Status Update

Wow, my last post was over a month ago.  It's funny how time flies, while at the same time, there's just never enough time for the things you ought to be doing.  Like keeping folks back home abreast of things halfway around the world.  Some of it is due to not being motivated to write when I have the time.  Some of it is due to not having time to write about the things I've done because I'm out doing more cool stuff, which I also need to write about.  It's a vicious cycle and I keep slipping farther and farther behind.

While I've been working, I've more or less settled into a routine.  My weekdays pretty much go like this:

• 6:30AM until 6:50AM: hit the snooze button every time my alarm goes off, and try to steal a few minutes more shut-eye.
• 6:50AM until 7:40AM: shower, shave, dress, eat breakfast, and pack my lunch
• 7:40AM: walk to the train station
• 7:53AM: get on the train
• 8:16AM: get off the train.  Optionally buy a cup of coffee.  Wait for the bus to arrive
• Some time between 8:20AM and 8:30AM: get on the bus
• 8:40AM: get off the bus and walk to the office
• 8:45AM: arrive at work
• 8:45AM-5:45PM: work
• 5:45PM: walk from the office to the bus stop
• Some time between 5:50PM and 6:05PM: get on the bus
• Some time between 6:05PM and 6:15PM: arrive at the train station
• 6:05PM-6:22PM: Wait for trains.  Listen to pre-recorded announcements telling me that the trains I'm waiting for have been delayed or flat out canceled
• 6:22PM: Get on the train
• 6:45PM: Get off the train, walk home, and eat dinner.
• 7:30PM: until some time between 10:00PM and 12:00AM: Relax and unwind after a long day
• Some time between 10:00PM and 12:00AM until 6:30AM: Sleep

My weekends pretty much go something like this:

• Saturday 7:00AM: Wake up to Angela knocking on my door asking if I'm up because we need to leave soon.
• Saturday 7:00AM until 8:00AM: shower, dress, pack my bags for the weekend, and eat breakfast
• Saturday 8:00AM: leave the house
• Saturday 8:00AM until Sunday 9:00PM: weekend adventure
• Sunday 9:00PM until 10:00PM: return home.  Unpack bags and have dinner.
• Sunday 10:00PM until some time between 11:00PM and 12:00AM: download pictures from camera and videos from camcorder.  Upload good stuff to Picasa/Youtube.

As you can see, just about the only time I have for writing is during my after-work relaxation time.  Which explains why it tends to not get done.

So, what all has been going on?  Well, I've been working since September.  I'm a contract developer for a company that makes dispatching and metering software for taxi, emergency services, and public transportation fleets.  As of this morning, my contract's end date has ben extended from December 30 to March 3, meaning I'm gainfully employed for another two months.  Go me.

Weekend outings have consited of: the Melbourne Show (akin to a state fair), Sydney Opera House and Bondi Beach, Great Ocean Road, cycling all around Melbourne, cycling around Lysterfield Lake, the George Bass Coastal Walk, Wilson's Promontory National Park, Grampians National Park, the Melbourne Aquarium, and probably others that I just can't remember right now.  Some of them I've already posted about.  The blog posts are still pending for others.  Weekend innings have consisted of sleeping, going to the beach, and cooking barbecue.  I also threw some dice a couple weeks ago with my friend Mike and some of his mates.

I'm currently looking to buy a four-wheel-drive so I can tour the outback again (properly this time) with my remaining time in Australia.  Ideally, this would be an older model such as a mid-80s to mid-90s Toyota Land Cruiser or Nissan Patrol, although I would also be open to a crew cab Toyota Hilux or Nissan Navara.  Bull bar, snorkel, and all-terrain tires are a must.  Camping gear, registration, and a roadworthy certificate would be a bonus.  Gotta have priorities.

I've gotten to know some really amazing people during my short stay in Australia.  Some, I've already mentioned before.  Some, I've only met in the last few weeks.  I've also had to say goodbye to others as we went our separate ways.  I plan to stay in touch with as many folks as I can.

I turned 29 a couple days ago.  To celebrate, I cooked an American style barbecue for some of my friends here.  Nothing too big.  Just a pork shoulder, a pack of bratwursts, a pack of Italian sausages, two scotch roasts, two kilos of salmon, four racks of lamb ribs (they were out of pork), and eight chicken leg quarters.  Joy (who has been kind enough to open her house to all of us) made coleslaw and an awesome potato bake (sort of like au gratin potatoes, but way better) and my friend Michaela brought some homemade Swiss bread.  She even made some sweet breads for my housemate Angela and me.

It's past my bedtime, so I'll leave it here.  Stick around, there's good stuff coming up.  When I have time to write about it, that is.

Grampians (Round 2)

Pictures:

A quick stop on Mt William, below the summit

View from Mt. William summit, highest point in the Grampians

Angela, quietly contemplating the beauty of Silverbend Falls

Michaela and Aldo.  They have way better cameras than mine

View from Boroka Lookout.
That's the town of Halls Gap below, in front of Lake Bellfield

I couldn't find any information about who this person was or why there is a plaque dedicated to him at Boroka Lookout.  If anyone can provide any, I'd love to have something more interesting to say here.

Mackenzie Falls

View from The Balconies

Laugh all you want.  It was cold and windy up there.
Also, there's 3 people under that blanket.  Attaboy, Aldo

Frank was not afraid of a little wind or a long drop to the canyon floor

Sunset at The Balconies

Doot doot doo, lookin' out my cabin's front door

Aldo taught me how to take pictures of the stars at night.
I didn't realize my camera could do that!

Orion's belt.  I still don't see the pot.

Michaela and Aldo, hiking up to Beehive Falls

Gulgurn Manja Shelter (I think)

These hand paintings are thousands of years old

There was a beehive in one of the crevices.
I took a bunch of high-speed shots.
The bees were faster than my camera.

Hollow Mountain, seen from Gulgurn Manja Shelter

Michaela and Angela, looking for Aldo.
He's in the picture.  I promise.

We stopped for lunch on top of Hollow Mountain

Videos:

A wallaby we didn't hit with the car