Glimpses of N Zed

I've been on a bit of a blogging hiatus, because I am currently traveling in New Zealand! I've been here a little over a week now, and have already entertained thoughts of never returning. :) But I suppose my husband wouldn't like that. So I guess I'll at least have to go back and retrieve him. New Zealand is just so beautiful! It is difficult to capture in photos but here are a few glimpses. I can't wait to get home and sort through all my photos and write about my experiences here.

My BIRTHday

Growing up, my mom always loved to tell her kids the story of our "BIRTHdays" each year.  I think most of the time, we thought it was silly and would say things like, "MooooOOOOm! Why are you telling this story again?!"  But she persisted.  Now that I'm older, I definitely appreciate it much more.  I now love hearing this story and other peoples' birth stories!  This year, my mom typed it out and sent it to me on my birthday.  SO, in honor of my birthday TODAY- I thought it would be fun to share the story of my BIRTHday :-) 

A few notes:
-Mimi = my grandmother
-Lauren = my older sister
-I WAS indeed a large baby (9+ pounds)
-I do, in fact, still hate napping

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So, 29 years ago today (March 14) Mimi arrived at our home, while I prepared to go to St. Joseph's hospital at 6:00 the following morning (March 15). Of course Lauren was very excited and planning her day with Mimi the next day. I knew my labor was to be induced due to speculation that you were a large baby and my due date was Mid March. I was happy to be able to get up the next morning, shower, do my hair, shave my legs, (I must have been stressed because I didn't realize until I was in the car that I only shaved one)!

Dad and I were at the hospital and ready to go on time, so anxious to hold my little baby, sex and name unknown. Since labor was induced, everything went smoothly, and I elected to have an epideral, so I don't recall any pain. I do remember fainting several times in bed due to low blood pressure. When this happened my bed needed to be adjusted so the head of the bed was lower than my feet, and I was then put on oxygen. Once my blood pressure went up, the bed was returned to normal position. This happened several times. Try delivering a baby with head down!

Everything continued well until 12:49 PM., when little you appeared! I remember you being long and thin, and very peaceful. Quickly after that you went a little blue which concerned the doctor, so you were quickly removed from the delivery room and I didn't see you again for about two hours, as the doctor was watching you closely. After that all was well, and we both went home the next day. Oh, Dad and I couldn't agree on a name, so you left as baby Grant. I wanted to name you Maggie, but Dad insisted that reminded him of Mimi's cat. He won-

You were a very good baby, although you did not like to nap. Maybe this explains why you don't like napping today as an adult! Your sister Lauren loved you, even though several days later she bit your foot. Such a pest!!

Well, that's the traditional story of Megan's birth. A story I love to tell you year after year. This was one of the favorite days of my life. There is nothing more magnificent than the birth of your own child, and what a special child you are!

I love and miss you. See you soon, Mom

Obviously not a newborn here, but this was the youngest photo of myself with my mom that I have here with me in Australia. 

Engagement-versary

Engagement-versary.  That's a thing, right? 

Three years ago, David proposed, and I (of course) said yes!  Although I don't insist on actually celebrating little anniversaries such as this (today was just like any other typical weekday), I do always love to remember these occasions and reminisce for at least a little while.  And plus, I love when blogs share stories like this, so I've been wanting to add posts about our engagement, wedding, etc.  So indulge me while I share our engagement story.

March 12, 2010

David and I had planned a cruise for my spring break.  Our cruise was leaving on a Monday (also my birthday).  We had decided to go to dinner on Friday night to celebrate my birthday since we would be busy that weekend packing and preparing for our trip.

David came home from work that day with three roses (I thought they were for my birthday... I was later informed they were for the 3 years we had been together).  We then went to dinner at the first restaurant David took me to during my first visit to Houston.  At this point, I still had no idea what was about to go down- although, looking back at it I had plenty of red flags, but for whatever reason I was oblivious to them.

After dinner we came back to our apartment, and David said he wanted to give me my birthday present early. I protested, because I'm always weird about opening presents early and I insist on saving my birthday presents until my actual birthday.  After some convincing, I agreed.  David instructed me to sit on the couch and wait while he got it.  When he returned, he presented me with a big gift bag and a card.  If you know me well, you know that I love sending and receiving cards.  David, not so much.  So when I DO receive a card from him, I get very excited.  Needless to say, I was distracted by my excitement that David had written me a birthday card and forgot all about the gift bag.  I opened the card to find that the inside simply read, "I love you Megan Grant.  Will you marry me?"  I looked up, and David was on his knee with a ring in his hand.  I was so surprised that I said nothing for a few seconds.  When I finally did speak, the first words out of my mouth were, "is this a joke?!" (David STILL gives me crap for having this reaction :-)  oops).  I was just SO truly surprised, that it just didn't feel real.  After he assured me it was not a joke, I quickly said, "YES!"  We made several calls to friends and family and then enjoyed a week long cruise relaxing and celebrating our engagement before all the wedding planning began. 

