this blog has been neglected.

the past 3 months have probably been the best times of my life so far and it's a shame my trip is coming to an end. I'll be leaving australia october 2nd, visiting singapore for one day and then back to my homeland of CANADIA on the 4th. I can't believe it's been a year already. it has flown by.

I am excited yet sad to be coming home...it will be interesting to see how much home hasn't changed and how much I have.

see you soon.
jazz

if you missed the last entry, get reading. it's the entries of all my blog entries. a combo of witty writing with pictures as well!!! get reading!!! anyway where did I leave off...

T.G.I.F.F. (Thank Gosh Its Freaken Friday)
after the great ocean road tour came to an end it was time to drop off all the passengers to each of their respective hotels. I was the last one to be dropped off as I was staying in north melbourne so I got in around 10:30pm and was in bed asleep by shortly after 11.

next morning I struck up a conversation with my fellow roomate. I thought she was going to be pretty fobby and wouldn't understand too much english but surprsingly her english was good, at times better than mine! haha! her name is jamie and she was travelling with her company up the coast and then had a few days so she came to see melbourne. I was impressed by her english and she's a very smart girl. she's a pharmaceutical rep who sells drugs to doctors. anyway so we went for breakfast at the local Queen Victoria Market, which is a huge outdoor market with everything and anything you want. it's a larger version of Paddy's market in sydney and it has alot of junk from thailand. breakfast consisted of toast, eggs, and sausages all for $4.50! I also got some hot chocolate as it was a chilly day in melbourne. after brekkie, we took a walk around the market and didn't come up with much. she wanted to go see st. kilda so I said we would catch up later at the hostel.

I wandered around aimlessly trying to kill time. I had heard about an Andy Warhol exhibit at the National Gallery of Victoria so I checked that out. for $12 it wasn't really worth it (for me) and I didn't know alot about Andy Warhol besides the whole "everyone will have 15 minutes of fame" quote and a few paintings I may have seen. but there were a bunch of time capsules of stuff he had collected over the years that had inspired his work. it was cool. I would have a good exhibit with all the shit I've collected over the years too!

anyway, I then had to use the internet and start this here extended blog entry. then I got a couple of cocktail buns and headed back for the hostel. shortly after, jamie got back and we chatted it up. I wasn't aware of the other common areas around the hostel so we went up to the rooftop. incredible view with comfy couches and a huge deck including BBQ! it reminds me of a ski lodge complete with electric fire place for those chilly plus 15 nights. too bad this particular YHA seemed to be on the quiet and reserved side...we could have had some great parties up there! anyway so we took a few pictures of the 360 degree views and the melbourne skyline and went to check out the rest of the hostel. on the 3rd floor there is a "quiet lounge" so we opted to skip taking a gander at that. we then headed down to the 2nd floor to the "TV lounge". I told jamie it smelled funky and she replied people don't shower here! haha! we watched the news and made small talk. she was waiting around until 8pm when the airport shuttle came to pick her up because she had a night flight back to malaysia. we then met a fellow canadian named mel who I flipped out with when we heard that katie holmes was going out with TOM CRUISE!!!!! holy #*&$ you GO Katie!!! but is it all a publicity stunt??? nahh. and then later on an english girl named cecilia came in and chilled.

so jamie left and I was sad to see my new friend depart. so me, the canadian and the english girl hit the town to see what trouble we could get into. mel mentioned nachos so of course that was all I could think about while we were looking around for a place to eat. we found a small turkish place that sold pizza by the slice for $1 and other turkish delights (hehe) so we decided to sit outside under the tent with heater warming us up from the cold melbourne night. the nachos turned out to be all wrong. nothing like BP's!!! holla going out to my BP nacho buddies!! :P they basically put cheese and tomato sauce on top of nacho chips. it tasted like pizza but we still nibbled away. I ordered spaghetti bolognese which is just plain spaghetti but they have to add bolognese here. try saying it outloud. it sounds like mayonnaise but it's not spelled even remotely close.

being young girls in a strange city on a friday night, we were looking for a fun time out on the town, we wanted to go to a pub or club or something remotely more happening than the tv lounge back at the hostel. so we hit a pub filled with an "older" crowd. some people's dads were there and then there were us girls. we guzzled some drinks and then left to find something better...with less of a "I just finished work and am still in my business suit" environment. we met a cute aussie boy from the country who was on his way to a quiet pub. we walked and talked with him a bit and decided to let him go on his way. he made a comment that he should visit canada because he can never get 3 "chicks" to follow him here. haha that was comical.

