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And for the epic last day of #30daysofme…we get asked our favourite song? I expected this to lead to something amazing…
Anyway, to end the challenge (yay to getting the whole way to the end!)…MY FAVOURITE SONG IS (dumroll please):
If you want an explanation of what the song is about, Stevie herself talks about it here.
Oh, and Lindsay Lohan – you F’n killed it.
#30daysofme – over & out! BOOM.
What have a learnt this month? Funnily enough, I have been doing a scrap class called “Learn Something New Every Day” – so I learn a lot from that.
I have found a whole new community of blog writers & readers & twitterers – and learnt a lot about them.
I have learnt what its like to have a life again, after spending so many hours studying.
I have learnt what the sun feels like on my skin after months of rain, wind & general yuk Welli weather.
I have learnt that I really don’t like all the blond that my hairdresser convinced me to put into my hair after all – and am pondering what to do about it (on zero budget seeing as I bankrupted myself getting it put in there in the first place – grrr)
And I have learnt that I need to stop SPENDING on Trademe, and start SELLING if I ever want to get overseas!
So many learnings!
And finally – just because I liked it – this quote. No idea where it is from, but I liked it all the same:
Your time is limited, don’t waste it living someone else’s life.
Don’t be trapped by dogma, living with the results of other people’s thinking.
Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice.
And most important, have the courage to follow your heart …and intuition.
They somehow already know what you truly want to become.
Everything else is secondary.
This is me this time last year.
Butterfly Creek, Sept 2009
What has changed in a year?
- I saw Fleetwood Mac perform, & visited New Plymouth for the first time
- Jason passed his exams & turned from a crazy study stress monster back into the guy I fell in love with
- I tramped my first 5 day tramp & survived without a shower, without a mattress and a New Years without alcohol
- I visited the West Coast twice – Westport on our New Years trip, and Hokitika & Greymouth for Coast to Coast. We also had weekends away in Rotorua, Whangaparaoa, Martinborough, Riversdale and Otaki Beach
- Jase & I moved in together & now live in harmony (mainly)
- I spent most of February waiting for my Granny to pass away peacefully, which she finally did mid-March
- I was able to see all my besties – Natalie in Auckland (she was back from London); stayed with Aleisha on a quick weekend trip to Brisbane; and Shannon visited me twice in Welli
- I met up with four girls I went to high school with in Queensland when I was 14. 11 years later and it was like nothing had changed
- I won the Young PR Practitioner of the Year award in May
- I bought a dSLR camera and took a photography course to learn how to use it manual mode
- I spent the whole month of June swanning around the Greek Islands & learnt how to sail a yacht
- I turned 26. Eek. So much closer to 30 now.
- My little brother finished uni, got his first job, graduated and is about to turn 21. Now I feel really old.
- I completed 3 assignments, a 3 hour written exam and a 1 hour interview with a panel of senior practitioners to complete my APR study. Still waiting to hear if I have passed.
- I finished my first “complete” scrapbook – on our trip around Northland from 08/09. I also actively participated in my first online crop, and LSNED & have kept up (book is nearly finished!)
- I have started running (or “wogging” as I like to call it – waddle/jogging) and can now run 5K no sweat!
- I have suffered from a lot of stress related illnesses/symptoms, and have been seeing a naturopath & nutritionist since February.
- I started my own blog, reignited my twitter account and started the #30daysofme!
Otaki Beach, September 2010
I saw the #30daysofme tweets going around and decided to get on the bandwagon – mainly because I was new to blogging & thought a daily challenge could be a cool idea. I also liked the idea of joining a community and possibly meeting some cool new people – which I have done!
One extra side effect is that I have found journalling on my scrap pages easier (I am not much of a journaller and its something I want to get better at) – so daily blogging has been great for me creatively.
Probably the best thing that came out of the #30daysofme was being able to write about losing my Granny – something that has deeply affected me this year. I found that experience (while tough) very therapeutic.
While some of the topics have been a bit teenage for me, others of them have made me think long and hard and appreciate what I do have in my life. Great friends, a wonderful family, and a loving partner 🙂
I am now wondering what I will do at the end of #30daysofme…anyone have any other blogging prompts they are planning to follow? I might lo0k at a photography one to challenge my camera skills!
I have spent the weekend thinking about the #30daysofme question – What do I think about my friends?
