Jetlag Be Damned!

It’s 5:18am on Tuesday morning and I find myself unable to sleep. Perhaps that is because it is 3:18pm Eastern Standard Time and my body is confused. All I know is that I left Boston at 6:00pm on May 26, 2007 and then I arrived at 7:55am on May 28, 2007 without even a hint that May 27^th ever existed. Let me try to explain it in SAT language for those of you at home to guess what happened.

Question #43: Max left Boston on a plane traveling West at 6:00pm EST on May 26, 2007. Max left Los Angeles on a plane traveling West at 11:40pm PST (2:40am EST) on May 26, 2007. Where did Max arrive at 7:55am local time on May 28, 2007?

1. Suva, Fiji.
2. Bangkok, Thailand.
3. Melbourne, Australia.
4. Allston, Massachusetts, U.S.A. Max is currently hallucinating on Peyote. He has been wandering around the streets of Boston between Commonwealth Avenue and Brighton Avenue for the past few days and believes he is an international traveler.

(Think before reading ahead. Try to guess. I said, don’t look yet! What are you doing!? You cheated on your SATs, again! At least you get another year of trying to sleep with High School girls that aren’t interested in your facial hair, chess skills, and Converse All Stars. Man, those shoes were beat, even when they were in! Qf7! Checkmate in four moves, Bitch!)

Answer #43: The answer is C. Melbourne, Australia. After a 14 hour 20 minute flight from L.A., I found myself in a new world, with new people, where everyone was speaking Australian. I am not really sure how I got here, but as Bill Bryson said, “All I know is that for one 24 hour period in the history of the earth, it appears I had no being.”

Well, I am not really sure what the next week of vacation in Australia will bring. I am certainly very excited for this majestic, transformative journey on which I am about to embark. I have unlimited possibilities for self-discovery in this new land down under. Just as the sun rises over Melbourne this morning, I hope that it was dawn a new day for me. I am beginning a transformation process as I enter the liminal space of Melbourne. I am eager with nervous anticipation to see this country and spend time with Courtney who I am visiting. I barely know her which is a blessing and a gift because there are almost no attitudes, judgments, or beliefs to constrain the possibilities of what we can do in the next week. I think that life happens for a reason. Synchronicity is the backbone of a purposeful existence. The best intentions produce the best results. The cosmic universe will provide you with every answer given you ask the right questions. This is the beginning of something very special; something fresh and different; something to never forget. Let the transformation begin…

For anyone who has been to Melbourne, I will try to enjoy my time in Oz without hitting the turps, being off one’s face or lairing it up! I plan to enjoy a game of footy, the museums and art, the lush green parks, the corner coffee shops, and the Australian hospitality. From what the locals say, what happens down under stays down under. Although this could mean anything really. In fact, I am not even sure if that is what he said. I have not yet conquered the language barrier, although I am told they are speaking English…