Margot's Musings & Misadventures

Bad Message

2012-01-19T17:32:00.002+10:30

In my opinion, Beauty and the Beast has a lot to answer for in making generations of little girls think if they're just nice enough, they can tame the beast.

I realise this wasn't the moral of the story, but the message is still clear.
If you're just nice and patient enough, the kind man will emerge from the gruff, cold, mean exterior.

Reality tells a different story.

While there are always exceptions, just as, if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, means it's probably a duck, if he's mean, angry and violent, no matter who you are, you're not going to save him.
That's who he is.

The real message of the movie though is to look beyond the exterior and we'd all do well to do that, but at the same time, you can't assume that an ugly exterior means a pretty inside, or a pretty exterior means an ugly inside.

We are who we are. Not perfect, all affected by our life experiences.

Bottom line, don't make assumptions about people based on their exterior, and don't make excuses for bad behaviour and give people the respect you'd want for yourself.

Going Up? Too bad for you...

2011-12-01T17:47:00.001+10:30

First day back at work after annual leave is always a bit of a shock to the system even for a part timer like me.

It was made more interesting for me by the arrival of a new lift system.

Most of the floors in my building are only accessible by swiping your security card.
So previously, you'd get in the lift, swipe your card and press your floor.

Ahhhhh it sounds so simple when it's put like that.

The reality was, you'd swipe your card but it wouldn't register and those lift doors only stay open for so long so if you didn't have your arm out holding the door, god knows where you'd end up.
Particularly bad luck for those of us (me included) on the first floor if someone got in and started trying to swipe before you.

So when I saw the new lift system today I thought great! Problem solved!!!

Let me explain how this new "high tech" system works.
You push your floor number BEFORE you get in, swipe your card and the panel tells you which of the six lifts will take you there.
Again, great in theory....
So I get there, push 1, swipe my card when asked and.... Nothing. Actually it wasn't nothing, it was some kind of "error" beep... after the third or fourth time I expected the security alarms to start going off.

Meanwhile people all around me are pushing their floor and being directed to the lift that will take them there. It all seemed to be working fine for them.

Now before you ask, there is NO option to walk up to the first floor from the ground level otherwise I'd gladly do that...

After six or ten attempts I just followed a girl into a lift, thinking I'd go to where she was going and then walk down to my floor.... You can imagine how strange it must have been when I follow her in then ask what floor she's going to...
"I'm going where you're going"
She told me she was going to the 11th....
Great

Who knew riding an elevator could cause so much frustration...

Later I found out my card hadn't been enabled yet because I'd been on leave when it was installed.
Hopefully it will work tomorrow... fingers doubly and triply crossed...

When someone thinks for you....

2011-11-16T15:29:00.001+10:30

Saturday night Sarah, Josh and I were in the car coming back from Sweeney Tood (an amazing production/performance). We'd gushed about it for most of the trip back and then were silent in the car.

Sarah breaks the silence by saying
"Mum where's the..."
and before she finishes the sentence, I say
"It's in the bottom drawer"

And silence took over again.

And as I was sitting there replaying those few words in my head I wondered what Josh thought of it so I said
"Josh did you notice how we did that?"

Being a teenage male, he wasn't even aware that we'd spoken, let alone that we'd had a mental telepathy moment....

But there is something about my daughter that makes her know exactly what I'm going to say before I even say it! This is probably the first time I've noticed it work the other way.

Half the time I don't even know what I want to say myself and I stumble over my words
"Did you see...? where's the....? did you want...? remember when we did that thing?"
No matter what I'm saying, she knows what I'm asking and answers accordingly...

She's a clever chookie that one! Don't know where she gets it from ;)

Feeling for Rudolph

2011-11-15T10:25:00.001+10:30

It's the time of year when Xmas carols start being sung. You either love them or hate them but I think, even if you love them, by the time Xmas comes around, you're ready to throttle someone every time you hear one.

This seems to be especially true for me seeing as we have a few Xmas shows coming up with the chorus, and we've been busy rehearsing our Xmas carols.

There's one carol that has always puzzled me. I don't understand why everyone thinks it's a great song. There seems to be a very bad message behind it.

The carol I'm talking about is Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Lyrics can be found here

Don't know what I'm talking about?

Well, here's this poor little reindeer who is picked on by the other reindeer for being different.
Poor Rudolph had a shiny nose. The song makes it worse by saying if YOU saw it, you'd laugh at him too! So it's saying his nose is so bad, you couldn't help but torment him about it. As if Rudolph had any control over his shiny glowing nose...

So the cruel reindeer laugh and call him names (honestly couldn't Santa have picked a better crew??)
That is, until that fateful foggy Xmas Eve when Santa came and singled out Rudolph.
"Hey Rudolph, I kind of like that thing you've got going in the middle of your face there, why don't you guide my sleigh tonight?"
So maybe Santa felt sorry for him, or maybe Santa wanted to piss the other reindeer off, or maybe Rudolph was picked for his sleigh guiding abilities.. either way, that night, he was the man.

It's the NEXT bit that really baffles me...
THEN how the reindeer loved him... only THEN???? Only when Santa said "hey this dude is ok"?? There's no mention of the reindeer being repentant or of learning a lesson about bullying.. no, they only loved him because they were brown nosing Santa...
Bad, bad lesson in that!

If you ask me, Santa should have done away with them and picked a new crew and he probably should have interviewed for the sleigh guiding position and hired someone on merit and ability.

But that's the world we live in isn't it.

*******

I was challenged to come up with an alternate version of the song so here it is... set to the same tune of course!