His proposal was just perfect for us. I love hearing about public proposals, but I always knew that I would just be mortified if I ever had one myself. So I loved that it was private and just the two of us. I also love that he incorporated the restaurant where we had our first date since that will always be such a special place for us.

Shortly after he proposed - I was a little teary

3 Roses for 3 Years and the best card EVER!

The bling. David picked it out all on his own without any input from me.  I LOVE it!

Celebrating on our cruise

Newly engaged!

Some Reflections & The Price

I was reading a post from one of my favorite travel/expat blogs recently http://www.postcardsfromrachel.com/, when I stumbled upon something that I really identified with.  You can read it for yourself here here (first part), but she basically mentioned how exciting moving (and living abroad) can be, but also how lonely it can be at times. 

This really struck a chord with me.  I have found this to be true on multiple occasions here.  Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not unhappy here by any means.  In fact, most of the time I am really enjoying my time here and feel so grateful for this opportunity to live and travel abroad at this point in our lives.  However, I do also have to acknowledge that at some points, this life here can feel a bit lonely.  I had one of these moments just a couple weekends ago.  We were at a party at a friend's house with a large group of other expats.  Despite the fact that there were tons of people there, I couldn't shake a nagging feeling of loneliness.  Sure, I was making the rounds and chatting with most of the people there, but it just felt strange or foreign for some reason.  I have met wonderful people here, and everyone has been so very welcoming.  I know that the people I have befriended here will forever be important friends in my life since we've shared such a unique experience.  But, that night I just felt what I can only describe as loneliness.  I missed people who know my background, people who I have inside jokes with, people who know my family, etc.  It was indeed a strange experience.  Again, not a lasting feeling, and most definitely not something I feel all the time here (in fact, it is usually quite the opposite), but it was just a strange experience. 

The more I thought about it this week, I realized that that loneliness that sometimes sneaks up on me here may also be mixed with or caused by a bit of homesickness.  There's not necessarily a physical home that I'm "sick" for, but more just "familiarity" that I get homesick for- familiar faces, familiar places, etc.  I recently found this pin via another favorite travel/expat blogger (you can find her blog here). 

http://pinterest.com/pin/313281717798986106/

I LOVE this quote.  I absolutely 100% agree with the sentiment behind it.  I think that the "price" to pay for this wonderful life/opportunity we are experiencing is indeed missing out on things "back home," and feeling inexplicably lonely at strange times.  Missing out on things back home has been very hard- my dad's 60th birthday, holidays, my good friend's baby's first birthday, not being able to be there for my friends (in a physical or at least convenient time zone sense), heck even missing out on silly things like the Houston Rodeo!  It's not that there is someplace I would rather be, because I really am happy to be where we are now.  I guess it's just more that I wish I could be two places at once.  Someone please invent a teleporting device! 

Anyway, not to be Debbie Downer at all- I suppose I was just feeling a little reflective recently.  I usually don't post things like this, but I do want to remember these emotions as well as all the excitement and opportunity when I look back on this unique time in our lives. 

Today

Today...

...marks my six month-iversary of living in Australia.  Wow.  In some ways, my big move feels like just yesterday, but it also feels like a million years ago. 

...is the first day of Fall.  What?!?!  I really don't enjoy that my birthday month has somehow magically transformed from a Spring month to a Fall month.  So strange.  Side note: (for what I can only assume is because when it comes down to it, seasons are pretty meaningless here) in Australia, season changes have nothing to do with solstices or the tilt of the Earth on it's rotational axis. Nope, that would be too scientific.  Here, seasons simply change on the first day of every third month. 

...was a doozy at work.  I often work with students who have some serious emotional/behavior issues.  And today, I was unlucky enough to be the recipient of an emotional outburst.  I may or may not have been punched twice in the arm and then again in the lower stomach area only to later have to dodge flying pieces of glass as said student busted the window with a chair.  Luckily, this kid was quite small, so damage done (to me) was basically none.  Maybe more just a bruised ego on my part.  Teaching is tough!  But I just have to remember that this kiddo has been through some tough things in his short life already, and was unfortunately just expressing some of that today.  I know this, but still- sheesh!  At least it was Friday! 

