Farewell United States.

The last 24 hours have been hilarious. I am sitting at LAX and I have, as they say, ‘had a few too many’. Why? Well, I just came from a bar in Venice Beach where perhaps I drank a little too many boutique brews. Before that I was at an art gallery opening where there was perhaps a little too much free wine. Before that I was at LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) being challenged by Edward Keinholz’s ‘Five Car Stud’. A step back in time before that, I was in West Hollywood strolling the streets and drinking desperately needed coffee after being awake for 36+ hours. My journey goes back farther to Hollywood Hills and a tour on Sunset Boulevard. Prior to all of that, I enjoyed my last meal in the United States of America at “In-and-Out Burger” where I received some stickers and a hat in celebration of my first time at this iconic fast food chain. And all this started when my dear friend Selby, from my time in Berkeley, picked me up from the Long Beach Ferry Terminal. My current state of intoxication, however, comes from what Selby describes as the “shampoo effect”. The effect being that it is much easier for your hair to soap up the second time you wash it because there is still residue from the first wash. Well that is what happened to me in regards to continuing to ‘celebrate’ multiple days in a row. Yesterday, last night and today; my last moments on Catalina and in the United States, have been one of the most memorable times. But perhaps I should go back in time a little and explain.

Since my last blog post I have enjoyed a constant celebration and farewell party. It started with a glorious dinner at the Avalon Grille, Avalon’s premier upper-end restaurant, as a way to say goodbye. But with still two weeks until I departed, it’s needless to say that the celebrations did not end there. I spent many memorable moments with my CIMI family such as watching the sunset on the backside of the island and playing in the ocean; soaking up all that is Catalina. I was on Mama Ocean’s good side before I left and was graced with goodbyes from all my oceanic friends. The octopuses came out to play, the bioluminescence was mind-blowing for weeks, chondrichthyes were inquisitive and less timid than normal and even the rare and skittish Risso dolphins, sea lions and hundreds of both common and bottleness dolphins sent me off on my last day. The weather was surreal, the water crystal clear and the air fresh. My friends threw a huge “American-themed” going away party where there was a giant slip’n’slide into the ocean, pier-jumping, volleyball, margarita slushies, Frisbee-golf, American-style cuisine catering, banjo playing and 4th-of-July-esque costumes! Friends from all three camps, Toyon Bay, Fox Landing and Cherry Cove, came and I felt completely blessed to have my incredible extended family all in one place, one last time. At this point, I not only felt like I had been super spoilt and loved, but I started to feel at peace with leaving and gratitude was the emotion I most associated with. Simultaneously, however, I was starting to check-out as a way of not getting too emotional and down about the fact that all of the incredible moments I was living on Catalina, day by day, were about to become nothing but memories. I spent a lot of time in hiding and alone, getting my things together – mainly my head. In hindsight I slightly regret not expressing my love more to my friends and family in those last few days.

My last day of work was Friday (yesterday), and I couldn’t have received a better farewell from my kids. I received a T-shirt with all their names signed on it, one boy proposed at campfire, I was given earrings from another student, I have already received touching emails from the kids, and they were continuously calling out my name and chanting “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oi, Oi, Oi” in celebration. It was very special. After the kids left, the tears started as I packed my final belongings and it started to hit me what was happening. I had already said farewell to my boss and other friends who had left the island early to go to a wedding, and they gifted me with a beautiful “Yani’s Pocket Catalina” photobook of my time there. They also made me a traditional pumpkin pie because I’d never had it before and it is very ironically American this time of year. It was beautiful. Saying the first round of goodbyes was fairly awkward as it didn’t feel real yet, but I had been saying farewell for the two weeks prior so it certainly made the final goodbyes a lot easier. Some of my best friends from Toyon kayaked through the cold fog to come and spend my very last night with me and that is when the ‘party’ (that still continues) started. I never went to sleep as I stayed up to watch the sunrise from on top of the cliff edge, so aside from being somewhat drunk I am also completely delirious from tiredness. I said farewell to everyone one last time and went into crying-shock as I left Fox Landing for the last time on the boat. It was a feeling I haven’t felt in a long time; a feeling I haven’t felt since I left Australia 1.5 years ago. Luckily, my friend Katie caught the ferry over with me and distracted me from falling apart completely. And that is when Selby came and picked me up and now we come full circle.  

My last blog post was a little more sentimental in conveying my emotions about leaving the US, and my less-than-sober state is probably pivotal in preventing me from saying anything too poetic or emotional. However, I was talking to my dad on Skype before I left and he was asking me how I was feeling. I said sad, of course, excited too. I explained how it doesn’t feel real and actually my entire time away since I left never felt real anyway so I’m just trying to present in every moment and live this beautiful dream called life. 

So cheers to waking up in Hong Kong with an enormous hangover and cheers to the nice customs guards and ground staff that let me through to the next phase in my never-ending journey, despite very embarrassing stumbling and slurring. Kidding. Sort of, not really.