A week in Byron Bay.

Howdy!

I am reluctantly thrust back into reality after a ripper week in Byron Bay.

#sorrynotsorry I don't have any photos in this post. Most of the cool things we did, it was impracticable to bring a phone and snap away. Also there's that thing about living your experiences rather than photographing them.

I did post many pictures of beer and food; these sitting down pics were at the times where I reflected on the good times I just had.

It was very much a week of letting shit go, and not giving a fuck. I had been fairly stressed prior to the trip with one thing or another, and am significantly less so now. A warm, subtropical, chilled-out beach town will do that to you.

I had been craving some time at the beach, and that craving was sated this holiday. Byron has some fabulous beaches, which I swam in daily. I showed off my bikini body - I have a body and I have a bikini, and I walked around in that bikini like a boss among the lithe 20 year old German backpackers.

We went sea kayaking on a glorious sunny day. There was a bit of "motion in the ocean" and mild seasickness ensued, however this was alleviated by seeing a pod of dolphins doing their dolphin thing, and getting up as close as 10 metres away. We had to retreat as the current towards the rocks was strong, but it was a very special experience. Kayaking with one's partner is a good bonding experience, if you can paddle without arguing too much that is a good sign.

I had known that Byron was a big surfie destination, and I was keen though a little scared to try. I had read all the reviews of the local surf schools saw that the newbie surfers had a blast. Hence I bit the bullet. The manageress of the B and B we stayed at suggested we went to a school called Style Surf, run by Gaz, who is something of a local institution. Hence we signed up. The next day, we got picked up and went to the beach. There were no waves. Gaz, calling the surf "piss poor", said that he wouldn't "steal our money" and sent us back home without charging us. We then went the next day, at a different location, and alas, there were waves.

We did some initial instruction on the sand. All good in theory - paddle, banana up, then get up really quickly into the appropriate standing position. Yep all good. In the water, however, it was a great deal harder.

Part of the issue is that I was a bit scared, the instructors sensed that. Mostly of the waves, of getting knocked over, of having a board whack me over the head, heck, of drowning. Or sharks. But mostly drowning.

I went out there, eyes toward the beach as instructed ("look down, fall down") and gave it my best crack. I stood up once for about a nanosecond, then went over. I fell over all the other times, into the drink. Some amazing acrobatics were performed into the water. Most of my energy was taken up dragging the board back out, and having the board whacked out of my hands by the waves repeatedly. I became comfortable with facing up to the big waves (only really a metre or so), with putting my head underwater, and with negotiating the currents.

I had a ripper time and after a couple of hours I was knackered. But I was proud of myself for giving it a crack and facing my fears and disregarding my ego. I will give it another go someday.

The other fantastic thing was meeting with all of the instructors, and learning that many of the stereotypes regarding surfies are true. You are addressed as "bro" (if you are a bloke) and "darlin" (if you are a blokette). They greet each other using the "ridgey didge", sign, which means "hang loose, bro". They are very funny and very friendly.

On the surfies' recommendation, we went out to the local pub that night, the more down at heel local one, ironically called the Railway hotel (there hasn't been a railway for some years). The drinks were cheap and cheerful, and the food was good and cheap. Best of all, there was a reggae band playing, which had everybody up on their feet, dancing, while the rain went down sideways outside. We met up with a few friendly travellers and had a whale of a night.

We did a bit of driving around the hinterland, and went to the cute little towns with the high-end stores and restaurants focussing on local produce.

We really did have a great time, and we will be back.

While I was having this good time, I let go of worrying about the future, if only for a little while. Some of the emails I sent out have been returned. We shall see where they head.

A quick 'un.

Hi

My interview went really well, that was the feedback from the person who ran it. Also my hair and outfit was on fleek, as all of you who follow me on instagram can attest.

Unfortunately I didn't get the job, for reasons I won't go into on here. Logistically it's probably a good thing, however the initial disappointment was acute.

Other job plans are being put into action. They are not what I will want to be doing regularly in 3 or 5 years time but they will make me money and that that is better than a poke in the eye with a stick. It's hard out there. I've given some thought as to the kind of work I want to do in the future. It will take a while to come to fruition.

With one thing or another, my advanced adulting skills of humility, grace and patience are getting a good workout. The inner child wanting to throw a tanty is let out in private situations.

