How tough are you?

I like to think of myself as tough. Mentally. I know that I have me a pretty strong willpower. Physically? Not so much. Emotionally? Nah – I’m kinda a marshmallow, really, when I’m honest with myself…! But mentally? I know I’ve got “grit and determination” in spades. So when I first heard about ‘Tough Mudder’ I thought ‘Wow! That would be FANTASTIC!!!’

In their own words, “Tough Mudder events are hardcore 18-20 km obstacle courses designed by British Special Forces to test your all around strength, stamina, mental grit, and camaraderie” and some more: “To get through mud, fire, ice-water, and 10,000 volts of electricity you’ll need teammates to pick you up when your spirits dip. To get over 3 m walls and through underground mud tunnels, you’ll need teammates to give you a boost and a push. Tough Mudders are team players who make sure no one gets left behind. To that end, all Mudders℠ are expected to uphold our ideals and exhibit teamwork and camaraderie both on the course and off it.” (Find out more here)

My opinions haven’t changed, even though I’ve looked into it quite a bit more. It’s tough. It’s muddy (remember Emu Gully, Jo?) and it’s a challenge-and-a-half. So I’m up for it. Circumstances have prevented me from forming a team for this year’s Sunshine Coast challenge in August, but apparently they’ve signed up for a 5 year contract, so I’m planning to be one of the first to register for the 2014 event.

Bring it on!!!!!

CC image courtesy DVIDSHUB at http://www.flickr.com/photos/dvids/8482383303/

#hateselfies

If you follow me on twitter, then over the last week you may have noticed some #photochallenge tweets I’ve sent. I’ve decided to bite the bullet and ‘just do it’ (Nike would be proud, maybe?) and just see how far I get. My reasoning:
Number 1. I hate selfies. As in, the photos you take of yourself with your own camera. I’m not comfortable in front of a camera; and so it’s difficult for me to actively *make* myself do something that I really, really, really, really hate doing.
Number 2. People who complete year-long challenges inspire me. Recently one of my Facebook friends has just finished a 365 day “Gratitude” challenge, and it was with a sense of true sadness that we who had been following her journey, sharing it with her day by day, read her final update. I’ve never done one. Not a 365 day one, anyway. Heck, even #blogJune these last two years has been difficult!! But I’ll start; and see how I go…
Number 3. I blogged yesterday about Facebook Bootcamp last Tuesday. Well the final speaker for the day, the absolutely incredible Sue Henry, asked everyone to raise their hand I the owned a smartphone. About 99% of the audience did; but only 4 or 5 people kept their hands raised she asked ‘who has taken video for their business on their smartphone and uploaded it to YouTube?’ So that was her challenge; and one that I doubt I could take up due to my hatred of the camera. Hence the challenge I have set myself. 365 days worth of selfies, to get used to the idea of being in front of the camera, photos with the idea that I’ll work my way up to video.
So yes, if you follow me on twitter, hopefully you’ll see 365 #photochallenge tweets. Well, that’s the aim, anyway. Maybe by the end they won’t still be tagged with #hateselfies !!!

Today’s, taken after a morning working in the garden…