NYE... It's 2010 now folks.

Before I tell you about my New Years Eve lets reflect on some of the major things that happened in 2009.

-Rang in the New Year in Las Vegas with Mark and family.

-Coachella with Mark and TJ.

-Attended my first real film festival -The Newport Beach Film Festival- with Brandon.

-Finished my first feature film script.

-Graduated from university.

-My short "The Dream" got accepted into the GIAA Film Festival in NYC; Mark won best actor.

-Went on a Eurotrip. Saw 3 new countries I have not been to.

-My 22 birthday.

-Moving back home for 2 months.

-Went to NYC for the GIAA Film Fest. Saw my movie screened on a big screen and my sister.

-Went to Philadelphia and saw my study abroad friends and the Fall Festival.

-Moved to Australia.

-Found a place to live in Australia.

-Found 2 jobs in Australia.

-NYE 2009 Sydney

That brings us to New Years Eve in Sydney Australia. Lets just start with the beginning. A group of us went to a place called Pipers Point. There was a little grass area on the water that had perfect views of the Harbour Bridge (where everything goes down). I arrived there at about 1:30pm and drinking, eating, and games began. Little by little everyone showed up. We had the largest group there and took over about 25% of the entire grass. At midnight there was an amazing firework show of the Harbour and throughout Sydney. Look at pics below.

Fireworks shooting off the top of the buildings in Sydney CBD.

My view from Pipers Point.
More Views.

Continue reading...

After the firework display and and wishing everyone a "Happy New Year", it was time to go home. There was one problem, we had no way of getting home. Piper Points is too far out of the way and their is no public transport that goes where we need to go. Some decided to sleep there till morning, others wandered off and god know what happened to them. Three of us decided to try to catch a taxi. So we walked down to the main road and kept walking along hailing every taxi we could see. Now, on a regular day there is usually no problem with catching a cab in Sydney. There are thousands of them driving everywhere all the time. But this was no normal day. This was New Years, which meant that out of maybe 100,000 taxis in the city, there was 1.5 million people trying to get in them. There was no empty taxis at all available for us. So we kept walking and walking, and my only thought was if someone gets dropped off right near us then we can take their cab. At the precise moment, like heaven sent, a taxi pulls to the side of the road right next to us.

Apparently there had been some commotion. The cab had 3 girls and a guy, who had come from some fancy party and were obviously inebriated. There was a screaming match and then 3 of them got out of the car, while one girl stayed in and dialed the taxi company complaining. Somebody was trying to rip someone off. Yada Yada Yada. I could care less about their issues, what mattered to me was there was now an empty taxi sitting in front of me. We had to wait 5 min before the last girl finally got out of the cab and it was empty for us.

Now what happens next was one of the craziest jaw dropping things of my life. Out of no where, like fuckin ninjas, a couple slips right in front of us and into the cab and the cab drives away. In about 20 seconds we were robbed of the only taxi we found available. Again, we were stranded on the street, except now with 4 angry drunk people.

We decided to walk with them in the general direction of where we needed to go. We heard their stories of the night. One girl's dress was wet because she had been pushed into a pool, and so on. (Drunk girl talk, I've learned how to tune it out over the years).

Eventually we ended up at a train station. Knowing that Central Station is somewhat near my house, and that it is the hub for most trains, we got on a train. Luckily we made it to central and took a cab home from there. I got home at about 4am after almost 3 hours of wandering. It was definitely and interesting way to spend the first hours of 2010.

So that brings us to today January 2, 2010 for me. Yesterday I worked at the bar from 3pm to 2am with no break. Got lots of tips though, and overtime pay for the extra hours. So its okay. The only problem I am having now is I have completely lost my voice. Not raspy, gone. So I need to relax and take it easy. I work at the bar again Sun night, which I am not looking forward to. Then on Monday I start back up with Brightstars full time. This may be an issue since my job consists purely of talking to people. I need my voice back.

Alright, the moment you have all been waiting for. New years resolutions. I probably have many, but the only ones I can think of right now are these:

-Start working out and eating healthy again/ less drinking.

-Appreciate the small things more.