Currently...

I've seen several of these "currently" posts going around recently.  And I thought it might be fun to jump on the bandwagon and try one of my own.

Currently...

Reading: FINALLY finished Mockingjay in the Hunger Game series.  I read the first two books this time last year super quickly and was obsessed!  But then I kind of got burned out and apparently needed to take an almost year hiatus from Katniss and Peeta.  Loved the third book, although I was a tiny bit disappointed in the ending... but not really quite sure what I was hoping for as an alternative.  Now onto reading My Dyslexia- a very thoughtful gift (since I used to work a lot with children with dyslexia) given to me by my sister LAST Christmas.  I am SUCH a bad reader, but I'm resolving to try and read more. 

Watching: This may have something to do with why I'm such a bad/disinterested reader- I just have too many reality TV commitments (yes, they are commitments).  To name a few: Biggest Loser, Bachelor, American Idol...

Listening: I almost always listen to the "Today's Hits" Pandora station.  It keeps me current on what music is popular back in the US- I'm secretly afraid when I return I will be so out of touch. 

Wanting: Real Mexican food! 

Looking Forward To: My trip to New Zealand in just a few weeks!! 

Wishing: Time zones didn't exist. I've been working a lot more- which is great, but the downside is that it pretty much eliminates my "window of opportunity" for times that I can call the US and not wake someone up.  For example: It is about 7:30 PM here now.  The time zones below are where most of "my people" live, and as you can see, I don't think any of them would really appreciate their phone ringing right now. 

 

Looking Forward

Having something to look forward to has always been something that really helps me stay positive- especially when I'm feeling particularly homesick and missing familiar faces of friends and family.  That being said, I have some VERY exciting things that I'm looking forward to coming up! 

March 18:

Trip to New Zealand!  As if travelling to New Zealand wasn't exciting enough on its own... it gets even better.  I'm going to be meeting one of my very best friends there (who just so happens to also be my cousin), Lee Anne!  Obviously I'm excited to explore New Zealand, but I can't even explain how happy I will be to see Lee Anne! I've always wanted to travel somewhere fun with Lee, and I can't wait for the adventures I'm sure we'll have.  Plus, she will be the first family member or friend from home I will have seen in roughly seven months.  There may be tears when we're reunited, and I may never let her out of my sight the entire time.  Sorry, Lee :-) 

"We're not cousins, we're friends."

 

End of April:

Another one of my best friends/college roommate/hermana espanola (we were roommates while living in Spain) and her boyfriend are coming to visit Australia!  Jen and I became excellent travel compadres while we studied abroad in Spain, and I can't wait to be "abroad" together again!  I feel so honored that they're taking the time (and money) to come visit the other side of the world.  I'm excited to help them start planning their trip!  It will be the first time I get to play tour guide in Australia. 

Jen and I in front of La Alhambra in Granada

End of June/Early July:

My parents are coming to visit!  CANNOT WAIT!  I doubt they probably EVER thought they'd visit Australia, much less have a daughter that lives here.  I'm looking forward to helping them plan what I hope will be a very memorable trip.  I will also be excited to show them around little old Gladstone and introduce them to what life has been like here. 

I feel so lucky to have friends and family willing and able to travel completely across the world to see little old me!  Hurry up, guys- there are adventures to be had, koalas to snuggle, and kangaroos to play with! 

Tondoon Botanic Gardens

Despite all the crap I give Gladstone, there really are some gems in this town for which I really should give it credit.  One of these gems is the Tondoon Botanic Gardens.  The gardens are right in town, but you would hardly know that this little oasis existed.  I visited way back in October and went on one of the weekly free guided tours that they offer on Thursdays.  Although not advertised as such, it might as well have been a seniors event as I was the only one on the tour under the age of 65.  My life...   Anyways, it was pretty neat to see how different the plants, tree, flowers, etc. are in this part of the world.  I really enjoyed the tour- except for the part where we stumbled upon a giant Eastern Brown Snake (shudder...).  No one else on the tour seemed quite as alarmed as I was.  I'm pretty sure I more than made up for their lack of freak out.  At any rate, here are some photos of the beautiful scenery there. 

The most adorable tour guide

Eucalyptus trees (Gum trees) - Sadly, no koalas in these ones :-(

Australian Bottle Trees

Kookaburra spotting!

