We each inhabit a specific vantage point from which we blog. What’s yours?
Inspiring Max is inspired by my thoughts, experiences and travels. It is a mixed blog that aims to think outside the square and encourage its viewers to consider a different way of looking at life. My blog is represented by a gray double rainbow that reminds me that even after the darkest storms comes the rainbow to assist us to change our perspective. Some of the values that I aim to share on Inspiring Max are
I am naturally good at the balance sport—trampoling, roller skating and ice skating.
I am naturally good at resolving conflicts and being the go to person when people want a friend to talk to. I would get the ex best friends talking again and suddenly I was being ignored again.
I am a naturally good at knitter. The first time I created something my teacher didn’t believe that I had done it because it was too perfect and looked like my mother had knitted it.
Would you prefer a one floor house or multiple levels?
Having lived in both I definitely prefer an open plan single storey house.
What was your favorite subject in school?
I don’t remember having a favourite subject at school although possibly home science. I did okay at school but I had to work at it.
Complete this sentence: If only the rain.. would stop or turn into snow. This is what my husband and I said to each other last Christmas when we had traveled to Canada for a white Christmas and the rain kept washing away the small amount of snow we got.
“What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?”
Last week I was grateful for the many learn opportunities I had at work through mistakes made. This week I am looking forward to giving my 10th advanced speech and receiving my Advanced Communicator Bronze award at Toastmasters.
Write a letter to the personality trait you like least, convincing it to shape up or ship out. Be as threatening, theatrical, or thoroughly charming as is necessary to get the job done.
Dear Messiness,
You are an inherent trait with me since birth, definitely a direct descendant of both my mother and father. You are my automatic default particularly when I am busy or tired and to put it bluntly, in the end, you usually just create me more work. You are out of control and have to go. I am sick of even the small amounts of time you have taken from me, as I need to search through your mess to find what I want or need. One of the things I have noticed about you is that the busier and crazier my day is, the more out of control you get. You definitely can tell the state of my mind by the state of my desk.
WELL NO MORE.
We are parting ways. You sabotage my goals and steal my precious time. So, I have decided to be the change I want to see in the world or more importantly, my family. Over the next few months, I am going to mindfully work on eliminating you. It will take a while but you will lose. They say old habits die hard but I am looking forward to your death. You serve no positive purpose in my life and I will work hard to rebirth you using my monthly coffee catch-ups to share my success at changing my world.
Which quirky habit annoys you the most, and what quirky habit do you love — in yourself, or others.
Our quirky habits are what makes us individuals. By being individual, our quirks and habits blend together to make an interesting eclectic mix full of high and low points. Without black and white you can’t appreciate colour and sometimes to get the full impact of a situation you need to see it in black and white to feel the emotion.
My greatest quirk is probably my ability to always find the positive in anything and work with it — even if to begin with, it is only a spark. I am its oxygen and over time the fire of positivity grows g bigger brighter and stronger. My goal in life is the same as Inspiring Max’s, “to inspire you—developing a spark of hope into a fire that warms you and lights your path.”
In my opinion, the opposite to my quirky world is a Stepford world. And whilst I enjoyed the movie for its entertainment value, I would hate to live in a world where everyone is the same. I love the uniqueness our quirks— good and bad — bring to our lives. They all teach us something, even if that something is what not to do.
If we were having coffee I would tell youthat I can’t believe it’s already February. As this year is going so fast I have decided to catch up for coffee with you every month.
If we were having coffee I would tell you how much I miss the beach and how I enjoyed my first swim of summer when my husband and I went to the coast on our mini break over the Australia day long weekend. Most of the beaches were closed due to dangerous surf however we persevered and found one open with life guards patrolling it. Lighthouse Beach I love you as I felt safe enough to go for a swim. The water was so fresh and clean on my skin. I was in my element bobbing in the waves until suddenly……. I found myself out of control under the water being turned around sand churning up. The waves dumped me. It happened so quickly, all I could see underwater was sand and foam. I was grateful that the surf life savers didn’t need to save me but I certainly was reminding myself that they would notice me missing if I didn’t come up. Fortunately I was able to save myself and when I popped up for air I decided I was too shaken to stay so I walked out of the surf attempting to focus I the more pleasant aspects of my afternoon swim. That same day there had been several drownings up and down the east coast of Australia so it was no wonder the beaches were closed.
