Memories

I was half-consciously browsing social media today, struggling to find motivation to post a blog entry. Whenever I leave it a couple days it always makes the next post harder to type up, I truly need to do it every day to keep the ball rolling at a decent speed.

You probably know Facebook memories, the social media platform occasionally brings up pictures from this date in a previous year, reminding us of the good and bad memories we decided to share with the world. Today’s caught me off guard as it was a picture of my dad, accompanying me and my immediate family and close friends on the airport shuttle as I headed on my first big adventure in 2010.

I was flying from Newcastle to West Texas to work in a hotel as an intern after university. One of the best years of my life. At this point I was still full of excitement, it didn’t really sink in that I wasn’t going to see my family again in person for a whole year until the cabin crew informed us we were about to land in the Lone Star State. I am very lucky I have family that despite missing me as much as I missed them, understood the importance of travel and having these experiences, especially at 21. It was a year that changed me as a person for the better and helped me understand the importance of experiencing this world whilst we can. It helped give birth to this blog and inspired the name One Chance to See the World.

This name is more true now than ever, as my dad is no longer here. After he developed a very aggressive disease a couple of years after this picture was taken, it reminds me that life is fragile and despite travelling being an important aspect of my life, going home and seeing my family again is priceless. This is why I am happy to be travelling back to England in September, despite this current Australian adventure being as amazing as my American trip was back in 2010.

It really caught me off guard seeing this picture again. I was totally zoned out and it just hit me. It is so strange seeing someone’s face after you know they are no longer here, it’s a bit like having a dream that they are still around and I have these from time to time. But it is a good feeling too, as they are great memories to cherish. What keeps me sane after this loss is remembering that we had great memories together, and my last memory wasn’t an argument or something negative. This is why I never leave a conversation on bad terms no matter what’s been happening. Any conversation could be the last and that conversation could eat away at your conscience for a lifetime.

I am sure many of you can relate to this too. I guess my advice here would be to not take life too seriously and always try to get along with family and friends as each conversation has the potential to be a huge memory in the future. It is important to make every moment a potentially great memory to look back on with a smile and not a regret, and I am very grateful this one brings a smile to my face.

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Cheers!

Sam

 

How cool is this clock?

I was walking by this store with a friend earlier in The Rocks, Sydney and I had to stop and take a closer look. The relevant words light up so you can read the time instead of using the traditional hands, numbers and Roman numerals.

I haven’t seen one like this before, I think it’s pretty cool!

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Update: Well done to juliehcares for finding a fairly affordable one online, I am sure the one seen above costs a lot more! The one found online can be seen here on Amazon. 

 

Finding time to blog

It is 4.20pm and I have only been awake a couple of hours. I set my alarm to wake me up at 2.30pm, the reason being that I was on a double shift at work due to someone being ill. My shift was 5pm to 6am. On top of that I had to work a nightshift the night before last, so I rushed home, got some sleep and set my alarm for 3pm to give me enough time to prepare for my 5pm start. This was before I realised I would be in much longer than intended. It is safe to say working full time makes it difficult to blog.

This is a picture from one of my recent commutes. I decided on black and white to enhance the blandness of rush hour commuting. If there is one thing that helps inspire me to escape this kind of life, it is having this kind of life. I mentioned Casey Neistat in one of my recent posts and he has said in interviews that working as a pot wash in a kitchen was one of the reasons he became successful. To do a job you hate is the best way to find inspiration to become successful and have a career that you want to have. I can relate to this, although I have never been a pot wash, as I know that I don’t want to see the view above everyday.

My current blogging schedule goes something like this. I get up early, around 8-9am as I really struggle to get up earlier if I finished work at 11pm the night before. I open my laptop and respond to your comments. I do this first and once I have responded to everyone (I am so sorry if I have missed responding to certain comments) I create a post. I then double check the post for grammatical errors, photo glitches etc. and put it out there. 

I then spend the next eight hours at work (only eight hours depending on people not being sick and coming into work ) thinking of what to blog about next. I also use the time commuting to work, heading home after work and with the photos I have captured along the way to decide what I want to blog about. I then go home, set my alarm and wake up the next day to answer the comments on the post before publishing the new post.

Thank you for the comments and likes by the way. There is nothing that makes setting my alarm easier than knowing my posts are being enjoyed by readers.

