A new attitude, a fresh start
What a tough year it’s been with one bad thing happening after another. This beautifully sunny Labour Weekend I decided enough is enough, it was time to look forward and make a fresh start. Thanks to the Albany Mega Centre I managed to do something positive for me, for my home and work.
I guess the problems were there well before lockdown, but the anxiety of a pandemic, the confines of a small space and the pressure John was under ensuring his small business survived, really escalated everything. For months we were either fighting or avoiding each other. So when the second Auckland lockdown was announced we both knew we wouldn’t survive it. John moved out the next morning. I felt a mix of heartbreak and relief.
This made the second lockdown even more isolating and stressful, made worse by being made redundant. By late September, my life had changed dramatically. I’d gone from being in a relationship, living in a nice house and having a job to being alone, living in a one-bedroom apartment and dealing with the uncertainty of irregular freelance work.
I’d been moping around a lot, watching endless Netflix shows and feeling very sorry for myself. Friends offered support but, in these uncertain times, most had their own challenges to deal with. It was early Labour Day Saturday morning that it hit me, life wasn’t going back to ‘normal’ and I had to make the most of my new situation.
After breakfast I drove to the Albany Mega Centre with a positive outlook. I wasn’t sure what I was looking for but open to whatever I found. Within 90 minutes I was loading multiple shopping bags into the car. A new pair of cargo shorts from North Beach, a loose-fitting cotton shirt from EziBuy, aftershave from Pricewise, a t-shirt from Cotton On and a new pair of jeans from Hallenstein Brothers.
Back home in my apartment, I tried everything on and I liked how they made me feel. I phoned a good friend and arranged to go out that evening. I’m glad I did as we had fun and I saw that life is really starting to re-emerge post lockdown.
On Sunday I decided that it’s time to sort out the apartment. I’ve been here a month but still treating it like temporary accommodation. I unpacked everything, put things in cupboards and put some of my pictures up on the wall. My sister, Jan, came around and convinced me that a new start needed nice new things. We headed back to the Mega Centre, browsing with intent through Farmers Home, Briscoes and Adairs. We returned home with a selection of candles, frames, ornaments, cushions and a throw. These immediately gave the place a much needed lift.
I spent Monday trawling the online sites for work. There’s a few things out there but nothing that really excited me. Thinking about what I want to do, I decide to embrace the control and freedom this freelancing things offers. I went back to Albany Mega and bought a kitset desk from One Story and a chair from Warehouse Stationery. I set these up and immediately sat down to make a list of people I know in the industry who may have work for me. There’s a few and this gives me hope.
Tuesday morning, post the long Labour Weekend, and it really feels like my life is looking up again. The reality is that nothing more than my attitude has changed. And it needed to. A big thanks to the Albany Mega Centre. Three visits in three days meant I got everything I needed to kickstart a new attitude and a fresh new start.