Considering it has been almost a week since my last post and in that time SHE-POWER was kidnapped by a Korean religious group, you could be forgiven for thinking I’ve given up on you. Packed my bags and closed up shop.

But never fear my faithful constituents (see my God complex is in full force now - all it needed was an excuse), I am here. I have returned. I may not have anything exciting to say, but what does that matter when you can bask in my all knowing glory. Bring your offerings, your children, your burdens, your ailments and I shall …

Okay, enough! I’ll stop.  This is beyond funny, I’m probably just getting into offensive territory now.

The truth is my server issues dragged on much longer than I expected and my site has only been functioning in a normal fashion since late Monday morning (Sydney time). Since then I have been flat-chat with work and trip preparations, and I still am very busy so this is probably as good a time as any to let you know that I won’t be posting as regularly from now until the end of June.

I’m leaving for Spain in two weeks and I have clients to please, families to organize, bookings to confirm, itineraries to nut out, suitcases to pack and a million other things to do which probably should have been done already, but my hubby and I seem to have lost track of time.

I will endeavor to post at least once a week, even while I am overseas, but please forgive me if it all becomes too hard and not fun and I forget about you so I can enjoy my first family vacation in years. It’s not personal. I don’t have any issues I’d like to air. We’re still pals. I’ll be back.

But I am SO looking forward to Spain. It’s going to be bliss. With lots of time bumming around, walking on white sand beaches, feasting my eyes on gorgeous architecture, eating tapas, drinking sangria and getting laid. Oops, did I just say that?

Well, come on, what else are holidays for?

Moving on from my currently dismal sex life and my great hopes for the future, I am almost finished with the next extract of SHE-POWER Fiction, so I’m aiming to get that to you ASAP. Then I should have my Clay Collins interview up by next week and maybe even a guest post for you too. So, stick around and normal posting will resume in July.

Kelly

Photo by ul Marga

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I’ve had a lousy week. Seven days of a respiratory infection, coupled with a feverishly ill son. I may not technically be dying, but I’ve definitely wallowed in the possibility as I’ve lain on the couch with a whimpering child and a hacking cough. Attractive image, I know.

As a consequence, my posting has fallen off a bit. My new SHE-POWER Fiction is still in draft form and I hope to polish it up and publish it in the next day or so. In the mean time, all this lounging around the house has had an upside in that I’ve spent lots of time surfing the web, feeding my groggy, medicated brain.

Here are the links I’ve cruised and loved this week:

Life on a Shoestring Budget has some creative and adventurous ideas for how to make your dollar go further. Check out their new 5 part series: 20 Ways to Live on Almost Nothing.

Cath Lawson writes about how to make yourself stand out as a freelancer in: Nude Freelancer Storms Google Campus

Leo from Zen Habits provides some tips for how to lift yourself out of a funk in: Flip Your Karma: 8 Tricks to Turn the Bad into the Awesome

Celebrate being a free woman with generous human rights this Saturday, 8 March by visiting the official International Womens Day website. There’s podcasts, photographs, information on the 97 years of IWD and some interesting links.

Caroline Middlebrook gives 6 Steps to Find the Right Work-Life Balance. I really liked this article as this is something I struggle with. I seem to go through binges where I neglect my work and lavish family, friends with quality time, then I panic that I’m not getting enough writing done so I chain myself to the computer and fob everyone off until my son practically has to rip my fingers off the keyboard. Can I blame astrology here? Us Librans struggle with balance…

The article, Sex, Blogs and Screenwriting got my attention this week with a focus on Diablo Cody, the winner of this year’s Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. The film in question, Juno is a must see, and Diablo Cody is particularly interesting because she first gained attention as a blogger. This led to a book deal, which then led to a screen writing career, which then led to her stealing MY DREAM!

And following up with more Juno goodness, Mia Freedman, a well known Australian writer/media personality wrote a funny post on the Academy Award nominated actress, Ellen Page. Check out Not that there’s anything wrong with being a lesbian, you understand. Make sure you watch the videos. I like people who don’t take themselves too seriously.

Enjoy this blog while you can; a Hollywood producer is going to be calling me any day now…

Photo by spoon

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Mary at Goodlife Zen has a great post up at the moment: 7 Strategies for Good Luck. In it, she talks about the recent findings of an English University Professor, who did a study find out why some people are lucky, while others are not.

