Rambling Onwards

Two weeks ago I headed up to Port Stephens with my girl friends for a few nights away to catch up and get away from life in general. A lot of it was spent talking, eating, playing cards, playing music (there was a lot of Taylor Swift and EDM), making jello shots and eating said jello shots. I'm so glad we had that time together because it's always so difficult for all five of us to spend a decent amount of time together because our schedules are so packed and often clash.

Day 1: We went tobagganing in Salamander Bay which was super cool! We're laughing because we're too far for Kwynne to fit in the photo.

But here's what I'm going to do about it.

1. Get enough sleep. 

I've been sleeping at 11-11:30pm the last few nights, so it's helped with feeling well rested. I've even had to avoid the caffeine because it makes me feel too unsettled.

2. Come up with a plan. 

Having a plan helps with planning your day (duh) but also breaking up time into digestible chunks so you can focus, take a break, focus etc.

3. Do what you feel like doing.
In terms of subjects, it's always best to do something if you have inspiration for it or a sudden drive to finish a task - as long as you come back to your other tasks. I managed to do this today - I couldn't focus on agenda setting so I decided to start an essay about Facebook and social media. #ArtsStudentLife

4. Start doing things that I used to love (and still do) but I don't do much of anymore.
I used to swim, dance, play flute and do more sport on a regular basis. Fast forward to today and I haven't been to a pool or touch my flute in months, and the only dancing I've done is either at parties or at revue. It's just not quite the same.

This point is actually inspired by my friend Donna (you can find her post here) who also flagged her lack of fitness as an issue - and since I still stand by the idea that you shouldn't stop anything to study, I don't know why I did. It's time to get back to the pool and use my 20 visit pass, and pick up my flute again and do things that I enjoy.

5. And finally, remember that everything follows a process and that it never really stops, so it's best to pull out time to hang out with friends, family and relax as you're going along. Something that I should probably manage a bit better.

Also remember to have a change of scenery because that also does wonders to increase productivity.

Other things like having a cup of tea or going for a walk are also very useful in the short term. Tell me how you stay focused in the comments below!

With love, Sarah x

First image: corporation-cats.tumblr.com
Second image: the-real-eye-to-see.tumblr.com
Third image: postivelifetips.com
Fourth image: slothilda.com

#1 - Wild
As I was younger, I could never understand why people would drink, get drunk, possibly drink too much, lose it and then do things that they regret. I didn't understand why people would do something to themselves. Now after hearing more about people's experiences and validating that you don't have to be smashed in order have fun (or be drunk at all), it's a normal thing that sometimes people need a few drinks to let loose and it's okay. I was out with a friend for dinner and we were talking over dinner and drinks about how we didn't expect ourselves to understand this idea as we do now, and that we never thought we would want to drink much. But things change, and people grow up, but as long as your health comes first and it's in moderation it's okay. Know your limits, friends.

Plus I genuinely enjoy my wines and certain spirits, so it's more for enjoyment than anything else most of the time.

#2 - Bite
It's good to take risks. Especially for someone who is like me and tends to be very measured in what I do - and I'm glad that with uni and meeting people from many backgrounds has exposed me to new ideas and things. I think people are very much influenced by the people who they hang around - at least this seems to be the case for me. But no matter who I am around, there are still some boundaries that I don't want to cross - but I know that my morals will hold strong.

It's good to explore new places. Do new things, experience life and make mistakes. I should do more of this, since I feel like I was quite sheltered when I was younger as well.

I've also found that Humans of New York's latest series on refugees has been very eye opening, and telling stories is a very good way of connecting the global community. This is something we shouldn't forget.

#3 - Fools
Relationships can be fleeting, even when you think they will last for a long time. I now realise that my younger self was quite naive - and the moment that I realised was when I friend told me a quote that I had told her several years ago in regards to relationships.
It was really strange, hearing these words from her almost two years after I told her because my first thought was about how silly and naive the quote is. Why? Because it's a very simplistic and hopeful way of looking about how relationships develop.

When she said it to me, I almost laughed. I believe it more now, but I guess I just have to trust in fate.

