My dear boyfriend has brought to my attention that people were not able to comment unless that had an account. That is lame, no one likes accounts. I changed the settings so now everyone should be able to speak their mind freely! Keep it clean people. Thanks Ben for letting me know!

I picked up my bike this afternoon before volleyball. The nice bike shop man put a whole new brake on the back (it's really shiny) and he tightened up the front brake. He said I will be able to stop on a dime!

After volleyball, I was biking back and I was going a different way since I had to take the roads. By the way, I DO ride on the left side and it's not that weird. Anyway, I was riding along and I rode past the soccer fields where there happened to be a males soccer practice going on. Naturally I decided to gawk a little bit because, I mean, well... you know. And that's when I missed my turn to get on to the bridge. I immediately slammed on my brakes and sure enough, I stopped right away, just like the guy said. I casually turned the bike around and pedaled away quickly. Had I not fixed those brakes they would have squeaked so loud everyone would have looked and it could have been way worse. But since I fixed them I endured much less embarrassment. Only this one girl on the path saw me and probably saw me staring at the soccer players anyway so it couldn't have gotten much worse. Soo I am really glad I have a working bike now. I am sure I will have more bike stories to come too, considering I am not the best biker in the world...

The other day, I bought a bike. It was pretty inexpensive and seemed to be of decent quality, at least for only one semester. I got it home and realized the back brakes were a bike squeaky (also, the back brake is the left handle instead of the right so I have been having whole heaps of troubles trying to get used to that in an effort to not flip over the handle bars). I went to the store to see what I could do about the brakes and the dude suggested getting new brake pads. So I did, and I even installed them myself! I tried riding it and realized the brakes were not very good at all so I thought a professional should look at it.

Well, this morning I had an appointment with the bike shop on campus so I decided to try to ride it in and see how bad it really was. Luckily, it was UP HILL BOTH WAYS to school (or at least it felt like it), until the final stretch which was a pretty steady decline. It was quite scary actually. I don't think either of my brakes were working. Also, I had to stop TWICE for these dumb birds that were just leisurely crossing the path. Normally, I wouldn't have minded (because I enjoy wildlife) but I was pretty much banking on momentum at this point so they really threw me off. I basically walked my bike as soon as I got it on campus. The dude at the bike shop suggested I get an entire new back brake because it was so bad, and he said the front brake didn't even work. Awesome. Hopefully these will be the last of my repairs with this dumb thing. As a side note however, I did get to campus much quicker so I think it will all be worth it once it's fixed.

P.s. Don't worry, I was wearing a helmet. It's illegal not to here!

I love school. That is all I have to say. You don't think you'll miss it, but you do-kinda. And it's nice to see all the students bustling around campus. Plus, it's gorgeous outside so walking to class and lounging during breaks is most enjoyable. Now, come end of May when all my Madison folks are on summer vacation I probably won't be as excited to go to class but for now, I am loving it. Also, I only had two classes today soo maybe it was just an easy first day of school. Oh, and for all of you Madison students who are wondering... yes, they have syllabus week here too. This whole week is gonna be fabulous! I'll probs go to the beach on Wednesday ;)

Do you want this anemone to sting you???

You can't really tell from the picture because I was trying to be discrete...but a McChicken is $7.15!!!! I am eating 7 off the dollar menu when I get back just to make a point

The other day, at volleyball, an Australian dude came up to me and asked if that was my natural hair color. Yes, I said (ginger pride). He then said "Oh, and it matches your sunburn" pointing to my pinkish shoulders (kinda rude) "and it matches your nail polish!" My nails are literally neon orange/pink. (see pic below) Seriously...

This morning I ventured nearby my house for some city exploration. There is a pretty nice shopping area nearby (about a 15 munite walk) so I was happy to check it out. There I discovered a wonderful authentic German butcher shop. It even had a German looking sign on the front so I knew it would be good. I went in and found the butcher to be extremely helpful. I assumed he was German but I couldn't really tell if he had a German accent or an Australian one, or if he maybe came here from Germany but has lived here so long that now he sounds like an Australian? I don't know, anyway he was wonderful. I was longing for some Wisconsin food so I bought a few bratwursts. Apparently, they were made to a recipe for the oldest, best bratwurst ever in the history of all time. I had it for lunch and it was quite delicious. I would have preferred to cook them in beer but lord knows I can't afford that shit anymore. I also bought some Kangaroo! It was very exciting for me. I asked the butcher how to cook it and he said: "There are only two ways to cook Kangaroo: medium rare or not at all". With that, I settled on the Kangaroo "rump" a very nice, lean piece of meat. He cut it into smaller pieces so I wouldn't have to eat it all at once so I left with three very nice cuts of 'roo.

As dinner approached, I was very anxious/nervous to cook this kangaroo. I really didn't want to ruin it. I Googled it for a bit and decided to pan fry it on very high for a short period of time. The websites all agreed with the butcher that is should be cooked medium rare. This is what freaked me out the most, I never eat things medium rare because it's gross and bloody. Anyway, I cut the piece into smaller strips and started to cook them. They cooked really fast, just like the website said. I took one off the stove and cut into it and it was totally uncooked, ew. I cooked it a little more and checked again, still kinda gross. I hate medium rare. I decided to take them off after they were cooked through but still pinkish/bloody (so stressful for me, but I knew I had to do it). After letting them sit for about 5 minutes they stopped bleeding so much and turns out they were cooked to perfection! Kangaroo tastes like steak, the benefits are that it is better for you and here, in Australia, significantly cheaper than actually buying a steak. I have a feeling I am going to make it a staple part of my diet for the next few months. Plus, I know how to cook them now and I am sure I can only get better and better. The only remaining question is: SG, are you so proud???

You think I eat healthy, but really I eat cheap. You can't afford anything but fruits and veggies on this island!!!