Gustery Blustery

On Monday Cyclone Dominic made landfall about 250km northeast of here. Though only a category 1 by the time it hit, it was enough to bring some serious wind and rain our way. We had a small barbie, since it was Australia Day but I think the weather kept things rather subdued. Not enough that I wasn’t hung-over the next day, mind you. Australia Day celebrates the arrival of the First Fleet- I find it very funny that they chose their national holiday on the day a boat load of English convicts landed ashore. The downside is that the Aborigines call January 26 Survival Day, in reference the fact that they are still here, despite the First Fleet and everything that followed. They want the day moved, but this is a very touchy subject with everyone, as is most things having to do with aboriginal issues.

The upside of all the rain is that it has been quite pleasant around here for the past couple days when the sun is out- the temperature topped at a downright chilly 30 degrees yesterday, practically spring-like! It is humid as hell, but it’s a nice change, especially since I have been doing housekeeping in the motels and actually walking around outside during the day. Things have been super quiet since I got here in December, but starting in February every single motel room will be booked up so business should pick up. I hate to count days, but I am getting excited about my plans for when I leave so it’s hard not to think about it. I have booked my flight back to Perth for March 30, and then I am renting a car and checking out all the things I didn’t get to see when I had no money- snorkeling in Monkey Mia, dolphins in Exmouth, and of course the world famous stromatolites of Shark Bay (one of only three places in the entire world where they have been found).

For those who don’t know, stromatolites are a type of cyanobacteria that leave behind coral-like mounds as they grow in shallow, super-saline lagoons. While not much to look at, they are believed to be the first oxygen-producing organisms on Earth and probably altered the atmosphere over millions of years to the point where it could support life. I learned about them in my 2nd year paleontology class and remember sitting in class thinking I would go to Shark Bay and check them out some day- it’s the least I could do after they so kindly created an oxygen-rich atmosphere for us. Okay, enough geek talk for one day. 50 days to go, but who’s counting, right?

Half-way

As of this week, I have survived Auski for 7 weeks and have 7 weeks left before I depart for bigger and better things. It has gone both quickly and very slowly, if that is possible. Days go slowly, since business is quite slow lately, but since each day is pretty much the same, I will occasionally look at the calendar and be quite surprised at how much of the week had gone by.

I have been moved to housekeeping for a couple weeks while the regular cleaner is away on holidays. The hours are fewer, but I am not required to smile at everyone who comes in the door so it is not too bad. To my pleasant surprise, Australians treat their motel rooms very well and I generally don't need to do more than make the beds and give everything a quick wipe-down. The one point in the day I dread is having to clean the campground bathrooms. Not because they are particularly dirty, but they are not air-conditioned and I think any place that involves human waste and 45 degree heat would resemble one of the circles of hell. It's times like that when I really miss my rocks. They always smell the same, regardless of temperature. I am afraid it will be a while before I get paid for my rock skills though- I'd say at least a year before companies start hiring junior geologists again. Luckily I have a backup job when I get back to Canada involving a 1967 International tractor and my dad's hay fields. I think I must have some sort of genetic determinism that always pulls me back to that old farm...

-A.

Train of thought

Every time I make even tentative plans, something happens to change them. I don't know why I even bother.

Here is an idea of my train of thought while I smile at customers and hand them their change:

3000 layoffs in mining industry in this state alone, so okay, no geo job. I'll travel Australia until I run out of money then go home. Okay, but wait! I got an email address from a geotechnical engineer who was in the shop today who will send my resume around. But he says don't bank on any replies. Hmm, maybe make a backup plan? Going to New Zealand in late March- no April now since Joanne can't make it until then. Maybe stay and work until April? But I might go crazy out here that long in the desert and money isn't everything. But there are no jobs so maybe I should just go home with my wages from Auski and pay off some of my student loan while I have the chance and live in High Prairie for a while until the economy gets better. But that's no fun! Maybe I could...

Anyway, you get the picture. I have started writing some fiction just to try and funnel my brain into more productive pursuits, as the whole cash register thing isn't exactly Calculus (and thank god for that). And tomorrow I am being reassigned to motel cleaning since the regular lady is going on vacation, so there will be even less need to use my brain. As long as I can do a decent hospital corner (which I perfected when I was in air cadet camp) I am set. God forbid they put me in the kitchen- with my daydreaming, I would be sure to lose a finger inside of a week.

-A.

Death warmed over

If you have been wondering why I have been somewhat lax in my posting lately, I do have an excuse for at least the last couple days. I seem to have contracted some sort of desert ebola bronchitis disease, which has prevented me from leaving my cell... I mean room for the past two days straight, other than for the purposes of acquiring fruit salad, toast and jell-o from the kitchen. I won't go into details other than to say that my nose ejected some disturbingly large and solid things in the past 48 hours. Jean, the office lady, was about to ring up the flying doctors today but I seem to have taken a turn for the better, up and walking and everything, so it looks like I am going to survive after all.

The Royal Flying Doctors Service, for those of you who don't know, is a medical team that will fly to various regions in the outback, for which standard medical service is too far away to be practical. They apparently can give prescriptions over the phone to the nearest chemist(pharmacist) after hearing your symptoms and in emergencies will come take a look at you and fly you out if necessary. The outback is full of stuff like this- practical ways of dealing with all the goddam space between everything. My favorite is the School of the Air, which allows station(ranch) kids to communicate with teachers via CB radio. I am guessing that this is gradually being replaced by online communication, but satellite connections are still damn expensive out here so the old radios will still be kicking around for a few more years. It is all so romantically historic and old-fashioned, but in a good way.

-A.

No more bacon for hobos.

