Goodbye, Freedom.

It's official. School holidays are over after today and the second term begins. 

Dearly Beloved

Man... It's a bad year to be famous. RIP Prince. RIP Chyna. 

Ben Folds' "Rockstar" feels appropriate right now. It doesn't have to do with either of these people specifically, but more with the nature of how society kind of cycles through famous people. I imagine that the most talented entertainers must be loved so much because they really put their whole selves into what they do, which must feel like an awesome drug but incredibly exhausting. No wonder so many of them fade too soon.

Heavy Rotation

Michael has been away and incommunicado for a week and he comes back tonight! I've had some "old school" stuff on rotation like this old gem (from when Coldplay was a little better, in my opinion)...

And this newer, yet old-fashioned-sounding pop-y tune from Olly Murs, my new guilty pleasure...

And then there's also this other great new one by the Lumineers...

Perhaps not-so-coincidentally, they all have to do with missing someone/obsessively thinking about them. Quit psychoanalyzing me.

On a completely different note, but one that also has to do with rotation, my team won our frisbee game at universe point last night. I played quite well, if I do say so myself, getting the crucial defensive block that allowed us to quickly score the final point of the game. Nothing quite compares to that feeling of doing the exact right thing at the exact right moment and everyone cheering for you. I may never become famous, but that's close enough.

Going for the Bronze

In the last many months it has been harder to get a regular trivia team together than it was previously, just because of different peoples' time demands, particularly those that have kids. Even if I don't get a team together, I still usually go and represent all by myself, and chat with the locals (who generally tend to be old dudes) and the host, and occasionally win free drinks. This week I was quite happy to get four friends together and come in 3rd. It wasn't our strongest showing, but not bad. It's funny to me that we were all married or engaged, but none of the "better halves" were there because they all had their hands full. I suppose tag-teaming is the the nature of socalizing when you have young kids, but I wouldn't know. Anyway, it was good fun, and nice to not be solo. 

Putting together a good trivia team is a fine art. You want all knowledge areas covered if possible, with just some overlap. You don't want too many cooks to spoil the broth. Tonight, one of the teams of old Aussie dudes asked me to join them in the future if I end up not having people, so I suppose that's nice. My range of knowledge probably complements theirs quite well, since I would add a bit of variety in a few different dimensions. Time will tell. 

Veggie Tales

I feel really guilty when I have to throw away food that have gone bad after a week or so. I feel bad because it either means I was inaccurate in the amount of food I got when I shopped (and therefore, also wasted money), or we ate out too much and wasted the food that we already had.  I feel bad because it was drilled into me at a young age that, "there are kids in other countries that are starving and they would love to have your food", and because as an adult I have been to some of these countries and seen some of these very kids. Not to mention, there are people in this country and the U.S. who go hungry every day. Apparently in the U.S., 30-40% of the food supply simply gets wasted, so I always try to make sure our household beats that percentage, ideally by a lot. 

As I have probably mentioned before that every other week we have a box of fresh fruits and veggies delivered to us. This lightens the grocery load I have to lug back in my rolling duffel bag, and it forces us to get more creative with our cooking and eating. The negative aspect of getting this box is it makes me more likely to have to throw away food after a week or two. Instead of buying what I need when I need it, we get a box or random stuff that I have to figure out what to do with before it expires, which I take as a personal challenge. There is some stuff that freezes well if we don't get around to cooking or eating it, like zucchini and broccoli, but I've thrown away a lot of browning heads of lettuce and half a squash here and there. 

I am proud to say that this week I am well on my way to using up the box without wasting much. It helps when you have a week off work, and thus, lots of extra time to chop and cook. I've even cooked some of the older frozen stuff that was lying around too. I'm eating so many fresh veggies this week while Michael is dining on dehydrated chicken curry and beef jerky. 

Have you eaten your veggies today?

Walkabout Prep

While Michael has been working in Brisbane the last few days and I am off work because it's school holidays, I have been helping him prep for his upcoming Overland Track adventure by hoarding freeze-dried food and supplies. He'll be going with two friends and the trek in Tasmania will last six days and cover 78km. It will definitely be the most intense backpacking trip any of them has done, so I'm interested to see the pictures and hear the stories when they come back.

I chose not to go on the trip to save myself some shoulder pain (I can tolerate a 2-4 day trip; I draw the line there now), and because I have been hiking in Tasmania some already. The longest backpacking trip I ever did was about as long as the one they're doing (time-wise, but not distance-wise), in Olympic National Park in Washington, and I was almost 10 years younger then. 

