Beginning of the End

I hate packing. Even back home when I moved between home and college, I hated it. It takes time and effort to pack efficiently. So I sit among my suitcases, hair ties, jewelry, and shoes and blog.

I spent a relaxing weekend up in the Gold Coast at my friend Brad's house. His house is beautiful! I was reintroduced to a dishwasher and cable TV. It was like entering the real world again. It felt wonderful. Not only that, I had a free day to go to the mall, where I bought a good chick flick novel and spent the afternoon sunning on the beach and reading. Oh, and guess what? They had a Starbucks!!! Tall caramel macchiato over ice, please. And the next day? White chocolate mocha frappacino with whip, please. I highly recommend the Gold Coast to anyone looking for a getaway.

But now it's back in small town Lismore, the house is freezing (remember no central heating or A/C) and I am overwhelmed at how many things I have to pack. It's like, where do I even begin? I was talking to Brad about this: How I have become so involved, so tangled with my Aussie life. I went in to this experience knowing I only had about 4 months to stay yet I attached myself to the people, the culture, the know-how. I can't help it, guess it's just being human. I took the bus back from the Gold Coast to Lismore last night and thought about how much I'm going to miss it here. The sun was setting, the sky a pale orange. The trees were outlined black with the orangey-red showing through the branches. And I got so overwhelmed at it's beauty and my mind racing at the fact that I'm not sure when I'll be able to see this again. So I put in some Bob Marley, John Mayer, Dave Matthews and let them serenade me while I look upon exquisite features of this vast land. Australia, I am going to miss you so much.