Kangaroos @ MindSay 
OK, wildlife lovers of the world ... turn away now.
There are few things on this planet dumber or more ugly than a kangaroo. the name isn't even it's real name, it aboriginal for:
"I have no idea what you just asked me you stupid white man"
(work on it kids, you'll figure that one out later.)
After an IQ survey was conducted by some wildlife welfare group some years ago, the results indicated that dolphins and dogs shared about the same IQ as a three year old human. Great white sharks were just a little lower and chimpanzees were at about the same IQ as a 4-5 year old human.
Kangaroos studies by this group were the dumbest mammals alive and apparently, if you carve a kangaroo out of wood it will have the same IQ as a real one.
You might wonder why I hate them so much; I'll tell you: In Canberra, the capital city of Australia we have a smallish problem. About this time of year the kangaroos that live around the city in the bush, decide that the temperature of the grass in town is much better than the temperature of the grass in the bush and they invade! They arrive in mobs of several hundred and take over urban and suburban grassy areas. You know, like your front lawn. I go to work at about midnight when it's nice and dark and you can't see the big fat fuckers.
We had a plan to cull their number to improve safety but some animal rights activists in England protested and now, our gutless community leaders can't find the gumption (I love that word) to carry out the cull, for fear of the international backlash. Fair enough then, why don't we just export the vicious fat fuckers to the U.K. and they can deal with them.
Why are kangaroos so dangerous? Have you ever been driving at night and almost hit a dog in the road? What about a sheep? OK, now imagine this: Kangaroos can weigh as much as a large sheep, they actually move towards your headlights; and they don't die when they crash through your windscreen and into the front seat of your car - where you are. So when you come around the corner at 50mph and see a 'roo ahead, it is likely to jump towards your car, get hit by your car, get cut and bruised as it crashes through the windscreen of your car and end up bleeding and very angry in the seat next to you.
Yes, last night on the way to work, I ran across a mob of kangaroos grazing on the lawns of the local highschool. I avoided hitting any of the ones on the road but not before my heart-attack.
Of course if you hit it hard enough, it might just write your car off. Next week, I decry the woes of the bloody aweful cockatoo - Screeching flying vermin.
The moment I stepped on that dubious van, I knew that this trip would have everything that the previous day didn’t. I traveled with a handful of people rather than a busload, and the trip was structured to interact with nature rather than photograph it. We even ate lunch in a wind cave:
A couple of people on the tour eating lunch with Luke, our guide (middle).
Throughout the day, Luke somehow navigated us around the crowds of tourists so that we merely passed by them instead of jostling amongst them. We learned that the Blue Mountains are older than the Grand Canyon, and are blue because of oils released from trees that provide a haze in the air to give the appearance of bluishness, and that they’re a series of plateaus interspersed with valleys rather than actual mountains, but hey, “Blue Mountains” is much easier to say.
The weather, where it was perfect the day before, was now temperamental, giving us a few rays of sunshine before turning windy and torrential, and then back again. A few of us wound our way down a narrow, snaking track in one of the more severe downpours, the hardy grass slashing at our faces and arms, umbrellas and rain gear long since useless. We emerged at a lookout point just as the sky cleared, and beheld something totally unexpected:
A spectacular double rainbow (look very closely) arching over the valley as the clouds cleared. The rain gone, and the returning flies forgotten for a moment (quite an event in itself, as anyone who has ever been to Australia can tell you), we grinned at each other and lingered on our little precipice a little longer, then made our return, Luke stopping dead every few moments to identify this half-seen bird, listen for that frog. This was the difference in my two trips. From the perspective of the staff, one was a job, and the other was a dream made reality, and it was that passion for one’s work—or lack thereof—that made or broke the entire journey.
Finally, we traveled to our final stop, a remote park that was often frequented by wild kangaroos. While we munched on some snacks that Luke had brought along, our group roamed the park, though it wasn’t long before we spotted our first kangaroos. How close did we get, you ask?
Pretty close.
A short while later, we chugged back to Sydney on the Little Van That Could in high spirits, though almost disappointed to leave that sanctuary, home to hundreds of diverse species, some of which are unique to the region. I wished we could have done a bit more hiking, but all in all, the trip was fantastic, and half the price of dolphin watching. Sunset in Sydney seemed somehow more soothing that evening as I made my now-standard rounds of Darling Harbour and Circular Quay. At last, the adventure addict in me had quenched its appetite and bedded down for a few days.
The next two days were a blur. The end of my week suddenly seemed a lot closer after dedicating so much time away from Sydney. I returned to many of the places visited before, including a return trip to Bondi Beach to see the rest of the Sculpture by the Sea exhibit, and to watch some random guy break the world record for the highest bungee jump by leaping out of a helicopter and plunging 300 meters (almost 1000 feet). Then once again my bags were packed, I was hugging my friend goodbye, and I was on an airplane watching Australia dwindle into the distance.
I'm currently eating some delicious buffalo wings coated in teryaki sauce from Buffalo Wild Wings. They just opened a place here in DeKalb and while they did gip us ($.35 cents for a paper napkin? PLEASE. Not too mention they charged us $.40 cents for a blue cheese dipping sauce that they never gave us). But the wings are good.
My Da took me to Woodfield mall in Schaumburg (3rd largest mall in the USA, I think) today. The only store I went to was Torrid and I've deemed it my favorite now. They have cool clothes for big girls and I love that. I mean, I'm not massive or anything cause I can still shop at places like Rue21 and all but it's nice to go to a store devoted entirely to plus-sized young women (Layne Bryant doesn't count because they make clothes for kangaroos, if you get my drift). Anyway, I got two pairs of jeans, a pretty blue sweater, a cool top, a silver studded holder for my iPod and a black wallet with stars on it for going out.
I'm glad I bought 'going out' clothes before I went to Memphis last month so I didn't have to buy them now 'cause I spent nearly $200 on just those things. Plus I still need boots, a coat and maybe one more sweater. If possible.
Oh! And I went to Bed, Bath & Beyond and Target yesterday. At BBB, I got a nice blanket, little towels, a bathrobe, shower sandals, and some other stuff I can't remember. At Target I got a bunch of girl stuff 'cause it costs money to look as pretty as I do (haha).
Tomorrow I have my hair appointment where I'll be going from blonde to brunette and cutting about two inches off my already short hair. Luckily, I got an appointment with Lori, who is my favorite stylist.
Thursday is cleaning and packing day so that I'm ready to go on Friday (but I have a nighttime flight anyway so I'm not going to pack till Friday, hehehe). I haven't cleaned my bedroom since I left for school last year. So, you can imagine the mess it's in. Plus my bathroom hasn't been cleaned since my sister left for school because I got lazy and all my crap is all over our two sinks. One sink is now for morning and bed-time preparation and the other is for going out. They both serve a purpose and I'm going to feel empty when I have only one sink again.
What else... hm... I think that's all for today. I may make one last update before England (probably the day I leave).
did i spell that right?
there's a lot of people from australia on mindsay...and you all KICK ASS!!!!!!!!!!!!!