The last week has been an absolute cracker—a trip up north, catching up with family, a bit of live theatre, local politics, community sport, and topping it all off with top-tier pub food. Here’s a run-down of how it all went down.

Tuesday, 15 September: I spent the last few weeks up north visiting family, and Tuesday night was the perfect send-off. We headed to the Northern Rivers Hotel in North Lismore. That pub holds such a special spot in town, especially after getting completely wiped out by the 2022 floods. Seeing it fully restored and back on its feet really shows how resilient the local community is. I was pretty tempted by the seniors menu, to be honest—I’ve got a Seniors Savers Card, though not the full Seniors Card, so I wasn’t 100% sure if I qualified. Either way, the classic pub meal hit the spot!

Wednesday, 16 September I flew back home to Sydney, and I scored the ultimate window-seat view. The sky was dead clear as we flew in over the harbour. Never gets old.

After a brief rest, I headed to Taylor Square in the evening to catch At Tonight’s Performance at Qtopia Sydney for the Sydney Fringe Festival. I love musical theatre, but I was mostly there to see Adam Bowes—an awesome actor and singer I had the pleasure of interviewing for The Limb Shift a while back. It was brilliant seeing him do his thing live on stage. Pure chaos, but so much fun.

Thursday, 17 September Shifted gears completely and went to NSW Parliament for the Media Pride: Pride in Politics event. The whole thing was run under Chatham House rules, so my lips are sealed on who said what! But it was a super candid, eye-opening discussion about modern media, covering everything from recent political coverage of LGTBQIA+ issues to how algorithms end up driving editorial decisions around what stories actually get told. Ended the night doing some great networking across the media, advocacy, and political spaces.

Saturday, 19 September: After a crazy busy few days, today was all about doing as little as humanly possible. Slept in, took it easy, started reading a new book and went for a refreshing afternoon swim to soak up the early spring sunshine. Exactly the reset button I needed.

Sunday, 20 September Started the day at Prince Alfred Park Tennis Courts in Surry Hills for the final day of the NSW Para Standing Tennis Open. Para standing tennis is awesome—it’s played by athletes with physical disabilities who play standing up rather than in wheelchairs. I managed to watch comedian Adam Hills out on court playing against a super talented younger player. Loved watching the action, but couldn’t stick around for the whole thing because I had lunch plans calling.

The afternoon was dedicated to a meeting of the First Sunday Roast Club (FSRC) at East Village Sydney in Darlinghurst. The rooftop terrace is top-notch, though like most classic Sydney pubs, getting up there means tackling a few flights of stairs—always a bit of a test for me, but totally worth the climb once you get to the top.

We were one member short today, but the lunch was a massive win:

• The Vibe: Sunlit rooftop, super relaxed, and thankfully not packed out.
• The Feed: An absolute standout roast—thick slices of tender beef smothered in rich gravy, proper crisp roasties, sweet pumpkin, charred Brussels sprouts, and a massive Yorkshire pudding.
• The Verdict: 10/10. East Village is definitely locked in for a repeat visit on the FSRC rotation.

*Footnote: In the midst of all this chaos, I still managed to squeeze in my actual day job and get some editing done on my upcoming podcast, which launches in just a couple of weeks!