Tina's wanderings around the world

I spend so much of my day/life plinking away at the computer keyboard. The past few weeks have been especially painful. Today I have been clicking away through the audit database, typing in numbers, oh so many numbers, chugging down bottle after bottle of water to help stop myself from going crazy. I stare out the window at what seems like a whole other world from my window, above the buildings of downtown Sydney (my roommate Bec laughs when I say downtown...Sydney's downtown is known as the CBD--central business district, but that doesn't stop it from being downtown!). Last week there were army helicopters flying through town, landing on some building over yonder, flying past the Centrepoint Tower, and being good enough to distract me from mind-numbing work for a few minutes. The Sydney airport isn't so far from downtown and I frequently see planes flying to and fro. On rainy days, I sit and watch the rain spill over the buildings. I watch rainclouds and non-rainclouds f...

There are all kinds of things that have been going on lately. Let's start with the most recent and move backwards. I got home from work yesterday only to see a card sitting on the counter. Even before I was close enough to read it, I knew who it was from and I smiled, thinking, "Yay, my first Christmas card." Um, I mean our first joint Christmas card! From Bethany! Well, half right. Yay Bethany, no for Christmas (or Pagan Winter Festival for that matter). I opened the pink polka dotted envelope flap (not Christmas-y) and inside lay a card gleaming with little glittery rattles. Rattles??? WHAT??? Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Bethany's pregnant! It was like Laura telling me she was pregnant, all over again. Disbelief, incredulity, and the remembrance that we were all going to wait to have kids until we were older...then the crashing of reality telling me we are older. I just don't feel that old! I don't feel like 25 is quite old enough to have kids. :) I mean, I know it i...

One of the guys at work just came over to tell me that I had just been voted "most attractive new person on level 14". Isn't that just spectacular? :) But it sure makes for a good chuckle during the day.

Ooh, two entries in one day, I'm on fire! While I remember, I wanted to ask a favor of anyone and everyone who reads this. Pretty, pretty please! I'm going to apply for a partner visa in February/March so I can get a real job instead of being limited by this "work for one employer for only six months" rule. It's time for me to move on from admin and get a challenge (though I'll be doing plenty of navigating to figure out just what kind of a challenge I'll be looking for). :) Part of the application involves showing that we come in a pair, and we are recognized as a couple by other people and one physical form of evidence that we can show of this "recognition" is mail. Envelopes, invitations, cards, letters, you name it. So while we're in the Christmas season, I would be very, very grateful if you wouldn't mind shooting a letter or a card in the mail addressed to Marcus and myself: Tina Ferguson and Marcus Montana 123 Mitchell Road Alexand...

Howdy do, pilgrims! Again, I have been very absent from the world of blogging, but I finally got a slow day at work (and the boss is out "sick") so I get to amuse myself by my means until there's actually work to do. Yaaaaaaaaaaaaay! I'm still working at the Audit Office, which, although there are three lovely ladies to work with, has become dull. When I say dull, I mean it has become extremely difficult to not scream from all of the ridiculously mundane tasks I am performing. Lately my most time-consuming tasks have consisted of working in our Access-like system (which is SO slow) and either updating contact information or (you ready for this excitement?) going into a file, copying a number, and pasting it into another file. Whoop dee doo, I almost can't contain myself...from internally combusting! Poor Marcus got the crazed email that formerly would have been an in-person rant to my gals at work about how I can't stand it anymore. I'm finally hitting my ...

I just got the following email from Neighbor Jason, and it made my day: So I saw Dave M at the Lighthouse the other day. We spoke of Subaru ’ s, Obama and the many ways to keep your hands clear of sweat when onstage playing guitar (he liked my anti-p e rsp i r e nt on the wrist idea) . I also mentioned that my friend dreamt of making cookies with him and noted that she actually makes a fine batch. He said, oh I love cookies, send her over my way. Too bad you moved L Hope all is well down under! Damn it! :)

It is officially November 4 th , both for you in the states and for me in Australia. Election day. I hate the fact that ridiculous sums of money are spent during the campaigns in the states and during each election year I find that it is such a shame that all of that money is spent on trying to influence people to vote for the right candidate and trying to sway, convince, and manipulate people to “do what’s best for the country”. That money could be put to such useful endeavors, like feeding, clothing, and sheltering people in poverty-stricken areas of the world. Why is it that people will spend so much money in the effort to convince everyone else that their perspective is right and the other person’s is wrong? Or maybe it’s just to spread the word. Or maybe it’s a trade of money for power. Whatever. I understand that at this particular juncture in time, it’s a “necessary evil” and people haven’t been creative enough to do it another way. My French friends Cami and Anthony, some of my...

