I'm Baaack!

 Louis Litt, Suits

It has been a tumultuous 9 months. Work got too chaotic and took over my life. I was on-call 24/7, and even if I was being left alone (which wasn't often), I would be thinking about work. It's amazing the hours you can work and how much you can get done when it's necessary. I think I was on a constant adrenalin high for those months, and it wasn't sustainable. I would wake up at night thinking about transactions I was working on, and it was as if there was so much information to process that some of the processing was done in my sleep.

Although in one sense, I was thriving – doing mountains of challenging work, excelling at it, feeling proud of my work and the level of responsibility I had, it was exhausting and unhealthy. A twelve hour day in the office was a relatively short one, and I was regularly doing sixteen hour days. I was usually juggling several pressing
demands at any given moment, so all of those hours would be intense, stressful and intellectually draining. It wasn't like I had time for breaks or lunch, and there wasn't much of a social element because we were just too busy.

I was changing mentally too. I could see the change in my outlook and behaviour, which was probably mainly out of necessity. I was becoming more impatient, aggressive, dominant, selfish, unforgiving. These things helped me to excel in the office environment, but I was also becoming a not very nice person outside of the office (and to colleagues, although everyone treated each other like this). Feeling angry, frustrated, stressed and highly strung is also not good for physical health I'm sure.

To give an example: if someone wasted my time by doing a substandard job or not following instructions, I had little patience and was unforgiving. General office social norms and what is acceptable when communicating with others went out the window (as they had with everyone else in the office). This was certainly a symptom of having so little time and so many demands on it, and ironically it was smiled upon.

I left on a high, still managing the quantity and quality of work. In some ways it would have been better had I left after having a mini breakdown or getting really sick or something.

Now that I've left, I have started noticing the things I missed out on. I was so consumed by work that I wasn't part of what was going on with my family or friends. People close to me tell stories about things that happened to them during that period and I have no idea about any of it.

Deep down I knew it wasn't sustainable, and I watched the others around me who had been there longer slowly deteriorating. I was exhausted, I wanted a holiday… but now that I'm back in a more "normal" job, I feel like normal work can't satisfy me. I miss the adrenalin rush, and I miss being important and making a valuable contribution. I miss having so much responsibility which motivated me, and now I seem to lack any motivation.

I am also terrified that I have made the wrong decision accepting this new role. It's a new area of work which I'm not sure I like (and I loved corporate law), and I am feeling so unmotivated that I don't know what to do.

I have decided to come back to blogging to share my thoughts, and it gives me a reason/opportunity to sort through them myself. What has everyone else been up to? I have more news to follow ;-)

Still Alive

I am still alive, just incredibly busy with work. I will be back to blogging in the new year (around February), with lots of news. I miss you all and reading your blogs!

Canberra Weekend for the 1920s Ball

I snuck out of work a little early on Friday afternoon and headed straight to the airport. After a bit of a scare that I wouldn't be able to find a 'long stay' parking bay, I nabbed one and headed to the terminal, just in time to board the flight. We had our own personal TVs (I love it when you get one of Qantas' newer planes!) so I watched 'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel' and a few episodes of Outnumbered. I enjoyed the movie, it is an uplifting, feel-good flick, and although the portrayal of India is quite unrealistic, it brought back some nice memories of my travels there.

As the plane started to descend, we hit turbulence and I got to the point where I thought I would have to throw up into my airsick bag. It probably didn't help that the lady sitting next to me was gripping the armrests for dear life and screeching, which was making me stressed. Thankfully it didn't get to that and we landed in one piece. I don't know how I manage to get seated next to bad fliers or annoying people more often than not, this is the second time I have had a near hysterical stranger next to me.

Our first stop on Saturday morning was Two for Joy Café in Kingston, which used to be called Pizzazz. It has the same menu and staff, so I think they just refurbished the inside. The sweet options there are still amazing – we had the lime and pistachio hotcakes with honey ricotta, fresh strawberries, raspberries, kiwifruit and raspberry coulee:  

After that, we fit in an afternoon nap before starting the pre-ball preening process. Here are some photos from the night:

 

I am standing on the right. I ended up borrowing my sister's school ball dress which was a little dissapointing given how long I spent searching for the perfect 1920's dress (but could not find anything I wanted to spend $$$ on!). Still, I think I ended up looking nice and my long gloves and beaded alice band ensured I fit the theme.

 More gorgeous girls... everyone put so much effort into their costumes!

 

I love my friend's headpiece, which she sourced from etsy...

 



I never said I wasn't immature... ;-) I am not talented enough to make a dog out of a champagne bottle foil, but I fed it some butter.

Sunday saw us tired and hung-over but I was not about to waste the short time I had, so we made it to brunch with 'the girls'. It was lovely to sit in the sunshine and catch up at Bicicletta, which has a very unique outside courtyard. It is set in the 'New Acton' art district which has a smattering of interesting sculptures in addition to award winning modern apartment buildings which are marketed as 'architectural art'. I think I could live in this funky area…

One of the many statues - this one is called 'Time Thief' (source and explanation) 

 

Speaking of funky, my friend's housemate's collection of Mr Potato Heads is brilliant, don't you think?

 

 

The afternoon contained more catch-ups with friends and then I boarded my flight home to Perth. It was a thoroughly enjoyable weekend!

Chaos, Birthdays & Liptember

If you're wondering where I have been, the answer is working. Although you probably guessed!