Japanese Gardens

America- Land of Butterfinger, Slurpees, and Pop Tarts

For the past few months, I've been doing some on-call relief teacher work here.  I really enjoy working with the kiddos and being back in the classroom a few times a week.  Usually when I show up, the kids are interested to know where I'm from, and they usually ask me a few questions about my accent (it still feels strange to hear people say I have an accent) or want to know about typical American things and then that's the end of it.  But most recently, one of the kids (I think he was about 13) practically put me through a full-length interview about being from America and things that he has heard about or associated with America.  His questions were pretty rapid fire- hardly leaving me time to answer most of the time.  It was pretty hilarious. 

Student: You're American, aren't you?

Me: Yep!

Student: Where are you from?

Me: Well, I've lived in lots of places- Arizona, California, ....

Student (immediately latching on to California): Have you ever seen any celebrities? 

Me: Actually, no not really.  Well not really any major celebrities.  (This was pretty disappointing to him)

Student: Do you like to eat Butterfingers?  I had Butterfinger BB's once. 

Me: Yes, sometimes. 

Student: What about PopTarts?  Do you drink slurpees a lot?  Do you eat Cap'n Crunch for breakfast?  We have Oreos here, but not those double-stuffed ones.  Do you like the double-stuffed Oreos?

Student: Do you listen to Ryan Seacrest on the radio?  Do you watch American Idol?  You know Keith Urban is a judge on that show, and he's from Australia.

Me: Yes, I did know that.  And yes, I love watching American Idol!

Student:  What's the last letter in the alphabet?

Me: Z (Zee). 

Student (laughs and calls out to his classmates): She says the last letter of the alphabet is "zee"
(Australians say "zed"- so weird to me)

Student:  Say banana.

Me: Banana (pronounced "buh-nan-uh")

Student (laughing again): Americans say it so funny.  You're supposed to say buh-nah-nah.

It was so funny to hear all the things he associated with Americans.  Who knew we were known for Butterfingers and double-stuffed Oreos?!  He also asked me if I had ever taught in a school where there had been a shooting.  That was definitely sobering... I guess they hear about them so much, that to him he probably thought it was pretty likely that I had experienced that.  Sad.  But that's a story for another day...

Another Aussie Extreme- the SUN!

Although I tend to poke fun at many parts of Australian culture and customs, there's one part that I've really come to appreciate- and admire really.  And that is their culture and attitudes regarding sun protection. 

While I don't know the exact statistics, I do know that Australia has/had historically experienced some of the highest incidence of skin cancer in the world, even highest in the state of Queensland (where we happen to be living).  Australia in general, and especially Queensland, has very high UV levels year-round due to the fact that the sun is almost always directly above throughout the day (which is also why there aren't really seasons here).  This map shows the typical UV levels in the country:

See how pretty much the whole country is in that 11+ Extreme area?  Yikes!  Honestly, though, you can FEEL that extreme sun even without having seen this map- you can just tell that the sun is super strong here.  I mean, I've lived in areas known for sun/heat (Arizona, California, Texas), but they truly don't compare to the sun's strength here. 

However, in recent decades, Australia has really made a big social shift in their attitudes toward sun protection and skin cancer prevention.  There are tons of campaigns, commercials, etc.  There's even a whole government council dedicated to this cause.  It's really pretty cool if you ask me. 

Uniforms are worn in almost all of the schools here, and part of that uniform is a sun hat- even in high school.  Seriously.  Kids are not allowed to play at recess if they don't have their hats.  They're kind of silly looking hats, but the kids look cute in them in my opinion.  Also, the playgrounds tend to have many more constructed areas for shade than schools in the US. 

The hats usually look something like this. 

Even adults are usually seen wearing sun hats when out even for short periods of time in the sun.  Aussie's still love their beaches, but you're much more likely to see people with hats, wearing swim shirts/rash guards, and/or sitting in sun tents.  It's much more "socially-acceptable" and pretty much a norm here to protect yourself from the sun.  Which I find very refreshing- and different from "sun culture" in the US. 

Of course, I admit that I do sometimes still think that tan skin is more attractive, I enjoy sun bathing at the beach as much as the next person, and (unfortunately) I have had my fair share of bad sunburns (which I SO regret now).  However, because of a strong history of skin cancer on both sides of my family, and my own incidence of skin cancer about two years ago at just 26 years old, I really have to be very careful with the sun.  And my attitudes have really begun to change.  So I really appreciate the sun safety culture here.  It makes it much easier for me to be "proud" of my fair fair skin and to remember that it actually just means my skin is healthy.  It's just not worth it to me anymore. 

