KR you're the man. Good luck with the transition to australia. It takes alot of planning to make things like that happen, it is inspiring to myself (im 21 yo) to head out somewhere like that. Long Island is starting to drive me crazy.. and like LA, if you can make here you can make it anywhere so whats there to worry about?
A friend of mine has done more with his life then most. He is in his 50s now and what he told me really makes sense. He was telling me about the boats in the marinas. He was telling me that people who own boats in marinas spends years and thousands of dollars trying to get their boats ready to leave. He then mentioned that their boats will never be ready. Your boat can never be ready to take on the world. You have to outfit it and go along the way. He kept saying, "Just fuc-kin go. Pick up and go." Its your life, don't sit around trying to get ready. Just go.
Thats pretty much what I've done/doing. There really isn't that much work to make a transition like this. Granted the jet ski community has really saved me and the guy I am staying with is 1 in a million. In any case, everyone is different and its important that we all go about our different paths. Do what you love is so cliche, but I can't reword it any other way. I want to be in a nautical area in a laid back environment and work with people and boats. Thats what I want and Im going to do it...
I encourage you to try new things and make your own opportunities. Don't wait for them to come up, just go. Just fuc-kin go!