Our year started off welcoming 2024 at the RNA Showgrounds at Wildlands. RÜFÜS DU SOL and Peggy Gou were a highlight Wildlands definitely marked the beginning of the end of our festival days as we certainly felt our age after 6+ hours roaming the Showgrounds…
We then jetted off to Sydney to stay at Ed’s Uncle Rupert’s house to dog-sit their dog Ziggy for three weeks. Ziggy was great fun to look after, but it took some time for him to warm up to us. He barked constantly when we first arrived and bit Ed really hard after he tried to stop Ziggy from eating some food that was left out (we never made that mistake again). By the end of our stay, the three of us had become inseparable. This stint prepared us massively for our second round of pet-sitting for Bella’s cat, Pam! It was also great fun living the Sydney lifestyle, catching up with friends, and exploring Sydney’s beaches with Brad.
February marked the end of our time at our King St apartment as we moved to a bigger apartment just two streets down in Jeays St. Moving out of our first apartment together was more emotional than we had anticipated, ending with the two of us sitting in the middle of our empty apartment, reflecting on all the memories we created in our first home together.
February and March were massively busy for us as we also went back to Sydney for Mardi Gras! This year was particularly special because we had the privilege of marching with the Brisbane Tritons in the parade. Sean, with Harry by his side, coordinated the entire operation (who knew organising 30+ people to dance 2km down Oxford St would be hard work?). Ed played a key role, using AI to generate Bella’s amazing designs for our custom-made speedos after multiple failed attempts with Budgie Smuggler’s designers. Dancing down Oxford St was an unreal experience, made even more special by sharing it with lovely friends like Zane and Chelsea (who generously drove our ute), Harry, Darcy, Heather, and JT.
In terms of Ed, he’s made this year about getting his goals accomplished – new job, new place, travel and starting a business – he can report that he’s accomplished all of them. At the start of the year, his immediate goal was a change of scenery for us which meant a new apartment. Our new place meant more dinner parties and kick-ons, but we also benefited from the extra space for our WFH setup. While the building isn’t ina street as well-equipped as King Street (and we’re no longer the Queens of King Street), our place is situated next to the lovely bar Nosferatu, and a very friendly sauna.
Ed also took a leap of faith this year and left Deloitte to pursue his own gig. He’s spent a few months working on a smart-home product to solve the need for a high quality wall switch to control lights and smart devices throughout the home. This year he got his first working prototype and investor, and in 2025, he’s hoping for his first real-world install.
Other than his business and work pursuits, Ed’s been doing repairs around the aparment and helping up gear up for another move… oh, and he’s joined a new social group, Tom Social. Next year he hopes to keep the momentum going and to post more regularly online.
This year was also a massive year for elections, with both the Brisbane City Council and State elections. We were privileged to support the re-election of Cr Vicki Howard and Christien Duffey’s campaign for Member for McConnel. One of the highlights of the campaign was working with great friends, including Ben, Nick, and Christien. The State election was an unforgettable experience, with special moments like the campaign launch and ultimately winning the State election! The night of 26 October was truly exceptional and historic, as we saw so many of our friends—who have worked tirelessly for years—reap the fruits of their labour.
In the final months of the year, we were in autopilot mode, but a major highlight was seeing Troye Sivan at the Riverstage. After missing out on Taylor Swift tickets earlier this year, this was highly anticipated!
As the year draws to a close, we are spending Christmas with our respective families—Ed in Salt Lake City with his mum and Georgina, and Sean with his family in Westlake. We’ve managed to fit so much into this year, and 2025 is shaping up to be another big one as we prepare for new challenges and big changes in our lives… (more details to come).
For now, we wish all our friends and family a restful end to 2024. See you in the new year!
A Few Highlights in Pictures
