In 1984.
In two and a half weeks my job will have me crossing the international date line for the second time in less than 6 months. October found me in Sydney, Australia for a little bit of work and a little bit of play. I had joked that I was going to go AWOL and make my way to New Zealand with the intention of wandering the streets of Dunedin looking for Graeme Downes. I've heard he's not the most approachable person on the planet, and I'm not one for seeking out my musical heroes in hopes of some level of personal interaction for the simple fact that it's their music I admire. How they conduct themselves on a personal level is no concern or interest of mine. Though much like my obsessive fixation on Paul Westerberg from 1989 - 2000 (I'm a recovering Westerbergaholic), I have this juvenile crush on the idea of Graeme Downes that is fueled by nothing other than his music. While I realize how silly it is, I also appreciate that I still feel this way despite the years.
Anyways, as much as I wish I were returning to Sydney (so beautiful, and so close to New Zealand) I'll be heading off on a 3 week business trip to Indonesia. After the initial shock of the offer sunk in a few days ago, my first thought was that Jakarta MUST be closer to New Zealand than Jersey! I should look into doing a weekend trip!
Clearly I need to brush up on my global geography. It would take just about as much time to fly from Jakarta as it would to fly from Jersey: roughly 20 hours. I don't mean to dismiss Indonesia. I'm scrambling to figure out what will be available to me on my down time while I'm there, but I'm committing myself to getting to New Zealand in the not too distant future.
Stalking Dr. Downes is optional.
