| Testing, Please! |
[28 Jul 2008|05:55am] |
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Tv: Aussies Talk about Animals |
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Hello!
This is a test.
I have not been able to post anything in Fbook or Hmail. Grr!
So, I am making this test.
I currently have no way to communicate with anyone, except on the phone or via post cards or slow mail letters. Those are the best, cuz you get to keep them and treasure them forever!
So, please, give me a break-- cuz I have not had any way to utilize the Net to respond to letters or questions, or your shows of affection. Have I missed it? It? No. But... you? Of course! I've missed YOU heaps!
I am well. I am up in a ski resort, in Mt. Hotham in Australia. I am employed, as a Day Care carer and look after little kids. I have been on skiis, but still suck at it.
Am I happy? You betcha.
xoxo
Mari
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| Trams North of the Yarra |
[27 Jun 2008|10:03pm] |
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"Beautiful Life" - Dewey Cox |
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Hello from chilly Australia!
Feels very weird to find myself in the bottom part of the globe, and know the rest of ya'll are on the top bit. The equator feels soooo far away now! So, what have I been up to?
1. Getting used to my new home in Melbourne and the low climate, the Brrr, the jackets inside the house, the freezing showers, the teeth chattering walks, the snow hats, the numbness on my fingers! You name it, I hate it: the cold! Brrr! It sure is cold!
2. Catching up with a heap of Steve's friends, so I've been eating a lot of vegetarian food and funky places and listening to wild stories, and to a lot of Bike Talk. Sadly, one of Steve's closest friends is going through some sad times right now, as his mom suffers from MND. I pray for him and for his family, so all will be well soon.
3. Getting used to the trams, trains, and more trains, and the city. What a big city, man! So much to see! Museums, aquariums, heaps of shops, music everywhere, tons of cafes! WOW! I love this city.
4. Trying to find a job, hopefully in some hip BoHo cafe. I went for an interview today, so wish me luck! Me wanna work coffee.
5. Working my way through paper work and more paper work so I can get Teacher Registration, so I can torture young minds... I mean, teach.
6. Trying to get into a Primary Teaching training program, since I want to be certified as a Primary teacher next year. More Uni, but... let's face it, I love it.
7. Applying for my Permanent Residence! Wooohooo! So, I've been filling out forms and more forms, and collecting evidence that proves I am Steve's beloved partner and a Model Citizen. Ha ha! Me? A model citizen? Ha ha!
8. Very happy because Steve's adorable doggy, Amelie, is finally back with him! I know some people's feelings were hurt, and it sucks that this is how it played out, but she is Steve's dog, and he is very happy now that she is back. Please, understand, when you become someone's X, eerrr, you don't get to keep his clothes or Cds or dogs. Sorry.
9. Excited! Cuz my sister, iGa, will soon arrive to live here in Melbourne! Yey! It makes me sad, too, cuz I wish both my sisters were here, but I know this can't be. I miss Mc heaps! I miss Prisca! Meow! It makes me cry to think we can't be close, but ... I guess distance will remain and we'll try to stay in touch as much as we can. :-(
10. Catching up with my Mama and Steve's family. Little Tristan's B-day this weekend and it'll be a grand old time, iGa. I like Steve's family. They're funky!
11. Super excited, cuz my doggy Tobey is almost ready to come to me! Weeeeyyyy! In a few months, all his paper work will be finalized and his vaccines all in place, iGa, and he will be on a plane and... with me at last!
12. Eagerly awaiting election day! Let me remind you to: Vote for Anibal Acevedo Vila! Wooo! Anibal 2008! Make 1 single cross under the Pava and the PPD. Don't be scared, and don't listen to what some folks will say. There's no denying that the current Legislature and Senate have made his time in office horrible. No denying it! This is NOT how Anibal really is. Don't be fooled into the lies some will say: that he "made Puerto Rico worse, raised gas prices, and brought about doom and gloom." Nope. Don't listen! You know he didn't do this, any educated person who really opens his eyes knows this. So, give him one more chance, ok? One more chance. I don't think you'll regret it. Vota Popular Integro!!! FUEGO POPULAR!!!
13. Not ashamed to be so politically ardent and so behind Anibal. Popular de corazon, papa. De corazon.
14. Keeping an eye out for a home, so me and Steve can rent it. So far, we plan to live in either Northcote, Thornbury, Fitzroy, or anywhere on that side of the Yarra. The bohemian, hippie side of the Yarra. I love the shops, the cafes, the vibe! Soooo cool. We've seen some nice houses so far, and I bet we'll end up with an amazing house! Yey!
15. Glad to receive such nice messages from my friends all over the world. Thanks! I don't have my own computer, so this makes it hard to answer everyone, and to post on Fbook or wherever. But, I am thankful for the love, people! Gracias!
