Itchy Feet

Rach - I'm sharing one of your posts here because it really struck a chord with me.

When I asked if she ever got tired of all the running around, she said no, this has always been her preferred way: the life of the high-end nomad, moving from town to town…Like the hero of Apocalypse Now, wherever Jolie is, she wants to be in the other place. This can make her seem removed, less like a person living in the now than like someone living in the five minutes from now. She seems both mystical and beyond petty nationalism, but her footloose drive for new experience is pure Americana. “Anytime I feel lost, I pull out a map and stare,” she told me. “I stare until I have reminded myself that life is a giant adventure, so much to do, to see.”’

-- Angelina Jolie, as interviewed by Vanity Fair

I have lived in NZ for 18 months. I think within one month of moving here, I was already thinking about where I wanted to go next. And I think that's why I imposed a time limit on my stay here - 2 years. The first reason being that 2 years is the minimum amount of time I'd like for a job on my resume. My previous job I was only at for 15 months, so I knew this one had to make a bigger mark. The second reason is that I can conceive of how long two years is. I lived in the UK for two years in my early 20's. It was enough time to get a lot done. But it wasn't long enough to get bored. And I hate being bored. Only boring people are bored, so says Betty Draper.

Apart from growing up in Sydney, I also lived in Sydney for 4 and a half years in between the UK and NZ. I think I was pulled in two opposite directions during that time. On one side, I was leading myself towards settling down to a life in Sydney. I was purchasing furniture. I was developing a career. I was on the hunt for a relationship. But something wasn't quite sitting right. I still don't know exactly what it was, but I like to use this quote from Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey to try and describe it..

"If adventures will not befall a young lady in her own village, she must seek them abroad."

I definitely started to get bored during that time back in Sydney. So the other direction that was pulling me was to get out of Australia and see what else was out there. I've never been one to sit around and wait for things to happen to me. I go searching for them. NZ has been a fantastic adventure so far. I'm working for a really incredible company, and through that I'm meeting some fantastic people. And the city is just beautiful and peaceful and vibrant and cultural. And of course, I met my Boy! It was definitely the right move at the right time. I'm now really starting to settle in to a lifestyle here, but I constantly have those pangs of curiousity - what else is out there? New York is like a great big magnet. It has been pulling at my head and my heart for years, and I feel that it might now be pulling at my body. I'm loving living vicariously through my Boy at the moment - hearing about where he's shopping and eating and going to movies and catching the A-Train. I can't wait for the day when I click that "OK" button and my flights are booked. Another adventure will start.. I can hardly contain my excitement!