Coffee

Caffeine is a hell of a drug. From this article, it provides the following benefits*:

• Improves cognition, memory, and ability to perform complex tasks
• Protects against Parkinson's, Alzheimer's diseases, Type II diabetes
  
• Prevents brain degeneration, cognitive decline due to aging
  
• Makes you happy! Alert! Use excessive exclamation points!
• Increases aerobic endurance
• Grants the ability to shoot laser beams out of your pores
  
• ANTIOXIDENTS! (I don't know what these are, but word is they're good for you)

My favorite method of obtaining caffeine is also the most common in the United States; coffee. Ignoring the incredibly inanity of the Starbucks ordering system (where sizes are Tall, Large, and Twenty), I can go into any restaurant and ask for a Coffee, and have at least some idea of what they will serve. As a result of this coddling, its taken me a while to get to the naming customs here, and so I've compiled some useful information from my own experience and a little internet research.

Simply asking for a 'Coffee' will likely provoke more questioning from whoever you order from (especially if you try this on the average pedestrian), but you could end up with a Long Black (which is a shot of Espresso with about twice that in water, sort of like a Cafe Americano), a Flat White (Basically a no foam latte), a Cappuccino, or instant coffee. You will almost definitely not get a 'standard' percolated black coffee.

Also available is the Short Black (just an Espresso shot), the Short Macchiato (a Short Black with a dash of cold milk), a Long Macchiato (WILD CARD... usually involves Espresso and some sort of Milk; or could be an Italian adult movie star), the Cold Coffee (iced coffee), and the Iced Coffee (a delicious coffee-milkshake sort of thing) which is my favorite.

If anyone things for a moment that this seems a bit overly complicated, I will merely draw your attention to the Grande Double Light Soy Iced White Chocolate Mocha; which you can actually order at Starbucks without being laughed at from behind the counter**.

*One of these may not be true. Bonus points if you can figure out which one it is!

**Ask the same person for a 'Large Iced Coffee' though and they stare at you like an idiot. Starbucks is silly.

PS: Unrelated to the rest of this post, there was a beautiful rainbow over Sydney this morning, framed perfectly by my balcony. It made me quite happy that I had slept in through my alarm, otherwise I might have missed it.

"Winter"

It's technically winter down under, which naturally means that the weather is only better than Rochester's about 80% of the time (here is a great picture of Lake Ontario near Rochester, which I assume was probably taken in late April, and the bike was stolen soon after).

It's been raining for about a week on and off, but it still hasn't dropped below 55F. As anyone who has lived in Rochester would know, this is shorts and t-shirts weather. For some reason though, people in Australia are all bundled up; I've even seen people in hats, gloves and scarves! The daylight hours certainly remind me of winter though; the sun rises at about quarter to 7AM, but sets a little before 5PM!

This means that yesterday, when I had to wake up several times before my hungover body allowed me to actually start performing the simplest of tasks, I got to experience a grand total of 2.5 hours of natural illumination. For perspective, that's shorter than the movie Gladiator (General to slave to gladiator to oh dear I've run out of daylight)*. Of course, that does segue nicely into a brief description of Friday night.

Now, I work at a fantastic institution (well it has been for the few days I've worked so far), but I was still not at all prepared for the extremely nice surprise on Friday of having my boss take all of us out for some very nice steaks and drinks at a nearby pub! On top of that, I ran into some of my Australian friends who were attending a 21st birthday celebration one floor up. So after all of my co-workers left (all of them are older and much more responsible than I), and I had imbibed probably a bit more than necessary, I crashed the party upstairs only to find I knew the party girl from my time in the Australian youth choir (I was never that good, but its a nice video).

A few reels of my memory are missing from that point on, but I got home safe and sound, met a bunch of nice people, and graciously let a friend know that her "teeth were too straight". I'm a nice guy like that.

*On an only barely related note, the longest song ever is much longer than that.

Home Alone

My dad left for the states today, and though its not the first time I have been living on my own, this is the most independent I have been. I have no familial contacts within a thousand miles, I'm working pretty much full time, and I'm pretty much allowed to do whatever I want. This newfound freedom has led me to several major realizations:

1. I can be naked anytime I like.
2. I am terrible at shopping for food.
3. Seriously, anytime! I'm naked right now.*

I have know about the second point for some time, but it was driven home tonight when I attempted to shop for food. I had in mind that I needed to buy some milk, and possibly some other items of an edible, and by those rather loose standards I was completely successful. Upon unpacking my groceries however, I began to wonder if my methodology or standards leave something to be desired. I'll let you be the judge:


What I ended up with (in no order):
- Half a kilo of canned salmon (generic brand)
- Canned 4 bean mix (sale)
- Canned corn (generic brand and on sale)
- 3x Various Soups (sale)
- 1L Moisturizer (something I actually needed... I get dry elbows OK?)
- 1 Full kilo of cereal (on a clearance sale, cheaper than the smallest box)
- 'Rustic Cut Potatoes' (on clearance sale)
- 3L Milk (what I set out to buy! also, generic brand)

What do you think?

