life and all it costs is a little time and the cost of a handmade sign. 

*I just realized on January 15th that I had never posted this, instead writing it only as a draft.  So I have now rectified that, still posting it with the original date.

Older

Some thoughts on aging as I recently had a birthday. It was my first birthday in another country and at my party I took a moment to just step back and realize what a great group of friends I have here. Plus because of the time difference, I celebrated in Australia, went to sleep, then woke up to more birthday wishes from friends as the date switched over in the states.

I am creating a picture in my mind of the kind of older person I want to be. My mom tells a story of her grandmother who knew everyone in town and was such a joy to be around that when she put a jar in the local watering hole saying "Send Maude to Hawaii" They actually did.

I want to be the adorable short grandmotherly type as my spine shrinks but big in personality. I want the people who I interact with to shake their heads and laugh "Oh that's just Jen." Where I can get away with anything like wearing fuzzy dog slippers to the store.

I want to be involved in the lives of my brother and sister, not only reminiscing but creating new memories.

I want to always be able to entertain with stories of adventure and at the same time have the ability to step back and simply listen to another person with my whole attention.

I want to be on the dance floor at a wedding rocking it out to JT's "Sexy Back", walker and all.

I want to ski, skydive, and rock climb no matter how much my back may hurt. Knowing that it would hurt more if I stopped moving.

I want to travel to a new country every year or two, taking crazy pictures with the strangers I met on the trip who become my new friends for the duration.

I want to brighten up the days of everyone I met from my friends to the lady at the eye care clinic.

The most important thing I understand about this cute 88 year old I want to be is that I won't wake up at that age and suddenly start all of those things. Instead, it is patterns an behaviors that are put in place now. Practicing patience when the line at the grocery is moving slowly, the ability to enjoy the simple things in life, and the perseverance and strength to get back up when plans fall apart. Most importantly to enjoy the process of getting there. gr

Driving

Now that I have adjusted to most things in my new home country, I've realized that I slipped back into the state of not seeing adventure in the little things of life. For example, a recent adventure was learning to drive on the other side of the road.

My new job... have I mentioned yet that I got a new job about 5 weeks ago? Probably not. It makes my fifth job in a year. I won't say much about it in a public forum for a blog but suffice to say it is a challenging position, they want to sponsor me (!!!) and they gave me a car.

Driving over here wasn't as difficult as I imagined. I think this is partly due to not having driven frequently for years in NYC. Shifting gears with my left hand, not a problem. Making sure my right turns were wide, not a problem. Going though roundabouts, not a problem. But the turn signal being on the right hand side as created a world of difficulty. I go to show I am making a left and turn and my windshield wipers go full on. Why this action more than any of the others refuses to change in the long term memory, I am not sure. But I do find it amusing on my commute home.

The funniest part is, eight months of living here and in my head I picture it as it is here. I tried to explain the road rules of the States and I couldn't fully describe them. It is similar to what I think other people feel the first time they dream in their new language, the excited starting to belong in the new place and culture.

Hawaii

For Christmas this year I got the best present: A trip to Hawaii to see my family! There were a lot of memorable moments and laughter whether we were hiking, eating, competing at an inside joke game, or just hanging at the hotel. Hawaii is a beautiful state and we spent a lot of time wandering around to the different beaches hidden among the lava rocks. Some of my favorite moments:

Horseback riding: All of our horses behaved a bit like children with babysitters. Drifter, my little pony, did not want to stay close enough to my sisters horse although he was very responsive to any other lead. My brothers horse did a sneak attack on a banana tree. My sisters horse was ready to walk the track and did not want to wait for the rest of the crowd. Anyone that has worked with horses will tell you that they are distinct individuals. We also learned a lot about the history of Maui while riding into the valley.

Snorkeling: We traveled to Molokini Crater, a submerged volcano previously used for target practice by the navy. Now it shelters numerous fish and coral. Even my dad came out snorkeling even though he is terrified of swimming. My siblings and I got to go Snuba diving where you breath through a regulator while the air tank is on a raft. Rob ruptured his eardrum while snorkeling and so had a hard time with the Snuba. We saw a few turtles and heard the whales singing.

