Living A Life

As I stood in our current driveway this week, sweeping up slivers of glass, to the ‘gentle serenade’ of next door’s heavy rock garage band, I was reminded to never underestimate your personal safety.

The area we’re currently staying in appears to be a nice spot, and our car was securely locked (even parked directly under a street lamp), but obviously it still appealed to some ‘little darling’ with excess time, empty pockets and a less than conventional view on legal ownership.

Thankfully, not TOO much was stolen from our car, which is especially lucky when you consider how many of our personal belongings it usually holds on a daily basis. No, in many ways we were lucky, although that hasn’t really had much of an effect on this week’s diverse vocabulary whilst we’ve been talking about the ‘little darlings’, organising a replacement window and coming to terms with being unsettled by the break-in.

We’ve always been aware of the risks of carrying all our daily needs in the car, but have also always believed that… providing you’re sensible and don’t focus on possible negative events… there’s a limited chance of you attracting negativity into your life. In most cases this theory has served us well… incredibly well, in fact. But needless to say, because of this belief, there’s plenty of teasing going on between us at the moment as to what attracted the event. 

Was it our occasional comment on still needing to downsize our belongings? 

Was it my comment about not wanting to throw out one of my favourite (but ageing) back-pack? 

Maybe it was because we’d just watched a TV show on minimalising, and another mentioning the need to protect yourself if you’re travelling the world.

Who knows! 

Either way, more thought is currently being put into ways of increasing the safety of our car, ways that don’t also increase our focus on the need for it.

Funnily enough, this has all happened in a week where I’d heard - more than once - about the wide range of young women in their early twenties who are travelling alone, but also safely, around the world (even in some scary countries).

There’s no doubt that there are risks in the world (both to you and your belongings) and that by putting yourself out there, you’re chances of coming into contact with them are increased. But then curbing your life, passions and pursuits to lessen risks has to be wrong, don’t you think? After all, if you’re going to be hit by a bus, wouldn’t you rather it was while fulfilling a life-long dream rather than while you’re cautiously, hiding out in a safe street wishing life was different?

Live your life, take sensible precautions and focus on the positive - is my theory. But most importantly, live your life and be happy!


- For those who are asking, not much of extremely high monetary value was taken from the car (the majority of those things were elsewhere - thankfully). It was mainly things of personal value and useful bits and pieces that went - or it appears that way at the moment. 

Did You Know It Still Existed?

I have to admit, it all took me a bit by surprise - as much because it was possible, as just because it happened.

I mean, I know I’ve become more internet and technology minded over the last few weeks (maybe even months), the last blog post says that, but even so… to be thrown by this…

This is something that should affect people who are permanently attached to their phones and tablets, not me!

After all, I remember a life when you weren’t constantly and instantly contactable. I remember a time when you could go all day without receiving a message from somebody. I even remember a time when constantly carrying enough coins to use a public phone box was considered not just wise, but essential.

Why then (considering all that) am I still thrown by the fact that I’m sitting below a majestic Red Gum, surrounded by blue wrens, being dive-bombed by butterflies, all to the constant soundtrack of cicadas and a summer breeze, and yet still trying to adjust to the fact that I can only be contacted by email, and (believe it or not) actual, personal, physical interaction?

Tell me, am I the only person who didn’t know there were still entire towns in Western Australia that were out of mobile phone range?

Yes, I accept that some houses choose not to have a landline. In fact, the last three houses we stayed in opted just for mobile phones, and no corded ones! But complete towns where my mobile phone won’t work…

I can still take photos with it, though, and connect to the internet, check the weather, check where I am and where I’m going, heck, I can even play my favourite word game on it. In fact, my phone can currently do a whole load of things… if only one of them was make a phone call!