Sabbatical Diaries: Defying Gravity, Zoo Adventures & Making Coffee
Week 3: The fun has finally begun, and I'm absolutely loving it.
👋 Welcome to the latest issue of Adulting with Kate Campbell – the newsletter that reminds you that no one has it all figured out, but we can start working out how to adult together.
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Dear wonderful reader,
This week, I finally began to relax after a few weeks of feeling like I was darting from one thing to the next. Let me catch you up on everything I’ve been getting up to!
Day 15 - Deep Cleaning My Kitchen
Lest you think it’s all fun and games over here, today I spent most of my time cleaning more grease than I thought possible off things in my little kitchen.
My beautifully cleaned kitchen lasted a grand total of 12 hours before a new mess descended 😅
Day 16 - Work Christmas Party
Our work Christmas party (and my final day) involved a trek out to Melbourne Zoo for an epic challenge. We got split into groups of two, given 18 riddles and two hours to find and photograph as many zoo creatures as we could (bonus points for selfies with the animals).
Then we had a long lunch at Old Palm Liquor in Brunswick, which had to be one of the best meals I’ve eaten this year. I’ll share the menu below of all the delicious dishes we tried, topped off with a G&T.
Day 17 & 18 - Festive Drinks & Catch-Ups
This weekend was full of catch-ups with friends and family, and we hosted Christmas drinks at home. I made Nagi’s French Onion Dip again and tried her Chicken Finger Sandwiches, which involved hand-beating a pulled-apart Coles hot chicken. Big tick of approval, as always!
I also finally started reading The Book of Azrael by Amber V. Nicole, which some friends from my book club raved about. While it’s not quite reaching Sarah J Maas's level, it’s been a long time since I’ve had a fantasy book from another author that I couldn’t put down.
Here are a few of the books and shows I’ve been enjoying lately ⬇️
Day 19 - Coffee Making Class
For some reason, I’ve wanted to know how to make a proper latte for at least a year now, probably harbouring fantasies of working in a bookstore cafe one day. What followed was an exhausting 4 hours making at least 50 different coffees and only spraying myself with milk once.
I now have a newfound appreciation for baristas, knowing the skill involved in making a good coffee.
Day 20 - Watching Wicked
Another toasty day here in Melbourne meant that I was definitely getting my gym workout and walk in early. I continued getting into the Christmas spirit with my nails 💅
Today's standout was watching Wicked at the cinema with my friend. This was a phenomenal production, and I was very impressed with the attention to detail throughout the film, including the vocals and costumes.
Highly recommend!
Day 21 - Christmas Movies & My Brilliant Career
I cracked out a Christmas movie today. My friend and I really enjoyed Our Little Secret on Netflix. It was such a sweet and easy Christmas movie, perfectly unrelatable and a great way to relax. We made Banh Mi (including cooking pork belly in an air fryer, which turned out excellently).
Plus, I had the opportunity to see My Brilliant Career by the Melbourne Theatre Company in the city. It was mesmerising, high-energy, and character-driven, and I can’t really describe it any more than that.
It’s new and edgy, and I’d definitely recommend it to my fellow theatre nerds.
👀 What’s coming up in week 4?
Now that I’ve lost the regular rhythms of work and study, it’s up to me how I fill and structure my days. While I want to give myself space for exploration and reflection, I’ve got a few ideas of how I want to spend my time. Here’s what I’m planning to get up to in the coming week:
Getting a skin check (adulting level 2 ✅)
Finally, doing some writing
Reading some more fantastic books
Going for a Pathless Path walk (I’ll explain in my next update)
Preparing my homemade Christmas hampers
Getting ready for my holidays…
And graduating university!!!
I look forward to catching up at the end of week 4!
Until next week,
Kate
Catch up with my Sabbatical Diaries here ⬇️
Thanks for reading
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