This morning I was talking to e on the phone, and she told me that after seven months down under I “have a slight accent.” This made me happy, although I doubt I would fool any Australians. This and the call directly proceeding it to Joe (to plan Project NYE2006, wherein my friends are coming to visit), was the first time I had talked to anyone in America since I got here. I finally bought myself a calling card, and it costs me like 4¢ a minute, which is less than it used to cost me to make a long distance call in the US. That is shocking.

Australians no longer sound that odd to me. I expect when I go back to the states that Americans will be the ones to sound odd. Not my friends though. e and Joe don’t count because they just sound like e and Joe, not like Americans, since I know them well. It’s only American strangers that I expect to sound funny.

Today I went to the coast and took a walk along the ocean. It was nice, and it sort of reminded me of February 2005, when I came to Australia for a visit and had this strong desire to just stay after spending a few days in Sydney and Collaroy by the beach. Although now I have a bit of a sunburn, which is no good.

Picture it now, you are sitting at home on a warm summer day. The weather is beautiful, and the sun is shining. You’d love to go out and have a good time, but there is one problem: You are deathly concerned that your mobile phone might get a sunburn.

Last slide I scanned of Bradstock 2005. Bit Blurry I know.

Eong was up for this trade show for news agents, and she brought back all kinds of goodies for the kids. Mostly pens and glue sticks and things like that. I took a “mock” from the bounty, which is a sock for your mobile phone. “Why?” I can hear you asking. Because it is the most useless thing I can possibly imagine. It is actually a huge nuisance because I have to pull the phone out of the sock in order to answer it, and while the sock does stretch itself around my phone (which is on the large end of the mobile phone scale), it tends to hang on to it when I’m trying to get it out. Here is what it says on the packaging:

What are they?
A sock that is specially designed to hold a mobile

Why use it?

• To personalise your mobile
• To help stop your mobile from getting scratched while not in use
• To keep your mobile warm in winter & help stop it getting sunburnt in the summer!

Who can use Mocks?
Anyone – Mocks fit all mobile models – they streatch!

Target Audience

• Anyone looking for a fun way to personalise their mobile

Designs

• Mocks are available in over 60 different designs, with new designs coming out every 3 months.

—Mocks packaging

Look for them in a store near you. Or checkout their web site at www.mocks.com.au.