Lucky 30s

When I originally planned my birthday, I only wanted one thing: a great party.

I had actually forgotten that I was turning a whole new number older, replacing the 2 with a 3 now. I was so focused on creating an incredible party, that it never occurred to me that I was turning 30. The stress of planning the party, getting the costumes ready for the Halloween theme, buying all the decorations, food prepping and just cleaning the house in general was everything.

I didn’t even register the importance of my age, because I was too focused on the event itself. It was only until my partner told me about the significance of my age, I finally understood. And with that revelation, came the harsh truth … I was actually failing a lot of my objectives in my B30 challenge.

I was not my ideal weight.

Nor … was I any closer to a full time job in events.

So, the two primary objectives to hit before my 30s, I had failed both.

In all honesty, 2023 had felt like a real slow year. The novelty of working in events had worn off long ago, and I was still stuck between two workplaces, working casually for both, occasionally doing 14 hour days. I was longing for stability, a chance to regulate things in my life, from exercise, dates, me-time, catch-ups and diet.

But none of those things were possible with such a chaotic work schedule. I couldn’t hang out with my friends properly, cos they simply weren’t available during the hours or days I had off. I couldn’t exercise, because work left me exhausted after or unmotivated to do anything, and I couldn’t spend as much time with my girlfriend, because sometimes I had work early the next day or I simply could not fit her in my schedule.

This was the curse of working for two places at once …. I spent more time managing my calendar than getting any real chance to smell the roses.

That all changed around my birthday though.

It was like Lady Luck herself had finally lifted a curse.

Firstly, the new Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 PS5 game was releasing literally on the day of my birthday. As a huge fan of the original game in 2018, I could not be more excited to play the game. Just like I did with the original, I fronted the cost of getting a limited edition PS5 with the Spider-Man details on the front and back, just to play the game.

And I couldn’t be happier. The game has exceeded all my expectations and given me a personal joy that I haven’t felt since the original. I have sunken literal hours into just swinging around NYC and stopping petty crime and the rush and adrenaline combination hasn’t stopped since.

The second lucky aspect was the prospect of the weather. For my actual party, it was a beautifully temperate Melbourne day. Barely any rain and just enough heat to make things warm and comfortable. Luckily the day before and the morning of, everything went without a hitch. I had plenty of time to carve my pumpkins, set up the fairy lights, prep the food, pick up the cakes, and set up all the balloons.

All that and I still managed to sneak in some private celebrations with my partner, by going to a small chic French restaurant, enjoying a cake at home and opening all the incredible, generous gifts she had gotten me.

And to top it off, right on my actual birthday …. I got a job offer. From Gelato Messina. The ice-cream store in Australia.

Full time, events, free ice-cream …. it was like a dream come true. I couldn’t believe it. I got the job offer, right as I was trying to pick up the cake for my party. I went through two interviews, with the events manager for Australia and then one more with her and the big partner of Messina itself.

The second interview was nerve wracking and shocking because the partner himself came down just to visit me and ensure that I was the right fit for the company. Which was obviously a good sign, but I had been hopeful before and never got the job.

But this time, on my birthday, I did.

I landed a job and I couldn’t have been happier. Finally, all that grinding in the event space, all that experience, all those hours had paid off to the point where people could see my potential and trust me with more responsibilities.

For me, getting that phone call from my boss, was the best birthday gift I could have asked for.

And to top it all off, I still had an incredible birthday party and one more big surprise from my girlfriend that weekend to look forwards to.

The birthday party was one of my own design. As an avid NERF gun collector, I had invested far too much in the RIVAL series, that has proven to be the perfect sweet spot between paintball and nerf guns. It hit hard enough to sting but not bruise, travelled accurately enough and I had enough guns to equip a small army of my friends.

We played with those guns in my favourite location, a local multi-storey carpark that, when you park several cars inside to create “cover” proved to be the best way to have fun. Shooting each other, running around, calling out hits and just allowing everyone to shed their adult lives for a few hours has always been a dream of mine. I love seeing my friends just have fun and enjoy themselves in a fast pace game of NERF.

We played so many different modes too. From protecting the VIP, to deathmatch, to Trouble in Terrorist Town, I had such a blast playing with them all, and I desperately want to organise a game every month, to just let loose with my friends. With everyone’s busy schedules, that is a challenge, but I do want to prioritise something active and fun like this regularly to destress and just hang out.

Then it was time to eat, and I absolutely treasure my family for helping cook and prep all the meals. Everything was a hit, from the rice paper and spring rolls, to the barbecued meats and the salads. Nothing went awry. And of course, my favourite cake, from a French bakery known as Le Petit Gateau, was devoured in seconds.

I can still recall all the laughs, the chatter and the smiles from everyone who attended. I lost count of how many polaroids I took on the day and I could not be happier with how the party turned out and ran.

Then came the road trip with my girlfriend. She insisted on taking me to Lorne, where despite the windy weather, we captured so many beautiful moments together. If there is one thing I have fallen in love with, since dating her, is photography. I love taking photos of her, and capturing as many beautiful moments I can with my Fujifilm Instax Mini 90 camera.

Taking so many precious photos, has given me a better eye and now I can really see what makes a photo great and what makes a picture “photogenic.” It’s something you have to train and the constant photos I take of her on our dates have improved my eye so much. Lorne was truly a special road trip, one that I loved taking with her, and getting to try Totti’s for the first time was definitely a highlight that needs to be revisited.

My birthday this year was absolutely spectacular. My heart feels full thinking about it.

I landed a full time job at an ice-cream company that is one of the best in Australia.

My girlfriend spoiled me with incredible gifts that are both functional, thought-provoking and special.

She celebrated a private dinner, lunch, and road trip with me, and made me feel like the luckiest guy in the world.

My birthday party was full of special memories, iconic moments, incredible food, and hilarious guests. Absolutely no-one stood out of place, and everyone seemed to get along well with everyone else.

I know that in the future my birthdays are unlikely to rival the insane fortune that blessed my entry into my 30s, but even if that is the case, I will always look back on my 30th as one of the best weekends of my life.

So thank you Lady Luck for looking over me and for allowing me to be surrounded by incredible people, family and girlfriend.

If this is the start of my 30s, I cannot wait to see what the decade ahead offers me.

I love you all and I hope I bring as much joy into your lives as much as you do mine.

~ Damocles