As I was writing my most recent post, I found myself wanting to add my little Declaration of Australia (I’m gonna trademark that shiz. Rule #1 of Revolution Making: Make money off of it. I may have some trouble from these lovely fellows, though.) So I thought: ‘Hey, why not make two separate posts?’ In one day? Hells ya! If only I could be more productive in my studies. It’s not my fault I suffer from a severe case of senioritis (Word doesn’t even put the red squiggly line under ‘senioritis,’ so you know it’s real). Anywho, in my last post, I was talking about letting go of the worry of not finding a job, of the embarrassment when everyone talks of graduate school, of the flustered and insincere response when asked what I’m doing after graduation, of the shame and guilt I feel whenever I discuss with my somewhat disappointed parents my taking a year off to live in Australia, of doing what is expected of me. Going to Australia is something that I feel like I’ve wanted to do since I was young, I just never got to growing up. Why Australia? I'm not sure, maybe because my dad enjoyed his trips there so much, and I still like hearing the stories he has from his time there. For instance, he was the only one ‘brave’ enough to drive, but the streets are confusing in downtown (if my dad says something is confusing, I don’t know how anyone can handle it), so he would just make left turns until he got to the intended street, go down it and make a couple more left turns until they were on the correct side of the street they needed to be on. Apparently the right turn lanes are on the very left side of the street, and to turn right, you cross all lanes of traffic. A man probably came up with that brilliant idea. Or how he went to some beach and watched a bunch of penguins walk by in a line, like they were in a parade. I’m not sure about that one, but if he says so. Anyway, I thought about studying abroad, but bioengineering is very strict in its required classes and by the time I looked into it, it was too late if I wanted to graduate in four years. And believe me, four years is plenty. So someone like Chelsey and I came up with the awesome plan of visiting there after graduation for about a month. Then we had an even BETTER idea, and said eff it, let’s get a working holiday visa and go for a year. Why not? It’s the perfect time: the economy and job market are bleh, we really have no other commitments, no jobs, no families of our own to look after.
Well, let’s just say my parents weren’t too excited. I hadn’t figured out how I was going to break it to them, or if I was even going to until our plans were more solidified. They knew of our original plan, but not the revised, eleven month longer trip. But I didn’t need to worry about telling them, because a certain someone brought it up while we were talking to my dad. It went something like this:
“And maybe you guys can come visit me when you’re living in Australia.”
“How long are you planning on staying in Australia?” –Dad
“………Umm…a year?” –I said really quickly and tried to change the subject.
But I’m glad it happened because now they know. Suffice to say, they weren’t exactly thrilled to here this. And I understand. After paying for your child’s not-so-cheap undergraduate education, I’m sure the first thing the child says after graduating is, “Hey, remember that degree you just paid for? Well, I’m gonna go live in Australia for a year. And I have no idea what I'm going to do with my life. Ok, thanks! Bye!” What they want to hear is: “Hey, thanks for paying for college, I just got an awesome job that pays well and that I love. I can take care of myself now.”
The next day my mom asked me about. “So your Dad was telling me that you’re going to go Australia for a year? How’s that going to work?” They were, and still are, mostly concerned with us being safe, having places to stay, having money, and all the things that parents worry about. But they don’t really take me seriously, especially my mom. During break, she asked me what I was going to do with my Christmas money and I said I was going to save it for Australia. She asked if we were still going, and if we were still planning on going for a year. When I said yes, she just laughed as she walked out of the room. And that’s what makes me upset. Yes, I understand that you might not be super happy about my decision, but I would appreciate my decision being taken seriously. At least my dad is asking me about my plans, and if I could get any biotech internships or if they have any biotech programs that I could apply to.
Honestly, I just want to do something solely and wholly for me. I feel like all my life I've been doing what I'm 'supposed' to be doing. Get good grades in order to get into a good university, be a good student, graduate, find a good job and work for the next 40-50 years of my life. No thank you! If that's all life is cracked up to be, I want absolutely no part in it. So maybe my parents don't think it's the wisest choice to go to Australia for a year, but it won't change my mind. Sure, I'll be sad that I won't have their full support in this endeavor, but it will be the first real decision I've made for myself regarding my future, and more importantly, it'll be the first one that I'll be funding myself (Yes, I chose to go to UCSD, but again, that was something I was supposed to do and my parents took care of the bills). This decision could have life-impacting consequences, both positive and negative, but it is mine alone to make.
Because, honestly, what would I be doing in this ‘year off’? I would most likely be living at home, and trying, most likely without success, to find a job. So, ya, if I’m going to be jobless and homeless, why not be jobless and homeless in Australia? Plus, with Australia’s unemployment rate at about half of California's (5.2% to 11%, US average is 8.2%), it might just be a better place to be. Albeit, there are about 15 million more people living in California than Australia (that’s sad. There's so much land in the middle!!) and those rates probably need to be adjusted accordingly, and blah, blah, blah, math terms, but you get the picture.
So here I am, declaring my intention to go live in Australia for a year. What will I be doing once I get there? Well, besides leading the Australian Revolution and becoming famous for my Oscar-worthy busking performances, I don't really know. And I think I want to keep it that way. I have a few places I want to visit, a few people I want to catch up with, but the rest I don't really want to worry about.
You might think it's weird that I'm making such a big deal about this. But it is a really big deal for me. For some reason, I've been a bit embarrassed and even a bit guilty for deciding to go live in a foreign country for a year instead of going the 'safer' route of job-searching/working. And once anyone and everyone finds out I'm graduating in June, the first question they ask is what I'm going to do afterwards. I usually just say something very vague like just try to find a job, because I feel like taking a year off isn't what people want to hear. I actually just told my senior design team my intentions, and they thought it was a good idea. They're the first people I've told, besides family and close friends. It felt good; it made it seem more real, if that makes any sense. It made me feel like I can actually do it, and that I am capable of doing it. And it was also reassuring to have my peers' support. That conversation was the inspiration for this post and for me wanting to declare it to the world...the world. I don't mean for it to be super dramatic, but I'm just really excited.
Besides, Australia is the key to the whole game. So I think going there is a pretty good start on figuring this whole 'life' thing out.
The Great Wall of Australia, a work in progress. Don't worry Western, Northern and Central Australia! I'm sure there's tons of super duper fun things to do on your side of the country!
