we have a friend in australia that we would very much like to visit. we thought one party would visit the other while we were in the southern hemisphere but it's not going to work out. we simply do not have the funds to go to australia at this time. as much as we would like to go, we can not. we went over the finances and realized how much money there is to be spent and how much we are going to spend. it is insane! we have so many gifts to buy for people that it is ridiculous. (over 100!) it really makes you wonder why in the hell are you buying gifts for so many people. relatives you hardly know, people that you haven't spoken to in a long time, and others who are not considerate enough to buy you a gift when they travel. but still we must get everyone something, even though we will go bankrupt doing it. so australia cannot even be done by racking up more credit card debt. it will take credit cards just to get everyone gifts! as soon as we get back to LA, we have to work our asses off to make up for all the money we have spent over here.

even worse, we have a friend in brazil who is trying to move permanently to asia very soon. it would take a miracle for us to find jobs immediately after returning to LA, work like mad for 1 month, spend nothing, use all that money to rush over and visit him in his native environment before he leaves. it's a crazy dream but it just might come true if we're lucky enough. that is another reason why we cannot go to australia this year. australia will have to wait for 2 more years, *gulp*.

sculpture over by the queens wharf