You know that feeling on a REALLY super hot scorching day when your mouth is dry and your throat is parched? The feeling when you finally get your hands on an ice cold bottle of water (but not aquafina because aquafina is gross) – you know that feeling?   You take a sip of refreshing water and let out an insuppressible “ah.”

That’s how I felt tonight when I got home and took a shower.  I’ve been awake since 1:30am this morning and after a 3.5 hour flight, 10 hours at school and an hour bus ride home – it felt GOOD to be home and clean!!!  YAY for Daisy!!!

I have a few more “YAY!” moments to share.

• I’ve officially earned a Graduate Certificate in Peace and Conflict and can now tick the box “Graduate Degree” on surveys or applications.  No more ticking just a “Bachelors Degree” for me – I’m moving up in the nerdy world. 
• I am officially enrolled in the Masters of Digital Communication and Culture program at the University of Sydney.
• In order to fully immerse myself in my new digital adventure (and because I’m studying the effects of Twitter in school) – I just signed up for a Twitter account.  I told myself I would NEVER EVER EVER do this.  But now that I’ve done it - YAY!!!  Do you have a Twitter account?  I want to follow you!! (this is my twitter backdrop – I took the pic myself )

• Other than that – I’ve found a couple jobs I want to apply for and I have the day off tomorrow.  SUPER YAY!!!

In other news – these are the things on my mind:

• How is it that the people you wish most to avoid are the ones who regularly show up in your life? And the ones you would LOVE to run into again (like the hot Kiwi eying me) disappear?
• How is it that Captain Charisma consistently contacts me at just the moment when I’m feeling neglected by the other men in my life?  He has perfect timing every time.  And his message today was thoughtful and considerate.  Plus – surprisingly – he always watches my new FB and youtube videos.  Who would have thought?
• Is it really true that guys like UDB don’t give up?  I got a message from him too.
• I read an article about Google for school.  OhmyWOW!  Anyone else know exactly how much power that company wields?  And are the critics right?  Is Google making us stupid? Click HERE to read a great article about it.  Crazy.

So first off I want to give a public shout out to FM’s GF.

THANK YOU!!!

What a fantastic week I’ve had!!!  She was so kind to let me stay with her while I was here in New Zealand!  Not to mention it wouldn’t have been as much fun without her!!!  I miss having her around back home – and can’t wait til she gets back!!  Love you!!  And I appreciate your hospitality!  xoxo

Oh and p.s. – I’ll have a batch of flourless peanut butter cookies waiting for you when you get back.  YUM!!!

Ok – so even though I’ve had an amazing week  and can happily cross off “Visit New Zealand” from my 101 list – it will be good to get back to life.  School, homework, and warm weather are all calling my name!  But for now – please enjoy pics from my Wellington CBD (Central Business District) City tour.  In the next week I’ll try and post pics from scenic New Zealand.  I found a little bit of heaven while I was here – I can’t wait to share it with you all!!!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4X3M-1mGto]

and another p.s. – Captain Charisma wants to meet up again.  Of course he does.  Hmm.  Apparently he’s back in town.  Ordinarily (last semester) I wouldn’t have thought twice about it – I’d just say, “When and where?”  He’s hot, smart, with second, third and fourth doses of SUPER hot … not to mention FM and his GF haven’t forbidden it … BUT …  well … I don’t have time to analyze this now but I’ve found myself in a bit of a quandary.  Hmm … what to do – what to do … ??

Then as a little icing on the cake, CC+4 looked into meeting me in NZ – which didn’t work out – stupid airline connections!  BUT he said he’s going to visit me in April – which actually works out better for me too.  Big smiles all around today.  I’ve got a couple of fun months to look forward to… and wow – I can’t believe I’m about to turn 27.  Ok – so those two statements weren’t EXACTLY related but time goes by so quickly (March and April are going to fly by) and here I am – about to be in my late 20s.  I’m still in SCHOOL and have no definite career plans yet – but I can’t think about that right now…

Back to happy things – CC+4′s song of the day for me was “True Affection” by The Blow.  I love it!  He says I can decide if he chose the song in reference to us.  LOL.  Gee that’s a tough one to figure out!  (roll my eyes.)

In other news – here’s a pic of Sydney from Central Station.  And in case you are ever planning on driving around Sydney – be aware that they do not have blinkers here in this great country.  They only have “indicators.” Just an FYI.

