Today Is Your Day

Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength. 

Arnold Schwarzenegger


What ever the rest of the week brings to you, be strong, smile and let your strength, your love, help you to a better day.


Good Afternoon everyone, I hope you are all well, cos' here's the touch down like a 747.
 


There you are reading my blog again either on your desktop pc or smart phone and you're thinking, what is she on about now? Well, what am i talking about? 

Ever sit there and just think, "you know, today is a good day." This is how i'm feeling at this very moment and i decided to write a post to share what's been going on in the world of JP lately. 
Alas, it tis' raining once again on the Gold Coast. Tends to happen throughout our Winters, however, more so we get the summer storms. You know the perfect summer lovin' days from sunrise and then once schools out and it hits 3pm, its overcast and the lightning strikes. Its a sign!! Leave the kids at school. 


But seriously, i'm sitting here in an old pair of grey track pants with a bond university logo streamed down the side, socks on, a simple cream coloured knit and purple glasses. I have no make-up on and my hairs an absolute mess, yet, i've been quite the busy bee this morning. So busy, i forgot to fuel the engine with some petrol, AKA feed my body some nutritious breakfast, thus instead i woke up to an 8am message from a friend asking for a morning coffee date. I sighed, (it is freezing) and dragged myself out bed, stripped off and jumped into a searing hot shower. Ahhh, feels good doesn't it? Hot showers on a chilly gold coast 18 degree winter day! 


The worst thing, is being in the shower and once the waters off, you get the tiny bit of breeze hit you and you quickly make a grab for your towel (and it still hasn't dried properly from the night before. There's no other choice though, unless you are going to make a nudie run out to the cupboard and walk on the cold tiles.) I think, just use the dam damp towel, dry your feet and the socks go on first, (that's what i do). Anyway, i headed out this morning for a few hours and saw a friend, ran some errands and by the time i was back here i completely forgot i hadn't had anything nutritious. To the juicer i was! So i whipped a raw yet tasteful, beautifully refreshing paw paw, carrot and apple juice. It was deliscious, you can't knock it till you try it. And now im sitting here listening to Ed Sheeran, reminsicing about times spent in Rockhampton and Mackay and reading my psychology textbook about Developmental Psychology, or 'lifespan development.' The drizzle of rain in the background creates the most comforting atmosphere to write to. What tops it off is my best friend is sitting right beside me, having a snooze. My little pup Jenna. 


Today, i miss the old days. The after school ballet rush and nights spent doing ballet, jazz or contemporary preparing for the weekends competition. 






Today, i miss the innocence of being a youth, (you know where you can get away with things because you are still a kid.)

Today, i miss the family time: sibling fights, getting a smack for shaving your legs too young, and birthday celebrations and family days out.

It's so nice to have memories. These memories i've been playing through my head the past few hours urge me to plan more and be in touch with my family. Not only my immediate family, but my family in New Zealand and Melbourne - my brothers and sisters from the same mister (my dad sowed his seeds thats for sure but saved the best for last.) I really love having a bigger family and being so close to my brother in Melbourne. I love him so much and cannot wait for all the times we will share together. We have a very honest and open relationship where i can speak freely about whatevers on my mind, whether its about my studying, work ideas, my leisure activities or even if its about how amazing i think Henry Cavill, the new superman is... i can speak of whatever. And he speaks the same with me. We have a very special bond full of trust and i feel so lucky to have that with him. 

I think that its so important to be on good terms with your family, even if you have a faling out or disagreement, you should eventually sort it out and not hold grudges against people because we only have one life to live. We get one shot and one opportunity. That said, there are cases when you should just tell your family to get nicked because there doing you more harm than good and don't deserve to have you in their life, so you create your own life and family. 

When i'm writing, I like to refer to Bukowski quite often for i believe he was not so far off of how he interpreted people and his own life, in the grand scheme of things. People can be fickle and lazy in their friendships with you, untrustworthy, and dog you for the next best thing, but your family will always be there.  

Everyone is a little crazy and there is no way in hell we are able to keep it completely together 100% of the time in our lives because thats not what life is about. Life is about being knocked down, pulling yourself together and lifting yourself back up. It's about learning from your mistakes. Most of all, your life is about YOU. And as adults, we are held accountable for what we say and do because you know whats right and what is wrong and how to go about things depending on the different situations because you have lived. You aren't just a bag a bones, you're a hell of a meat packet full of experience and emotion. Experience shapes us. 

If you let go of something, let it go and move forward. If you can't let go, sit back and think about why, because its probably something to do with YOU. In this life YOU are 10% what happens to you and 90% the way you react from it. I've made some hard decisions in my life, some i am still working toward moving forward with today but my life is about ME and what i want as much as it is about everyone else around you. It's okay to be a little selfish and keep YOU happy before trying to make everyone else happy. I've said this often and ill say it again because in reality Bukowski knew what was what. 

"Some people never go crazy, what truly horrible lives they must lead!" -- Bukowski. 

"Sometimes you climb out of bed in the morning and think 'i'm not going to make it' - and then you laugh inside, remembering all the times you've felt this way." -- Bukowski.

In this life we are going to make mistakes and go a little crazy, be a little silly, fall in love too quickly and then be afraid of what the next steps going to be but one things certain, it's my life, and i wanna give it a dam good go. 

Not closed eyes, eyes wide open! I will look life in the face and say 'COME AT ME BRO'.

