Doing Brings Energy
Well, this is an improvement!
I even had that blissful moment at around 2:22 am when I woke up, checked the time, and got excited about having another two hours of sleep before I even had to consider getting up.
I was up at six. A little later than I'd intended, but I kept telling myself:
"Just do it. Get up and do it. Doing brings energy. You know it does."
The walk was short, but it was intentional. And that's what matters.
It's the words I tell myself that make the difference.
"Keep going. You're doing this."
And when I do, tomorrow is always better!
I’m Back, Baby
Yes—up before 5 a.m. and ready to go.
Swimming this morning. 🏊♀️
And this feels right. ✅
It’s tomorrow, Joseph—and it’s better. 😆
Messages I Didn’t Ask For
Chaos, jealousy and confusion.
Allegedly, all three are messengers. 🤔
All I have to do is decode the messages.
Oh goodie. More detective work.
But I need answers today, not tomorrow.
I need today to be better.
Seems as though I may be back to normal
I’m losing sleep again over the day-to-day drama instead of earth-shatteringly major, life-changing decisions. 😅
And then the epiphany arrives: I sleep better when I’m changing course. I felt alive, as though I had a purpose, in a world where everyone was different and changing and brave.
Now I just lie awake feeling lost, as though I’ve lost my rudder, my direction and my drive.
At least, now that I’m totes tired, I’ll sleep tonight.
Direction will come when things feel less chaotic and clarity arrives. It has arrived before, and I know it will arrive again.
I’ll do better tomorrow. But for now: to sleep, perchance to dream.
When Dreams Change Direction
The Learning Moment
Just because it looks like a fairytale doesn't mean it is one.
The universe works fast when it's right — and even faster when it's not.
Back to square one of the dream.
Hang on. Which dream?
Maybe that's where I went wrong. Too many dreams, all culminating in one ultimate dream.
I feel as though I've lost momentum.
Or have I simply corrected course?
I could wheel out one of those overused statements. Time will tell. Or If it's meant to be.
And then there's that tired old favourite: This too shall pass.
But I don't want it to pass.
I want to hold on to the good bits.
The drive. The dream. The end game, exactly as I see it unfolding in my mind.
So I'll adjust.
Recalibrate.
And write a new plan.
And tomorrow, I'll do better.
Always do better tomorrow. ✨
I’ll get up, dress and send that email.
What seemed perfect after extensive thought has become a little less shiny.
Like everything in life, there are curveballs. The worst are the ones where you have to accept that you're the instigator, the propagator and the driving force behind them.
It's a daunting realisation.
But I'm more determined than ever to get this right.
Even though the momentum seems to have disappeared, I need to rally, find my footing and get on with it.
I need to get up, get dressed, send that email and begin again.
Again. ✨
And I will do better tomorrow.
Hidden in Plain Sight
Is the answer hidden in plain sight?
Or have I known it all along?
I woke precisely twelve hours before the deadline, still waiting for an eleventh-hour epiphany.
Trawling through all the small print, looking for something I might have missed.
Perhaps the answer has been there all along.
I'm going for a walk. 🚶♀️
But Fine Is the Problem
One path leads towards joy and triumph. The other leads back to what I already have—and what I have is fine. But perhaps fine is exactly the problem.
Day three of the cooling-off period.
And here comes doubt.
Suddenly, I can see the exit lane.
I could take it.
I could stay with what I know, return to what is comfortable, and step away from all this momentum.
So now I’m standing at the crossroads asking myself the obvious question:
Do I stay with comfort, or do I move boldly towards what might be waiting for me?
There should be a quotation for this.
“One path leads to…”
No.
That’s terrible.
Let me reinvent it.
One path leads towards joy and triumph.
The other leads back to what I already have.
And what I have is fine.
There’s the problem.
It’s fine.
Safe. Familiar. Manageable.
But if I keep doing what I’ve always done, I’ll keep getting what I’ve always got.
Maybe doubt isn’t telling me to turn around.
Maybe it’s simply reminding me that this decision matters.
Because comfortable and happy aren't necessarily the same thing.
And I don't want to settle for a life that is merely fine because I was frightened of discovering what else was possible.
I know what I want.
I need joy.
I need triumph.
And perhaps the road towards both begins right here.
Wild Clarity
At 60, I’m preparing to move an entire life across the country and into the first home I’ve ever owned. Somewhere between the packing, cleaning and bureaucracy, the wild goose chase has become something else entirely: Wild Clarity.
Organising and planning have always been firmly within my skill set.
Right now, that’s not merely useful. It’s essential.
I’m preparing to move an entire household across the country while somehow cleaning sixteen years of accumulated life out of a rental property.
That sentence alone should probably terrify me.
Instead, at the other end of it is something extraordinary:
At the age of 60, I’m moving into the first home I have ever bought.
🥳
My life somehow feels more unique, unlikely and inspiring than ever.
Who knew I would save the best for last?
This dream has come together through a phenomenal chain of events. In many ways that has been the recurring theme of 2026: whenever I’ve taken the next step, something else has appeared to guide me forward.
There has been chaos.
There has been paperwork.
There has definitely been bureaucracy.
And yet, beneath all of it, something has changed.
I’m no longer waiting for my life to happen to me.
I’m rewriting the narrative as my own agent of empowerment.
