Hey family!
I haven't talked to you in forever, thanks to your crazy DST change. Now you are only on when I'm in class. Boo for that. Anyway, I wanted to share something! I have been researching trips to Hawaii for you! I know, I'm an awesome daughter. Anyway, 2 seniors, 1 adult, and 2 kiddies under 18 can stay for 5 days/4 nights for as little as $4,000 total, flights (from and back to GSP) and hotels included...and I've only looked in one place! Soooooooo...what d'ya say guys? Grammy? lol...I'll leave you to work on the money and/or give me an excuse to start looking around. Someone needs to buy the tranks for Emily to get knocked out for the flight. Hopefully I'll see y'all in Hawaii for July 4:) Love you and I'll hopefully talk to you soon!
-Jess
PS- Emily, you could ride the train by yourself from Greenville to New Orleans for 15 hours, then from there to LA for 47 hours if you really, really wanted to...you'd just have to leave 3 days before everyone else:P
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Fun Day
Hello all!
Today was an outdoors-y day and I have to farmers' tan to show for it. We went to Pallarenda Beach to collect some data for my marine bio class. We just ran transects down from the top to the water of the beach. It was nice and toasty, even though the clouds were out. I had lost track of time before we left, so I barely had time to eat lunch, let alone apply sunscreen. Since the cyclone was still kinda near, I figured we'd get a bit of rainy or super cloudy weather, so I didn't worry about it. Like I said: farmers' tan. Anyway, after we ran our transects and collected soil data, we got to do some fun stuff like look for random creatures. We found all kinds of stuff, but my favorite were the sand dollars. I now know what to look for to find them: little trails that end with a round bit of dirt. Hard to describe, but I would have a picture if my camera wasn't out of commision. Anyway, I got to hold real, live sand dollars and they're pretty awesome. Just so you know. When I get my camera back, I'll go out searching and send pictures:)
After we got back I was starving and was trying to figure out what I could have for dinner, since I have all of nothing left (running to Woolies tomorrow!). Then I remembered it was Sunday, which meant free dinner from church! Woo! They're a life saver. Plus, it was the week for a house party after church for the 17-22 year olds, so we got even more little snacks after. One of these snacks was delicious, and I'll have to make it when I get home. You know how you take regular corn chips and put melted chedder cheese on them? Not nacho dip stuff, but cheese, cheese? Well, try it on Doritoes. Pretty much delicious. And whenever I go somewhere that has little finger foods, they always have these little pancake-y things that are a bit sweeter than pancakes. I'm looking into how to make them...anyway, they are delicious, and you put jam or cream or whatever you want on top of them. DELICIOUS. Don't worry guys back in the states, I'm going to find recipes for all of this stuff and make it when I get home. Meagan and Sham should be excited!
Today I got word that I'll get to start volunteering at the Billabong Sanctuary this weekend. I can't though, because of young adults camp, but I'll start the next weekend. It's going to be pretty awesome, I hope. I'll keep you updated. At the least, it'll be cool to put on the resume that I worked with native Australian wildlife:)
I don't have any class tomorrow, so Leandra and I are going on a job hunting mission. I need more money for travel and diving, and I don't want to use mom and dad's money any more than I already have (thanks again parents! Hopefully I can pay you back one day!). Mama gave me permission to buy a $500 Nikon DSLR, but I can't bring myself to buy it. I really want it, but I don't know if I'll use it enough to justify spending that much. Plus, I'd want some sweet macro and zoom lenses that would cost even more. I'll wait until Emily marries her rich man and make her buy it for me as a present;)
In the mean-time, pictures will be few and far between. I sent my beloved camera back to the states, safely smothered in bubble wrap, on Friday, and it should take a week to get to SC. Then mom's going to send it to Canon, and if they can't fix it or send me a new one, I think I might cry. Cash is all well and good, but I don't have the time to shop around from Australia and get my parents to send me a new one. Oh well, at least I haven't lost my camera like I know at least two people have already!
Speaking of LOST, that's the biggest thing I miss. It's not that it's even missing. It just airs 4 weeks behind the US here. And at 10:30pm on Wednesdays. I've just been buying it from iTunes, but I usually don't get to watch it until Friday morning. Is it sad that I get up at 8am, even though I don't have a class until 11am, just to watch LOST as soon as humanly possible? Don't worry, I only have one more season of obsession left after this. I think I've watched every episode this season at least 2 or 3 times. Twice from iTunes, then one more when it airs here. You just can't substitute watching it on an actual tv. The only bad thing is I can't annoy my friends and talk to them during the commercial about theories and stuff. Oh well, I have my Jay and Jack podcast which fills in some of that void.