While I enjoy the moments I have been immersed in nature, like when we hiked the Milford Track in NZ or went canoe camping in Kangaroo Valley, I am quite content to watch a movie here on the couch, pet the cats, sip my tea, and sleep in my own soft bed at night. I used to really crave outdoor adventure as much as Michael does. Now that I've lived through a few, I still enjoy a good adventure every once in a while, but I don't feel like I need to go seek them out (partially because Michael often finds them for me now). I suppose that might sound like I'm getting old and boring, but I don't feel that old and that boring yet. I've still got lots of adventure left in me, I just also happen to really appreciate the wonders of indoor plumbing and food refrigeration. 

On Arrival

I recently had a conversation with a friend of ours in which he declared, "I feel like I have arrived", in reference to being exactly where he wants to be in his life, and his family having found a great balance in pretty much all areas at this point in time. This friend owns his own business, has a view of one of the most beautiful beaches in the world right outside his window, is in a long-term committed relationship, and a one-year-old with another one on the way. He didn't always know what he wanted to do with his life, he has definitely worked hard and stumbled at times, and had some luck along the way. This conversation got me thinking about the people who I know at different ages and stages in their lives who seem the happiest, and conversely, those who don't. I've come up with five things that all the (presumably) happiest people I know appear to have in common. This is all purely anecdotal and observational, so take it for what it's worth. 

1. They make their own decisions.
They take control over what they can, and try not to focus so much on the things they can't. They don't leave everything up to chance. They don't refrain from voicing their opinion to be polite or easy for other people; they don't always have to be in the consensus. They don't just comment under their breaths. That being said, they're not control freaks either, and don't always have to be the deciding factor or have the last word at everything.

2. They do stuff.
They aren't afraid to do something that's tough, make a mistake, or look stupid in front of other people. They seek new experiences. They travel to new places. They're not lazy most of the time. And, even if they feel lazy, sometimes they go do stuff anyway. Because they do stuff, they meet and know other people who do stuff too (also important for #4 below). 

3. They know what they like.
Since they do stuff, they have developed their tastes and opinions. They share the things they like with people who they think will appreciate the same things. What they like isn't necessarily influenced by what is popular (and often, it's not). 

4. They put effort into building/maintaining relationships in-person.
They communicate and empathize, make plans, don't flake out most of the time, help out and do favors when they can, and occasionally take one for the team. Whether they're introverted or extroverted, they make time for the people important to them. They might use social media as a way to connect, but it's not their only way.

5. They've paid their dues.
They know what it's like to start at the bottom rung at something and work their way up. They have lived through humbling moments. They know what it's like to not have things as good as they have them now, and so they appreciate what they have earned. The key here is past tense - they paid their dues - they don't still feel like they're still paying them all the time. 

And there you have it. Perhaps what is also worth noting here is what I haven't put on the list. I don't think it definitely matters if one is single or in a long-term committed relationship, where you live, how much money you earn, your political or religious beliefs, how many people you know, what your particular hobbies are, what health issues you have to deal with, etc. There can be a lot of individual variance in those areas. It also kind of goes without saying that all these "happy people" have their basic biological, physiological, and safety needs met on a regular basis (see Maslow's Hierarchy).

What do you think? I suppose I'll revisit this at some point in the future and see if I still agree with myself.

Nothing Gold Can Stay (TWD spoiler alert)

I finally finished the Hulu miniseries of 11-22-63. As is usually the case, the book was better than the show. They cut out a lot of parts that I liked, and added some things I didn't find necessary.  I was surprised that they chose James Franco for the main character; I wonder how it would have been with a different actor. Anyway, it was still entertaining enough and better than a lot of the TV that's out there right now. 

Speaking of TV, lots of people are hating on the season finale of The Walking Dead for ending on a big cliffhanger. As someone who has read the comics, I was prepared for something big this episode, and I don't think it delivered as much as some of the earlier episodes in the season or past season finales. The directors were trying so hard to play with the audience's expectations that the storytelling fell short. The whole draw of the story is that you are on an intense journey with these characters; you feel like you are a survivor in the group too. Changing the point of view so that we don't know what happened is like telling a kid they have to go to bed while everyone else gets to stay up and eat dessert. We were a part of it all and now suddenly we're not, and it doesn't seem fair. 

I'm still a fan and I will keep watching to see where it all goes, but kind of with the understanding that the show has probably already peaked. I like the addition of Negan, as well as the kingdom, so there's still some potential. They also need to straighten out Carol. She was so lame in the beginning, then she became this dynamic hero, and now she's pathetic again. What kind of arc is that?! Another disappointing one. TWD, sort yourselves out. 

I can't believe it's already April.

Tempest (my frisbee team) came in 5th in Division 2 Nationals last weekend in Melbourne. We had a great time. Afterwards, I got to spend some time with some of my cousins, eat a great meal at Chin Chin, and go for a short hike at Mt. Cannibal. 

This week has been busy with the usual work stuff for both Michael and me. Over the upcoming weekend, Mike's team will be playing in the men's Division 2 Nationals up in Brisbane while I hold down the fort here with the kitties.