Penchant for Pondering

What will she think of next?

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23 Aug 2012
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The little engine that did! (run the GC Marathon…)

On the 1st July 2012, I completed a lifelong dream of running a marathon.  I didn’t come first (obviously) and my time was a lot slower than I was hoping for BUT I did it!!

As a child I always identified with the story of The Little Engine that Could. I am the runt of the litter and what I have always lacked in stature I have always made up for with tenacity…

I tend to follow the road less travelled… and the journey to completing my first marathon is no different.  This journey started a mere 7 months ago at the beginning of February  and culminated 7 weeks ago on 1 July.

I can honestly say that I have been changed completely – by not only achieving my goal but by undertaking the journey.  I have been changed in every way a person can be changed – physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually…

At the beginning of February I couldn’t run for 3 minutes straight without stopping and gasping for air.  Yet a mere 5 months later found myself running the Gold Coast Marathon…  I started the race with the mantra – “I think I can” – and just like the Little Engine – I ended up chanting to myself, “I know I can!”

There were some interesting events that occurred during the day that I definitely wasn’t at all prepared for.

The first being the “convenience” breaks that were needed. My first “stop” occurred at 13kms.  I had a little niggle before the starting gun went off but put it down to  some pre-race nerves.  However, by the 13kms mark realised that it was not just nerves and needed to be attended to.  After some time waiting in line I managed to get back out on the road again.  This is where the first or many mental challenges came as the pace setter that I planned on sticking with was well and truly down the road. A quick re-evaluation saw me running again chanting to myself “I think I can”.

I had a race plan that I would keep hydrated and so at every aid station I  took fluids on board.  A great plan except by the 39kms mark the urge came again, the port-a-loos were just there and so I thought to myself ‘I’ll quickly duck in and then finish this race off’.  What I didn’t take into consideration was that my quads would not want to co-operate when I tried to stand up again. After an excruciating few minutes I managed to make my way back out onto the course and finish those last few kms.

Another mental challenge came around the 33kms mark.  It was at this point a lot of the crowds were behind you while you weaved your way up through to the northern most turning point and then to work your way back to the finish line.  It was during this section of the race that a number of people were dropping off, getting injured, or simple unable to keep going.  I must admit that I was really thankful for a chat with a fellow competitor for the next few kilometres that kept me moving forward.

It’s interesting what confronts you when you are attempting something that pushes your body to the limit.  And I confess the dark clouds that are often buried deep within raised their heads.  I had been warned about the mind and what it does while running such a race but these clouds appeared a lot earlier in the race than I expected.  So, I took the opportunity on the long road ahead to confront and deal with them and the sense of relief I now feel is indescribable.

The other unexpected change that occurred was that of an almost spiritual reawakening… As a woman of faith I guess this was inevitable but something I wasn’t expecting and something which has changed me, not only permanently but also, for the better.

The other amazing part of the day was the volunteers and the crowds clapping and encouraging you along the way.  Strangers saying “Well done, you can do it!!”, “You are amazing!”  Thinking about this still brings a tear to the eye.

There are so many people that supported and encouraged me along the way -

  • Mumma Bear, who although tentative at first, caught the vision of what I was trying to do and was nothing but a rock through the journey.
  • The Mac’s whose on the ground encouragement and the loan of their family saying “Spur On” was also an integral part of the journey.
  • The TDH girls who plied me with the Elixir of Life (Coffee), you kept me training when I thought I couldn’t train anymore.
  • Dr Major Cuz, who lined up at the start line with me and made sure I got on my way – heartfelt thanks!
  • My dear friend, who took time out from her family to make the trip up to the GC and keep me calm in those final hours leading up to the race.
  • Trax, the Bonster and Miss MJ, for making the trek also – the cheering and encouragement was truly amazing.
  • Teacher P – knowing that you came all that way to cheer me on was just brilliant.
  • Cuz’ P & E, you guys rock!! – will treasure that you were there when I crossed the finish line always.
  • The friends in Wally World and beyond who checked in and were just interested in how things were going and the friends in FB land who encouraged me along the way, even though they were probably sick of reading status updates about training.

It truly was a group effort that got me across that finish line and a group effort that made a change in me for the better.

