So, about this roller derby thing

Image courtesy of Kea Photos. Roller derby saved my soul or close enough. Roller derby came along during a low time in my life. Anyone who knows me would tell you that roller derby would be the worst activity for me, I am wildly un-coordinated, clumsy and I bruise like a peach but roller derby ticked all the boxes, it is fun, challenging, physical activity, something new and I have met so many cool people because of it. Roller derby became my happy place. I remember watching a documentary about Pirate City Roller Derby way back in 2007 and thought it was the coolest thing ever then a workmate joined the league, I went to watch her graduation bout and there was no keeping me away. It was the coolest thing ever! I joined freshmeat last July, 16 weeks of hard work - learning to skate, learning to fall, learning to stop, learning to hit, learning to take a hit and plenty of injuries - sprained fingers, pulled tendons, a few fat lips and plenty of bruises. After 16 weeks we had our minimum skills test and our speed test (25 laps in 5 minutes) and were welcomed into Dunedin Derby in December. So, now I have my derby alter-ego, Nellie NailHer and this year we have been training with the big girls. Derby makes me want to be a better person. I have been doing Tribe Fit at World Fitness Centre three mornings a week since the end of January. I am probably the fittest I have ever been in my life and I have lost 8 kgs. May 11th was our graduation bout and it was amazing! It was one of the proudest moments of my life. I may not be the most coordinated or skilled skater but I am willing to stick at it and I am improving all the time. Dunedin Derby for life!

One post every three years

Hello faithful readers, the last time we met her heroine she was dreaming of a date with Justin Bieber. Thankfully, she has recovered from those night terrors. So, my goals in 2010 were: 1. Move to a new place 2. Get some more hobbies 3. Take an international holiday 4. Throw a big party for my 30th birthday 5. Buy new stuff Obviously a lot has happened since then. 1) I moved to a new place and then moved out of said new place after 4 months due to the bloody freakin' nutcase-ness of the woman who lived downstairs. If you've ever wondered how difficult it is to pee when someone is sitting below your toilet banging on their ceiling with a broom, I know! I have for the past almost three years been living it up on Baker Street (insert saxophone solo/debate over whether Gerry Rafferty or Foo Fighters sing it better/Sherlock Holmes reference here) in the heart of Caversham. 4) (Who says I have to follow an order?) I did throw a big party for my 30th birthday. Here is a photo: 3) After my 30th I shouted myself a holiday to Australia - a week in Brisbane, a week in Melbourne. Last year I also took a trip to the UK/Europe. My sister and brother-in-law are living in London and my best friend moved to Edinburgh last year so I spent 6 weeks over there, starting with a 2 week tour of Italy with Oak Hall excursions, I had a week in Edinburgh with Jemma and Annette (mmm, haggis), three days in Ireland, a weekend in Paris and all days in between in London. New dream job - working at the London Dungeons. Dressing in costume every day and acting creepy = sweet! Stay tuned for more exciting adventures in the Sarah Naylor travel super special (just like when the Babysitters Club went on holiday! 2) Get some more hobbies. I did finish walking every single street in Dunedin with calves of steel and a foot that was more blister than foot by the end of the year & got in the paper for it: www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/142100/all-over-dunedin-one-pair-shoes I played two seasons of football for Caversham. The team sadly kind of fell apart at the end of the 2011 but I am excited to see them making a comeback in an almost all-star season (like Survivor but no one gets voted off the island) with players returning from all three seasons and they are even having a few wins. I am not playing this year. I have found a way more awesome, way more time consuming sport... roller derby! Yes, me, playing roller derby! It is rad! But, I could talk derby until I am blue in the face so that will be a completely different post. 5) Buy new stuff. At the moment I am doing the opposite. I am trying to downgrade my life as I fly off to the USA for three months in July. Anyone who has known me for a while will know that I have been planning a road trip across America for a very very very long time and that is finally happening. I am so excited! I start with 2 weeks back in the UK then to Vancouver for one night before starting a 7 night cruise around Alaska (I'm going to Alaska!). From there, I fly down to Alaska and the world is my oyster for three months. I can't wait to blog about that one. So, I am slowly packing up my life in Dunedin temporarily. If anyone, knows anyone who needs a place to live in Dunedin for three months, point them my way. Other notable mentions: Both my sisters got married to very lovely guys. I shaved a moustache into the side of head to raise money for Movember: I think that is it in a nutshell Tune in next week (or 2016)!