You know Dasher and Dancer
And Prancer and Vixen,
Comet and Cupid
And Donner and Blitzen.
But do you recall
The most famous reindeer of all?

Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer
Had a very shiny nose
And if you ever saw it
You would say his beauty shows

All of the other reindeer
Were mean and often called him names
They never let poor Rudolph
Play in any reindeer games

Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say
You're shitting me with your bicker all night
So Rudolph guide my sleigh tonight
Then all the rest were jealous,
And they seethed internally.
Santa has gone and sacked them,
And Rudolph will make history...

On being food delusional....

2011-06-30T22:28:00.000+09:30

Do you really want to know who's making your food?

When you go into a restaurant, are you happier if you can see the kitchen, or if it's nestled somewhere out the back out of customer view?
While I understand the value of being able to see the kitchen (after all, if you can see them, they're more likely to use proper hygiene) I don't always want to know who's handled my food.
I like to pretend my food just materialised like that, without any human handling... after all, you can't be grossed out by what you don't know about...

Today at lunchtime, I went into one my regular convenience stores in the city and got a vegetarian baguette. It's not always there so my food obsessed heart did a little leap as I saw one remaining... behind the counter... just waiting to be consumed by me!

So I asked for it and the girl behind the counter said "oh I made those today! I'll just get one for you"

Now she wasn't excessively gross or grubby, but I did find myself assessing her after she'd told me she'd made it.
Yeah ok, I'm strange like that.
Of course, it didn't stop me from eating it but I just wish she hadn't told me and the fantasy of my baguette springing to life from nothing could have lived longer in my head.

I've never thought too much about who handles my food until I started watching those cooking/restaurant shows on tv. Have you seen what they do on some of those shows??? And that's with the camera!! God knows what goes on in a normal restaurant kitchen where there are no cameras and no other eyes watching!
I honestly don't want to know!

Who said delusions were a bad thing??

But you said.....

2011-06-22T21:29:00.001+09:30

The teenage brain is a curious thing.

Recently Miss 16 came to ask me if she could attend a certain concert with her boyfriend.
Being the sometimes cautious mum that I am, I said she could go if she could get an adult to go with them...

She shuffled away, brain cells churning no doubt, to see how she could make this happen.

I had suggested asking her dad, or asking my brother, or another relative that might be interested in going...

A few days later she bounded up to me, eyes shining brightly, barely able to keep her excitment level down.
"I found an adult!"

Now I should add at this point, that Miss 16's boyfriend is 17 and just happens to have a birthday a few weeks before this concert that they both want to go to...

"Steven is turning 18 just before the concert!" she exclaimed. I think there may even have been a hint of "a ha, gotcha!" in her voice...

"That's fantastic for him. Why are you telling me?" I replied..
"Because that means he'll be an adult!! And I'll be able to go to the conert with him! You said it had to be an adult!"

And honest to god, she still doesn't get it...

And now for the next attention seeking headline: Sibling Rivalry

2011-06-20T11:34:00.002+09:30

Sibling rivalry is sometimes hard enough to live with without having the eyes of the world scrutinising and interpreting every move you and your sibling make.

I saw this headline today

Kate vs Pippa: Royal rivals

Really? You don't think Kate has enough of her hands right now? She has to worry about being upstaged by her sister? She got the prince, I think she's happy enough!

They first sentence in this article states
"As the Duchess steals the show at another wedding, the sisters’ lifelong rivalry over who is “thinnest and prettiest” heats up."

Do you think they are really competing to get more accolades than the other?
"Sure, you got the prince, but everyone thinks my butt is better than yours so there!"

So why do we flock to this stuff?
Why do we demand such articles?
Who is the winner here?
Pippa is now a celebrity in her own right. Why should she be compared to her sister?
Kate is now a princess, why does anything about her have to be compared to her sister?
Why can't these two just enjoy their own limelight? Why do they need to be compared?

I'll tell you why... because we like controversy!
We like to think there's something going on so we can talk about how terrible it is over the water cooler or while we're getting out hair done, or sitting having coffee with the girls... It makes us feel better about our own lives if celebrities aren't having the perfect lives they're sometimes portrayed to have.

And it works!
Magazines live on controversy!
A controversial story will win every time over a feel good story.

I feel sorry for those girls. I just hope they have the maturity required to not give in to the public pressure and won't let a rift or sibling competition appear when there never would have been...

When you don't want to be noticed...

2011-06-09T12:10:00.004+09:30

It's no secret that I can tend to be obsessive about things.
Whether it's exercise, my diet plan, podcasts, writing music or whatever, I can go overboard.

Today I stepped out of the office during my morning break to visit one of my favourite convenience stores.
It's the closest one where I can get Home Made Rice Custard from and I've got quite the taste for it lately...

I thought I had been discreet.

There are actually three convenience stores in walking distance that stock this rice custard and depending on where I am and how much time I've got, that will dictate which store I visit.

I try to spread it out so that my obsession doesn't become apparant.

I usually buy two at a time and always ask for two spoons... as if I'm buying for someone else too but no, it's just for me, no one else... and I have a drawer full of spoons at work...

I thought I was being so clever and with the million people that go in and out of those stores every day, I thought I'd never be noticed but the guy behind the counter today said to me
"You must really love those rice custards"

I wasn't sure what he said so I asked him to repeat it and he did...

"Those rice custards you get all the time. You must really love them"

I was mortified once again...

You can always tell when I haven't been there for a few days as stock builds up...
One store has even increased the price of them and I'm sure it's because I'm buying them all the time!

I don't think it's going to kill my love of rice custard but I think I'll wait at least a few days before going into that particular convenience store again!

When it may be time to change professions...

