CONNECTED in 2018

So have you heard the word? The word is to have a word. A word to live by and guide you through 2018.

At the beginning of every year I don't give much thought to this. But by the second or third week, I read many 'word' posts floating around the blogosphere. 

They inspire me to think about my own goals for the year, and the things I want to better at, and fears I want to overcome.

In past years I have had 'brave', which lead me to entering more photography comps, and doing things out of my comfort zone. Another 'no guilt' which I know is two words, but pushed me not be guilty about me time, and all those other silly things that mums and wives seem to let seep into thier feeling guilty filter.

This year I am focusing on being CONNECTED.


HOME

• Connected to knowing when I need a break, some me time. Instead of powering through and falling into an emotional, cranky heap.
• Paying more attention to my health and fitness.
• Connected to what my kids need to succeed, at school(which means more communication with thier teachers, which I am slack at). Listening to them, and asking meaningful questions about their day and how they are feeling. 
• Spending more time together, around the table at dinner time.

WORK 

• Forcing myself to be better at communication with parents of my gymnasts students. 
• Communicating well with other coaches, and committee members at the gym club.

COMMUNITY

• Actually get out of the car and talk to other parents at school pick up.
• Now that the community garden is under other management, get involved. I am actually excited about this, after the circus monkeys that used to run it.
• When someone says "hi, how are you", acutally ask the same to them instead of saying "good thanks" and moving on.

I am not good at talking to people. I seem to avoid it, rather than seeking it out.

I am one of those people who sit back and watch, think too hard about conversation before I speak, and end up not saying much at all. 

It is hard work for me sometimes to actually get the words out of my head, and out of my mouth. I hide behind a smile and for a long time, I have gotten away with that. 

I am sure I have some sort of social anxiety when it comes to talking to new people. I am not so bad at saying hello, but anything further than that is like being a deer in the headlights. Bloody confronting.

So this is something I want to be better at this year. To not be afraid to speak. To say the words in my head, without being afraid that they might sound silly, or they may come out muddled up, which they mostly always do. I am not confident in conversation, especially with people I don't know well.


So my goal this year is so just speak. Communicate, connect.Talk to people!

An InLinkz Link-up

The cup fence

One of my second week of school holiday jaunts to get the girls out of the house was to the cup fence. I'd been hearing about it for a while, but not knowing exactly where it actually was. 

I stalked the comments on a photo on facebook (someone I'm not friends with), and surely enough someone asked where it was (insert smiley face).

The cup fence is about half way down Walker's tin hut road, a few kilometres out of town, towards Adelaide. We came onto the road from the Adelaide Road end, and I told the girls to keep thier eyes out for cups on the fence. I saw htem before they did, but didn't say a word. They were a bit excited when they saw all the cups as I am sure they were a little baffled when I said we were going to the cup fence.

I'm not totally sure how long people have been hanging cups here, I don't think it's been too long.

When I mentioned it to Mum about taking the girls there, she offered some mugs she had in the shed, left over from boxes bought from clearing sales. I grabbed three and they sat in the car for a few days before I actually took the girls out there.

We hung our cups, and walked along looking at all the different kinds of mugs and tea cups. the girls ran up and down laughing and having the best time. I was great to be out as it had rained so much the few days prior. There were a few puddles laying about, and it wasn't long before they were getting muddy and wet. I made them strip down before they got in the car and it was in the bath straight away when they got home.

The fence has been vandalised in the past couple of months, and it is a shame for those that have come and hung a cup. It's a wonderful community thing to be involved in. I'll be annoyed as hell if someone breaks our cups!

Now to venture on another day to the thong tree and the bra tree, when I work out exactly where they are!

I was so busy strolling along looking at cups, taking photos, I turned around and Izzy had put plastic bags over her shoes to splosh in the mud. She should have worn rubber boots like her sister! She ended arse over tit, with mud all down her back, and legs and thought it was hilarious.

  

The three mugs we hung up on the fence. We used small cable ties, which should keep them hanging up.

An InLinkz Link-up

When road tragedy strikes

Something tragic happened in our Limestone Coast community this week. Four young men lost their lives in a terrible and unfortunate road accident, just outside of Penola. 

They were on their way to work in the wee hours of Saturday morning, when the ute they were travelling in hit a tree and rolled. None of them survived.

It was sad and shocking. It rocked the entire forestry community, with a ripple effect to the rest of the Limestone Coast community, other parts of the country, and even further afield.

I was talking to a retired old forestry worker yesterday. This man is a real character who wears his heart on his sleeve. He's was a pine faller from way back and loved this industry. He was devastated at what had happened to these young blokes, commenting, 

"What really got me, is that it happened in an industry I love to bits......these were young men just starting out in the industry."

It affected me the same. My Dad worked falling pines in the forest and also in the saw mill, in the town where I grew up.

Every single day of my schooling life, I rode the bus on pine plantation lined roads, and even worked in a timber mill myself for a couple of years.

My husband Brett, drives trucks, loading from pine chippers in the local forests. He's on the roads going to work also, at the same time these young men had thier accident.

#putyourhardhatsout

An amazing suggestion by a local company, Merritts Logging, out of respect for the boys, was for people to place a hard hat, or hi vis vests to be left at our front doors on Monday.

I was so proud to see the response unfold on social media. It was such a stark reminder of how precious life is, and the amazing supportive community we have. To see people from Queensland, and even Los Angeles paying tribute was also amazing.

Port Douglas

The day after the accident, the third Sunday in November, just happened to be World Road Traffic Victims commemoration day. Our town has a memorial in one of our local parks, and there was a gathering there on Sunday.

It is vital that we are all aware of the fatal five behavioural factors that lead to tragic vehicle accidents on our roads.

1.  speeding
2.  not wearing seatbelts
3.  drink or drug driving
4.  fatigue
5.  inattention 

We are coming into one of the busiest times on the roads in the lead up to Christmas. The events of this week is a painful reminder to be patient and vigilant on the roads, and most of all, to never leave anthing unsaid and hug your loved ones tight.

Carpenters Rocks Community Hall

My place in time #34 - This sign makes me laugh

Well not laugh exactly, but I find it amusing. Amusing enough to make me smile and let out a quiet one breath laugh. 

It makes me wonder who had the job of spray painting the signs. I love the way they have sprayed the word 'toilet' with the decoration underneath, as if to say, here is the new loo, isn't it lovely. Daggy, but with a dash of community pride. For a round concrete structure, it is quite clean, one of the best I have seen. Not only is it awesomely tiled, but is surrounded by a community hall, tennis court, camping ground, a challenging playground and an awesome free bbq area.

I am really enjoying discovering all these great things and exploring around our new second home. Like if you walk over that little sandhill next to the old loos, you come to find the fabulous Bucks Bay, where the local fishing boats moor, the kids can have a paddle in the surf or you can chuck a rod in the water. But more about that another time.

Happy Australia Day! Pride in community, is pride in ordinary places, that in our hearts and minds become extraordinary. Our country is extraordinary.

An InLinkz Link-up