Of course, my schedule at work changes so sometimes I work 7am-3pm instead of 3-11pm. If this is the case, I respond to comments after work, put a post out there, find inspiration to post again, go to sleep and respond to comments on the new post after I wake up. Basically, I blog when I can. I am sure most of you do the same, but with a different schedule. Some blogging more than me and some blogging less.

Then I work occasional nightshifts to help out. This is rare thankfully but it can be a blessing in disguise as I am working with almost no distraction. This is a fantastic opportunity to use free time to blog. I am now using as much free time as possible to be productive and any free time that is not used to do something is time I don’t like having. I hardly use social media anymore and I don’t spend any time watching TV. I did this when I was bored, but thanks to blogging I don’t have a reason to be bored.

So this is just a little insight to my day and how I blog. You will probably know if you have been reading long enough that this varies and posts aren’t out at a certain time of day, but I try my best to post daily. I guess the only consistency is posting daily.

Do you have a blogging schedule? How often do you spend blogging?

Apologies if my insight is a little confusing as despite it now being 4.45pm, my body is in morning mode. Another coffee is much needed.

Travel Diary: I love abandoned places

I am sure I have touched on this in a previous post somewhere down the line, but I love seeing areas that were once walked, walked no more. I understand some of these places may have been abandoned for very sad or destructive reasons such as a shipwreck, radiation or war. Often these places become very empty very fast. I am filled with wonder and endless questions when such a place is brought to my attention.

Whilst I was in the Blue Mountains a week ago, I found a few examples of a time left behind. Some were recent walkways that were closed off for repairs.

Others were much older, such as this mine that was closed back in the early 1900’s. By 1933, the Katoomba Colliery focused on tourism after the winding down and eventual death of the coal mine. It isn’t just the mine that is no longer functioning, the button you can see here to provide audio information is also not working.

On my walk I stumbled upon what looks like a shale bucket rusting just off the elevated walkway through the rain-forest. It seems to have stayed where it was last used, or maybe in this case, where it landed.

The website Info Blue Mountains gives a little insight as to why it is here:

Locating kerosene shale at Ruined Castle, he (John Britty North) registered “Katoomba Coal & Shale Co. Ltd” in 1885. German engineers were hired to construct an aerial ropeway. Known as the “Flying Fox”, it ran from the Ruined Castle, across the Jamison Valley, to the engine bank (near the upper terminus of the Scenic Railway). It collapsed after only a six months, the wreckage is still strewn across the valley.  The company soon went into liquidation.

This may have been in the exact spot it landed in after collapse. Pretty damn cool.

In my post linked here, you can find the new Scenic Railway that occupies the previous coal train that eventually was used for the increasing number of tourists, now the worlds steepest railway. From the top, what appears to be a roller coaster track can be seen.

Again, Info Blue Mountains sheds light on the Orphan Rocker Roller Coaster, set to be the ‘World Scariest Roller Coaster’. It has never been completed, with many of the theories as to why found on the website linked. What an amazing setting for a coaster this would be and who knows, maybe one day people will ride this.

So there we have it, an amazing destination with a history that isn’t hidden, although different to what it is today. If you have seen this place yourself or know of somewhere else in Australia or elsewhere that has become a victim to time, do let me know!

Less is more

I’ve had a very unproductive couple of days. So this morning as I sit and with my coffee and ‘snail’ as its called in this particular cafe, I have had more regrets than I would have done if I was to have gotten blind drunk and acted like an idiot all weekend.

Is ‘snail’ a popular term, or am I slow to learn?

The phrase is ‘less is more’ and I certainly agree. Even if I have plenty of free time, being indecisive about what to do in that time means that time goes very quickly. Shall I look for accommodation? More photo opportunities perhaps? The truth is if I don’t choose soon enough, I won’t do either. So yesterday I ended up going to the gym late at night to make up for a wasted day.

If I can teach a lesson here, I guess it is to make a decision on what you want to do as soon as you can, and then spend quality time thinking of what that specific decision will consist of moving forward. The progress will come soon after. 

At least I have learned something that will hopefully help me develop.

What a way to make a livin’

You know you work in hospitality when your chill time is 2.37am and feel it is still too early for bed…

I actually have another post typed about the predictably unpredictable life of a hospitality worker inspired by today, I will wait until sunrise to tidy up a little when I am thinking straight.

Sometimes, I feel like my stories from work are wasted, and I am sure too many go to waste every day throughout the world. I hope yours has been crazy enough to inspire you in some way.