New beginnings

I'm employed! I've been working as a waitress for the last three weeks at an Italian restaurant in East Fremantle (after work I can drive home in 6 minutes). As my boss, Shannon, put it when he hired me, "I don't care if you have experience, I just care if you're intelligent enough to learn how to do things the way I want them done" which is pretty perfect. I had been losing hope that I'd find work, knowing that I was going to be heading north again at some point. I still need to complete my 88 days of regional work to qualify for a second year on my current visa and potential employers did not, I discovered, like to hear that I'd be leaving in 4-6 weeks. Reasonably, they didn't want to re-do the hiring process in 4-6 weeks and have to re-train someone. Anyway, Shannon needed someone right away and my landlord told me to check in with him. Worked a charm!

My first shift I only had a handful of screw ups so, God help me, I was working solo on my second day ever working as a waitress. Shannon is not only the owner, but also a career chef so he supported me from the kitchen, reminded me to pick myself back up after a mistake and keep chugging along, and told me that I'm really being too hard on myself for someone who's brand new. All really lovely sentiments to hear when I was panicking about running the floor by myself. So we muddled through and now, three weeks later, I finally am starting to think I've got a handle on things. I worked 9 days in a row this past week (Shannon was always quick to remind me that if I have the day off I can ALWAYS say no to late asks for help, but it's so nice to be out of the house and making money again that I've said yes. Plus it's earned me his gratitude for showing up when they're slammed with numbers - always good to have in my back pocket when I need a job again after getting my regional work done!). I've been dreaming about waitressing, and forgetting to call tables away for their next course to be prepared by the kitchen, but by and large I'm just glad to have work and to be trying something new and, above all, to be working for a really solidly good dude who took a chance on a 29 year old American girl with no hospitality industry experience. The universe continues to look out for me!

Anyway, Shannon hired me despite my plans to head north again, but I'm getting itchy about heading north so I can start the work. I can't remember if I've explained this breakdown before, but I need to complete 88 days of work in either agriculture or hospitality/tourism to qualify for a second year visa. The caveat is that if I choose to do hospitality work, it has to be north of the Tropic of Capricorn.

Helpful map of the Tropic of Capricorn

The last two days have been hectic with making plans to go north. For most of the last few months I've been planning to return to Exmouth for my regional work and hoping to work for the same employers who hired me three months ago when I was there. One of them reached out and asked if I was still keen to work, the other said he'd love to chat about having me back once I returned to town - said I should pop in for a chat when I arrived. All good, right? Except I only have 135 days to complete 88 days of work (less, really, because I wasn't planning on arriving up there til June 23 or 24) and started to get worried that the work will dry up. 

So my newest housemate, Gisela, is on essentially the same timeline as me. She arrived in Australia one week after I did and she also needs to complete her regional work. She hatched a plan to go to this hotel in the middle of NO WHERE (on that map up above it's basically under the "T" of Tropic) that would guarantee 40 hours of work per week - ensuring that we can get the 88 days done and dusted in plenty of time. The town is called Newman and it's a little mining town in the Outback. I interviewed with the manager there and for two hours I was convinced I was moving to Newman... but then I got a text from the second boss in Exmouth, completely spontaneously, asking when I would be arriving in town so we could chat about when I'd begin shifts at the bar. WHAT. So I explain the Newman thing to him, explain it's not that I don't WANT to be in Exmouth but that I, practically speaking, need to go with the sure thing in terms of which job can guarantee me a second year visa. I thought he'd really kindly say "okay, good luck, see ya never" but instead he told me he would find a way to make it work!! The next morning he texted me again confirming that he was willing to make things happen, so anyway, long story, I'm going to Exmouth again. I'm really bummed that Gisela and I won't be doing this Outback adventure together, but I'm hoping that I can find a time to get out to visit her before she leaves Newman. There's an apparently spectacular National Park that's maybe 2 hours drive from Newman so fingers crossed I can visit her so we can explore it together!

Everything about my life in Perth is really peachy at the moment (pretty much all the moments, actually). I haven't been diving too much recently, but I did make it out for an AMAZING dive a few weeks back with my friend Grant and we saw 12 weedy sea dragons. TWELVE OF THEM. Grant took a whole bunch of photos and will hopefully send them along, but I pestered him mercilessly until he sent along this one:

Me with my Weedy friend!

All the schmutz in the water was actually alive: it's little critters that the weedies eat, so this fellow was just scooting along munching on basically underwater gnats. 

One of Weronika's many wonderful qualities is that she really loves making meals as much a visual feast as a gustatory one. She is so intentional about setting the table and bringing in flowers and plating things nicely where I usually work along the lines of "it's all going to the same place, so I don't much care what it looks like." Anyway, she's been attempting to train me in appreciating the beauty of an intentionally presented meal and so the day after my last blog post I set up a table for us to enjoy breakfast on our front porch together and I did a damn fine job of it if I do say so myself. *Weronika agreed*

She made the waffles and I set the scene and we had this lovely leisurely breakfast on the veranda! She's slowly convincing me that her way is the right way. 

We also all decided we'd take turns making dishes from home which came about because I mentioned my love of pierogi. Weronika was not only shocked that I knew what piergoi are (shout out to Uncle Jim!) but thrilled to hear that I wanted her to make some. She'd never attempted it before but I finally, finally convinced her to give it a whirl and the results were AMAZING. 

This rainbow has nothing to do with pierogi but was equally beautiful as the potato dumplings

Whenever possible, we try to get down to the beach to catch sunsets. A few weeks back Weronika and I both had the night off and caught this one:

It was VERY chilly and windy (and I need to get her a Phillies cap)

North Mole lighthouse (also a great dive site!)

One day last week Wiebke and I were the only ones home so we took a bottle of wine to the beach and caught one together:

One of the world's cutest creatures

Because I'm leaving in a week, I'm trying to spend as much time with my various people as my schedule allows. This is complicated by the fact that Wiebke and Nat both work days, Gisela, Weronika and I work nights, and Simon works both, depending on the day. So yesterday Nat and Mick and Simon and I went on a double date to an Irish pub in the city so we could have a properly poured Guinness and some gorgeous Irish stew. Totally worth listening to Simon complain the whole drive in about how much he hates going into the city. 

Two Irish girls

The four housemates all agreed to try to take a day off on the same day so we could spend it together and today was that day! We're just home from a day spent eating pizza at a beach side cafe, sipping beers at a beach side bar, and taking photos under the Fremantle Rainbow. 

Me, Weronika, Wiebke, and Gisela at Scarborough Beach

Wiebke Voguing

Me, Weronika, Gisela, Wiebke

Me, Gisela, Weronika and Wiebke in front of the rainbow!

We divided for a bit post-outing with promises to get back together to continue watching Pitch Perfect 2, so I need to scoot so they don't start without me! Next post will be from Exmouth!!!