Wild Wild Western Australia

Western Australia was jaw-droppingly incredible. It is still very untouched and untamed in many parts. After a day trip to Margaret River, we spent two days and camped for a night with my cousin and her husband on the deceptively named, Rottnest Island. It was paradise - we biked, snorkelled, and spotted wildlife all day long until we watched the sun set over the Indian Ocean. We even saw our first pink lakes, then had withdrawal after leaving the home of the adorably friendly and happy quokkas. 

Withdrawal didn't last too long as we flew north, then drove past hundreds(?) of gigantic termite mounds through the desert to the teeny tiny town of Coral Bay (population: 190) on Ningaloo Reef. The coral in the reef is still in good shape compared to the Great Barrier Reef, but it doesn't have as many colorful soft corals. We spent three out of four days on a boat all day, and were lucky enough to spot numerous pods of dolphins, snorkel with a 20 ft. whale shark, a reef shark cleaning station, green sea turtles, and gigantic manta rays while they were chaotically chain feeding. 

We had gorgeous weather the whole time - sunny and warm, but not hot. We were only gone just over a week, but it felt like we were gone for much longer, off in another world. 

Al and Kara's Wedding at Q Station

We just spent a whirlwind 24 hours at the historic Q Station with our frisbee friends for Al and Kara's wedding. We have known and played frisbee a lot with both of them since moving to Sydney; Al is originally from Ireland and Kara is originally from Canada. It was really fun taking over the whole compound, and the staff did a wonderful job of taking care of us. We stayed in groups in very comfy, not rustic cabins. There was an after-party after the reception, and then an after-after-party in one of the cabins, and quite a few people were up until sunrise. The party continued after we left today to get ready for our trip, but more in the form of relaxing at the beach and playing lawn games.

Q Station has some interesting wildlife, and we had some long-nosed bandicoot sightings at the after-party, a first for any wedding I've attended. No penguins this time, though. 

We had a great time and I can't wait for the next wedding, whosever it will be.

Holiday Road

Even though I'm off work for school holidays, it will be a busy week. Mike is back from the Philippines, we have a wedding tomorrow (yes, on a Thursday), and then we fly off to Western Australia to visit my cousin and play with wildlife. 

Stitches and Southpaws

This weekend, Mike is playing frisbee at the Boracay Open, his first frisbee tournament in Asia. From the bits and pieces I'm hearing, he's having a good time despite already needing to get some stitches on his eyebrow. I would have gone too, but we have a lot going on this coming week and I didn't want to be on trips back to back. 

Since Mike gave me the parting gift of his cold, I've been taking it easy when I haven't been working.  I saw some friends last night, and now I'm just getting some done around the apartment. 

This morning I took a "Learn to Crochet" class, to see if I would like it better than knitting. As it turns out, I do not. But, going to the class did highlight something for me that has always been an issue for me. I am left-handed. Being a left-handed person in a right-handed world, most left-handers and ambidextrous people are used to having to find ways to adapt at literally everything. Most right-handers don't even think about how many daily tasks involve handed-ness and dexterity, let alone specialized skills like playing string instruments and sports. There is an excellent book called The Left-Hander Syndrome by Stanley Coren, if you ever want to know amore about it. We make up about 10-15% of the population. 

Anyway, both learning to knit and crochet are more difficult for lefties because almost everyone teaches right-handed. I bet there are so few lefty teachers because all the lefties have teachers that don't know how to teach lefties, so the lefties never get good enough to teach. Anyway, they give a few tips that might help, but you're generally left to flounder and figure out the best way for yourself. I was particularly annoyed with the crochet teacher because she had taught long enough that she knew it was hard for lefties to follow the patterns chart; this is because if you crochet left-handed the chart is literally backwards or mirrored. She knew enough to tell me I should flip the pictures and reprint them. I don't carry around a computer and printer with me. If you knew that lady, why didn't you print some for the lefties that you say you have in every class?! That's like telling someone to translate some writing from English to Mandarin, but then to write it in backwards Mandarin, while everyone else in the class just has to copy sometime form English to English. It just took so much more effort for so little reward. I normally take pride in my southpawedness, but today I was just really annoyed. 