Hello and happy, happy, happy Halloween! A day or so late, but it doesn't matter since Halloween has a tendency to stick around for a while afterward with mountains of candy and piles of dress-up clothes floating around for a week or so (or so) after the event. I admit, I was frightened that this Halloween wasn't going to be as festive as I usually crave it to be. The candy is easy--but there are no Halloweeny-decorated wrappers. There are people that dress up--but only the young ones in unspecific areas that are accompanied by parents as they trick or treat and the only people of my age dressing up are all getting hammered out in the clubs. The skank rule definitely applies. So I prepared for Halloween in my own Tina-like fashion, getting Marcus on-board, and I discovered a $2 shop (because they don't have just a plain ol' $1 store!) that was rife with Halloween paraphernalia and I stocked up: witches hat, sequined bat wings, feather boa, cowboy hat...then I made a sto...

It was only a matter of time before they found it, but scientists have begun to find the genetic explanation to why some people born one sex feel that they really belong to the opposite sex. That it's not a "lifestyle" choice, but is in fact biological. http://www.smh.com.au/text/articles/2008/10/16/1224955854977.html

I went through a phase during my UW college years, a phase where I was quite obsessed with Dave Matthews, to the point where I would have dreams with him in them. First, I would dream I was wandering around casually in Seattle (sometimes with one of my dormmates who was equally obsessed) and then all of a sudden there he would be and we would strike up conversation and he would give me clues as to where he lived. (That's really all I wanted, was to know where his house was.) Eventually the dreams turned into marriage proposals and his angry wife coming after me. Then the dreams disappeared altogether. Well, last night he made a reappearance--as the owner of a cafe (in the dream it was the Lighthouse, but it really wasn't, it was some cafe attached to an Albertsons). I strolled on in and mentioned how his cookies could use an upgrade, to which he responded that he'd heard I could help out with that. So right then and there, I started whipping up a batch of cookies in the caf...

I was walking down the street yesterday on my way home from the train station when I was hit by a double-dose of South America flashbacks. First I walked by some guy who stared and then muttered at me under his breath, then a few seconds later a car of guys drove past and honked, yelling, "Hey gorgeous!" out of their window. And all of a sudden I had an epiphany. I finally figured out why I got all of that attention in South America--karma. Major karma. When I was 10 years old, my best friend Amber and I (and I think maybe even my sisters, too) thought it was great fun to yell at all of the pedestrians as we were driving by. "Nice butt!" we'd yell to all people not in the protection of their own four-wheel vehicle. We thought it was great fun. Well, 14 years later, I had to deal with all the ramifications the universe could throw in my face. I understand, universal forces, I now understand that's not a polite way to treat our fellow people. I have a feeling ...

Sent: Tuesday, 14 October 2008 6:48 PM To: All Network Users Subject: Movember needs you!! During Movember (formerly known as November) people from across Australia and around the globe will be sprouting hair on their upper lip in support of prostate cancer research and other health issues faced by men. The money raised by Movember ($15.3 million in 2007) is donated to the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) and ' beyondblue - the national depression initiative ' to fund research , increase support networks and raise awareness of men's health issues especially prostate cancer and depression . Let's help change the face of men’s health by becoming a Mo Bro and growing a mo! Yes, i f you can produce something on your top lip that can be seen with the naked eye from 3 paces, then Movember needs you! And, it's not just for the guys! Women can register as Mo Sistas to help in recruiting Mo Bros, attracting sponsors and pa...