Okay, so I've rambled along for awhile now, so I'm going to get some psych reading done and head to bed. Wish me luck on the job hunt! Miss y'all!
-Jess
Today was an outdoors-y day and I have to farmers' tan to show for it. We went to Pallarenda Beach to collect some data for my marine bio class. We just ran transects down from the top to the water of the beach. It was nice and toasty, even though the clouds were out. I had lost track of time before we left, so I barely had time to eat lunch, let alone apply sunscreen. Since the cyclone was still kinda near, I figured we'd get a bit of rainy or super cloudy weather, so I didn't worry about it. Like I said: farmers' tan. Anyway, after we ran our transects and collected soil data, we got to do some fun stuff like look for random creatures. We found all kinds of stuff, but my favorite were the sand dollars. I now know what to look for to find them: little trails that end with a round bit of dirt. Hard to describe, but I would have a picture if my camera wasn't out of commision. Anyway, I got to hold real, live sand dollars and they're pretty awesome. Just so you know. When I get my camera back, I'll go out searching and send pictures:)
After we got back I was starving and was trying to figure out what I could have for dinner, since I have all of nothing left (running to Woolies tomorrow!). Then I remembered it was Sunday, which meant free dinner from church! Woo! They're a life saver. Plus, it was the week for a house party after church for the 17-22 year olds, so we got even more little snacks after. One of these snacks was delicious, and I'll have to make it when I get home. You know how you take regular corn chips and put melted chedder cheese on them? Not nacho dip stuff, but cheese, cheese? Well, try it on Doritoes. Pretty much delicious. And whenever I go somewhere that has little finger foods, they always have these little pancake-y things that are a bit sweeter than pancakes. I'm looking into how to make them...anyway, they are delicious, and you put jam or cream or whatever you want on top of them. DELICIOUS. Don't worry guys back in the states, I'm going to find recipes for all of this stuff and make it when I get home. Meagan and Sham should be excited!
Today I got word that I'll get to start volunteering at the Billabong Sanctuary this weekend. I can't though, because of young adults camp, but I'll start the next weekend. It's going to be pretty awesome, I hope. I'll keep you updated. At the least, it'll be cool to put on the resume that I worked with native Australian wildlife:)
I don't have any class tomorrow, so Leandra and I are going on a job hunting mission. I need more money for travel and diving, and I don't want to use mom and dad's money any more than I already have (thanks again parents! Hopefully I can pay you back one day!). Mama gave me permission to buy a $500 Nikon DSLR, but I can't bring myself to buy it. I really want it, but I don't know if I'll use it enough to justify spending that much. Plus, I'd want some sweet macro and zoom lenses that would cost even more. I'll wait until Emily marries her rich man and make her buy it for me as a present;)
In the mean-time, pictures will be few and far between. I sent my beloved camera back to the states, safely smothered in bubble wrap, on Friday, and it should take a week to get to SC. Then mom's going to send it to Canon, and if they can't fix it or send me a new one, I think I might cry. Cash is all well and good, but I don't have the time to shop around from Australia and get my parents to send me a new one. Oh well, at least I haven't lost my camera like I know at least two people have already!
Speaking of LOST, that's the biggest thing I miss. It's not that it's even missing. It just airs 4 weeks behind the US here. And at 10:30pm on Wednesdays. I've just been buying it from iTunes, but I usually don't get to watch it until Friday morning. Is it sad that I get up at 8am, even though I don't have a class until 11am, just to watch LOST as soon as humanly possible? Don't worry, I only have one more season of obsession left after this. I think I've watched every episode this season at least 2 or 3 times. Twice from iTunes, then one more when it airs here. You just can't substitute watching it on an actual tv. The only bad thing is I can't annoy my friends and talk to them during the commercial about theories and stuff. Oh well, I have my Jay and Jack podcast which fills in some of that void.
Okay, so I've rambled along for awhile now, so I'm going to get some psych reading done and head to bed. Wish me luck on the job hunt! Miss y'all!
-Jess
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Clemson Football Makes It To Townsville, Australia
So, I was casually flipping through the local newspaper today. All of a sudden I stumbled across a picture of two football players, which caught my attention because that's not usually a common occurrence in Australia. So I looked a little closer and noticed the orange and purple jersey. WHAT? Super awesome blast from home. Here's the picture :
How random is that? I was so shocked. The newspaper page is now hanging on my door for all to see. I love my Tigers!
-Jess
This was the 2006 Clemson/GA Tech game. It's Tyler Grisham getting clothes-lined by GT safety Djay Jones after a pass reception. The Tigers won 31-7:)Pic of the Week: Isn't the idea of the game supposed to be play the ball, not the player? This American grid-iron player doesn't seem worried about the ball at all, but more concerned with making a point with his opponent.
