Have I used this title before? About sand and all that? Well, it is appropriate for today as I have just spent the weekend at Noosa, doing the Noosa Half Marathon with my group of "beginner runners" that one year ago could barely run 10kms. I was like Mother Duck with her brood toddling along behind - except that they all ran ahead of me, with me squawking out reminders about not going too fast. My irritating words of wisdom came to fruition however at about the 18km mark when they were utterly wrecked. Luckily they all had just enough juice to cross the finish line with me coming in at the rear, beaming from ear to ear. Their excitement and happiness was so infectious that I'd just about do it all again just for the Feelgood Factor.
We stayed in a great apartment overlooking Noosa where we carb-loaded on grape sandwiches and ice-cream. Yes, okay, so I'm sure the dieticians and sports physiologists out there are probably groaning but we're right into dietary experimentation and gratification here!
A word of warning - the grape sandwich did't really work. Badly needed peanut butter to improve it I think.
We LOVE you Massimo's Gelateria, Hasting St, Noosa
The Noosa Winter Festival is such a great event! It's not hideously crowded, the course is gorgeously scenic and the weather was mind-blowingly perfect. It's a definite half-marathon MUST-DO. After the run, we girls all went for lunch and I was lucky to meet a couple of TV journos! They were lovely and were genuinely interested in my (developing) journalism career, even giving me their business card for my "contacts box".
with Kay McGrath of Channel 7
I was very careful not to fawn or slather in their presence but it is so awe-inspiring to meet these women who have played such an important role in Queensland journalism. Then, this afternoon I see that Michael Crutcher (editor) and Des Houghton (journalist) of the Courier-Mail both re-tweeted me! Oh dear.... do I sound like I am still in my Bay City Rollers adulation phase? Yikes. Well, it's just really, really exciting to think that I may have something to say that stimulates a well-respected media type to want to interact with me. It gives me HOPE and encouragement that I too, can be a Respected Quality Journalist - one day (soon).
My Noosa sunset photo taken last night with the iPhone
So, all in all, I have had a brilliant and fun weekend doing what I love most - running and helping other runners "dig deep" and find their inner ooomph. I can't help reflecting on how LUCKY, LUCKY, LUCKY I am! I am feeling particularly reflective and "deep" about this topic currently as this week I learned my running buddy, a 32 year-old mother of two little boys, has a Stage 3 rectal tumour and has a Very, Very long, arduous, stressful and heartbreaking time ahead of her - but rather than get down about it, she is being incredibly positive. I've given her the heads up on booking her chemo appointments for early in the day. Unfortunately, there are so many people have chemo in day centres that the clinic just runs later and later. I remember from when I was nursing in one... Then yesterday our neighbour was admitted to hospital with Guillain-Barre Syndrome which has come on very suddenly, over the past week. I went to see him in hospital this afternoon and he can no longer move his right leg. It is beyond distressing. Both of these people are young and fit. All I can think is how every day is so precious and we are so lucky to be healthy. We hear it over and over so it becomes meaningless but Every Day is to be Treasured 110%!!
Paddling on the river at Noosa
Sunshine Beach this morning
I need to sign off now and get on with studying for my Ethics exam and also focusing on a research question for my 3500-word Theories of Journalism essay. Amazingly, we have been learning about the portrayal of journalism in film so there might be the chance to watch movies for HOMEWORK!!! I watched "All the President's Men" the other day and seeing the rotary dial telephones was so ... weird. The youthful Robert Redford was pleasant though really, were men wearing their trousers THAT high in 1972? And I almost choked on my corn chip when Bob Woodward (Redford) was trawling through 'phone books in the library trying to find someone's address. Oh how quickly we forget LBG (Life Before Google).
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