Hello Hello, sorry it’s been a while. I went away for a few
days for Easter/Purim weekend and a day after I got back, my computer stopped
working. It wasn’t a virus or anything, there was a problem with whatever
actually turns the computer on. It happened on Monday morning of Easter so I
couldn’t get through to technical support. I finally did the next day and found
out I had to bring the computer to a service center in the middle of a random
suburb of Sydney that was no where near any public transportation. It took me
two hours each way to get there and then I had to pick up my friend’s computer
the next day so that I could write my essays that were due in a few days. It
was a rough week but I apologize because I know you’ve all been waiting on the
edge of your seats waiting for an update.
So a few weeks ago, I went on my second Thursday adventure
to Manly, which is another beach area north of the city. I went with my friend
Taryn and we had to take a ferry through the harbor to get there which is one
of the highlights of things to do in Sydney. It’s a really nice little area
with a beach and an aquarium and a bunch of shops in between. We hung out on
the beach for a while and then went to the aquarium. It was a small aquarium
but there was a tunnel where you basically walk underneath an aquarium with big
sharks and huge sea turtles and sting rays. It was pretty cool and despite
being separated by glass, I was still a little bit on edge.
The following week, I went to my friends’ apartment for
Purim and the weekend. We went to a nice, big shul for megillah reading and
then the shul was hosting a party for young adults in a bar on the beach which
was fun but then they closed it at 12, pretty pathetic.
On Sunday, I went on a day trip to an area about an
hour-and-a-half outside of Sydney called the Blue Mountains. It’s a nice scenic
area with some good hikes. I went with a tour group and I had to be there at
7:20 in the morning. So after going to sleep at about 3:30 the night before and
then getting up that early for a day of hiking, I was feeling great. Okay, not
great, but at least I made it on time and I slept in the van every chance I
got. We stopped first in an area where a bunch of kangaroos live in the wild
and they actually allow you to get pretty close before they hop away, it was
pretty cool. We then went on a couple of hikes that were pretty nice and not so
difficult which was good. It was a little cold and the clouds were really low
so it was pretty difficult to see everything so well but it did break a lot
towards the end of the day. The day was long and nice but it was also really
crowded because it was Easter Sunday and then we got stuck in ridiiiiiiiculous
traffic on the way back. Basically, I fell asleep at one point and then when I
woke up 45 minutes later, I could still see where we were when I fell asleep.
But overall, it was a good day.
So since then, I had to deal with the computer thing (I got
it back yesterday safe and sound) and now I’ve had to adjust from not doing
much work to writing my pre-vacation essays which for me is not so fun. I tend
to go into a mental lockdown when I have to write essays for school. I like to
read my (not school) books and write things like this but when I have to write
an essay, I feel like I can’t do those things because I have to write the
essay. But instead of writing the essay, I end up sitting in front of my
computers playing solitaire for hours. It’s extremely frustrating, and even
though I’m aware of it, I can’t break the habit because I don’t blame myself as
much as I blame the essays. The first two essays that I have don’t have any
actual assignment question and no specific topic so I’m not exactly sure where
to begin. I won’t get into what I think of the educational systems that I’ve
been through right now. I’ll save that for another day, plus I have to write an
essay.
So I was at a random family this past shabbos and I’m headed
back to my friends this shabbos. I have another week of classes before my
two-week break. I’m going to a city called Cairns for a few days right before
Pesach which is going to be really amazing. Miss you all and talk to you soon.
