13 steps to a better life - From my favourite blog

1. Don’t compare yourself to others. Financially, physically, and socially, comparing yourself to others is a trap. You will always have friends who have more money than you do, who can run faster than you can, who are more successful in their careers. Focus on your own life, on your own goals.
2. Foster close relationships. People with five or more close friends are more apt to describe themselves as happy than those with fewer
3. 
   Have sex. Sex, especially with someone you love, is consistently ranked as a top source of happiness. A long-term loving partnership goes hand-in-hand with this.
4. 
   Get regular exercise. There’s a strong tie between physical health and happiness. Anyone who has experienced a prolonged injury or illness knows just how emotionally devastating it can be. Eat right, exercise, and take care of our body.
5. 
   Obtain adequate sleep. Good sleep is an essential component of good health. When you’re not well-rested, your body and your mind do not operate at peak capacity. Your mood suffers.
6. 
   Set and pursue goals. I believe that the road to wealth is paved with goals. More than that, the road to happiness is paved with goals. Continued self-improvement makes life more fulfilling.
7. Find meaningful work. There are some who argue a job is just a job. I believe that fulfilling work is more than that — it’s a vocation. It can take decades to find the work you were meant to do. But when you find it, it can bring added meaning to your life.
8. Join a group. Those who are members of a group, like a church congregation, experience greater happiness. But the group doesn’t have to be religious. Join a book group. Meet others for a Saturday morning bike ride. Sit in at the knitting circle down at the yarn shop.
9. 
   Don’t dwell on the past. I know a guy who beats himself up over mistakes he’s made before. Rather than concentrate on the present (or, better yet, on the future), he lets the past eat away at his happiness. Focus on the now.
10. 
    Embrace routine. Research shows that although we believe we want variety and choice, we’re actually happier with limited options. It’s not that we want no choice at all, just that we don’t want to be overwhelmed. Routines help limit choices. They’re comfortable and familiar and, used judiciously, they can make us happy.
11. Practice moderation. Too much of a good thing is a bad thing. It’s okay to indulge yourself on occasion — just don’t let it get out of control. Addictions and compulsions can ruin lives.
12. 
    Be grateful. It’s no accident that so many self-help books encourage readers to practice gratitude. When we regularly take time to be thankful for the things we have, we appreciate them more. We’re less likely to take them for granted, and less likely to become jealous of others.
13. 
    Help others. Over and over again, studies have shown that altruism is one of the best ways to boost your happiness. Sure, volunteering at the local homeless shelter helps, but so too does just being nice in daily life.

Weekend

I went to Melbourne this weekend. It was nice, I caught up with my friend Lana.

We did a short one hour walk around Brighton Beach. Gosh Melbourne is flat.

This weekend I have three one day bush walks in the Blue Mountains.

I'm off to do some stair walking in anticipation now.

S

Sixth walk

3rd May 2009

4th April 2009

Communications Tower, Forresters Beach to Toowoon Bay and back
17kms
4 hours and 15 mins

Wow! I can't believe I did this AGAIN.

Mum came along this time and despite having an upset stomach we actually finished in less time than before.

Gosh my mother is fit.

S

Fifth Walk

2nd May 2009
Tapley Road Lisarow and Katandra Reserve
2kms and 3kms
40 mins and 45 mins

Tapley Road is one of those streets that you drive down and think, gosh I would never like to break down here. It is 500 metres of up and down, steep up and down.

Took us 10mins to do 500 metres.

Went up the road to Katandra Reserve and did a short walk around the park, it was hot and hard.

Verdict: I hope Nepal isn't hot.

Miscellaneous

What am I seeing when I think about Nepal?

I close my eyes and I see myself at Base Camp. Looking down the mountain. Having completed half the walk, the half up the mountain, knowing that the remaining half is downhill.

Sometimes I close my eyes and I see myself back at Lukla, having completed the walk in full. Tired but triumphant.

It's hard to reconcile that with the feelings I have when I'm walking in the bush. It is so easy to look in the distance and think, gosh, I won't make that.

What I have to remember is that it isn't a race. Slow and steady Sarah.

We are walking 8km a day. I already know that I can walk 8km a day. It is not about being fast, it is about being able to walk up hills.

So what do I need to work on to achieve that?

Balance
Core Strength
Endurance
Cardio
Tenacity
Positive attitude

All the things I thought I did well, I now realise I do not so well.

That is the scariest thought of all.

Fourth Walk

26th April 2009

Lane Cove National Park
10kms
3 hours and 15 mins

This walk was almost my downfall.

Has anyone been to Lane Cove National Park? I thought I was getting used to bushwalking, but this was the first time I had to actually walk over rocks and through tracks that weren't as clearly defined as the paths I had been used to.

I was wearing the wrong shoes as well. My trainers were not the right footwear for the conditions.

We started off and right away I started falling behind. Katrinna tried to let me go ahead but I was just slow. It was a hot day too and her friends are very fit and used to lots of walking.

I was okay until we crossed the highway and started back to the Park and we encountered boulders and rocks and twisty, windy paths.

