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Happy New Year (almost)
Riverlea Cottage, Mudgee |
Big Sur, California |
I am not sure what 2017 holds, and where will be visited for the first time, but I sure will have a good time planning something. There may even be a spreadsheet involved!
Here’s hoping you, and your families, have a great and safe New Year.
See you in 2017.
Celebrating Australian citizenship in Mudgee
It is easy to see why it is called “nest in the hills”. Some 3 and a half hours from Sydney, in mid-central New South Wales, Mudgee (from Moothi, which literally means nest in the hills) is a world away from the bright city lights of Sydney. And with over 43 wineries to explore, it is an oenophilia’s paradise. On the couple of weekends we have stayed, we are steadily working our way through the best of them.
Taking the Old Bells Line of Road, up through the Blue Mountains, we stopped briefly in the apple capital, Bilpin, for a piece of the world’s best apple pie. Pushing on, arriving mid afternoon at Riverlea Cottage, south of Mudgee, we were greeted by Toto and Guinness, the family dogs, like we had never been away.
In the 12 months since we were last here, not much had changed, just the addition of guinea fowl it seems. And why guinea fowl you may ask? Just as I did. Well, the brown snake I almost stepped on whilst walking in the paddock answers that one. Depending on what you read, the brown snake is reputed to be the second most venomous snake in the world. I’ll say that again. The second most venomous snake in the WORLD. And I almost just stood on one. A recent blog had me celebrating making it past 44. Making 45 was looking decidedly at risk.
The welcoming committee |
Enter the guinea fowl. As our saviours from snakes. Apparently. Somebody had told Helena that they were a good deterrent for snakes. And now Ned had more mouths to feed along with the dogs, the alpacas, and the chooks. I assumed the many kangaroos we saw managed to feed themselves. What I hadn’t accounted for was dealing with the infamous Huntsman spiders. Quite possibly harmless, everybody tells me, but just the sight of the bloody things are enough to give you a cardiac arrest. THAT little critter was something I wasn’t going to deal with. Cue shouting for Ned!
Australia Day finished with us stargazing, with a chilled bottle of locally produced wine. And with zero light pollution, the effect was amazing. But the day started with me meeting Tony Abbott (ex prime minister, originally hailing all the way from London) at my Australian citizenship ceremony in Mosman. A journey that started on a bitterly cold December morning in Halifax, 2010, posting my permanent residency application off, which was granted on 26th January 2012, culminated on 26th January 2017, with the grant of my citizenship. I am thankful to call home a country that welcomes immigrants, and builds its strength from the diversity that we can bring to a country and it’s culture.
My struggles at times, settling into a new culture, thousands of miles from family, friends, and my beloved football club, have been well documented here. I have to be honest and admit that on many occasions I didn’t think I would reach this milestone, becoming Australian. But if you just focus on the days, the years have a way of looking after themselves, and here I am, a dual national, with opportunities now opening up in front of me.
Regardless of what happens now, from trying another country, a new culture, immersed in a new language, doing a doing a stint closer to home, or just taking an extended break travelling, having the passport allows us to return to Oz at any point. Remaining in Oz, or returning later to downsize our life and live the quintessential laid back Aussie lifestyle. There are many little towns that are perfect for such a life. And what a life.
Reading here about something called “stress”! |
Which is one of the reasons we love Mudgee. A typical conversation goes something like this;
“Where are you from?”
“Sydney. We are just up in Mudgee for the weekend.”
“Ah, Sydney. I went there once. Never again. Too busy, too many people.”
And returning on the Sunday, to Mosman, brought this starkly into life. Crossing the road, on a pedestrian crossing, the lady driving the car was revving her engine, actually edging onto the zebra crossing, and shouted out of her window for us to hurry up. City life, for all it’s upsides, leaves a lot to be desired.
Tree change anyone?
Looking back on 2019, and ahead to 2020
In January last year I posted my “having a retrospective on 2018” post. So, it is about time that I did the same, looking back on 2019, and ahead to 2020. Time to brew up a strong coffee, sit back, and reflect on the year that just passed.
A lot has happened in the last year. It has been a year I have been happy with, for a number of reasons. As always, like every good retrospective, there are a few areas that could improve. But isn’t that the same with everyone?