I led the girls back to my one day familiar stomping grounds, the Hotel Bakpak. it was the only hostel I knew that had a club in the basement so we turned the corner on Franklin St. and headed on in. it was dead. nice spacious place with Girls Just Wanna Have Fun followed by Hot in Herre blaring out of the sound system but it was empty. finally decided to make one more stop at a pub closer to our hostel and then maybe call it a night. Bev and Micks backpackers. now that was a good time! every drunken creep came up to us as soon as we entered the place at 11:30pm. the sign outside promised KARAOKE TONIGHT! but an hour later we were still waiting for the party to get started. in the meantime, we met a crazy drunk fellow from scotland who told us about the best movie ever saw that was canadian that turned out to be "shite". he had no idea what he was talking about and even said a couple times "what was I talking about?". he was entertaining. once he left we were bombarded by the crazy guy from perth who was born in melbourne who wants to visit canada because he snowboards and even broke his wrist the first time he went and cannot bend his wrist back and touch his thumb to his arm anymore and now he has to wear wrist guards when he snowboards. he was a handful and I was sure he missed his daily dose of ritalin. we then met his friend who had just come back from canada. he was a bit more subdued but equally as drunk but they both made for some hilarious conversation including one time the snowboarder was in finland and was in the same bar as yari kuri, the big hockey star from the Oilers who played with gretzky in the 80s. he was too shy to go up to him and kept making school girl noises. hilarious.

we stumbled back to the hostel at around 12:30 (how sad) and called it a night.

my melbourne adventures are taking longer to write about every time! so for those actually keeping up and reading...
to be continued.

G'day! I am in Melbourne! Which is further away than Sydney is to Canada!

I arrived in Melbourne at about 2pm Sunday afternoon. With about 30 pounds on my back I just barely made it to the train and to the Jet Star counter on time. Actually I was quite early but not as early as I had planned. The funny thing is my backpack seems as heavy as the day me and Lindy left that lovely morning on October 4th, 2004. Anyway so my stay in Melbourne is until next Monday the 2nd.

So far it's been a nice little vacation. Once I arrived to the ghetto little domestic Avalon airport, I had to take a $14 "Sun Bus" into the city. The bus driver made small commentary and I proceeded to snore and drool. I was tired. I had stayed up until about 2:30-3am the previous night packing and just taking my time getting myself organized. ANYWAY, it was about a 50 minute ride so it was quite the power nap. Once we reached our bus depot drop off, I had to lug my backpack approximately 400 metres down the street to catch the tram. Melbourne is very efficient with public transportation. There are electric trams that go all over the city. There are also buses that run out in the suburbs as well as a train system like Sydney. It's really annoying because you can only pay by coins on the trams. Luckily some nice chick had $5 in change when I was asking around. So I continued on to the Base Hostel in St. Kilda, which is a nice beach/area just 25 minutes out of Melbourne's CBD (Central Business District). I had no problems finding the hostel as I had printed out some handy dandy directions in an email they sent me.

If you do decide to travel and hostel it while you are travelling, you will experience all sort of interesting places and smells and levels of cleanliness. The Base is a newer chain of hostels that operate in Australia and New Zealand. All I have to say is that I am well impressed with them. I stayed on the Sanctuary floor which is catered to all girls. I paid $30/night for a 6 bed dorm style room that has its own private ensuite (or bathroom as we like to call it in Canada). Compared to other hostels I've stayed at this was 5 star resort luxury!!! It didn't even smell of dirty feet or other mysterious smells! It was clean, it was new, and I had found heaven. Once I checked in, they gave me 2 small bottles of Aveda shampoo and conditioner and a nice clean white towel. They also gave me an access card which gets me through the doors. The security is pretty tight you even need it to work the elevators. The room was small not alot of area to do jumping jacks or anything but it was clean and that's all that matters really. There are 3 bunkbeds which is nice and new and don't shake and quake when someone is climbing up to the top bunk. We once stayed at one hostel that didn't even have ladders on the bunks! You just sort of had to fling yourself up there! I should have took pictures of the bathroom. Darn, maybe next time. It was comparable to a swanky hotel bathroom.

