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A lot of people whom I came across commented that I must be crazy to have chosen Perth as a destination to further my tertiary studies. Must be boring with such a slow pace of life...most said.
Half a year ago, I couldn't agree more with them. I cursed and gritted my teeth when boredom sets in. My hectic lifestyle back home generally caused me some obstacles during my process of settling in. Even novitiate programme( a two week retreat in a temple where you get to experience life as a renounced(monk/nun) one) didn't prepare me for the dreary and slow hundrum of life here. As much as I value the relaxing moments and the people who actually take time to smile and talk to you (because they have all the time in the world and not in a rush to be in somewhere else all the time!!), not having supermarkets open after 6 pm and on Sundays, and basic services like banks which only serve you 5 times a week were simply too much for me! Some busses don't even operate on Sundays for goodness sake!
Besides-I never had any kaki close enough to hang out with(other than Andrew whom I see 24/7!) or any other interesting activities to keep myself busy other than school. It was just simply depressing and I was on a constant fight or flight mode. I wanted very much to escape from everything else because I just don't belong. Being an outgoing and a very sponatneous person, Perth was just hellish. Dullsville.
"You can't wait for things to happen, you've gotta make things happen," Zak once told me over the MSN.
I've always admired his strength and determination when it comes to getting things done. Driven by self-motivation and an optimistic outlook of life, his 30 years were filled with huge experiences which are interesting enough to regale it to his grandchildren in the future. He once climbed Mt Kilimanjaro with Raleigh International, surf decently, was a drummer in a premier band back in Spore, modify guitars and sell it for a few thousand bucks, plays golf, a jet-flying instructor, ex-sailing instructor, speaks multiple languages, takes up astronomy and celestial navigation and a hundred more other things which he hasn't got time to share. Often, I complained about how my life is not working out the way I want it to be and how I wish I have more money, more friends, or in a better place..etc etc. I questioned about his efforts and how he managed to undergo so many exciting things in life and how he come about to realizing his dreams. Some people have all luck, was my excuse to justify why my life wasn't as happening as his. And also why so many of my dreams are still left as dreams.
"Look Ying, I'm just as ordinary as you are and my amount of luck is probably the same that you've got. You just got to make things happen. You just got to know where to look for opportunities and sometimes you don't have to go very far......" the guru(self adopted) said.
And so I just did what he said. Every second of my life, I'd try to look out for precious chances to do what I really like to do, to further explore my interests and expand my social circle sincerely. Why crawl when you can fly, I told myself over and over again. Yet sometimes I face dead ends, wondering where the hell are all the opportunities in Perth? The conditions of my dreams require me to be in a busier place, a livelier place, and a 'happening' place where things happen all the time.
Then again, he said you don't have to go very far...I know the grass is usually never greener on the other side but for my case, it must be exceptional, I thought. Yet I was determined to challenge the stereotypes and the awful destiny which I thought was written out in the stars. Ying-doomed to lead a predictable lifestyle.
Now that I've known a couple of good friends like Emily and Esther, things began to look up. Excessive enthusiasm became a positive trait amongst us. Just do it was no longer just a popular tagline for Nike. Just do it is our positive reinforment so that we get our bloody lazy asses to just do whatever we truly want to do! Perth or not....no excuses. It's not denying..it's embracing.
My photography assignment then came in as a blessing in disguise. Having been to Freo(Fremantle) so many times, I concluded that my shots wouldn't vary much from what you get from postcards and tourists' snaps. Yet-revisiting Freo with Emily and Esther last week proved my pre-assumptions wrong. I was more than wrong. I was just being unfair.
There were so many things to see, to do and to explore. It was an experience of the senses. Everything was so colourful and beautiful compared to the black and white which I imagined before. I remember poking our noses into every shop, walking along the shore and feel the fine grains of white sand under our feet, exploring the yummy seafood other than the conventional fish and chips, enjoying the busking culture, chat up with some locals, sip coffee along the cappucino(al-frescos) strip and simply just watch people while jazzy strains of sax and guitar fill the atmosphere.
***
Emily and I indulged in Kaili's seafood platter which consisted of oysters,half a lobster,salad, tiger prawns, fish and plenty of chips. Good food were scarce so what the hell-it's only once in a lifetime experience. Later, we had coffee and cheesecake as desert. It costs an awful lot of money, yet our cravings were satisfied and we've done it! We then had fresh chocolate coating strawberries which were bought from the Freo Markets.
As we walked along, we came across this quaint and yet magnificent bookshop. It is an arts bookshop which has shelves stacked with topics like local creative talents, philosophy,art, architecture, travel, photography, religion...etc. It was a haven for booklovers or even for the mere public. As one good thing leads to another, it was also in the New Edition bookshop where I found out about the 12 week philosophy course which is offered by the School of Practical Philosophy. The deal was too good to be true ever since my interest in philosophy peaked after reading works by Jostein Gaarder. What is even more cool is the fact that practical philosophy isn't about history of philosophy or a comparative study of philosophers. Known as a non-dualistic philosophy, it is applicable in daily life-that truth is limitless and there's unity underlying diversity.
At first, I shook my head as 9.30am on Saturday mornings are lousy ways to start a weekend and money is also an issue as well. Just as I was about to chuck the piece of information to the rubbish bin of my brain, I rethought about the priority of my interest and how I'd regret for not being brave enough to make the first move. The just do it tagline breezed through my head again. It is now or never.
This Saturday would be my first lecture.
***
Just do it took over me again today when I summed up my guts to sit down and chat with Blair about the advertising industry so that I can gain more insight to it. I was rewarded with two free Campaign Brief periodicals, extra knowledge, and an acknowledgement of my invisible existence in Creative Ad Theory 291 class.
For the next few weeks, I'll be joining the Curtin Volunteers for an outback experience where we'll help the rural community to run a couple of errands and truly embrace their culture.
Say--now Perth isn't such a bad place after all, is it? Been in and out a couple of live gigs, jazz concerts, experienced sunsets along the Sunset Coast, yum char by the Swan River as day turned to dusk, had plenty of pig outs whenever we want to, meeting new people at unexpected places, signing up for courses which I've always longed for--this is even better than all the Friends, Dawson's Creek and Gilmore Girls put together! I've experienced so much diversity which I never did back home or in any of the big cities which I've visited. So much spontaneity enhances the innate sense of adventure.
It's not the place which determines the flow of the story, it is the people living in it.
Freedom of Words domain
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