Jan and I host a newsletter we call Aussie to Yank, but in this case of welcoming a new American citizen, we adapted the title a bit. You’ll see why below.
A few years ago, my daughter Jeanette hit a couple of brick walls in her life and decided to take a break and travel to the USA. She wasn’t to know that meeting and falling in love with an American named Joe would be the beginning of a complete sea change for her. With that sea change came obstacles – a huge ocean separated Australia and America and her three months tourist visa demanded she return home. After a lot of soul searching, she decided to pick up sticks and stay in the U.S. with Joe.
Leaving Australia for a new life in another country was a big, daunting step. Oftentimes she was very homesick. It wasn’t as though she could fly home for the weekend! Jeanette didn’t know anyone except Joe, but her fears (and most of her homesickness) were quickly dispelled when his family and friends welcomed her with open arms.
There was a lot of adjusting to do–
Coming from a country that has as many sheep as people she missed the mouth-watering roast leg of lamb with thick pan gravy. No hot meat pies with tomato sauce (ketchup), a must on cold days. No fish and chip shops with battered fish and chips cooked in hot oil, lashings of salt and wrapped in paper. Jeanette’s initial reaction to biscuits and gravy was ‘ugh’ until she learned American biscuits are similar to our scones. Eating out was confusing and remembering to tip even harder.
Learning to drive on the right-hand side of the road took time, remembering to open the left-hand door instead of the right took longer, however her driving test was surprisingly easy. In Jeanette’s words, “The guy had me drive around while he asked questions on koalas and kangaroos.”
Americans were very interested in our wildlife, especially the poisonous snakes and spiders. Breezily declaring she’d killed dozens of spiders with her thongs was met with an uncomfortable silence. (Oops! She didn’t know she meant flip flops.)
In Jeanette’s words again, “Everyone I’ve met has said they’ve always wanted to go to Australia, and they all think our spiders are BIG. I suppose they are but our shoes and thongs, I mean flip flops, are bigger.”
Because she lived in Queensland, (1.7 million sq. kilometres in size) it was assumed she knew Steve Irwin, ‘the crocodile hunter.’ After the fourth or fifth query, she maintained a very straight face while replying that yes, she’d gone to school with him. [LOL!!]
Jeanette was teased mercilessly over her accent and our habit of abbreviating words such as arvo for afternoon, Salvos – Salvation Army, brekky – breakfast, barbie – barbecue, snag – sausage, coldie – stubby of beer, garbo – garbage collector, and ambos for ambulance crews. Her love of Vegemite was met with looks of disgust and ‘how can you eat that stuff?’ Surprisingly, Joe loves it.
Settling into American life was made easier by the wonderful friendship and support from Joe’s family and friends, but Jeanette needed to get 
serious about living there permanently. To obtain a conditional green card, she had to be married to Joe for one year, have a co-sponsor and not break the law. After that she could apply to have the conditions removed to become a permanent legal resident. And then, she faced another three years before she was eligible to apply for citizenship. Last year the process began, and in April 2019 she travelled to Detroit for the test on American history and government. She passed all the hurdles and finally, the citizenship ceremony was held on 20 June.
I’ve been asked a few times how I feel. I miss her horribly and though I’ve travelled to the U.S. for visits, the trip is not to be taken lightly. As far as I’m
concerned, Jeanette is Aussie born and bred and now America is her home. Becoming a citizen was absolutely the right thing to do. Each time I visit, her American family and friends make me very welcome. And, the nicest compliment of all, my son-in-law Joe hoists the Aussie flag up on the flagpole. I feel very much at home there.
Congratulations, Jeanette!! What a huge undertaking. I have a feeling you’re more knowledgeable about the U.S. than a lot of us born here. Welcome to being a U.S. citizen!
wide as the church aisle, all satin and with beads and sparkly doodads. And I’d have ten bridesmaids and a groom in a tux, and the church would be full of friends and family. Wow! Cinderella would have been envious.
around to his way of thinking and each year we dated my wedding dreams became more conservative.
at Jack’s parents’ house. We went camping for our honeymoon. The whole wedding, pictures and all, cost less than $500. And it couldn’t have been more perfect. For us.
Creative Commons) For this act, the equivalent today of taking 10£, she was sentenced to fourteen years imprisonment in Van Diemen’s Land (now Tasmania Australia, the sort of triangular-shaped island off the southern coast of Australia). The 13,000 miles journey on the convict ship Hope took approximately three months.