Road to Hana: We took the road years ago on my first trip to Hawaii and I had been very disappointed. The trees were overgrown so there were no good views. However, other people must have agreed with me because this year there were multiple areas where the trees had been trimmed offering beautiful snapshots. The real treasure of the road to Hana is off the actual road. We went to a black sand beach and climbed through and on a lava tube.

Whale Watching: We had ocean facing balconies so got to watch whales while relaxing. The whales migrate to Hawaii in the northern hemisphere's winter so there were a lot of them. Every time they showed up the whole breach froze to watch. For the first time I saw a whale breach.

Tradition

Traditions keep us grounded, connecting us to happy memories and people we love. The holiday season is normally filled with customs. This year being across the the world means none of my normal traditions have happened. As I plan to stay in Australia for at least another couple of years, it will be interesting to see if some of the things I've done this year will become my new holiday traditions.

New Years: As a teenager I always went to my friend LC's house with another friend AC (now AVB). New Years was a special time where we could catch up, hang out in the hot tub even in the snow, eat raw brownie mix and frosting, and dance around to 'You Don't Own Me'. We did the same thing for nine years. Like all good traditions, it was a way to create the familiar no matter what else was happening in our lives. Boys changed, what we did earlier in the night changed, schools changed, our relationship with our family changed, we were teenagers after all, but New Years was our night. Eventually, we changed. AC got married and the three of us moved to different cities. I never found a New Years Eve tradition to replace those times with the girls. Every year since then has been something and somewhere different. This year I will be with my family is Hawaii, almost the last place in the world to hit midnight.

Easter: I always found Easter to be a more relaxed holiday, maybe because I never did the cooking. In the morning we would look for our Easter baskets, which I still do if I am visiting my family. We would dye eggs making way too many. We would attend church and then have a bunch of people over to eat at our house, including some international students whom my mom invited over to experience a typical American holiday. The younger children would search for Easter eggs hidden in the yard that were filled with candy and money. I do not know what I will do this year.

July 4th: As children, we would go to my grandparent's plot of land. All of the extended family would be there plus family friends and people I had never met before. When we were little we used to take rides in the back of the lawnmover and destroy multiple kickballs when they were kicked into the rose bushes. As we got older we participated in volleyball, crochet, bean bag toss, lawn golf, and horseshoes. I'm sure it will come as no surprise I come from a fairly competitive family. At night we would watch fireworks singing patriotic songs. This year I ran around Sydney chasing a person in a duck costume.

Halloween: I didn't celebrate Halloween as a child. I went trick or treating once as an adult as a pirate although nobody could tell under all the winter gear I had to wear in Buffalo. Anytime I need a quick costume I tend to be a pirate. When I lived in NYC I would go to my friends M+K's house for a murder mystery night. Last year I got killed off three times. This year I went to a Halloween party again as a pirate.

Thanksgiving: For a few years after my family moved to New York, we would travel back to Ohio to see the extended family. We would have a huge thanksgiving dinner and play a lot of games. The next morning my uncles would cook breakfast and we would celebrate Christmas, exchanging gifts while the whole family was in town. We stopped going back to Ohio as we grew older and schedules got more difficult to arrange. Instead we went to a Thanksgiving Eve service and then my group of friends would go out to eat or dancing. On Thanksgiving my mom would host a large group of family friends. The next morning mom and I would head out in the early hours of the morning to take advantage of Black Friday sales. While I lived in NYC, I got to host Thanksgiving and we went to see the Macy's day parade. This year I went out to dinner with friends who were gracious enough to humor me when I asked them to go around the table and say something they were thankful for. The next morning I skyped my family and was a floating head in a laptop at the table. On Black Friday, I went to the American expat pot luck under the Harbour Bridge.

