Thanksgiving and... December?

Time flies when you're having fun is for sure an understatement.  Realizing that I have two weeks left, it is December, and I will be home in less than 20 days is astonishing.  Sorry for not posting much recently.  I'll try and update you of life since Cairns.


The week after we returned was Thanksgiving week.  It was definitely the most homesick I've been throughout the entire trip.  Friday morning was the long awaited Australia vs. U.S.A. Cricket match.  We gathered some beers, put on some makeshift uniforms with sharpie tattoos which ranged from an American flag to "Liberty" and took the field against our Aussie mates.  The turnout was not quite what we were expecting, but the beers were cold and the sun was out, so it was a great day.  When we only lost by a little bit, we were quite proud of our Yank team since we were expecting quite the humiliation on the cricket grounds.  As the game dispersed, we all headed back to our rooms to get ready for the night.  Most of the Americans in our group were getting together for a nice Thanksgiving feast.  While it was hard for me to miss this, I had other plans.


My friend James invited me to his 21st birthday dinner on Friday night.  I felt very honored because it was a very big dinner that he was treating 20 of his closest friends to.  Some of them there had known him for 18 years.  I met him less than 18 weeks ago.   James, the Vice President of the Golf Club, had actually just gotten into golf a few months ago.  For those of you that looked up the results from Perth, his was the score that you had to do a double-take of.  Regardless, we love him anyway.  Andrew organized for a few of us to go in together and we got him a nice 3wood.  He was very surprised and thankful.  Dinner was fantastic, the company was great, and the after party was very entertaining.  All in all, Thanksgiving was very memorable.  Replace football with cricket, turkey with sashimi, and the Schwendeman family with my new mates in Australia, and you've got yourself a Holiday.  As great as the night was, I'm still certainly looking forward to my first family meal back home.


The rest of the weekend was pretty laid back.  Everyone was kind of in a funk from not being home for Thanksgiving.  Not to mention that we had our last week of school coming up before Study Week and eventually Finals.  I managed to be very productive, get some papers and assignments done, and have a rather unstressful week.  By Thursday, we were all ready to go out and celebrate our last "Uni Night" in Gold Coast.  We went down to Surfers Paradise (the more touristy part of Gold Coast) to hit up some new bars and clubs.  We arrived smack in the middle of "Schoolies".  Schoolies is the month long celebration that the high school graduates have.  Words cannot describe the chaos of Schoolies in the Gold Coast.  Parents rent hotel rooms, bars have specials, there are volunteers lining the streets with vans and "Sober Up Stations".  It is insane.  I have never felt so old in a bar (not that I have been to many bars, Mother).  The club we ended up at had Schoolie specials and all the staff was dressed up in school uniforms.  While it was not quite the night we were expecting, I think we all had a good time.  


By the weekend, we had all suddenly grasped the fact that we were done with classes in Australia.  We were ready to relax on the beach, but the wettest spring in Australia continued.  It rained all day Friday and all day Saturday.  When we woke up for lunch on Sunday morning, the campus was flooded.  The lake that runs through the center of campus was flooded close to five feet and it was covering some of the walkways of campus.  It was quite the spectacle.  It got us all to talking about how great our trip has been DESPITE the in-climate weather and harsh exchange rates.  It has gotten to be about that time of our trip where we all start recollecting memories.  There have been plenty made.  None of us will have shortage of conversations at the dinner table over the holidays.  I think we are all looking forward to being the center of attention as we share about the greatest semester of our lives.  More than that, I think, we are looking forward to seeing the smiling faces of family and friends that we have missed so much.


I do want to give a sincere thank you for all of you who have been following the blog.  I was looking up statistics the other day and was amazed at how many reads this blog has gotten.  It serves as a constant reminder of just how blessed I am.  Not only was I able so spend a semester of college in Paradise, but I was missed and loved by many friends and family along the way.  You all mean so much to me.  This time apart from the States has put a lot of things into perspective.  At the forefront of this new perspective is the great life I have to return to in 15 days.  Can't wait to see you all soon.  Australia, get ready for a great 15 days as I start my concluding chapter in the Land Down Under.