Australian singer/songwriter Missy Higgins
Before I moved to Australia I had no desire to go there.
I met Rob the first day I was in England, and shortly after introducing himself and nervously spouting some anecdote about blueberry muffins, he announced he would be moving to Melbourne, Australia.
He was quitting his job as a sports journalist in Hertford and flying Down Under with, as far as I can remember, no prospects or plans – and he had already put in his notice.
After two weeks together, I hadn’t convinced him not to move to a place with 350+ days of sunshine a year in order to hang out with some lunatic Canadian girl he had just met at a party, though I tried.
So he left in October. We spent nearly 7 months apart (having only really ever spent about 12 days together), before I gave in, packed my bags, and applied for an Australian visa.
By this time, Rob had secured a pretty good job as the editor of a magazine in Sydney, so it made sense that I go there, particularly since there weren’t a whole lot of prospects in Canada for a sports writer who worshipped cricket and had never seen a hockey game in his life.
And, wtf, I was on a grueling 26 hour flight to Australia, sans functioning television, and by the end of it, sans sanity.
I spent nearly 9 months in Sydney, and in my somewhat skewed memory, they’re the happiest of my strange little life.
Lots of things stand out – koalas, the opera house, my introduction to Thai food, fish and chips wrapped in paper on the beach, skiing (or rather, not skiing) on Snowy (or rather, not Snowy) Mountain, my absolutely crazy flatmate Colby, giant cockroaches. The fact that a cookies and cream bar cost 96 cents despite the fact that there are no pennies.
But I think one of the things that really holds all of these cheesy memories together for me is Missy Higgins.
Colby played her first CD for me within the first few days of arriving and I wasn’t sure what to think. It was good, but not my favourite. But the more I listened, the more I loved.
And so, very few things happened in Australia that didn’t feature Missy Higgins playing in the background, and every time I hear one of her songs, I desperately long to go back.
I mean, who wouldn’t? They still have Target and Woolworth’s.
Anyway, she’s amAzing. Some of my favourites are (and I had touble picking these):
Special Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ld5j8vSWz7w
Going North: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZ4otErUAwc
Where I Stood: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AOJ4chbyuJ8&feature=related
Scar: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WxPH_G8iyg
Check out www.missyhiggins.com
P.S. Aaron and I have new videos on YouTube, check ‘em out! http://www.youtube.com/user/ashleyfayth15
