I Survived Australia Day

When a person thinks of the word “patriotic”, the country that automatically comes to mind is America – we sing the national anthem at EVERY sporting event, every citizen knows the lyrics of “Proud to be an American” (or you better at least know the chorus...), and we even make our children PLEDGE their ALLEGIANCE to our flag every morning of the working week from kindergarten until they graduate high school.  America bleeds patriotism, and I love that about my country.  Without a doubt, the most patriotic day of the year is Independence Day – we dress in our country’s colors, we tattoo ourselves in American flags and bald eagles, and we drink Budweiser out of limited edition American flag cans as we get drunk on our country’s pride and awesomeness…

Well, Australia also believes in this patriotism, and they also thrive at it.  Although they may not sing their national anthem before EVERY rugby and cricket match, they do know how to celebrate their country’s heritage and independence, and they cram it all in one day. This day is simply called: Australia Day.  On the 26^th of January every year, Australians take out their flag capes and blow up their Australian sandal floatation devices and head to the nearest beach or park to have a BBQ with friends and family. Think 4^th of July celebrations, but instead of slurring the lyrics to “God Bless America”, Australians religiously listen to the national radio station, Triple J, which counts down the “Hottest 100” songs of the past year.  I have never met so many people with the same tradition – no matter if the Aussie was stuck at work, relaxing at home, or partying it up on a yacht in the middle of the Sydney Harbour… they were listening to Triple J and eagerly hoping that their “hot list” would make the national list of popular songs. 

You must know this about Triple J: there is no Katy Perry, or Brittany Spears, or Lil Wayne – these artists are all too mainstream for this radio station.  The artists that typically* play on Triple J are independent artists, although it has become more common throughout the years for an overplayed “Top 40” song to slip its way into the Hottest 100.  Beginning late December, Triple J features a countdown to Australia Day, as well as a short list of songs (around 200 songs) by artists that have proven to be popular throughout the past year.  The short list typically gives the browser (me) an idea of what songs to choose for my personal Hot List, which featured A$AP Rocky, Arctic Monkeys, Lorde, Flume, The Wombats and a few others. Although the featured short list typically holds the Top 10 songs of the year, your personal Hot List does not have to have any of the suggested songs - YOU chose who YOU think should be considered the Best Song of the Year.

The countdown started midday on Australia Day with the 100^th song and made its way down to the Top 10 around 8pm. By this time, Australians are typically drunk off of VB – [point of reference: VB is their Budweiser, so for all of you that thought Australians drink Fosters – you are very wrong] – and full from eating sausages with grilled onions and barbecue sauce.  The Top 10 is what everyone has been waiting for the entire day; all anticipating who will make the number one spot of 2013…

… everyone thought it was going to be Royals by Lorde (I ranked Team by Lorde #8 in my hot list) or Get Lucky by Daft Punk (ugh so overplayed)…

…I wanted it to be Do I Wanna Know by Arctic Monkeys…

…but everyone was stumped when #1 came in and it was Riptide by Vance Joy. Great song – and a great win for a song featuring the ukulele!  

If you want to see the entire Hottest 100 list - click here.

I have celebrated 22 years of American pride, but this year marked my first official Australia Day celebration - and let me tell you, I was not disappointed. Australians sure know how to take pride in their wonderful country! They don't say it often (although, I bet you think otherwise), but if they do, they say it on Australia Day - so I'll end on this...

AUSSIE AUSSIE AUSSIE! OI OI OI! 

Free Fallin' Out Into Nothing

Nevis Bungy - NZ

Some people say that they would more likely subject themselves to jump out of an airplane than strike up the nerve to bungy jump – especially from one of the highest bungy points in the world.  You may or may not know this about me, but I took that leap of faith in 2012 when I visited Queenstown, NZ and jumped 134 meters (440 feet) into a canyon.  It was one of the most intense and awesome activities I have ever done, and when I survived, I was definitely proud to have crossed bungy jumping off of my Bucket List. 

Until this past December, one thrill that I hadn’t yet mastered was skydiving, which had been on my to-do list for some time.  So, when my loving sister came to visit me for Christmas and the New Year, I suggested we jump out of a plane together! Being an adrenaline-seeker like myself, it wasn’t difficult getting Katy on board with the idea [“on board” – get it? Like boarding a plane… Yes, the horrible pun was intended].  We decided we would make the 14,000 feet jump that would land us on the beautiful beaches of Woollongong, a beach town an hour and a half south of Sydney.  Some skydiving places take off and land at airports – boorrrring – we wanted breathtaking views as gravity took control and plunged us back down to land! So when the day came, I put on my old school Charles Barkley jersey, accompanied with my hightop nikes, and I was officially ready to jump out of ANY airplane. If only Eye of the Tiger was blaring as I walked in slo-mo to the tiny airplane before takeoff... 

As someone who has now bungy jumped and skydived, I can finally attest that skydiving is 100% easier to prepare for and to execute the big jump. Granted, this is partly because there is a professional strapped to your back and the reassurance of technology provides a backup plan for the backup plan in case anything happens to your pro-dude or parachute. But it was also the fact that you are falling for a lot longer, and not essentially diving head-first solo into a canyon in The-Middle-of-Nowhere, NZ with just a rope attached to your ankles… 

ANYWAYS it was also so great to do this [potentially] life-threatening activity with my sister – we totally tag-teamed and accomplished an awesome experience together! ALSO, I don’t think there could have been a better accomplice to hysterically laugh at the finished products of our skydive videos… What a great day.

Speaking of the hilarity of our souvenirs, here are just a few photo gems from my first skydiving experience (And yes, it is near impossible not to have your mouth wide open and to not drool while free-falling out of an airplane…):

SHOOBIES INVADE BONDI

Shoobie (SHo͞o-bē)

1. (n); Any person who looks out of place while at the beach. Usually identified by the wearing of black or white tube socks with shorts and flip-flops and/or a severe sunburn.
2. (n); Tourist, particulary one who in the course of his/her activities interferes with the traditional usage of beach areas.
3. (n); Term coined by Otto and Reggie Rocket, Twister, and Sam from Nickelodeon's acclaimed animated series Rocket Power; used to describe the annoying tourists who raid the beaches of Ocean Shores during the summer months. 

Note: The character Sam (nicknamed "The Squid") is crossed off on the account that he is, in fact, a shoobie himself.