Things I have learnt* this past week

*First, a shout out to my Aussie english. Learnt!

1. The best way to make sweet tea is to make syrup with hot water + sugar first, then add it to the tea. This helpful tip came from Sonny.

2. Headstands are a lot harder than they look and they require strong abdominals.

3. God is faithful, even when I don't have faith. This is encouraging.

4. The correct order is: Heaven is eternal, Jesus Christ's Character/The Word are internalized, and circumstances are external. To reverse the order is to skew the perception of Christ through temporal circumstances. I've simplified a really great message from Joel @ Hillsong.

5. 4 person air hockey on a 2 person air hockey table is a lot of fun. Defense is the best offense.

6. Tourists in Sydney tend to go to Circular Quay (Where the Harbour & Opera House are located) every day. It's only fair to admit we did the same.

7. The best koalas in Sydney, and possibly Australia, are at the Reptile Park in the Central Coast. They, so far, are the only ones who have been awake.

8. Jelly Bellys now come with words on them, like those chalky hearts at Valentine's Day. Way better for sending secret messages online.

9. The State of Origin is a Rugby game. I still don't understand what the difference is between Rugby and Aussie Football, when it comes to rules, but I can tell them apart visually.

10. Sending picture postcards is a great way to brighten people's days.

11. My brother has a strong southern accent. He's on the verge of being a hick, even. It's cute.

12. Christian Korkor knows the best places to go in the Central Coast. He and Giovanni are experts at good coffee.

13. The best market in Sydney is Killibarra Market in Milson's Point, just north of the bridge. Awesome second hand clothing, can be found cheap! Bondi also has a pretty rad jewelry and used clothing section on Sundays.

14. Hillsong Worship can't be matched. I dare you to walk away unchanged.

15. Australian ovens are a bit different than American ones. Only they can burn the top of blondies while leaving the bottom raw. Even so, the Blondies were pretty dang good, after I remediated the rawness. Save yourself time and just eat the batter.

16. Strawberry Hill by Bronze Radio Return is a great song: my favorite of the week. Drew Harris has really good taste - or at least knows what I'll like.

17. Memory (RAM) and storage are NOT the same thing. My computer is now faster, but has no more storage than it did last week. On the positive side, I did install my own RAM. Props!

18. Driving a stick-shift with your left hand, in a car which you sit on the right side, on the left side of the road, is not quite as complicated as I once thought. It did certainly take adjustment, and I'm far from being able to do it entirely without thinking, but I'm closer than ever!

19. GPS does not work well in downtown Sydney. Or so the Europcar people tell me.

20. Galatians in the Message repeatedly works on breaking my stony heart.

21. Familiarity is a tricky, tricky thing to tackle. I liken it to the magicians in The Illusion and The Prestige (my Jackie!)

22. Whales are migrating some direction past the Sydney coast right now. Are they going north for the winter, or south?

23. MelissaJeanne is not the #1 MJ right now.

24. Sydney is really big when you don't have a car.

25. Hugh Jackman occasionally comes to Hillsong, City Campus. He was last seen on Mother's Day, and Mel Kirby's Mom's friend hung out with him at the urinals. A kid from Powerhouse (the 18-25 crowd) looks after him. I know, I already told you. But I did learn that this week :)

26. Johnny Depp is yet again scoring a unique role as the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.

27. Aussies can shorten any word, and even abbreviations. Christian shortened KFC to how it sounds: "Kiffs." It's one of my favorite things about this country, next to the laid-back mindset, the welcoming community, and the surfers.

28. If you're going to video blog a Hillsong that's not yet released in the middle of a church service, hide the camera beneath your jacket and just catch the sounds.

29. Jesus needs a twitter. I imagine this would ruin the need for faith. Maybe in heaven, after faith is realized. I bet he would have the cutest things to say on his updates. Witty Jesus.

30. Your heart has an endless capacity to love, if you will just stop thinking about yourself. Go ahead, try it.

31. Cheap books in Australia are not really cheap.

32. Re-telling Walter's stories to my mom (and/or MJW creations) is not nearly as funny as if he were telling them. But she still laughs.

33. #32 is because I'm her favorite, by the way.

34. Chinese Saunas are awkward. (Okay, that was more than a week ago, but worth mentioning again, in case you ever find yourself invited to one.

and, finally:

35. Our generation has far too many options, and it's killing our identities. Sometimes you have to make important life decisions and make it a point to not allow regret (ever) regarding the option you choose. Life is usually not provided with a guide map. Blaze your own trails, find contentment in your circumstances, and if you're unhappy, change your circumstances or your attitude. In the meantime, be thankful for everything you have, for you take it for granted every day.

Okay, I thought of a 36 that was too good not to post. #35 is far more important, but this one is just funny...

36. Walking through King's Cross at 7:30am can result in a random, decent-looking guy (accompanied by a girl) to hunch over, throw his hands up in front you and your best friend, and then laugh and ask "what?! no high fives?". Your best bet is then to laugh heartily and high-five him. And then tell your mom the story of how MJW created a social experiment involving the words "Follow Me" after you bump into someone.