2007!?!

I'm sitting in an internet cafe in Guatemala, reading Rolling Stone's 2007 yearbook ... and I realised that I compltely missed 2007! Everything in pop culture - music, movies, books, tv ... I missed it all. I somehow managed to spend an entire year completely absorbed in my crappy job. The kind of job where every minute you're not at work you're drinking to try and forget about it. It's pretty tragic actually, hopefully I don't let it happen again .

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long overdue update

I can't believe it's nearly the end of July! So much has happened this year - it has been amazing but also really thought provoking. I don't know if I'm really ready to write about everything going on in my head just yet ... but I will say that I'm always amazed by the way travel can change your life and open your mind.

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it's nice to be still, for the moment

It feels like the first time in months that I'm actually relaxed.

The last week of January was hideously busy. We had to move house and were still doing so at 4am on the morning we had to turn in the keys. Then I had to finish up at work - in order to get caught up I worked several 17 hour days in my last week.

I finished work on the 31st and began my trip on the 2nd - I had hardly anytime to get organized so I just had to go with it!

Our road trip was great, but served as a reminder that travel is not all fun. When you're planning a trip you tend to gloss over the minute details - like flies or setting up a tent in 40 degree heat with 90% humidity. But luckily a cold beer solves all evils.

I intended to update my blog a bit from the road, but we spent a lot of time in remote areas and on the rare occasion I did manage to find Internet access it was overpriced and extremely slow.

A couple of weeks into the trip I decided to change my plans slightly and fly back to Hobart at the end of the road trip, before heading to Asia. Originally I had planned to bum around Perth for two weeks but I really missed Tim and it seemed to make sense.

So anyway, here I am, back in Hobart until the 21st. It's wonderful to be home and to sleep in my own bed. Plus, there is a horrible heat wave sweeping the country so I'm thankful to be in Hobart, where the temperature is bearable.

Also, this gives me a chance to get caught up on my blog and upload some photos. Keep an eye on my travel blog for updates.

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a night on my own

Tim is away, camping for the long weekend. To be honest, this is probably the first night I've been home alone for ages. I've been away from Tim - but I'm usually off doing things with friends or work and he's usually the one at home.

I think I've forgotten how much I enjoy my own company. It's nice to be a quiet house (no TV for once, thank god), drinking a cold beer and just relaxing.

Of course, I'll have plenty of my own company over the next year, so I better get use to it.

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leaving on a jet plane

The past two weeks have been busy as always. My half sister came out for a visit - my first visitor. It was fun, we saw a bit of the East Coast (including a 11km hike out to Wineglass Bay) and ate, drank, ate, drank, ate, drank ....

It's been a few days since she left and I've been trying to get caught up at work because we leave for our holiays tomorrow! Time has flown by so fast. I can't wait - a month away from work (heaven) not to mention seeing my family, going to DisneyWorld, and indulging in all my food cravings.

We get back on 5 Jan and then I'm back at work full time until the end of the month. Then that's it, I'm done!

I'm getting excited about my BFT (big f*ing trip) but also a bit nervous ... it's not long now and very real. I'm nervous about leaving Timmy for so long, not so much about travelling. BUT I'm confident I'm doing the right thing, it's just going to be a bit sad ...

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back from Honkers

I've been home from Honkers for about 2 hours and I'm absolutely exhausted. I don't have too much to say about the trip, to be honest we did a lot of the same things we did last year. Ironically, we even saw the same cover band I saw last year! Very random since we went out in a completely different area of the city.

Oh - and did I mention? I gave my notice at work last Wednesday and will be finishing up at the end of January. It feels SO good to be free ....

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going to hong kong, again

At least I think I am. I won a "surprise" trip from work for this weekend, which is pretty exciting. Slightly disappointed because I'm pretty sure we're going to Hong Kong and I went there this time last year. I was hoping for Bali, but hey, free trip - can't be too choosy!! Should be fun, but also a bit crazy as we are leaving first thing Saturday morning and are suppose to return on Monday. Yes that's right, flying to Honkers for 2 nights. Fingers crossed we get an upgrade!

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beautiful day

and I've been bumming around on the web all morning. ugh. I hate Myspace yet it's so addictive, it's like being a little nosy spy. None of my current friends are on there, mostly friends I don't even know anymore, so I'm not really keeping in touch, just spying on people I used to know.

Not like my beloved Facebook .... most of my Facebook friends are, well, actually friends.

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home is

Well.... the truth is, home for me is now definitely in Australia. I miss my family, especially my mom and my sister, but I really cannot imagine ever living in the States again. Tim and I have discussed going back for a few years, which is still on the cards. However, I would really, really miss my life here. I have met so many great people and I would definitely say I have more friends here than in the States (by far!) I also really like Hobart and I feel like I can have a lifestyle here that would be hard to find anywhere else.

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free time? what free time?

I'm definitely enjoying working part time, but in reality I'm still working well over 30 hours a week - just crammed into 3 days! Ick.

The paperwork fiasco continues, I've finally done my taxes (Australian taxes at least ... still need to sort out several years of US returns before the IRS arranges to confiscate my passport ... or kidnap me ... or whatever it is they do to foreign residents who fail to file!) Still heaps more to do though, slowly chipping through my residency application, there are several industry organisations and loyalty programs I need to join - of course, I must milk every travel industry benefit before leaving!

I also have to admit I have become a bit obsessed with my upcoming trip, which is slightly (just slightly) distracting. I've received an info pack from PMG about volunteering in Guatemala, very exciting!!

What's also exciting is that I have so much to look forward to before then. I'm going on a trip in two weeks that I won through work, but I don't know where we're going yet. It's a surprise! The only thing is that I don't know anyone else going - I hope there are a few normal people coming.

The week after that my half sister is coming out for a visit, which should be really fun. My first visitor - good timing too! We have a guest room with a spare bed bought for *visitors* and the only visitor we ever get is Tim's best mate. I'd be a bit disappointed if we moved out of here without ever having one *real* house guest. It's also good because our current place is in the city and who knows, we'll probably end up stuck in suburbia when I get back.

Before we know it, we'll be on a plane back to the States for our first visit in two years! I'm really looking forward to our trip - I'm taking my sister to Disney World for a few days, and then it will be nice to see everyone. Plus, I really, really, really miss American food. I have a list of a trillion restaurants I want to visit when we're back. Yum.

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