Everything and more

I am getting beach withdrawals. It’s been well over a week since I felt the sand between my toes and I am all pale and shaky about it. A few months ago, I couldn’t even fathom a life where my day started with a sunrise walk on the shoreline, now I would feel like my liver was missing without it. I have a beach bag that lives by the front door, various jars dotted around the house filled to the brim with treasured shells and driftwood and most days when I get in to bed, I usually have to get out of it and brush the sand off the sheets. It’s everything I had hoped for and more.

I can’t take any credit for these pictures. These are all Jordan, who managed to drag me out of bed kicking and screaming before the sun came up to take photos…. before the coffee shop even opened. And shockingly, turns out half of Sydney is up at that time on the weekend anyway. Jogging, yoga-ing, boxing and surfing. Without coffee. Sickos.

Blog-worthy

See? I’m back twice in one week. Baby steps people! I mentioned that I am still trying to figure out how to introduce blogging back in to my new life in Australia and well, I am still working on the finer details (less screen time, more me time) but I’ll find that balance soon – thanks for sticking by me and saying hello. It was just the encouragement I needed to fire Wishful Thinking up and re-start cataloguing my favourite finds once more. My current situation of an overflowing scrawled notebook and random folders entitled ‘new folder’ littering my desktop is just not cutting it anymore. And frankly, Daniella Witte’s drool-worthy kitchen needed to be shared with the masses, not hiding under a mediocre yellow folder on my laptop. Don’t you agree?

Photo: Daniella Witte

Um hello there

What I’ve been up to? Drinking Coopers and hanging out in flip flops and MC Hammer pants.

Hi. Remember me? It’s been a while but I'm back. I’ve missed this spot. I’ve missed you guys and truthfully I haven’t gone far – so if you have seen a visitor from NSW Australia popping up in your stats lately, chances are it was me. Just stopping by to get my fix.

There is lots to say, I’m not sure where to begin really. I’m just testing the waters, seeing how much I can commit to this corner of the internet so let’s just take it one day at a time hey? In the meantime, I’ll leave you with this…

Prolonged absence

Wow, this feels different. I can hardly believe that it’s been 2 weeks since I wrote my last post. I don’t know what happened but I just stopped blogging. In the 3 years since I have written this blog, I have never ever just disappeared. I guess I should probably explain myself then. The week that I stopped writing was a bad one for me. Dealing with interviews upon interviews, making potentially life-changing choices and consequences and still suffering from jet lag just put me in a shitty frame of mind. I didn’t have anything nice to say, so I decided not to say anything at all. I had a particularly difficult interview that brought about a few revelations about myself and where I thought my career was going and it required some serious pondering (I have written a post about it but given that I seem to have weathered the storm, it seems irrelevant now… I might still post it though as I feel like I am talking in code)! But what a difference a few weeks makes! In 2 weeks, I have landed a job at a really nice firm right on Darling Harbour (I start today…. eeek) and we have done the impossible and secured a beautiful apartment a street away from our little studio.  We are finally putting down roots and settling in. What a crazy, crazy few months. So I apologise for disappearing, I missed you guys. I’m hoping that I will be back to my normal blogging schedule but with a new job starting and a new place to furnish, it might be sporadic at best! In the meantime, want to see where I have been contemplating life and solving my problems?

Ready for employment

It’s funny how we seem to spend most of our working lives complaining about all things work-related and actually having to work. And then suddenly when we find ourselves out of work, we can’t wait to get back into it again! I spent the majority of the weekend prepping for the world’s most scary interview that I am due for in a couple of hours. It’s been so long since I interviewed but from memory, I am totally crap at it. I consider myself to be a fairly confident person, a go-getter of sorts but in an interview situation, I get that dry-mouthed nervousness and either go quiet or talk a mile a minute. I have that stomach churning, shaky hand feeling (I’m eating dry toast this morning and that’s about it). It’s early days so I am trying not to put too much pressure on myself but I’ll keep you posted either way! Since I have got offices, interviews and employment on my brain, I thought it would be good to post one of my favourite offices of all time. The Jute design studio in Mill Valley has got it all for me. Stunning natural light, beautiful timber elements and militant organisation. I can practically feel the productivity levels through the computer screen!

Images by Drew Kelly, via Remodelista

This happened.

This cheered me up no end. Also, this might be the first time Gwyneth and poo are mentioned on the same page?

What would I do without you guys? Well I would probably still be moping around ugly crying. I have to apologise for being such a whiny whinerson yesterday but it felt so good to have you all reaffirm that which I already knew but my over-stressed brain and heart keep forgetting. This too shall pass, I will just have to do the one thing I have never been able to: Have Patience. In other news, while I have been moving Down Under, Gwynnie seems to have teamed up with Stella McCartney to create some beautiful classic wardrobe staples (albeit pricey staples that will forever live in my “in your dreams” folder). I’ve got to say, I’m a coveting. Big time.

Happy weekend all! Hope it’s a good one – I will be doing some serious interview prepping and practicing how not to come across as a bundle of nerves!

The Ups and Downs

I know, I know. I have been a sporadic blogger at best but I’m not going to lie, this week has been really tough on me. Dozens of agency interviews (and well, you know how those go) but nothing really has come to fruition for either of us. The worry and panic really set in for me yesterday (Jordan kept chanting “DAY 3” at me, like I was some kind of crazy person for cracking so soon) and I spent the morning moping about in my pyjamas with unbrushed hair, ugly crying. Of course we have been told by many that things move slower in Australia and we need to be patient but one day without work brings us ever closer to the end of our studio lease and the inevitable financial worry. Having been in my previous job for almost 5 years, I had forgotten the feelings of rejection that flood you when you receive no response to your application or worse, are told you are unsuitable or under-qualified. Jordan realised an intervention was needed STAT and took me for long walk on the beach to clear my head. It did wonders for reminding me of all the reasons why we are here and made me all the more determined to be around to enjoy it when I finally have a stable income. I was lucky enough to come back to the prospect of another two interviews (one I was so excited about that I actually squealed in delight when I put the phone down, only to realise that I didn’t put the phone down at all. Cringe). Despite the rollercoaster of ups and downs I have had this week, I have not once doubted our decision or felt homesick. I’m adapting, relaxing, re-evaluating and ugly crying in between.

And these images? Just because they soothed me.