So being Sunday, there is a market along the beach where local artists go to sell their stuff. I picked up a cute little wallet/change purse with a cool graphic on the front for $8. I walked along the beach and was amazed at all the palm trees. I haven't really ever noticed any palm trees in Sydney. It looked like Cali to me. I went camera happy.

It was a bit cloudy but it was still quite nice out. I just chilled along the beach and wandered around. I went back to the hostel a bit later, took a shower and waited until Linda called me. Originally she was supposed to meet up at around 7:30...then it turned to 8:30...then 9 rolled around. So I killed some time at the local Mac D's. Did you know they have internet there now! Unbelievable! I enjoyed my Filet O' Fish and surfed for a bit. I then went for a little walk and waited...and waited...met a cute guy who was also from Sydney. He even did a little rap for me. Finally 10:30 rolled around and Linda showed up with a car full of her friends. We went for coffee and dessert at a cafe close by. Saw a guy open a taxi door and puke right in front of us. Thank god I was done my strawberry crepe or I woulda spewed right there. The girls were really funny and nice. We then went for a brief walk down the pier at St. Kilda. It was super windy and chilly so we went back to the car to warm up. Yes, I'm still a CANADIAN GIRL but I just haven't experienced winter for quite some time. It has been almost a year since I have been in colder than +15 weather. They then took me to check out the Crown Casino here. It's a huge entertainment complex with vegas style slots and tables and also, lots of eats and shopping and theatres and night clubs. It's basically west edmonton mall but more of a casino and not as big. The night ended at around 3:30am when I stumbled into the dark dormroom trying not to disturb anyone's sleep.//

Next day, Monday.

Breakfast at Mac D's again, actually lunch since it was just a few minutes after 11...which really annoys me! I was looking forward to some hotcakes and hashbrowns. Then shopping on Smith Street with Lindy. She bought an awesome pair of Nikes for $60. Went to have a smoothie at MelonHead which is a cute little juice bar owned by this Japanese couple. Similar to Booster Juice back in Edmonton but it sells sushi, fresh juice, smoothies and ice cream. I know weird combo eh? Walked downtown and stared at this half naked guy in a CK ad on the side of a building. Have to see it to believe it. Hehe.

[insert pic here]

Anyway, we walked up to Federeation Square which is this amazing architectural area where they have concerts and events outside. The buildings are very cool and different.

This is me in front of Flinders Station where you catch trains that go out to the suburbs of Melbourne. You can see the tram in the background. Good pic Lindy!

[insert pic here]

Lindy left for the train around 5 and I got lost trying to make my way back to the tram to take back to St. Kilda. I got back and it was dark and I was exhausted. Took an hour nap and then went out to Mac D's yet again. I felt like I was making a new documentary called Super Size Jazz. I probably gained about 10 pounds just from the few times I ate there in 2 days. Hung out in the common area at the hostel until about 11:30 and went back to the room to sleep.

The Lonesome Traveller...
At times I get waves of loneliness because travelling on your own is pretty tough especially if you are like me and can't make small talk and have difficulties going up to people. "hey....how YOU doin?!" But then there are other times when I am just really content with travelling on my own because I can do whatever the hell I want and not have to ask if the other person wants to do this or do that. On Tuesday I even went to see a movie BY MYSELF!!! Haha laugh it up kids but when you are bored and in a city where you don't know anyone, you tend to do stuff you would never normally do at home. And hey it was cheap Tuesday which meant I only paid $6 to see "In Good Company" with Topher Grace and that chick from Lost in Translation. It was a cute movie. Too bad I missed the end. I fell asleep. Hehe.