I went and saw "Carol" with some girlfriends today. Though visually beautiful, in no small part due to Queen Cate and Princess Rooney, it was a bit boring. Too many long meaningful gazes, and the music with the scenes was a bit twee. I know it was meant to be a "restrained" movie but I think it was a bit drawn out with the restraint. Still, worth seeing. In keeping with the LGBTQI movie theme, I want to go see "The Danish Girl".

I am having some friends over for the afternoon on Australia day. I will make sausage rolls and we will drink bubbly.

The first week of Feb, we are off to Byron Bay. I am super looking forward to it as I've never been there before. Apparently it's very pretty and very chill.

I am loving funny pics on instagram. My funny pic posting game is strong at the moment.

Apocalypse....now?

My posts have been on the gloomier side, recently.

Well, am gonna continue a little along those lines...bear with me, or stop reading :D

I went and saw "The Big Short" at the pictures today (does anyone else still say "pictures" instead of cinema, I wonder?). Basically it is about the people who bet against the big banks by predicting their demise, detecting the sub-prime mortgage crisis before it occurred. It is the story of Mike Burry, a medical doctor turned hedge fund manager, outstandingly played by Christian Bale. In fact, it has a brilliant ensemble cast. It is a genre defying movie - part documentary, part comedy, part drama. It's one of the best movies I've seen in ages; as my mate FF would say, "run, don't walk".

It basically ended by emphasising that, despite criminality on a massive scale by the bankers, with catastrophic consequences, only one of these bankers went to jail, and the fraudulent money-juggling practices continue.

Pretty fuckin' gloomy. Gloomy-tainment?

I have been searching for some good reading material. I love the author Margaret Attwood, and she loves a good dystopian storyline. I enjoyed "The Handmaid's Tale" and the Maddaddam trilogy. I also liked "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley, but couldn't get into "1984".

Anyhow, I found another novel by Margaret Attwood "The Heart Goes Last". It is set in the US, in the post GFC era, where most people are poor and unemployed and living in their cars. Crime is rampant.

The protagonist couple partake in a social experiment where, for one month, they live in a nice house, and the next they go to jail. This alternates.

I will let you know what I think when I finish it.

The setting of the novel is not dystopian, it is here and now, in the US, where once wealthy people actually do live in cars. The comfortable middle class is shrinking. It is easier to get a gun than medicine. Bearing arms is a right, equitable health care is not. Nobody seems to have learned from the GFC. There is a reasonable chance that Donald Trump might become President.

Elsewhere in the world, IS are causing chaos in the Mid-East, Africa and now, South East Asia. My desire to avoid the big tourist areas in Istanbul last year proved correct - I did go through Taksim Square and Istiklal, but you better believe I moved through these areas quickly.

We like to think of ourselves as sheltered from the worst of things, here in Australia. However, we didn't completely escape the effects of the GFC. There are credible threats of terrorist attacks, such that much tighter security is in place now at the MCG and the Opera House. The grim spectre of climate change has a firm hold. Bushfires rage earlier in the season than before. It's definitely hotter. I've even noticed that the fruit and veg isn't as good as in previous years.

If one follows the news at all, or does anything other than hide under a rock, it's hard not to be scared by what's happening.

Fearing for our future is a very reasonable thing, particularly if such fear leads us to act in a manner which will make the world better. Like acting on climate change, or not pandering to anti-Muslim sentiment. Like voting for leaders who won't lead us down a path to hell, and who won't mandate carpet-bombing Iraq and Syria to "fight terrorism".

The world makes me sad, but this sadness for the world makes me grateful for the small things. It really does and I'm not just saying that. My partner. My family. My dog, who runs happy laps around our big backyard in a nice suburb. Crossfit. Friends. Sunshine. Meeting other dog owners and chatting with them.

We can only do the best we can.

What fears and hopes do you have for the world? (big question, one to ponder).

The Detox

Thankyou to everyone for their very supportive comments on the last post. I am feeling better. I have a great weekend coming up.

I checked in with my friend to see that she was feeling better and more rested. We are ok.

This end of the year always comes with a share of promises to oneself, to be healthier, leaner, better versions of ourselves. I think it's a good time of the year to think of goals. I have plenty of thinking time!

