UNITED STATES OF IMISSYA:

Let me preface this entire post by saying that I am not homesick and I am not in stage 2 of culture shock.

When we arrived we got it beat into our head that we would go through culture shock and to be prepared for stage 2. What is stage 2? Well, I couldn’t tell ya and more than halfway through this trip, I don’t think I will know but we were told it would be the homesickness (is that a word) stage. We would get depressed, overeat, overdrink (um, hi we’re college students), cry, want to go home, blah, blah, blah, etc. etc. etc. I was afraid some Stage 2 monster was going to come hammer my head with an American flag or something. However, that has not been the case. I am proud to say, I have survived – I have defeated Stage 2.

With that said, I have compiled a list of some of the things I miss from back home:

Family: Wouldn’t have been funny if I left them off the list? What would they have thought? But seriously, I really do miss my Mom, Dad and sisters. I am fortunate they have been a huge part of my life and I am blessed that they have had such a positive influence on me. That extends (pun) to my extended family as well and my grandma who is fighting cancer right now. My thoughts and prayers are with her.

Nieces and Nephew: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know they technically are under the Family umbrella but they’re special, they get their own bullet point. Zayda, Garrett and Andra. I love ‘em all and miss getting to run around the house with them. I hope they haven’t forgotten who their Uncle J is. I must also mention that both of my sisters are currently pregnant and I miss watching them get fat ☺

Friends: Chances are, if you’re reading this I miss you. If you’re a stranger and you’re reading this, stop. That’s creepy.

Summer: This is a broad and vague category. For you geographically challenged (IU students/grads) Australia is in the Southern Hemisphere, which means it is winter here, which means it is around 60 everyday. I miss the heat and humidity of the Indiana summer. I know I am weird but I enjoy the humid weather. I figure if you’re going to be outside working, work up a sweat while you’re at it. I can’t wait to get back in the heat and humidity of the Indiana summer. Now some sub points under summer:

Umpiring: I am an IHSAA licensed umpire. I spent the majority of my summer last year umpiring baseball games. I miss being at the baseball field and most of all I miss the very very good money I was making.
Baseball: I miss baseball in general but especially my FIRST PLACE Cincinnati Reds. Yeah, all you cubbie fans read that correctly. The Reds are on top of the NL Central and actually competing for the first time in about 10 years…and I am on the other side of the planet. Perfect. I don’t think there is anything better than going to a baseball game, with a bag of peanuts and my dad. We share chocolate malt and life is good. I plan on doing this as soon as I get back.

Swimming: I love just hanging out at the pool and playing pool basketball with my friends – a favorite summer pastime of mine.

Grilling/cookouts: I love grilling and I love cookouts. I haven’t gotten to do either here in Australia. I hope there is enough summer left for me to enjoy these when I get back.

The 4th of July: Undoubtedly my favorite holiday. I love the season, I love the weather, I love the patriotism, I love eating a burger, hot dog and brat on the same day and I love lighting things on fire. It’s just an awesome time of the year. For whatever reason, Australians don’t celebrate America’s independence. How rude! I hope I can find some fireworks over here. If not I will just light my roommates’ stuff on fire and throw it off my balcony as I sing God Bless America.

ESPN: I miss being able to turn on the TV at any time and getting the latest sport news. They have sport channels over here – four of ‘em actually. Here’s what’s on those channels: Rugby, Rugby, Rugby and highlights of Rugby. I don’t get it and I don’t really have any desire to. Give me my highlights of baseball and golf and my daily dose of Tiger Woods coverage.

America News: We get some American news over here but it’s the trashy gossip celebrity news that I couldn’t care less about. For instance, Katy Perry was on the cover of one of the local newspapers yesterday.

Rascal: That’s my dog. Everyone over here has dogs and they take them everywhere. It just makes me want to have a dog that much more. Rascal may be getting up there in years and more lopsided (he has a fat tumor on one of his shoulders) by the day but I miss him.

Car: You might know him as Charlie. He’s a 2005 charcoal Ford Taurus - a well-oiled driving/transporting machine. I have had my fill of public transportation. I just wish I could hop in my car in the morning, blare some music and make my own commute to work in the morning. Side story. Yesterday, I was on the way to work on one of the buses and had my lunch in one hand and backpack in the other. Next thing I knew, we went around a round-a-bout and I was sitting in a guys lap. Not like the funny accidental bump. It was more like the embarrassing “hi, I’m American. Thanks for letting me use your lap as a landing base.”

INTERMISSION: Take a breath, take a walk. I didn’t know this list was going to grow to this. I just had to check over my shoulder to see if Stage 2 was creeping up on me. It wasn’t.

Mom’s cooking: I have ate very well here in Australia but still, nothing and I mean nothing can ever compare to my mom’s cooking. I can’t wait for some biscuits n’ gravy.
Boating: My family doesn’t have a boat but every summer I find a way to make it to a lake to do some boating. Whether it is with my friends, my sister’s friend, my brother-in-law’s family, my aunt and uncle or just a random connection, I make it to the lake for some tubing and attempts at skiing. My sister just got a boat this winter. I’m thinking I’ll need to test it out this summer once I get back.