After I crossed the finish I had a little weep and I adopted a new mantra – “I am woman, hear me roar!”

I really do feel like I can accomplish anything now.

This is no more evident than in the fact that I have now signed up for a half ironman (70.3) in Canberra… Who knows how this will turn out but I know one thing is for sure – I will enjoy the journey…

PS I’ll be back to the GC next year to attempt the race again (and see if I can do it a little faster next time :) )

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16 Jun 2012

Running to the corner, running very fast…

My friends and family know that I am currently training for my first marathon…

You ask, “What has this to do with being a city girl practicing law in the country?” Absolutely nothing – but it is part of my life journey so thought “why not share it with you”.  When I say ‘absolutely nothing’ – that is not completely true… I initially started running to assist with coping with the stress of my job.

I have spent the last 5 months training for this marathon (which is in 2 weeks – eek!!).  To be honest, when I started I couldn’t run 3 minutes without a walk in between runs – so getting to this point I feel a great sense of accomplishment.

This dream of running a marathon all started in childhood whilst watching the marathoners at the Olympics and eventually turned into a “bucket list” item.

As I celebrated a significant birthday this year it became apparent that it was time to start working my way through “the list”.  So here I am 2 weeks out and ready to run!

Last Saturday was my final “long run” before the big race – 36kms.  You would be surprised what goes through your mind as you pound away the hours on a long run.  It can be tedious and a little boring but also lonely, so the mind often wanders to different things…

There have been numerous points in my life when running was a preferred past time…

The first as a child – I used to love that moment when you feel so free just running around with no care in the world.  I remember that I used to do laps in the playground of my siblings’ school (whilst waiting for them to finish each day) and singing a little ditty, which goes like this:

“Running to the corner, running very fast, running to the corner, getting there at last… I’m puff puff puff, puff, puffing, I’m puffing alot – I’m hot hot hot…”

I could do these laps and sing this song for what felt like hours but what I’m sure was probably closer to 30 minutes.

The second recollection of running as a preferred past time is not such a fond memory but one that got me to where I am today.

I suffered from bulimia for 14 years (from the age of 10 to 24) and in the last few years of that struggle running became an important part of my life… I used to run to ‘the corner’ and run ‘very fast’ to try get away from the “dark” thoughts in my mind… Thankfully with great support from family, friends and a really good counsellor I managed to put that part of my life behind me and move on.

Which brings to today – with running becoming a preferred past time.  I now run with the healthier goal of using running to de-stress (and fulfilling a childhood dream!).

The thing that you quickly realise with attempting to run such a race is that it will take all your inner strength of mind (and not just of body) on race day.   All the prior experiences – running for fun, running to escape, running for mental well being will all come into play.

I know I will require a lot of perseverance to get across the finish line but as those close to me know – once I put my mind to something I am “like a dog with a bone” and will not give up until I have accomplished what I set out to achieve.

I have a time in mind but am not sure I will be able to make it.  However, the real aim this year is to just get across the finish line.

If you have a spare moment on the morning of July 1 – spare a thought for me and the many others running in the Gold Coast Marathon (@GCMarathon), as we run to the corner and try and run very fast…

I’ll let you know how I go…

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29 Mar 2012
1 Comment

Law! What is it good for?… Absolutely Nothing!

Well, this maybe a little tweak on some lyrics of the song sung by Edwin Starr (and others) but I’m sure you get the drift…

It’s been a tough few weeks in this small little corner of the legal world that I practice in….

I’ve been working on a case (which is continuing, so am unable to discuss any particulars) where the opposition attempted a “Goliath” type move on me by bringing to Court a much more highly qualified legal professional to try and scare me (and in essence my client) into backing down….

To this my response was ….  Pfft!   I believe in my client’s case and will fight to the death (whilst ever I am instructed to do so).

However, this little incident has got me pondering about the great divide between the law (and its practice) and the expectations of people who come into my office.

You see, many people come in with a problem to which they believe they have a common sense solution and think that the law will back them up.  Many times I have said to a client “these are your rights BUT this is the practical solution for getting what you are after” … (and often the twain do not meet).

