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Hi Folks,
Sorry for the huge delay in writing another postcard. I have emailed most of you so was a bit lazy in writing on the site. But have finally found some time to get it done. Since my last postcard everything has improved in my life. Although, I have still not seen much of New Zealand due to all the stuff I am doing.
As most of you know I was looking to move into another industry not related to hospitality. With my sales experience I was able to land a job in a gym in the city centre. In true corporate style I have a title that has nothing really related to what I get paid for; I am a Wellness Consultant. This title conjures images of holistic healing and all that hippie stuff when in fact I look after all the sales and marketing for the club. I enjoy my job as for the first time I am selling something I really believe in and has a very positive effect on peoples lives rather than the problems that alcohol brings. I also get to work out everyday, although the last couple of weeks this has stopped as I am studying so much. I have met some really cool people through the gym. However, I am cursed with strong ethics and will not hit on any of the many beautiful women that come into my gym. Although, I am beginning to crack!
Before I went travelling I was 14 stone and was becoming more cuddly each day due to my crappy diet and total lack of exercise. I lost about two stone from travelling and another half a stone from working out in the gym. My body fat is almost as low as it was when I was doing athletics and I am now starting to put on muscle mass! I don't yet have the body of a god, but as long as I don't have the body of the hamburgler. I am proud to say that my body is a temple again (inside joke for some of you).
Anyway, enough of the self promoting. I was doing my Dive Master training each weekend with a certain dive operator in Auckland, but after he cancelled 7 of 9 dives I decided I had enough of him. Plus he took himself far too seriously and gave off the feeling that he was far superior to all the students. His method of teaching was harsh and he always had to know everything and the students could never be totally correct. He also told me certain things that turned out to be untrue and so I ended my training with him and am about to start it with another dive shop. They are more expensive but I got a much better vibe off of them and they are a dive club as well so I get to go on some cool dives rather than just teaching dives – most importantly they know that diving is meant to be fun. The only problem is that I have lost a month with that other fool and now have to start again. Thankfully I have done most of the paper work and so we are going to try and cram all of my training into two months.
Other than my dive training I am also doing a national qualification in sports and fitness through work. It is quite basic but work wants me to get it as all the store managers need to have it. It is meant to take a month a section and there is 8 sections, I did the first 4 sections in a weekend its that basic. For those from the UK it would be like an NVQ. Seen I have bought myself some time I am going to leave the rest of it until I have finished my DM course. All in all it is worth at least a bullet point on my CV.
Last month I went down to Napier (east coast of NZ) with some friends. Along the way we stopped off at some amazing sights, the NZ countryside is so beautiful. I have put up some photos from the trip. It was only a weekend and we crammed in a day at the races as well. Shaun even won a few dollars. We didn't see a huge amount of Napier, as we were on the road a lot of the time. We are meant to be going down again in the New Year for the art deco weekend. You see I still squeeze in a bit of culture every now and again.
Other than the occasional weekend away life here has been taken up with work and study. I am still “trying” to stay off the booze. I did lapse last month on Si and Molly's wedding day and got fairly drunk with some friends on a night out in Auckland. Guess what, I even found a traffic cone to relive old glories!! I walked up the main street of Auckland (Queen Street) with it covering my entire head. I was relying on Helen (my flatmate) to guide me but was told that we were so close to being run over as she was even more drunk than me and her guiding skills were not the best. Almost happy I couldn't see from what the rest of the guys said. So apart from the odd evening I have been off the booze for nearly 18 months.
I am gutted that I couldn't be there for both of you [Si and Molly] and wish you both the best of happiness in the future. Thanks for sending me the pics, you both looked great. San Francisco is my favourite city in the US, in fact it is the only one that I really liked. So I am sure I will be over to see you some time next year on the way to Europe.
As yet I have no idea what I am doing with my life (sounds scary saying that). I am just enjoying life and am fairly occupied with work and study. I am enjoying being somewhat of a bum. I think I will stay in Auckland until next May and than travel around NZ for a few weeks before I head to Europe for Nick and Lucia's wedding. From there I am thinking of heading to Auz and will try again to get residency over there. New Zealand is nice but the weather is too similar to Ireland and the UK, I have always wanted to be somewhere much hotter all year around. So I will have to head closer to the equator. Failing that, I have no idea.
I did put together one of those “things to do before your 30” lists. However, I have so much on it I have had to extend it until I am 35. It is funny the amount of things that you can think of to do. I might put it on the site, but may have to censor a few things so as not to offend some people. Plus don't want all of you knowing what stuff I am planning on getting up to, got to have some secrets.
There is probably a load more stuff that has happened since my last postcard but can't think of it at the moment. I will try and do another postcard before the New Year.
Oh yeah, might as well throw this little piece of info at the end. When I was thinking about the whole things to do before your 30, I was approached and asked to pose nude for a book. After a few well chosen questions I decided “what the hell” and did it. As I got paid for it I can be classed as a professional model no less! This one is not going on the CV though and sorry I am not putting the photos on the site either.
Lastly, I just want to say congratulations again to Si and Molly and Happy 30th Birthday to my bro.
Love to you all, Em
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