All over the shop. Mindfulness is Key.

A list of miscellanea, for posterity:

• Melbourne weather is finally coming good.
• I've PB'd my back squat. 70kg. Yass.
• I am off to the mandatory counselling / nursing training for IVF on Monday. Nothing starting till next year but still...onward.
• Every couple of years or so, my mum has a bout of depression. She went MIA for a few hours one evening last week after sending out an email to a coworker who was concerned and called the police (who were in touch with me). She ended up texting to say she was ok. Harrowing.
• I went to NZ to see my partner's family over the last weekend. Great to see Christchurch rebuilding. Not so great to get text messages from mum airing grievances to us, and offering unsolicited advice, which kind of made the weekend hard. I've offered concrete help but set some boundaries.
• I've been doing quite a bit of extra work, which has been fun but exhausting. One of my interventions today I estimate will have saved $100K but more importantly made a punter happy. Winning.
• I have a job interview in Feb. It's good but that timing makes it hard to plan my year.
• Christmas songs make me want to run out of the shops screaming. My partner suggested, as a strategy, replacing all the lyrics to xmas songs with swear words and singing them in my head, so as not to teach little children bad ways. However the fact that Johnny Farnham is releasing an exmas record makes me happy. 
• My partner has been promoted in his job, to Professor. Exciting. 
• I have had my first PhD paper accepted into a decent journal, contingent on a few minor changes.  
• I have to meet with one of my bosses tomorrow to discuss the progress of my research project. It is not going well, due to factors that I can't avoid. Still, I hate having to do it, but discussing strategies to move forward may make me feel better.
• Off to Bali for Xmas, leaving on Tuesday. Running away? Yes. But I am mindful that I am doing that and mindfulness is key.