Convenience: I made the decision to not purchase a cell phone and not purchase Internet over here. I figured it would help me save money and get more immersed in the Australian culture. I’m not addicted to my iphone but I do miss being able to use it to get updates on sports/news, directions and txt messages from friends and family. I have found ways to get Internet but I haven’t really missed it as much as I thought I would. It’s actually been a refreshing exercise to be “disconnected” at times.

Concerts: Specifically, the Dave Matthews Band concert. I have been going to DMB’s concerts for four or five years now and every year the two-night stand is two of the best nights of my summer. In the past he has came late in the summer such as August or late July. This year, he decided to come in June. I was really upset and then, he announced he won’t be touring next year! I have to find some way to make it to a concert once I get back but the way this is going I will also have to find some way to do that for free. There are also Jack Johnson, John Mayer, Kenny Chesney, Brooks and Dunn and Kings of Leon concerts I would like to go to but again, not sure that will fit in the budget when I get back.

Purdue University: People say they bleed gold and black. That’s ridiculous and I can’t imagine healthy. I take pride in my healthy red blood BUT I eat, sleep, dream and breathe gold and black. Even when I use the restrooms the colors are typically … sorry I just couldn’t finish that sentence. Use your imagination. I know I wouldn’t be spending much time there this summer and I would probably miss it if I were at home. I miss wearing a Purdue shirt around and people asking me if I go there and responding yes and they kind of raise their eyebrows in the “wow, I’m impressed. I couldn’t get in so I just went to IU” kind of way. I miss being able to bash my IU friends on how bad they are at well, everything ☺ Okay, I’ll stop with the IU bashing. I don’t want to offend anyone (but seriously IU students can’t read so I’m not too worried).

Sports Information: I spend a lot of time working sporting events and office hours during the school year. I am fortunate that I love my job and I really enjoy the people I work with. Not to mention, a steady flow of income would be really nice right about now.

Roommates: Tay Tay, Lewis and Grandpa. I miss those guys and all of our shenanigans. Tay Tay and Grandpa, I will be visiting Tipton when I get back.

Golf: Typically, I spend a lot of time on the golf course during the summer. That has not been the case. I want to play while I am over here but I imagine greens fees plus renting clubs will cost anywhere from $80 to $1million.

Friends’ Birthdays: One of my really good friends has already turned 21 and is currently in Vegas and I am going to miss two of my other best friends’ 21st birthdays. I wish I was there and could “take care” of them the same way my friends “took care” of me on my 21st. As the Aussies would say, “You got fuzzy.”

The “right” side of the road: Right as in correct and right as in the right side of the road. They drive on the left and their steering wheel is on the right. It takes some getting used to. And then there’s the awkward situation where two people are walking right at each other and being American my natural instinct is to go right but that won’t work because the Aussie’s natural instinct is to go left. It’d be less confusing if I could just wear a sign: “Hi, I’m a tourist.”

The empirical system: Yeah, I get it the metric system makes more sense and the empirical system makes no sense what so ever. I don’t care. Give me my inches, pounds, feet, miles, and ounces. And for the love of all things good, can I PLEASE get a temperature in Fahrenheit. I turn on the news in the morning and they tell me it is going to be 18. This means absolutely nothing to me. Can you please just tell me if I can wear shorts? I think the whole world should switch to a universal wardrobe temperature system. I can see Al Roker now, “Today’s high is going to be shorts and a t-shirt with a low of you might want carry a jacket with you.” It’s perfect. I’m copywriting this.

Real Football: It’s almost training camp time and I haven’t heard a word about it. Can someone update me, how many times as Brett Favre retired and unretired since I’ve been gone?

Welcome: Everything is “cheers” or “no worries” here. The “no worries” takes the place of welcome and ends up sounding like “nawawwies” with their accent. I’ve actually started saying “no worries” without even thinking about it.

Money: I’m really glad America doesn’t have coins worth more than a quarter that we use often. I will stand at a cash register with a handful of change look at it, look at the person operating the cash register, look back at my hand and eventually they get the message and take the exact change right out of my hand. It’s easier than me inspecting every coin to see how much it’s worth and then having to do the math.

Money: I miss having money and so does my bank account.
School of Management Council: Lots of great friends, lots of great work. Can’t wait to start another semester.

Basketball: Last year, I spent many summer nights playing basketball. I love basketball. If I could do anything in the world it would be playing basketball. I can’t put it into words. It is not a big sport over here and I haven’t even got to watch the NBA finals. I miss basketball. I need basketball. It’s therapy.

Running: I had enough space for one extra pair of shoes. It was between my basketball shoes and running shoes. I went with the basketball since I knew I was working at a sport center. Bad choice. I haven’t been on a basketball court.

Reasonable prices: It might be a good thing I am not going to have any money when I get back. Otherwise, I would probably just blow it all anyway. I’ve grown so accustom to the outrageous prices here, I would be tempted to blow it all on stupid cheap stuff back in the states.

Cold drinks: The ice over here is terrible. If anyone has been to Europe or Asia, they know foreigners are stingy with their ice. It’s the same here. No ice or very little ice. Bottled and canned drinks are outrageously priced (think ~$30 for a 24 pack of diet coke). All I end up drinking is lukewarm tap water. Wonderful.

Cheap Beer: This one was contributed by Bo Dietrick. I wouldn’t know, I’ve never bought beer ;)

Well, loyal followers that ought to keep you busy for the weekend. I might add more to this list later as I find more but for now, that is all. Until next time…

Cheers!