Archives for 2022

Since I moved to the UK, a lot of people here have asked me, “How do you find the weather?”

Given talking about the weather is a famous British pastime, I see most of them get excited, expecting me to say something like, “Ooo it’s dreadfully cold and grey, isn’t it?”

But, to their surprise, I usually respond with, “I actually quite like it!”

Yes, it’s cold, and damp, and grey, but at least it’s relatively predictable. And I emphasise “relatively” because I think weather here is more predictable than New Zealand—which is my baseline.

In New Zealand, you can pull your blinds in the morning, the sky will be clear blue, and then 30 minutes later when you arrive at work it can be bucketing down.

Much of life is relative. And if that’s true, then much of life is about understanding our own baselines, and being empathetic to the baselines and relative experiences of others.

I watched Spider-man: No Way Home for the second time last night. I won’t share any spoilers, because it really is a doozy, but I wanted to share a podcast I listened to earlier this week that really put the Spider-man and Marvel Cinematic Universe into perspective: The Spider-man Problem by Planet Money.

Getting Spider-man onto the big screen is really hard. There are competing companies, contracts, and characters that make for one hell of a story.

For example, did you know that Marvel actually sold the exclusive film rights for Spider-man to Sony more than 20 years ago, and Sony have to produce a Spider-man film at least once every 5.75 years or else they lose the rights?

At the core of the story though is a company, Marvel Studios, who are so exceptional at what they do, they’re dragging everyone who works with them to unparalleled heights of success. And the behind the scenes are almost as fascinating—but perhaps not as explosive—as the onscreen action.

Or are you just finding your way?

The difference is huge.

When we’re in the middle of the maze, it’s easy to lose mistake one for the other.

The dead end. The loop. The “I feel like I’ve been here before,” are likely just pitstops on the way to the exit.

“Supposed to…”

“Should’ve done…”

“What if…”

It’s easy to form a habit where these become the default words used to explain the ‘what’ and ‘why’ of our daily lives.

But how many of these are self-imposed thoughts and beliefs?

And how many of them stop us from doing the things that bring us the most joy and fulfilment?

“Advice isn’t one person telling another person what to do, it’s a conversation; a partnership. You’re both just human beings collaborating on the project of being a person.” – John Paul Brammer in Life Kit.

Learning how to be a human, and hopefully a good one, really is the meta project we’re all working on.

It’s the project that our families, careers, friendships, and hobbies all feed into.

And it’s really nice to see it as a collaboration we work on with others, rather than a journey we go on alone.

Rafael Nadal just won his 21st Gland Slam at the Australian Open.

In a stunning 5-hour epic, he bet Daniil Medvedev in the final, and is now 1 Grand Slam ahead of both Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic.

However, following the match, my newsfeeds started to fill up with a lot of “GOAT talk”, and it just doesn’t feel right.

There’s a reason why we don’t speculate about the ending of a movie when we’re in the middle of the action. The story is still unfolding. There are twists and turns that are yet to come.

It’s only with time, distance, and results, that any Greatest of All Time debate can be had.

It’s a treat to watch Nadal, Federer, and Djokovic battle for the honour of being the greatest male tennis player—but the rest of the story still needs to be written.

Exercising. Working out. Training.

There’s as much difference in those words as there is in the following:

Peckish. Hungry. Starving.

So when I tell myself I’m training, I turn up with a different attitude.

The nuance, the words, they matter.

Some days you’ll have 80% to give. Others, you’ll have 120%.

It’s not wrong to have less energy on some days, and an abundance on others.

There’s little value in overpromising, overextending, and overexerting.

On the other hand, there’s a tonne of value in 1) knowing what you have to give, and 2) giving that.

“Fortunate is one who can understand the causes of things.” – Virgil

What would happen if we accepted fewer reasons at face value, and asked “Why?” more often?

And imagine the possibilities if we made this a habit.

There’s something about writing down a goal, and then sharing it with the world.

Public commitment leads to public accountability, which (hopefully) leads to greater follow through.

A few of my friends are committing to run a half marathon, and I’m joining them. My goal is to complete one before the middle of the year.

I have friends who eat half marathons for breakfast, but this is going to be a challenge for me. Running hasn’t been a part of my exercise regime for a long time, but I’m looking forward to getting better at it. That being said, I’m first aiming for good preparation and race completion; my time isn’t important right now.

And now that I’ve made this goal public, I’m much more likely to achieve it.

Light streamed in through the cabin window.

It felt brighter than normal.

I clamoured over to the window and saw a stunning set of mountain ranges.

The brightness was explained by the cloudless sky and the reflection of the sun off the snow.

I’d lost track of how long I’d been asleep, but I knew were somewhere between Kuala Lumpur and Dubai.

I raced back to my seat to look at the map and figure out where we were.

We were flying over Iraq’s north east, so I figured the mountains outside the window were likely in Iran—I had no idea such stunning mountain ranges existed there.

I’m a devout aisle sitter, but it’s views like this make me reconsider.

I had an incredible month back home in New Zealand.

I camped, fished, swam, hiked, road tripped, surfed, BBQ’d, got boosted, and got lasered!

As I sit back here in the UK and reflect on the trip, I’m reminded that the activities rarely matter, and that it’s always the people that make the moments memorable.

I’m really enjoying reading ‘The Reign of Wolf 21’ by Rick McIntyre.

Rick has observed and documented wild wolves for more than 40 years; 25 of those in the famous Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

In an astounding display of consistency, Rick watched wolves for 6,175 consecutive days. Starting in June 2000, the streak only ended in mid-2017.

I’m reading just as much for Rick’s story of commitment and consistency as I am for the wolves.

The book centres around Wolf 21; likely the most impressive wolf ever observed.

Wolf 21 never lost a fight, and he never killed a surrendering rival. He was also willing to play with his pups, feigning weakness and pretending to not be the alpha. His cooperative relationship with Wolf 42 lead to their pack, called the Druid Pack, being one of the largest and most dominant packs of wolves in recorded history.

There’s a lot one can learn from both Rick and Wolf 21; and the book is also a really fun read.

It’s done, folks! I’m seeing 20/20 without glasses!

It was clear the place I went, Re:Vision in Auckland, had meticulously designed every minute of the LASIK experience.

The pre-operation check to ensure I was comfortable with the procedure. The briefing on post-operative care. The metronomic voice of the surgeon—guiding my head positioning, informing me where we were in the procedure, and reminding me that everything was going to plan. The nurse holding my hand throughout the surgery, which was surprisingly comforting. The post-operative rest and recovery process.

It inspired confidence. I had zero doubts that my eyes and health were in great hands.

The details matter. And when you see a great example of a team of people sweating the right details; there’s a lot we can learn from those experiences.

I’m having LASIK surgery today.

I’m a little nervous, but mostly excited! Despite it being an established procedure, I’m still astounded that laser beams can return my vision to 20/20. Feels pretty Sci-Fi.

Following the surgery, I’ll need to keep my eyes closed for 12 hours. I’ve got Ender’s Game queued up on Audible to pass the time, and here’s hoping the recovery will all run smoothly.

See you on the other side!