Tasmania, now seen as a beautiful island and a vacation destination, was not viewed with much hope when it was one of the harshest penal colonies in a land of penal colonies. There are stories of convicts choosing almost certain death by escaping into the bush because death was better than life
in the colony. If they weren’t recaptured, they died due to lack of skills and the deadly snakes or other wild animals in the bush. Still, taking a chance against the huge tiger snakes was seen as better than the horrible floggings they suffered otherwise. Eleanor fared better than some.
know when Bridget left Van Diemen’s Land for the mainland or why she moved on to western New South Wales but there, aged 25, she married Richard, a bullock driver.
slivers of hand-made soap on top. After the clothes boiled for a few minutes they were pulled out with a copper stick and heaved into the rinse trough. Many a naughty child’s backside felt the whack of the copper stick.
I truly admire people who garden. They make the world a brighter place, a happier place. I could sit for hours surrounded by green plants and brilliant blooms…and talk to the person digging in the ground. But ask me to dig and pull weeds and plop a tiny seedling into rich loam? I’d destroy the whole setting in a matter of hours. I can’t tell a weed from a begonia. I don’t know which roots go shallow and which go deep. I can’t differentiate between a creeper and a tall plant that needs support. In short, I’m hopeless in a garden. Please don’t ask me to help in any way.
made the comment to my mom and aunt that I wondered how one particular yard had such beautiful, big blooms, and a woman I hadn’t seen standing there said, “It takes a lot of work.” I imagine so!
I absolutely, positively, without question believe in TRUE LOVE. I believe because I’ve seen what it looks like and what it doesn’t look like. I’ve known some fine, wonderful women who have not won in love. Here are four ways I know true love exists.
we always talked about it and decided which solution best fit us as a team. He moved to Idaho because I had a job opportunity. I gave up my work in order to follow him while he succeeded at consulting. When I had such horrid back problems I could barely stand to get out of bed, Jack got up with me at butt-ugly o’clock and walked around the parking area until I could function, then he faced a full day’s work. He never complained. We’ve always accommodated each other for the good of the team and for love. NOT true love thinks of themselves and not the other person.
surprise ice cream sandwich from Sonic or a hot cup of coffee. 😉 Feeling cherished means giving the other person what they need when they need it. For me that includes hearing “I love you,” too, but it goes far beyond that. NOT true love might say the words, might give the big gifts, but doesn’t show the meaning beyond them.
Gibby is no stranger to the perils of romance. Single until the age of 37, she dated many an interesting (dare we say crazy) guy until meeting the love of her life, Jim. They are married and live in the Cleveland, Ohio area with their very spoiled dog, Scoob. Gibby believes there is no true norm when it comes to relationships, and they all take hard work and dedication. When she’s not writing, you can usually find her hiking, at the theatre, or napping.
ever. He is of the opinion that when a man buys a woman flowers he’s feeling guilty about something. And he doesn’t buy perfume or pretty trinkets, though at times he has gifted me with some of my favorite earrings. No, my hubby is a practical gift giver.
my KitchenAid mixer and kitchen tools. He also learned what I do like in pocketbooks, in spite of the briefcase mix-ups, and he’s discovered that jewelry doesn’t have to be expensive for me to love it. One year when finances were particularly tight he wrapped a bag of miniature Baby Ruth candy bars, and it thrilled me. When the right sentiment is behind it, any gift can be wonderful.
given me gifts that can’t be measured in terms of money or usability: his name, his heart, and time to share his life.
the news, heard the promises made by politicians, and the reporting on offenses by the media. It wasn’t a pretty picture. My Air Force uncle went for a year. My Navy dad continued to hear rumors that his ship would be sent. I had friends who were drafted, a catechism teacher who became a POW (a great man, Jeremiah Denton), and my own sweetie’s draft lottery number was in the 60s, had he not stayed in school.
war is a necessity and sacrifices are inevitable. Where would we be without the soldiers of the Revolution? What if no one had decided to enlist after Pearl Harbor? Where would the world be had America and other nations not stood shoulder to shoulder against tyranny? We’re damn lucky we have 
men and women of character who are willing to leave their families and fight for freedom and country. We honor those who died for us on Memorial Day.
war and throw that person a party to honor them. They said go to our barbecues, have a few drinks, be with our families, but take a moment to say thank you.
