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				WebGoddessCathy [don't kid yourself]	[talk to me]

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<-- my life, by webgoddesscathy -->

:: Saturday, April 19, 2003 ::

I'm back from the mountains, staying in Turramurra for the night, charging my cellphone, after a weekend of getting no reception/service on my mobile whatsoever. I apologize to those who tried to call me!

Had an absolutely LOVELY time on the farm! It was just like spending a crazy weekend with the Vergunst family, although not quite as loud, but just as many people and just as much food. Probably more sheep and kangaroos involved, though.

Mom, please note that Jan even made sure that I got some chocolate Easter eggs!

I will be writing more in my journal section as soon as I can get around to transcribing it all from my hardcopy journal. Be assured, however, that it was good to get back to my country roots.

:: Cathy 9:51 PM [+] :: 0 comments

:: Friday, April 18, 2003 ::

Tonight I'm writing from a sheep farm west of the Blue Mountains, in a small town that isn't even on the map of New South Wales that I'm looking at. If YOU wanna look for it, it's located on the road between Lithgow and Mudgee, just north of a place called Running Stream.

My mom will be happy to know that I visited another World Heritage Site today when Jan and Brian Plain took us on a slight detour to see the Three Sisters formation in the Blue Mountains National Park. It was beautiful. More about that later in my journal, I think/hope.

Staying at Jan's parents' property, "Turonfels" tonight with the rest of the extended family. It's a big houseful and they're such wonderful, friendly people. I'm sad that I'm missing the nice dinner that my roommate, Femke, is making tonight for her friends, but this has also been a great experience to see the country.

They were telling me about the horrible mouse infestations. It gets so bad that some farmers leave out a concoction of flour and concrete powder. The mice eat it and become little mice sculptures.

Wanted to wish everyone Happy Easter. Eat lots of chocolate bunnies!

:: Cathy 4:38 AM [+] :: 0 comments

:: Wednesday, April 16, 2003 ::

Visited the travel agent today. Wow. This is going to be expensive.

Does anyone have a couple thousand they wanna give me?

Well, the first go at it and all transportation with Oz Experience plus tours to Fraser Island, the Whitsundays, Kakadu (national park), Uluru/Outback and a flight to Darwin from Cairns, is $3600. That only includes accommodation and meals for 2-3 weeks worth of the time (during the tours). It doesn't include going to Perth or Tasmania or NZ.

So, I'm looking into other options. But to be honest, I don't think it's going to go down much. Not without cutting out huge parts of the trip I'd like to do.

However, other options include taking a different Oz Experience bus pass and getting myself around to the rest of the places that I want to visit another way. Like a different, non-guided bus system, which is slightly cheaper, but I also wouldn't get as much information/knowledge out of it.

I can also do lower-quality tours. Which will save me around $300 or so. Not much difference there.

So, if anyone has any idea about costs of things and whether this is horrible or good or normal, then PLEASE email me.

:: Cathy 5:36 AM [+] :: 0 comments

So, um, I write.
If you want to read something I wrote -- other than this site, of course -- you check out my article and Become Networking Smart.

Ground-breaking stuff, I tell ya.;)

:: Cathy 5:07 AM [+] :: 0 comments

:: Tuesday, April 15, 2003 ::

18 degrees and a strong wind. Apparently, Toronto has taken Sydney's nice weather.

However, I am still in good spirits and feeling better than I have in weeks. Yay!

Off to enjoy a coconut tart in Chinatown, pick up some stamps, print off my resume (and a picture, they tell me, is a GOOD idea! ~shocked, gaping stare~).

This morning I bought tickets for a show at the Opera House! Next Wednesday!

Tonight I have my orientation at my gym. My abs are killing me. A good thing, I suppose.

Not having much luck at reading my book "In a Sunburnt Country". Finished my first journal, though, and on to my second.

:: Cathy 8:11 PM [+] :: 0 comments

Is it already Tuesday??

Heard the disturbing news from the company I used to work with. A whole slew of layoffs (I hope they email me so I can see how they're doing). They didn't lay off the people who actually would LIKE to get laid off. I won't mention any names here, as I don't want to get anyone in trouble ;) I'm glad I'm here instead of there.

GORGEOUS DAY!

Woke up at a reasonable time, so I was able to go for a huge long walk from my place in Surry Hills to Bondi Junction. Through Centennial Park. Beautiful. Huge. There aren't any parks that big in Toronto, I don't think. Well, if there are, I haven't been to them. It took me over 2 hours to get to Bondi Junction. However, I did take a bit of a detour... alright, I got a bit lost. But the upshot is that I found a great discount lingerie store while I was lost in Kensington.

So that's another area of the city crossed off my to-see list.

Femke and I are also going to buy tickets to see a show at the Opera House.

Didn't make it to the travel agent today. Did manage to get I think two small web-related jobs.

