What about MY country?

While I was in London, I remember finding it very difficult to get any sort of American news to read up on. There was, however, an abundance of international news in the form of both Australian and New Zealander media. On mainland Europe, I had a much easier time finding papers that reported on the US, notably the international edition of the Times: The Times Herald.

I can still hear some of my Aussie friends complaining: "Why doesn't anyone report news on Australia! It's always about somewhere else." I have to admit, I rarely hear news reports concerning Australia. I can honestly say that I have no idea what's going on in that country. It's not that I think there are Kangaroos frolicking everywhere, but I am in the dark to any problems or challenges (or even positive notes) that the country may be facing.

For example, even looking at the Times and checking the World section under the Asia-Pacific region, the other countries completely dominate the print space, primarily due to issues of conflict (Mumbai, anyone?). Surprisingly, I was able to find one headline for Australia, which discusses progress made for gay rights. A much more refreshing read than murder tolls, in my opinion.

Perhaps no news is good news.

Happy Thanksgiving!

I must admit, I thoroughly enjoyed this article in today's New York Times, which equates the strategies used by a C.E.O. to that of a Thanksgiving dinner orchestrator.

From delegation to the bigger picture (or vision) to conflict resolution tactics, I believe the author was head-on in aligning the positions.

"...First, there should be no gloating over elections won or lost, and no discussion of personal income or investment loss. Give people around you a chance to shine by asking them questions that allow them to express their accomplishments. But don’t ask questions you don’t know the answer to, such as why isn’t Sanjay going to college or what happened to that nice girl your son brought home last year."

I'm off to finish up my favorite soup for tonight's festivites: Butternut and Acorn Squash Soup.

Happy Thanksgiving!

P.S. I know it's a lost cause... but E-A-G-L-E-S EAGLES!!!

"I mean, it's a recession..."

One of my girlfriends at work just gave her notice. She's leaving to go work for another restaurant in the area that will undoubtedly increase her bi-weekly paycheck. Her explanation for skipping out on short notice? "Lindsay, let's be real. It's a recession. Gotta go where the money is." Truer words were never spoken! Usually I spend my evenings inside the coat room whispering to patrons as they walk by: "Tip your hostesses, it's a recession and I have a plane ticket to buy!"

Among the many factors that influenced me to apply for my visa were having no apartment lease, not being involved in a serious relationship, and having no monetary binds linking me to Philly. Additionally, the current state of the economy and the current job market for recent grads significantly helped me make the final decision to move abroad.

This morning I was browsing the Sydney Morning Herald and learned that Australia is predicted to miss out on the worst of any recession woes. Admittedly, I have been a bit concered with the economic crisis and the potential impact on my ability to get work abroad, but this made me feel a little more confident.

Although in a recent posting from PRowl Public Relations it's recognized that the PR job market is one of the few that isn't suffering to the extreme, the fact remains that I'm not the only recent graduate with five internships on her resume. I think that right now, during a time where there is no such thing as job security, it's the perfect time to not start my career and to get some life perspective instead. I am hoping that some experience abroad will help to set me apart in the future, recession or not.

I'm going to Australia! For real!

Dear Lindsay McHugh

RE: Application for Subclass 462 - Work and Holiday (Temporary) (Class US) visa

This is to advise that you have been granted an Electronic Work and Holiday subclass 462 visa on 20 November 2008.

...AH!!!

The waiting game

Well, I just submitted my visa application... here's to hoping for a seemless approval!

Tea is not a beverage

So, after having some time for a long-overdue update this afternoon, I found myself spending the rest of my day searching for blogs online about Australia. One blog post I read reminded me of the uniqueness of Aussie slang. I am proud to say that after being surrounded by Aussies for several weeks without any concentrated contact with Americans, I have picked up (or at least am able to understand) some of the common lingo.

A common greeting that I had to get used to hearing was How you going in place of, say, What's up or How're you doing? Reading it doesn't seem so different, but hearing it out loud makes you hesitate for a second, I swear! I also learned that tea is another way of saying dinner, dodgy is the preferred descriptive term used over shady or ghetto, and that there is a lot of reckoning going on.

Also, a piece of advice: be very careful when using the word root. If you tell a group of Aussie boys that you're rooting [for] the home team, they'll have a laugh... and may conjure up an image that you weren't intending to create!

Call Blogging Services...

...this baby is suffering from neglect!

Blogging most certainly has not been on my mind over the past month. Between late nights watching the Phillies win the World Series (from cursed to first!) to following the Presidential Election to simply working as many hours as possible to finance a plane ticket, my time devoted to recounting my planning efforts has been minimal to say the least.

Thankfully for my actual travel plans, progress has not been so stangnant. Tuesday (my next day off) I will finally put in my application for my visa! I have been putting it off to make sure that I could realistically afford the move, but I am finally feeling financially stable enough to make it happen. The current exchange rate between the Aussie dollar and the US dollar isn't hurting my cause, either. As of today, $1 US is equal to about $1.55 Australian. Every cent counts!

This afternoon I spent a few hours researching and reaching out to some talent placement agencies around Australia that my friend Tricia recommended. Tricia (who I met during my travels in Europe) spent a year in Australia on a work and holiday visa from Canada, so she has been helping me with some pre-travel logistics. Now that I have gotten initial e-mails out, I'm feeling better about actually, finally, truly moving forward with things.

The one thing that I really need to set aside time for is figuring out the benefits of purchasing a round the world ticket. I have to find some time to speak directly with a travel agent because for once I can't find all the information I need online. What a shock!

I'll try and be more consistent in my updates as developments should be popping up in a more rapid fashion. Stay tuned!