Double Happiness

Someone ought to make a fragrance, which smells of weed, beach, and sex, and call it: “Spring Break.” Or maybe: “Rock Star.”

The last Thursday of spring break I went to the music lab early and worked until late. Actually I only worked until around 6:00 pm, but 8 hours of straight headphone-to-skull means a lot of proud beat-warping, and red ears. I was listening to “Nyamaopra” by Mhuri Yekwarizi Ensemble when I arrived at a glass door named “42.” I kept a stick of burning Incense company, until a young man appeared, freshly showered and surprised by my presence in his room.

“Do you want to go to Wollongong?” He inquired, giving me a piece of deluxe cheesecake he had made after reading someone’s food-blog. “Well it is the last inkling of spring-break!” I responded. So it was that we hopped in his blue-car called “Charade,” acquired the finest falafel in suburbia, rode through infinite mirror-loops to liquor-stores, and stopped on roadsides to admire star-skies on mountain highways. 
There happened to be a cake waiting for us when we arrived, which was served with tea, apples, and homemade yogurt with black cherry jam. I pet Adhit’s cute and stinky dog and was treated to a brief mom-hug. His mom is an artist, with a studio full of emotive paintings. The two of us spoke between the lines about art and dreams. 

Adhit’s room was slightly messy, with a blue wall that pretty much matches the tone of his voice, a surfboard leaned up against it. I got to stay in his sister’s comfy bed, in a room of green, awoken each morning to a hot cup of tea and some sort of delicious breakfast. Adhit ought to market this kind of “Aussie Experience Tour” for Americans like me who refer to “mid semester break” as “spring break.” Together we soaked up the Wollongong lifestyle, meeting with old new friends in forts, bushwalking in pseudo rainforest, eating mulberries outside of drug-houses, and getting kicked out of stormy sea by lifeguards and waves alike.

I am not too invested in worrying these days, but one thing I was thinking about a fair bit was how I might feed myself with only a heap of change ($12 to be exact) for X amount of future. On this adventure I no longer had cause for worry. I was completely taken care of. Each day spilled into the next and I ended up staying in Wollongong for five days. Adhit is a domestic goddess and did his best to fashion my blog into a food-blog. His happiness meter was almost exploding past maximum capacity, having passed his physiotherapy placement he stood on the precipice of five free weeks. My miniature vacation mirrored Adhit’s new found freedom. It is sweet to spend limitless hours riding hedonistic whims and salty to style one’s hair with endless waves at sea.