When the Cheshire emerges...

I've been on this earth for a quarter of a century. That's insane. I still feel like I'm five sometimes, waiting to see what I can learn. But that's not the case. And coming back to Australia after a beautiful trip abroad, it was time for reflection. For the record I do this a bit... I am a writer after all.

If you don't know much about me you may do after reading this post. I mulled hard over how to structure this, but figure list stories are so in trend right now that I should follow suit. So here are, in no particular order,

25 Things Katina Has Learnt In Her 25 Years Of Existence

1. Travel makes life experience all the richer.
I have just returned from a trip through part of South America; after that, two very different trips to Europe/Egypt and Australia/New Zealand venturing, I've travelled enough to know there's always more to explore, always more to learn. I would not be the person I am today without seeing these parts of our world.

2. Family is forever.
I'm very lucky to be close with my family. Mum is my best friend. The people who have raised me have done a wonderful job and I hope I've done them proud.


This works on multiple levels. Despite the odd snigger or harsh remark, I've always been extremely proud to hail from Adelaide, South Australia. The city is no Sydney or Melbourne, but it shouldn't try to be because it has its own great charm. And on another wavelength, learning about how my grandparents came to make success for themselves in Australia after migrating from Greece... they have amazing, humbling stories that make me appreciate and embrace my heritage.

4. Don't try and act like your father. You'll hurt yourself.
At three or four years old you make foolish decisions. Sneaking into the bathroom during the night, grabbing dad's razor and shaving your face doesn't end well.

5. Don't concern yourself too much with who's cool or not. You'll hurt yourself.
In the 1990s you had to watch for tree branches in the schoolyard potentially being flung into your cheek... wanting to play with the boys and being rejected left a permanent scar. Only physically; mentally I'm fine, thanks for asking. Slippery paths are also not good for seven-year-olds who want to run away from someone. They cause broken arms.

6. Romance is a myth for some.
We'll leave it at that.

7. Absence from home makes the resolve grow stronger.
I have grown in such an integral way since leaving Adelaide at 22, dealing with physical and mental problems as I've adjusted to entering the journalism industry. It's not been easy, and something I don't admit easily. But I have become a such stronger person as life continues to unfold and I try to figure out what my next step may be.

8. It's easy to discover who your real friends are.
I love my different groups of friends dearly, and they know who they are. But in some instances, attitudes post-high school, travelling and moving brought out sides to people you wouldn't expect, and it was an eye-opener for me to see that even with Facebook connecting can go out the window in seconds.

9. You have to make the effort. No silver platters.
In relation to #8, friendships are double-sided so blame can never be placed completely on one side. But making an effort also concerns pursuing other things in life. Sometimes I've been slack in that, and it's something I'm still learning to take control of.

10. When in doubt, chuck some Kylie Minogue on.
She's good at making people happy. Her songs are often relatable to moments in life. I love her stuff to bits. Don't be hatin'.


11. Toilets can be dodgy. Anywhere, anytime. And to throw toilet paper in the toilet is quite the luxury.
Parts of Europe were memorable for dodgy toilet seats as a constant. Peru's squat toilets and the uncertainty of where to place paper was frustrating. We in Australia have fantastic relievers.

12. People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.
It's a beautiful saying that I first heard from a friend I had in Dubbo. Unlike her, I sometimes struggle to accept it - but do understand the value of meeting every person I do.

13. Things can be different to what you might be looking for.
This is a prime example of that:


14. Some men really do have their shit together.
I've not had many solid male friends in my lifetime. But growing up, you still notice things. In the last year, I've met a number of men in very different situations. And while some have left me flabbergasted (to say the least), others have shown their absolute awesomeness. It gives me the slightest hope that I can one day land someone of that calibre.

15. Meanwhile, you think you have things sorted, but really, you don't.
I'm happy with where I am right now, but at the same time I always want something more. Is never being 100 per cent content a showing of growth and learning, or uncertainty? That I'm still not sure of.

16. Don't expect much from people - you set yourself up for disappointment.
Although I understand it, I'm still working on cementing this one. It covers friends, crushes, the lot. It's worth noting here that you don't need to be in love to have your heart shattered.

17. Be the bigger person - which sometimes means not to say everything you feel you have to.
Sometimes there are people in the world who will refuse to see your point of view. You might have to agree to disagree. Or let them have what they think is a win by not revealing all your cards. Stick it to the man, but also show some reserve.

18. Karma will get you.
You might not know why, and a lot of it is in small doses, but it's there hanging over you.

19. Mercury retrograde is real.
Astrology is something most take with a grain of salt. But I've written on Mercury going retrograde before. After a number of instances where I've travelled and encounter massive delays (including my World Cup tour which I only just discovered), as well as entering jobs with different proposals to what actually ends up happening, I'm a firm believer in this astrological phenomenon.