Weirdness.

Last night I had a dream that I won a date with Justin Bieber. Weird.

2010

So these were my goals for this year:

1. Move to a new place.
2. Get some more hobbies.
3. Take an international holiday.
4. Throw a big party for my 30th birthday.
5. Buy new stuff.

It has been 8 months since my last post. Crazy! So a quick update. I am still in Dunedin and still working at the Ministry of Health.

I technically didn't make any new year resolutions this year but I had set the above goals before new years. It may be the first time I have kept a new year's resolution.

1. Move to a new place - This year will mark my 11th year in Dunedin, my seventh flat(if you count my year in Keeling House at Studholme Hall) and 30th flatmate. I have loved my flatting experiences but have for a while felt that it was a change from "student flatting". In March, I moved to a new place in Anderson's Bay. It is great, it is clean, tidy and all the furniture matches. I share with Zelle, who owns the flat. It is a proper grown up flat. If you are in the area, come round for a cuppa, I have chocolate biscuits.

2. Get some more hobbies - My biggest thing is my goal to walk every street in Dunedin. Before you quote the classic Dunedin dad joke ("I've already walked Every Street in Dunedin"), let me clarify - I am walking every single street in Dunedin according to Wises Map. I read an article in The Star last year about a man who was onto his tenth time round the city's streets, to clarify even further, this includes Dunedin city out to Port Chalmers on one side of the harbour and Portobello on the other, Mosgiel, Waldronville, Outram and Warrington. I am approximately a third of my way through my goal. I began on 1 January and aim to complete by 31 December, with the hope of also doing streets in Ranfurly, Waikouaiti and other outlying towns.

My other hobby this year is football. Last year I was super supporter, this year I have donned a strip and you will find me on Sunday afternoons in Cavy women's midfield. This weekend will be the forth game of the season (Look out Dunedin Tech!). Loving it!

3. Take an international holiday - On Saturday, I turn the big 3-0 and next Saturday, I take off for two weeks in Australia, my first time out of the country. I am so excited! I will spend a week in Brisbane with ex flatties, Jo and Brodie and baby bump then down to Melbourne for a week with Annette and Gerg.

4. Throw a big party for my 30th - Yuss! Tomorrow night, drinks, nibbles and live jazz with 80 of my closest friends, family and workmates. One more sleep! One more sleep!

5. Buy new stuff - Ummm, kinda on hold, refer to numbers 3. and 4. :-P

So that's it.

PS. Hi Jemma! How do you make nachos?

How is the exercise going now?

Wow, it has been over a month since I last posted, so much for blogging once a week.

It is 7:17pm on a Friday evening, I am sitting in bed on my laptop eating cereal for dinner which is a little sad but mostly I am TIRED!!! So the exercise is going well.

The football season finished a fortnight ago, Caversham came dead last (unfortunately). We had the team break up last weekend and I got a certificate! For my dedicated and enthusiastic support (Go Cavy, you're so savy!!!). I think it is my first sporting award ever! Last Sunday was my first Sunday without football although I did go and buy myself my every one football boots, shin guards, training cones and a bag for my boots. I have yet to try them out and I am itching to. I want to get real good before next season.

Last year at work we did a 10,000 step challenge where in teams of ten every one had to walk around the coast of New Zealand with the goal of walking a minimum of 10,000 steps every day. I came in half way through the challenge so I made it my goal to walk 20,000 steps every day. I have started that up again unofficially and this year (as individuals) we are walking around Ireland and North Ireland, starting in Dublin and heading South so for the past four weeks it has been all about the steps.

My general plan was to start with 10,000 steps a day and each week improve on my average or the average of whoever was leading the challenge which until the end of last week had been me but one of the girls went skiing on the weekend with a grand total of 163,000 odd steps (I am still dubious about her numbers) which has pushed my average from 17,000 steps a day to 23,400 steps a day and I am really not happy about it.

