Best Things of the Last Three Months
Three months worth of stuff
I can’t help but feel that I’ve been neglecting you all. I often think about writing here, but time slips away and, in all honesty, I haven’t really made it a priority. I’ve been trying to establish a good routine, but the end of the year always seems to throw things into chaos. Before you know it, it’s school holidays, and any sense of routine is out the window. While everyone sets goals on January 1st, I feel the real start of the year is when school resumes, and we return to the daily grind. So, with school starting up next week, let's try to get things back on track and catch up on the past few months.
Job Hunting
It's been 3 months since my last update here, where I left you all with my continued search for work and feeling disillusioned with the whole job hunt. I had a few days left on a contract and nothing in sight when I threw up a Hail Mary on LinkedIn.
The universe delivered with that post, and I quickly found myself in a job interview. The process was super swift; I was approached on Monday afternoon, had an interview at 10 am Thursday, and had the job by 11. I had to pinch myself; after MONTHS of working my heart out to secure something, I finally got there. The relief was epic, to say the least.
For those curious, it’s a business analyst role with the University of Canberra, and it’s been great! I'm doing things I’ve never done and learning a bucketload. I’m so grateful to have a job, especially one that I’m enjoying. Thank you, universe!
Ultra Running
I ran my Ultra Trail Kosciuszko 50km race in December. It was something I wasn’t sure about; I hadn’t prepared nearly enough, and it wasn’t until a couple of weeks beforehand that I fully committed to doing it.
I wasn’t sure I’d make the distance but thought that even if I didn’t finish, at least I would have tried. I booked my camping spot a few days before and made my way up to Jindabyne. I wasn’t organised at all. I set up my tent on the evening before and set out to find some dinner. I should have learned my lesson from last year and booked somewhere to eat. I went to the pub only to be told there would be at least an hour wait for food. It was getting late, and I didn’t want to wait by myself for that long, so I left and found the only place that wasn’t busy - the kebab shop. It was a bit of a gamble, but I had a falafel and figured that would be okay. It filled the hole, but it definitely wasn’t the pasta feast I had envisioned!
As with any big event, I was pretty excited and found it hard to sleep. The alarm went off at 4:30 am so I could get ready and catch the bus to Bullocks Flat. I had a quick breakfast of cold porridge, water, and coffee, and off I went.
The vibe at the start was so much fun, and I began to really believe in myself. Even if it took me all day, I reckoned I could make it.
The first 20km were great, with a steady pace and amazing scenery that really boosted my confidence. Reaching the first checkpoint meant I could take a breather for a second and really think about the next 30km.
I knew there was some elevation coming, but I didn’t expect the climb around the 30km mark. It was a direct ascent up a ski run, ironically called ‘Dream Run’. It took me about 30 minutes to cover 1500m. It was pretty tough! There were so many other runners struggling alongside me, so it felt like a real shared challenge. So many moments made me smile, like the guy yelling at himself to get it together and push on. It made it that much easier to persevere.
After conquering that, it was up to the 2nd checkpoint at Eagles Nest, where I was able to refill my water, have something to eat, and take stock. From there, it was downhill to Friday Flat. Sounds delightful, only the track was mainly stairs - uneven stairs, broken stairs. It definitely wasn’t easy.
After that, I had a spike of energy where I was able to maintain a good pace along the Thredbo Golf course and parallel to Alpine Way, eventually looping back to follow a trail called Dead Horse Gap. It was around here that I hit the 42km mark, the marathon distance. I was so proud of myself at this point; I never thought I’d make it this far!
As the elevation began creeping in again, I noticed my knee starting to feel a bit off, so I slowed right down and settled in behind a group of other runners. Here is where it started feeling like a death march. The party vibe was long gone, and all you could hear were footsteps; no one was talking, no one shouting encouragement. It was pretty eerie! I even had to make a little detour to avoid a black snake on the trail. What an adventure!
As the course leveled out, I started jogging as best I could, ignoring the knee pain. With less than a few kilometers to go, my motivation soared. The course looped back to the Eagles Nest checkpoint, and we had to go down those horrible stairs again. My knee protested so hard; I had to do a weird crab walk going sideways down the stairs, but it worked.
Before I knew it, I could see the finish line. I’d somehow pulled it off. I made it. Crossing that finish line was an amazing feeling; my eyes were welling up, grinning from ear to ear. Complete strangers were yelling my name and congratulating me. What an experience.
Total time: 9 hours 40 minutes.
One of the best decisions I’ve made.
Would I do it again? Yep! I’m looking forward to giving it another crack this year. At least now I know what to expect and I’ve even got a time to beat. How good is that?
Personal Stuff
Our eldest finished up year 6, with the school putting on a great graduation ceremony for the kids. I found myself getting caught up in the moment and shedding a few tears. So happy and proud, but also wishing that Mum and Dad were here for these moments. I can only imagine how happy they’d be.
Christmas this year was a pretty quiet affair. We didn’t go anywhere, instead focusing efforts on sorting out our garage. It was a mammoth task (4 days!) but it’s done and all organized. A big weight off our shoulders; we had stuff in boxes from 3 or 4 moves ago. Now we can fit a car in the garage, unheard of!
In general, it was a pretty great end to a somewhat strange and stressful year. I started off the year incredibly optimistic; heck, my first Substack post for the year was titled 2023. It’s going to be MASSIVE. It may not have panned out how I had planned, but I think it’s taught me a lot about myself.
2023 crushed my confidence in some areas and built it up in others. I rendered walls, ran heaps, lifted many weights, had countless job interviews, DJ’d, and watched a friend pretty much self-implode (he’s looking like he’s finding his way now, thankfully). I tapped into an inner strength and fortitude I didn’t know I had.
I became more resilient.
In many ways, I think I became a better person.
BIG LOVE! Nick
Hopefully, I can get this writing habit back on track again, what do you reckon?
In the meantime, don’t forget to check out what some good friends have been up to:
, , , , , (they write way more often than me!)
Fabulous update Nick! So pleased for you about the job and that you're enjoying it!
Sounds like a big growth year :D
Loved this update Nick!