When I was sitting at home unemployed, waiting for my departure to Australia, I was running up to 7km per day, though most days it was more like 4-5km. Since it is so hot out here in the outback, my exercise regime has been limited to short walks and the occasional hike after a bout of rain has cooled things off somewhat. Judging by the fit of my Capri pants, this is not enough. My new rules for the next couple months include an all-out ban on bacon and deep-fried food as well as cake slices. I have purchased an exercise DVD, which now that I have my laptop, I can work out with in the air conditioned staff room which no one uses because they aren’t allowed to smoke in there. I had my first run though on Sunday and I still can’t lift my arms above my head. My aim is merely to be able to avoid buying new clothes, but if I shed a couple pounds along the way, all the better.

In other news, I have accepted the fact that I will probably not find a geology job, thanks to the economic crisis. I checked online, and geo jobs are scarce even in Canada. There is nothing wrong with riding out a recession as a homeless nomad, so I will stick it out here until August at least, when I have to return to Canada for Nicole Vandermeulen’s wedding, where I will employ my mad skills as a bridesmaid. If things don’t pick up by then, then I might just have to do some more traveling! After talking to some other travelers, there are a few countries on my must-see list; Ireland, South Africa, Croatia, Peru and China being in my top 5. There is always more of Canada to see as well, so if my student loan obligations delay my international ambitions, I am always up for a road trip to the Yukon or the BC interior. It looks like it’s going to be a while before I get around to that two-car garage, though.

….all of a sudden I have “The Littlest Hobo” theme stuck in my head. Hmm….

-A.

Fun Facts

I am a tired lazy bum today, having stayed up late to see off the German couple who left today and subsequently having to do an extra day of morning shift. For that reason, you get a set of fun facts instead of a proper narrative. Enjoy!

New Food from Australia that I Like:

Kangaroo
Emu
Wild Turkey
Barramundi (a fish)
Mangos from the tree by my room... yum!


New Food from Australia that I Don't Like

Lamb Fry(aka liver)
Beetroot in my burger
Meat Pies
Vegemite

Food That I Can't Find in Australia

Smoked Strip Bacon
Root Beer
Percolated Coffee
Uncarbonated Lemonade

No drama

Things have been mighty slow out here in the Pilbara.  The holiday traffic has trickled off, the miners have yet to come back and it is too damn hot for everyone else. It doesn't help that I am on morning shift- starting work at 5:30 am is not my idea of fun.  I have a system down where I can be ready and out the door in five minutes so I can sleep in until 5:23.  Living in the same yard as where I work does seem to have its perks.  I am heading into town on Wednesday with the mail run so I think I am going to pick up a few things to keep me entertained, like a sketch book and maybe a few more novels, not to mention some snack food.  60% of the food here is deep fried and my pants are getting a little tight.  It's hard to get exercise when it is so hot outside that 10 minutes dehydrates you.

I did get out a little on Saturday; Adam, Tracy and I went out to Wittenoom gorge and took a dip in Cathedral pool which is this amazing swimming hole that the locals know about.  The water was crystal clear and gloriously cold.  If I had a car I would be out there every day.  It is supposed to hit 46 degrees on Thursday, so maybe that would be a good time to convince someone to give me a ride out again.  

As I get in the groove of daily life out here, it's funny how much this place is starting to remind me of high school- with all the associated drama and cliques.  I am trying to stay out of it and not say too much.  Staying friends with everyone seems like a good idea when you both live AND work with all of them.

In other good news, my lovely mama has shipped my laptop so I can finally have some tunes and a couple movies in my room.  I brought my ipod and headphones but dancing around to headphones makes me look like a crazy person.... well, more of a crazy person, anyway.  At least with out-loud music, anyone who sees me will know I have some rhythm.

2009 and feelin' fine

The title is somewhat inaccurate if we are referring to New Year's Day for which I was somewhat hung over and did not go on my hike up Mount George.  Instead I slept in until 1 pm and dragged myself into work at 3 pm.  Thank goodness I started late.  The party was great though, so it was totally worth it.

We had a huge barbecue and all around there was this huge lightning storm rolling in that never actually materialized as rain.  It gave the party a rather energized feeling (pardon the pun) and I think everyone was in more of a mood to let loose.  A few hours later I gave a rousing impromptu karaoke performance of Blind Melon's "No Rain" (oooh, another pun!), minus any actual karaoke equipment.  As official time-keeper, I had to get my act together as it neared midnight and I set off the countdown right on time... I hope.  I never actually checked the accuracy of my watch, but it is too late now. 

Still later in the night, I had a long and interesting conversation with Tim Parker, who is an older aboriginal fellow from down the road.  The clouds had cleared and he was telling me the indigenous names for various constellations.  The only one I recognize from the northern hemisphere is Orion, who is upside down here, but Tim said that he was taught that it represented a certain type of lizard I can't remember the name of.  He also warned me about my hike- apparently there is an area a couple of kilometers past where I was going to climb that he described as a "bad place" and he felt responsible for my safety.  Nothing to do with rock instability or anything like that, I think he meant it was dangerous in a spiritual way.  He told me about an archaeologist he was friends with who mysteriously died a few months after visiting one of these bad places.  I am not sure how I feel about that, but better safe than sorry, so I will be staying within a 3 km radius of Auski when up in the hills.  Maybe that was another reason I was reluctant to head out the hike the next day.  

I hope everyone had as fun of a time on New Years as I did.  Better than drinking wine by myself in my parents' basement like last year (no offence, Mom and Dad, but you did go to bed at 10pm!  Jody did too, but she was pregnant so had an excuse.)  Happy 2009!

Cheers.

-A.