Settling In

I've been back for almost a week. It's great to be home, but I miss Australia a little bit. I still have a list of things to do when I go back:

• snorkel the Great Barrier Reef (sharks and stingrays be damned) - will take my brother and cousin on this excursion
• go to some of the other beaches in bathing-suit weather, like Manly and Coogee
• party in "the Cross"
• visit Melbourne, and maybe Brisbane
• trek through the Outback
• pat koalas, kangaroos, wombats, and any other pat-able Aussie critters at the Featherdale Animal park
• see New Zealand, Bali and Fiji since I'll be a stone's throw away, relatively speaking

Visited J's folks today. My mom's recipe corn salad went over pretty well, but the McWilliams dessert wine was a huge hit. The 375ml bottle was empty within 10 minutes. Guess I know what to bring next time.