The first item on last year’s list is one such area of improvement. Seeing a recent Facebook post by a good friend reminded that yet again, I have failed to get on a surfboard. The surf lesson I keep promising myself has again failed to materialise. Maybe this is one that I will just dream of, and never get around to, much like the cabbage soup diet.
Other areas of improvement from last year’s retro have fared much better. Every year I have a perennial “must do”, which is to do a yoga class. And thanks to my better half, I have finally ticked this off. In fact, you could say I have smashed it, with many classes now done in a couple of different styles of yoga. For the more active of you, I would recommend Vinyasa Flow. Sure to get the heart pumping and you contorting yourself into all manner of positions, you leave one of these classes knowing you have had a workout. For those of us getting to the stage where it is hard just getting out of bed, I would recommend finishing your work week with Yin Nidra yoga. A relaxing blend of easy movement and falling asleep. Literally. The last 10 minutes of every class ends with the instructor handing out blankets, turning down the lights, and zoning out.
I started the year wanting to do more writing, and again this has been a success. I have completed a couple of creative writing courses, and a travel writing course, allowing me to practice my craft a lot more. I have now set myself the target of getting a travel article published so I can officially call myself a “freelance travel writer”. I almost got one of my blogs published in the Halifax Evening Courier, but that has yet to come to fruition. I also kept up my daily journal, both digitally in the DayOne app, and also a brief summary of each day in a hand written journal. A great way to end the day, scribbling what I have learnt, and what I am grateful for.
As the tagline of my blog says, “go someplace new every year”, and this year the big destination was South Africa. You may have seen the blogs I wrote from safari and the rest of that amazing trip. A trip that has left me with a lifetime of memories. If a safari is on your “to do” list, I would heartily encourage you move it up the priority list. It is life changing.
I visited the Philippines for the first time, with a very productive work trip to Manila, where I created, and delivered a 2 day training program to a client. A very rewarding experience.
A great visit to the UK to meet up with family also provided the opportunity to get to Nice, in the south of France, a city I had not previously visited. Much of that trip is a wine fuelled haze, but I think we had a good time. I had 8 nights in the Greek Islands to recover.
The good time may have contributed to another, less than successful item on last year’s list, which was to drop 4kgs in weight. I will carry this target into 2020 but I won’t hit it if I continue to munch on mince pies and Quality Street long after Christmas has finished. I did suffer with a suspected parasite in my stomach before Christmas that resulted in me losing 3kgs, but alas, the sneaky buggers have returned. The weight, not the parasite.
Last year I wrote of wanting to have my first cold Christmas in over 6 years, but this didn’t happen. We had the day itself, celebrating my birthday, on the beach at Balmoral. Cold beer and a paddle in the sea becoming something off a tradition. Having received the trip as a surprise birthday present, on Boxing Day we then jetted off to Hamilton Island, in Queensland, for 3 nights pure relaxation at The Beach Club. Will 2020 be the year that I finally get another cold Christmas?
I continue to read as many books as possible, having reached a grand total of 122 in 2019. My reading interests vary a lot and I tend to have 3 or 4 books on the go at once. On the bedside table is often a heavy (sometimes literally) historical, or biographical book. Something to help me unwind and sleep. I can recommend the most recent one I finished which was “George Orwell – A Life”, by Bernard Crick. I tend to read a lot of business books, and in the gym I run to a light, easy audiobook. Maybe this will be the year I restart, and finish, Middlemarch.
This year also brought perhaps the biggest change in my life. I don’t know who was more surprised, me or Victoria. Over dinner at the rather excellent Bennelong, in the Sydney Opera House, I finally put a ring on it. Victoria agreed to become my wife. I wonder if she knows what she is letting herself in for? I have definitely got the better end of the deal. We have no immediate plans for a wedding so please don’t be asking me if you should start shopping for hats.
In summary, I had an excellent and productive 2019. I faced in to new career challenges, switching back to a permanent role at a small consultancy at the start of the year. The role I have is also very different to the last 15 years of my life during which time I was a project manager. I am now working with organisations, and teams, in how they can work more effectively. The coaching side of the role is something that I am really enjoying. Au revoir to status reports and steering committees.
Whilst fully enjoying life, I also managed to maintain my health and fitness. All this despite doing my best to sample every bottle of wine produced in Australia (and South Africa).
And I convinced someone to make an honest man of me.