*You clicked on the link, didn't you? I know, I'm hard to resist.

Thunderstorms

It has rained more in the past two days in Sydney than it did in the previous month combined. I feel obligated to make quick crack about bringing some Rochester weather down under, but in this case, I am not bothered in the slightest.

Aside from the always appreciated presence of precipitation in Australia (there always seems to be one drought or another here), I really love rainstorms of any kind (so does the country music genre). There is something so refreshing and cleansing feeling about them that always seems to put me in a good mood. Foremost of these are good old fashioned thunderstorms. And we are having some great thunderstorms right about now.

Something about them just fills me with a sense of awe and wonder, seeing the power of nature expressed in such a beautiful yet tumultuous fashion. I feel incredibly invigorated by them, especially when I get the chance to stand outside in the fury of the storm, and feel the rain pelt down on me; its a sense of freedom.

There are also, at least for me, something very sexy about them. Add some thunder and lightning to anything involving a pretty girl, and it makes it that much more exciting. If you'll indulge me*, allow me to write briefly about what I still consider one of my best kisses (and trust me, there are a number of top-notch contenders):

I was on a mission trip to Ohio, and we were all staying at some sort of bible camp while we rebuilt some local houses that had been damaged by storms/flooding. Now, I was walking around the camp grounds with a friend; a fairly cute redhead. We had gotten a fair distance from the main hall when a superb summer thunderstorm suddenly came up and started drenching us. After agreeing that we were in no particular hurry to do so, we started heading back at an extremely casual pace. We soon happened upon a nice little footbridge spanning a little river, and right when we got to the center I think both of us were a little taken by the moment.

Warm rain was coming down in buckets; both of us at this point were entirely soaked to the bone. The river had swollen from a little trickle of water to a comparative deluge, and it was just approaching dusk so that the main light was from the lighting which streaked down through the sky. Without saying anything, we turned to each other and our eyes met. That wonderful moment of knowing you are about to kiss washed over both of us with the rain, and she leaped up and wrapped her legs around me and I suppose the ending is pretty clear.

That was the only time that something happened between us, and we haven't really kept in touch, but I'll always appreciate that memory.

If by some miracle you are still reading, I also had a fantastic first day at work, and won a little award from the Physics department at UR, so generally speaking, things are going pretty well.

*Or even if you won't, its my blog after all :P

Crowe vs. Cream

Australian fast food is relatively expensive. The basic 'Hungry Jack's'* Whopper meal weighs in at about a whopping (painfully obvious pun intended) $8 AUS. That about equivalent to 6 McDoubles (or 3 McGangBangs)! However, the one area where it can't be beat, pricewise, is with its soft serve ice cream cones. At the same place, you can get one of these fully palatable sugary delights for 50 cents.

That is, for the non-math inclined, about a half dollar. While that sinks in, let's talk about Russell Crowe for a bit. Specifically, his portrayal of the (apparently half-Irish) Robin Hood. This in turn will mandate an additional tangent (don't worry, I'm keeping track).

I have a very bad habit of prejudging films. That is to say, I usually 'know' whether or not I will enjoy a movie before I even buy my ticket. Fortunately, I am also usually right about my anticipated enjoyment. But occasionally I have the rare and often enjoyable moment where I am completely off the mark about a feature. For example, everyone -myself included- knew Catwoman was going to be awful. However, upon viewing it, it turned out to be fairly tolerable, and exceeded my expectations so much that I truly enjoyed the experience. On the other hand, despite popular opinion, Napoleon Dynamite kind of sucked (be honest, when was the last time you even considered watching it?) and so it was a real downer.

Back to Russel channeling Robin, I didn't really expect much, and was therefore extremely pleasantly surprised. It was much more than the 'Gladiator in England' I expected it to be, and I actually found myself laughing out loud at some of the humour (humor, for those in the States). Of course, my Dad and I saw it in a swanky downtown theatre (theater**), so it cost us about $17 AUS ($15 US**) per ticket.

Which brings us (finally) back to the topic of this post. I can now say with scientific certainty, that an evening with Russell Crowe for two is exactly worth 68 ice cream cones. The difference is of course that one is enough to satisfy two dozen men and women, and the other is a bunch of ice cream cones.

*Hungry Jack's ~ Burger King
** briefly consider the acronym replacement for 'those in the States' and if you don't chuckle, you are probably not a boy

I am Batman

The terms "Flying Fox" and "Fruit Bat" (he's magically delicious!) have very different connotations in my mind, though in fact they are synonymous terms for what is in my mind the much cooler sounding "Megabat" (also, this). Despite the awe-inducing imagery evoked by the latter term, from their appearance I have to say the flying fox seems the most accurate term.

I've always felt that, Batman excluded, bats get an undeservedly bad rap; they are almost always portrayed as blood-sucking creatures of the night, or some other unpleasant and terrifying stereotype. Though certainly some species would fall into that category, and many bats do carry diseases that can be fatal to humans (or at the very least, ruin your day), flying foxes at least seem to me fairly endearing animals.