Tuesday...Yeah Tuesday was a boring day.
I woke up early to check out of the hostel. I had seen enough of St. Kilda and wanted to move into the city. I got a voucher to stay at any Base in Australia or NZ though as I had originally paid for 3 nights. SO I moved into a place called Hotel Bakpak and it was pretty much the total opposite of the Base. I shared a 6 bed dorm with 5 other girls. A few of the girls must have been there for a while as their stuff was EVERYWHERE. spread out on the bed, the floor...under the bed. It was disgusting and I was like ew, I am going to find another place to stay after this. It's like comparing the Hilton to a ghetto Econo Lodge. Actually it wasn't that bad but coming from a nice clean, have your own bathroom to the smelly dirty place with skanky toilets and showers was a shock to the system. I stayed out the whole day, shopping, eating viet food by myself (which has become routine since I miss my viet food so much!) and seeing a movie by mself until I stumbled in at around 12 and went to sleep.

Wednesday
Next morning, I checked out. I wanted to say something to reception about the cleanliness of the girls/room. If they had been less skanky I may have considered staying there because of the location but it was such a big turn off. I never knew girls could be so messy!! Anyway, so I had researched and came up with a new hostel called the YHA Melbourne Metro which is just up the street in North Melbourne. On Tuesday, I had decided to book a tour that goes up the Great Ocean Road which is a really nice scenic drive. [Insert "I will post pics soon" here.] So I got a YHA card which is $37 for a year membership. Anyway it's regularly $120 for the tour but it was only $80 for me! yay. What was I trying to get at again? Oh yeah so with the new YHA card I also get discounts on hostels and other stuff. So I decided to try out the YHA hostel in North Melbourne. Very nice.

The guy told me I couldn't check in until 12 so I had to wait around in the cafeteria/common room area. I splurged and got myself some poached eggs and hashbrowns with toast and an OJ. Pretty expensive at $8! Oh well I was hungry and not prepared to eat Mac D's again. I got up to my room which was a 4 share room because I didn't pre-book. It's nice and spacious compared to the other hostels. Very clean too. I don't like not having a bathroom in the room but it's okay. It's really clean for the most part. Almost like an institution or something. Haha I had to compare it to something. Maybe it was an institution before. Maybe I AM a mental patient living in a mental institution and all this is a dream...ahaha! Anyway so I spend the day walking around again until I met up with Linda in the suburbs of Melbourne. It took about an hour to get to her local Safeway and then a 15 minute walk to her house. We had a nice roasted lamb dinner with her "family" and their cousins. It was so nice to have a home cooked meal. I am still dreaming about it! I got dropped off at the Clayton train station and got to the hostel at around 11 or so....

Thursday
I crawled out of bed at around 7am and got ready to be picked up by APT as I was doing the Great Ocean Road day trip. When I got home Wednesday night after a fun night trip on the train back from the Melbourne suburbs, I saw a note taped to the dorm room. "Jasmine Joe please see reception". Well the reception desk closed at 10pm so I checked in with them at 7:30 before the coach was due to pick me up. The lady at the front desk was a little on the slow side and had no clue as to why that note was left on my door. I was getting slowly impatient and started inching toward the door just in case I missed the pick up for my tour. Luckily, she had found a phone message for me. Apparently my tour was cancelled and I had to go on a different one. I was like "oh that's lovely!!" of course dripping with my signature sarcasm. I phoned up the APT office and tried to remain calm. The Great Ocean Road tour I wanted to go on had a cool little walk on a suspension bridge in the middle of a forest called the Otoway National Park. Unfortunately, numbers were not high enough for this tour so I had to go with the normal one without the hike up in the trees. Darn. Oh well maybe next time. ANYwho, so the coach came at about 7:45 and it took about 20 minutes to make our way around to the other hotels for pick ups. Finally arrived at Swanston Street where we got off and tried to find a blue flag that said Great Ocean Road. Boarded the coach and it was off for a fun filled day of adventure!

I can't remember alot of detail about the drive up so I will have to rely on my pictures to help trigger my memory. It was a long day and I took several naps and a half. I was groggy. We stopped at several places along the Great Ocean Road.

First stop, Torquay Surf Beach. Awesome views and cute surfers to boot.

Apollo Bay followed shortly after. We had "Billy Tea" which is a type of Aussie tea that they brewed in tin cans and served with Aussie Lemington cakes which are jelly filled chocolate covered cakes with coconut sprinkles (yummy!) and biscuits with Vegemite (salty spread chock full of essential vitamins; tastes as good as it sounds!). I saved the Vegemite and maybe one lucky reader will receive it in the mail one day ;) hehe. See pics below.

