finally got a dresser and a (yet to be assembled) nightstand from ikea.... still need to get a table/chairs (wouldn't fit in the car. lol) work's work. tis okay. will be flying home in 6 weeks for xmas. w00t!

okay, so i don't post here too much anymore... i should tho. but i've decided that i should put the news stuff i wanna share here instead of facebook (but i don't know who even reads this anymore)

anyway, here's a couple stories...

Is hope in Obama fading?

Bono: Why I believe in Obama

"America is not just a country but an idea, a great idea about opportunity for all and responsibility to your fellow man.

All right - I don't speak for the rest of the world. Sometimes I think I do - but as my bandmates will quickly point out, I don't even speak for one small group of four musicians.

But I will venture to say that in the farthest corners of the globe, the world wants to believe in America again."

i think this sums up things quite well and i think bono's right. the world wants america to overcome. america has long been a country of ideals - 'freedom and justice for all' - but we seem to have lost it in the last decade or so with all these petty disagreements and so much fear of EVERYthing (tho it's probably been coming on for a lot longer). and i believe it's rather unfair to blame obama for not curing all that's wrong with america in the first 9 months of his administration. there's so much to be done and so much to overcome in the process. it's gonna take years but it seems that america's love of instant gratification is starting to win.... i wish people would realize that things are starting to go in the right direction, even if it will be a while before we see real results.

2 1/2 months til i come home!!! it'll go quick. hard to believe it's already october (well in a few hours it will be)

Wed, Dec 16, 2009 - Melbourne, Australia (MEL) to Los Angeles, CA (LAX)
United 0840
Depart: MEL 1:00 PM
Arrive: LAX 9:52 AM

Wed, Dec 16, 2009 - Los Angeles, CA (LAX) to Chicago, IL (ORD)
United 0840
Depart: LAX 12:30 PM
Arrive: ORD 6:30 PM

Wed, Dec 16, 2009 - Chicago, IL (ORD) to Grand Rapids, MI (GRR)
United 7074
Operated by: United Express/mesa Airlines
Depart: ORD 9:32 PM
Arrive: GRR 11:23 PM


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thu, Jan 07, 2010 - Grand Rapids, MI (GRR) to Chicago, IL (ORD)
United 7208
Operated by: United Express/mesa Airlines
Depart: GRR 1:20 PM
Arrive: ORD 1:19 PM

Thu, Jan 07, 2010 - Chicago, IL (ORD) to San Francisco, CA (SFO)
United 0137
Operated by:
Depart: ORD 3:00 PM
Arrive: SFO 5:35 PM

Thu, Jan 07, 2010 - San Francisco, CA (SFO) to Sydney, Australia (SYD)
United 0863
Operated by:
Depart: SFO 10:40 PM
Arrive: SYD 8:10 AM
Arrives 2nd day

Sat, Jan 09, 2010 - Sydney, Australia (SYD) to Melbourne, Australia (MEL)
United 0839
Depart: SYD 9:40 AM
Arrive: MEL 11:20 AM

"I'll do that when sober and have a clue what I'm doing. I'm English so may be awhile."
-- chris

non-updatey-ness....

nothing to update. work. football. work, work, work. sleep. football. work, work, work....bah. is it december yet??? i need a vacation!!! 3+ months to go...bah.

oh and my thyroid is f-ed up like usual. *grrrrrr* definitely not helping the situation any. *grrr*

"You look like a mozzarella."
-- my italian friend after i told her that she looked tan (having just returned from italy)

Doctors Baffled, Intrigued by Girl Who Doesn't Age

amazing....

"Excuse me, mate. You didn't happen to see a man stealing a gate just now, did you?"

"Yes, I did actually."

"Well, why didn't you stop him?"

"I thought he might take offence."

RIP Tom and Uncle Bud....


If Today Was Your Last Day - Nickelback
My best friend gave me the best advice
He said each day's a gift and not a given right
Leave no stone unturned, leave your fears behind
And try to take the path less traveled by
That first step you take is the longest stride

If today was your last day and tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?
Would you live each moment like your last
Leave old pictures in the past?
Donate every dime you had, if today was your last day?
What if, what if, if today was your last day?

Against the grain should be a way of life
What's worth the price is always worth the fight
Every second counts 'cause there's no second try
So live like you're never living twice
Don't take the free ride in your own life

If today was your last day and tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?
Would you live each moment like your last?
Leave old pictures in the past?
Donate every dime you had?

And would you call those friends you never see?
Reminisce old memories?
Would you forgive your enemies?
And would you find that one you're dreaming of?
Swear up and down to God above
That you'd finally fall in love if today was your last day?

If today was your last day
Would you make your mark by mending a broken heart?
You know it's never too late to shoot for the stars
Regardless of who you are

So do whatever it takes
'Cause you can't rewind a moment in this life
Let nothing stand in your way
'Cause the hands of time are never on your side

If today was your last day and tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?
Would you live each moment like your last?
Leave old pictures in the past?
Donate every dime you had?

And would you call those friends you never see?
Reminisce old memories?
Would you forgive your enemies?
And would you find that one you're dreaming of
Swear up and down to God above
That you'd finally fall in love if today was your last day?

we wants it!!!
...and we would buy it if shipping wasn't so bloody expensive! gotta represent with my ganglion cyst and all... ;o)

oh, and this is freaking awesome, too! LOL

horoscope for this week...