The theme of the post is detox. I am not into dietary detoxes, as we have livers and kidneys for this very purpose, but a little tidy does not go amiss.

Number one - my skin.

My skin, especially that on my chin, looks like that of a meth-head. I have had the unfortunate spectacle of a number of big red sore bombs about my chin.

The benzoyl peroxide treatments sting and make my skin flaky. I have bought some Paula's choice salicylic based agents.

The skin issues are temporally related to the dietary indiscretions of the Christmas- New Year period. There is a bit of evidence for a low glycaemic-load (ie lower carbohydrate) diet. I have been heading that way since late last year, and am getting used to having no spuds etc with dinner.

Number two- my Phone.

I am never far away from my phone. It is always on. I read my books on it. I am not on facebook, but always check instagram.

I am becoming aware that it has become a bit of a tic, to reach for my phone and scroll when I am feeling bored or stressed or whatever. It doesn't help.

I need to think of a way to wean it off. Maybe even (gasp) turn the bad-boy off occasionally. Move my reading material to another device.


Number three- my environment

I am becoming a little more vigilant about clutter. I pulled a few weeds from the garden. I make sure the dishwasher is emptied in a timely fashion. We perform regular vacuums of the living area.


Anything you need to detox?

2015/16

And a happy new year to you all, and hello from "the other side". The stress leading up to Christmas is but a memory, mixed in with a few feelings of "that went ok, actually".

Chrissy was a very low key affair, with a few friends around for a nice lunch on a hot day. Unfortunately my sister didn't come with the baby for the day, as the baby was worn out by other gatherings and not feeding properly. My friend did come around with her two Labradoodle puppies, who played with my dog. Much tail-wagging, playful barking and hilarity ensued.

After hosting Christmas, we woke up early to prepare for my family and the Greek family (belonging to my brother's girlfriend) around. I had been stressing about this, as the Greeks like to throw grand events, and my events are modest at best. It was also pi55ing down with rain so we had to host all 12 adults and 3 kids in our small loungeroom.

I am happy to say that the food and company was enjoyed by all (or so they said, maybe they were just being nice). Greek Papa got into the chardy and therefore was quite happy, and that is 50% of the job done right there. My sis came with her bub and bub was enjoyed by all. The dog reluctantly allowed people a paw shake - she is very shy around hoomins but loves other dogs.

After these festivities, I was spent, and had a jolly good nap.

Soon after Xmas was my fella's birthday. I took him to see the Ai Weiwei/Andy Warhol exhibition, then to Entrecote in South RaRa. Entrecote is basically a steak frites place. I had high expectations as I went to a similar place, also called Entrecote, in Bordeaux. I was a little disappointed; the price was high, the meat was tough and the sauce (a salsa verde) wasn't as amazing as the one in Bordeaux. The views across the Tan were beautiful, and they do $2 oysters during happy hour.

The following day, we executed the second and main part of my pressie to my fella, that is, we went to his home town, Christchurch. As you will remember Chch suffered a massive earthquake in Feb of 2011, and has had scores of aftershocks. Much of the centre of town and suburbs along the coast were badly affected, with many of the buildings destroyed or subsequently condemned. The knock down and rebuild process has been slow. Having been back every year or so since 2012, we have seen the city evolve, and this is the first time we could actually traverse the centre of town; it had previously been cordoned off. Multi-storey buildings are starting to come up. There is a lot of empty space where multi-storey buildings had been, and it is quite confronting for people who have grown up in the city. We caught up with the fella's friends and family, ate and drank too much, "celebrated" NYE (by celebrate I mean drank some wine and fell asleep well before midnight and then woke up at 1 or 2 and couldn't get back to sleep). We visited the Banks peninsula, and saw where my fella camped with his family as a kiddie. Kiwis are keen campers and tolerate much fouler weather than we Aussies do. We stayed in a hotel, which was good as the weather was inclement.

Reluctantly I am thrust back into reality, into work, into exercise, into eating and drinking sensibly. The little break, and the turn of the year gave me some pause to reflect on the year gone by, and set the intentions for the new year. I don't really do new year's resolutions, I am past setting myself up to fail.

