When trying to summarize the happenings since finishing uni four-five months ago, I went off on a bit of a tangent describing one particular thing I did about three months ago. The other things I did do, in rough order of their occurrence:

• Go to Prague (with a whole post of its own below)
• Become enamoured by the mental image of zipping along in Italy (or another pleasant climate) on a vespa, leading to my starting moped/scooter lessons in a bid for a bit more independence when getting from A to Z and indeed anywhere in between. “Lessons” was meant to be “lesson” but I was thwarted by factors such as heavy rain, losing control of the bike as a result of heavy rain and as a result losing a lot of confidence. Four lessons in and I have no certificate, and not sure I will ever get one. Resigned to walking for the foreseeable future.
• Continue to watch my baby niece grow into a highly intelligent, observant and adorable little mini-person, and have helped with the odd feeding and nappy change in exchange for some emphatic babbling and the warm glow of being a first-time auntie.
• Undertake more volunteering, albeit exclusively remote. One project is editing and proofreading books for a digital library, another is writing reviews for a comic website, another is researching and editing biographies for a Nobel Prize website.
• Read biographies in my own time: “Hunger Makes Me A Modern Girl” by Carrie Brownstein (Slater-Kinney/Portlandia), recounting the life of a rock/indie musician back in the 90s Seattle grunge era, among the first musical eras I can remember from the first time and so which carries some resonance. “The Motorcycle Diaries”, by Ernesto “Che” Guevara (re-reading) recounting the time in the early life of a guerilla revolutionary figure when on a road trip in 50s South America, a time which is less familiar but an urge to get on a fast-moving vehicle and go on an adventure. Both of these I would suggest to anyone who wants a kick up the arse to start something, whatever that may be, of their own.

The things which I did not do, in rough order of non-occurrence:

• Gain a paid job so that I could earn a bit extra and have a daily routine more closely resembling that of a normal person.
• Write a novel/poem/short story which is actually presentable or worth reading.
• Secure a mentorship from an author I highly admire in order to counter the lack of initiative I seem to have when it comes to writing.
• Adequately prepare myself for the prospect of turning 30, or complete all the things one should reasonably expect to have done by 30.

So it turns out that no matter how much procrastination you do (and how much of the procrastination monkey you invoke) the age of 30 still comes for you. Damn. Whether reading the biographies of those who had already lived an adventure, and then some, by that age, or reading the social media of those who are lagging behind me in terms of age but light years ahead of me in terms of living a well-rounded life, one more worthy of a novel or at least a few seasons of a new Netflix programme.

One where you do The Thing instead of thinking about doing, and berate yourself for not doing, The Thing.

It would be nice to think that I’ll binge on all the Stuff I’ve Not Yet Done in order to feel like a more regular person in good time for blowing out the candles of the (vegan) birthday cake. But that might not happen, and is unlikely to happen. While this is under consideration, here is a photo of Edinburgh Castle. Because Edinburgh is a nice place.