What are you craving RIGHT NOW?

By LUCY ORMONDE

Crave. Want. Desire. Is there anything you’re desperately missing right now? Something you’re hankering after? Dreaming about?

Alice Springs hasn’t seen rain in something like 150 days. That’s a record for the people of central Australia. It’s the longest period they’ve ever gone without rain. It’s  also unfortunate for the people who (like me) rely on the Weather Gods as a method to wash their cars.

When I was visiting my cousin in Dubai last year, we were trapped in traffic one day when it started to rain. Being from Melbourne, I thought nothing of it. My cousin however screamed, jumped out of the car and danced on the street. Apparently in the seven months since she’d arrived in the sandy desert, there had been no rain. Just lots of sun. And sand.

Note: Stay with me on this post. I promise it’s not all about the weather and the rain. It’s actually about the things you crave. The things you’ve been denied. The things you don’t even realise you’re missing, until you can’t have them.

Take my colleague Nat. She’s going through a different kind of dry spell at the moment. It’s been three months since she’s seen her boyfriend, who’s working overseas. “I just REALLY miss him,” she tells us. Every day. But that’s okay. Because we’re all missing something.

Mia wants a holiday (and she got one this week). It’s been weeks since the last episode of Offspring and Bec is desperately wanting it to come back. Mikki – who’s pregnant – just wants a ham sandwich (or maybe some sashimi). On the other side of the office there’s Nicky. Her little girl just turned one and to celebrate, Nicky would like a night out of the house with her husband. “I don’t even care if the food is shocking and the movie’s boring.”

Jamila desperately wants to go home to Canberra and grab a dose of her sister. I too could really use a coffee and debrief with my girlfriends in Melbourne. Our intern Kahla went back to Tamworth for the first time since February last weekend so she’s feeling satisfied. And Jam and I are not jealous AT ALL.

And then there’s Lana who is at home today celebrating Yom Kippur – part of which involves fasting. So we figure she’d just really like something to eat.

What are you missing/craving at the moment? How long will it be until you can satisfy that craving?

For the record – weather forecasters are predicting rain for Alice Springs in the next couple of days. Nat’s dry spell however, is predicted to last another couple of months.