'Murica

It was a whirlwind trip back to Virginia. I appreciated being back in the land of convenience, driving on the right side of the road, and finally watching a World Cup game at a reasonable hour, even if the U.S. unfortunately lost. I enjoyed simple pleasures like a potluck with a few friends, taking my younger cousins to the pool on a hot summer afternoon, and visiting a family friend's newborn baby.  On my bike rides on the W&OD trail I saw several deer, red cardinals, and baby bunnies. 

The highlights of the wedding I attended in Richmond include distracting a horse from eating the bride's bouquet by poking it with a parasol, learning the Virginia Reel, and eating too many Dixie Donuts, Pantheon Pops, and BBQ. The rehearsal dinner was on the 4th of July and everyone wore red, white, and blue; I couldn't have come back to attend a more American wedding.

It's good to see that everyone at home is doing well, but not overly well, in our absence. There have been small changes here and there for some friends and family, and a few big life-changing events for others. I suppose that's about right for five months' time. 

Just when I was starting to get used to the time change, I had to confuse my body all over again and come back to Australia. As nice as it was to have a summer break, I'm perfectly content back in Sydney winter weather. This afternoon as I walked to the store in my neighborhood with the weather sunny and in the 60's, I had to scoff when I overheard an elderly woman talking to her neighbor saying that the "cold" winter weather was "dreadful". 

On a completely unrelated note having to deal with punctuation, I've noticed that people in Australia do not use the Oxford comma, and I do. I refuse to stop using because of this reason:

Come on, Aussies, get with the program. 

Anyway, it's good to be back in my home away from home.