At least I was able to drown my sorrows in delicious, garlicky, olive oily, Vapiano pasta. Nobody cares if I hold my fork in my left hand there.

Easter Hat Facade

I find it absurd that I needed to have my public school second graders work on making and decorating Easter hats all week to wear in the school Easter Hat Parade next week. It is absurd because there is not one Christian kid in my class (I know this because I have a list of all the kids' main important info, which includes it), and the vast majority of them are Muslim. It is also absurd because all the secular Easter-themed decor uses pictures and colors associated with spring. It is autumn in the southern hemisphere right now. I am forcing Muslim children to celebrate Christian spring as the weather gets colder. 

In reality, I am not forcing anyone to do anything. I just told them to think of it like wishing a Chinese friend "Happy Chinese New Year", even if you're not Chinese. Just make a bright colorful hat, and if you want to, put a bunny or a chick or eggs on it. After getting over the initial fear that they were committing blasphemy, they are now loving it.

One kid took shiny plastic ribbon and made curly tendrils that hang down just from the sides of his hat. A bunch of the others saw it and liked it, so they did the same thing. So now it looks kind of like they are little Hasidic Jews when they wear their hats, and they have no idea. Their mothers are going to come to the Easter parade in their hijabs and wonder what we are teaching them. 

Explaining these things to parents is above my pay grade. 

Missing Richard Simmons

This week I have been listening to the NPR podcast, "Missing Richard Simmons", and I am loving it. I blew through the first episodes and only have one more to go, and it's really rare that I'll get through that much of one podcast in one week. 

First off, I just want to give a little more praise to my beloved NPR, for continuing to produce thought-provoking content of substance. They ask questions and incite you to ask questions of what you have experienced, think, and believe. It can be a nice break from all the political and disaster coverage of late, and the idolization of famous people we see in the tabloids and magazines. NPR often follows lesser-known stories about lesser-thought-of people, or scientific, philosophical, or ethical issues. 

Since a lot of my thoughts are summed up in the link above, I won't repeat most of the same stuff. I just love that the podcast examines the idea of how people feel like they know a celebrity, and whether they really do or not. It explores how unique Richard was as an icon. Most people think of him as an eccentric, silly fitness fanatic, but he literally saved some of his fans' lives by giving them very personal hope and encouragement to get through tough times. One of the questions the host asks again and again is, "Did he owe these people anything?", or was it fine that he built up this need in people for him, and then disappeared? Was it his okay for him to do that? The podcast explores how much Richard gave of himself, and how he would literally cry at almost all of his classes because what he was doing was so important to him, and how he felt about himself and about helping people. So, in some ways it was a two way street; he really needed all the people to need him.

I think these questions that come up about Richard can also be asked about the everyday relationships we have non-famous people throughout our lives. My friend who recommended the podcast to me said that it in some ways sums up how she feels about being a teacher and I can definitely relate to that sometimes. I imagine it could be the same way for doctors as well, from what my friends in the medical profession have told me. When you do a job where you are needed so much and so intensely sometimes, at the end of the day sometimes you need to feel not needed and to just disappear for an hour and let your emotions return to baseline. It makes you think, "How well do I really know the people I think I know?", and the nature of your relationships that are based on needs (isn't that most relationships, whether one-sided or mutual?).

Kudos, NPR!  

Scavenger

I was teaching a second grade class yesterday when I was told that the school received word that the teacher I was covering for just had to have her appendix removed. In addition to this, she was going to be away for the last week of the term anyway, since she will be getting married. Imagine having your appendix out 2 1/2 weeks before you're supposed to get married! Anyway, due to her misfortune, it is my fortune to be placed on the same class for the next 2 1/2 weeks. I haven't had the same group of kids for such a stretch of time in about 3 years, so it might actually be nice to have some semblance of normalcy in my work for a little while.