Back to Reality

"Coming down is the hardest thing."
-Tom Petty

After the joy of my trip (and a two day TimTam fueled TV binge), it was back to business. I had an editorial due for my journalism class on Friday. So, I was obliged to both research and write this editorial in a blaze of productivity on Thursday night and Friday morning. The paper turned out well enough, but there's nothing like a hard deadline in the middle of a break to remind you that you haven't yet escaped the clutches of higher education.

Another paper was due on Monday. This one was about a subject that I can comfortably tell you is neither near nor dear to my heart: The effects of 1980s microeconomic reforms on Australia's 1990s productivity boom. Just writing that sentence left me feeling uncompelled. Imagine trying for 1,500 words on the subject.

Fortunately, I was not to spend the day Sunday working on the paper. I went to the library early, checked out some books that seemed to contain suitable information, and returned home to start on my paper. Before I even managed to open Word, I heard a knock at the door; a couple of our Aussie buddies had come over in their swim trunks. Studying would have to wait.

We went cliff-diving into the Swan River (I didn't actually dive, but calling it cliff-jumping seems silly and confusing) and then drove to a beach where we jumped off of a jetty into the Indian Ocean. Now, I'm a stranger to having a lot of water around. I don't really know what to do with bodies of water. But the locals say jumping into them from heights is fun, so I gave it a shot. Turns out they're right. It's fun.

And terrifying. At the jetty, a couple young Aussie kids actually had to talk me into jumping. I was standing on the edge of the jetty with a 5-year-old and a 7-year-old, having just watched my buddy Jase do a flip over the rail and into the water. They looked over to me and said, "You should do that."

My two word response was not polite enough to print here, nor was it suitable for the company I was keeping at the time. Upon realizing this, I regathered myself, told the kids, "I will not be doing any flips" and jumped off the jetty.

After this, though, I finally had to bite the bullet. I wrote my paper. (The microeconomic reforms likely contributed significantly to the productivity boom, if you were wondering.) The next morning, I went to class. Tuesday was more class. Today, I went to work. Tomorrow, I have work and class. Reality, it turns out, is a harsh maiden. But good news and a great weekend are right around the corner, so I'll take this quick foray into reality knowing full well that I won't be staying long.