Return Of The Mack

Yes.

I'm in Australia.

Rayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!!

Managed to get back to the promised land, without my fam or friends knowing... SURPRISE!

Why am I back? Hmmmmmm. Long story short, some Americans are douche bags, and it's time for me to get on with things. I had my little adventure, and I got some clarity, and it's time to grow up. And I missed 3 little munchkins a little too much.



"So I'm back up in the game, running things to keep my swing, letting all the people know, that I'm back to run the show. Cause what you did, you know, was wrong, and all the nasty things you've done. So, baby, listen carefully, while I sing my come-back song..." MARK MORRISON

California English

So I've been a bit busy. Vampire Weekend, resulting in an impounded vehicle (no Dave, just cause you think it sounds "so American" doesn't make it cool), Mexico, resulting in an encounter with Jamie Cullum, and Muse, resulting in no Muse. Yes. Thanks for postponing. To October 2nd. When I'll be in Europe. Gah. No Muse for Dan.

But Yeh. Ezra and Jamie are good. Hooray.

And now I'm at the airport. I know y'all think all I do is go on Vacation. You might just be right.

Off to Cali for a few days. Yayzers. Then I'll have something to write about. Wow. I'm even bored by this post. Maybe I shouldn't post it. Yeh. I will. Just so y'all don't think I'm dead. I say y'all too much.

Anywhoozle.

I have something else to say. But you'll just have to wait.

"Living like the French Connection, but we'll die in LA" VAMPIRE WEEKEND

The General Specific

I can't really pinpoint one specific thing that made my 27th birthday, the BEST birthday I've EVER had... So how about 27 things?

For starters, due to the major time difference between my two "homes" I got to be 26 for an extra day, and in turn, got to celebrate for 2 days in a row. Which somehow turned into 3 days...

Waking up to 99 new Facebook notifications made me feel very special!

Peter Alexander goodness sent all the way from OZ, thanks MUMMA!

Casa Bonita. Cartman was right. "Casa Bonita is my favorite place in the whole world..."

Alice In Wonderland in Imax 3D. Tim Burton. I adore you.

Good morning Starbucks, hello dark cherry mocha, where have you been the past 27 years?

Um. Hello. Best concert tickets ever. Guess who gets to go to Red Rocks to see STING and FOREIGNER? Uh. That would be me. Eeeeek. Thanks guys!!!

Janelephant celebrating in my honour. She totally made the coolest cake I've ever seen! Just wish I was close enough to bite it...

Summer Heights High: The Board Game. Ahhh. Danners. You may just be the greatest person alive.

Carls Jr. Really. The best $1.75 you could ever spend. Ever.

Sangria Swirl. Enough said.

Two of the best birthday cards ever. Nice work Elisha. So many pretty boys, so little time.

Deluxe Mani Pedi. Yes. I almost fell asleep, it was just that good.

Arriving home from said Mani Pedi, to discover two giant boxes at my door. The most amazing Sixteen Candles Party Kit you could possibly imagine. All from my future traveling buddy David... Paris planning is underway. Thanks for letting me eat Tootsie Rolls for breakfast.

Did I mention the Casa Bonita Cliff diver?? What a fitty.

Sun! No snow! Just the most amazingly wonderful day filled with sunshine and smiles!

My green shamrock hat. Sure. I may have broke it before managing to figure out how to turn the flashing lights on, but it was still the life of the party.

Dancing to Billy Jean, if only for a split second. It was a good split second.

Finding a pub in this fair city that actually sells cider. FINALLY.

Denver Diner. You are pretty great.

Hersheys. I don't know why you cover pretzels in chocolate. But I like it. 10 points.

Attempting to Riverdance to an Irish cover band singing The Proclaimers. Gold.

Skyping with Janelephant... til her stupid computer cut out. It was a nice 3 minutes and 27 seconds.

Andy Candy pulling out the South Park moves on the dance floor... fagggggggggggggggggggggggggggs!

