Shuffling and NZ1

Everyday is like a jigsaw puzzle. With 24 hours, it's a matter of shuffling activities into those 24 hours. I've never really had a problem with time management. Ha. Let's face it- I have massive time management issues, but being someone who works much more efficiently under pressure, ie time or the lack thereof, I always manage to fit what needs to be done into whatever little time I have.

Till today.

I literally couldn't think of any way I could fit everything I want done into 24 hours. What I'm trying to get at here is that perhaps what we all need is a central focus point. Brings back the point of priorities really. What is important? What do I want to be good at? Often, those with savant minds are very focused on being good at one thing. Perhaps it's having an amazing memory, or the talent of drawing, or music, athletic abilities... it is right to challenge ourselves to different things, perhaps even get quite good at them, but we all have one thing that we enjoy or excel in above all other fields.

Someone once told me that when he goes for a passion, he puts 100% investment in it. Time, money, talent, effort, everything. He was lying of course, because it doesn't work practically. Money is essentially what runs our ambitions. If I want to focus on music, I will need the finance to do so, and the only way is by having a job. That takes away time and effort. It's a conundrum that cannot ever be solved satisfactorily.

Unless you are filthy rich. In which case, go live your perfect life and be really good at that one passion. Hopefully it's something that the world needs.

From NZ 2014

That's the end of my rant. Getting back on track, this is New Zealand post number one!

So a couple of my friends and I headed to Middle Earth for 5 days back a week ago. We first dropped by Auckland.

From NZ 2014

The goal of Auckland was to visit Hobbiton, the exterior set for Lord of the Rings/ Hobbit movies. Our first night, we circled around the hotel where we were staying and decided to check out this Izakaya called Ken Yakitori Bar. It was a modest affair of sashimi, grilled pork belly, chicken hearts..

From NZ 2014

Chicken don which was amazing, grilled chicken with sour plum sauce. We decided we were starved, having had no lunch prior to this (jetstar, no meals), so we went for a second round of ordering: karaage chicken, coated with cornflakes. That really hit the spot. It was interesting to see some people ordering cabbage with miso and mayonaise.

From NZ 2014

Next morning was the Hobbiton tour, but we had time to grab something quick to eat. Mexicali Fresh was one of the few things open in the morning, so we headed in for some breakfast burrito and filtered coffee. Opposite was a cafe called Ironbar, which had an ATM-like apparatus that accepts bitcoin.... never seen one of those before.

From NZ 2014

New Zealand won't be New Zealand without its rolling green hills and numerous cows and sheep. The rental car's GPS decided to trick us away from Hobbiton to the Eye of Sauron, but google maps prevailed and we arrived safely at Hobbiton.

From NZ 2014

From NZ 2014

Was it truly beautiful and quaint? Yes, yes, a thousand times yes- it was. Pictures don't do the place nearly enough justice. The little facts the guide told us about the amount of effort put into these props and sets... Peter Jackson's attention to detail... his eye for constructing what was once intangible images in his mind....

From NZ 2014

I can only speak for myself, but this tour of Hobbiton itself was well worth the trip to New Zealand. I see movie directors in a new light now. It's often so easy to criticise a movie, give it a rating that is perhaps mediocre, but as viewers, third persons, we are unaware of the sheer amount of talent and effort needed to produce a single movie. What we saw at Hobbiton is but a small part of the movies. 

Ah. Perhaps the key to solving that conundrum is to put 100% into a passion and make it your job. Financially supported passion. The sad truth for most people though, is that either their passion doesn't link to a job that is sustainable, or once their passion turns into a job, it becomes less a passion and diminishes to merely... a job.