g’day mate. How are you going?

a year ago, i made the decision to move to australia.

(Cue the OooHhhs and Aaahhhs)

in the u.s. we love australia.

it’s a country that quite possibly has

more hoopla than santa claus himself.

it’s a land of kangaroos.beaches.bikinis.

crocodile hunters. and people who like to eat shrimp on the barbie.

(whatever that means)

Every american child grows up wistfully stating, “one day, i’m going to visit australia.”

it’s a bucket list favorite.

i was one of them.

but The only thing I really knew for sure about this foreign land:

it is far, far away.

(twenty-six hours by plane if I remember correctly)

when i finally arrived,

i had a lot to learn.

(Like australia is more than just a big land mass, it has six states)

(and New zealand is not one of them)

kangaroos are cute.(but tasty too)

the sun doesn’t always shine.

but when it does, micro-trunks are a thing of beauty.

a walk in the “bush” has nothing to do with lawn plants.

in fact, sometimes there is an ironic lack of shrubbery in “the bush.”

australian rules football (footy) is nothing like football.

meat pies are eaten with tomato sauce, not ketchup.

this stuff requires a certain palate

(or birthright).

savory pumpkin kicks sweet

pumpkin’s you know what.

they really do love barbies

(but their barbies prefer lamb).

best of all:abbrev lang* is used by everyone,

not just teenyboppers.

*abbreviated language, come on get with the lingo.

avocado= avo

not to be confused with: afternoon = arvo

try this on for size:

want to come over for a cuppa in the arvo? If you’re hungry, we can have avo on toast.

and that’s just a little taste

of this very far away place.

(we didn’t even make it to the tim tam slam)

don’t you worry dorothy, i won’t give all the secrets of oz away.

just know

australia is definitely worth the trip.

dream on kiddos.