So, Australia, even though I may poke fun at many aspects of your culture like your tendency to abbreviate everything, your obsession with neon colors, your affinity for beet root (oops, I'm doing it again!), I do appreciate and really admire this element of your culture and attitudes.  Take note, America! 

Recent Baking Adventures

It's no surprise that my "Sweet Tooth" board on Pinterest has the most pins out of all my boards.  I admit, I have a major sweet tooth.  And it doesn't help that I really enjoy baking (much more so than cooking).  Good thing I don't actually let myself bake all that often, or I'd really be in trouble.  Recently, I've tried two new Pinterest-inspired baking recipes that have become immediate favorites.  I'm sharing the links to the recipes below, and I highly suggest that you add these to your "must bake" list.  You won't regret it. 

**Nutella-Stuffed Brown Butter and Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies**

I've made these cookies twice and I was equally impressed both times.  I'm not going to re-type the recipe here, because I think the original recipe author deserves the credit (and I'm just too lazy for that).  Plus, her pictures and explanation are way better than mine.  Here is the link:

Nutella-Stuffed Brown Butter and Sea Salt Chocolate Chip Cookies

A few tips from my experience baking these:

-It DOES seem like an annoying step to brown the butter, but ohmygoditmakesahugedifference!  So worth it!  I am seriously considering using browned butter every time I make any kind of cookie from here on out. 

-Speaking of browned butter- just like the recipe says, it seems to take a long time, and I started to think maybe I didn't do it right or maybe I waited too long.  Then all of a sudden you do notice that the butter starts to turn an orange-y color and it really does begin to smell nutty.  Watch it carefully, or you'll miss/burn it. 

-I found that chilling the dough did help, but for me, the time she suggested made the dough much too difficult to work with.  The second time I made these, I chilled it just for an hour and that seemed to work better for me. 

 

 

**Cabernet Ganache Swirled Brownies**

I made these just this past weekend for an "Afternoon Tea and Cake" party I was invited to.  With brownies, I am usually pretty loyal to a homemade family recipe that I've used forever, but when I saw that this recipe incorporated wine, I had to try it out.  They turned out great- so delicious!  If you didn't know there was wine in the brownies, I don't know that you would necessarily identify wine as the flavor in the brownies, but there is definitely a notably different (good!) taste to these brownies. This recipe just added more evidence to my argument that wine really does make everything better.  Here is the link:

Cabernet Ganache Swirled Brownies

A few tips from my experience baking these:
-My batter didn't seem to be as thick as it looked in the recipe pictures, but the brownies still turned out fine.  Looking back on this, it probably had something to do with me being a little heavy-handed when I poured the wine.  Oops :-)  I will measure more carefully next time. 

-The recipe author says to let the brownies set for at least a couple hours.  I didn't listen, because it was late and I HAD to try these before I went to bed, and the brownies were pretty gooey.  I like gooey brownies, but these had me a little worried.  I stuck them back in the oven for about 5 minutes (yes, with a piece already cut out), and then exercised better patience and self-control and let them set over night.  They were perfect by morning!

Happy baking!  Enjoy! :-) 

The Bachelor Watch/Text Parties

I'm just going to come right out and say it- I am an avid Bachelor/Bachelorette watcher.  I'm not even going to try and make myself feel better about it by calling it a "guilty pleasure" or a "vice."  Because I don't feel bad about it- I downright enjoy it.  I look forward to it each week.  If you've known me for very long, you'll know that reality TV is my favorite genre of television, but I won't get into the giant list of shows on my must-watch list- for now.  I also have to admit that after I got over the initial shock that we were moving to Australia, one of my biggest concerns was truly, "How will I watch my reality TV shows?!"  But, gotta love my technology geek husband, he figured out a way for me to still have access to these shows from down under even before we moved.  Phew! 
*If you find yourself in this predicament while overseas, I've included a link at the bottom to the website that we use to "unblock" these typically US-only websites.

