The boy who danced with the devil

‘Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards’
– Søren Kierkegaard

I know I know, we are in 2022, so why am I choosing now to write my review of 2019? Well, now is as good as time as any. The world has basically been on fire for the best part of two years, so why not right?

When I first planned writing this post at the back end of 2019, I had a very specific direction I wanted to take it, which is how I came up with the title – I truly felt like I had danced with the devil. However, before we get into that, I wanted to focus on the positives of the year and talk about some of the exciting things that happened. After all, 2020 saw the COVID pandemic hit and it’s easy to let that suck us into a hole of negativity. So, following that, lets take look at some of my 2019 highlights shall we?

#19 – Live Abroad for a Year

‘Living in a foreign country is one of those things that
everyone should try at least once. My understanding was that it
completed a person, sanding down the rough provincial edges
and transforming you into a citizen of the world’
– David Sedaris

Living abroad. The big one. Tell you what though, I’d have to disagree with Sedaris, I think I’m still a  little rough around the edges. Not quite a “completed” person.

Still, it was definitely something.

All in all I spent thirteen months in Australia, thirteen quite brilliant months I may add. The majority of that time was spent roaming and exploring Melbourne, with the rest split between Sydney and Western Australia (the East Coast I travelled back in 2015 and can be read about in detail here).

#95 – Attend a Grand Prix race weekend

‘I’m a sport fan. So, I have always watched everything,
and I used to watch racing. Formula One was always on.
The genius about it is that it’s on at lunchtime on a Sunday’
– Asif Kapadia

Despite growing up a stones throw from Silverstone, it took until I was in Melbourne to actually attend a Grand Prix.

It was alright, the Melbourne circuit is pretty sweet and it is a cool experience. Sure, it involves a lot of head twisting mind, and you only get to see the cars breeze past you for just a second, but

#67 – Walk on a naturally formed glacier

‘The gem of New Zealand’s West Coast Glaciers’

The west cost of New Zealand’s South Island has several stunning glaciers that provide many a beautiful photo opportunity, but perhaps the best known of all is the Franz Josef Glacier.

Glacier’s themselves are pretty awesome. A body of dense ice centuries old that is constantly moving and shifting due to it’s own weight, influenced by its on-going climate. Unfortunately, due to fluctuating weather conditions

The boy who strayed from his path

‘Stay true to yourself, yet always be open to learn.
Work hard, and never give up on your dreams,
even when nobody else believes they can come true but you’
– Phillip Sweet

It is suffice to say that 2017 didn’t really turn out the way that I thought it would. When the year began, I was of the opinion that I would have spent some time soaking the sun up in Byron, that I would have whale watched over in Western Australia, and that I would have travelled to hell and back completing the necessary 3 months of agricultural work required for a 2nd year visa up in Queensland. However, the reality is that none of the above occurred. And yet, looking back on my 2017, I don’t believe that I would really want to change it at all.

This year saw me forge some extremely strong friendships, revisit destinations that I first went to all the way back in 1999, and finally fulfil a bucket list wish that I have dreamed of for as long as I could remember. Most importantly though, it allowed me to

#110 – Volunteer at the Olympics/Paralympics

‘Long hours, no pay and a mandatory cheery smile…
why do people want to be London 2012 volunteers?’ – Jenny Minard

Back in 2010, before I had even celebrated my 16th birthday, my Dad spoke to me one weekend about applying to be a London 2012 Games Maker. He had seen an article in the local newspaper about it and had done all the research for me – obviously he was very aware that 15yo me wouldn’t really have done anything about it – and all that was needed to be done was to fill out the application form.

Fast forward to January 2012 and I was invited to have both a first and second interview at the London 2012 HQ as part of the 100,000+ strong candidacy search that had been whittled down from an initial 200,000+.

A couple of months later the news then came through, I was one of the luck 70,000 volunteers to be selected to be involved at London 2012!

(Untitled thoughts of one who has been away for a year and counting)

Well, what a difference a year makes! A year ago today I had just landed in New Zealand and was scrambling around trying to find away to find my phone, ID, and credit card, having left them behind in the car of the people who had driven me from the airport to my hostel – it was made all the harder by the fact that I had only met these people on the flight itself!

It is strange to think that it has been 12months since I last stepped out on English soil. So much has happened since then, however it is safe to say that

(Untitled thoughts of a boy and his shadow)

All through his life, the boy had one companion who never abandoned him; his shadow. His shadow kept him company whilst he faced his ups and downs, danced with him on his good days, comforted him on his bad days. Although he was not always visible to the boy, he was always there, watching over him, day after day, week after week.

However, the boy would often take his shadow for granted. He was a silent friend to the boy, even if the boy didn’t realise. He never asked for anything and never received anything in return for his contributions to the boys life, not even a simple thank you.

See, what the boy didn’t realise is that whilst he could pick and choose other companions to spend his life with, shadows don’t have that choice. They choose their partner at the point of birth and stay with them for life. Furthermore, whilst their partner may forget various aspects of their lives, their shadow will always remember.

This boy and his shadow had gone through many journey’s together and his shadow knew that there were still many more to come. After all, the boy was young and eager to push himself, to see the world, to explore, to create, to develop… to live. And so his shadow was surprised to realise that they boy was scared. That he was feeling

#107 – Eat at a Michelin-starred restaurant

‘To Callum
Good luck and phone your mum.
Brum love
Glynn Purnell’

The countdown to my leaving the UK in 2016 for an unspecified amount of time was under way and, as part of my goodbyes, I was treated by my mum to a meal at the restaurant of one of my favourite Chef’s, Glynn Purnell.

The menu of choice at his Michelin star restaurant? The 9 course tasting menu.
To put it simply, it was a phenomenal dining experience.

Cornwall Street in Birmingham is the home of Purnell’s Restuarant. It is actually quite an understated building and, if you aren’t looking out for it, it is somewhere you could easily walk past without a second thought.

We were greeted immediately upon arrival, our bags and coats put to one side, and allowed to push the conversation

So long St Kilda

Aside from an ill-fated stint in Caulfield and a short spell being looked after by my extended family, the Melbourne suburb of St Kilda has been my home since I arrived into Australia back in December.

Tomorrow, due to various reasons, I’ll be moving to the CBD. Somewhere fresh. Somewhere new. It is going to be strange, that is for sure.

Walking along the beach tonight, it struck me just how many people I’ve met, and just how many memories I’ve