Watching the Evening Come In

As the sun goes down, our backyard in Shailer Park is full of life. Rainbow Lorikeets fill the trees, flying over the pool, singing noisily to each other as they settle in for the night.

They quiet down as the sun disappears and the singing of frogs emerges. They probably have been singing all along, but only when the birds stop chirping do you hear them. One of these frogs somehow made it into our house one time - that's the only reason I know what it looks like. A green tree frog.

Just before darkness sets in, hundreds of shadowy wings fill the sky. A few Flying Foxes (fruit bats) land in the tress in our back yard, waiting for their prey (I made sure I wasn't prey and came inside pretty quickly the first time I saw this - now I know they won't eat me).

Our dog likes to bark at various animals throughout the night (bless his little heart). One of these is the possum. Sometimes I see them walking across the power lines on the street and Dave says they run across our roof all the time.

I should mention one other backyard dweller that we happily say farewell to at night. His name is "Harold" and he has been attacking his reflection in every window of our house since we moved in 8 months ago. I believe he is a magpie-raven or "Pee-Wee". Once the sun goes down, his reflection disappears and I imagine he goes to sleep and stores up energy for his endless window pecking the next day. We hope that one day something will help free Harold from his misery...and ours. Kruffs (the dog) is in training.

Coming Up to Breathe

March...last blog entry...pre-craziest semester of my life. There's a bit more breathing space now that I'm done squishing "just one more thing" into my life.

Here's a glimpse into the past few months:

Virgin Blue became Virgin Australia. I answered phones for 6 months, helping people book flights, change flights, cancel flights - I now know where cities are in Australia and the states they belong in. After squishing 20 hours a week at Virgin in and around my teaching and studies, I finished the job in July - but not before my staff travel contributing significantly to a once-in-a-lifetime trip with my friend Wendy!

Wendy came all the way from Nova Scotia and we got to experience an incredible "winter vacation" in Australia and New Zealand. Thanks to free staff travel, we flew up to the Whitsundays for some Great Barrier Reef snorkeling and then down to the South Island of New Zealand for some snow and mountains! We also explored beaches and rainforest in the Brisbane area before flying down to Sydney where Wendy returned to Canada. It was so incredible to see such a variety in creation. Loved every minute of it.

Other highlights:

• April: went to a music festival over the Easter weekend called Easterfest - we got rained out and I helped execute a very sleuthing rescue of a friend's Nord keyboard from a flooded tent.
• May: taught SIX vocal workshops over the course of 6 weeks to 2 churches.
  
• June: Flew my housemates Dave and Bel up to Rockhampton for steak for Dave's birthday. Pretty much the best present EVER.

• July: Saw fish, snow chains, Mary Poppins musical, the Blue Mountains and won an award for Academic Excellence!

So, 20 hours a week has been returned to me. I am into my FINAL semester at Uni and will graduate in December. Looking forward to a bit more time to enjoy the people and the places in OZ before returning to my Home and Native Land.

Camp Somerset

I had the opportunity to take in a true summer event at the end of February and join my church for their annual family camp at Somerset Dam. It was a relaxing weekend and the perfect way to end the summer before diving into my studies again. They made a video of the weekend and I thought I would share it with you so you could catch a glimpse of what it was like.

The first night of camp, we had a competition between parents/kids. I would like to point out that it is our Lead Pastor that is doing "The Worm" and made me laugh so hard I may have peed a little. Unfortunately, our team did not make it onto the video with our ballet routine. But you can imagine.

Virgin Blue

Once again, it's time to catch up on this blog. I have gone from having heaps of time in December/January...to the point of restlessness and boredom at moments...to being so busy, I didn't even know what day it was...or time of day for that matter. Funny how things can change. I think life has settled down enough for a few moments to fill in the gaps of the past month or so...


January 24th began my journey with Virgin Blue, an Australian airline that has a Guest Contact Centre in Brisbane. Richard Branson has yet to appear on the premises outside of the photo shrine around the office, but I'll let you know if it happens. I completed 6 weeks of training -- learning all about the booking system, fare rules, how to book special services like unaccompanied minors and wheelchairs, changes and cancellations, etc. So basically now I sit at a desk and answer the phone, talking to guests who are flying with VB. I really enjoy it! My first day on the phones had me singing "Leaving on a Jet Plane" to a guest who put in his request after asking me what I was doing in Australia. They tell you to bring your "Virgin Flair" to your job...I think that counts.

The Guest Contact Centre in Brisbane

They treat you pretty well at Virgin Blue; training is thorough, complete with a "Famil" trip down to Sydney so we can get familiarized with the airport and all that VB does there. We also get some sweet perks, like Staff Travel, which will definitely help me see a bit more of Australia while I'm here...and perhaps cover my ride across the pond at the end of this journey!

