Luce's Eternal Sunshine

22 November 2013

I'm a twentysomething and I'll keep being me

My friend posted this link on her Facebook page the other day. For those too lazy to actually go check out the article, it's The 20 Mistakes You Don't Want to Make In Your 20s and it is pretty self explanatory. Obviously I was drawn to it because:

1. I adore lists; and

2. I am currently in my early 20s - WHAT!

Whilst I agree with many of the points the author makes (Hello 'Blaming anyone else but yourself for anything in life' and 'Forgetting about the piggy bank and spending every dollar you have' - I still have eight years to figure that one out, right?), I had a weird feeling after reading it.

It took me a while to pinpoint what it was, but then I realised. I was angry! I was actually fuming that this author decided he was the one and only twenty something who had ever lived and he alone dictated the way it should be, no babies, relationships or mistakes allowed.

So of course, me being me, I analysed the shiz out of my feelings - was I just feeling inadequate, did I just tick too many of the boxes for my own liking? The answer is no. Yes, I do tick some of the boxes ('Getting comfortable like you actually deserve down time' and 'Thinking that this is the right time to fall in love' - I'm in a relationship BUT I did make that decision in my teenage years so technically...). Yes, there are times where I compare myself with others through the joys of 'social media stalking' and seem to fall really short, but the dislike I had for this overall article was something different.

The author hadn't taken into account the myriad of different twenty somethings out there. The twenty somethings who are happy being young mummies or the ones who don't figure out what they want to do until they're in their 30s. I'm not saying it's for everyone but by publishing these kind of articles that cast judgement upon people who live their lives, it's actually being a bit hypocritical. It's saying "look to challenge yourself and build your own dream"...as long as that dream aligns with MY idea of a worthwhile dream.

There are times when I've been guilty of just that. Anyone who knows me knows I can think of nothing worse than having a baby right now but two of my close friends have had babies in the last year AND THEY'RE BOTH UNDER 25! Shock horror. I remember when I found out, I was slightly thrown and had to pull myself up and realise that dreams, wishes, wants and needs come in all shapes and sizes.

This is something we all have to understand and be a lot more open minded about. As long as you're living as true to yourself as possible, why should you be concerned what someone else is doing. I mean, if they're wrong, according to the handbook of life, isn't your twenties the time to make mistakes anyway?

xx Luce

7 October 2013

Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and right doing, there is a field

Book club time!

Yes, book club. Please don't hate, we're the coolest book worms you ever could know. We're also an unorganised and unmotivated bunch which is why I've decided this post is in order and in fact, quite overdue. So girls, get your analytical caps on, we're having book club via blog.

We read And The Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini, who is an amazing author who wrote such other masterpieces such as The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns.

And The Mountains Echoed is a sensational novel about family and the way you are linked with each other, even when you may never have met. It is about betrayal, forgiveness and the moral ambiguity that lies between. Most of all, it's about love and all the different shades of love that exist.

This book was beautifully written with the quintessential Hosseini voice shining through. Beginning in Afghanistan, the writer takes us through time and space to include France, Greece and the USA in the ever growing story of strong family ties, harsh realities and sometimes the downright ugly side of human nature.

While I adored this novel, at times it was hard to grab a handle of. Hosseini himself wrote that “a story is like a moving train: no matter where you hop onboard, you are bound to reach your destination sooner or later.” Whilst the destination was reached in the end, sometimes I forgot where I was heading to in the first place. It was slightly disjointed in places where I'm used to a solid continuous story line.

To be honest, the moral ambiguity in the book was the hardest for me to grasp. I like to think that I am completely open minded and understanding of certain circumstances, but I think this book pushed the boundaries of what is right and wrong in my own mind. Hosseini opened the book with a Rumi poem: "out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there." This thought-provoking poem set the tone for the rest of the novel with many different scenarios that made you question just how close the line is between good and evil. Is it really wrong to give away your child if you feel they'll be in better hands elsewhere? Just because your someone's mother, does that give you the right to run their lives?

Although I found it difficult to follow at times (probably just me!), And The Mountains Echoed was a moving book. Just like in all his other novel, Hosseini has a way of drawing you in to relate to characters that seem nothing like you from the outset. I definitely recommend this book, and if you can't keep up, just treat it like a book of short stories, it's still beautifully written with interesting and heartbreakingly real characters.

xx Luce

Discuss this: And the Mountains Echoed begins in Afghanistan, moves to Europe and Greece, and ends in California, gradually widening its perspective. What do you think the author was trying to accomplish by including so many different settings and nationalities? What elements of the characters' different experiences would you say are universal? Do you think the characters themselves would see it that way?