I can't remember where this was but these 2 surfer boys were trying to break into their own car and jimmy the lock! haha it was funny to see so I took a picture from the bus.

Another cool pic. This is what I picture when you think about living the surfer's lifestyle...

The Great Ocean Road

A Friendly Reminder...haha had to take a photo of this sign

Nice view.

And finally folks, what you've all been waiting for. The Twelve Apostles. Beautiful! Just wish it was a little more sunny but the photos don't do it justice.

check out the hair!! ahaha it was really WINDY that day...not the most flattering of pics but I was there.

Loch Ard's Gorge. A freak wave came up and crashed a ship into the gorge. Only 2 people survived. Kinda reminds me of the place in Thailand where the Beach was filmed.

A view of the gorge from above...breath-takingly beautiful!

This is called the London Bridge. It used to be a full bridge until 1990. A married guy and his secretary were supposed to be at a business conference but were found here when the bridge collapsed leaving them stranded on top of the rock! Interesting story but hey karma's a biatch isn't it? hehe.

Okay that is it for now, it's getting dark and my time is up at the net cafe...until next time...thanks for reading.

jazzy in melbourne

too lazy to write a real detailed entry so here is an email I wrote to my mom and gerry for your enjoyment.

hi guys,
didn't do much this weekend really. worked doing a demo on dove face products. I'm glad I am not doing that job anymore cuz nobody wanted to talk to me cuz I wasn't giving anything away! anyway today I worked a 6 hour shift in the mall trying to get people to buy a cleaning bleach called domestos - pink power! it's cool we have pink shirts and hats and stuff. if they bought the new one they would get a free pink mini radio from me! it's fun. different than cheese which is good. but they somehow booked too many people to work tomorrow so my shift got cancelled. but that's okay because me and emma are going to a live taping of a new tv show called our place. I think it's geared toward older people like you guys. it has stuff on homes and cooking and animals. should be fun and we get fed! for free! I'll let you know how it goes. and then on monday we are going to see an australian singer called missy higgins. she is really good. sort of like a chantal kreviazuk but way better! she is pretty big here in australia and I think she will probably do well back home as well as the states. oh yeah I went to see miss congeniality 2 on the weekend and fell asleep half way through but saw the ending. it was funny what I saw. I also went 10 pin bowling with this guy I met while working. don't worry he's not religious and doesn't want to marry me. we have an understanding that we are JUST FRIENDS. haha anyway bowling was fun. they do it a little different here. you get 2 lanes and "crossover" after every turn. weird. and you only get 2 balls. I think at home you get 3 tries. anyway he beat me and I did pretty bad. sometimes I have good bowling days other times I suck. anyway I guess that is it for now. pretty tired. oh yeah I bought a dozen krispie kreme donuts yesterday. they are so yummy! do they have it in vancouver yet?
ok bye! talk to you sooner than later! miss ya!
jazz

well g'day people. seems like a few readers would like an update. not much to update for the past month, sad I know. sampling is going well. I am so sick of cheese! it's even the good expensive gourmet cheeses like camembert and brie! but after smelling it shift after shift, you're over it. I think I will go apply at mac donald's now to see if I ward that off for a while. or maybe it'll be like after I watched supersize me and I'll crave it even more. haha I am one sick puppy!

anywho, we've lost all our furniture that emma's friend scott so graciously let us borrow for a few months. we no longer have a sofa, microwave, or stereo. boo, no more blasting britney's greatest hits to annoy the gay guys upstairs!! we do have a fridge though from our flatmate soff, who has turned into the messiest flatmate ever. those who have shared apartments with other people who are not good friends and/or siblings will know what I am talking about...

the nitemare roomate!!

he's the type of roomate that drives you insane with his annoying habits! firstly, he eats the weirdest combinations of food. he likes to fry up eggs and have yogurt, olives (?!), and strawberries on the same plate with a side of bread. he's also obsessed with cheese...even more so than me! and when he eats he misses his mouth alot and it ends up on the floor. we basically hoover up the food on a daily basis. another thing that annoys me is that he eats my food! I don't know if he forgets that he didn't buy it but whatever, it's mine!! I like to share sometimes but not all the time! and especially my garlic bread! hehe. he reminds me of my brother although my brother gets all the food in his mouth. and soff actually washes his dishes after he's done...sometimes without soap though. ew. he also racked up $30 of late charges on my video store account! he didn't understand the concept of new releases and thought he could keep it for a week.