Christmas: Growing up I never believed in Santa Claus, a fact I used as a bragging point in grade school. On Christmas Eve my brother and I would go last minute Christmas shopping and out to eat. While I usually had almost all of my gifts, I would purposely leave at least one more to get to have the chance to hang out just the two of us. There was a Christmas Eve candlelight service at church where after the carols were sung my family would cause trouble by trying to blow each others candles out in a 'King of the Mountain' type face off. We would watch a couple of Christmas movies and head to bed. In the early hours of Christmas morning, 4:30am one year, my sister and I would sneak downstairs and exchange our gifts to each other by the light of the tree. My brother would join us and we would empty our stockings and watch 'How the Grinch Stole Christmas'. We would wait until the required time of 7:30 before waking our parents in creative although usually obnoxious ways. Now that I am older I realize they were already awake but did their bit to keep the tradition by not coming out of their room until we 'woke' them. We would open presents and mom would cook us breakfast, getting too little appreciation for the full buffet she presented. Dad would go through all the wrapping paper to make sure any little pieces were not lost. We would play with our toys, even toys we got as adults. This year I will spend Christmas on the beach with other holiday orphans then fly over to Hawaii to see my family for the first time in six months. By crossing the international date line, I get 48 hours of Christmas on the beach with family and friends.

While the actual event has changed throughout the year, as have the participants, the true traditions, and the purpose behind them, is to connect with those whom you love and who love you.

I wish you a Christmas filled with wonderful traditions and the creation of new memories.

Full-on

October and November have been full on, a grateful change from August where I was just working as a waitress every night. The weather is leading into summer but still ranges from 18 to the perfect 26 to 34 degrees. Yes, I talk in Celsius now. And kg. Although I still mix up writing dates, looking the right way before crossing the street, and understanding km and cm conversions. Some of the best moments:

1) NaNoWriMo- I finished a 50K book. Granted, nobody will be allowed to read it... possibly ever. It is tragically bad but there are some glimmers of purpose and promise starting to show. I have a greater understanding of what it takes to write a book and a much higher respect for authors, even authors with crap books. It is tough!

2) TESOL- I have started taking an online TESOL certification course. I have no idea where it will lead. So far I have learned what it means to be a good teacher and that, like most Americans, I have no idea about proper English grammar.

3) Sculpture by the Sea- Over 100 sculptures were placed along the cliffs between Bondi and Coodiee beach. It made for a gorgeous backgroup to some beautiful pieces.

4) The Races- Went to see the horses race at Ranwick Race Course. Won once. I felt sophisticated and European in my fascinator and couldn't help thinking of My Fair Lady throughout the day.

5) One of my friends works at the Sydney Opera House and she has given me tickets to a couple of shows. One had an intense story line, one was a classical opera, and one was based on "Of Mice and Men" I learned that I prefer the more classical Italian operas.

6) Thanksgiving- The American Expat group hosted a pot luck Thanksgiving dinner, under the Harbour Bridge, in the rain. An interesting side note: Most Aussies I have talked to think Thanksgiving is a bigger holiday than Christmas in America. I can say that in my brief pole of fellow Americans no one has agreed with this. Interesting how cultural mentalities are misunderstood. However, when I watch tv (where most ideas of America are grounded) every sitcom has a Thanksgiving episode and far fewer have Christmas episodes so it is understandable.

This is the longest that I have been away from my family and I miss them terribly. I always went home for Thanksgiving and Christmas and it has been a tradition for years to go shopping with my mom on Black Friday. My little sister is now engaged, my little brother is getting ready to graduate college. In exactly 19 days (maybe 18 since I cross the international date line) I will get to see my family. :D That smile isn't big enough.

7) Organized a hike to the "Grand Canyons" of Australia, the Blue Mountains with 44 people. I miss the Fall with the leaves changing color, the pumpkin carving, and the corn mazes, but at least there is still hiking here.

8) Went Paddleboarding. At first our legs were shaking but almost everyone got the hang of it by the end. There were surprisingly few oar fights.

9) Organized a scavenger hunt around Sydney. I got to wander around the city looking for places for the teams to find. I enjoyed creating the event and working out all the details. There were 39 contestants and even in the rain it seemed like the teams had fun. Plus as judges we got to make them do funny things wheelbarrow races in a very public place.

10) Moved Apartments. I was living with 9 other people in a 2 bedroom flat. We had nationalities from all over the globe. Even with my extroverted nature I am surprised I lasted as long as I did. That makes 4 jobs and 3 apartments in 5 months for those keeping track.

11) Met with some people about sponsored jobs. There isn't a lot more to say about that yet because I am still trying to figure out this part of the transition.

December is already filling up with Chrissy parties, optimistically more stability, and Hawaii with my family!