Thirty before 30

It's official, in just over 17 months, I'm turning 30. That's right, 30 years of prickles and pearls under my belt. 

Now while I'm not having any particular kind of crisis about turning 30, it's just a mark of a decade and seems to be as good a point as any to assess things. 

In my last post, I wrote about the idea of actually making a plan to acheive the things in life that I want to acheive, instead of just letting them fall by the wayside and waking up at 45 crying like Kate Winslet in The Holiday 'I hate my horrible life'.

And thus, the Thirty before 30 list was born.  Really it's just motivation to achieve a few goals, do a few awesome things and have a bit of fun recounting them in this space.

There are several things I figured I'd do before 30 that I've already done - those include: travel to Europe, travel somewhere solo, see the Eifel Tower, buy a home, get a full time job, start a blog, learn to make sushi, experience great love, experience great lovers, learn how to crochet, see a show in London and many more. So these are 30 new things, achievable in 17 months.

1. Master the fine art of poaching an egg.
2. See snow and have a snow fight.
3. Run a half marathon.
4. Have a short story published.
5. Write the first draft of my first novel.
6. Drink some beautiful French champagne.
7. Knit a blanket.
8. Learn to play the ukulele.
9. Travel to New York.
10. Dance with the queen of New Orleans.
11. Grow a fruit/vegetable other than chilli.
12. Refurbish a piece of furniture.
13. Dine in a five star restaurant overseas.
14. Do a trek.
15. Learn to make pasta.
16. Achieve a flat stomach.
17. Start my own small business.
18. Visit Tasmania.
19. Get back onto a stage.
20. Dine at a French restaurant.
21. Paint our bedroom.
22. Go skiing in Canada.
23. Take a scenic flight somewhere majestic.
24. Go ice skating in New York City... outside... on an actual rink!
25. Learn how to make bread.
26. Go bungee jumping or sky diving or something ridiculously thrill seeking of that variety. 
27. Get a tattoo.
28. See a Broadway show - on Broadway!
29. Learn to reverse park.
30. Pay off my credit card and then keep it in a drawer for emergencies only.

Do you have a 30 before 30 list? What do you want to do before you turn 30?

10 things to be thankful for today

As an American tradition, Thanksgiving has never been celebrated among my family or many families here in Australia, unless they've had some American or Canadian influence. Traditions aside, in the lead up to the silly season, when often the commercialism and the statement of it all takes away from the genuineness of it's purpose, it's a pretty good time of year to take a step back and think about what you really are thankful for.

So here's just 10 things in my life that I'm thankful for today.

1. I'm thankful first and foremost for family, friends and a beautiful man who love and encourage me, and I them in return.
2. I'm thankful for a well paying job that offers me security and challenges alike.
3. I'm thankful for having had the opportunity to study whatever I wanted, to read whatever I wanted and be afforded knowledge that in many countries and cultures is either still denied of women or simply cannot be afforded for anyone. 
4. I'm thankful for both the times my family did it hard and those when we lived well, because it's taught me to be appreciative, taught me to be resourceful and taught me to be compassionate.
5. I'm thankful for having lived in the country, the bush and the city in this enormous country of ours that so few get to experience the true breadth of.
6. I'm thankful for the opportunity to travel, to be in a position that has afforded me the opportunity to explore other countries, meet long lost family members and experience things I never dreamed I would.
7. I'm thankful for a creative mind that takes me on many journeys.
8. I'm thankful for the harsh words said to me throughout my life that have thickened my skin and thankful for the encouraging voices as well that have fed my soul and ambitions.
9. I'm thankful for clean running water available at my beck and call.
10. I'm thankful for my little home, that each night I am sheltered, comfortable and surrounded by nice things and for all the little things it is teaching me in this new phase of my life.

This list could really go on and on. Yes we live in a country where there are many opportunities available to us, but above all that, all the little experiences in life, good or bad have influenced who I am today and how I interpret the world around me. So we might change this or that, if we had the opportunity to do it all again but from where I'm sitting, I've got a lot to be thankful for.

What are you thankful for?

This week's pearls

1. Catching up with some of my favourite Perth playwrights and a very exciting endeavor in the works for Fringe World 2015!
2. This animal print ceiling that I saw a cow's face in. Can you see it too?
3. Get Your Shorts On at Revelation Film Festival - great short films by very talented local film makers. Love seeing what Perth creatives are thinking up. It was fabulous!
4. My current favourite footwear.
5. Lifting 45kg in a squat - this made me feel pretty proud of myself, even if I did want to die a little bit afterwards.
6. This Friday night scene.
7. The absolutely amazing projections over some of Perth's beautiful old buildings on Friday night.