Katrinna's friends went on ahead and I was pleased cause I was a mess. I am not very steady on my feet at the best of times and now I had to shift my weight and go over and around slippery sandy rocks.

I started to cry and for the first time told Katrinna that I thought I would have to give up. She refused, politely, but refused to let me stop. She went on ahead and left me to do it on my own as I wanted her to do. It wasn't so bad on my own, I didn't feel like I was letting anyone down and could take my time.

Katrinna waited at the end where it went to the road again, then we walked back to the car park where her friends were waiting, and had been for about 45 minutes!

They all headed back to the Coast, without going to the toilet mind you, how can they do that, they hadn't gone for over 4 hours as far as I could tell. What are they, camels?????

Anyway, I went home and fell asleep due to the emotional exhaustion I was feeling. This was my first test and I am not as strong as I would like to believe. I am going to have to toughen up to succeed.

Verdict: I am getting slightly worried about my reactions. Need to work on this.

Third walk

4th April 2009

Communications Tower, Forresters Beach to Toowoon Bay and back
17kms
4 hours and 30 mins

Wow!

I can't believe I did this. Our longest walk so far.

We started off at the Communications Tower at Forresters Beach and immediately walked down about 1km of wooden steps, it dawned on me that these steps would form the end of the walk as well.

Along the valley floor then up some metal steps at the other side, phew, only a little bit into the walk and I'm already tired.

Stopping at Crack Neck lookout then through the bush, going downhill all the way, until we hit the main road and walk to Toowoon Bay. There was a wedding on the beach that we wanted to see but had to leave and start the long walk back up.

Along the coast, through the Golf Club, then through the bush going uphill slowly back to Crack Neck and then back along the walk.

It's deceiving, you look in the distance and can see the communications tower and think it is not that much further, then you remember that there are the metal steps down down down, then along the valley floor then yep, straight up for the last km back to the tower.

Gosh, I am so proud of myself for this.

Verdict: Long and hard, but glad I didn't give up.

Second walk

Second walk:

7th March 2009
Spit to Manly
11km
3 hours 12 minutes

Wow, there is a big mountain in the middle of this walk. Does anyone know that???? LOL.

I realised that for me the issue is a psychological unwillingness to push myself. I thought we were near the top and we encountered a man coming down the other side who told us we were almost at the top, this turned out to be not true and I was devestated.

Once we got down the mountain there was what I thought was a flat walk back to the car, but we had to go up a street and back down. I couldn't do this more than once and made Katrinna walk the long uphill way back to the car as I was could not have handled thinking that the rest of the trip was flat and having a hill put into the middle.

How am I going to get beyond this? Katrinna is great at pushing me along. But I will need to work on tools that I can do myself.

Verdict: Hard but rewarding. Hope to do this again soon

First walk

First walk:

7th February 2009.
West Gosford RSL to Woy Woy
8km
2 hours 15 minutes

This was my first challenge. This walk was boring. Long and flat and nothing to look at except how far in the distance we have to walk til we get there. It was 'Black Saturday' where lots of people lost their lives in bushfires and it was hot hot hot. I don't deal well with hot weather and we were almost at the end at Koolewong station when I thought I would have to give up. We stopped at the fish and chips shop and bought a bottle of water and Katrinna poured it over my head. Man, that felt good, and I was able to get to the end of the walk.

Verdict: Long, hot and boring

Sites that I like

Here are some sites that I like that are mostly about personal finance:

http://www.gailvazoxlade.com/

http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/

http://www.simplesavings.com.au/

All about myself

I guess I should talk about me.

My name is Sarah and I am 37 years old.

I live in Sydney Australia, in Waverley in the Eastern Suburbs and I work in the City for a property company in a job that I really enjoy.

I was brought up on the Central Coast of NSW.

I went to work straight after year 12 for a bank which I hated, although I did loads of travelling, going up and down the Coast of Australia, to the US , South Pacific, until I decided to go travelling to the UK in 1997 when I was 25.

I had a fantastic time and lived there for three years, including six months in Dublin.

Came back, went to work for the property company.

Did some more travelling.

More to come!! Just back to work now.

More to come!

Topics to come:
- How I hate to walk
- Why eating bad food the night before going on a 17km hike is a BAD idea
- How to reduce a 37 year old woman to a crying mess

My journey to Nepal (or how I learned to fail)

The story so far.

In 2007 I attended a Personal Development workshop in Charlotte North Carolina. It was fantastic and I learnt alot about myself. One of the many challenges we had to face was a ropes course involving full gear, a telegraph pole and some rubber chickens....I failed miserably and was a crying mess. It made me realise that I never challenged myself to do anything that I didn't know that I would do well. Failure is not an option for me. I simply refuse to try if I think I won't excel.

In 2008 I had a horrible break up that left me sad and slightly depressed. I lost weight but then put all that back on and more. I did do a Foundation course at UNSW and managed to pass with a credit and distinction and get accepted at University for 2009 to do Primary School Teaching.