An Update...

It's been a while, and I've been neglecting this blog shamefully, so here's some things that have happened lately.

Munchkin turned 5. I made a cake.

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We added a new family member, Ophelia (also known as Feefee or Feely-Cat, or Get Out Of It You Stupid Git).

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My wife and I both finally accepted that we'd gained more weight than we were happy with in the long slide since the wedding, and we've joined Weight Watchers. It's working very well for us so far - they've changed the plan a lot and it's a lot more manageable and liveable than it was the last time I tried it. It's going well, and I'll update about it again when I reach goal - which I am going to this time, unlike the last few attempts!

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We also celebrated our 1st wedding anniversary. There is a mushy video of our wedding and honeymoon, but blogger won't let me upload it (probably because it's 14 minutes long and rather large)... I will look into putting it up on youtube or vimeo and linking it here.

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The day school finished we raced up to visit friends in Shropshire - an area we are falling in love with as a future home - and climbed The Wrekin, an achievement that made us both feel rather proud given how unfit we've both become!

That's the Munchkin and his best friend L in the foreground.

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The book currently stands at just over 43,000 words. Things got slow when the assessment end of the school year arrived at the same time as an unexpected plot twist, and I'm now trying to get back on track with daily writing over the summer. It's already more than double the length of my previous longest piece of work, so that is pretty satsifying. I have an idea for another, unrelated book on the backburner, so I want to finish this one by the end of the year, work on the other one in the first half of next year, then come back and edit this one next summer. The other one is aimed at primary school readers, so it will be shorter.

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I'm off to Wales in just over a week to a big SCA event. I've become reconciled with the SCA since inspirational equality was written in as acceptable, and was tried out by a same-sex couple appearing in the most recent crown tourney. They didn't win, but the precedent is now there and one day we will have a same-sex couple on the throne. That's been enough to entice me back!

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Late last year, I glanced back over my employment contract and realised that they'd made me a permanent, not one-year, offer. There was much rejoicing. There's been a bit of staff turnover and rearrangement ready for next year, but I am staying in Year 2. This is the first time I've ever stayed at the same school two years running, and the first time I've ever taught the same year two years running. Fancy that! I might almost begin to feel like I know what I'm doing.

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One of the reasons there's been a long gap on this blog is that I've found it hard to express many of the things I've been thinking about this year. I get very emotional about my hot-button topical issues - feminism, sexuality and education - and I sometimes feel too overwhelmed with  frustration to actually say anything sensible about them. However, I'm going to try, so my goal is to blog every weekend, and say something, whether it's an update or a few thoughts on something that matters.

I think that's everything. Back to the book...

The Latest

My passport, complete with Right of Abode certificate, came back last week, so I'm all set to go!

I keep opening it up and looking at it. It's really here and I'm really going :)

It's just over 13 weeks until I leave. I'm gearing up to the next level of preparations now - making sure my immunisations are up-to-date, getting a federal police clearance, researching likely bank accounts, and so on. I'm starting to get a definite feel for what my first days there will be like, and I'm also looking ahead, working out which tours I'd like to take eventually. I'm going to see Russia, and Egypt, and Petra, and ... everything!

Work is tiring (6 days a week, many 8-10 hour shifts) but it's paying the bills and letting me save up, and that's what I need.

I'm spending my evenings sorting boxes while watching Babylon 5 - I'm going to re-watch the entire 5-series arc before I go, just for the hell of it! Anything to help the time pass in a meaningful way. Right now, 13 weeks feels like both forever and no time at all. It's an awkward headspace to be in.

A few days ago I spent a day worrying that I would find my London experience similar to my Sydney experience - lonely and dreary - but I realised that that isn't going to happen. In Sydney I was constantly broke, which meant that I went nowhere and did nothing. My depression, faith crisis and non-existent self-esteem meant that I pursued no hobbies, made few friends, and had no connect with anyone or anything. In London I'm going to be part of a church community and part of the SCA, and I'm going to connect with community garden groups, music groups (I want to join an amateur choir), organic living groups, and so on - just people, people, people. I'll meet other teachers, other expats, and so on. I will be fine.

So here I am - writing and revising lists constantly, trying to keep on top of what I already know and still need to find out, and working and waiting for the time to come.


30by30 update: 2 down, 28 to go. On schedule!

30 by 30

The week before last,  I found that I was having problems at work after lunch - I was very dozy and out of it.

So I tried a widely-recommended solution - not eating carbs at lunch, just protein / dairy and vegetables. Not only did it work - I feel refreshed after lunch, not sleepy - but I'm also feeling better all-round. A few days later I tried taking almost all of the carbs out of my dinner as well, loading up on salad instead. And . . . bingo. Feeling much healthier. I'm a little hungry some of the time, but I'm learning to ignore that.

And as a side effect - without even trying - I'm currently losing 200g a day. The numbers on the scales are going down like stair steps. Wonderful!

So I have started a commitment today. I'll stick to this light menu (along with my existing commitment to avoiding all preservatives, artificial colours and flavours, and most refined sugar and refined wheat) until I've lost 30kg. And I intend to lose that 30kg before I turn 30 in December. It's more than 46 weeks until my birthday; more than enough time, even with the fact that this weightloss will slow as I get closer to my goal, and even accounting for some plateauing around the move to London, which will no doubt disrupt whatever exercise routine I've developed before then!

I'm aiming high first up - I want to lose the first 15kg before I leave, 15.5 weeks from now. I will settle for 10, but I'd prefer 15! If all I have to do is keep up this eating plan and gradually increase my exercise, it should be an attainable goal.

So that's my commitment. I'll update the amount lost here from time to time.

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I'm now successfully enrolled in three units for this semester: Intro to Literature, Thinking Theology, and The Life and Times of Ancient Israel. I'm excited :)

I've learned that to be ordained I'd have to follow up this BA Theol with a Master of Ministry, which is two years full time. So I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. This BA will take me until 2013, so I'll just enjoy it until then.