Ben & Jerry's Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough... Good.

All the Pings, Texts, Tweets, Emails etc etc etc... Thanks team, you made it impossible for me to forget how OLD I am...

And of course, Band of Horses. Sold out show. No tickets. Just a "can do' attitude. Needles to say. We got in. And it was insane.


All in all, yes, I wish I was still 16. But. If you HAVE to get older, this certainly was the way to do it.

"I hardly believed it at all..." BAND OF HORSES

Call N' Return

Yay!

I finally made a decision!! My work Visa for the USA runs out in August, and instead of trying to get ANOTHER work visa for ANOTHER year, I'm gonna get my travel on and head home...

Hecks yes Australia, I just miss you too much! Life is good, but life without the GG Crew and The Ace Gang just ain't quite cutting it. Did I mention I might actually go crazy loco if I don't get to have Aunty cuddles for another year and a half?? No thank you.

Wouldn't trade this experience for anything though. Learnt (and am still learning) so much, had the most insane opportunities, been to some killer cities and some killer shows, witnessed the greatest candy aisles in the universe, petroned my way through many an awkward situation, became a big fan of the cherry bomb, met people that will be in my life forever... and more than anything, got some perspective, figured out what's important, and began to move on. Wait. I take that back... and more than anything, I MET JARED LETO.

So the next 5 months will be superb, we're heading to Mexico soon, got some brilliant shows lined up, amped for Summer (aka Dan & Dustin take over Waterworld), going to Washington State in August and Elisha's moving 5 minutes away so we can watch Glee all day while the kiddies are at school and hit Boulder for major shopping and coffeeeeeeeee. Cool beans!

And then I've got travel timeeeeeeeeeee. Hello LA roadtrippin', 2 weeks in NYC and home via EUROPE. Yes. I finish work in August. But Australia, don't count on seeing me til October. Eeeeeeek. Fun!

In other news, HelloGoodbye (yes Dave and AP, I give in) were a lovely treat last night. A little dancing was done, pre Saves The Day and New Found Glory. Gothic Theatre reminded me so much of Jive. Which made me even more sure, it's gonna be good to be home! Been exploring Denver by daylight, and Boulder by moonlight. Art Galleries, Brunswick-type bars, and outdoor malls in the sunshine. This really is a cool place to live. For now. Insert smiley face with winking action here.

"If only you were here, things would be more magical. If I was there, right now would be more radical... Miles of air and road and land that separate me from all my plans. Were havin' havin' havin' havin' fun, but something something tells me I miss someone." HELLOGOODBYE

Umbrella Beach

Seth Cohen, or no Seth Cohen, Newport Beach rules.

Ahhh blessed sunshine, coastline and palm trees.

Loved, loved, loved hanging with my olds. 36 hours of Parental company was sublimely good.

Shopping plus wining and dining, made for a wonderful Tiffanys and Bloomingdales filled weekend.

Plus.

Cherry on top of the swirly swirly Pinkberry goodness? Seeing all those splendid college faces from way back when, yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeew! Newport Church: WINNER.

Hard saying bye to Ma & Pa, but wouldn't have traded seeing them for anything. So much Starbucks, so little time. Limited tears, taken over by ridiculous outbursts of laughter.

I'm a very lucky girl.

"I think dreamy things as I'm waving goodbye. So I'll spread out my wings and fly..." OWL CITY

If You Leave

My heart hurts.

After about a billion sleeps I finally got to see my Mumma. And it was brill.

But yesterday she had to leave. And I don't like this. At all.

After a week of showing her MY Colorado... (Ahh, the dictionary definition of MY Colorado, is mani pedis, dining at diners, oohing and ahhing at the mountains, the snow and all things USA, countless cups of Starbucks, and of course shopping at Tiffanys, Anthropology, Urban Outfitters, Steve Madden and Mac.) She had to leave. Boo to the world.