okay I am starting to annoy myself. enough of the horror stories. I could go on but my time is limited at the internet cafe. it's getting dark now at 5 o'clock in the afternoon. how sad! it's still rather hot. today was a balmy 30 degrees. we went to maroubra beach on monday and worked on our post-summer tans. I still have yet to even out the color difference between my arms and legs. I'm sure I'll hit the beach once or twice before it gets really cold...around 15 degrees! so for all you edmontonians still enjoying the snow, cheers.

jazz

I'm officially a sample girl for a company called demonstration plus. hoorah, jazzy's finally landed the job of her dreams!!!

all jokes aside, work has been really steady and the shifts are flowing in. yesterday I worked back to back shifts for an 8 hour day! I left the house at around 9 in the morning and got back shortly after 7:30 in the evening. it's been awhile since I've had a full day of work.

so far I have sampled the following:
-yogurt w' real fruit chunks! yum!
-a butter-like spread with avocado oil for a great avocado taste (!!)
-pura boost milk - ultra high in calcium and low in fat!

things I've learned since starting work as a sample girl:

-just because it's free, doesn't necessarily mean people will take it
-the majority of the chinese people I have approached do take it though even if they don't understand what I am saying
-people lack manners and in some cases, personal hygiene. why are you chewing with your mouth open! stop munching that cracker over my silver tray people! you're rude!
-I've had enough of the chunky yogurt. the strawberry is really runny and the fruit salad lacks flavor. the apricot halves yogurt, however, is extremely popular and sold out quickly.
-I have 3 used containers of the avocado oil spread in the fridge.
-I apparently look like a flight attendant in my uniform and a gay guy complimented me on my name and smile. how cool!

and next week I move on to cheese from tasmania.
I am living the ultimate dream.

hey everyone,
finally found a good fast internet place to upload some pics! and I actually found a good free image hosting site that makes little thumbnails of the pics! perfect! please feel free to comment on the pics and maybe I will add more in the future!

this is our flat. this picture was taken on christmas day. we had a couch but no table or chairs to eat our turkey on. I really like the way emma set this up.

a bloated looking jazz and the turkey dinner

me and em with the christmas tree! yay!

em and me on the sky tram on the way to the taronga zoo

me at taronga zoo. you can see the opera house and sydney harbour bridge in the background. awesome view!

another view of the sydney skyline. too bad it was a little cloudy that day!

this is how I wore my hair on new years! special thanks to lindy and em!

me and lindy on new years eve. the wait for the midnight fireworks took forever but it was worth it!

sydney harbour bridge at sunset on new years eve

em, me, and lindy NYE 2005
>

NYE fireworks at the sydney harbour bridge! the pictures don't do that night justice!

more NYE fireworks

more...

this is me, em and sof. nabil got cut off as he didn't want to get closer to me! haha

me at coogee beach for lindy's birthday

this is me at maroubra beach

I love sydney!

I love the beach! look how happy I am! ahah :P

g'day all! it's been a while since I posted a nicely detailed update. well after 2 months of being unemployed there hasn't been a whole heck of a lot happening in my life. let's see what I can come up with...

the apartment

our place is now fully occupied by myself, emma, linda and we have a new roomate named soff. he's algerian and he works at em's boyfriend's store. he was looking for a new place and it so happened we were looking for a new roomie since linda is leaving soon. he works the night shift so we don't see him that much as he sleeps during the day. living with a guy is weird after the apartment being all girl for quite a while. so he moved into the big room that me and lindy were sharing. us girls have moved into the smaller room that em previously occupied and it gets pretty squishy and messy at times. we still don't have beds but I am hoping to get a job soon and I will invest in a good bed. I can't take sleeping on the floor for much longer! as for the cockroach situation, mr. flick came again after we complained. I don't think he did much as we still see the odd bug now and then but it isn't nearly as bad as when we first moved in. I think they have all resorted to hiding behind the fridge and other appliances. have I mentioned we now have a coffee table, a clothes washer and even a 2nd fridge!? we are living in the lap of luxury now! from rags to riches!! haha okay I'm getting too ahead of myself.