So, there ya have it. Me and my life in a nutshell. I am happy. I am well. I am excited to be in this new, cool city. I am making new friends. I am opening new roads and dreams to follow. I am happy! Join me?
See ya later, maybe for coffee somewhere on Federation Square.
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| The Kerfuffle Along the Road |
[10 Jun 2008|03:41am] |
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Heroes del Silencio |
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Face it.
Endings are hard. No matter how hard you prepare and how much you swear you won't cry, they always cause that little funny feeling inside of you. Moving is a source of internal confusion, especially when one is torn to go because one is sad to leave things behind or unfinished, places we've grown to depend on, people we like, and the chance that things might've "gotten better." You close doors. New ones open, but you have no idea what lies behind them. You're scared. You're tempted to cancel the move, because that would be the easy way out of all this confusion, sadness, and anxiety! Yep. Endings are hard.
But, endings give way to new beginnings! To fresh starts, filled with new adventures and new promises and lots and lots of hope. You leave behind everything that hurt you and promise not to make the same mistakes. You vow to renew your soul, to start on a blank canvas, and there is sooo much brightness in that new canvas. Oh, I can't wait until I'm painting my new life... but I know it's a hard process.
Right now, me and my sisters and our partners are all allocating to new homes. None of us has a home of our own to go to. Not even me, man. We don't have jobs, we don't have bank accounts, or secure sources of income, we don't have addresses, we don't have a clue of where we'll be eating and sleeping, we don't have close-friends. We don't got nothing. Just a dream inside, a burning dream to start a new life, to go some place new and look with brave hearts at new roads, and find new adventures inside of us. As corny as that sounds. It may sound corny, but it's true. And each one of us is brave to take this new journey, to haul all of our junk into boxes, to ship animals in crates across the sea, to toss away a lot of paper, to sell our beloved bikes, to make lists and go to the post office and the bank a million times, to face the questions and the doubts and the moments when we wonder "am I doing the right thing?" To yell and curse when things don't go as smooth. Yep. Hard stuff, man. But, I think all 5 of us believe inside of us that a new life, full of so much happiness, is finally coming to us, is waiting for us at the end of all of this stress, anxiety, sadness, and despair.
In the end, it's worth it.
You see, we can wallow in the sadness or the stress if we allow ourselves to do so. This last week, as I've said goodbye to my friends here, I was sad and full of regret. So many people I didn't really spend that much time with, either because I was too focused on medicine, or because I didn't do enough effort. I wish I could've spent ages with each and every one, ages doing this and that. So many parts of the UK I haven't seen, so many adventures I could've had. Regrets. But, if I got lost in this, I'd never, ever have the strenght to smile and walk on. We accept things, we let go of others, and above all, we treasure the beautiful memories we've made. All of them beautiful! Even the bitter ones. No one can take away my memories, and that makes me fill up with joy and the regrets sink into nothingness.
All of this was worth it and all of it was beautiful! Oh, so many memories! Learning to cook for the first time, doing laundry for the first time, taking the trash out for the first time! Washing dishes, lending people money, the hard times when I felt so alone in my room, dancing until 5am, the stink of the DR room, the stupid mistakes I made, the friends I met, the friends I lost, the nights out in the discos, the coffees down in The Shires, the bike rides along the canals, the picnics in Abbey Park, the long walks from Oadby, learning about Indian culture, the medic balls, my wonderful professors, the horrible stress of the exams!, the long hours in the LRI, those yummy yogurts, wine and tea with friends, mobile texting for the first time!, learning not to chase boys, being hurt by boys, meeting an amazing Aussie boy, meeting brave patients, learning to let go of the Dream of Being a Doctor, sitting in beds and discussing love and life and laughing. So, so many memories... I may move to a new place and never see the characters in those memories again, but I'll always have my memories. Just like all the ones I made when I lived in Florida, in New York City, and in Puerto Rico.
But now, it's time for new memories, for a new road. When we look at it this way, it is not so hard. The stress -- all of this kerfuffle!!! -- of the moving and the change is not so hard to face. Hey, we're going on a new adventure!! Who knows what lies ahead! New jobs, new classes to study, new friends, new favourite clubs and coffee houses, new shopping centres, new streets to call our own, new bedrooms, new dishes to clean. Only now, we'll know how to, because with each move we grow better and better. So much new memories waiting to be written!
So, as the end of my life in the Uk comes to an end, and the end of my sisters' lives in Massachusetts comes to an end, I find myself smiling. No, I won't deny a tear also runs down my cheek. I'm emotional that way. But, I do find myself smiling. When you think about it, life is one tremendous ride. Heh.
It's a beautiful ride.
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