Mostly Monday

First day back at work today. I was kind of glad to return. I needed my routine back, even though I convince myself that work takes up too much time and limits me from what I really want to be doing, somehow the structure of the working week makes you want to achieve more in your spare time.

So today was mostly Monday. Not a normal work Monday cos I still had my slow moving holiday buzz. I wonder how long it will take for me to speed up to CBD life again...

I weighed myself this morning. I was nervous worrying that I had put on weight over the break but luckily I still weigh the same. 67kg. I've put on 4kg since I moved back with my parents, so you can guess what one of my resolutions is.

And I ate pretty healthy today too. I got up at 5.30am for boot camp and ate half a banana before and after training. I've found lately that the sessions are so intense that I feel sick if I have an empty tummy. Then I ate healthy all day long apart from my after dinner snack. I finished off a wedge of dry panettone. I bloody love that Italian cake. Sometimes I think I was Italian in a past life because I just resonate with the cuisine so much.

Ok, I'm just writing shit now, so I'm going to bed.

Toodaloo.

Sunday Bloody Sunday

Today is my last day of my holidays. I finally pulled my finger out and actually went and packed up more of my flat. My aim was to have it done by the end of the holidays but seeing as I wasn't actually 100% certain until a few days ago, that I was going to move in permanently with Dad and rent out my flat, I guess I shouldn't be too hard on myself.

I unpacked loads of my stuff in my bedroom and it's looking pretty good actually. This room has changed so many times since we first moved into this house when I was 17. It started with a single bed, then a King, now a Queen. It's housed a huge executive desk when I was a teenager and dreaming of being someone's boss. It's been full of my sister's furniture when she was renovating her house. Foreigners have slept here. All four of my past boyfriends have kissed me in this room. If these walls could talk ;)

Anyway, its nice being back in it. I have always been comfortable in this house. It's Edwardian and rundown but its quirky. My cat, Bass, loves the long wooden hallway to skitz out on, skidding round doorways and chasing invisible mice. He has almost made friends with my parent's cat, Cleo - she is old and battle-worn so it has been a slow process but they have done friendly sniffs a couple of times now. Although I think Bass would rather sneak up behind Cleo and sniff her date.

...

It's now almost midnight and I'm about to turn into a pumpkin. Just got off FaceTime from talking with my best UK mate. It's always so great to catch up and we piss ourselves laughing at each other. I am gonna go visit her in August this year and we are gonna do a road trip to France!

Bon nuit mon chéri :)

Chillin' Indoors

Today was another good day. I'm liking 2013 so far ;) Well maybe being off work has something to do with it. It's funny how it always takes a good week to unwind when you're on holidays.

Today Dad and I put the Ikea furniture together. When I say Dad and I, it was more like Dad put all the big pieces together and I put the little side table together. But I did other stuff too. I went through the pantry and threw out old flour and organised all the cupboards. It looks great now. Dad is under strict instructions not to move a single can out of place. Hehee :)

I visited Mum today too. She was a lot better than when I last saw her. Today she could have a bit of a laugh and wanted to know how the rest of the family are doing. It was nice to see her feeling better, even if it is a fleeting mood.

I'm sorry I don't really have anything interesting to write today. Think I better go write my New Year Resolutions. I absolutely love writing them each year! For me it's more about goal-setting rather than admonishing myself for all my bad behaviour. I believe in positive reinforcement!

Here is my amazing side table (that I put together all by myself...calmly with no expletives!)

Day 2 of the New Year

Welcome to the second day of the New Year! I'm feeling more positive today. I instantly felt better after my post yesterday, it's funny that when you feel like shit you often forget or resist doing the things that make you feel better. In my case that's writing or exercise or meditation.

Anyway, woke up this morning and went for a bike ride with my bestie. We cycled to Penny Farthing in Northcote cos our fav coffee shop in Kew has been closed since Xmas Eve. This has affected our daily routine to no end. Yes folks, we are addicted to quality coffee but I guess that just comes with being a Melburnian.

