A Fond Farewell

Well, it's now less than one week until I head off... and the nerves are setting in almost as vigorously the malaria tablets in my gut! And, thanks to Sarah, we had a party to celebrate my leaving. As one of my friends put it, www.jessisleavingthecountry.yay

On Friday I not only had my first malaria tablet, which resulted in dizziness, headaches, cramps (in my neck of all places), a rash on my face and general pain, I also had my last shift at Big W (thank the lord!) and a little 'surprise' party that I knew all about. In fact, Sarah locked me in my bedroom when I got home from work to keep it a surprise for as long as possible.
And she did a fantastic job, along with the help of some of my friends... You can see below some of her great helpers.


Master Chefs: Mel, Tom and Sarah


Master Mischief: Alley


Even Jack (our little kitten) helped out

Not only did Sarah plan all the decorations but she also cooked a great cake (twice), savory and sweet fondu and several different types of sushi. These were all dishes that Sarah and I had made with our friends on different occassions. Careful thought was put into everything... although maybe not of the photos they had of me on display :0)


While the first cake exploded... the second one was quite delicious, and shaped like a deserted island. It was memorable :0)


Sarah, Alley, Tom and Beth also put a lot of hard work into making a goodbye banner for me, their individual art works were greatly appreciated :0)

Apart from general eating, drinking and being merry we entertained ourselves with... ahem... civilized conversation, cluedo, buzz (a gameshow for playstation) and a rather backbiting game of munchkins. Sarah also asked people to bring an item that reminded them of me. Thankfully, most people didn't get the message. Shirley brought salsa because I'm "spicy and exotic", Paul brought beer because I "have a good head on my shoulders", Jill brought a skewer for my "sharp wit", Tom produced a book from one of my favourite authors, Sarah brought a pretzel which warrants an explanation, as does the reason James played the 1812 overture.

Firstly the pretzel. Everyone knows it's not illegal to send a pretzel through the post and, being a twelve year old girl with nothing better to do, I decided I would send a pretzel to my good friend Amy in Canberra. Well, not being completely stupid, I didn't put a return address on the envelope, however Amy did pass on to me a rather interesting letter from Australia Post. It seems the pretzel broke their sorting machine, slowing down post for days. Because it wasn't illegal there was nothing Australia Post could do... but change every single sorting machine in Australia to accommodate for a pretzel. :0) I've certainly made my contribution to the betterment of the human race :0)

As for the 1812 overture, it had something to do with my driving and a Simpsons episode... I won't tell you the story (if you haven't already made the connection), but I'm sure James would love to tell you all about it.


A fine example of civilized conversation


The best entertainment of the night was certainly seeing everyone try to cram around the two tiny fondu pots. Truly unforgettable.

Well, it was a fantastic night, organised by fantastic people. And I'd better end it here, because I've been told my blogs are really, REALLY long! Not that I like to waffle... :0) I don't know when my next blog will be, if I get a chance before I go, or maybe if I can update it while I'm over in Vanuatu. Whatever will be will be, but it sure has been fun!