The best "Shazza" moment:

Shazza: Please come home in September (teary eyes and tight hug holding included)
Dan: Ah, Mum, I'm gonna see you on Saturday.
Shazza: Oh. I forgot.

Thankfully, the last goodbye has not yet occurred. Sunday night is gonna suck. Bad.

Tomorrow I'm flying out to Newport to see my PA (aka my Dad) and Mumma for a fleeting 36 hours before they exit the land of stars and stripes.

This makes me smile.

My mission, and I choose to accept it, is to find out if Seth Cohen truly does exist. Or I could just hang out with my olds.

Yeh. I better go with option B.

I like option B.

"If you leave, don't leave now, please don't take my heart away." ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK

Holiday

Happy Singles Awareness Day!

Yewwwwww. 10 points for spending Valentines weekend at a resort in Arizona. Summer, summer, summer... Ok. It's still winter, but my sunburn says otherwise. Smiley face. Being on vacation is THE BEST.

And what's better than the best??? A zillion pools to choose from, a giant water slide, room service in robes, great company, lawn bowls, amazing scenery including mountains and cacti, crocket, Valentines candy, wining and dining, winning the occasional card game, American Bandstand, in room movies and GOOD laughs... All in a weekends work. Yes fortune cookie, your wise words came to pass. My hard work DID pay off.

I never thought I'd say this, but... Boo to the snow! I am now officially team summer. For now.

But even better than all of that. My Mumma flies into town in 9 hours and 33 minutes.

All in all. Life is brilliant.

"Holiday, oh, holiday! And the best one of the year, dozing off underneath my sheets..." VAMPIRE WEEKEND

American Baby

Yep. I'm finally in the "club"

I watched an entire American football game.

And I kind of understood it. Kind of. I even donned an "I Heart Football" t-shirt. And yes, this was because I was simply unable to find an "I have absolutely zero idea how this game is played" t-shirt. And while I'm being truthful, yes, I was cheering for The Colts because I thought Peyton Manning was pretty funny when he hosted SNL... And because an 11 year old told me to.

Ok, so maybe I just got myself kicked out of the "club"

But despite all this, I am now most certainly a fan of the Super Bowl. Fun, fun, fun. And like everyone, the ads were my favourite part. Yay for candy, blatant advertising and boys in shiny pants!

Anywhozzle.

My Mumma is flying in to Colorado in just 5 sleeps. I can't believe I get to SEE her. Hooray, hooray, hooray!

And I'm flying to see my Papa in 10 sleeps. Wowzers.

Arizona, Colorado & LA, all in a week! Hello airport. Again. It actually feels weird being in the same place for 3 weeks, how stoooooopid is that?! But good weird. It's stil snowing like CRAZY here. I'm ready for some sun please Arizona. Great. Thanks. Appreciate it.

So in "where's Dan gonna be next" news, I've got til April to decide wether or not I wanna extend my work visa and stay for another year. So many pros. So many cons. Hey here's an idea, how about everyone I adore and miss like crazy town in the wonderful land of OZ, moves over to Colorado??? Yes?? Oh good. Cake. And eat it. Brill.

We shall see...

"You bring me hope, I'll see you soon... Stay American baby." DAVE MATTHEWS BAND

Snowball

So I went to my first snowboarding lesson on Saturday. And instead of snowboarding, I puked. Awesome. Blame it on the a-a-a-a-a-a-altitude.

Better luck next time. I settled for a snowball fight and falling asleep in the car instead.

Absolutely loving being back in Colorado. Loving my new host family and getting to know a whole new part of the mile high city. And more than anything, (yes, even MORE than seeing Little Jonas) LOVING that my Mumma is coming to visit me in 14 sleeps! Happy Valentines Day to me! I'm so excited to see her. A little scared that I may, just maybe, perhaps, possibly, will want to sneak into her suitcase and go back with her... Hmm. I'll try to control myself. I'll just have to keep reminding myself that there's no Ben & Jerry's or Pink Lemonade waiting for me back in lil old Adelaide.