How random is that? I was so shocked. The newspaper page is now hanging on my door for all to see. I love my Tigers!
-Jess
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Fun Times Ahead
So, it's pretty crazy to think that it's snowing at home, and here it is currently 88 degrees and feels like it's 97. That's SC summer time weather! It's soooo warm, especially when I'm walking AT LEAST 15-20 minutes to each class...one way. I walk 40 minutes roundtrip for a 50 minute class...I should really invest in a bike, but I'm hoping that the walking will help me shed some of the pounds I've acquired in the past year. We'll see!
Anyway, my camera decided that it wanted to bail on me this week. I dropped it about a week before I left and the casing popped out. I figured that I would make due, because the only problem was that the flash took forever to work. Well, now the flash doesn't want to work at all. Sadness. So I've got to figure out if I want to send it home for the warranty to cover it, or find a place here. Hopefully somewhere around here will be able to (cheaply) help me out!
This and next weekend are going to be full of stuff to do. On Saturday, I'm going to try out a new sport for me: water polo. Don't worry mom, it's a lot less dangerous than rugby, which I could be joining! lol...and I'm also going to a surprise birthday party for one of the girls in my bible study. On Sunday I have a field trip to Pallendra Beach for my Functional Biology of Marine Organisms class...we're learning about the critters who hang out in the soft-sediment regions. Should be fun. Then next week I'm going to the Young Adults Camp at Arlie Beach, and we're going to go snorkling and ocean rafting in the Whitsundays and visit Queensland's Most Beautiful Beach, Whitehaven Beach. It's going to be a great weekend of fun and fellowship:)
UPDATE: I got toasted simply walking to class today. FUN! I need to just start walking around campus in in a bathing suit to even out:P
On a random note, here are some random Aussie words and phrases I hear on a daily basis:
"How ya goin'?"
"Good on ya!"
"Give it a go"
"No worries"
Buggered = tired
Mozzies = mosquitoes
Arvo = afternoon
Biscuit = cookie
Brekkie = breakfast
Footy = Australian rules football
Icy pole = ice pop
Lollies = candy
Chocko = chocolate
Chips = french fries
Rubbish = trash
Sunnies = sunglasses
Togs = bothing suit
Thongs = flip-flops
And speaking of togs, here's a funny commercial. Enjoy!
-Jess
Anyway, my camera decided that it wanted to bail on me this week. I dropped it about a week before I left and the casing popped out. I figured that I would make due, because the only problem was that the flash took forever to work. Well, now the flash doesn't want to work at all. Sadness. So I've got to figure out if I want to send it home for the warranty to cover it, or find a place here. Hopefully somewhere around here will be able to (cheaply) help me out!
This and next weekend are going to be full of stuff to do. On Saturday, I'm going to try out a new sport for me: water polo. Don't worry mom, it's a lot less dangerous than rugby, which I could be joining! lol...and I'm also going to a surprise birthday party for one of the girls in my bible study. On Sunday I have a field trip to Pallendra Beach for my Functional Biology of Marine Organisms class...we're learning about the critters who hang out in the soft-sediment regions. Should be fun. Then next week I'm going to the Young Adults Camp at Arlie Beach, and we're going to go snorkling and ocean rafting in the Whitsundays and visit Queensland's Most Beautiful Beach, Whitehaven Beach. It's going to be a great weekend of fun and fellowship:)
UPDATE: I got toasted simply walking to class today. FUN! I need to just start walking around campus in in a bathing suit to even out:P
On a random note, here are some random Aussie words and phrases I hear on a daily basis:
"How ya goin'?"
"Good on ya!"
"Give it a go"
"No worries"
Buggered = tired
Mozzies = mosquitoes
Arvo = afternoon
Biscuit = cookie
Brekkie = breakfast
Footy = Australian rules football
Icy pole = ice pop
Lollies = candy
Chocko = chocolate
Chips = french fries
Rubbish = trash
Sunnies = sunglasses
Togs = bothing suit
Thongs = flip-flops
And speaking of togs, here's a funny commercial. Enjoy!
-Jess
Monday, March 2, 2009
Random Tidbits From Home
So, today (March 1st in South Carolina) it snowed! I thought this was going to be a snowless winter for my home town, but apparently they decided to have a late snowfall. Good luck to the school kids wanting a snow day! UPDATE: As of 2am, Belton time, there are about 5 inches of snow on the ground. Wow!
And on an even more awesome note, Emily sent me a message today telling me that my wonderful cousin Joesee had her baby!!! Collin Barnes was born at 9:35 a.m. on Sunday, March 1, 2009, weighing 5 lbs and 15 oz. I'm so sad that I can't be there right now and welcome him into the world. One of the first things on my agenda is to visit and see the bouncing baby boy and his beautiful mom!