2011-06-01T13:18:00.002+09:30

Recently I had the opportunity to hear a speaker and it was an interesting experience to say the least.

This speaker didn't have english as her first language and while her command of it was very good, she did have some interesting pronunciations.

For example, the word "determine" was pronounced almost as two words. "Deter" and "mine" (as in land mine)

She was reading from a slide and this word, determine, kept appearing in the slides over and over again and all I could think was, "is someone going to tell her??"

I didn't tell her either so I guess I have to answer to myself too!

Apart from the mispronunciations, this speaker was interesting to watch because of her lack of patience.
We had opportunity to ask questions at certain point and if you didn't get it, she would grow increasingly frustrated, to the point where she would roll her eyes and you just know she wanted to say "listen you stupid moron, it's simple, just understand what I'm saying"

The trouble was, everytime she repeated herself, she said the SAME thing.

If someone doesn't get it, best practice is to say it another way! It doesn't do anyone any good to just repeat the same thing over and over again. Everyone she did this too eventually gave up and we just discussed it amongst ourselves later.

We were respectful to her despite all that. Even when she decided to mispronounce names.

Our names were all clearly displayed yet she insisted on calling "Joan", "Joanne".

One time when she did this, a few of us giggled a little too loud and she shot her head around and said "what's so funny? what are you laughing at?"

Touchy much?

Probably just as well we didn't point out the "determine" thing.

While it was entertaining, it's a shame we didn't get to learn as much as we might have done if we'd had another speaker...

First Impressions?

2011-05-24T05:42:00.002+09:30

Recently I found myself in a situation where I was with someone who I was only barely aquainted with.
I don't consider myself a shy person but I think everyone in that situation thinks "what are we going to talk about?"
And as time passed I realised that if there was going to be any conversation, I'd have to be the one making it.

As I learnt from The Brady Bunch, the best way to make people talk is to ask them questions about their favourite subject... themselves..
I started doing that but her answers were so abrupt I felt like I was prying even though I was only asking questions about her work. It's hard to converse when you don't get those same questions back!

But by the end of our time together she relaxed considerably and was talking a lot more freely. Later she thanked me over and over again for helping her out with something earlier that day.

So I'm glad I persisted in trying to talk to her. I felt like she thought I was prying but obviously she was just shy or perhaps reserved.
Just goes to show, first impressions aren't always valid..

"Come to the edge" he said...

2011-05-20T06:45:00.001+09:30

"Come to the edge" he said,
"We can't, we are afraid" they said...

"Come to the edge"
"We can't, we will fall"
"Come to the edge"
and they came
and he pushed them
and they flew.

Guillaume Appollinaire

Not long now...

2011-05-15T07:17:00.006+09:30

I tried to let this go, I really did, but as the date approaches, I'm more and more concerned about why people allow themselves to believe ridiculous things.

This website is claiming that the rapture is occurring on May 21st and the end of the world will follow on October 21 2011.
It doesn't specify what time zone that is by the way...

And it kind of sucks if your birthday is on the 22ND doesn't it?... or even after October 21ST...

I have to wonder if the people who run the website, really do believe that the world is going to end?
This isn't just a website, this is a movement. They've had billboards up all over the place in America, and probably other parts of the world too.
They were giving out free promotional material to advertise the end of the world but their website claims they're not doing it anymore because the retu rn of their lord is really really close, so there's not enough time...

This is a quote from their website
"This web site serves as an introduction and portal to four faithful ministries which are teaching that WE CAN KNOW from the Bible alone that the date of the rapture of believers will take place on May 21, 2011 and that God will destroy this world on October 21, 2011."

But I wonder if they've made preparations for the end of the world?
Have they given up all their money and possessions? After all, after May 22ND they won't be needing it anymore...

You see it's funny, until you see the reality of the situation.
If these people really truly believe it (and you can bet they probably do if they've spent all they have on getting the message out there) what is going to happen to them when they discover they're still here on May 22ND?
Will they feel betrayed? Will they think they weren't worthy of the rapture and look ahead to the end of the world in October?

My guess is they'll quickly make up a reason and change the date...
and continue on as if plan B was the original plan in the first place.

I myself am interested in this site
which is "countdown to backpedaling" and that is exactly what's going to happen.

I so want to take these people, shake them about while screaming "USE YOUR BRAIN!!!!" but it probably wouldn't do any good...

Quick, grab your camera, she's eating!

2011-05-14T06:37:00.007+09:30

Ok so she's thin, she puts on weight, she takes it off, she walks around in a bikini (with a sarong) on Oprah, she puts on weight, she takes it off... I mean please! Give the woman a break!

Some of us have a harder time when it comes to weight and weight related issues. I count myself in that group.

Can you imagine if you're Kirstie Alley, battling through food addiction and weight fluctuations, the same fluctuations that a lot of us face in life, but having it portrayed for the world to see?

Can you imagine your image being plastered out there to the world every time you decided to have a piece of cake? Doesn't matter if that was your first piece in months, the world is going to judge you for it!

The poor girl has to justify herself every time she's caught eating something caloric. She's asked about her weight all the time. Really it's not the only thing she's known for! Can we get off this food thing already? We get it! She has a problem with food! So leave the poor girl alone because she has a mirror! She knows! She doesn't need for it to be brought up and rubbed in her face continually.

The final straw for me came this week when it was reported she was only having 150 calories a day while on the "Dancing with the Stars" and had collapsed on stage... the next day, there's an article saying "Kirsty Alley Eats"

Are you kidding me?? This is news?

She must be a pretty strong person because I can tell you if it were me, I would have gone into hiding by now!

