Cairns

Cairns was wonderful. Humid. Hot. We went hiking around Daintree...the oldest rain forest on the planet if I am correct. We went out to the Great Barrier Reef on a sailboat and snorkeled with a turtle, a black-tip reef shark, giant clams (that close when you touch them), sea cucumbers, lots of fish, and lots of pretty coral. The water was perfect. Gorgeous day.

Crikey!

I haven't actually heard anyone here use the term, "Crikey!" until we got to the Australia (Steve Irwin) Zoo. I guess the saying is comparable to the general public believing people from Texas say things like, "My lands", and "For Pete's sake"....wait...no my mom DOES say both of those. Ha. Kiddin mom. If you're going to say CRIKEY! though, you have to put both thumbs out in the air when you do it. Go head, give it a try...

I really liked this zoo. You, my close friends, know how I feel about caged animals, and how I hate the idea of a circus...but I liked this place. There seemed to be an overall deep passion and care for not only the animals...(some were bred in captivity and some were rescued by Steve)...but I also really admired the deep concern for the environment in which these animals inhabit, and are losing their homes due to construction and pollution.
My favorite part was probably the tiger show. I was not aware how high and fast they are able to climb trees and get what they want. Incredible. Some of us pondered the details of the animals and the reasoning God made them....and........Some of us learned about the facts of life that day....Hudson hasn't stopped asking questions....you should probably have the talk with the kids before entering the Kangaroo Haven.
I can't believe what little time we have left. EVERYONE GO SEE "Into the Wild". It is by far the best movie of the year, and just went into my favorite movie category last night.

Three's Company

Come and knock on my door, take a breath that is new, where the kisses are hers, and hers, and his, Three is company toooooo. I think thats how the song goes? I used to love that show. There was always usually some wacky miscommunication that had to be resolved by the end of the episode. I am predicting the same will occur in the next three weeks as "Shaster and Clarice's Big Adventure" takes a spin as it adds its newest core character....enter: HUDSON!!!!

Thats right. The little hottie therapist that keeps the lady patients at work drooling has bought a ticket on the fast Shast/Carisse train. Turns out he loves traveling and bad jokes just as much as we do, so it should be a great ride. Plus, we've already uncovered even more great reasons to have a boy along...including but not limited to...

#1. Normalcy--Romantic sunsets on the beach are a little less awkward for Shasta and I...now that we are a triple, rather than a couple

#2. Fit Fiddles--he makes us do 200 push-ups every night before bed. Surprisingly, we've also noticed a significant decrease in our carbs/chocolate intake...I anticipate consuming future heaps of Soy milk as well...we speculate he might be the world's first human carnivore...

#3. Avoided Stalkers--we haven't had anymore sleezy guys hit on us since he showed up

#4. Cabby--Driving on the left is still new/exciting for Hudson...so we just let him do it

#5. Money Saver--a guy is always supposed to pick up the tab...am i right ladies???


*********Truthfully we love Hudson and are so happy he is here!!!! Tune in next time for the Steve Irwin Zoo and a trip to Cairns********

T-Day

Monday: Went surfing again and was reminded how the ocean hates me. I'm cool with it though, I expect a peace treaty in the future. Surfing is technical for sure, but thats not the hard part. Most of my rashes/bruises/scars come during the process of just getting out into the waist deep water to prepare myself for the oncoming waves. Its a fight between me and the sea to get out there. With every oncoming wave I get served a punch in the face with a side of a condition I've named, "salt-water-fire-throat". It's as if mother nature is saying, "...and THATS for polluting me, and THATS for building on my beaches, and...", eventually I might actually get to stand up a few times during the couple hours that I put up with this...and its all worth it.

Tuesday: My first, so very, very, special Aussie Thanksgiving. The day of the year Americans have set aside to be aware of their blessings and express gratitude and appreciation. I LOVE eating at a table full of people. I love a big noisy house. We had a ton of people there (as seen below) and the Porters/Wilsons went above and beyond to make this meal perfect. Andrea set up a big long table in her house so that we could all eat together, and as it happened...there were just enough seats for everyone who showed up. Shasta and I had to work yesterday morning and there was no way we could have prepared everything ourselves, so we were blessed to have all the reinforcements we could ask for. Holly even made menus!

This is actually my favorite holiday of the year because I love eating together more than presents. Literally. I think having a meal together is such a family-building event. Preparing it, being at the table, cleaning up afterwards...it just brings everyone closer. Shasta and I have been talking about how we would love to have a standard sunday meal at our future apartment in Texas...what a great way to get to know people.

During dessert we made everybody go around and say what they were thankful for. Where do I even begin on this one? God has given me more than I've ever asked for, and definitely more than I deserve. He's even given me more than I could have dreamed of, more than I ever even knew I needed or wanted. I'm so thankful for the basics: I'm healthy, I have a roof over my head and too much food in my mouth. I am provided for everywhere I go on earth. I have the most thoughtful mom in the world, a daddy who loves me to "hug his neck", 2 brothers who would bury anyone who crossed me, and I am absolutely in love with my Grandpa, my sister-in-laws, and my nieces/nephew.