Meanwhile, for all you haters, Nick Jonas & The Administration put on a pretty decent show. This was due largely to the fact that "The Administration" consists of John Fields, Michael Bland, Tommy Barbarella, and Sonny Thompson. And of course the fact that Little Jonas ditched his not so talented brosefs, and began channelling Robin Thicke, JT and Mr Mayer. Majorly devo that David Ryan Harris kicked it on the album, but not on the tour. Bummer. Still. He's on the album. Smile.

I am officially addicted to Goobers. Bad name. Good candy.

"Snow day. School's closed and I can't wait. Go outside, and I just might, get into a snowball fight. Snowball snowball snowball fight..." JIMMY FALLON

Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want

So much can change in a week.

This time last week I was watching SNL... and FREAKING out. I'd matched with a new host family back in Colorado and was pretty stoked about getting out of MD. That is, until they jumped on Google, read about my fabulous family history, and gave me the boot. Uhoh. Looked like I was gonna have to pack my millions of suitcases and head back to Australia.

With only a week left to find a new job before being booted off US soil, I was almost to the point of not giving a toss. So over all the drama. But I still really really really didn't feel ready to go "home"

So torn.

Kinda ready to just get on a plane. Kinda ready to run away from immigration. Kinda ready to just give up.

Enter desperation road trip with Owl City's METEOR SHOWER on repeat for 6 hours. The lyrics hammered me. And I just knew.

The next day I get this insane call. From a family that wants me to go work for them. In Colorado. And I cannot believe the opportunity that has just fallen in my lap. For anyone who knows what my ultimate is, what I truely want to do with my life, (besides stalk musicians and win many critics choice awards) you'll know why I am so messed up, ah, in a good way, by what this family does. And the fact that I'll be smack bang in the middle of all of this.

www.preciouschild.org

So all I know is... I'm about to be living with, working for, and just basically surrounded by people living out my dreams.

Pretty sweet huh.

"Good times for a change... Haven't had a dream in a long time." THE SMITHS


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Here Comes The Sun

Vegas baby. Goodbye snow. Hello everything else. Including Sunshine.

(Yes, I refuse to use a Katy Perry song for this blog)

8 days in Vegas. 7 nights at the Hard Rock Hotel. Good hotel. Annoying staff. But GOOD hotel. Honestly. Go stay there for just one night to experience the beds. Gahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Day One: Pink Taco margaritas will blow your mind. Wow. No wonder we slept for like 15 hours. We literally jumped into bed for a nanna nap at like 4pm and woke up the next morning. Oops.

Day Two: Room Service & Landon Pigg on film. Perfect combo. Ok. we've been in Vegas for 24 hours and haven't hit the strip. It's time. Off to Cirque Du Soleil, The Beatles Love. Ridiculously good show. Everything about it was just crazy. Crazy good. Gah. Post show cocktails in Revolution: The Beatles Lounge. First friend. Too funny. How many times did he ask if we'd ever been to South Africa. What The. Exploring time. Water shows are cool. Laughing at douche bags is also cool.

Day Three: Ink. At Hart & Huntington. Gosh it's good having EVERYTHING in our hotel. Ironically Janelle held my other hand during the oh so quick process. IN & OUT. Hooray. Ok, by now I'm like, gahhhh my arm. I'm such a girl. The only cure? A three hour Office-a-thon and the best Sushi I've ever seen/had in my life. Really. It was so pretty.

Day Four: Hey taxi, take us to the mall. Nah I'd rather just drive you around aimlessly and take all your coin. Pfft. Jared Leto magazines- SCORE! Get your Italian on, BUCA. I honestly expected my Nonna to pop out of the kitchen. She did not. BB King Lounge. Oh what's this? Kris Allen doing a secret show? Ok. Um. Brilliant. I'll take it.

