Chapter Three: A Changed Man (~jinghan)

Side note from the author: I met Shannon my fellow blogger for the first time in real life on Tuesday! She is as awesome(ly crazy like me) in person as she is online. I also discovered that people actually read my ramblings, which still surprises and pleases me. ^^

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This morning I walked out of the house with a sheet of 12 strepsils* and $20.75 in my possession. And this evening I came back a changed man.

… Okay, I just wanted to say that because it seemed literarily dramatic, but both “changed” and “man” are a lie so if I were to be totally honest with you I would have to say that I came back a poorer woman. This is how it went:

Just before I leave the house I discover that my phone is out of batteries and for a busy day I will certainly need to be within contact. I rush back into the house dive under the desk, rip my phone charger from the power board and stuff it into my bag before heading out of the house a second time. I decide that I will meet my first years and while they are congregating I will ask my friend to duck into union house and charge my phone for 10minutes which will allow my phone to last at least until lunchtime. As I rush towards the train station the soothing effects of the ginger and lemon grass tea and honey on the sore throat I contracted two days ago is wearing off, but I’m determined nothing will stop me. 11 strepsils remaining.

As I wait for my train I decide to practice the choir piece the Student Union Voices choir I was part of last year will be singing to try and recruit more members during the clubs and societies fair. Singing and sore throat aren’t the best of companions but strepsils will make it all better right? 10 strepsils remaining.

I walk briskly to union house hoping that I’m not too embarrassingly late for my 10am second meet up with the orientation host group. It’s 9:59 and ideally I would have been there at 9:55 so that they would know where to meet up and so my loud overly-enthusiastic voice would prevent the possibility of any awkward silences. But as I trot over to Pronto Pizza, I see that they’ve already found each other and are making light conversation while waiting for me. Couldn’t have turned out better if I had planned it, though my throat is a bit sore from rushing over from the tram stop. 9 strepsils remaining.

I’m really happy so see that I didn’t scare the first-years on the first day of orientation by making them play Toilet Tiggy**, and there are enough of them at the second meeting to play more silly games. We sit down on south lawn and play “I have never…” It was really great to see all the first-years open up and participate. We discovered that in the group there were 2 people who played the violin, 1 who had been punched in the face by a girl, 4 who have fallen off trampolines and 1 who had skinny dipped before. Running around and laughing took its toll but it was totally worth it to see the tense atmosphere that hadn’t quite dispersed on the first day of orientation melt away. 8 strepsils remaining.

My first-years wonder off to various introductory lectures they must attend. Boy, orientation week is so much less stressful without those lectures to attend, I can just chill out on south lawn under a tree and confuse first-years with brain teasers all day instead. The lawn is nice but I decide to take my depleted group of first-years to the clubs and societies fair. A noisy and crowded place filled with cupcakes and baskets of lollies and “expensive” membership fees. I think I spent $40 on joining something like 15 clubs last year. I feel so much more informed this year and know exactly which ones I am capable of keeping a commitment to. I make my way out of the sea of people and reach for another strepsil. 7 strepsils remaining.

With 35minutes before I need to go to my chior rehearsal, I somehow manage to do all of the following: buy my Probability lecture notes, meet up with three friends, check in with some of my first-years, wait 15minutes in a line to pick up a book voucher for my o-week work and still make it to chior rehearsal only 5minutes late. $7.75 and 6 strepsils remaining.

Only the Student Union Voices choir would spend only 30minutes rehearsing, ducking out to a random area fill with strangers minding their own business, sing our rendition of lady Gaga’s Poker face and a Hungarian folk song before scooting back to the safety of the rehearsal room. But let me tell you: it is the most fun choir ever. We even had one girl who said to us “hey! I totally did not know we had a chior, I’m totally going to join.” (Small) victory! But my throat is also pining for another strepsil. 5 strepsils remaining.

As if by magic more of my friends (some of which I haven’t seen for a while) appear and we all waddle our way to Brunswick street where, I have been told, there is a very nice pizza place. It’s a bit of a trek, and I am a bit dubious when I see the rather scruffy paint-peeled building that is our destination. But upon going inside I discover that despite the drabby exterior there is a wealth of exotic couches, cheap yummy pizzas and even a small separate room upstairs that is quickly taken over by our merry party. I quickly forget about the trek it took to get here, though my throat wants soothing. $27.75 in my pocket after a trip to the magic money machine also known as the ATM. 4 strepsils remaining.

What I thought was a small intimate gathering of friends, turns out to be quite a party of close to 20 people. The only person I don’t know in the room is a friend of a friend whom she met during her summer semester. He has one lazy eye, is carrying a cane and doesn’t seem to talk much at first. Somehow, probably not too accidentally, I end up sitting next to him, discover that he is an environments student and completely blind and have a brilliantly animated conversation that lasts through most of the gathering. Probably could have preserved my voice a little but it was totally worth it for the new friend. $21.75 and 3 strepsils remaining.

After everyone else with other commitments have left a group of us head all the way to the other side of the city to Crown casino to watch Gnomeo and Juliet. Upon arriving at the ticket office we discover that our carefully planned arrangement has been upturned by the cancellation of the 5:10pm screening. After fruitless searching of session times at other cinemas we decide we’ll hold out until the next screening at 7pm. We head down to the food court and I settle myself on the end of the table with a jacket for a pillow and my o-week tee-shirt over my head to block the light and give my throat a break from all the talking and just listen to all the voices around me while I doze in my private dark. It’s quite relaxing I could get used to this, I think. Is this what it’s like to have a conversation as a blind person? 2 strepsils remaining.

If you love gnomes, cheesy romance and humorous Shakespeare references then you would agree with me that it was a beautiful heart-warming film. (Well all those painful hours in English class trying to work out why iambic pentameter isn’t better than pain-English had to pay off eventually right?) And I was really glad that I had stayed to watch it despite the fact that I could have gone home and rested my ailing throat and ensured a speedier recovery. $5.75c in small change and 1 strepsil remaining.

My phone has run out of batteries so I call my parents on my generous friend’s phone just to give them a heads up that I’m heading home now. Usually I find myself catching a train home by myself at this point of my day, but one of the guys catches my train with me and be debate about the film. (Apparently some boys do not understand the appeal of gnomes and cheesy romance… how weird.) Later I discover that he could have just as easily got home by catching the train that left 5 minutes earlier to the one that we were on together. I was glad for the company. I finally arrive back home some 12 hours after I first left in the morning. Zero strepsils remaining.

This morning I left the home with a sheet of 12 strepsils and $20.75 in my possession and I came back a poorer woman…

… but if you ignore the 12 strepsils and $35 I spent, I feel pretty rich right now.

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*throat lozenges for my sore throat

** thinks scarecrow tiggy but with people posed as toilets that need to be sat on and flushed. And just for extra fun everyone is “it”. Add some chaos, anarchy and crazy fun and you get the general gist.