After that I pottered around home and tried to sort my shit out. I basically moved everything off the floor and onto my bed, before deciding that what I really needed was more storage. So against my better judgement, I hotfooted it down to Ikea in Richmond. I dragged my Dad with me and loaded up my trolley with 'Billy' this and 'Luftberg' that.

Right now I'm guzzling a Cooper Pale Ale and contemplating organising my life a little bit more. Got four more days of holidays before I'm back at work, better pull my finger out toot sweet!

Lizz ox

Crossroads

So I guess the first of January is a good a time as any to reinvigorate my blogging. I'm stuck at a crossroads. Don't know in which direction I'm headed right now. I have goals but they seem so far away when my life is on hold.

I moved back home with my parents in August last year. Not because I was broke or jobless but because my Mum hasn't been well. She has many health problems which has meant that she needs constant care from my Dad and he was starting to become overwhelmed. So I swooped in to save the day.

Only I couldn't save the day. I crumbled under the pressure. I became stressed out, working full-time, then coming home to pick up the pieces after Mum's daily meltdowns. I became more and more dysfunctional. Living in a disorganised, messy house amongst Mum's boxes of goods and chattels, losing myself in the chaos. My normal orderly routine fell to shit. No longer paying bills on time, withdrawing from friends, all I did was work and look after Mum.

Well almost. I had one saving grace. Bootcamp. Thank fuck for boot camp. Three sparrow's fart sessions a week got me through 2012. I went religiously from March all the way through to December. Classes have stopped for 3 weeks over the Xmas period but my boot campees and I have still been doing it by ourselves, with our trainer's voice ringing in our ears as if he was there:

"You got this, Lizz. Keep going. Ten, nine, eight..."

I would have gone insane if it wasn't for boot camp. And my best friend. And meditation. And Zoloft. And massages once a month. And good coffee.

So that's what I'm thankful for in 2012. And a supportive family who have all banded together to help Mum and work out what is in her best interests. It's been a hard bumpy road and it's not over but thank you to all my saving graces.

Lizz ox

Why it's hard living alone

1. No-one to get me a drink
2. No-one to switch on the light
3. No-one to help with the dishes
4. No-one to laugh with when reality TV show contestants get their sayings mixed up...

Like tonight when a contestant on Biggest Loser Families, Joe from the red team, said he wanted to "grab the opportunity with two teeth and run with it".


Greg, don't you mean 'grab the opportunity with both hands' or 'grab it by the teeth' or simply 'grab it and run with it'?

Bahahahahaha!

Too funny.

Besides I don't think Joe has ever grabbed anything with only two teeth. I'm pretty damn sure he is used to using his whole mouth to take a great big bite out of life...and then collapse on the sofa with it.

10 minute interviews

I've got a new idea I wanna market. It's revolutionary and it would certainly give Jamie Oliver and his 30 mins meals a run for his money. It's the 10 minute interview!

On Monday I went for job interview at 9am. Probably the hardest time of the week for an interview...apart from maybe Friday afternoon. But I got there with time to spare. I walked in and greeted the receptionist at 8.55am. At 8.57am, the hiring manager came out and we walked into her office. What proceeded were a series of rushed, machine gun fire questions. Tell me about yourself. Why HR? How do you manage competing priorities? Where do you live? Are you a lesbian? Well not quite but you get the point.
Each question I answered was cut off and she was onto the next one. She told me she had got 150 applications through SEEK. Obviously she was hating the interview as much as I was.

But she kind of had a point. Although it was extremely rude (she could have humoured me a little bit), experts say that we make up our minds about people in the first 8 seconds of meeting them. And the rest of the interview is us deciding whether our first impression was justified. Apparently she didn't have to ponder that one too long...

At 9.09am I left her office. I'm surprised she didn't save on postage and hand me the 'unfortunately you have been unsuccessful but best of luck' letter there and then. I received it 2 days later in the letterbox instead.

Now that's what I call efficient!