The temp agent I saw today suggested printing off my resume and PHOTO (!?) and going around to all the nice cafes in the area, dropping off resumes.

I might have discovered the secret to proper hair, here. Lots of cheap gel. It refuses to behave with my normal products. So I bought super cheap gel and it seems to work out OK. Well, at least I've avoided a "Bad Hair Day" (tm). Have I told you how expensive drug store products are?! The cheapest gel I could find was $1.50. But goodness, shampoo is always $15-20. Hair colour is the same! So I guess I won't be colouring my hair... don't know. Maybe this is because everyone is always at the hairdressers. I wouldn't be surprised; there is I think the highest per capita number of hair salons I've ever seen in any city.

Went to the gym last night. To the abs class. I was not excited about the class; I think I was spoiled by Bally's, but I met a really nice girl from Montana while waiting. Tonight I'm going to the gym again to either Body Pump or Yoga. We'll see how this gym thing works out for me. It's great for my mood. And my back has been complaining loudly about my lack of proper exercise. It's already thanking me for going last night.

All for now.
Love to Judy, Shawn and Ken!

:: Cathy 1:05 AM [+] :: 0 comments

:: Monday, April 14, 2003 ::

Well, it's after 4pm on Monday and I've only managed to get myself fed at this point. Totally NOT getting to the travel agent today. Not with THIS hangover, anyway.

Last night Femke, Dong and I went to Bondi Beach for a BBQ. Femke's friends, Suzan and Karin, know a girl, Leanne from England, who is leaving Sydney to go up the coast with her boyfriend. So it was a bit of a going-away BBQ. It was a lovely meal, although there was no gas, so we cooked everything on the stove/in the oven. I drank much Australian wine. Everyone was taking MANY photos. But I managed to get away with just one. I'm horrible for NOT taking photos.

Also met three guys from Portland. Andy, Hugh and Brent. Andy and Hugh had been travelling around all over and are only in Australia for 2.5 months. They'd just finished spending 3 months in New Zealand. That scared me because I'm only planning on 3-4 weeks for North and South islands. But they said maybe that would be OK. I suppose it all depends on how much time/money I HAVE to spend. I plan to be there next summer (that's like Dec/Jan here). Brent is only here in Australia for 3 weeks. He has a real job. So they're doing a whirlwind tour up the coast.

When I told them that I'm going up the coast, leisurely, in 2 months and that I planned to be in Cairns and the Outback in Septemberish, they were surprised. "Wow, you're going REALLY slowly."

Hey, I may not have much planned, but I have ideas of what I COULD do. It all depends on how it works out. I'd like to be able to get a job at one of the hotels on the coast (Noosa, Byron Bay or Airlie Beach?) doing housekeeping or something, as I used to do at Tigh-Na-Mara in BC. I'd also like to get a job on a ship in the Whitsundays, maybe as a cook or something.

Of course, anything can happen. so we'll see if that works out.

I've also been told that I should really visit a farm/ranch in the interior. I do know someone with a huge sheep farm in Quilpie. I wonder how farms there compare to what I'm used to. I mean, I'm a farm-girl-turned-city-girl. Wonder what it would be like?

Dave was saying when I took off, that he was going to come and visit me here "in 6 months". If so, that would put it just around Sept/Oct. I'd be SO happy if he came! We could meet in Perth and stay with his family-in-laws there. I've hear there's a LOT to see over there.

After that, in November or so, I'd like to come back down to Melbourne and live in that city for a while. Raye lived there and loved it. She has friends there that she could get me in contact with. Maybe get me a job at the cafe she worked at. Or, I know I could figure it out on my own. By that point, I'd have been travelling for a LONG time, so I'd be used to figuring it out. I've heard bad things about Melbourne's weather, but I'm pretty sure it can't be that bad.

From Melbourne, I'd go to Tassie and NZ and Adelaide. Or, that's what I'm thinking NOW that I'll do. It sounds like a relatively sane plan, right?

So those are my long-term pseudo-plans.
So, who wants to live vicariously through me?!

I know, it sounds good from where you are, all snug in your office chair as the spring sun melts away the winter blahs. It SOUNDS good from where I am right now, too. But just wait until I decimate my bank account with six months of travel and THEN we'll see how excited I am.

I guess I'd better hurry up and do fun things while I can, huh? Before I run out of money... twisted logic, but work with me here. ;)

Thanks to the LOVELY people who called me this weekend. I finally got in contact with my parents. We'd screwed up the time difference yesterday. I guess it's "only" 13 or 14 hours difference. So I didn't get to hear from Matt or Kendra, but my parents told me all about their news. Got a call from tony as well. AT 4am, EST. So good to hear from the people I love so I can remember that I DO have a home and friends and people who love me.

:: Cathy 12:05 AM [+] :: 0 comments