the difference a year makes...

just about this time last year i was edging my way north, along the east coast of australia. in a misty blur of castlemaine xxxx and rollies of questionable content (passively of course, smoking is a mug's game!) i bounced from beach to beach, hostel to hostel during a trip that quite aptly sustains the suffix "of a lifetime".

when i first breached the different shores of another eastern seaboard in 2001 i came to NYC expecting a city driven by the work ethic, a labyrinth of labour and endeavour. i was not to be disappointed. work is number one in this city, there is no question. be it the early risers of the blue collar brigade or the midnight oilers of the white collar posse there is a universal drive in all; to work hard and work a lot. family, friends, health and fun all come a lowly second, third or worse on the list of life. however, to some this is tantamount to nothing else.....to them work must come first. i however, though a willing member of this general mindset at present, am, quite frankly, not one for life.

it was during my few months lazing around in the southern hemisphere, oz and new zealand to be exact, that i first came to realise that the NYC work ethos is not the only one, probably not the healthiest one and definitely not the most enjoyable one.
in australia the lifestyle is one of a slower pace, laid back....less stress. the aussies work, as all creatures must, but it is not the most important thing in life. the weather, the beaches, the proximity to such gems as fiji, thailand and tahiti.....it all adds up to a one thing....fun.
instead of trudging homeward in the gloom of night the natives are home at 4pm.....tying the surfboard to the roof of the truck, filling the cooler with cans of toohey's new and heading off with the gang for a barbie (and thats got nothing to do with dolls). instead of working weekends they head up the coast to party meccas like byron bay, frazer island and cairns. and its year round!! no winter to speak of......sun all the time.....warm pacific water to sooth the soul....i miss it.

but here i am, little less than a year later i am back in the rat race. just another donkey chasing the proverbial carrot......and hey! the donkey thing has nothing to do with being irish. fielding bullshit phonecalls a hundred times a day, driving 30, 000 miles a year around the busiest streets in the world and generally not reclining in a sand armchair while sipping a jack and coke on the rocks and enjoying a panoramic of bondi beach and scantily clad scandanavian chicks. what a difference a year makes...