All I'm saying is we all have things we have to work on. Lets leave the non important stuff and for god sakes, lets work on ourselves instead of picking on others no matter how much easier and comfortable that is to do...

When Brilliance May Be Over-rated

2011-05-11T17:43:00.006+09:30

It's amazing what can go through your mind in the wee hours of the morning.
At times I've created songs or paragraphs of prose that I swore were brilliant. I would wake up cursing myself that I hadn't recorded this wonderful creativity.

I decided to put this to the test and kept a pad by my bedside so I could record this brilliance and discovered that my self assessment wasn't so accurate in the cold hard light of day.

Similarly, I've made a decision to do this or that as I'm tossing and turning at 4am. It seems like such a good idea at the time and I can hardly wait to get up so I can carry out whatever it is that's come into my head to do...
Write this person an email,
send this acquaintance a card to cheer them up,
call or text someone who might not be expecting it...

By the time I'm up and dressed I realise that the great idea may not be so great after all and may have even caused a whole lot of problems if I'd carried it out!
Please don't tell me this only happens to me...

I've had a lot of trouble sleeping lately so I've had the chance to see this phenomenon in action...

I now know not to act on any half asleep thoughts until my mind and body are in sync.

Although I have to say I was a lot happier when I thought I was a brilliant composer without having to provide the evidence!!!

Mummy, Mum, Mother

2011-05-07T10:27:00.005+09:30

The Images of Mother

4 YEARS OF AGE - My Mummy can do anything!

8 YEARS OF AGE - My Mum knows a lot! A whole lot!

12 YEARS OF AGE - My Mother doesn't really know quite everything.

14 YEARS OF AGE - Naturally, Mother doesn't know that, either.

16 YEARS OF AGE - Mother? She's hopelessly old-fashioned.

18 YEARS OF AGE - That old woman? She's way out of date!

25 YEARS OF AGE - Well, she might know a little bit about it!

35 YEARS OF AGE - Before we decide, let's get Mum's opinion.

45 YEAR S OF AGE - Wonder what Mum would have thought about it?

65 YEARS OF AGE - Wish I could talk it over with Mum.

When you don't learn the first time...

2011-05-03T05:38:00.003+09:30

Last last year, Master Fifteen had the misfortune of leaving his laptop on the school bus.

Fortunately for him, it was found by an honest student who took it home, and together with her father, worked out who it belonged to and contacted us.

I went to their place the following morning with Master Fifteen and a box of chocolates to thank them.
They were really very nice people..

Today, I got a text from Miss Sixteen to say that Master Fifteen had left his mobile phone on the bus and they only realised it when they got off...
I tried calling the phone a few times but there was no answer. Master Fifteen later told me he'd had the phone on silent.

So I texted the phone to say if anyone found it, could they please call me.

It's not a special phone but people do like the "finders keepers" rule so I didn't have high expectations of getting it back...

Later that night I got a phone call from an unknown number and almost immediately recognised the voice.

He started to tell me his daughter had found a phone on the bus...

All I could think was "please don't let him ask my name or Master Fifteen's name" but he did.... and then he said "Was that the same person who left a laptop on the bus a little while ago?"

Yesiree... same boy...

We arranged for his daughter (who found the phone... the same girl who'd found the laptop) to bring the phone to student reception tomorrow and Master Fifteen will pick it up from there.
The voice added "I think I'll put it in an envelope, along with a staple gun so he doesn't forget his things anymore"

Oh, it was embarrassing...

But they are really nice people...

Even so, please Master Fifteen, NEVER DO THAT AGAIN!

What's in your handbag?

2011-05-02T15:35:00.004+09:30

I once read an article where they claimed they could tell what sort of woman you were, by what you carried around in your handbag...

I was reminded of this article just this week as I felt my handbag was heavier than normal and decided to do a clean out.
It's really amazing what you'll find in there!

I had a pair of Thorlos (ok so that was because I knew I'd be buying running shoes and had to have my running socks with me to measure my foot accurately...)

Ipod charger (cos having a dead ipod battery is never acceptable)

My Ipod

My phone

Addoku puzzle book (for those times when I'm waiting and there's just nothing to do)

Belly Button ring (My first and original one that I wore for eight years... still haven't put it away after changing to my new one...)

About 15 pens.... (ok I can't think of a reason why I have so many, maybe they just breed?)

Notebook (for when blog idea is just burning inside me...)

Purse (Full of cards and other crap that I won't go into now)

Voltaren Osteo Gel (for when you just need it)

Migraine pills (see above)

Lens Cleaner (To clean my glasses but I don't really use them... The cleaner was a freebie given out at the train station one morning)

Glasses (as stated, don't use them though but you just never know when...)

USB (No further explanation necessary)

Train time table,

Voice Recorder (for Chorus)

Batteries (well... to use when required)

1001 receipts (In case I ever have to return that item... although finding the individual rcpt for that may be tricky)

paper clips

Crumbs (honestly I have no idea)

Two or three dress rings (for when I just have to wear them)

Lady products,

More headphones (in case the ones I'm using don't work anymore)

And a picture of my dad

So there you have it... That's what in my handbag!

So what's in yours??

My Secret Lover...

2011-04-29T12:08:00.004+09:30

I recently found an old blog and plucked this entry out of it....

Who knew I'd been such a bad girl?

How can I live without you?

I was kidding myself when I made the decision to banish you from my life.
The memories of our sweet times fill my mind. Over and over they torment me. You call me… from wherever you are, you call me, tempting me always to once again give in you. How I want to give in.. oh how I want to surrender myself to you.