I've also realised that romantic and sexual feelings towards other people are much more complex than I originally realised, and although two people may love each other, there are many other reasons as to why they aren't together rather than just timing or distance, which now seem like very simplistic conclusions. There's also a lot more grey areas that I didn't know about.

I also adore this song - I love how it starts as a piano/voice piece before it builds into a much thicker texture that changes the dynamic of the song completely. It's beautiful.

#4 - Ease
I've always acknowledged the fact that one should look after all aspects of their health and take time to relax, wind down, and spend time with those who are important. There are people I miss spending time with after high school, but it's really important to make that effort just to catch up and talk about life properly. Sometimes though, you have to realise you can't see everyone at the same time and expect that same level of conversation, and I'm finding that it's taking a massive toll on me because I've given up a lot of me-time to keep up with studies, work, internship and my social life. And as much as I love how things are (jokes, stress), I know that I should be putting aside more time for myself.

Thank you to my girls for this - and I love how the theme was 'relaxation'! You guys know me too well.

This song is another favourite of mine - Troye Sivan himself said that the song was about missing home. And I miss home. But home for me is no longer just my physical home with family, but also with the people who I consider my second family because I'm at that level with them.

#5 - The Quiet
There's a lot in the world that we don't know about, a lot that we don't hear about, especially if a entity doesn't want that knowledge to be very well known. For example, I was quite surprised when I realised how many brands were under Nestle and how unrelated to food some of them were, like L'oreal and their high end perfumes from Ralph Lauren and YSL for example.
It didn't help that Mondelez International is also so huge.

A lot happened yesterday, especially on social media. Year 12 graduation at Ruse, campaigns for society elections (being connected to both BSOC and LawSoc makes it a bit crazy) and the #libspill, with Turnbull as our new Prime Minister (bye Tony Abbott - make sure you #PutYourOnionsOut friends). It was also my first full day back at university without Law Revue, and I guess it's strange but at the same time life keeps moving on and other things catch up to you. So instead I thought I'd take some time to reflect on what I've done over the last year, because a lot has changed since high school.

This time last year with my girls - the final days. Cannot believe it's been a year already. Photo by whoever had Michelle Xu's camera.

I'll admit that I'm a studious person - it's something that hasn't really left me and the idea that I should always try my best at something has been drilled into me since I was young. So I try. And when I was younger it was much easier because the workload was much less, and I could commit to all these other things that weren't academically related. Today, it just doesn't seem to be working out as well.

With Law Revue, I've spent a lot of time in the library studying when all my other friends have been chilling or roaming around uni and I really just don't see them. There have been days in the last few weeks where I question my work ethic and what it's doing to other aspects of my life - I find it interesting that others have said that they want my ability to sit down and study for long periods of time because they don't see what I'm missing out on. I think going to a high school with people who work very hard (academically or otherwise) doesn't necessarily help - my need to fill up all my days with organised events or simply a list of things to do can be problematic sometimes, because rarely can I be spontaneous and my schedule is very full (not to mention that not being on top of things stresses me out very easily).

Having all these hours of promos doesn't really help with the whole trying to stay up to date with study and getting ready for assessments, but I guess I'll deal with that later. I also feel like I'm missing out when I'm not promoting with my revue friends since I'm never there when they do cool things that end up in videos, photos or social media but at the same time I know I need to study.

A friend told me this quote and said that I'd like it. I did. What do you think? Is it true? Let me know what you think.

The main thing I want to say is that I feel like I'm not experiencing Law Revue to the fullest - it has literally taken over my life, but at the same time having to worry about assessments, assignments and staying up to date with a full time study load while also interning and tutoring doesn't let me enjoy it fully. There's always a grey storm cloud looming over me, ready to fall apart the moment I can't maintain the discipline.

My message to you is to know when to draw the line, to know when you have enough on your plate or too much on your plate and work out how to get out of it asap.

Know when you aren't coping, and that it's okay to take it easy and do less. 

As for me, I'm going to kick ass in this week in the four Law Revue shows that I have (and enjoy all the socials afterwards with the wonderful second family that is revue). Assignments can wait.

With love, Sarah x 

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