Not updated for far too long, but certainly not forgotten. I have been lost in the working world and falling into a...dare I say it...routine. Finally, finally, finally I have been able to enjoy the fruits of a routine! It has been lovely, my dears, quite lovely indeed. There is now a regular inflow into my bank account, rather than the rapidly decreasing funds my account has seen in the past year. This has been a positive change. :) There has also been some almost-daily exercise going into the regimen (does three out of the seven days a week count as "almost"?) and vegetable consumption that has reached levels this body has never seen. Whooie! The weekends have mostly been spent traveling here and there and...my writing has suffered as a result. It's not necessarily an unhappy change since I've spent the last year inside my head and I'm now beginning to crawl back out. I have been wanting to write and there are beautiful thoughts that cross my mind periodically t...

My first temp job has terminated. It was an interesting experience, to say the least. The people there were quite excited to have a bitch to order around, especially the secretary. I found myself being asked to reorganize shelving, ride six floors down the elevator and go out to a cafe in order to retrieve a single cup of coffee for a man with a superiority complex, file eight months worth of accounting invoices, and mailing, mailing, and more mailing. The people were friendly enough to make eye contact and lend a smile every here and there but never make genuine conversation. Until my last day of work, that is, at which point the CEO and my "supervisor" (who couldn't be bothered less by any clarifications I would need in order to do the tasks she asked me to complete) started getting fakely disappointed that I was leaving. Um, you didn't talk to me for five days and now you feel the need to say "oh what a shame"? Puh-lease. There were some positive and inte...

Guess what--I finally got my first temp job! It's reception work, which is slightly less than exciting, but hey--I have paying work!!! For the next week I will be working for a company that promotes art as an investment and they educate people on how to invest in artwork and how to expand their portfolios. They also hold exhibitions and rent out art. Rent out art??? I had no idea there was such a thing! If you're an art piece owner, you can lease your pieces to this company to be rented out. It's a bit of a random company, but some of the art pieces are pretty gorgeous. Here's a piece that is on display at our office right now. It's a piece by an aboriginal artist: What you can't see is that the painting is entirely made up of dots and dashes (like the morse code, ha ha!) and it's actually made up to be a topographical landscape of the artist's land. The company I am currently working for works with some very well-renowned Australian artists and their cu...

And what is this so-called Australian life? Ha! I'm working on that. :) Let me expound a bit on the basics. I live in a two-story town-home sort of place. Apparently it used to be an interior design shop, but from the way the place is designed you would never guess! It's located in the Sydneyian suburb of Alexandria but is right on the border of Erskineville and apparently it's the thing to do to tell people we live in Erskineville. Interestingly, I have discovered that Erskineville is a popular address for the gays and I was overjoyed to see my first gay boys while I was in a local cooking supply store called Victoria's Basement. Strikingly similar to Victoria Secret...I think Victoria might be my favorite lady with her collection of underwear and cooking supplies, so Victoria, wherever you are, I applaud you! I digress...back to the apartment. The ceilings are giant, the floors are wooden, and the air in between is nearly frigid. When the weather is nice, I try to spe...

The most current news I could begin with is on the job-front (considering that this phenomenon is going on as I type). I spent most of last week preparing an Australian-version job application, which is a bit more time-intensive than one might think. On top of the basic resume, references and cover letter (with the cover letter usually being my most dreaded part since I actually have to write out an entire page on why I think I'm so wonderful) here in Australia you have to also respond to a portion of the position description called the "Selection Criteria". This lovely section provides you with 7+ prompts for you to respond to, the types of questions that are very typical during the interview process such as "Above average written and verbal communication skills" or "Capacity to show initiative and take responsibility" after which you provide an example of how you have excelled in this particular area. The last selection criteria I filled out had a l...

Hello, friends, hello! I have finally made it back to the blog after a few months' hiatus. And, surprise, surprise, I am now to be found in yet another country! This time, though, it's a bit of a completion point, not only because I have been dreaming of going to Australia for as long as I can remember and been talking about this move for the last six months or so, but I am finally rejoined with Marcus and I am finally able to put some roots down and to start life. The first step was buying the ticket, applying for the visa, and all that fun stuff, then actually arriving to the country. Um, check, check, and check--I'm here! Yup, I'm here... The new thought running through my head? "Hmm, now what?" Well, don't you worry your pretty little head, I am working on that little kink. I'm waiting to hear back from Amnesty International about the job application I sent in for an Executive Administrator position in the Sydney office. I have discovered, however,...