My friends have also become families to me: The friends I grew up with who know me best and will never leave me. My 6 chicks who I'd take a bullet for. My homegroup girls that help me analyze life. My deep ellum girls that keep me laughing and awake past bedtime. All my boyfriends; the two Jeremy's, the Paco, the Kyle, the Hudson, the Marc (who I still barely know but strangely completely consider him a bestie!). My cvc peeps and clients who tolerate my moods anywhere from 10-40hrs/week. My new Australian family: The church, my co-workers/pub friends, Grassie......Now that I've gone through a list of shout-outs, basically I just adore every person in my life...and if I dont tell you enough...I love you and am so thankful you exist, and that I get to be a part of your lives.

I'm grateful for the freedom that allows me to explore the world...that we have planes and passports that give me the gifts of pressing my toes in the sand, or standing over waterfalls...or meet a chef who spends 70+ hrs/week in the kitchen, or a house wife that opens up her home and family to share with me. I'm so thankful for prayer, and I'm thankful that He listens. I am grateful that He is there, even during all my questioning, only later to see my life as a net He's been stitching together all the while.


Here's Miriam again (a.k.a. cutest baby ever)
Two of the chefs from work came too. Have you ever made a meal for TWO professional chefs? It's kinda like showing the construction paper watercolor you made to Picasso.
See...heaps of people. What a great night!

And yet again...my cup overflows.

The Tale of Stradysburg

Awarded the 2005 Emmy and 2006 Golden Globe for Best Drama Series, "Lost" returns for its seventh season of action-packed mystery and adventure -- that will continue to bring out the very best and the very worst in the people who are lost.

After Oceanic Air flight 815 tore apart in mid-air and crashed on a Pacific island, its survivors were forced to find inner freedom they never knew they had in order to survive. But they discovered that the island holds many secrets, including pirates, pubs, and the peculiar tribes of skinny-jean-wearing emo kids known as "The Others." The survivors have also found the backpacks of those who came to the island before them, from other freedom seekers who attempted to escape the corporate world that begins each day with an alarm clock.

As the second part of Season Seven opens, new characters, Shaster and Clarice are washed upon the shore after a tragic surfing lesson had sucked two girls out to sea. The long awaited twist is finally uncovered as the camera pans high up overhead to reveal that the survivors are not at all stranded...but in actuality have landed on Stradbroke Island, about 23km off the coast of Australia. Knowing full well that there is a ferry able to solve all problems on the north side of the island, the girls plot a sabotage in attempts to take over and put an end to this show!

In order to divide and conquer, the scheme begins as Clarice climbs the tallest of trees near the commonly used kitchen part of the beach to first lure Hurley with the great American pumpkin pie. He and the rest of the cast take the bait and are hoisted into the air. Swinging from the net, there is one foul-mouthed savage who was mistakenly swept up in the smell of the cooking pie. On second glance he is not one of the survivors, but is none other than Maurice Mac, the legendary pirate of the high seas! He is released from apprehension and indeed, it was love at first sight. Once married, Clarice and
Maurice then set out to locate Shaster, ready to prepare for Island take-over. Shaster has found a love interest as well, while charting maps with Sayid over a romantic campfire. What began as two has now become four and domination is within reach. That is...until Shaster has a flashback and remembers her days as a homeless bum on the
streets when she lived off hitchikes from strangers and bottles of Lambrusco for breakfast. Sayid suddenly seems familiar to her, and she recognizes him as the evil trucker who once picked her up and pulled out her nose ring (after only in for 3 weeks). The rest of the cast comes into full view as the girls notice that Kate has a striking resemblance to Clarice's college dorm director and Jack has the same ugly tattoo that was on the left arm of the very surf instructor that lead them here in the first place!



A trap! It was a trap all along! The girls and Maurice are thrown into a hole on the side of the
cliffs and are left with nothing but tears as they watch the entire cast sail back to Australia stuffing their mouths with gelato.

They are left alone on Stradbroke Island to fend for themselves and wait until morning for the next ferry to appear and the show is able to continue into an eighth season. If you loved "Lost" you will love the hit series' new spin off, "Found" that will be airing this fall and will dig deeper into the adventures of Shaster and Clarice as they make a roadrip from the Grand Canyon up through the west coast of North America and into the quest that awaits them in Alaska.


My mom gets nervous when I dont blog so here's the crazy I came up with today. Stradbroke Island is literally the prettiest beach I've ever seen. Tuesday we went surfing and I got my body rocked by the ocean. I'm not at all good at surfing, but I love trying...and after the scratches I got on my thighs I broke down and bought some board-shorts to be better prepared for next time! Now, who wants to buy me a skateboard for Christmas??!!

P.S....I wrote the story based on the pictures we took and some jokes we had. No outside source was consumed in the creation of this piece. Blogger is so annoying with organizing it's photo part.