Even when I’m not with you, I think of you. I dream of you caressing my lips and I, gently licking you all over. Licking, sucking,.. sometimes the urge is just too great and I have to take you all in right away. All I want is to share in you. You’re so sweet. Your appeal is so apparent to all who know you.

How can my passion be wrong?
How can something so pure, so perfect, have such terrible consequences.

It’s true, my love for you is an obsession. That’s why I’m having such a hard time letting go of you.. but I promised I would and I’m doing all that I can to keep that promise.

Four days it’s been since you touched my lips…

Four days since I lay in the ecstasy of having indulged in your sweetness, your allure.
Four days since your aroma started the feelings in me which cannot be denied.

I must have you.

I will see you in secret.

I will seek you out and together we can sate this burning desire that grows minute by minute within me. Oh I need you, I need you right now!

Wait for me lover, I’m coming to you…

Listen for me as I whisper your name….
.
.

Chocolate… chocolate… chocolate…..

My first and only true love….

When Happiness Is Catchy...

2011-04-28T12:21:00.002+09:30

I had another strange but not unpleasant experience this morning.

I had taken an earlier train in to the city because I wanted to go to Priceline in Hindley street before work. It's close by and they open at 8am...

I got there about 7.55am so I was waiting on the corner for them to open, when I noticed a kind of straggly looking woman, trying to take a photo of herself with the statue that's just outside the store.
The statue is of Roy "Mo" Rene... an Australian comedian from about 80 years ago.

She had a few teeth missing but she was happy enough and talked to whoever was walking by, even if they didn't talk back and just kept walking...

She took photo after photo but kept lamenting her failures out loud "oh it's too close", "I'm not on the picture", "that photo is all head!" etc etc.

I found her strangely endearing.
Maybe it was her happy demeaner.. I don't know.. but I inched closer and it wasn't long before she looked up and smiled at me.
I asked her if she wanted me to take the photo for her and she grinned like a little girl.

As I got closer I smelt a strong smell of alcohol and at 7.55am in the morning, that's a pretty good effort! But she was so happy you couldn't help but want some of that happiness too!

So I took her phone and snapped a picture of her kissing the statue. I almost asked if she could text it to me so I could remember the occassion too...

She hugged me and thanked me then told me she was sending the photo to her nan in Sydney. She was going to tell her nan that she met her ideal man and this just cracked her up. She also told me that she needed a man like this now as her husband was dead. It was just blurted out bluntly like that.

She hugged me again and gave me a kiss on the cheek, wished me a happy easter (for 2012?) and hugged me for a third time.

And then Priceline opened and she was off and suddenly the day didn't seem so bad after all...

You don't have to have any, just have some...

2011-04-26T08:41:00.007+09:30

When it comes to food, this past long weekend was certainly a challenging one.
I come from a background where excess is good.
My grandparents had nothing growing up, so when it came to food, the more they could get, the better...
And then food become plentiful but that mindset was still there...

Take as much as you want; take as much as you can.

So as a child, portions were always huge but I didn't see it as huge. That was just normal.
My dad used to eat his pasta accompanied by bread so I tried to do the same, sometimes making myself sick but it seemed to make him happy when I ate..

At 18, I hosted my first dinner party with a friend and we served three huge courses followed by coffee and more little cakes and biscuits to about fifteen people.
This was a normal Sunday lunch for us and we couldn't understand why everyone was saying there was so much food. We thought they were just being polite!

So this Easter Sunday we were at my mothers house and she had so much food. I'd asked her if there was anything I could bring and she said "maybe a sweet?" so I made my low fat cheesecake... but even as I was making it I knew she would have more than enough dessert there and my cheesecake would just be superfluous.

The table was set with tasty nibbles.

More than you can imagine... then we had delicious, melt in your mouth ravioli...

followed by fillet Mignon and at least five side dishes of unbelievable quality.

It's very hard to say no!!

Instead of resting our tummies before dessert, my mum started bringing out the chocolates and biscuits and ice-cream. Not wanting my cheesecake to feel left out, I brought that out too and started serving it up.

I was just dishing up the last piece of cheesecake (to which I mother added several scoops of gelati) when she slapped her forehead saying "Oh, I forgot the rice-cake!!! Nadia can you go get the rice-cake from the fridge?"

There was a collective groan as we all held our stomachs and said "no please, we're so full, there's just no room for it!"

And my mother classically replied "No, you don't have to have any, just have some"

And that's the motto..... You don't have to have any, just have some....

Because of course, it doesn't count if you don't mean to have it.
It doesn't count if you just cut off a sliver at a time and eat that.
It doesn't count if the piece doesn't actually make it to a plate.
If you just spoon some out of the dish directly to your mouth, you aren't really having it!

It was pretty cute and we all had a giggle over it....

Deno had cycled and I had run that morning but we felt so bad we went for a 9kms walk after we got home...
But that was Sunday... and Monday was still to come!

Monday we went to my sister in law Kelly's place and she'd created a similar feast! And it was just all so tasty! BBQ'd meats, spicy meatballs and guacamole, scalloped potatoes, ricotta cannelloni, salad... not to mention the tasty dips and bits and pieces that were already on the table. When did she have time to do all this!

For dessert she had a lemon meringue pie AND apple crumble and although I love my desserts, I just couldn't... I just couldn't even look at it I'm so over food!

But at least I won't have to cook this week as I had a fridge full of left overs!!!

And remember, if you don't want it, you don't have to have it, just have some....

Margot's Low Fat Berry Cheesecake

2011-04-19T22:14:00.003+09:30

This is my own personal recipe so if you make it, I hope you like it!
It's a low fat but very tasty version of a classic favourite...
And I'm pretty sure I got the measurements right......