Evidence: Exhibit A, Exhibit B, Exhibit C; The defense rests.

However, when I step out on my balcony in the morning wearing nothing but pajamas and general sense of drowsiness for a cup of coffee*, and have a great hairy black creature seemingly from the Blackest Pits of the Abyss fly straight towards me, and out into the morning air, I begin to see where these stereotypes might have come from.

Of course, life in Sydney is not all fun and games and being surprised by giant winged foxes. There are some really great (and some really awful) places to dine in and around Sydney. The Japanese restaurant where I was taken last night by a good friend most definitely fell in the former category. After dinner we walked through Chinatown, and I was able to enjoy the textural paradox that is bubble tea. The night ended with drinks on the balcony, watching foxes fly over the Botanic Gardens.

They were much more pleasant to observe from this distance.

*Expect an entire post at some point soon on the idiosyncrasies of Australian coffee-naming conventions

Happiness is Australia

After only two days, I'm already amazed at the incredibly positive effect this country has on my general temperament. A rather painful interpersonal issue -no one is really at fault, but its incredibly difficult nonetheless- reared its head once yesterday, and only a couple hours ago today, dragging me down toward the dismal level I have been trying to boost out of for several weeks now.

However, sitting out here on the balcony with this superb view and a very decent* glass of Cabernet Sauvignon, its difficult to care. I'm in a nation I love, with endless possibilities for the next three months. Just looking out over the city and relaxing fills me with a feeling of warm contentment that I lack the eloquence to define.

However, more crudely: at first I was like :), then I was like :'(, and the Sydney made me all :D.

Also, and much more importantly, there is a black and white cat living in my flat complex, who is both extremely adorable and amazingly dumb. I returned home today to find the feline in question lying at the top of a staircase leading down to a courtyard. Now, my affinity for all cat-kind is borderline compulsive, so I naturally reached down and began showering the cat -lets call it 'Steve'- with affection.

Steve began enjoying herself -also, Steve is a girl- immensely. Surprisingly she expressed this enjoyment not only by purring but also by rolling down the stairs one by one, rubbing her face and head against the banister all the way down.

Perhaps this sort of behaviour is typical of Australian animals. Time will tell...

*Author's Note: My taste in wine is questionable at best, but its red and palatable. Wikipedia describes Australian Cabernet Sauvignons as having "intense fruit flavors and subtle minty notes" whatever the hell that means.

First Night

That rather low quality image above is a rather poor approximation of the gorgeous view from the balcony of my parents' apartment, taken from the equally low quality webcam on my laptop. It doesn't nearly do justice to the incredible beauty of the Sydney cityscape, I will try to get a hold of a proper camera to record it.

The journey over was as pleasant as any 24-hour trip can be. I was the main entertainment for a pair of children sitting a row ahead of me on the last leg of the journey (I would guess one was 4 and the other 2). Regardless of what I was doing -reading, sleeping, eating, attempting unsuccessfully to combine all three- they would merely have to glance at me and they would burst out laughing. I evoke this reaction from from some of my closest friends also.

Also, I would like to give a shout out to everyone's favorite airline, and congratulate them for successfully combine a pork breakfast sausage with a beverage coaster for a delightful 'edible' item that may even have been once part of a pig. At the very least, it provided some amusement when the older member of my audience crammed an entire 'ham slice' into her mouth, turned around to view me, observed that I did in fact still exist and was performing actions of some kind, and proceeded to laugh loudly and forcefully enough to expel said item an impressive distance into the aisle.

According to my Australian cell phone, the time is 6:16PM. According to my internal clock, its currently 4:16AM. Many of you know that this is not an entirely unusual time for me to be awake, but I'm still a little bit groggy.

Compounding this, I'm enjoying what will likely be the first of several beers (VB, a slightly more authentically Australian beer than Fosters). Moreso, I'm enjoying the fact that as of now, I will be able to consume similar beverages legally for the rest of my life. I'm far too tired to head out to the pubs tonight, but I'm a short hop from the seediest district in Sydney, and the public transportation here is top notch, so I anticipate many exciting evenings.

But for now at least, I bid you all a very fond farewell, and hope that at least one person besides myself is reading this :D

Austen Mk. I

Paragon! I quite like the sound of this word, as well as a number of its synonyms... I don't really have a better reason than that for making it the first word of this post.

To be brief (since its 3:09AM and I would really like to get some sleep before I leave for Sydney), I'll be in Australia for the next 3 months, and plan on using this as a vehicle for communicating with all of you (you being my no doubt largely imaginary audience), and as a way for me to record the antics I get up since my memory so often fails me in that respect.

My cell phone will be off for the summer as of this morning, but I'd love to keep in touch with you, and I'll respond to e-mails or by facebook. If anyone wants to Skype with me, let me know!

If anyone cares, the title of this blog is a pun on the rather fitting word 'Ostentatious' (there is nothing like a good pun, and this is nothing like a good pun); the title of the post comes from this interesting find.

The next time I post, I'll be worlds away, and ecstatically content!