ONE THOUSAND DAYS TODAY!

Yep, one thousand days of not touching a single drop of alcohol. Feeling proud today. 

I made a decision and I stuck to it. Not one slip. I am so glad. So much has changed for me in these thousand days. I feel so well and healthy and even a wee bit fit coz I've been walking and running most mornings for the last 3 months. Getting a bit trickier these last couple of weeks with all the rain and the colder weather. I never get tired of the clarity I feel at all times. I've had some very challenging curved balls thrown my way and faced each one of them without dulling down my senses and numbing my brain. 

It's been an interesting revelation to discover that outings and interactions with people, live music performances and theatre, art shows and parties, are all enhanced experiences by not putting alcohol in the mix. Who knew? It just seemed the normal thing to do, have a few drinks before, during and after just about everything. I don't need it. It adds nothing. It actually takes away the authenticity of my interactions, and it takes away from my appreciation of people and music and theatre and art. It has been a happy discovery for me to learn that I am enough, just as I am. I appreciate people and their stories and conversations and laughter. I give them my full attention and genuine interest. I am not distracted by any concern about my next drink. It is incredibly freeing not being addicted to anything. It makes me so self contained, and easy to be anywhere. I don't even drink coffee, never have. I do have one pot of organic lemon and ginger green tea every morning these days, for the first time in my life, and I add fresh lemon juice and sliced fresh ginger, so that's not going to harm me. Oh, I am a wee bit addicted to chocolate but I've given up eating it in bed! haha. I've been off the ciggies for 19 months now, I still crave them, probably always will. Particularly in times of stress, of which there have been many lately.

So life is not a bed of roses, it never was, shit still happens, alot. Lately I have had some terrible luck with my rental properties, right at a time when I desperately need financial stability. Suffice to say one has been seriously trashed, has cost thousands to clean up and repair, thousands in loss of rent, and is now finally rented but at a lower rate because of damage. The other one had a serious fire this week. Unbeknown to me, one of the two tenants was sleeping in the garage and managed to burn it down, along with the neighbours garage and the corner of the house. I don't know why he slept out there, the fire started in his bed. He is in a terrible state and has been flown to middlemore hospital with burns to 90% of his body. Very sad, and I feel sick that it has happened at my house. The other flatmate has disappeared and two guys who aren't on the lease are there, no one is paying rent, and the driveway is blocked by a mass of burned out belongings. Difficult to know how to approach this one. A house full of gear, no paying tenants, and a charred blackened mess. My landlord insurance is looking uncertain as I didn't have written references for my tenants. My stress levels are rather high.

The build is coming along beautifully. Never without it's ups and downs which can be challenging, but Rory is doing a marvellous job of keeping the show on the road. It's at a stage now where lots of progress is happening at once so it's quite exciting. My benches went on yesterday and I'll go and see them tomorrow. It's a rather common occurance for builds to cost way more than expected, and this one is no exception!! My business is very slow now for the winter, and once Easter is over it will grind to a halt I think. It is a challenge to remain calm. But I am, somehow. I have had a flatmate here at home for the last month, and I have a young English couple moving in next week as well. Not sure how I'll handle this, but my thinking is that it's only for a few months then I'll be in my new home, and between the 3 of them they are paying $550 per week which helps me pay the rent on the builder's apartment in Duvauchelles. It's a pretty good rent to collect when I'm still here myself, and I'll still have my room when I go, which will make it an easy transition for me, and give me somewhere to be, and work from several days a week when I'm in town.

Our friend Steve is going downhill very quickly now, and is in the Hospice at Merivale. I went in yesterday and was shocked at how much more frail he is now compared to last weekend. His spirit is still very strong, and he's planning on doing a last gig next Saturday night. He wanted to go to the Folk Festival in Waipara today. I doubt the poor darling will make it to either, but it keeps him going  thinking about it I think. Marion is one very strong amazing kind and lovely lady. I am so grateful to have had some wonderful outings with Steve and Marion, the last big one was an afternoon at Takamatua a few weeks ago and with Gloria as well, and showing them the build, then dinner on the waterfront in Akaroa and then to a fabulous concert with Ben Waters, Bernard Fowler, Tim Ries, all musicians who sometimes play with the Stones, and also Chris Jagger, Mick's brother (but he was a bit of a dick compared to the others, unfortunately). Bernard Fowler was spectacular singing Wild Horses.

I am looking forward to the next few months passing quickly so I can soon get settled into my new home. There's so much I need to achieve here sorting and planning, it is daunting on my own, but I'll get there in the end. And it will be grand. And it will be the biggest thing I have ever accomplished in my life, and what I have worked towards for so very many years.

Bring on the next 1000 days, starting today!

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