To be honest – apart from my wonderful workmates, I don’t actually have many close friends left in New Zealand! I seem to be of the age when everyone migrates elsewhere on their big OE…and lil ol me has somehow been left behind. I guess a few years ago I made the decision (not sure if it was conciously or not) to stay in NZ and do the career thing, which then turned into the ‘follow the boy’ thing, which has resulted in the even better career + boy combo that I have right now. The OE is yet to come!
But back to the friends. The best answer is that they are awesome! All of them have different qualities that I love and admire about them. Most of all I love how time & distance isn’t a factor in our friendships. It doesn’t matter how long its been since we saw each other, or that they might be on the other side of the world – the friendship remains*. And that’s pretty special 🙂
Lucky for me I was sent to Europe for work last year, and managed to wrangle it so that I celebrated my 25th birthday in London with all the friends that were living there (I was only there for 1 day!). Talk about the best catch up with long lost friends – old work colleagues, uni friends, even a past flatmate from Sydney! Let’s just forget about how I missed my flight to Germany the next day…
Birthday drinks with Ra, Bron, Nat and Shan
With Bron & Nat
Ben & I
*thank god for Facebook!
I think the question should be – what ISN’T in my handbag – as it really is a world of chaos. Maybe my goal for next month should be to downsize and carry less?
Items I seem to be carrying today are:
– 2 x gold rings which I can’t wear at the moment thanks to bad eczema
– Rescue Remedy
– Migraine tablets
– ointment for my eczema
– PH Lavendar lip balm from Carterton
– iPhone
– Snapper Card
– Tiny pill container with my vitamins etc in
– 2 x Emery boards
– Pen
– Notebook
– Nivea Caregloss & Shine Lipgloss
– Wallet
– Digital camera
– Keys
– iPod
– Pedometer (not much use in the handbag!)
– Nike+ kit in small pouch
– Hairbrush
– Makeup bag
– Bills to be paid
– water bottle
– 3 bottles of Detox Kit liquid
– portable hard drive
– Sunglasses
– Entertainment book
– Anti-flamme
– 4 x LSNED prompts
– Lunch
– Laptop
– Mouse
I also carry my gym bag to and from work every day – no wonder I feel like a packhorse.
I think it’s time for a new handbag, and a re-think of the junk I carry! One like this perhaps…;)
Dear Mum & Dad,
Thank you for being the best parents ever. I love how “in love” you are with each other, even after 27 years of marriage (and 2 awesome kids!). I hope that when I am your age I am still just as in love as you two are.
Lots of Love,
Leah
p.s. I also love that you go camping and take SO many toys that you fill the station wagon AND the trailer – for just the two of you.
Camping for two = all u need is kayaks, bikes, surfboards...
Yellow food.
Mmmmm drooool mmmmm
I love it!
I love fries and wedges and cheese and crackers and burgers and nachos…I go nuts over the yellow stuff!
BUT I have learnt (or am on the way to learning) that it’s not really the best option for me. In fact – as part of the Shape up for Summer challenge, I have given up hot chips/fries/wedges for the next 10 weeks. It’s not that I eat them that often, but I sure do crave them a hell of a lot – and giving in to that craving isn’t going to help me achieve my goals.
So buh-bye to yellow foods – unless it’s a real special treat 😉
Today’s post comes from a guest blogger – none other than Jase himself! I asked him “what makes me different to everyone else” and this was his reply:
Leah is different because she makes “Every day seem like a Saturday”. She will see the good side of anything and is always willing to give something a go (even if half the time she isn’t that good at it, or is even unable to do something). Leah has a passion for life and getting out and living it.
Most importantly the main aspect that is special about her is the excitement and passion she brings into our relationship, and for experiencing all our current location has to offer. Even though I have lived in Wellington for 24 years, it is only since Leah has been down here that I have truly experienced everything that is special about the city I call home.
The 18 months we have been living in Wellington has felt more like a “working holiday” than simply working and going through the daily grind, and if someone can bring that into your life – then you know they truly are special!
Leah can also be a right pain in the A** and a stubborn little madam when she wants to be, but that just adds to overall melting pot that is Leah!
Leah trying to be a tramper, even though she whinged quite a bit of the way & 'doesn't like hills'!
Here is a picture of something that makes me happy 🙂
You can't beat Wellington on a good day
Wellington Cable Car
Chandeleah 