I remember when I walked into this little country practice and had a discussion with my new boss about what the job entails – he said to me “now you’re here and practicing, you can forget everything you learnt in law school because it’s pretty much useless”.

Now, that was an over exaggeration but over the years in practice I can see where he was coming from.

People seem to believe that common sense will prevail… Unfortunately, if you are basing this belief on the law then you a not likely to ‘come up trumps’… My best advice to people is, if you run into a conflict where you want to get the law involved then you must think of your best compromise, as that is where you will probably end up.

The problem with the law is – it is an objectively, retrospectively written piece of governance but applied subjectively and in essence prospectively on our society…

So, when asked by the Federal Judge – “And what law are you basing this argument on?”…

I must stand beside Darryl Kerrigan and say  ”The Law of bloody common sense!”

Posted in Uncategorized
14 Mar 2012
5 Comments

Café au lait?

Coffee….  Or as I like to refer to it – the elixir of life!

Just the mention of the word makes me smile inside.  Yes, I am a bit of a coffee addict.

Prior to my move, I confess to being a little worried about the quality of coffee that would be available in this small rural community.

To my delight there is a little coffee house on the corner that serves the best coffee in this sunburnt (and sometimes water logged) country of ours.  Now, maybe some would say that I am over exaggerating but I will stick by my statement and swear in a Court that this is the case.

Yet, this little coffee house on the corner is more than just a place that I can purchase quality coffee.   It soon became and continues to be an extension of my lounge/dining room; a place where I can sit and ponder or chat with the many friends that I meet while enjoying the elixir of life.

It is the place where everybody knows my name.  I now understand how Norm felt whenever he walked into the Cheers Bar and was greeted with a hearty “Norm” – as this is the type of greeting I get whenever I arrive.  It is comforting (although sometimes a little disturbing) that the girls know what my order is even before it is spoken.

So to the owners of the little coffee house on the corner I say – thank you!

Not only for serving the best coffee ever, but also for making me feel so welcome and a part of this community.

And now, when asked

Cafe au lait?

my response is always

Merci beaucoup mon ami! (thank you very much my friend!)

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01 Mar 2012

Wherever the fear may be…. Look it in the Eye!

The Ponderosa is a wonderful place to live BUT… there have been some adjustments that this city slicker has needed to make.

Firstly, the bugs! Now, those who know me well know that I am Mottephobic (to save you looking it up – I have a moth phobia).

You are probably thinking “that is one of the strangest things I have heard in a long time”.  However, in my defense, the common definition for phobias is:

“… an extreme, irrational fear of a specific object or situation” (Ref: Britannica)

I make specific note of the term irrational fear  - but I digress.

By merely moving to the Ponderosa I have incidentally been involved in the psychological treatment known as “flooding”.  I am happy to report that I can now be around moths AND can actually catch and kill them – with my bare hands!!

The second (major) adjustment is the frogs…

The very first time I encountered a frog was when sitting in the bathroom, pondering – when I stood up out jumped a frog that proceeded to hop across the bathroom floor.  You can imagine the sound that emanated from that little room!

Since this first encounter there has been numerous others.  Some frogs have even made their way out into my lounge room.

It is my belief that the frogs are under the impression they are co-tenants. They are sorely mistaken! They don’t help with the rent, food bill, cleaning, washing etc. therefore they are unable to claim co-tenancy! (Claiming of squatters’ rights? – possibly…)

After many unsuccessful attempts at getting rid of the frogs I have resorted to a scheduling system i.e. they can use the bathroom when I am not…. So far there has been some confusion (on their part) about the timing of bathroom use but we are ironing out the kinks in the schedule and I believe it will turn out a very effective system of cohabitation.

Now, the encounter I have been dreading the most has happened this week…. MICE!

The other day I saw my first mouse and I assure you I didn’t sleep well that night.  I had visions of the mouse running across my head whilst sleeping.  The thought of it still makes my skin crawl.

I put the call out to my fb friends for suggestions on how best to trap the little blighters. There were some very helpful suggestions – ranging from “a fast eye with a quick broom handle” to “nutella”… I ended up using peanut butter – as that is all that was on hand at the time.

To be honest, a part of me is hoping I don’t catch anything because then I will have to deal with the disposal!