BASE
2 x 250gm packed of sweet wholemeal biscuits crushed
1 tsp ground cinnamon
200gms butter (I used low fat margarine) melted
2 x 425gms cans stoneless cherries
Berry jam (I used strawberry)

Filling and Decoration

1kg low fat cottage cheese
1 cup icing sugar
500gms low fat berry yogurt (I used yoplait forme - strawberry)
7 tablespoons lemon
2 tablespoons gelatin
1 450 gms packed frozen berries (I used season choice Three Berry Mix)

1 Mix together the crushed biscuits, cinnamon and butter in a mixing bowl.
Use to line the base and side of a dish. (I used a lasagna dish but don't know how big it is...)
Chill for about 10 minutes

2. Spread a thin layer of berry jam over the the biscuit base
Cut the stoneless cherries in half and spread over the jam.

3. Mix the cottage cheese in a blender with the icing sugar until you have a smooth creamy mixture.
Transfer to mixing bowl and add low fat yogurt.
Mix well

4. Put the lemon juice in a non reactive pan. sprinkle the gelatin over.
Dissolve over a very low heat

5. Remove from heat and stir a little of the cheese mixture into the gelatin mixture.
Add this to the remaining cheese mixture and mix well.
Spoon into base.

6. Put the frozen berries over the top to decorate.

7. Chill for 4 hours.

Customer Stories from April 2011

2011-04-16T07:29:00.002+09:30

It always baffles me why customers will call on their mobiles, then complain they have no credit and ask if we can we call them back.

It’s simple guys, if you don’t want to use your mobile phone credit, then don’t call on your mobile phone!

Here are a few customer stories from the last week or two…

~~~~~~~~~~

Customer rambling to me: “I have the bill here, do I? Oh! No, I don’t… I thought I had it… oh, here it is. I thought I’d left it on the kitchen table. I was pretty sure. I think I brought it out yesterday because I knew I’d be calling you. Ok. I’ve got the account and it’s got an account no. Do you want the account no?”

I wanted to say “oh no please, it’s such a pleasure to hear you having a conversation with yourself. By all means, continue. I’m even taking notes!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As I write this, it’s the 8^th of April. I just had a customer who called up angry because he’d received an overdue notice when he claimed the account had been paid.

I checked his account… No, there hadn’t been a payment come through...

“Well it has been paid” he insisted loudly “and I’ve got the rcpt right here!

“When was it paid?” I asked as it usually takes a day or two to hit the account.

“I’ve got the rcpt and it says right here on the 17^th of April that I paid $400”

I confirmed the date with him again and then said “and do you realise that today is on the 8^th and you’re telling me you paid this in eleven days time?”

And believe it or not, he didn’t acknowledge his error but changed the subject to his next gripe…

~~~~~~~~~~

There’s a time and place for protracted stories.

If you’re watching a movie, then it’s a good thing! If you’re reading a novel, it’s essential! If you’re calling up your energy provider, it absolutely NOT required!

I recently had a guy call to tell me how many burners he uses when he cooks his breakfast, then how many when he cooks his lunch.

This was because he’d discovered a hissing sound coming from his burner, indicating that gas was escaping. He couldn’t smell any gas and promptly turned the burner off… but wanted to call to ask if it was going to be safe to use the burner the following day…. Oh, and he’d opened all the doors and windows as well which was a bit of a sacrifice for him because he has arthritis and the cold air made his condition flare up…

Along the same lines, I had another customer who ummed and ahhhed for about 40 long seconds while he was thinking about whether he called a certain supplier last Monday or Friday. I had to bite my tongue because I really wanted to say “It doesn’t make a fricken bit of difference to this situation that you rang your supplier, let alone what DAY you did it on!!”

Remember, if you want good fast efficient service when calling a utility company, less is more. Let them ask the questions and only answer what you’ve been asked!

Do you know...? How many...? Where is...? What does...? Who was the person...?‏

2011-04-14T18:01:00.002+09:30

Are you a googler?

My less technical friends have often scoffed when I whip out my phone or ipod as soon as someone asks a question.

We may be sitting around, contemplating the population of Los Angeles… or wondering if such and such a celebrity is still alive… or who was that actor that played in that movie?

I just don’t get why we all have to sit around and wonder, when the answer is at the tap of a few buttons?

Why argue when you can settle it right there and then!

No longer will the person with the loudest and most obstinate voice win that battle! The ipod can settle it.

There’s certainly no shame in wanting to know the correct, accurate answer!

And speaking of googling, how many have googled themselves? I.E. Egosurfing…

I know I have! And there’s quite a few embarrassing links out there that maybe one day I’ll get around to taking down but I know I’m not alone! Go ahead, google yourself. You may be surprised what’s out there.

I embrace technology and our changing society with caution. I just can’t be one of these people that automatically think change is bad.

Yeah I know kids aren’t playing in the streets anymore but take a look at their parents and you’ll find that they’re not very active either!

Technology is not to blame. These kids didn’t buy the game systems they use and set themselves uncontrolled usage.

So go ahead and use technology. Let it better and enrich your life. Just remember that you’re its master…don’t let it master you.

Now, what’s the population of Los Angeles???

Our own little hiding spots...

2011-04-13T12:21:00.003+09:30

I was a young girl in the seventies, and a teenager in the eighties. As a result, the bra burning movement was pretty much over by the time I was wearing them!

Now I'll applaud a woman's choice to wear or not wear them but frankly, I can't understand why a woman wouldn't want to wear a bra! It's such a wonderful invention!
I keep a myriad of things in mine (apart from the obvious!)