Day Five: Look out. It's New Years Eve. Major sequin & glitter overload. Downed an entire bottle of Patron. Killer show at The Joint, Mayer Hawthorne to start things off. If you don't know him, you should. He's just utterly brilliant. Hit him up on iTunes. You're welcome. The the one and only Bob Saget (yes, Danny Tanner from Full House fame) strolls out to introduce The John Mayer Trio. Slightly excited. Rang in the new year with Mr Mayer & Co as balloons with JM3 picks in them fell from the sky. I can honestly say it was the BEST new years ever. Mayer out, time to party! Ripped up the Wasted Space dance floor to MJ, Bon Jovi & Journey. Ohhhh yehhhh. More new friends & weirdos. Got waved the $150 cover to Vanti's opening night thanks to SHAFT. Brilliant.

Day Six: New Years Day in the US is officially called National Hangover Day. I guess that's why they get away with airing 24 hour Summerland marathons. No complaints. Hit up In & Out (yes again) with my favourite story teller, Jarryd Burns. Our hats were super cute. Drinks & Sundaes & some good tunes at The Hard Rock Cafe. Scrubs. Dave Franco is a riot. Another round of Candyland? Perhaps some Guess Who Misses You? Booyah.

Day Seven: In the words of Robin Sparkles "Let's go to the mall." SALES!! Adventures on The Strip with an overload of M'n'M's. Wig On. Check. David Spade. Live. Too funny. Like beyond bonkerdom. I laughed so hard I almost cried my false eyelashes off. Back to Wasted Space for round two. Met the best crew. Too much fun! big shout outs to some Indian dude who bought us drinks, Eddy with a Y, Ryyyyyan, & that dude who let me bet & lose his money. We had a blast. Best last night of anything ever!

Day 8: Go Johnny, go go go. The last supper with Janelephant, Johnny Rockets we love you and your refillable soda. Big tearful airport goodbyes suck all kinds of things. Boo.

I miss you already ya minga.

"Here comes the sun. Here comes the sun. And I say, it's alright..." THE BEATLES

It's Christmas! Let's Be Glad!

We had a white Christmas.

Let me rephrase, we had a white Chrismukkah.

That would be 8 days of presents, and 1 day of MANY presents.

We are not Jewish. We just like presents. And Seth Cohen.

And boy did it snow. Lucky for Janelle she had her Santa onesie to keep her warm... And I had my Jacob Black Christmas stocking to keep me.. ahh, to keep me happy?? Ok, actually, skyping in with my family, showing them the snow, and watching Zeke, Trin and Lij open their presents was what really made me happy.

On Christmas Eve we hit up some local church for carols and a Christmas service. It was so pretty, with lots of lights and amazing decorations. And they shared stories of giving in the community, it was nice to see the true meaning of Christmas being spread. That's when it started to feel like Christmas... Christmas fettucini, PRESENTS, Chrismukkah OC episode & RENT with Elisha & Janelle. Hooray. Good.

Christmas morning! "Goo goo, gah gah, bikey" Southern Comfort Eggnog + Peter Alexander Christmas Slippers + Candyland + Christmas stockings = a very good Christmas morning. Now to attempt cooking Christmas lunch without my mother. Eeeeeek. Lucky I'm fabulous. Candy the yams baby, it's on. Plus Elf was playing in the background. Best Christmas movie ever. "SANTA!!! I KNOW HIM!"

Meanwhile, Christmas evening was actually too funny to put into words. I don't know if I can do it justice. Crashed a family shindig, thanks Peggy! Probably the greatest group of people in the world, 10 points to Elisha for having the funniest jazzercise instructor in the universe. MORE WINE? Seriously. The Rent sing-a-long will go down in history as one of my favourite Christmas memories of all time.

Christmas 2009, you were a winner.

"Since it's Christmas let's be glad, even if your life's been bad, they're presents to be had. Take a walk out in the snow, and hear Santa's ho ho ho." SUFJAN STEVENS