Live a little, stop being so serious, and laugh. We can do this!

Until the stars fall,

JP xx

Projects, projects full steam ahead!

I made a promise to myself i would write more posts in this blog the past month. I promised i would divulge to my readers (the few you may be) more details regarding my intermittent blogging absence. Why i make promises like that, i'm not sure, because another month is nearly over and do you know how many details are in just one month? Of course you do, you're living beings just as i am doing what we do best day to day: living. Well there are lots of details i can tell you thats happened over the past few weeks and yet again i sit here staring at a dam blank screen. What's the point you may ask? Come on, let us in on your rock bottom my subconscious chimes. I mean, that's what i want to know when i'm reading other peoples blogs. I peruse the posts and pages and i'm thinking "okay, get to the point," and "whats the bottom line here?"

I have four projects currently underway!

1. My new website. As a budding writer I have always wanted to write articles for my very own website, so i have created a brand spanking new blog where i am the creator and author. I will discuss more details about this later, and when everything is set up and ready for public scrutiny, i will post the link on here.

2. Time Management. Time management has not always been a main priority of mine, however, since i currently have a few projects underway, such as this blog, finding a job, studying, working for my brother etc. i have found a new way to manage my time. I have been using a diary all year but have also just started using a daily tasks day planner to write down what i'd like to achieve in the day and then prioritise these tasks by giving them a number. At the end of the task i mark a tick or cross under the 'completed' box. I also devote specific time frames to those tasks.

3. Scrapbooking. I have found a fabulous way to be creative and also keep my mind busy. The days are flying by.  Yes, its scrapbooking. After all my years of dance training i have so many photos its hard to choose which ones to use half the time but i like being creative and innovative and doing something different. I have a dance album to complete, and an album of myself from 1 to 21.

4. Finding and cooking (or baking) healthy recipes. I have a newfound joy in cooking and baking and love trying different recipes and creative healthier versions.

And lastly, studying. Thats self explanatory.

I am also helping my brother out with his business selling websites for small to medium sized businesses that are optimised for mobile. I am a busy girl, keeping my mind occupied, staying up late writing and putting together content for my website. Its nice to keep the mind busy in a calm and stable environment. Not only is it relaxing, but is what i am using as a coping mechanism or better termed a coping strategy to help me deal with my boyfriend being away working a lot. I believe this is proactive coping, as its a coping response aimed to head off a future stressor. In psychology, coping is expending conscious effort to solve personal and interpersonal problems, and seeking to master or minimise and tolerate stress. So far, so good.

I have a throbbing headache and my eyes are struggling to stay open. There are many exciting things to look forward to over the next 6 months but im still counting down the days, as always. One day at a time and i'll see you when im looking at you smeff.

Until the stars fall,

JP x

When life gives you lemons...

...you just add a bit of carrot, beetroot, celery, apple and a knuckle of ginger, whizz it together and drink the shit out of it cos taste good yo and gives you a healthy boost to start the day off saturating your cells with goodness.

This is one of those images with a quote that you stumble across one day whilst perusing random crap on someones facebook page, that makes you stop and read it twice over, and then for a hat trick. It just resonates with you, deep within your soul and you understand completely the meaning behind truly appreciating what you have in your life and the people you've been so fortunate to meet. Whether it be for the short-term or long-term and whether they came into your life only for a season to teach you a lesson, the love we hold in our hearts for the people we were so fortunate to bond with (our families, friendships and relationships) really does last forever, and loving the human race, our earth is so important. We are only on this beautiful planet for the blink of an eye and we get so caught up in the moment, you let the stresses of life and the abundance of societal pressure get you down and make you feel you should be doing things differently, but in reality, like an old friend said to me tonight "you create your own happiness." At the moment, i've done another cycle and i've just applied for a job at the world of sea, (Sea world) and although it seems I'm going backwards, i believe working at a company you've already experienced can be a good thing. I have a renewed interest and i'd be working in a different department and i believe i possess the necessary skills and attributes for the job i've applied and i thought 'what the heck', so why not? So that i shall wait and hopefully get a response soon, otherwise i would love to volunteer at australia zoo again for two weeks. And in all honesty, i feel like now is the best time to move to Melbourne and do what i have always wanted to do, and just live and work there for a year. What a marvellous change of scenery it would be. I just love the culture, the nightlife and the food and i'd get to see more of my half brother. My life isn't stagnant, but i'm at the stage where i have an opportunity to make a life for myself and set up a nest somewhere. I'm 23 years old, and i just want to get out and explore a different city in Australia. Melbourne would be perfect.

I feel life has given me a whole lotta lemons of late and i've just got to take it for what it is. But i wanna be happy, not unhappy, and get out and experience new places and things. It's like im stuck here though, and it isn't a bad thing but at 23, nearly 24, i should be out on my own meeting people, going to classes, just having some fun with the girls, doing my pole dancing classes and getting fit. I think since i've quit my job, im going to have to go for a drive to the sunny coast or to byron and just hang out for a day or two, get up the mountain and head into the bush. Do things that make me happy with people that are my friends and fun to be around. People that know me and understand me.

This weeks goals

ONE: drink more water!

TWO: keep juicing it up.

THREE: bush walk.

FOUR: Ride my bicycle in Byron Bay.

FIVE: Organise an MRI for that stinkin annoying hip!

SIX: smile, paint, laugh, stay up all night and drink red wine.

JP x