Lighthouse Beach
If we were having coffee I would tell you how excited I am with my new coffee machine. When I decided to get one I wasn’t sure which way to go however in the end I decided to go with the biggest variety of pods and the simplest system. I choose the Caffitaly system and a S22 machine. It is a fully automatic one touch capsule machine that has pods from Twinings, Grinders, Gloria Jeans, Moccona and many more. The first drink I made was an extra strong cappuccino and it was amazing. I am please I paid a bit extra for the machine with the milk attachment included and that I didn’t have to froth my milk separately.
If we were having coffee I would tell you about a little friend my husband and I found overseeing the water at Lennox Head Beach. He was lizard of some description although we didn’t get too close to him so as not to scare him off. We thought he was cute, what do you think?
If we were having coffee I would tell you the storms in Sydney last we were so fierce that within a two-minute window our courtyard went from having no water in it to looking like a toddler’s swimming pool with 5 centimetres of water. There was so much water the drains couldn’t cope so they forced it back out and into our courtyard which has a cover over it. Then as quickly as the water arrived within the half an hour it was gone again leaving behind mud and leaves to tell the tale.
If we were having coffee I would tell you how I enjoyed the annual catch up visit with my long time girlfriend in early January. We have made it a tradition now as life gets busy and we live in different cities. We spending the weekend reflecting, reminiscing and celebrating the year that was, which helps keep us connected and safe in the knowledge that we always just pick up from where we left off the last time we saw each other.
If we were having coffee I would tell you about spending Australia Day 26th January in regional Australia instead of at home in Sydney. It was a little harder to just go out and BBQ lamb so in keeping with tradition I cooked my lamb when I arrived home from the airport. To help me celebrate I also watched this classic video on the day to remind me of all the great things Australia has. The Big Prawn in this film clip is in one of the cities we visited over the Australia Day long weekend. Enjoy!
If we were having coffee I would ask you what you have done in the last month. Let me know in the comments?
Tell us about a time when you were left on your own, to fend for yourself in an overwhelming situation — on the job, at home, at school. What was the outcome?
I believe learning by doing is the only way to grow—it teaches skills that are never forgotten. Initially the situation may appear overwhelming particularly if it is based on dealing with a sudden crisis, however by using St Francis of Assisi’s quote I have found a way through many tough times.
The whole idea of sink or swim to me bring to mind pictures of young children being forced into the water by their parents as an act of love. The parents need to make sure they learn to get back to the side of the pool and save their life, if they fall into a swimming pool without an adult watching to rescue them. Initially, there is a lot of screaming and protesting. Then as the young child listens to the instructions, they are rewarded by the freedom of moving unaided in the water. They can swim and they are so proud. Nobody remembers the fear—they remember the success.
What are your thoughts on aging? How will you stay young at heart as you get older?
I believe has two choices when it comes to ageing.
Embrace it
Succumb to it
Personally, I choose to embrace it. My life has become my own since I turned 50. Suddenly I can do many things off limits before because the families priorities needed to be different. My time and money is my own so now I can:
Buy what I like when I like—not that I do but I can
Travel overseas
Go away for weekends with little notice
Eat out for meals without considering the cost
Spend hours blogging
Spend more hours writing my book
Cook when it suits me
Start planning my retirement
Have an I don’t want to do anything day whenever I need to
Control my own sleep
Yes this old body of mine can’t do everything it used to, but my mind can do a lot more. Over my 50+ years I have developed a lot of coping strategies and emotional intelligence that I plan on using to keep my body and mind as young and active as they can be for my next 50 years. As my brain like all of the muscles in my body needs to be used daily to keep it working I will continue to focus on the positive and follow Martha Stewart’s top 10 tips on how to age well.
Eat well
Maintain a healthy weight
Be active
Get quality sleep
Wear sunscreen
Collaborate with a good primary care doctor (GP) regularly
Treats and indulgences can take many forms. Share yours with us!
I love Disney so going to Disneyland is my favourite treat. Unfortunate, living in Australia means it is many years between my indulgences. I hope you enjoy these photos taken at Hong Kong Disney in 2012. They brought a smile back to my face.
My most prized possession is my ability to cope with what ever comes my way. My life has been an interesting miss mash of experiences that have helped me developed my personal resilience. At times, I laughing joke that resilience is the one thing that I have achieved a high distinction in. Seriously however—personal resilience is no laughing matter. Although, it is the corner-stone of emotional intelligence. The following acrostic poem describes some of the values my personal resilience has taught me.
Resourcefulness
Encouragement
Sincerity
Intuition
Logic
Integrity
Empowerment
Nurturance
Clarity
Empathy
To help you develop your personal resilience, look into the lessons your tough times have taught you. Moving forward they can turn into powerful tools that you can use to support yourself and others in times of need.