Few of us articulate our every thought. We learn, early in life, that it isn't wise. You take more risks of this kind than most people. You don't burble every notion that flits through your mind, but nor do you suppress opinions for the sake of polite pretence. You're silent only when you suspect you're in company where honesty is unacceptable. You come alive with people you can speak openly to. Right now, there's something you need to say. Find someone willing to listen. You can change your understanding of the past in one conversation. Through that, you can transform your idea of what lies ahead.

...if only i could say what i need to say....bugger!

...mostly for my own record 'coz no one else will care....

"The turning point was the starting whistle."
- broncos fan when the broncos were down 36-4 to the storm (broncos ended up losing 48-4)

heh.

me <3 rugby.

heh...and i only had to move halfway around the planet to finally get a fast connection. lol

uh-oh....

humorscope!
Nobody knows the trouble you've seen. Except for Bob, that is. You know - the quiet neighbour, with the binoculars?

horoscope....

Your Week Ahead: You deserve to be rewarded, respected, recognised and repaid. You have done well lately, despite difficult circumstances. Because, though, you have been making so much effort to overcome adversity, you have become tired and disillusioned. Your energy has gone into the fight and now, even though theoretically you are starting to win, it does not seem like much of a victory. You are smiling on the surface, but deep down, you doubt whether your struggle has been worthwhile. The triple conjunction of Jupiter, Neptune and Chiron is about to show you a very reassuring sign. Soon you'll have more energy, enthusiasm and belief in yourself. We are in the 'Dark of the Moon' - and a rare triple-conjunction

....hmmmm...one can hope, i guess....

and humorscope....

You will contemplate nothingness today, but somethingness will keep intruding upon your thoughts.

...that sounds about right. LOL

was just rereading the last post. could repost it again and it'd still be the best description of what's going on. LOL

tho there is some nice stuff at work, too.... we'll see how that goes. ;o)

yeah, i'm still alive. lol busy, busy with work, tho. not lots of hours (38-40 per week..plus 2 sleepovers) but lots of split shifts and lots of commuting. bah. nothing much else going on. been in my little apartment now for a few weeks. still don't have any furniture other than my bed. lol my tastes are higher than my budget, apparently. (my budget = near nothing) hmmm...otherwise just hanging out with friends when i can and going to football games (aussie rules and rugby). life is good, tho.

...and it's may already. wow.

yayayayayayayayayayayayay!!!!!!!!! me gots my visa!!!!! now i just need to book my flight. probably tomorrow when i'm more awake. looking to leave on the 18th....returning dec 16 for a few weeks for xmas. :o)

so i went to chicago last weekend (thurs-mon). took amtrak. no crashing fortunately but my train was delayed by 1h 40min on the way home but it was still faster than greyhound would've been. lol and it was wAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAy better than driving. so glad i didn't drive. so much more relaxing that way. not sure if i'll ever drive to chicago again. LOL

anyway, it was tons o' fun. met up with one of my friends down there....who was down from alaska (yes, the state) for a wedding.... i met her in NZ. small world. did shopping (browsing, actually lol), lots of coffee, went to the lounge in the hancock a couple times, sears tower, bahai house of worship (beautiful!!...albeit f'in freeeeeezing that day!)

i stayed in a hostel that was in a great location (just a few blocks from the art institute and a block off off michigan ave)...but my room was also literally 30 feet from the L. sounded like a plane landing everytime it went by. fortunately it doesn't operate at the odd hours of the night.

on sat night i went out with a group from the hostel to dinner (v.v.v. good vietnamese restaurant) and to a blues club. a very odd moment at the restaurant, tho. i was near the window. at one point this small army of 20-something year old guys walked past in snuggies. LMAO! so, of course, the random cute irish guy sitting next to me didn't know what a snuggie was (or about all the parodies and such) so i had to try to explain it. not easy. LOL actually what was even funnier, a few minutes later one of the guys in a snuggie ran back past the window...in the middle of the street...flailing his arms....chasing after a bus!!! it was the funniest thing i've seen in aaaaaaaaaaages. ROTFLMFAO!!! well, later we went to the blues club and for some reason brian dennehy was there...not that i've ever actually seen any of his movies/tv shows. but anyway.... good music.

hmmm...what else...oh, pizza.....mmmmmmmmmmm..... and went to some museums. art institute, contemporary photography and contemporary arts. actually took a free tour at the contemp arts museum. definitely worth it since i know nothing about contemp arts but i like looking at it. lol good to have some sort of explination for it.

well, i think that's about it. did some other restaurants and such but no exciting stories. still loads of fun, tho. :o)

oscars...yeah. didn't watch that much of it. haven't seen any movies that were nominated except for australia (and that was only up for costume...didn't win).

but there's a good review over here...my fav part (of the review)
"Assault With a Medley Weapon: The top-hat-and-tails number with Beyoncé, Zac Efron and the rest totally summed up the year in movies. And that year was 1936."
amen. it was still an entertaining medley, tho...but i'll watch hugh jackman ANYtime. ;o) but even he couldn't make me watch the whole show. different? yes. better than usual? relatively speaking, i think so. still boring? absofreakinlutely. i loved the opening number, tho. and i'm glad they gave an achievement award to jerry lewis. he's awesome.