Well it’s been over a year since I moved from NY to the land down under. It wasn’t easy by a long shot. All I could think about during the course of like several months was just to get back and keep living in North America. I still have thoughts about going back there eventually, but for the time being, I’ve put my focus on other things to keep the flow of life going.
Just a year and a day ago, I landed my very first job at McDonald’s. Needless to say I was very excited to get the job. It was very awkward at first, which was kinda expected since I was the new kid. I’ve since grown to love my job. I like being out there serving customers and giving them exactly what they’re after. I can mess up on a few things sometimes, but everyone does and the backlash can be a little harsh at times. When I was at Sydney University in 2012, I had overnight shifts every week. I wasn’t particularly fond of them and I’m still not. I cringe at the idea of doing a shift like that. That’s why I asked to have my availabilities changed back in January so that I wouldn’t have overnights shifts anymore. It wasn’t worth the $2 extra I got an hour and it wasn’t worth the torture I dealt with with a co-worker whose name shall remain anonymous. I just couldn’t deal with it anymore. Now I have early morning, afternoon and late night shifts and I’m quite happy with the flexibility. Plus the day crew are much more fun to be with. I’ve come to learn that working at McDonald’s isn’t just about the customers. It’s also about the people you work with as well. If you can get along well with your co-workers and have fun while at the same time sticking to the job at hand, you can rest assured that you’ll have a good shift any day.
At the moment, I have started saving some money little by little every week so that I can possibly go to New York sometime within this year. I want to be able to visit every year if I can. I miss it over there. I miss my friends especially. I made so many over time that leaving New York was just nothing short of devastating. I just know that they’re doing fine, so that at least keeps me happy. I want my friends to be happy. If they’re not, I’m not. That especially applies to my close-knit group: Taina, Annette, Jackie and Wes. I always looked forward to our hangouts. We would watch Youtube videos, listen to music, watch movies, play games, EAT, you name it! We enjoyed each other’s company very much. I loved every minute we spent together as a group. I wish I could go back to those times. I have made a lot of friends here in Australia though and they’re all wonderful, so I couldn’t have asked for a better gift while I’m here. Here’s hoping to continue meeting new people and making new connections because God knows how long I’ll be here.
I’m kind of at that point in my life where I should really start counting my blessings. I’m so lucky to have travelled from one country to another and experienced all sorts of exciting new things and I know a lot of people have it a lot worse than I do, so I really shouldn’t complain. Things happen for a reason. Now that I think about it, my coming here to Australia was actually a blessing in disguise. It was hard living as an international student in New York. I didn’t get the same privileges as the permanent residents/citizens and I couldn’t get any sort of financial aid for my schooling, so my coming here was ultimately for the best. I’m glad I don’t have to worry about being an international student anymore. For now, I’ll just live it up here and try to have as much fun as I can.