This year, my 49th year on the planet, is shaping up to be another good one. Back to work to keep growing myself, and even more importantly to bank some dollars for future trips. I will continue writing blogs, and now also travel articles, and I will let you know how I get on with publishing that first article. I would like to do some form of retreat this year and am always open to your suggestions and recommendations. I am thinking about meditation and yoga. Meditation is something I continue to do, although I don’t do enough of it.
Looking back on 2019, and ahead to 2020, the thought of the year ahead fills me with happiness, and curiosity to where it will take me.
Watch this space.
Hello Perth
“Life is what happens whilst you are making plans”, is a quote attributed to numerous people, amongst them, John Lennon of Beatles fame. Never has this aphorism been more true than in recent days.
Over a year in the planning, yesterday should have been the day we were filled with nervous excitement. Wondering what the next 12 months would hold as we embarked on the trip of a lifetime. A round the world travel adventure, sipping cocktails on deserted Filipino beaches. Swimming in the tropical shores of Thailand. Exploring the best of Europe in a campervan, and checking out the best of the vineyards. On to Canada to explore the Rockies, before brushing up my Spanish in a language school in Central America.
Well, you know the rest. Like all of you, our lives have been disrupted by events that are impacting the whole world. Humanity is being tested like never before. Lives are being changed irrevocably. New phrases are entering the lexicon. “Social distancing”. “Self isolation”. Lockdown has become a part of everyday life.
As society slowly learns to adapt to a time where we can’t see our loved ones for fear of making them ill. And jobs are lost in their thousands as social distancing means a loss of our social lives, and with it many people’s incomes. I suppose we still have a lot to be thankful for. Rather than setting off with the whole world being our oyster, we are learning to adapt ourselves.
At the end of our travels we had made the life changing decision to uproot our fabulous life in Sydney, and transport it to beautiful Western Australia. Specifically to Perth. A place we have visited a number of times and love. A place where the sun seems to constantly shine. That Margaret River, one of my favourite places in the world (in part due to the wonderful wineries and beautiful beaches) is on the doorstep of Perth, may have something to do with our choice.
Fast forward to Sunday, and with the announcement that Western Australia would be closing its borders on Tuesday afternoon, we quickly jumped on to the Qantas website and booked ourselves on a flight out. The next day. And here we are. After a flight of just under 5 hours, and a time difference of minus 3 hours from Sydney, we are safely at an AirBnB in Perth.
This is day 1. What day 2, and subsequent days hold, we don’t know. We have a week booked in our accommodation. And we need to sort out what to do after that. We don’t yet know if we will all be in full lockdown as the UK now is. We do know that across Australia all pubs, restaurants have had to close, with cafes only allowed to do a takeaway service. Importantly, the bottle shops are currently excluded from the closures so are able to stay sane through drinking copious amounts of wine. And more importantly, there is a bottle shop conveniently located a short walk from where we are staying. If a wider, New Zealand style lockdown is put in place, we will just have to find somewhere we can stay a little longer, and head out for a large supply of food and the elusive toilet roll.
Whilst this is a terrible time for everyone, the fact that a relatively “normal” life is returning in China does give me some hope. A glint of light at the end of a very dark tunnel. Until that light gets brighter, please adhere to the official advice that your respective government is giving you. It is very important. The less people we are in contact with, the less opportunity we give this virus chance to spread amongst us.
Let’s all work together to keep everyone safe. Once the darks clouds have passed, everyone is invited to the virus “going away” party!
What to do with 1564 weeks?
What is “average”?
Let’s try a thought experiment. How long does the average person live? Notwithstanding I don’t know what the “average” person is, if we just use this measure, how many years do you think this “average” person would live for? How about we agree on 80 years old. And if said person was to live to the ripe old age of 80, how many weeks would you guess this is?
Go on. Have a guess. Without Google and without a calculator. Off the top of your head, how many weeks? I have been reading a new book called “4000 Weeks”, and yes, if we live to 80 years old, we will have 4000 weeks at our disposal.
The problem is, many of us have already used up a large portion of these 4000 weeks. A decade ago, (a decade? Seriously, a decade??), I wrote a blog about it being “Half Time”, and as I turned 40, what changes did I want, or need to make in the second half, to use a football analogy.
