All posts tagged: book

Had a conversation with God at a primo reading spot in Piha

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One of the great things about Piha is the abundance of time I get for myself out here. The kids usually leave the house at eight o’clock and don’t return until four in the afternoon. That gives me eight hours of quality alone-time that I can spend in great alone-time-ways: When the waves are good I head down to the beach for a surf, when they’re not I go bush walking and when the weather gets really bad (like this week) I snuggle up with my hot water bottle under a blanket and immerse myself into a great book. Not that I don’t like the people of Piha or the girls – every single one of them is lovely but don’t you also appreciate that bit of alone-time every now and then? Since a couple of magic books have “found me” some years ago I am a firm believer that the right book comes to you at the right time. And if you’re not ready the book will patiently wait on your shelf up to that moment where …

Book recommendation: Do you want to be normal or happy?

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On my 29th birthday I hiked up our local mountain with my Mum and during our well deserved lunch at one of the huts she pulled out this book as a present. What a good match – already the title made me smile. I read it during the 2012 New Zealand road trip and recommended it to Maggie who took it with her to Australia. When visiting her in Maroubra this year the book found its way back to me exactly one year later. Reading it again in Thailand wasn’t as mind-blowing as the first time but a good way to re-assess my happiness, to look back and see what a long way I’ve come during the year that has passed and get the bigger picture again. So if you’re still looking for a last-minute Christmas present – I can absolutely recommend this one (apart from the paragraphs where he advertises his multiple side-products such as CDs).

A spooky and sleepless night at the house

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I thought I have had enough sleep on the plane and felt pretty fresh when I got here on Monday but having done this trip a couple of times already I should have known better: The jet-lag always strikes back. It just hits you out of the blue and if you don’t get to a bed or couch fast enough you literally fall asleep at the table (True story!). Yesterday it kicked in rather late and I fell asleep at around 7 pm, resulting in waking up at midnight – wide awake. Multiple techniques didn’t work out – no way to get back to sleep again. At the same time a major storm came over Auckland and it was pissing down in a way I had never experienced in Austria. A sleepless and spooky night all alone at the end of the world – that’s a pretty perfect breeding ground for self-doubt and lots of worrying: Did I make the right decision? What am I doing here? Why the hell did I put myself into …