These creatures are not the only co-habitants of the Ponderosa…

There are also spiders, rabbits, foxes and feral cats – they also like to treat the Ponderosa as their own. However, they stay out of my way and I stay out of theirs.

I am still waiting on the arrival of the locust and snakes. I believe they are hanging around but they have not introduced themselves to date.

As I think about these encounters a saying, which I learnt whilst studying for my law degree, keeps coming to mind – “Wherever the fear may be… Look it in the eye!”.

As a city slicker this interaction with the local “wildlife” is very foreign but it is also a good learning curve.  I am daily confronted by things (and feelings towards things) that I have either avoided or didn’t even know were there.

Lessons in life abound….

The lesson here is that the things you are afraid of, whether seen or unseen, are around you every day in your work, rest and play – to this my catch cry is….

Wherever the fear may be – I will look it in the eye!

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23 Feb 2012

Run, Rabbit, Run, Rabbit… Run, Run, Run!

I wake up every morning to a number of rabbit’s on the front lawn of the Ponderosa… And, every morning this little ditti comes to mind:

Run, Rabbit, Run, Rabbit… Run, Run, Run!  Don’t give the farmer his fun, fun, fun!

For me, running has become a favourite pastime again…

I recently celebrated a significant birthday and as part of the lead-up to my birthday I compiled a ‘bucket list’… One of the items at the top of the list is to – run a marathon.  I will keep you posted on this endeavour…..

Running has many benefits but the most relevant one for me is that it helps relieve stress (you may recall from my previous blog that my other form of de-stressing is limited out here)…

I recently read a blog about the optimism of first year law students (click here for a further read).  A reference was made to the high level of anxiety and stress experienced by those in practice.

As practitioners we are meeting people during a time of high stress and anxiety in their lives.  One would be a robot if you were not affected by this and to some degree personally take on your client’s anxiety and stress.  The trick is to manage it by some form of healthy pastime.  For me – it is the run!

I must admit, that as a first year law student I had great expectations of the changes I would bring, not only to the practice of law in our country but also by making a positive difference to our society as a whole (I did say “great” expectations).

Being in practice I have had to readjust these expectations.

They are replaced by the appreciation of current and previous clients for help that we gave them at a time when they were experiencing high levels of stress and anxiety.  It would seem that my expectations could come to pass BUT it would be through helping one client at a time…

So, I will continue to try and help change our society and the practice of law – one client at a time…

And also run, run, run!

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16 Feb 2012
1 Comment

Bonjour, parlez-vous français?

Bonjour!  -

As I arrived at my new job in the small rural community that would soon become my home, I may as well have been speaking another language, given the looks I received as I greeted people as they came into my office.

You see, I was a city girl and used my city talk which, although we all speak the same language, you would think that I was speaking in some foreign tongue.

I would soon learn to welcome like all those around me with a hearty – G’day mate!

I remember my first day in the law office and thought to myself  ”wow, no running water in the building – people just wouldn’t believe me if I told them”.

There is no plumbing whatsoever in the building I work in!

The bathroom is what is known as an “outhouse”, down the back corner of the property, with the basin being housed in the “washroom” half way up the property, before you reach the backdoor of the building.

I had previously had some country “experience”, but have never encountered anything like this before.

Let me assure you, this was some change. I have never been camping and am used to five-star luxury accommodation – you can’t imagine what was running through my mind…

The other telling moment on my first day in a new town was when I discovered the shoe store.

I’d have to say one thought which crossed my mind was… “Where do all the real shoes live?”

How would I survive one week without being able to engage in one of my most treasured past-times – buying shoes?

It is the thing that can set my compass to north when passing through the Bermuda triangle that I call stress!  What was a girl to do?

It is these events (and many others that have happened since) that have prompted me to collect some form of written record of my adaption to country life.

Not just for prosperity’s sake, but also to keep a track of where I’ve come from so as to direct where I’m going.

Given I have a propensity (or some may say penchant) for pondering, I decided that this type of record keeping would best serve the purpose.

This is the place where I’ll not only share incidents from the office but also how a city girl adapts to country life.

So, welcome to my sojourn into the blogosphere….

All rise – Court is now in Session!

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