Our Training Group in Sydney Airport

I'm so grateful for this job and it has successfully worked around my Uni schedule as I have now returned to classes. I'll be in school 2 days a week and will be working 3 days/week. On top of that I continue to teach about 8 students as part of my vocal pedagogy studies and have started to lead a worship team every 3 weeks at my church! It's going to be a busy year, but I'm loving every moment of it.

"Welcome to Virgin Blue...this is Julie!"

Salvation Saturday

The city of Brisbane looks like a war zone or a third world country. This past week, the downtown area and many suburbs along the Brisbane river flooded. Entire houses were submerged and people have lost homes, businesses, and possessions. 75% of Queensland has been declared a disaster zone and there are some in Toowoomba and the Lockyer Valley have lost loved ones to flash floods.

Today has been declared "Salvation Saturday" as busloads of volunteers with brooms, shovels, and scrub brushes have come in to help clean up areas where the water has receded. It's amazing to see so many people pulling together in the midst of tragedy.

I guess I'm part of the 25% of the state not directly affected by the floods (aside from the empty fresh produce shelves in the grocery stores!). It's shocking that only 20 minutes away is total destruction and devastation. A Griffith University student posted some pictures of Southbank, the area where my campus is. From the looks of it, I'd say the first floor will have some significant damage. That would include the library (all those amazing music and resources!), numerous grand & upright pianos, and a portion of the main theater. I haven't heard anything definite, so these are just my assumptions.

Here are a few pics of Southbank & the Queensland Conservatorium taking on Wednesday, January 12th (photos by David Speicher)

(the arbor pathway where I walked to uni everyday, now its own little river)

(from across the river, you can see the ferry dock almost fully submerged)

(a street beside the Con, now under water)

Images on the news today are of smiling people working hard to put back together what was torn away. I'm sure there are many untold stories of those who are not smiling today. I pray that no one will be alone in their loss.

Fairdinkum & grouse, mate!

Kate tells me I'm sounding a bit Australian. She can hear it in a few words I say and I've definitely picked up some Aussie lingo. I notice it the most when I write home and have to translate back into Canadian...haha! Here are a few words I've picked up along the way:

Suss it out (assess the situation)
Get it sorted (sort it out)
I reckon (I think, I believe)
Arvo (afternoon)
Cuppa (cup a tea)
Tea (supper, dinner, evening meal)
Supper (evening snack, usually tea and biscuit)
Bench (kitchen counter)
Rubbish (Garbage)
Rubbish bin (garbage can)
Whinge, whinging, whinger (whining, complaining)
Muso (musician)
Port (suitcase)

Ones that I haven't used, but find fascinating:
Probs not aye! (Probably not going to happen)
POM, POME, POMMY (someone who is from Britain, could mean "Prisoner of Mother England")
Fairdinkum (true dat!)
Grouse (good, awesome)

Happy New Year

Happy New Year! January 1, 2010, I was with my "other family", Bruce & Donna & Julia Thiessen. After a day of cross-country skiing in Banff, a good meal and a soak in the hot tub, we spent time together praying in the new year. My 2 requests were to know God more and to know what the next step would be in terms of vocal education. A week later, I discovered Griffith University online and well, I guess the rest is history!

January 1, 2011 sees me in quite a different place. In this journey, I am so grateful for those who walk with me, who pray with me and for me, and who continue to do life with me even though this distance is great. Thank you. My life is RICH because of you.

This week also marks 6 months in Australia! Day 184 according to my camera. Time is flying by.

The Christmas season has come and gone. I made a good effort to get into it, but I have to admit, I miss the snow and my family and friends back home. A hot Christmas just doesn't feel like Christmas! But I did get to enjoy it with some wonderful people.

(Christmas lunch with the Daisy Hill gang:
Me, Deb, Neil, Bel, Dave, Kruffs)

Christmas in Brissie

• Charlie Brown Christmas tree (well, the tree itself was nice, but the decorations wouldn't last long if my mom were around!)
• Santa hats, reindeer antlers, Santa hat earrings, and a festive dog
• Christmas lunch with the Daisy Hill gang
  

(Dave, Kruffs, Bel, and I)

Christmas in Moree (6 hours southwest of Brisbane)

• Nativity plays by children and adults
• Christmas baking (bringing in some Canadian treats like cinnamon buns, poppycock and lemon tarts)
• multiple Christmas dinners! So full...
  
