this just in

so, the great american pack-off is complete. it nearly killed me, but most of my belongings are now en route to NYC. i do hate packing. when the movers came today, i couldn't watch. dierdre is gone baby gone. she is better traveled than most schwinns.

i only have 5 more days in melbourne. panic! panic! what have i done? i am leaving a pretty good set up here. i am telling myself i can always come back. (clicking the heels of my ugg boots...)

my good friend gil (accenture florham park) talked me off the ledge. thanks gil! i was double plus stressing about going home and didn't want to fit in a side trip. too much stress to sort out the details. hassle, i said. gil slapped me upside the head and said, "go to fiji". so i will. he's right. why not. i'll be in fiji from july 1-4 which should be long enough to figure out what is up in fiji and maybe have a fruity drink or too, but not long enough to fall into a pit of existential single traveler angst. on ontic anxiety in business class. on discordant situations. oh ennui.

what's left: leaving drinks rager, palmer's birthday. my farewell pick-up game at albert park followed by a trip to the gun island hotel to watch footy and eat 'parma' and one last day of work and league. hugs and tears and then i fly to fiji.

also, i already packed my camera, so don't expect any pics of figi from me. if you want to see figi, look on flickr for much better than i would take anyway, like this:

winding down, wind out

so, i am down to my last few days here in melbourne. everything is in fast forward. there is not enough time. i am really going to miss this place.

i'll be back in nyc on july 2. i decided to just come straight home. i am too stressed about planning the move to plan a side trip to rarotonga or figi or tahiti. i know that sounds wasteful and a pity, but it's the truth. french polynesia will just have to wait.

it's been a busy few weeks. last weekend i had folks over for a poker tournament. at least i intended to have a poker tournament, but it turns out most of my friends prefer snacking and word games. i was bummed there wasn't more poker, but it was great to see everyone. on saturday i went to an ultimate fund raising trivia night and had a blast. on sunday i took a trip to ballarat. on monday, i had the most fun i've ever had in my entire life when tim wise gave me a ride on the back of his motorbike. it was incredible. yes, mom i wore a helmet (thanks for the loaner dave!)

the work week was nuts. work is still just as hectic and now i'm also transitioning to a replacement so i need to make time for that as well.

on saturday i went 'rogaining' in country victoria (creswick) with jess, steven, diego and some other friends. despite the name of this activity, this is not anything to do with hair loss medication. this is essentially an orienteering race where you run around in the australian bush with a compass looking for checkpoints and getting points for finding stations. jess kept me from getting lost and we saw several large kangaroos. it was a 6 hour race in the rain on and off. it was a very australian way to spend one of my last saturdays here, walking around appreciating the landscape with 'good mates'.

on saturday night i had the time of my life. the boys from heads of state had challenged the jerk stores from chilly to a game. but it was not the 4th rematch of the year for these rivals in ultimate. no, this time it would be basketball. as i know several of the players on each team, this was going to be a prime time heckling opportunity. the boys did not disappoint, for as smooth as they may be on the ultimate pitch they all looked pretty uncoordinated on the hardwood, with a couple of notable exceptions. tom rogacki did actually dunk the basketball and some fool in a malone jersey and a deron williams hair style rained down several threes. sadly, chilly finished off the fourth 20 minute quarter up 94 to 35 or so, but the boys from HOS never lost heart or more importantly, willingness to talk smack.

after the game we all went to a pub followed by a little poker.

to top it all off (perhaps due to the day in the rain) i've come down with a cold and feel 'crook'. i spent today moping about the apartment, drinking tea, blowing my nose and packing. I missed a farewell gathering at Gil and Susan's.

next weekend i'll have leaving drinks with workmates around town and amanda palmer's birthday. on sunday my farewell gathering will most appropriately be pick-up followed by beers and watching the footy.

some time in all this i need to finish packing... you know how i love PACKING

oh and here's a picture of me as a bridesmaid fom jen and chip's wedding with the other maids and the bride:

and finally, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to lindy who turned 6 on 21 June. 6! can you believe it?!?!? look out world!

Home again, home again, jiggety-jog;

38 hours of airplanes and airports later I'm back in Melbourne. I'm tired and getting over jet lag and work is nuts. I have a lot to do before I head back to NYC on July 1.

Business class is so weird. All anyone really wants is to sleep and watch the in seat entertainment, but the airlines serve these elaborate 6 course meals of rich gourmet everything that is just ideal for preemptive air sickness. I would rather just have Pret a Manger which tastes great is high in quality and doesn't spill. The last Qantas flight I was on offered people a full icecream sunday bar. Nuts for nuts I guess.

One nice touch on the American Airlines leg from JFK to LAX was a think full sized duvet, rather than just a blanket. Other than that I think all the deluxe touches are wacko.

This time on the planes I watched The Bucket List (C), Charlie Wilson's War (B+) and likely some others that I have now forgotten. Mostly I slept.

The wedding was a blast. I didn't know many people there, but it really seems like most people didn't know many people there as Jen & Chip's friends cut a wide swath of friends from Ultimate, Amherst, Yale, New York and the West Coast. They're off on the honeymoon now so I'll be checking Chip's blog soon for updates.





Here's the bridesmaids (minus Trina who I suspect was Taking the photo) and bride on the Friday night before the Sunday wedding out at a dance club in Greensboro NC.



I'm using 'club' as loosely as possible. This is Greensboro people. There are reports that on Sunday night after the wedding I organized some running and Wheelbarrow relay races on the putting green, and I do have the bruises to corroborate this story.


The resort where the wedding was held was beautiful, but the staff were a little slack. I woke up and hour late on Monday June 2 after the wedding in part due to a wake up call that did not come. I grabbed my stuff and got out of there, but an hour later than I was supposed to get back on the road to Raleigh, which made me late to return my sister's car. It was a huge favor for her to lend me her car for the long weekend and I am a stupid jerk who returned the favor by making her late for work. Sorry Lynn. Thanks again for trying to help me.



As penance for being an irresponsible sister, I spent my entire birthday alone in airports in Raleigh, New York and LA. I read Jesse's old copy of ESPN the magazine and Kurt Vonnegut's Armageddon in Retrospect. He's produced more work post-mortem than anyone since Tupac, but I'll take it as he's still the best writer I've ever read and maybe the only voice that has ever seemed genuine enough to give me any hope.

I'm glad to be back in Melbourne for a few weeks and getting ready for July in NYC.

NBA: The Celtics got 1. Let's hope they get three more.