20. Harry Potter kicks arse over any other book series.
Seven books. One wizard. Adventure. Suspense. Fun words like Quidditch. While I will still always advocate The Baby-Sitters Club, Harry has a special place in my heart.


21. There's no such thing as a stupid question.
Journalism 101. If you need to know, you need to know.

22. I believe there is a God. Although sometimes it doesn't feel as if there's anyone/anything around.
I don't go to church much. I don't preach my religion to anyone. Though there is a part of me that is proud to believe. And sometimes it's hard when you feel completely alone, but someone - or something - is always there. It just takes a while to realise.

23. Things generally have a way of figuring themselves out; everything happens for a reason.

What an amazing culinary invention. No doubt one of the biggest things I associate with childhood and my maternal grandmother to this day. However, within the family there was also the time when my aunty cooked 1200. That was fun to hear about...

The last couple of trips home have been monumental in relation to kourambiethes fixes. I think I got them on my trip home in September, as I had my car and the large container would've lasted. But then there was (definitely) Christmas time...

On deciding to only take a carry-on bag (no point in spending extra when it's not necessary), I visit yiayia and she gives me a large container once again. I'm laughing saying I can't take it all, and she's telling me to take it on the plane with my handbag. I really couldn't not take any, so with mum later I compromised. I had to.

I fit about 12 into a small round container. And I relished those to the very end.

***

The trip home two weeks ago rolls around. I fly in, go with mum to visit yiayia straight from the airport. She warns me that yiayia was a bit cut about the compromise we would have to make once again.

"Dodika (12)? What do you mean, how am I meant to make just 12?" she had said to mum (or words to that effect).

We get there. The round container emerges, packed to the brim - with 12 of them. Mum said yiayia packed them in as tight as she could. Yiayia hands them to me shaking her head slightly. A perplexed disappointment hung in the air.


I'm just about to finish the last of them. At least next time will be when mum comes up to visit - with a suitcase. I'm expecting big things.

***
Your joy is divine and so is your suffering. There's so much to be learned from both.

A year ago today I was at Hydra and Poros, Greece, on a daytrip from Athens.

Hydra's port

A week with the family in Athens started our time on the mainland, but the islands before had been so good we decided to visit these two islands and soak up the sun in a different setting over one of the days. Just gorgeous. The rest of the week was catching up with Athens relatives, gorging on more yiros and seeing the last Harry Potter movie! Just because I'd missed out on the London premiere by mere days it did NOT mean I was going to wait to get back to Australia to see the film!

I didn't take many photos of the islands (for a change) because I was just enjoying myself. And it was hot so we just went straight to the beach in Poros.

A Hydra donkey to greet us...

Poros

A lot of people are disappointed by Athens because it's not the pretty Paris or bouncy Barcelona. But I really liked it even the second time round, there are awesome social areas, good shopping (the shoe shopfront displays alone are the best in the world, hands down - so many beautiful heels...) and the centre's just filled with history that slaps you in the face. Heck, that's the whole country in a nutshell really.

This club was still something out of a movie a year after my first time there. But it was more touristy this time...

A turn of Greek dancing in a suburban restaurant anyone? That's my uncle being taught some moves by our Athenian cousin.

Next: my journey continues to discover my maternal ancestry. Up in the next few days!

The talks I have with my mother every night (yes, the chain is yet to be broken since my move) are nothing short of enlightening. Last night she told me about the love and sacrifice a woman makes for her daughter's happiness. The latest family happenings.

My cousin Maree asked my aunty Lucy to make some kourambiethes for her clients at work - you know, the Greek shortbread biscuits either round or cresent shaped. Since she had two days off Lucy agreed being the good cook that she is, and set on making 120. Not 120 biscuits it turns out, but 120 boxes of 5-7 biscuits. Now, 120x5 is 600. By the end of Monday she had made 800 - their demand grew. And then some. Over two days Lucy made 1200 of these biscuits. TWELVE-HUNDRED. My golly, that's a lotta dough. And icing sugar, wowee. But obviously a lot of love to go with it. Hilarious! How exhausting though, what a trooper! Damn, I gotta get me one of those, I miss Yiayia's.

Then conversation moved somehow to chain letters and my mum reveals herself to be a total sucker for them because she worries she'll get bad luck if she doesn't forward it to ten friends. Oh wow. Then a bit of gold: "I would write to ten people every time I got one. Because that's what we used to do, we'd have to write them."

Something tells me the chain letters were a bit more substantial than 'you are awesome, forward to ten people if you think they're awesome too'. They would have to be right? Aaaahhhhh I love my mother's randomness sometimes. Eight days until the parents are here in person to dish out some more...