-Jess
And on an even more awesome note, Emily sent me a message today telling me that my wonderful cousin Joesee had her baby!!! Collin Barnes was born at 9:35 a.m. on Sunday, March 1, 2009, weighing 5 lbs and 15 oz. I'm so sad that I can't be there right now and welcome him into the world. One of the first things on my agenda is to visit and see the bouncing baby boy and his beautiful mom!
-Jess
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Classes and an Island Get-Away
Hey guys! Much to update you about. First of all, classes started and they seem pretty cool. By far my favorite is definitely going to be Australian Vert. Fauna. I can see it already. The classes look like I'm going to have to put in some work, but it's going to be fun with the field trips I get to take!
Last week, I started going to a church here in Townsville, and it's nice because they send a bus to pick up all of the students on campus that want to go. And, the big hook, they feed us dinner on Sundays! It's pretty awesome and I've met a ton of pretty awesome kids. I even won two free movie tickets! I'll just have to find a ride and a friend to go to the theater. After the service every other week, all of the young adults go to a "house party," where we can hang out, eat snacks, play billiards or Wii or even watch a movie. I even got involved with one of the connect groups, which is a bible study. Last week we went to Georgia and Elle's place. It's so good getting a
chance to get off campus and hang out.
Speaking of getting off campus, yesterday, we went to Magnetic Island, also known as Maggie. We took a bus down to the ferry terminal and then the ferry out to the island. It is soooooooo pretty there. If you want to go swimming, you have to go where it is netted off so that the jellyfish can't get you. And even if you are swimming there, the Irukandji Jellyfish are so tiny that they can slip through and get you. Plus, they're really dangerous. We decided to stay out of the ocean water.
First we visited Horseshoe Bay and hung out there for a while. Then, we bussed over to Arcadia, because we'd heard about a waterfall there. Well, we jumped off the bus and had to climb a crazy step road (which is actually a walking path. It takes about 2.5 hours one way to climb! I want to go back and try it, though!) and about 5 minutes up we found the waterfall. It was really cool, though not nearly as big as we'd thought it was. We jumped in the pool and just relaxed for awhile. Sitting in a pool in the jungle is the life! It really felt like paradise there.
After reluctantly leaving the waterfall, we went to grab some lunch. It took about forever, but it was okay...we just sat there looking at the ocean and talking. After lunch, we walked over to Alma Bay which was gorgeous. It was my favorite. It just seemed so deserted and it was cool to walk around and climb the rocks on the sides of the bay. I definitely want to go back there!
Here are some pictures to make y'all completely jealous:
Horseshoe Bay:
Arcadia Waterfall:
=
Alma Bay:
-Jess
Last week, I started going to a church here in Townsville, and it's nice because they send a bus to pick up all of the students on campus that want to go. And, the big hook, they feed us dinner on Sundays! It's pretty awesome and I've met a ton of pretty awesome kids. I even won two free movie tickets! I'll just have to find a ride and a friend to go to the theater. After the service every other week, all of the young adults go to a "house party," where we can hang out, eat snacks, play billiards or Wii or even watch a movie. I even got involved with one of the connect groups, which is a bible study. Last week we went to Georgia and Elle's place. It's so good getting a
chance to get off campus and hang out.
Speaking of getting off campus, yesterday, we went to Magnetic Island, also known as Maggie. We took a bus down to the ferry terminal and then the ferry out to the island. It is soooooooo pretty there. If you want to go swimming, you have to go where it is netted off so that the jellyfish can't get you. And even if you are swimming there, the Irukandji Jellyfish are so tiny that they can slip through and get you. Plus, they're really dangerous. We decided to stay out of the ocean water.
First we visited Horseshoe Bay and hung out there for a while. Then, we bussed over to Arcadia, because we'd heard about a waterfall there. Well, we jumped off the bus and had to climb a crazy step road (which is actually a walking path. It takes about 2.5 hours one way to climb! I want to go back and try it, though!) and about 5 minutes up we found the waterfall. It was really cool, though not nearly as big as we'd thought it was. We jumped in the pool and just relaxed for awhile. Sitting in a pool in the jungle is the life! It really felt like paradise there.
After reluctantly leaving the waterfall, we went to grab some lunch. It took about forever, but it was okay...we just sat there looking at the ocean and talking. After lunch, we walked over to Alma Bay which was gorgeous. It was my favorite. It just seemed so deserted and it was cool to walk around and climb the rocks on the sides of the bay. I definitely want to go back there!
Here are some pictures to make y'all completely jealous:
Horseshoe Bay:
Arcadia Waterfall:
=Alma Bay:
-Jess
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