No Shirt, No Shoes, No Problem

So, I spent Saturday poking around Wagga. I got sunburned (BIG surprise) and found Wagga Beach and other assorted sites. But, there was something that I noticed that I am dying to share with all of you. Here goes.

Last year, during one of the many marathon nights in the GIS lab, Sammie Linton was recalling Australia, as she studied abroad here, and she said that she was shocked that people actually went into the supermarket, among other stores, with no shoes or shirts on. I remembered this when I got here, and when I arrived in Wagga, I remember thinking, "Well, it must be only crazy Queenslanders that do that sort of thing." I had never remembered Mel going sans shoes into Wegmans and the people in NSW all seemed to be donning footwear in public places.

Well, I made the mistake of going into town on the week days. On the weekend, all bets are off. People are hitting the beach, the shops, the streets. I was walking down Baylis Street minding my own, and BAM. There went my first gentlemen sans footwear. I smiled at him, and he smiled back at me and said something totally kodak: "G'Day!" I walked away with a smile on my face. Not 30 seconds later, there was a whole family without shoes. So, this was on the street. I wondered if these people just magically produced thongs to go into the grocery store with. The answer to that query is: NO. I saw Mr. G'Day later that day at Woolworth's, and he stopped me and chatted as if we were old friends...all without his shoes.

The sign that hangs on the door of every American business is "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service". In contrast to that, Sammie was right. These people are crazy and don't wear shoes to go grocery shopping. I'm not going to be jumping on that bandwagon anytime soon, but, I will say this: I love it. It's relaxed, it's carefree. It's an excellent reflection of the attitude of the continent, as I've observed it so far. They're your feet, do with them as you wish. No one should be picking anything up off of the floor and selling it in a food store anyway. Who cares? As Kenny Chesney said, "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Problem!" No worries, mate!

In related news, this explorer and her ipod are going to Tasmania over the Easter holidays. This decision was influenced and finally made thanks to a panel of experts and my keen decision making skills (ha!). So, more details on that are forthcoming, I'm planning and scheming like a maniac! Loving it!

And I just realized this weekend that I, Catrina Nicole North, packed all of my shit in three bags, took off to AUSTRALIA and am now living here, studying to pursue a dream. How fucking cool is that! I typically wouldn't say this, but: I fucking rock! Who does that?! Geez, life has changed in the last month!

Cheers