Richard Wiseman even ran a project called Luck School to see if participants could learn to be luckier, and what he found was that they could. His results show that people are not born lucky, some just know how to bring luck to them.

The article and the following commentary got me thinking: What is luck anyway? Whether I call myself lucky or not really comes down to perception; how I choose to see myself and others. And these views are not universal.

Some people might look at celebrities and think everyone would agree they’re lucky, but we don’t know what goes on in these people’s private lives. Just look at the recent trials of Britney Spears, and there’s a strong case that luck in one area may be a double edged sword in others.

Let me illustrate the importance of perception with three examples. Who do you think is the luckiest?

1. a man whose wife of 10 years has left him and taken their children, but the day after the divorce he wins $20,000
2. a 40 year old female lawyer, who earns $150,00 a year, would love a family, but can’t find Mr Right
3. a woman who has a loving family and is financially stable, but is overweight with diabetes and a heart condition
4. a happily married man with 4 children, an average job, good friends, but who always struggles to pay the bills

It’s not so easy to judge, is it?

If you asked me a year ago if I was lucky, I would have said “No”. I’ve had my fair share of misfortune in my life, and I’ve never been one to win lotteries or competitions. However, in the last year I’ve had an attitude adjustment. I’ve started practising conscious gratitude, and have found that focusing on what I already have in my life makes me feel happier AND luckier. Here are just a few things I am grateful for:

• I live in a peaceful country with a very hospitable climate (Australia)
• I have been married to a wonderful man for almost 10 years
• I have had the privilege of education and a chosen career (or three)
• I have a healthy son who grows and changes before my eyes every day
• I am able bodied, healthy and still relatively young
• I have friends and family who love me
• I have a sun-filled home and garden, which acts as my sanctuary from the world
• I have loved passionately and fully, knowing both the joy of a blooming heart and the despair of a broken one
• I am able to write and correspond with all of you, which makes my heart sing
• I have traveled the world, had many adventures, and know there are lots more to come

I could go on, but I hope my point is clear. If we really look at our lives, there is much to be grateful for, so I think I’ll skip the Luck School.

Tell me, how lucky are you?

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Lately, I’ve felt a niggle inside. At first, it was a little niggle, but over the past two weeks it seems to be growing by the day. What is this niggle? Call it intuition, call it mental illness, but I “feel” CHANGE is in the air.

Now, I will concede that with my 36th birthday on my door step, this change could be due to one of those life freak-outs where you grab your cheeks (a la Macauley Culkin), evaluate your choices to date and question whether your life is going in the right direction.

I’ve felt this way ever since I returned from Thailand. Firstly, I haven’t been so relaxed in years, and secondly, it was so nice to be out there LIVING, instead of sitting here at a computer copy writing for clients, researching, writing blog posts and working on my novel. And herein lies my problem. My life has no balance; I am chained to this key board. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love writing. I HAVE TO COMMUNICATE. However, it strikes me that the less you get out there and live, the less you have to say.

Roseanne Cash said “The key to change … is to let go of fear”. The assumption being that CHANGE is rarely comfortable. This is a biggie for me, and probably for many of you. How often do we stay in an unsavory situation simply because we can’t see any way forward? Or, we can, but we wouldn’t want to take it. It’s just too scary.

I’ve known people happy to bitch about their job for years, rather than actually hunt for a new one. And that’s a job. Imagine what these people are like when it comes to their relationships! We’ve all heard about women who stay with their partners even though they are physically and emotionally abused. People who haven’t experienced this situation cannot fathom why this would be, but I can say from personal experience that in many cases it goes back to the reasons why people hesitate to change any area of their life. The fear of the unknown is far greater than the pain of the now.

The question is, how do we get around this? What if we don’t want to be scared anymore? If we don’t want to take it?

The answer is not a simple one, and no one solution fits everybody. I prefer to face my fears head on and come out fists flying (so to speak), but others like to duck and weave, evade their opponent Mr Fear and hope they can get out of the ring without him noticing. The one thing I do know is you must decide that you want to change. Then open your arms up and ask for help. Ask God or the universe or even your higher self, whatever works for you, but ask for help. Say, I want something better than this. Show me the way. Then get out of the way and look out for what comes by. You just might be surprised.

I have many questions in this life, and not all the answers. Hoping some of you may be able to share your wisdom for navigating the sea of life change. I’ll be here at my keyboard waiting…

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