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Published: December 14th 2010
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There are times in life when our everyday pace of events quickens. Moments seem to fly past not allowing time for consideration or comprehension before merging into the next moment. I guess what Im trying to say is that my life here in Brisbane is spinning. Ive been too preoccupied with the fun and the times in front of me, that I havent had the quiet setting for reflection.
So, Ive been in humid Queensland for about a month now. I reunited with Richie (from my Melbourne days) here in Brisbane and even stayed at the same hostel. Brisbane has a much different vibe then other Australian cities. The people are friendly, the pace is slow, people are relaxed, the city offers a small city centre that is for shopping purposes. It is clean, safe and seems to be a little dull after living in Melbourne, Rain clouds can move in quickly and create hardcore rainfalls which sometimes breaks up the hot days.
I spent two days in Byron Bay between Sydney and Brisbane. The fun of Sydney gave way to a bit of an anxiety crash in Byron Bay. Sleeping and reading was all I did and I
felt unwell. So reuniting with a familiar face in Brisbane was great. From my day of arrival I started meeting people, partying and just having a blast. With Richie only two floors away and with the temptation of two bars downstairs, we ended up having pints, chats and embracing the randomness of the night too often.
So the dollar bill situation was getting dire. I was casually looking for work, but with the heat and the constant hangovers, I wasn't putting my best foot forward. Eventually I got more serious about the job search and finally found a casual job. I got a job at a big Italian restaurant working around 25 hours a week, doing prep work, cooking on the line, rolling pizzas. The back courtyard behind the restaurant is frequently visited by water dragons, some sort of weird pigeons and even a couple wild turkeys.
Brisbane has been great. Not only have I met some great people but have had the pleasure of re-seeing some friends from this trip. Nikki and Karis, from my Brighton days in Melbourne, were in town for a few days. Some of the gang from the Blue Parrot in Sydney joined
me on a night out. And a surprise visit from my Melbourne roommate Phil, who is still here. It is great to re-see and catch up with people that I've had some great times with.
Random moments have saturated my Brisbane days. Richie's break dancing, Mole, Frankie and the guitar session on the rooftop (yippie kaw yah), $100 bar tab and the trivia victory, Richie and I in dresses on ladies night, getting bullied on the stairs, the hormonal girl street scene (sorry gals I have to mention it), Phil's departure from the bar, 10 minutes of talking like..., Cecile, Amandine and the great French chats we had, the Israeli girls at the mall that always stop me to chat, the U2 concert, partying with Down Under staff, being a hired wingman, the spider walkway, Phils 5am outburst, Denny's dancing, Steve, Jenny and smell my finger joke, guitar sessions at Jenny's posh flat, jugs of snakebite, scaring Will, the smelly dude in bunk 4, Hans (amazing eh!), breaking my phone, afternoons with Chelsea, getting beer poured on me, and the snakebite incident with Richie, “Flanders”, and there are likely other events I can't think of right now.
Phil
sold his U2 ticket in Melbourne to come to Brisbane earlier then he had originally planned. U2 were playing two nights in Brisbane. On the first night we decided to go out to the Suncorp Stadium and see if we could get tickets or maybe just listen from outside. We had $140 plus some coins between us. We decided if that would get us 2 tickets we would do it. As we were walking up to the huge stadium we noticed a man standing out front, he looked like a scalper. In no time this guy was showing us two seated tickets worth $299 each and asking $100 each for them in his Manchester accent. We explained that we didn't have that kind of money. This man was a fast talker and in a hurry to get this deal done. The sound of a screaming crowd. “Give me $160 for the tickets'. Then the first riffs of Edge's guitar and the price was $150. We got our $140 together to seal the deal but he wasn't taken it. I added the coins in my pocket to the pot (an extra $4.15) and the deal was done. We were holding two
tickets to a concert we thought of an hour ago. We raced through the stadium to get to our seats. We had smiles on our faces, gooosebumps on our skin and our ''we the man' struts in use. I will never forget the laughs and the high fives while U2 played 'A beautiful Day'as we found our seats. The stage was topped by a huge space needle, four large legs, a 360 degree stage, moving bridges, and huge screens. I have never attended suge a huge production and was amazed by the quality of the sound, the stage and screens. I am a U2 fan but not a huge fan. My highlights of the night included ''Mysterious Ways', "Sunday Bloody Sunday", "City of Blinding Lights" "One" and "With or Without You". Bono did a version of "Dear Prudence" in memory of the anniversary of John Lennons death. One moment that I plan to always remember is singing "One" with 45,000 people plus Bono, under a starlight Southern Sky in the thick summer air. The show talked politics and talked of some of the social problems and the charity groups supported by Bono. Turns out our tickets were Red Zone tickets
which meant we were supporting fighting aids in Africa. The concert was a great random night, one high point on this trip.
What can I say. Im having fun here, watching the days get warmer and the city getting more festive for the holiday season. I have access to two of my best friends from this trip for pints, chats and just plain banter. My Australia visa is nearing its end, so I aim to have as much fun while I can and come up with a plan for post Australia. Until then I will enjoy these days of my life, the sun, the pace of it all, the company I keep and the random events that present themselves. Keeping busy in Brissy.
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MOM
non-member comment
too much fun
seems to me u r havin just too much fun glad to see it give us a shout love u mom