Who wants to have everything??

Hello everyone!

I hope you have all had a lovely Christmas. I had a wonderful day with my family and also getting to know my new neighbours. After all the rain, it was wonderful to wake up to a beautiful and cool summer's day.

One of the things that I was very sad to leave in my old neighbourhood were my neighbours. It was in that neighbourhood that I finally understood what it meant to belong to a supportive community of unlike-minded people. (Link takes you to my post in the other blog I write in.)

Anyway, now that I'm slowly settling in to my new neighbourhood, I have been pleasantly surprised at how nice everyone has been. In part, I know that I have gotten to know them because...well, 'cause I don't have a lot of things.

Some time ago, I wrote this in my post about asking for help:

Being "highly independent" is valued in our culture. But I realised that being highly independent is actually a myth. There's no such thing. Instead what happens is that the dependency is transferred from being dependent on other people to being dependent on gadgets, appliances and all the various things that create the illusion that one is highly independent (often marketed as making your life easier - another myth, in my opinion)

One of the things I've realised is that when you don't have that much stuff, then connecting with others becomes essential. Now that I am in a new neighbourhood, I am slowly starting to connect with my neighbours - not only in a social sense, but also in a work sense. Already my new neighbours have let me borrow their tools and given me great advice.

Today, a neighbour helped me get rid of a large overgrown climbing plant that was wrecking both of our fences. I didn't have the tools nor the muscle to get rid of it and he did. I helped by providing back-up muscle, clean-up and refreshments.

Remnants of the monster climber (thank goodness its gone)

And as I relax now into my evening, I am once again struck by how lucky I am to be surrounded by such kind and generous people...somehow this seems especially fitting given this time of year.

I wish you all peace and good will for the season.

I am in the new house! (and reflections on stuff)

Hi everyone!

Well, its certainly been a hectic few days here for me...and I have to say, I am still tired and not quite fully recovered.

The move didn't go at all well... I arrived to a filthy house and made the fatal mistake of accepting it. I have since realised that it was my right to refuse the house in the state it was left in and the right thing to do would've been to call a lawyer.

...so rather than concentrating on unpacking and doing a light clean, I spent a lot of my time doing some heavy duty cleaning from 6am till 2-3am for the first 3 days and then unpacking from there.

Ah well - that's all behind me now. My house is now clean and the inside is unpacked and organised. (Just the garage to unpack and organise!)

...yep - after only 1 week, I have pretty much settled in. While I normally don't blow my own trumpet, I will admit in this instance to being a legend on getting all this done before Christmas. (insert tired and slightly delirious smilie here - hehe).

My living room in my new house

Someone once told me that moving house is right up there on the list of major stresses in life. And having done it recently, I think one of the causes of this stress is that its one of the few times in life when our stuff-overload blindness (SOB) is ripped off and we see how much stuff we actually have. To save you from clicking on the link, SOB is basically my ramblings on how we use stuff to project our identity but we don't actually see how much stuff we (or others) have.

In my experience, SOB has often left me a bit uneasy - but that uneasiness is nothing compared to what happens when that blindness lifts and we actually see how much stuff we have. (The feeling when this happens can best be described as "AAAAUUUUUGGGH!!")

Now, regular readers here will know that I had reached a point in my life when I was happy with the amount of stuff I had. I had decluttered a lot and I enjoyed the ease that comes with not having to look after so much stuff.

Having said that, in preparing for this move, I was still very surprised at how much stuff I had accumulated in the two years since I started my new life as a sole parent. So much so that I ended up having to declutter again. The declutter consisted of:

• 1 commercial van load of stuff given away
• 1 commercial van load of stuff I sold
• 2 full car loads of stuff sent to the op shop (charity shop)

Those who have been to my old place (you can see my old place starting from this post) have often commented on how uncluttered my house is. Despite that, I *still* found - if not exactly clutter - then excess stuff I don't/barely use.

Its kinda scary really.

So here I am now relaxing in my new (and smaller) house. I am, for now, excess-stuff free. But in the back of my mind, I am wondering....how long will it be before I am once again afflicted with my form of SOB and end up with excess stuff?

I hope you are all well!

Here comes the rain again....

Falling on my head like a memory

Falling on my head like a new emotion...

Hello everyone,

I am writing this blog post in my old home. It's my last night. My things are packed and I'm surrounded by boxes.

...and its raining. Those who live in southeastern Australia would know how much rain we've had over the last few weeks. There are many towns currently in flood. And this is amazing to me.

Long term readers of this blog may remember how, from time to time, I would comment about how dry the ONC has been for years and years...or how my daughter was 2 years old before she actually saw rain.

Over the last few years, the water situation here had gotten to the point where the ONC Government started putting up water usage signs at the side of major roads telling us how full (or not full) our dams were, how much we used yesterday and what the water usage target should be.

Water usage sign on Adelaide Avenue. Photo by NathanaelB

Today, I drove past the sign and noticed that for the first time in years (more than a decade, according to local news reports), our dams are 100% full. And the water usage target was no longer flashing up.

This feels weird to me. I acknowledge the destruction these rains are causing surrounding regions. But...at the same time, I can't help but regard these rains with awe and pleasure. These rains are bringing back the green landscape that I remember from my childhood.

And as I sit here in my packed up house, I can't help but feel that the rain is an apt environment for me to sift through old memories, say good bye to old dreams and start a new life.

I hope you are all enjoying a good week. Wish me some sunshine for tomorrow. :)

I want to walk in the open wind

I want to talk like lovers do

I want to dive into your ocean

Is it raining with you

*ONC = Our Nation's Capital