Need to store an ipod but have no pockets? Tuck it in your bra!
Need to bring feminine hygiene products into the bathroom discreetly? Tuck it in your bra!
Need to store your car key while you go for your run? Tuck it into your bra!
Need to have spare change handy? A tissue handy? Just use your imagination and simplify your life.

Recently I was searching Acapella groups on you tube and came across this female quartet. One of the singers sounded the pitch pipe to get them started, then promptly stored that thing in her bra!!! And that was in front of a live audience!!
You've gotta love that..

Not to mention the older you get, the nicer they make your boobies look... There's no countering gravity if you go the natural way...

So while I admit I'm happy to take it off as soon as I can when I'm done for the day, I love the versatility of wearing and storing things in a bra.

How Do You Spell That???

2011-04-07T18:04:00.001+09:30

Once upon a time it was simple.
People married, had a baby who was given a commonly spelt first name, and took their fathers surname.
These days, anything goes!

And I'm not saying that it's a bad thing, but having been one that's had to spell my name my whole life, I don't envy the kids growing up in this era.
Leaving surname's aside, is it, Steven or Stephen?
Allan or Alan?
Darrel or Darrell or Daryl?
Robin or Robyn?
Dianne or Diane?
Rachel or Rachael?
I'm sure you can think of plenty more.
They're the simple ones....
But what about the non traditional names?

Emersyn, Jayde, Laekin, Braylei,Trey, Brayson, Landon, Kaiden, Grayson, Jaiden, Payton, Kyler, Braylen, Kayleb, Ryder, Paxton, Delaney, Jazelle, Jesamae, Jerrica, Jessa, Jasmine, Peyton, Quinna, Raeyna.
These are just a few names I saw, just by going through recent birth notices.

My name is simple enough but I'm forever having to say "with a t". It's not pronounced.
I work in the service industry and it can be frustrating when a customer really wants to know what my name is. I can't tell you how many times I spell it out once, then twice then just end up leaving off the t... or just pretend that my name is Margaret, Margray, Marjay, Barbara or whatever it was the customer thinks they heard me say... It's just easier!

So too will the kids of this era be spelling their first names for the rest of their lives.

But wait, it's not a given that mum and dad are married so what name will the kid take? Will it be just mum's? Just dad's? A hyphenated combination?

And what if one hyphenated combination grows up and meets another hyphenated combination and they have a child out of wedlock?
Will the baby that's produced of this union have a hyphenated hyphenation?

My brain's hurting..

So parents, please take all this into consideration when naming your baby.

Let their talents and gifts be their originality, not the spelling of their names...

There's a time and a place...

2011-04-04T13:22:00.001+09:30

So I was just going about my business, doing my weekly shopping when I heard a couple discussing a rather private subject behind me.

The trouble is, they weren't using their quite voices!

The guy was telling his girlfriend how she needed a sex toy and then went into the specifics of why (which I won't be doing in this blog).

In their defense, they were standing in front of the "family planning" section so it's not like they were bringing up a subject out of the blue.

Did they not see me right behind me? Did they not care that I now know all about their intimate life? Were they so engrossed in this particular part of their life that they weren't aware of anything that was going on around them?

The girlfriend was actually a little more timid and I felt a little sorry for her. The guy was loud and not shy about what he was saying or what words he was using.

It was kinda funny but I'm glad I didn't have any little children with me at the time!
Might have had to answer a few difficult questions!

You're singing it aren't you....

2011-04-01T18:02:00.005+10:30

It’s 3.45pm on Friday on the 1^st of April as I write this.

Believe it or not, I've found someone here at work who has not yet heard the Rebecca Black “Friday” song.

Not only has she not heard it, she doesn't know anything about it!!!! NOTHING!!! She didn't even know what I was talking about when I said “I have that stupid Friday song going thru my head”!!!

I want to live in THAT world!!!!

My dentist the smooth talker...

2011-03-30T15:42:00.003+10:30

My dentist is a kind man. I don't like going to the dentist (who does??) , but it's always better when your dentist is nice.

He speaks to me like a parent would speak to a frightened child.
It's very soothing.

And I know that he's doing it but I just go with the flow because, well, being at the dentist is just not nice.

So I tolerate his patience, his gentle whispers and his need to ask me if I'm alright every few minutes.
It's good.
He's thorough.

I've always been nervous before dentist visits. I try not to think about it because I'd rather endure a dentist visit than sit with a mouth full of decay... so what must be done, gets done but as I sit there in the waiting room, waiting for the nurse to call out my name, I can feel my nervousness increase.

I've done all I can. I've brushed my teeth at least twice, probably three times that morning. I've flossed and made my breath as fresh as can be before the visit.

So I'm completely prepared but sitting there in the waiting room, feeling like I'm waiting for my name to be called for an execution, suddenly I can't swallow anymore.

I take a big swallow and it's not enough. I have to swallow again and by god, what if I have to swallow when I have my mouth open for the dentist?
How's that going to work out?
Will I choke on my own spit?
Has that ever happened? Has anyone ever drowned in their own saliva?
What if I have to cough?
Has tooth shrapnel ever got caught in someones throat?
I can't have my vocal chords damaged! should I tell the dentist?

So as you may now see, the dentist has every reason to treat me like a frightened child and I, like the good patient I am, take it.

And really I'm hardly stressing at all that I have another four visits or so to go as he has to do a complicated root canal.
Oh wait, I can't swallow again...

I bet he's looking forward to it just about as much as I am!

But he's a great dentist so if you need one recommended to you, let me know!

Clearly Mad AND Bad

2011-03-29T08:17:00.004+10:30

This story seems to be the topic of morning shows today

A father, with his six year old and 2 year old sons watching, threw his four year old daughter Darcy off the Westgate Bridge in Melbourne.
It has since come out that the six year old boy pleaded with his father to go back and get Darcy but the father just kept driving.