The book raises many questions about the wavering line between right and wrong, and whether it is possible to be purely "good"—or purely "bad." What do you think after reading the novel: Are good intentions enough to create good deeds? Can positive actions come from selfish motivations? Can bad come from positive intent? How do you think this novel would define a good person? How would you define one?

20 August 2013

Reboot

The last couple of months have been odd for me – I finished uni and began the dreaded search for employment. I managed to land back into the world of law, returning to my legal secretary position to tie me over until I found a career-starting job. Although it’s been great being with all my old colleagues and I've enjoyed having time away from study, I think I have become comfortable just getting by, that I lost momentum and motivation.

Two weekends ago, I went to Melbourne for a hen’s weekend away for a lovely friend of mine. it was a long weekend of food, cocktails, massages and shopping and it was amazing. Spending time with friends and changing my scenery really revitalised me (or was that the freeeeeezing Melbourne air?!) and made me realise the goals that I had allowed to fall by the wayside.

I am now ready to get back on track because I know when I am working towards something, whether that be a fitness goal or long term career shiz, I am at my happiest.

So, here’s to getting out of my comfort zone: I’m going to run my ass off (literally!), revamp my CV and start scheduling those blog posts like people will die without my writing. I mean, you never know!

xx Luce

12 June 2013

A little vacay

The past few weeks have been extremely hectic, trying to finish my uni degree and all, that my blog has been slightly neglected - sorry to all my avid readers (Mazz and Brooke)!

Amidst all this craziness though, I did manage to duck down south for a couple of days as a belated birthday present from Steve, since he was away for my actual birthday. We stayed at Abbey Beach Resort in Busselton and spent a couple of days relaxing before he had to go offshore again and I returned to the study grind.

It was completely beautiful and made me remember all the great times I had going away with my family when I was younger. We would go away for weeks at a time and spend most of it fishing, swimming and basking in the summer sun before heading back to school. Ah, the good old days!

It was ridiculously chilly when we arrived in Busselton and seemed to get colder the longer we were there.

We made a beeline for Busselton jetty straight away in search of a delicious lunch venue. The place was completely deserted and we decided on The Goose for nosh, which turned out to be a lot better than I expected! I ordered the most wintery meal to go with the weather outside, which ended up being beef brisket with mac and cheese.

Hail on the beach

Scrumptious!

Custard cider

Abbey Beach Resort

Cute birthday card from Shteve!

On the Friday, we set off on a little adventure into the deep south - and drove as far as Cowaramup before stopping at Candy Cow, a sweets institution for anyone driving within a 30km radius. This little candy shop is so amazing and I never fail to stop there whenever I venture down south. The fudge is to die for and we bought a selection, as well as some goodies for the family.

The Margaret River Chocolate Factory was the next stop and we delved into the legendary chocolate buttons that are available for sample there. Yum!

Reclining on a cow

The Candy Man

Dingo poo for Steve's pop!

All I need to know - cocoa equals good health!

We went to the Colonial Brewery for lunch, which is surrounded by famous Margaret River wineries. The brewery is very cute and has a massive outdoor area, including a playground for the kids (and me). They have a variety of beers on tap and a couple of wines on offer for the beer haters. I was only a little disappointed that there weren't more ciders on offer, which is definitely my drink of choice...aside from tequila!

After gorging ourselves on taste testers at the chocolate factory and providore, the decision was made to go for a lighter lunch - chicken pizza and a tomato, bocconcini and basil salad to share.

Both dishes ended up being amazing choices and were super tasty. I got a little creative and ended up piling the salad on top the pizza to create a little double dutch deliciousness. Groundbreaking!

Colonial Brewery, Margaret River

My creation - amazing!

Gorgeous little veggie garden at the brewery

Freezing tootsies in the sand

After returning to Busselton, we met up with my lovely, pregnant friend Alyce and her hyperactive husband Jon for some classic fish and chips and a good old laugh. I hadn't seen Alyce in almost a year so it was awesome to catch up and talk about how painful child birth was going to be (haha!) and hear about her first year of marital bliss.

Lovely Lyce

Thanks so much Steve for whisking me away for a couple of days! =D

xx Luce

27 May 2013

Orange collect

I have only just discovered the joys of Polyvore (about two years late), an awesome site that lets you mix and match all of your favourite trends in creative ways. It allows me to drool over clothes I'll never be able to afford, put them into pretty collages and procrastinate writing that dreaded report just a teeny bit longer...naturally, I'm addicted!

My wardrobe is already chock full of my fave colour orange but you can never have too much right??