Training

Time: late
Location: somewhere in Guildford
Mission: to train for two weeks walking around Australia
Status: tired!

In a little under a month I land in Sydney, Australia. A little over two weeks later I take off to return to England.

Other than a hotel room for the first night I have nothing booked and no firm plans, but I anticipate a lot of walking.

I love walking, which is something I only recently discovered. I especially like walking around somewhere new, uncovering something unexpected, amusing or challenging around every corner. For this reason I plan to do a lot of it on my great Australian adventure.

However, I’ve not been taking very good care of myself recently, so today I decided that for the next month I’m on a mission to get myself as fit as possible, without killing myself. Because there’d be no point. Because I’d be dead, right? Right.

For my first training exercise I decided to walk until I drop. Things didn’t quite go according to plan because when given the choice between spending time with a friend and walking around I’ll almost always do the friend thing. And there was whiskey involved, so no-brainer!

Anyhoo, after the drink and the chat and the laughing had subsided I continued on my little amble while my drinking partner hobbled home in a taxi (blisters are a bitch – need to be careful not to develop a set of my own).

Before I left the house I thought it would be best to do this properly, so I grabbed my backpack and loaded it up with a few of the things I expect to be carrying around with me. I decided I need to ease myself into carrying a heavy pack while walking so I didn’t pack too much, but my camera+lens and my laptop comprise a not insignificant measure of mass. I’m actually wondering whether this backpack will be able to take it; more testing will occur.

What I chose to put in my backpack turned out to be pretty useful because I saw some photo opportunities and got inspired to write a few blog posts, including this one.

It’s just gone 10:30pm and I’ve spent the last ten minutes lying on my back in the middle of Stoke Park staring at the night sky. The fantastic weather we had today has lead to a clear night sky, complete with a crescent moon and twinkling stars. I even saw a shooting star.

I find this sight to be immensely humbling, while at the same time it inspires me to be better and to do better. In the grand scheme of the universe I’m pretty insignificant, the upshot of which is that the universe doesn’t really give a crap about me. That being the case it’s up to me. If I want something I need to go out and get it. I’ve spent too much of my life coasting along, waiting for what I want to land in my lap.

I seem to believe the universe owes me something, while at the same time I don’t believe I deserve to get what I want. That combination will never work!

A few minutes ago, while staring at the clear night sky, the reason I don’t seem willing to get out of my own way hit me with the force of a shooting star.

I’ve got the next piece of the puzzle, and I’ll get into what it’s all about in my next post. For now my fingers are starting to drop off so I’m heading home.

Goodnight all xx