One of my first memories of Australia: sitting on a couch in some guy's backyard, next to a bonfire with my new man friend Ben, game three of State of Origin projected onto a screen on the back of the house. I was so lost. Not only have I never really been a big sports fan, but I'd also never seen a rugby game in my life. I just cheered and booed whenever everyone else did...

A year later: Kelsey and I stumbled into an Aussie pub for dinner in Koh Tao last night to find game three playing on every TV, and we were so pumped. It kind of occurred to us in that moment how long we'd been away from home - it's been a full year and we're still going. We sat near the bar to watch the game and realized the place was filled with big Australian guys rooting for New South Wales. So intimidating. We were probably the only Queensland supporters, and two little American girls at that. But once the game started and all these guys were yelling obscenities and banging their fists on the tables around us, we felt really homesick and happy at the same time. I felt like I understood the game better than I ever have - Kelsey and I were so proud being able to explain the rules and point system to a couple of our American friends who were clueless. We skulled a couple beers, and all of a sudden we were the ones cheering the loudest, talking shit to these guys who thought they were tough as they buried their faces in their hands because Queensland killed it, 32-8. We may not have won the series this year, but it was a pretty awesome feeling cheering on the Maroons last night. I felt so Aussie.