Plus I have been swimming every day this week. Monday and Tuesday were light days step wise due to other commitments but Wednesday and Thursday were massive. I spent all of Wednesday evening just walking around. I biked home from work, no one was home and there was no dinner, since I cooked the night before, I didn't much fancy cooking two nights in a row so I went for a 40 minute walk (about 4,000 steps) in the hopes that when I got home dinner would be started. When I got home Dave had only just put meat on to defrost so I went for another walk in the hopes that when I got back dinner would be ready (about 20 minues, 2,000 steps). Then after dinner, I took the dog out for about 50 minutes (5,000 steps). I feel I safer if I take the dog with me, it means I can go for a walk in the evening, I think the dog would protect me. It is not so great taking the dog for long walks though, it was good for a start, she wanted to run so the pace was reasonably fast but then she either got tired or bored or got that we weren't going to go any faster and then she just wanted to sniff EVERYTHING, then I got tired and I really had to pee, I wanted to get home and the dog wanted to sniff EVERYTHING. So I made it home with a whopping 29,000 steps for the entire day. Today is very low, I am too tired but I plan to go on a mission tomorrow.

The revoluton won't be televised but it will be served with cake...

This week has been a good week, things seem to be settling down at work after our busy period, it has helped that the weather has been quite good, I think it really puts people in a better mood. I haven't been exercising too much this week other than walking or biking to or from work. I hurt my achilles the other week but I'm going to give it a go tomorrow.



This week has marked I.C.B.L's grand return to the official cake bake (as requested by management). I made this Che Guevarra cake, although I think it looks more like Jesus (goes well with the virgin Mary cake I made a couple of years ago. It is quite nice to be back, I must admit I have missed it a little, although I think I ate a lot less at ICBL.

Who would have thought that I liked sport so much?

One of my biggest childhood tragedies is that when I was about nine or ten I decided that I would play softball. I went along to one of the practices and one of the older girls took me under her wing and taught me how to bat and stuff and I remember I wasn't bad but the boys laughed at me, I went home and I never went back.

This week is the official start of my triathalon training. A couple of years ago, Kat, Liz and I did the the Blokefree Triathalon at MacAndrew Bay. I have decided that this summer I am going to do the whole series, I think there are three of them.

This week I have been quite active. It also helps that I have rebelled against public transport. As I have promised people that I won't bike to work in the snow or the frost I have been getting up at 6:30, checking the weather and deciding on my mode of transport from there. So on Monday, it was very frosty. I walked to work, it took me 25 minutes longer.

On Tuesday, I walked to work, went for a swim after work then walked home again.

On Wednesday, it was fine enough to bike to work. Because I had got up earlier to check the weather I started work at 7am. I went for a 4k run with Lori at lunchtime and biked home.

I walked to work on Thursday (I probably could have biked but better to be safe than sorry). Brett, Lori and I went running at lunchtime. I did my first non-stop 4k and shaved 1:47 off my previous time. I had worship team in the evening and walked home after that. I was exhausted.

I walked in on Friday, I was going to go for a swim after work but ended up having dinner with my workmate at his flat. Tradition American cuisine - medium well done cheese burgers, potatoes with sour cream and Pepsi. I was going to catch the bus home, Charles lives in North East Valley so we walked to the Gardens corner. It was 8:45, the timetable said that the Normanby bus left there at 8:15 and 9:15, my bus left the Octagon at 9:30 so I decided to walk to the Octagon, I ended up catching the Normanby bus on my way to the Octagon. Really!?! That took me to South Dunedin and I walked from there.

Yesterday I went for a 23k bike ride.

Today I biked to church. Football was a home game against Dunedin Tech. I was so prepared, I played bass at church this morning, I was wearing my football gear under my dress pants and jersey so as soon as the service finished I was ready to go.

I played the second half today. I am loving football. Today I was in the backs. The game was a draw 1-1. I am keeping up my tradition of one ball to the head each game. It was kind of funny actually, I think it was half fluke/half defensive, the ball hit me in the hand, carried on and hit me in the head. The other team kept yelling 'Hand ball, hand ball' and Gala yelled back 'it was defensive, it would have hit her in the head' and I yelled back, 'it did hit me in the head'. I found it amusing, actually I don't really know what the outcome of that was. I still don't really know how to play football but I love it.

I am trying to get a group of people together at work to start our own 10,000 step challenge like we did last year, put in an entry fee and have prizes for the best individual, best team, most improved, most consistent so I am going to dig out the pedometre and start counting my steps.