I'll never be broke in Sydney again

 *Everyone* has something they worry about relentlessly. They obsesses over it. It can make or break their day. I'm discovering more about anxiety, specifically related to purpose & time... Travelling opens up your mind to the reality of being an adult. You learn about indepdence. The reality of consequences following actions. Breakdown of relationships. All serious stuff. But with this comes the "kicking the can down the road" conundrum, and I want to get my thoughts off my chest. When you travel, inevitably, the idea of going home lingers in your mind. Right there at the back, alongside where you left your keys the other night, or where that $5 note you found zipped off to. You get the point. It's there, but it's mysterious, you have days where you think about it all day, others where you forget it, and think: "shit, did I even call mum today?" I try to call home daily. Not because i'm relentlessly home sick, or scared, but because it's goo...

 Usually, after six months somewhere, you'd assume settling in would come easy. Well, I think I'm finally there... What determines "settled?" Is it being able to walk out of your house, have that coffee and not worry about still moving stuff from your old place? Is it being able to meet up with friends and have a beer? Walk the park, or the streets, and actually know the way home? Well, I think I'm somewhere in the midst of all of this. In some ways, this week's blog almost could've been called "high's & low's" too. 10% better every week The saying goes, "search for that 1% improvement", wether it's daily or weekly, but honestly I have to say - and maybe it's lifes way of giving the blog content - that ever since I wrote the first word, every week has got better and better, even despite challenges. After being told my finger wound was infected (don't worry, no pictures attached}, I knew the next week was going to...

You know what, this week has probably been the craziest of them all - I mean it... I say it every week: "this week, bloody busy," and while I don't lie, this week has been busy, and generally crazy, but not quite for the same reason as previous weeks. This week, well, life has changed once again. Fortunes have changed. There's been some fortunate, and unfortunate events for me this week, all of which I will learn from - but in some ways, I could never have predicted happening. It started with a viewing... You know how the last one went. Shit. This time? Not quite. Hopped on a train from Lidcombe, weather was pretty dull, a big wind followed, in general what I'd call a "dubious" day - didn't know how to feel. Morning coffee had me a bit on edge. Arrived for the viewing early, located in the city, no idea what to expect. The landlord arrived a couple of minutes late. A nice, South African lady, maybe late forties/early fifties. Someone who knows Sydney...

Coffee Energy Everyone needs it once in a while, right? Coffee energy. Without going to spiritual on you, I just wanted to highlight energy, maybe my lack of it, maybe the effect of coffee, either way, this week has been pretty crazy to be honest. Coffee energy, needed. It's big, yeah! At some point, I had to get a Window Kid reference in. Surely you know who he is? If not, get to know real quick - he's made up the last 5 minutes before I start my shifts. Not so subtle head nodding in the staff room while I down, yes, a coffee. Oat Cappucino. My favorite. By it's big, I mean this week. Christ, what a week. Christmas - as I mentioned last week - is a crazy time for hospitality. Crazy high hours, the most I've worked since being out here, some late finishes, but weeks like this - especially in a new environment - really test the bond of a team. It's new for me to struggle to make friends. I'd like to think I'm outgoing & confident enough to waltz into a ne...

Finally, shit is getting sorted out... It hasn't only just dawned on me that savings have dried up, or that I'd love to explore this country even more, and the reality is that, I need to get my shit together to do that. I love that word: shit. Means so many different things. but in this case, it means my finances, it means my job, it means my organised brain, my relationships, all sorts. And finally, I think I may actually be settling in, and sorting - yes I'm going to say it again - my shit out. When it first came to living indepdently, albeit with my mate in a shared home, I never anticipated some of the issues. To be happy, and to have some sort of success, savings, etc, you need to have all your ducks in a row. Looking back, I wish I'd planned for this trip an extra year before, how the savings would have helped. But honestly, can I really look back with regret? The hunger to find somewhere new to live after leaving Byron Bay. Yearning for a big city. The hunger aft...