• Escaping the heat in an air conditioned farmhouse!
• Being spoiled by Kate & Cheryl Boughton
  

(Christmas dinner with the Boughton family)

Christmas Day at Megli's farm

• a place I had heard much about from other Canadian friends have visited/lived there. It was great to have a bit of Canadian representation and we enjoyed good food and company.
• Still, I missed my own family GREATLY. We did have a hilarious Skype chat with on Christmas Day.
• Of all the things I missed this time of year, it was playing games and hanging out with my fam.

(Christmas Day @ the Meglis)

Other holiday adventures

• I got to see a bit of Australian country life
• hiking in a small mountain range
• horseback riding on the farm
• I even saw a brown snake...it was dead, but I saw it nonetheless. This would be my first snake sighting since I arrived in OZ (no pics, sorry...too gross!)

(afternoon ride with Kim Megli)

(Hike @ Mt. Kaputar)

New Years on the coast

• we (Kate, Cheryl & I) drove 6 hours east to Macksville on the coast
• We left the "outback" and drove through foothills, then a mountain range which dropped into a beautiful rain forest with waterfalls and finally to the ocean.
• Fish 'n chips on the beach, hanging out with Kate's relatives, swimming in the ocean, and some touristy shopping.

(Kate & I @ Nambucca Heads)

It's good to be back "home" in Brisbane, ready for 2011 and all that it holds.

Special Gifts

I believe that my best Christmas present came early this year. My dear friend, Catherine came to visit me for a whole week! We were fully aware of how perfectly timed this visit was...a gift all in itself. Catherine had to book her flights way back in March (she also went to Perth to spend Christmas with her sister), before I was even accepted into Uni or even knew for sure if I was moving to Australia. But I did and had finished my first semester and moved to a new house just in time to welcome my friend to my little world. I didn't have a summer job yet, so other than a few students, I was totally free to be with Catherine and have some great adventures.

(picking up Catherine @ Brisbane Airport)

It was fun showing someone from home where I live and go to Uni and meet some people in my life here. Catherine said that she had pictured me in a Canadian version of Australia, but that this is truly a different world.

We did a lot in our 6 days together. I had the pleasure of being Catherine's personal shopper as I gladly spent her money on new clothes since she forgot her suitcase back in Canada. A minor setback that barely phased us and any sorrows that remained were drowned at Max Brenner, the BEST chocolate restaurant in the world (it's American, so if you find one on our continent, GO!). Despite rainy weather, we managed to get some beach time in at Byron Bay, Surfers Paradise and Marcoola Beach on the Sunshine Coast. The rain stopped long enough for us to walk around, enjoy the view, and play in the waves. We hit the markets, randomly found a glow worm cave tour, hiked through some rain forest, enjoyed some seafood, looked over the Glass House Mountains, and drove scooters around a small island (C also fell off the scooter on the small island...). We enjoyed my new home, cooking some Aussie treats, swimming in the pool, and watching the evening come in as the birds go to sleep, crickets and frogs sing and fruit bats start flying in.

(@ the Big Pineapple on the Sunshine Coast)

How did we get around, you may ask? Why the Datsun Sunny plugged along the coast quite nicely. We bought defogger for the windshield as the air vents didn't do the job of keeping the windshield clear. Turns out neither did the defogger...we used towels. Catherine also discovered a massive water leak on the passenger side as her feet were soaked by the end of a rainy day. We had a couple of hot days and were once again grateful for the invention of air conditioning...in our vehicles back in Canada. Windows rolled down and fluids checked daily, we made our mark on the Eastern Coast of Australia.

Lots of laughter and really cherishing the little things in life, it was an unforgettable week! Catherine is one of the people who has walked with me from the beginning of this journey. It was a cool gift for both of us to celebrate and see how God has blessed and provided, both in direction, dreams and friendship.

(@ Byron Bay)

Moving up in the world

December marked my 7th move in 5 years. I was more than happy to make this move, although Bel did say one HAS to have this kind of living experience to really appreciate the good things in life.

Our lease was up at Daisy Hill and we decided not to renew. Deb got married in November, so we downsized to a smaller house, but definitely have moved up in the world! Dave & Bel's dad has rented us a beautiful newly renovated house in Shailer Park. We even have a pool, just in time for the hot, humid summer! Bedrooms are a bit smaller, but the teaching studio is bigger.

So we've gladly said goodbye to our old house. Gone is the moldy shower, the cockroach infested kitchen, the spider-ridden downstairs. Now we're learning all about maintaining a pool (not easy when it's been raining almost everyday) and trying to keep the house looking new (not easy when you live with Bel & Dave...). :)

Here's a tour of our old house/new house!