-Have fun and live it up. 2010 will be a great year.

I would love to hear all of your resolutions. So go ahead and tell me them in the comments.

Happy New Year everybody!

Currently Listening To: Ben Kweller

Below is a video of part of the fireworks over the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Sorry if it's a little shaky, I was being burnt by a sparkler.

I think I am allergic to the rain...and the Irish

Yeah, its raining. I know, I know, I deserved that one. Yes I apologize for my previous post about how the weather is great here and it sucks to be you Americans. Now I am stuck will rainy cold weather. Its been like this for 3 days now and according to the forecast it will stay like this until Sat.

Im getting all nasally and stuff now. I'm not sick so it must be allergies. I think the rain brought it on. But what is it? Is it inside the rain? Is it the water in this country in general? Who knows. Good news is I can leave my window open and get some cool fresh air into my room, with no mosquitos to worry about. Bad news is since I have no dryer I have to hang dry my clothes outside, and since the air is so moist my clothes are still damp for 2 days now.

In other news. I worked the bar again last night and man was it crazy. Remember this is already an Irish pub, so you expect it to be rowdy. Now add an Irish folk band into the mix. It turned into the loudest pub I have ever been in. There was screaming (what they thought was singing) and shirts came off and "dancing" ensued. It was out of control. But I think I had my best night so far when it comes to looking like an actual bartender. I also got $34 in tips, which is good for a non-tipping country. $24 of that came from a drunk guy who gave me a $50 for his drinks and then left without getting the change from me. I hope that happens more often.

Currently Listening To: Vampire Weekend

Recently Watched: High Fidelity- It was okay. I think it is overrated.

First night as a bartender.

Great. It was really busy. I learned a little more. I looked like a pro some times. I looked like a fool sometimes. I got $9.50 in tips. $6.50 of it came from a drunk guy who gave me change and asked me to change it for him then walked away. The buses don't run when I get off so I have to take a $15 cab ride home after every shift. Lets just hope I get at least $15 in tips. I smell like alcohol. I only have 1 pair of black pants so I plan on having those pants smelling like alcohol permanently. Irish people get angry when you don't serve them. I need to figure out a method to serve everyone evenly. It is too hard to see who got there first at such a big bar. I need to just go right to left then left to right. If you don't like the little head on your beer worth one sip, or the shot isn't full enough for you, go fuck off. I work again tomorrow on Christmas Eve. I'm hoping to get a lot of "Merry Christmas" tips. Yes, I bank on the system.

Currently Listening To: Barenaked Ladies

Workin the bar and Grad school

I got the bartending job. So I start tomorrow. I'll be doing a few shifts a week and once my other job starts up again in Jan I'll be working weekends. More money in my pocket.

I also have big news. I got in to graduate school here in Australia. I was accepted into the Master of Fine Arts Film program at Griffith University in Brisbane. I differed admission, so if I accept I would be starting Feb 2011. It was just a fall back option. I would prefer to have a real job instead of pay more money to go to grad school. Especially because in my industry you don't need a masters. But it is still a possibility, I'm not ruling it out. I just hope I can find a good job first.

Currently Listening To: The Album Leaf

Just Watched: Avatar- Visually phenomenal. Extremely entertaining, lacked in a couple areas. I'll give it an 8 out of 10.

Bartending and the weather.

So I got a trial at a bar called the Cock and Bull. It is an Irish pub with about 75% of the patrons form Ireland. It seems like every Irish person in Sydney goes to that bar. So I worked behind the bar today for 3 1/2 hours and I have to say, it is not what i expected. While it was overwhelming at times and I had to ask some people to repeat themselves (their accent was really thick), I decided to look at it as a game. Once I did that, I relaxed up a bit and it ended up being really fun. I guess I like getting people drunk. It was a good feeling being behind the bar, the gate master to all the alcohol. Then pouring those drinks made me feel like a pro. I got my moves down and could make 3 mixed drinks at the same time without lifting the bottle. So that was dandy. They said they would call, so I don't know for sure if I got the job or not, but I am just happy I experienced bartending.

The weather. It says it will be overcast and rainy all week, but aside from that is is finally starting to hit hot summer weather and I am excited for a warm New Years. Suck it East Coasters.

