Family and friends (and anyone else who stumbles upon this blog), welcome!
Let it be known that: I have an aversion to Facebook, internet is super inconvenient to come by Down Under, international phone call charges are a joke, and I love any excuse to write. Which is why I chose to blog my experiences while living abroad.
Because I worked primarily with high school students while living in Australia, I decided to limit my daily sharing of events that included them (which was a lot), in an effort to preserve their privacy. But that didn't stop me from documenting many of the other unscripted 'WTF?' moments that collectively made up my life. Like the time someone called the police to have me apprehended for assault, or when I was verbally reprimanded for refusing service, the moment when I finally grasped an understanding of what ping pong means in Asia (hint: it is not an Olympic sport), how I came to be physically violated by wild monkeys, the truth behind 'happy endings' (spoiler alert: they're real), and much more.
In case you're wondering, let me debrief you on how I got here: My brother traveled through Darwin and loved it. He told me he thought I'd love it too. Found out that foreigners find a lot of work with youth. Sounded awesome. I emailed the principal at a local boarding school and proposed a position for myself. She told me that if I came down, she'd hear me out in person. I booked my ticket. She hired me on the spot. Now I'm in living below the belt in a country that is essentially a ginormous island populated by species that I thought went extinct along with the dinosaurs. (Seriously, I swear I've seen miniature raptors.)
Let it be known that: I have an aversion to Facebook, internet is super inconvenient to come by Down Under, international phone call charges are a joke, and I love any excuse to write. Which is why I chose to blog my experiences while living abroad.
Because I worked primarily with high school students while living in Australia, I decided to limit my daily sharing of events that included them (which was a lot), in an effort to preserve their privacy. But that didn't stop me from documenting many of the other unscripted 'WTF?' moments that collectively made up my life. Like the time someone called the police to have me apprehended for assault, or when I was verbally reprimanded for refusing service, the moment when I finally grasped an understanding of what ping pong means in Asia (hint: it is not an Olympic sport), how I came to be physically violated by wild monkeys, the truth behind 'happy endings' (spoiler alert: they're real), and much more.
In case you're wondering, let me debrief you on how I got here: My brother traveled through Darwin and loved it. He told me he thought I'd love it too. Found out that foreigners find a lot of work with youth. Sounded awesome. I emailed the principal at a local boarding school and proposed a position for myself. She told me that if I came down, she'd hear me out in person. I booked my ticket. She hired me on the spot. Now I'm in living below the belt in a country that is essentially a ginormous island populated by species that I thought went extinct along with the dinosaurs. (Seriously, I swear I've seen miniature raptors.)
Note to Readers:
Blogger is set to post in reverse order which means that the newest posts are defaulted to show first. (This one in particular–my very first post–will remain as the homepage.) The next post you'll see as you scroll down will be my most recent entry. To read this starting at the beginning and follow in sequence, use the blog archive tool on the lower left side of the page and start at the oldest date. Enjoy!