Oh one last thing – here’s my quote for the day.  I’m reading the Portrait of a Lady by Henry James.  I really enjoy this book because – well – to be honest – I see myself in the main character.  She and I have WAY too much in common – not sure if that’s good or bad …

“‘Ah,’ said Isabel with a kind of joyous sigh, ‘I like so many things!  If a thing strikes me with a certain intensity I accept it.  I don’t want to swagger, but I suppose I’m rather versatile.  I like people to be totally different from Henrietta – in the style of  Lord Warburton’s sisters for instance.  So long as I look at the Misses Molyneux [the sisters] they seem to me to answer a kind of ideal.  Then Henrietta presents herself and I’m straightway convinced by her; …”

[Henrietta] “You’ve been affected by your new surroundings.”
[Isabel] “Very likely, I’m affected by everything.”
[Henrietta replies disapprovingly] “Yes, you’ve changed; you’ve got new ideas over here.”
“I hope so,” said Isabel; “One should get as many new ideas as possible.”

Today, in an attempt to figure things out, I met with the Director of the Dig. Comm Dept.  It was encouraging AND discouraging all rolled up into one!  Oh boy – what a trip.  Ok so the bad news is apparently this is a brand new program and as such they have no support staff, no internships, and no clue. The good news is that BECAUSE this is a brand new program I can turn it into whatever I would like.  CC+4′s encouraging words were, “Sounds like you’re going to have to be your own Pioneer.  All the great ones are.  No worries.  You are the one who is going to make your career not the classes at school.” He’s right.  And I guess great minds think alike because I had already discussed with the Director which classes outside of the department I would like to take AND the possibility of my heading up a committee or club for the department.  lol.  A nerdy, social butterfly pioneer. Hmm … I guess it could be worse.

In social butterfly news – Captain Charisma wants to catch-up tomorrow.  And then I’m supposed to catch-up with the Ultimate D.B. on Friday (though FM says it doesn’t matter how much UDB tries – he shouldn’t get another chance – we’ll see…)  Sunday I’ve been invited to a couple parties.  Oh and today, besides playing Dr. Phil to some girl he had a crush on during a short cruise over a month ago, (poor CC+4 – he can’t seem to get rid of me)  CC+4 put me on to the song “Hot Thing” by Talib Kweli – it’s hot.

In nerdy news - tonight – instead of watching TV like normal people do – I took Modern Library’s Top 100 Novels in History and cross referenced it with Radcliffe’s Top 100 Novels in History.  By assigning numerical values to each list I discovered the Top 30 Great Novels in History (the lists only had 44 in common and the last 14 weren’t ranked particularly high.) SO – yeah – fascinating isn’t it?  Oh wait …

FYI – I plan on reading all 30 – or re-reading as the case will be with a few of them.  Here’s the list for my fellow readers – ordered  according to ranking:

1. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
2. Ulysses by James Joyce
3. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
4. Lolita by Vladmir Nabokov
5. The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner
6. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce
7. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
8. 1984 by George Orwell
9. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
10. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
11. Native Son by Richard Wright
12. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
13. Animal Farm by George Orwell
14. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
15. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
16. The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
17. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
18. Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence
19. All the King’s Men by Robert Penn Warren
20. Go Tell it on the Mountain by James Baldwin
21. A Passage to India by E.M. Forster
22. On the Road by Jack Kerouac
23. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
24. Howards End by E.M. Forster
25. Tender Is the Night by F. Scott Fitzgerald
26. A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway
27. The Wings of the Dove by Henry James
28. The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
29. An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser
30. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

Have a happy day!  I haven’t forgotten about pics for SYTYCD – I’ll try and get to that tomorrow. 

My awards:

Arte Y Pico Award

and:

There aren’t really rules for these awards – something like post back to the giver and pass it on to 5 or something…

SO … I’d like to pass the “Rockin’ Girl Blogger” award to:

• Pam from Reflections forma neurotic writer…
• Lindsay from Journey to Oz
• Erin from Aussie Erin the American
• Elsja from Elsja’s Bloggity Blog
• Tonya from Sunshowers and Rainstorms
• And Matina you would be on this list if you started blogging again!  Miss you!! Hugs!!!

And the Arte Y Pico Award (creative blog award) goes to:

• Pinkie Larue from Pinkielarue.com
• Carmen Forward from The Pomegranate Blog
• Ashley from Writing to Reach You
• Princess Pointful from … and hijinks ensued.
• Going to Pieces from Matt’s Photoshop

And in an additional bit of housekeeping ….

I think I’ve been a little slack about goal #9 from my 101 list.  So … here is a quick list of the goals I’ve accomplished since starting my 101 list so that I can keep goal number #9 – Blog about each of these tasks – under control.