2015 had some hard times and had some excellent times too. My body demonstrated it could get pregnant. I finished my PhD. My relationship with my fella continues to flourish. I started the most excellent activity of crossfit. I have a lovely little niece. There is a lot to be thankful for, and, at least in the parts in my control, I am happy with how my life is going. I sometimes have the "things are going well something bad will happen" fear, but I let this go quickly when it comes.

I have a few goals for 2016. Some I am keeping to myself. Others I can share:

• to only drink excellent coffee.
• to be able to do a pull up unassisted by a band.
• To make things rather than buy things.
• To set aside a couple of hours each week to do art work

I am going for a job interview in a couple of weeks. I have plans B, C and D also in progress for if this doesn't come to pass. I have learned to be flexible and adaptable, and not to dwell in disappointment too much. Wish me luck for this one, though.

Everything you wanted to know about the (Holy Church of) Crossfit.

Howdy! We are on the slippery slope toward Chrissy! I hope you are all feeling cool (ha) calm and collected.

So I have blogged a bit about CrossFit here. Naomi said she didn't know anything about it, and it can sometimes draw quizzical glances from people.

Some people think I spend I lot of time on this kind of contraption.

That is a Cross Trainer.

Ha! They are sooooo 2003. But seriously, very gentle on the joints and a good way to get a good cardio workout.

The whole idea behind CrossFit is as such: constantly varied functional movements performed at high intensity across broad modal and time domains. It is performed in specialised affiliate gyms, called "Boxes". The owners of the Boxes pay to use the CrossFit(TM) name. The coaches have specific CrossFit certification, and usually some other form of fitness qualification. Hence, while the philosophy is the same the world over, there is variability in what goes on in different Boxes.

Each Box has a timetable with multiple classes per day, it is not like a gym where you just rock up and slog it out in your own time on the equipment.

The classes go for an hour, and are formatted roughly as follows:
1. Warm up - can be skipping, running, rowing, mobility or light strength exercises, or plyometric exercises (burpees).
2. Skills - usually concentrating on strength training - for instance we do bench press, dead lifts, pull ups, clean and jerk and snatch.
3. The Workout of the Day, or WOD - a high intensity cardio or mixed session, usually of between 8 and 20 minutes duration. For instance, last week, we did a 500 metre row followed immediately after by a 400 metre fast run. 3 rounds of that with rests as needed in between. It may utilise weights, or  High Intensity Interval Training, or Tabata.

I try and go 4 or 5 times per week. I have noted a big improvement in my speed and strength. I can lift heavy things safely. I know more about my body than I ever did.

CrossFit is heavily associated with the Paleo movement. Hence there is sometimes a religious fervour of participants.

First rule of Fight Club....

They are also very anti "big soda" and "big sugar" and "big food".

There has been a lot of criticism of CrossFit, mostly in terms of its safety. I actually thoroughly researched it on the internet before I started. Some websites said that injury was inevitable (how scary). I had a chat with the owner/head coach before I started and outlined by concerns. He effectively put them to rest. The gold standard of exercise safety is whether the exercises can be scaled to suit pregnant women, and yes, definitely they can. In fact, given the fact that I have been trying to get pregnant, that was one of the first things I asked. I also have issues with the back and knees that occasionally niggle, and that is always taken into account with the programming.

Anybody's experience in exercise is very dependent on those who coach them, and the environment, unless of course they just like to slog it out in the gym in solitude. I have to say that my CrossFit box is very highly regarded in the area (shout out to Charge Crossfit) and I love going there.

Here is why I feel this is the best health related activity I have done in a long time (or ever):

• The exercises are scalable to everybody, and can progress to a full movement. We are encouraged to scale back our exercises as necessary, for practical purposes and for safety. We are never ever made to feel bad for scaling. For instance, there was no way on earth that I could do a pull up, so I started with a ring-row. I am now onto pull ups assisted with bands, and the band is getting lighter as I get stronger. There is an exercise called a box jump which I am working on. I am very scared of the box, so I jump on weight plates, and I am building up the height slowly. I have made significant gains in strength and speed.
  