the job

well there isn't a job yet. em's parents arrived this morning and will be spending the next month here in oz so I will be unemployed and on my own as em plays tourist and takes them around sydney. so with no one to be lazy and unproductive with, I have started looking for employment once again. I have an interview with a company next thursday. the job is basically being a sample girl. you know that girl standing in the frozen food aisle, tempting you with some sort of microwave oven baked goodie? yup, that'll be me if all goes well. I really wouldn't mind doing that as I could bide my time by swiping a few bites or even taking some home with me at the end of the day! oh what fun times that job would bring! I even wouldn't mind being a mascot...look at me I'm a talking block of cheese!! try some chedder!! hahaha...

the social life

not alot to talk about here either. actually I have more of a social life than I did when we were living at spank's (frank's) place. I guess I haven't told the story of how emma met her current boyfriend soff...
one night back in mid-december emma went out to get some tally ho's (cigarette papers). she went into a convenience store but they didn't have any. she met up with me in IGA where I was buying some garlic bread and instant noodles and told me she would meet me at home later cuz she really needed to find some tally ho's. anyway I got home and waited...and waited. she had not returned and I was getting worried. when she got home about an hour later she proceeded to tell me the story of how she went into the convenience store and the guy couldn't find any tally ho's. but after she met me at IGA and was walking back, the convenience store guy waved her down and told her he had found the tally ho's! she told him that was not good customer service and had a little chat about needing a job etc. etc. she came back to let me know she hadn't been kidnapped and she was just coming in to get a jacket because it was chilly out and she was going back to the store! anyway, she ended up staying out until 9 the next morning just talking and even went to watch the sunrise at bondi beach with soff. aw if that isn't romantic I don't know what is!!! and from then on they have seen eachother almost every day. this story ties into my social life...it does..really. so soff has this friend named nabil (I know weird names, they're both from algeria) and we all hang out together. but don't worry he is not my boyfriend, he just wants to marry me. haha JUST KIDDING MOM! or am I? hahaha TNO! we had them over for christmas dinner which soff actually paid for and they even took us to the taronga zoo. they're great guys and they take really good care of us. I'm actually learning alot about muslim culture too as nabil is very much into his religion. he prays 5 times a day and sometimes fasts twice a week. I'm his first girlfriend...meaning a friend who is a girl. don't get all paranoid! haha. we've gone out just the 2 of us a few times now and at 30, he has never done that before (going out somewhere with a girl). he told me it's because I am special. insert the "awww cute!" here. anyway so sometimes we go to nabil's house just to watch movies and em cooks for all of us. I attempted to make beef stroganoff a few weeks ago and accidentally put a whole container of sour cream into the sauce when the recipe called for 1 tablespoon!!! hehe OOPS my bad!!! they still ate it up anyway. needless to say, I ain't cooking for a while. hehe yeah...so that's my social life.

the trip to oz and thoughts in general

it is the 4th of february today. it was 4 months ago that me and lindy (new nickname quite cute and fitting) took off from the edmonton international and started this journey. so far I've spent most my time in sydney and have no plans on leaving anytime soon. if all goes well, I may take a visit to vietnam to visit a girl named mina and I might also decide to make a trip down to perth. I also might head up to the gold cost in march to see a surfing competition with em. I'm leaving the whole eastern coast until probably july/august. I've heard so many good stories about the coast and how travelling up it is really memorable so I can't wait. there is alot of time from now until then though and things can happen so I'm not making any concrete plans yet. but yeah...in the meantime, sydney is home.

blogged out for now,
jazz

hey everyone,

yes I am still alive and kicking. been actually emailing people rather than posting on this blog so most of you know what I've been up to lately. not much really...haven't worked in about a month or so now! but apparently there are loads of jobs starting this week so I'm gonna start job hunting. christmas and new years came and went and I am definitely going to put some pics up soon! I promise! I can't do it at the library though so I'll have to wait until I have some money to go use the $2/hour place. if you feel sorry for me, you can always write me a letter and enclose some money with it!! haha jk jk. anyway a better update to come...
hope everyone is well and having a good 2005 so far,
jazz

My freshly painted, no more stars-and-clouds wallpaper! Thanks for the photo dad.