The “bureaucrat of destiny” still seems to be following me around like a slightly ridiculous theme song, but perhaps that’s appropriate.
Because what once felt like a wild goose chase has become something else.
Wild Clarity.
Yes. I just invented an idiom.
And I’m keeping it.
I’m standing on the edge of something I once only imagined.
My own home.
My own choices.
My own next chapter.
I’m doing it.
And Now Everything Changes
Sometimes moving forward means accepting that things which once looked full of promise were only shiny distractions. The plan is real now, and so is the decision to stop carrying anything—or anyone—that holds me back.
An enormous amount of money changed hands last night.
Suddenly, this is real.
A step-by-step plan has been made, complete with an end date that marks the next gear change towards everything I’ve been working for.
And along with that came another important decision: it’s time to let go of anything — or anyone — that holds me back.
Yes, it’s worth it.
Part of moving forward is accepting that some things which once seemed full of promise were really just shiny things. They caught my attention, offered possibilities, and ultimately treated me badly.
I’m done with that.
I’m worth more than that.
There comes a point when believing in yourself has to become more than an idea. It has to become a decision.
This is mine.
It’s time.
I’m doing it.
And so it begins
One small step to secure residency.
One giant leap to move almost 3,000 miles away and pursue the dream.
And this is only the beginning.
Stay tuned as it all unfolds.
I think I’m going to dance now. 🎶
Angels Incognito
This morning, while traversing Darwin Airport, I met three angels dressed as strangers.
My step counter tells me I walked only half a kilometre.
At 5 am.
With 30 kilos of luggage.
On three hours’ sleep.
And with an offer on a Darwin apartment weighing heavily on my mind.
It felt like three miles.
Miles, obviously, because they’re much bigger. 🤣
I probably looked like somebody trapped in a time when airports were easier.
Automated check-in?
Enter Angel Number One, disguised as a stranger who apparently possessed a degree in airport technology.
They took over.
Angel Number Two appeared during the long trek to the amenities and offered me an arm.
And almost at my gate, limping through the final stretch, Angel Number Three appeared.
Another arm.
Something to hold onto for the last 50 metres.
Note to self:
Learn the fucking technology.
And practise walking more unaided.
I will do better next time.
The Time for Waiting Is Done
It’s the first of October.
Six years ago today, news was about to arrive that would derail my life and put me into a holding pattern that proved extraordinarily difficult to escape.
And now?
I’m doing it.
I’m putting things into motion to get this dream off the ground.
Tomorrow I go back home.
Or...
Is it home?
I need to move.
Move location.
Move forward.
Move my body.
Keep moving.
The time for waiting is done.
Let’s do it.
5:30 Will Have to Do
The pools around here open late.
But I found one that opens at 5:30 am.
So 5:30 is going to have to do.
Steak for dinner.
No alcohol.
No dessert.
Yes.
It starts now.
Alarm for 4:30.
Bed in two hours.
I’m doing it.
Six Years
Tomorrow matters.
It is, ultimately, my greatest motivation.
Six years ago today, I had no idea that a phone call was coming that would change everything.
And here I am, six years later, wondering how I got here.
More importantly:
Where to now?
I’m looking at property in Darwin.
A complete change.
A reset.
Something big enough to knock everything into gear and force me to take control.
To get busy creating my perfect life.
After all the turmoil, it’s time.
It really is time.
But today?
Today is the pool.
The infamous FINA-compliant competition pool.
National standard. Olympic standard.
Bring it.
I’m almost nervous about this moment.
But my motivation is intact.
And I have an audacious plan for the rest of my life.
I’m doing it.
The Next Party
You don't turn 60 every day.
So let’s get this party started. 🥳
Not that party.
That was yesterday.
I mean the next one—the one where I train hard and become fabulous.
In the pool.
On land.
And, for reasons entirely unbeknownst to me, I woke just after 4 am this morning.
So I got up.
Made coffee.
Put a load of washing on.
And started contemplating my next move.
Bold plans for the day.
I’m doing it.
Start Again, Again
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
And if it is?
Well, my birthday morning was interesting.
Why did I choose last night to blow up a friendship I thought would serve me well in pursuing my athletic dream?
Maybe because of the quote that has served me forever:
“If it’s not perfect, it’s not perfect.”
Something can look perfect.
Feel perfect.
Sound perfect.
And still not be right.
So it’s time to reconvene and be completely honest with myself.
Time to fly far, far away.
Start fresh.
Start new.
And most importantly:
Start again.
Again.
I’ve done it before.
I’m good at this.
I’ve got this.
And I’m doing it.
Full Throttle
Oops.
I did it again. 🎶
Apparently I chose the wrong week to turn 60 and start celebrating like it’s 1999. 🎶
Because here I am at the turning point.
From now on, everything I do—and every decision I make—needs to keep the end game in sight.
No calling “warfies” too soon.
Full throttle from here.
Well...
Full throttle immediately after sunset drinks on a rooftop bar overlooking a spectacular Darwin sunset on the eve of my birthday. 🎂
Let’s do it.
Then do it again.
And again.
And again.
Ad infinitum.
Tomorrow Will Be Awesome
Was it all the walking?
Or sleeping more upright than ever?
It’s 6:44 pm.
I’m in the most beautiful place in the world.
And right now, all I want to do is lie down.
Tomorrow will be awesome.