 

I worked on my first 'hostile' takeover which meant 2 weeks of little sleep, very long days and having literally no weekends (I'd consider being in the office from 7am until midnight all weekend worse than your average weekday, so definitely not 'weekend' within the normal meaning of that word!)

 

In the midst of these chaotic times, I had a birthday. It would have gone uncelebrated (I had to cancel both my birthday lunch with girlfriends and my birthday dinner with the boy) but for an amazing and unexpected office delivery from my friends in Canberra:

 

 First I saw these fantastic balloons. Did I mention that I LOVE helium balloons!? They remind me of carefree childhood days...

 

 Then came a big box with lovely ribbons... which contained:

 

 A delicious chocolate mud cake!

 

Last but not least, I got this fabulous card. You can't tell from the photo but it's holographic and moves. All very exciting...

 

It made a dark day so much brighter!

 

I have just now gotten back from a whirlwind weekend trip to Canberra which was exhausting but so enjoyable. We had the 1920's ball and I caught up with all my friends, which brought back such lovely memories.

Photos of the ball will be coming soon (you will be able to see the dress I ended up wearing). In the meantime, if you haven't already please check out Project Girl's blog and sponsor her for Liptember. Liptember is all about raising funds for women's mental health, and encouraging open communication about and familiarisation with gender specific mental health issues.

In blogging about her life, Project Girl shares her personal struggles with mental illness (which is much braver than I could ever be, I am not a personal sharer!). I just sponsored her and I hope you will too.

Brunch Review: Cranked Cafe, Leederville

Cranked is one of those places I have walked past 100s of times but have never tried. That changed thanks to the entertainment book- I had a voucher, and I wanted to use it :-)

The Scoring

Menu variety / creativity: 7.5/10. Something for everyone, and some creative options. You can read the menu for yourself at the website.

Taste: 7/10. I had the 'Crank Addict': Two soft poached eggs bedded on wilted spinach with smoked chorizo and sourdough. Finished with home-made tomato jam and shaved parmesan cheese. The eggs were nicely poached and the home-made tomato jam was divine. Generous serving size and plenty of bread. I didn't like the chorizo much, it seemed to be cheap/poor quality. My friend had a "make your own" breakfast - she chose scrambled eggs on multi grain toast with avocado and homemade tomato relish. Yum!

Coffee: 6.5/10. Drinkable but not amazing.

Setting/location: 6/10. The decor isn't anything special but they have a nice big outdoor area for sunny mornings (and it has outdoor heaters in winter).

Service: 7.5/10. No complaints, efficient and friendly.

Price: 8/10. The more creative menu options are around $18, but the servings are very generous. If you have the Entertainment book, use the voucher in it for a further 25% off :-) We did!

Verdict: Nothing special but it was a solid meal with a generous serving size. I'd go back, especially with another voucher!

Sick Pets & Lack of Sleep

On Monday our dog had to have an operation. We picked her up at about 6pm after she had the operation at 4:30pm- and she was still totally out of it from the anesthetic. All evening she was walking around crying/whining, she was restless and wouldn't lie down, tripped over her own feet, almost walked into walls, swayed and her back legs were shaking. It was so sad and scary to watch.

I kept trying to take her outside to go to the bathroom and finally succeeded in getting her to do her business at about 11:30pm. She spent the night pacing around and whining, and when she had somewhat recovered she started barking. My poor sister had to sleep on a mattress downstairs with her like this, as it was the only way to calm her down:

In short, she has kept us both up the past 2 nights and I am now exhausted. She was obviously feeling better last night because she went and slept on the couch, which she absolutely knows she is not allowed to do.

She's not a young dog, and I think this episode made us all think about what will happen when the inevitable happens... Pets bring so much joy to our lives, but the flipside is that they are then sorely missed.

I hope you're all having a good week. I haven't forgotten to draw the winners of my latest giveaway (which ended almost 2 weeks ago)... well I did forget, but now I've remembered and I just need to find the time :-)

Shopping, Dating, Work

Shopping
I still haven’t found the perfect dress for the upcoming 1920s theme ball, I'm getting desperate! I found one I really like but its sold out:

River Island Beaded Deco Dress

Karen Millen does the most beautiful deco dresses but they're all around $400 on sale, and I can't justify spending that… not until I get a pay rise anyway!

Did I mention that there are some great sales online at the moment? I am still addicted to Asos despite my disappointing last order. I nabbed this dress:

ASOS Skater Dress With Flower Applique

And I'm also eyeing off:

Asos Laguna Suede Ballet Flats with Metallic Block Heel

and

ASOS LOS ANGELES Point Ballet Flats With Chain Detail

 



What do you think of them?

You can currently get 10% off sale items at Asos with the code 10SALE, and 10% off at Urban Outfitters with the code NEWSKOOL (and free shipping if you spend $50).

Dating

I guess our relationship is official, but I'm still not sure I'm 100% committed. I suppose it's because I'm busy and tired and he wants to spendmore time with me than I do with him. Also this is going to sound weird but I know a lot of people are unsure if the guy likes them and then really happy when he does, but I'm the opposite- as soon as the guy starts getting attached I get put off, it's like the challenge and excitement is gone. It's so stupid of me but I think that's what happens and why I never have had proper long relationships. Maybe it means I haven’t found the 'right person' but I think it's more likely to be my own approach and mindset that's resulting in this.

Work

Work has calmed down a bit. People have been leaving the office at 6pm, which I am told is very unusual so I should make the most of it! Our computer server has been all buggy which has resulted in some wasted and frustrating periods of time – lucky we're not flat out!