Currently Listening To: Phoenix

A strike? Really?

So today (Fri) the Sydney transit decided to go on strike. Now, I understand they are trying to prove a point to the big dogs running the show but haven't they tortured the passengers enough by never being on time in the first place. So now my plans to go to Bondi Junction to buy some things and apply for a position at a bar my friend works at, are canceled. On top of that it is raining, so I'm not walking anywhere. So my choices are pay money for a taxi, or sit at home on my computer. You take a guess.

Currently listening to: Peter Bjorn and John

End of training and my alcohol tolerance...

So yesterday marked the last day of a grueling 2 week training session. To celebrate we had a sports day in the park and free pizza for lunch. Then a group of us hit the pub. Now the best part is we got paid for a full day of work. So I am officially a professional athlete, pizza eater, and drinker.

We moved to another bar, where I saw a feat of amazingness. A group of girls I work with were sitting there looking at a map of Sydney (for what reason I don't know) and a man approached them. He said what can I help you with? (Now this man was like 50, open shirt, gold necklace, with a 25 year old girl friend. Im talking sugar daddy status.) So my co-workers jokingly say "you can buy us all a drink". With out a hesitation he takes $50 out of his pocket and gives it to them. Now mind you, it is happy hour right now so drinks are only $3.50. Which means after the girls bought themselves all drinks they bought us boys drinks too. So I got my first taste of what's its like to have a sugar daddy. And to all those women who can pull it off, I envy you.

I am really broke. So to save money I decided to buy a bottle of wine from the store and then drink it quickly before meeting in the club. That way I can be drunk and not have to buy drinks. So I do just that. To many this may seem like a bad idea, and a majority of the time it is. But for some reason due to my strong Polish and Russian heritage I have the alcohol tolerance of a T-Rex. I down the entire bottle of wine to my self in 30 min and I wasn't even buzzed. Sad story really. Luckily I won a free drink in the club. There I posted myself up with a good ole fashion Gin and Tonic (my go to drink). After finishing that, guess what? I still wasn't buzzed. With no money left to spend I just danced the night away.

Currently listening to: The Mary Onettes

Work and what else?

Week 1 of training is done. Tomorrow I start week 2. So far so good. This weekend I didn't do much so nothing to report there. I know some of you are waiting to see more pics of Sydney on my facebook. I apologize for the lack of pics, it is just that I don't bring my camera anywhere with me unless it is a special occasion. Im done with all the tourist stuff from when I studied abroad, so I don't bring the camera with me when I go out or go downtown. So pictures will come slowly once special things start happening, i.e. New Years. If your really in need of some Aussie Pics then just go to my facebook and look at my albums from when I studied abroad.

I would like to share good music with you all. So I decided that after each post I would put "what I'm listening to", and list the band name. Many of you probably wont have heard of a majority of the bands I list. So go check them out for yourself. Also if I watch a movie (which is very rare because movie theatre prices are outrageous here), i'll put a little review of it.

Currently listening to: Sea Wolf

Watched last night: The Talented Mr. Ripley. verdict: Good

Mosquitos and the devil's children...whats the difference?

So, I hate mosquitos. For some reason I am the target of mosquito attacks here in Australia. I am like sugar to them. Why? I think they can smell the American on me, and know that I have lived behind screen doors my whole life. So now, here in Australia, where there are no evident screen doors anywhere, they decided to attack.

Another conclusion I have come to is I think I am allergic to bug poison. Let me explain. I already knew I am allergic to bees, not deadly, but I swell up a lot when stung. Now that I am being bitten by mosquitos, I have noticed that I don't get normal little red bumps like most people. I get massive red marks the size of pepperonis. It is like a little bump in the middle and this giant red surface expands. So I am convinced it is because I am allergic to the poison. Either that or the mosquitos are using extra poison on me because of the above reasons.

In other news... It rained today. Bummer. But rain= no mosquitos. So un-bummer. Job is going well, we are training right now so it is like being in a class everyday for 8 hours. Boring as hell, but I get paid so I have no room to complain.

That is all.