Ode to Robert Frost

"Two roads diverge in a wood, and I- I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference"

Classic, clip of poetry. Perhaps overused, but true all the same. Exploration might be the word to sum up our last few days. The story begins with our new friend Jason Grassie. We didn't know him at all, but he went to ACU, we have mutual friends, and made contact through facebook. God bless the internet. He lives in Sydney but was coming to our neck of the woods so we decided to introduce him to adventures of Shaster and Clarice. Unexpectedly(and probably because he's a boy), but welcomed enthusiastically, ...he opened up new and refreshing adventures for US. I've never seen someone so aware of their surroundings. He knows a lot about plants, and is in a perpetual state of leaving the beaten path...and therefore this trip was different. We love our new bestie Jason and are forever grateful to the God who knows exactly what we need, even beyond physical provision. This is Grassie chasing a wild turkey. Haha! Had to be there.
We hired a car and surprisingly, driving on the right side of the car and the left side of the road is no big deal. And, where I once mocked the roundabouts, I have now made peace and thoroughly enjoy them. The only thing left to conquer will be the stickshift up and down the mountains of New Zealand! Ugh!
We went hiking on a trail in Lamington National Park and got to see the coolest waterfall, blue tongued lizards, and a snake along the way. As we got closer to the sound of the water rushing the rocks, we went off the trail and climbed over to the very top of the waterfall. Did I mention I'm a super scared sally on top of heights? However, I never regret experiencing them. The top was beautiful.
We stopped by a vineyard on our way back but were too cheap to pay for tasting. Went to O'Malley's Irish Pub when we got back to Surfer's Paradise. "Pub Steaks" are cheap specials on Monday nights and we enjoyed trying each of our different Tooheys. After a little coffee on the beach we decide to take a drive down the Gold Coast. However, being the Triumvirate of storytellers that we are...when we finally get around to looking at a map, the new decision to hunt and claim Byron Bay is made.

We arrive in the quaint little surf-town, climb out on the rocks to watch the tide come in...just long enough to rack the nerves with a "how creepy is the deep ocean?" talk. Now comes the part where I fulfill a dream and check it off my list...WE SLEPT IN THE CAR! Which is illegal according to the cashier at the petrol station, and we were in small 4-door Nissan...but we went ahead and parked it, reclined the seats, a gained a few hours sleep with a collection of stiff knees and backs.

We woke up at 4:30 am, stopped by THE best bakery I've ever seen, literally, open 23hrs/day (i was raving about this place for both its delectable presentation and taste), got some breakfast and backed up the car to the ocean to watch the sunrise. Only it was rainy and overcast so instead we watched the surfers and sea kayakers do their thing (which looks really cool).We explored around the Byron Bay Lighthouse for a little while and were able to see several whales pop up in the ocean, took some photos and then back to Surfer's Paradise for a game of soccer on the beach. Girls vs. boys. This left Jason with some nasty bruising, and I'm pretty sure we won, or not...but I know my calves pain running in sand, and I never look all graceful and Baywatchy...I look like I'm getting nowhere on a treadmill...with new prosthetic legs.

We wrapped everything up with a trip to the Sushi Train. I never thought I liked sushi but turns out I do! All except the sick caviar one I was forced to try. Then, we, the Triumvirate, got a case of the meat sweats, spit the winkle a while, returned to Brissy and Bob's your uncle. Great trip. Hopefully surfing next weekend if weather permits!!!

Vibrations In Air

Concerts. Perhaps my most favorite of all past times. I love movies, some sports, and ice cream...but I get extra excited for the concert, especially the smaller ones...There is something indescribable but here's how it generally works:
...You show up early with your friend/aquaintance and enjoy the company of catching up and crossing fingers for songs you hope to be played, you sit through the opening bands and if they suck you have a laugh, but there is a 50/50 chance you may have stumbled upon a gem! You may have teased your hair and shaved your legs in the event that the hot lead singer picks you out of the crowd and invites you for pancakes (ask me about the time Chris Martin made eye contact with me...it happened!!), this effort is now negated by the fact that you are either frigid or sweaty depending on the venue. THEN...it happens...the lights go down and the crowd starts cheering and bam!...Suddenly you are in the same room with artists you admire and they are creating that same sound you've repeated in your cd player for months. And, live music is different than recorded. It is possible to achieve a bond with music inside headphones, but there is a connection formed at a live concert. You are able to feel the music, understand lyrics, see the personality behind the songwriter. Music is truly an experience thats given me memories forever and thats why I love it!

We wanted to see an Aussie band play while in Australia, and Wolfmother and Jet are not currently touring here, Xavier Rudd was sold out...so we found Josh Pyke on the internet and bought a cd. Whitley opened and sucked, 78 Saab came next and were allright, but Josh Pyke put on a great show. He actually sounds way better live than on cd...proving his talent. He's funny to boot and an all-around good performer so maybe he'll hit the States one day.

Side note: Missy Higgins is an up and coming Aussie artist who is a big deal here and we love her!

Ah music, how do I love thee...We start phase 2 of this adventure in about 3 weeks when there will be a third party addition joining us for the remainder of our trip so stay tuned. I can't believe this wonderland is coming to an end. It'll be really hard for me not to cry allover everyone...or maybe I should just let it out so they know how much they'll be missed.