Christmas in Australia: Living in the now

It’s that time of year again when it’s completely acceptable to wear knitted jumpers with singing snowmen, eat your weight in chocolate for that extra layer of chub on those cold Christmas nights, and use the abundance of Christmas parties to get utterly bladdered and it not even be questioned. What happens at the Christmas party, stays at the Christmas party. 

In the northern hemisphere, all of the above remains true, but replace the fairisle jumper with a bikini and the chocolate with an icecream, and you’ve got yourself one fine Aussie Christmas. Imagine hearing Mariah on the radio in the middle of July but crank up the temperature a few notches, throw in a Christmas tree on the beach, and you’ve got it. Truly baffling. 

For the past few weeks, I’ve been trying to get into the festive spirit, forcing Christmas music and half-heartedly decorating my room thanks to my Mumma’s handmade decs. But when you’ve got a fan on 24/7 and are applying the factor 30 left right and centre, it seems somewhat forced. 

Job Interview Struggles: What I've Learnt

Having quit my job as an Account Manager at a digital marketing agency to move to Sydney unemployed, I have had my fair share of job application mares. I have, however, learnt quite a few things about myself along the way which I hope you can both laugh at, empathise with and learn from.  

I’ve handed out so many CVs, applied online to umpteen roles and here I am, four weeks later, still unemployed and getting scarily close to the bottom of my savings. I've had three interviews so far; interviews for roles, which on paper, I am totally qualified for. But interviews which I have been far from successful in and have led me to reassess a few things about myself:

US Elections 2016: A day to remember for all the wrong reasons

Today, I watched the US election unfold in real time. Thanks to the time difference between USA and Australia, I saw America vote for their new president as it happened. No sudden horror when I awoke reminiscent of the Brexit vote, no exclamations that surely this can't be right, just a constant sinking feeling that what I was witnessing was actually happening; Trump was winning the vote. 

I'm not one to pretend I know the ins and outs of politics, and I hold my hands up and admit that my knowledge of political policies is far from perfect. This isn't a political piece outlining details, more than anything this is an opinion which highlights how deeply saddened I am at the fact one of the most influential countries in the world has voted for a man that believes women are inferior, global warming is a sham, and muslims should be banned from the US. I might not know a huge amount about politics, but what I do know is a few key facts. A few facts that point to Trump being a racist, homophobic, sexist pig.