Past the half way mark
I am well and truly in the second half now. As I turn 50, and using 4000 weeks as an average (total) length of my lifetime, I now have 1564 weeks left. This feels scary. It feels way too short. And it feels very real, reminding me of one of my favourite quotes, “memento mori”. Literally, remember we die, but more abstractly, I see this as a stark reminder to live. Being acutely aware of our guaranteed demise brings into sharp focus for me the need to live a life of purpose. A life of adventure. A life that I look back on at the close of my 4000 weeks and say, “yeah, I am happy with that”.
This is the reason I do this blog on an annual basis. Or at least, annual-ish. We are in the second week of January already and before we know it we will have Easter eggs adorning the shelves in Woolworths. I reflect on the year that has just passed, and look back at what my intentions for the year were. Balancing the books to determine whether I achieved what I set out to achieve, and if I have in fact lived the last year in the way I wanted to live it.
What is left to say abut 2021 that hasn’t already been said?
2021 has again been a year that we didn’t expect. We said this about 2020 and I genuinely thought the world was starting to turn the corner. Then, along came Delta, and more recently, Omicron, and suddenly it feels like Groundhog Day. Countries are closing down, not opening up. COVID cases are going up, not down. And we are back to wearing masks indoors.
And yet, the year has been very good to us. The absolute highlight being April when we took ourselves off to Margaret River and eloped to the forest. I could never have predicted how perfect the whole experience would be. Staying at the Empire Spa Retreat in Yallingup for 3 nights was a great way to relax and enjoy the big day. Vasse Felix was the ideal place to celebrate the nuptials the day after with a delicious degustation lunch. And the best hotel in Australia, Como The Treasury was the absolute perfect place to celebrate our mini-moon.
We were on the move, again
The year started in the cottage that had been our home for some months. A home that we had grown very attached to. Lazy Sunday afternoon BBQs in the back garden became a highlight. Sadly, our landlords returned from Queensland and we had to move once our year rental was up. Thankfully, we didn’t have to move far. We are actually on the same road, except we had to move back to apartment living. You may remember the washing machine debacle, the very week we moved in. I don’t think I will forget it.
The long awaited travel sabbatical
In terms of travel, it is now pushing on 3 years since we were last allowed to leave Australia. This continues, with Western Australia still locking out the rest of the world, and locking us in. We had planned my big 50th celebration over Xmas in Queensland and this got cancelled a week before we were due to leave as a result of the ever changing border restrictions. Thankfully, Mrs C is very organised and within minutes we had a new plan. Three nights on Rottnest Island over Xmas, and two nights in the port city of Fremantle for New Year.
We have managed to get on a plane this year, having a great holiday in Broome, north WA, and a fabulous road trip around Tasmania, somewhere we would both like to spend more time. We have also taken the opportunity to explore even more of this vast state we live in. Western Australia has so much to see and we have spent many (not enough?) weekends in Margaret River. This truly is our happy place and I suspect there will be much more of it in our future.
Winter is not that cold over here in the west, but weekends in picture postcard little country towns Bridgetown and Nannup allowed us to witness the changing seasons with leaves on the trees turning a beautiful golden brown. It also gives us the opportunity to book a cottage with an open fire and spend the evening relaxing with a bottle of red wine. Perfection.
With our state premier (dictator) promising to catch up with the rest of Australia, and open our borders in February, we have renewed hope that 2022 will be the year we finally get on the road for our travels. Just a slight delay of two years, but the best things come to those that wait.
I became a professional coach
Whilst we have been waiting to travel I have been continuing with my personal development. In the last year I have been deep on a journey of discovery and learning, training to be a professional coach. With a few remaining activities to complete, I should soon be able to apply for my Associate Certified Coach (ACC) credential with the International Coaching Federation. This will be a massive milestone for me and something I will be very proud of. It is too early to determine what comes next after this.
On the education front, I have been at university, studying for a Graduate Certificate in Organisational Coaching and Leadership. At the time of writing I have about 6 weeks left before I complete this. As much as I love learning, and will continue to learn, what I have discovered is that I don’t like academic writing. Something that is critical to being a university student. A good reflection and this gives me pause for thought before I commit to any future courses.
What comes next?
What I am happy to commit to is that we will continue to enjoy life. Despite the restrictions we are all facing across the world, we know how fortunate we are and are very grateful for the opportunities 2021 provided to us. Life is not something that eventually happens to you. It is what happens now. In every moment. The present.
“How we spend our days is of course how we spend our lives.” – Annie Dillard
The next time we speak, the world may have changed again. For us, or against us. Time to embrace complexity and see what emerges. Either way, I am excited.