Birthday Post

Ok this is long past due, I know this…This entry will update you from March 14 to March 31. The gap in early March will be written by my lovely sister Angelique (coming soon???).

I feel fairly settled in Melbourne (I have been here almost two months now). So what have I done with my free time? Well I am glad that you asked, I will try to flush out some of the highlights as well as the reoccurring things I am doing.

From 3/20 to 3/22: I had a blast going sea kayaking/ some light hiking with the Uni’s Mountaineering Club (they do pretty much everything you can think of outdoors). During the trip we were car camping, but we were not able to have fires because Australia is such a dry place. There are only a few parks were you can legally have a fire, even in the front country.

This was my first time in a kayak so I greatly appreciated the good teachers that we had (experienced paddlers in the club). As you are learning to kayak, you will most likely get flipped over a lot, so you want to be able to get out safely. Enter a ‘wet exit”, where you pretty much pull the spray deck and get out the kayak in one piece. Our teachers didn’t want us to focus on “rolling” (staying in the kayak and flipping yourself back out of the water). You do not an inexperienced kayaker trying unsuccessfully to roll and taking in too much water and subsequently drowning…so that is why we stuck to wet exits.

When the waves started crashing, I learned quickly that the most important thing is to use your knees and hips to control the kayak. I was able to catch heaps of big waves and stayed on the water for a large chunk of time. After some hours, I was pretty tired and then the biggest wave of the day hit. At first I paddled with it, and felt in control until it picked the back of my kayak up and front flipped me. I stayed under for a few seconds, caught in the wave. I remained calm, waited until the wave passed, then wet exited from the kayak. So after that adventure, I decided it was a good time to stop for that day. At the end of the first day I felt really comfortable with my balance and ability to control the kayak. The second day, we moved to a different location and the waves were pretty paltry. So needless to say the first day was a lot more fun. The upside to sea kayaking is pretty good, namely catching huge waves and hanging on for dear life. The only real downside to paddling in the ocean is that you get a lot of salt water in your sinuses (the best remedy is a nose plug, which I didn’t have…).

3/26: I went to the opening day of the AFL (Australian Rules Football) season between Richmond and Carlton. Just Google AFL for more information. I scored tickets thanks to my Sport and Education in Australian Society class. Did I mention that I was three rows from the field? Because that was another relevant detail to the story. The game was a blowout: Carlton’s 155 points to Richmond’s 70. To capture the magnitude of the blowout, it would be similar to a 30 point spread in a basketball game. Overall cool experience, now I have to write a paper on it (I know, it is a touch life).

3/29: I attended a formal charity dinner for Jesuit Social Services. The JSS does great work around the world and works to empower disadvantaged people in local communities. The JSS in Australia is active in many different ministries and empowers many people to make positive changes in their lives. The key note speaker had a very interesting insight about society in the United States relative to Australia. He said that the best trait of society in the United States was that it encouraged people to participate. He contrasted this to Australian society, where in his view,people are encouraged to adhere to the established culture. I am not sure that I fully agree with his analysis that the United States encourages people to actively participate, but I whole heartedly agree that active participation by residents should be one of the aims of any society. I do not want to get too philosophical but the focus of participation in society is well founded and should be one of our aims as we work together to build a more just society (around the world).

Recurring Activities: Well you got your dancing, crossfitting, ultimate frisbee, and now soup kitchen (oh yeah and that school thing).

Dance classes have been going pretty well. I am taking a swing (lindy hop) class and a latin dance (salsa, meringue, argentine tange). I like latin more but I think it is because the movements come easier to me (i.e. I don’t have to focus/work as hard). Overall, pretty happy with both and will continue to take them during my time in Melbourne. They are fairly cheap ($6 AUD a class, so $4 USD a class). There is a swing social this weekend which I might attend.

Crossfit, well what can I say except that I am addicted. When you think about it, if you had to choose something to be addicted to, then fitness is not such a bad choice. The crossfit community here is very supportive, full of knowledge, and pushes you to your physical/mental limits. The things that some of these guys and gals can do are freakish. They put at least as much emphasis on their food as their training. Two reoccurring "diets" (I much prefer the terminology of eating strategy, much more long term) around the gym are the Zone and the Paleo. You can Google search both of them, please browse at your own leisure. The Zone focuses on foods and portion sizes, it will help reduce weight. Paleo focuses on select foods to eat and does not focus on portions. I am making food changes to have a Paleo diet, since I not need to focus on weight loss.

Ultimate Frisbee: Good fun, good people, and good exercise. That pretty much sums it up. My disc skills are getting better and I am having fun as I do it. I play Wednesday nights and Friday afternoons. So yeah, it’s good.

Through one of my friends here, I have gotten involved at a soup kitchen that the Missionaries of Charity Sisters run (the order that Mother Theresa founded). I have only been twice, but I seek to make it a part of my life routine. The other day I slowed down production on the dish cleaning line and one of the sisters was not too happy with me. I am looking to remedy my scrubbing speed that in the future.

Today is officially my birthday (the whole time difference thing). One thing that sticks out to me is that people you hardly talk to always contact you on your birthday. My guess is that I will have at least 30 Facebook post from people whom I don’t even keep in touch with (probably half that number will not know that I am in Australia right now…). I am alive the other 364 days of the year and would be willing to talk on any of these. But I am thankful for another year of life (thanks Mom for putting up with my multi-day delivery). I am officially 21 and legal around the world. Is it odd that I don’t want to drink too much tonight so that I can crossfit tomorrow morning? Because that is how I feel…

Thanks for taking the time. Cheers