A new challenge arises! JGB, the farmer?

I can hardly believe I've been living in Melbourne for 4 months now! I have the humble abode I dreamed of, in a great 'hood with all the right local perks and a job that I actually look forward to going to. The first few months of establishment felt as if they took forever but now I find myself sitting comfortably in my Richmond home office, writing a blog on the website I anticipated I would bring to life, and shortly I will be leaving for work at The Corner Hotel, one of the best jobs/work environments I have ever had the chance to be a part of!

How quickly all this came together! And now, just as soon as I've built a lifestyle and finally integrated myself into a good groove, I am suddenly faced with a new challenge.

At first, Sean and I had planned to get De-Facto status and apply for a Partner's Visa. But after doing the necessary research, it became clear that the Partner's Visa didn't quite suit our needs. Not only does it cost 2575$, but it also requires the applicant to stay in the country for an extended period of time and then it eventually turns into a Permanent Visa. It's not that I don't want residence, it's more that we just don't have plans to live in Australia permanently as of now and thus, the partner's visa doesn't suit our needs.

Seeing as we're planning on being in Australia for two years before running off to another country, our best option is to extend my holiday working visa by doing 3 months (88 days) of agricultural work. If I complete 88 days of farm/pearling/fruit-picking, I get to stay in this fine country for an extra year - just what we need!

Now that I've come to realize this must be done before the end of April '11, I'm also realizing that the timing could work to my advantage or to my detriment! Right now, it's cold and the work season is slow in Melbourne... in three months from now it will be Summer and The Corner Hotel bumping with lots of work and fun to be had! Why wait when I can go to where it's warm and get the work out of the way, so as to stay in Australia and work/play for the remainder of my stay!

And so here I am, realizing that I need to find myself agricultural work and relocate to another part of Australia within 2 weeks!

Project: Agricultural Work will follow my endeavours in finding and securing work, as well as living the life of an agricultural worker!