• #15 – Blurb book of family memories (gave it to M&D for Christmas – they LOVED it. yay!)
• #17 – Read Boundaries: Where You End and I Begin – life changing book for me – definitely recommend it!
• #22 – Finish writing the 101 list
• #24 – Gratitude Journal for 30 days (ooh – I did this when I had a BAD attitude about AUS and I made myself come up with things I was grateful for in AUS ONLY – not an easy task.  Now I could do it without batting an eye!)
• #26 – Set up 101 list on blog with countdown
• #27 – Prioritize the 101 list with time frames
• #29 – Write a list of my worst fears
  
• #30 – Analyze how these fears prevent me from reaching my goals. (I think doing this helped me let them go – yay!)
• #38 – Get an “HD” or “High Distinction” on at least one essay.
• #39 – Get a “D” or “Distinction” in at least one class.
• #44 – lose 10 lbs
• #46 – Take a multivitamin every day for one month without missing a day!
• #52 – Herbal Detox
• #56 – Plant and grow a vegetable
• #62 – Finish decorating my bed in Australia
• #65 – Watch an entire sunrise with someone else
• #66 – Learn to play 2 new games
• #67 – Change attitude and be open to falling in love
• #79 – Build a snowman
• #90 – Visit Torronga Zoo
• #92 – Go to church 8 times in one year
• #109 – Send Christmas Cards
• #110 – Do a holiday picture for Christmas Cards (wait why are there 110 goals?  Because I’m an OVER-ACHIEVER! )

Ok – so that’s not so shabby.  I’ve done 23 of my 101 goals and I have until June 29, 2011 to do the rest. 

Amazing.

200+ Choristers serenaded an audience of about a thousand as the sky went from black to the softest of lavender to the creamiest vanilla. In perfect harmony the clouds followed suit with fluffy lilac puffs and dreamy yellow wisps.

I can now cross off “Watch a sunrise” from my 101 list. The only thing that could have taken my experience this morning from absolutely stunning to complete perfection would have been if I could have shared the moment with those I love (or remembered my camera. Lol.)

And speaking of perfection … My life is hectic beyond crazy in Utah but here in Sydney I have time to be unintentionally idiotic and make lots and lots and lots of mistakes. It’s pretty sweet really. Like the time yesterday when I was in no rush at all but still shaved and put on my bronzer in lightning quick speed. Apparently I only work well at high speeds when under pressure. Without the demands of somewhere to be – hurrying only messes things up. And the result today? It looks like I have some weird skin disease. YES! But it’s so hot outside that my vanity is going out the window and I’m going to ROCK IT like there’s no tomorrow.

“Daisy – what’s wrong with your legs?”

“My legs? Haha! Don’t be silly. That must just be your eyes. My legs look flawless.” ;)

Brother’s old snow pants?    Check.

Snowman-building coach?    Check.

Voila!  I can now cross off “Build a Snowman” from my 101 list.  Thank you Scott Pete for helping me!!!  If you dare – here is a 2 minute video which proves my mad skillz.  Oh how I love “Reach Out” by Hilary Duff!  It was the perfect background music. 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkLjOXAnavc]

In other news – I FINALLY designed a custom header for my writing/photography blog.  It’s about flippin time!!!

And yay for me!  I can now cross off #110 – “Do a holiday picture for Christmas cards.”  I will cross off #109 – “Send Christmas Cards” tomorrow.

Picture compliments of Scott Pete’s mad photography skillz. 

It is for this reason that abstract painting has always perplexed me.  Sure there are some rules as far as mixing colors, mediums and which brushes give you the best effect for what  – and then with a strong knowledge of the “rules” you can break them and create beautiful surprises or accidents.  But that’s about it.  There are no rules!!  You just slop some paint on a canvas and VOILA it’s art.  C’est impossible!

I really enjoy painting but I have yet to master the ability to let go of my structured views of the world in order to paint abstract versions of reality.   This is why #2 on my 101 list is to complete 3 abstract-ish paintings.  It’s time for me to let go.

My little (6’4″ tall brother) ScottPete has got to be one of the absolute coolest little brothers on the face of this Earth and in all of history.  So tonight, out of the goodness of his heart, he had a little one-on-one time with his sis (that’s me!) and we worked on my 101 list.  What did we do?  We painted.  Oh yes.

This is what we came up with after one hour of painting.  LOL!!!  We’ll do a second set tomorrow.  And a third later this week and then YAY!!  I can cross #2 off my list.

I’ll let you guess whose is whose. 

We’ll see if tomorrow’s efforts produce better results …

• My family.  Each and every single one of them.  They bring a deep and fulfilling element to my life.  I love them all.
• My dogs.  There is not a day that goes by without my smiling at their antics.  They are so adorable!  I truly believe we were fated to be together and I love them with all my heart.
• My friends.  In USA and in AUS.  Love you all!!!
• My life.  Sometimes I get really frustrated, scared, anxious etc, but I recognize I have a very fortunate life and I am appreciative of it.
• My blog readers.  Yay!  That’s right – I’m grateful for you!
• Flowers, blue sky, rain, cool breezes, rice, potatoes, glitter, eyeshadow, and girly lotion
• oh and animal prints – definitely grateful for that today. 

Ok – going to stop there before this post is too long.  But I need to let you know that I crossed off #38 and #39 on my 101 list today.  I passed my Key Issues class with a Distinction and received a High Distinction on my final essay.  I’m really jazzed about that.  I worked super hard in that class.