Anyways, I digress- back to the Bachelor.  I was truly disappointed when I learned that this season's bachelor would be Sean.  To me he's pretty boring, but of course I still feel obligated to watch each episode.  Don't worry, I don't take the show too seriously.  One of the best parts of watching is poking fun of the ridiculous situations, crazy amount of tears, and excessively dramatic situations among the contestants.  However, this is a much more fun activity to do with other people watching with you!  Every once in a while, I can get my husband to take part in this fun-making with me, but that's pretty rare.  I'm still trying to make friends and make a good first impression around here, so I figure it's probably in my best interest not to reveal my affinity for The Bachelor quite yet.  Which is why I am SO glad, that my sister watches "with me."  It is so fun each week to coordinate a time to "watch" together (one in Australia, one in Seattle) and exchange commentary via excessive amounts of texts throughout the episode. 

Here's a look at some of our exchanges. 

First episode commentary: 

 

 

Neither of us are really all that impressed with Sean:

 

 

On Sean's tendency to begin each episode half naked.. aaaannndd another shattered rose foreshadowing:

 

 

Excitement at the prospect of TWO episodes next week... and some more Tierra hating:

 

Oh! And if you watch the Bachelor too (Come on, I KNOW we are not the only two!), you should check out this blog.  She does hilarious recaps after each show (they are often times more entertaining than the show itself).  Beware: she's pretty vulgar in her recaps, but she is so spot-on with her evaluations of the ridiculousness of it all. 

 

*If you're living abroad and want to get access to US website such as Pandora, Hulu, Netflix, etc., check out this website called Unblock US.  Basically, for about $5 a month, you register with them and they somehow assign you a US IP Address so you can use those websites just like you would if you were in the states. I'm not sure of the technicalities of it, but it works- trust me!  You can use it on multiple devices- we have ours on our laptops and our Roku.  Life changer for sure! 

Extremes

I've come to realize that Australia is a land of extremes.  Nothing here is really ever normal, standard, common, etc.  Most things exist and occur in extreme states. 

Exhibit A: Bugs

It wouldn't be enough for the bugs and spiders here to be "normal-sized."  Nope- not in Australia.  Here, these critters must be at least as large as your palm- at least. 

Exhibit B: Snakes

I grew up in the desert, so snakes weren't exactly all that scary or foreign to me, but that doesn't mean I ever liked them. The silly rattlesnakes in Arizona of course are nothing compared to snakes in Oz.  It absolutely terrifies me to know that the top two most venomous snakes in the world live not just in this country, but in that Australian state that we now call home- Queensland.  What an honor?  Take a look at this list of the top 25 most venomous snakes in the world.  Notice how just about ALL of them are on this lovely continent?!  Makes you glad that at least this is an island, so they are technically stuck here... unlucky for me...

Exhibit C: The weather

Well I guess there are not extreme COLD temperatures here, but the heat is definitely extreme!  It's been in the 90's and 100's here for what seems like months now.  And just when I started to hear about extreme droughts and bush fires (that's what they call wild fires here), the extreme RAIN comes along.  It started raining last night around dinner time.  It has not stopped once since then.  And it is supposed to be this way through Sunday.  And in true Aussie-fashion, it's not just regular rain, it's some of the hardest and loudest downpours I've ever experienced.  We went from droughts (which was evident in our sad, dead lawn) to flash flood watches and a pond in our yard.  In the span of 12 hours (9AM to 9PM), five inches of rain has fallen!  I've always been one who prefers warm weather and sunny skies, but this is actually kind of a nice change seeing as how I've had blazing heat and sun since May basically.  But again, I like these types of days in small doses, so ask me again later in the week how much I like it.

About 9:00 this morning

5:00 PM - Street Drains starting to overflow

 

Learning A (New?) Language

JUST when I think that my ear has become accustomed to the Australian accent and some of the typical Aussie slang and abbreviations of oh, EVERYTHING, (which I've talked about before here) I see this commercial on TV. 

No joke, I think I can understand about ten words in that commercial.  Granted, this commercial is a little bit exaggerated.  It was created to celebrate the upcoming "Australia Day" (which is kind of like their Independence Day- only without the independence part and just lots of Aussie pride).  So the commercial is basically trying to use as many Aussie-isms as possible.  It was a big deal that in honor of this holiday, McDonald's officially accepted the Aussie abbreviation of "Maccas" to be used in their advertisements. 

I just had to share this commercial with you all, because it gives you a really good idea of how truly different American English is from Aussie English.  Some days it really feels like we might as well be speaking different languages.  As if the accent wasn't enough, their extensive slang and abbreviation of nearly everything makes deciphering what someone is saying sometimes impossible.  I typically give myself three chances to ask, "huh?," or "what was that?" and if I still don't understand what is being said or asked after that point, I just randomly answer yes, no, or just smile and nod.