  

• The coaches are brilliant, they know their stuff, are friendly and approachable, and are always on hand to suggest adjustments to the exercises. They are liberal with their praise when we improve, and this is something I respond well to.
• The environment is friendly and supportive. Everybody cheers everybody else on. The last person to finish a workout will be encouraged until they finished. Some people don't respond well to this attention, but again, I do. I have made some good friends at the box as well.
• The environment is body positive. The focus is, in the main, getting you performing to the best of your ability. Occasionally we have 6 week "challenges" where there are points given for healthy eating, exercise, stretching etc, and the person with the most points wins a prize. This is a great motivator to getting me eating well, but it is not about weight loss. There are people of most shapes and sizes there, and I have learned that athleticism is not always related to a certain body type. As a result, I have become more confident in my own skin, and proud of what my body can do. 
• Getting "out of my mind and into my body" is very therapeutic. There is nothing like a fast workout, or a complex movement to do this. It has helped me managed the stress of the year.
• It puts me in touch with my masculine side. It feels good to lift a heavy weight, grunt, drop it loudly and swagger off. It feels good to "smash" a workout, and give it everything you have.  The macho blokes are onto something. However, I always check myself before I wreck myself.
• The movements are highly functional. I used to do distance running, at the expense of other modalities of exercise, however I can see no reason why I would ever need to shuffle 10 kilometres. Instead, I can lift, I can jump, I can push, pull and sprint. If ever I needed to, I could run 5 kilometres without any stress. For the first time in my life, I have guns (biceps).

So that's me on the topic.

Any questions?

Don't fight the flow, bro.

It is usual that, late in the year, we start to think about setting our intentions for the new year. Some people call them new years' resolutions, but that sounds a bit inflexible. I like the idea of changing the way I approach whatever curve balls life throws at me, rather than doing the same thing every day. Flexible control.

My mate was talking about healthy eating in her blog. As it happens, I have just finished a 6-week challenge with my Crossfit box. We tested a workout at the beginning and retested the workout at the end. I slashed 2 minutes 22 seconds off it. This was me afterwards

Actually not me. I know. We are practically twins. It's actually Annie Thorisdottir, crossfit champ.

I am never one for deprivation, but I did clean up my act. Specifically, I have cut out diet drinks, eaten a whole lot more vegies, eaten less crap generally and started pushing harder in workouts.

It's far easier to eat lots of veg if they are tasty, or configured in an interesting manner. Enter the microplane.

This is the best thing ever, and it makes short work of fennel and red onion to make a really fancy salad. The microplane is not cheap (like $70 bucks) but it is the bomb dot com. Neither is the baby fennel, $2 each at coles. To borrow the parlance from Faux Fuchsia, I mean it's fennel, not gold bullion.

In terms of cost per use, the microplane is a great investment. The veg don't get stuck in there. And we all know that thin food makes us thin.

Physically, I am going for gold. Mentally and spiritually, well, lots of work has been required to keep this on an even keel. I have made no secret of my ambivalence towards Christmas, yet have done my best to embrace the season. However this year has bought a particular set of challenges with it.

I would have thought that, like everything else, the pain of a miscarriage would dissipate with time. Not actually true. The tears that come on quite out of the blue some days have taken me by surprise. Hearing of each new pregnancy in a friend or acquaintance, or seeing a fellow crossfitter with a baby bump will easily precipitate this. I had not expected this to happen, yet there it is. A wise friend told me that this was a particularly hard time of the year for those sorts of feelings. Maybe.

Having finished my PhD, I am now in the market for extra sessions of gainful employment, and these proving hard to come by, for various reasons not appropriate to write here. This, plus the post-goal bottoming out, has been hard too. I have learned, though, that when something is looking too hard to come by, sometimes it is best to back away and change tack. Plan A works better when you have a plan B. I am now making arrangements for plans D and E, and I am feeling good about them.

The extra $$ are very much needed, as home renovation plans are afoot. I know! Exciting and scary! We have engaged the services of an architectural firm to design and project manage the extension. He took us through the concept drawings and 3D render, and it was really exciting to see. Then we talked costs, and bank loans, and that was somewhat less exciting. Unfortunately the design brief "please make us a palatial home at minimal cost" got lost in translation.

So 2016 looks to be a year full of challenges, some of them actually exciting. I was considering my watchword for the year, and I think it will be "patience". The second one will be "flexibility".

To make hay while the sun shines.

To manage, day by day, when things are tough, and get through as best I can.

To not be tired by waiting.