The fall didn't kill Darcy. She died later in hospital.

So, finally this monster is convicted. While he did not deny he threw his daughter off the bridge, he had pleaded not guilty on the grounds of mental impairment.

That's the statement that makes my blood boil!!!
Of course he's goddam mentally impaired!!!!!!!!!!!!
What sane person would ever deliberately pull over a busy road, take a four year old girl from her car restraints, and chuck her over a bridge????

Sane people don't do that!!!

But guess what, we're all responsible for our actions so mentally impaired or not, this man has to pay for what he did!!! Not only to that little girl who's now denied a life, but to her brothers who watched it happen and her mother who will never hold her little girl again.
What a monster!!!

I don't like the death penalty as no one suffers from it. Instead, I propose a lifetime of torture.
THAT'S what I'd sentence this guy too!!

No doubt he's suffering, having to live with what he did but his suffering is no where near what he should get for doing what he did.

Mentally ill... such a stupid defense. It's about time we start making people accountable for what they do.

For all to remember forever...

2011-03-23T10:00:00.002+10:30

I often wonder what I would have been like, if I'd been born ten or so years ago.

Social networking has changed our world.

I look at what these high school kids are writing and just cringe! It's not that it's so unusual, I mean, I said and thought a lot of stupid things when I was that age too, but my thoughts and spoken words weren't recorded for ALL to see!!

And when it comes to airing our thoughts, it's not only the younger people that are at fault. I know quite a few adults that will put things out there that really, should be left to the confines of private conversation.

When we converse with real people in the real world, we have their reactions to bounce back off of. We know when to pull it back by how the people we're talking to react.
At least we should know...
But my point is, we have a gauge.

Online, you're just putting it all out there and some brave person may call you on it, but for everyone who does, there's twenty or more that are snickering about your comments behind your back.

And I'm not against it... after all, it's no secret that I visit my facebook page daily but it does make me wonder how, with a less mature mind, I would have handled it.

I know I said some pretty stupid and thoughtless things as a child/teenager. If the stuff that I happened to etch into to desks, write on fences or spoke about with my friends were made public, I'd be pretty embarrassed about it right about now!

Where are these parents monitoring what their kids are doing? Who's telling them that what they write down now, may come back to bite them when they're a little older?
Where is our restraint? Restraint is becoming extinct!
We're going to say it now and by golly everyone is going to get a piece of our mind!

From my point of view, it's entertaining, but seriously, I'm so glad I'm not 13 right about now!!

You think what???

2011-03-16T21:47:00.002+10:30

Just because you have an opinion, it doesn't mean you need to express it.

Some people think raw honesty is not only the best option, but the ONLY option.

While yes, I do agree that honesty is the only option, people's feelings and the way you deliver your opinion need to be considered. What is your motive?

There seem to be people that will think it's OK to give you scathing feedback over the littlest inconsequential thing by adding the disclaimer "I'm just being honest."
It's like they've made a wonderful sacrifice by giving you the gift of their personal opinion.

Wouldn't you love to say "Yeah? And you're a douche-bag.. hey, I'm just being honest!"

So next time you have a burning desire to share you opinion, check yourself.
What are your motivations?
Will you be encouraging or stifling dialogue?
Is there a nicer way to convey your honesty than brute hostility?
And does it even really matter?

We ALL have a voice, we all have an opinion, some people are just smart enough to know when to keep theirs to themselves!

When I hear rhymes, it's sleepy times...

2011-03-14T12:48:00.004+10:30

Hubby and I started to watch a movie yesterday about a poet.

While the style of the movie was interesting, the lines of poetry that were continually being spoken were...

well, insanely boring!

Hey, I get it, some people like poetry and that's fantastic for them, but quite frankly, I don't get it!

I would have rather have been in a confined space with a million crying babies than endure one more second of that movie!

You see to me, someone reading poetry is like someone telling you about a crazy dream they had.
I know that crazy dream is significant for YOU!! But really to me, it's just words. You could be saying anything fantastical because we all know dreams are fantastical!! It's really not an odd occurrence at all. I'm just not interested.

The same goes for poetry. I'm sure the events that inspired those beautiful words meant something to the writer and on a better day, I could maybe even appreciate it, but for the most part, I'm just not interested!

Having written all that, I've got to say that comedic poetry doesn't fall under the boring banner, neither does lyrical poetry. And I'm not just saying that because I've dabbled in both of those!

Lyrical because you can identify and like it based on the music. Comedic, because if it's done well, it can be witty, clever and funny.

If your heart is broken and you want to write about it, keep it to your blog!

And thanks for listening...

Of Silent And Absent Letters...

2011-03-08T22:16:00.002+10:30

I was watching My Kitchen Rules tonight and the task was for the competing teams to make a sandwich.

They showed the different teams preparing for their task with their own varying interpretations of what it meant.

When they got to the Italian girls, Daniela and Stefania, I had to have a chuckle because Stefania pronounced it "Sangwich"

It's true, Italians do pronounce it like that. How that developed I'll never know!

I do know that I myself said it that way well into adulthood because, well that was just how I thought it was said!

Even knowing that it was spelt "sandwich", I still pronounced the "g".
I just thought it was one of the strange words like "know", "gnome" or "often" where the letters don't always tell you how the word is pronounced...

Now I know better but still have to think twice every time I go to use that word!

And although they're from WA, go Daniela and Stefania!

Tea or Coffee?

2011-03-07T10:47:00.000+10:30

Incredible but true...

Me to Miss 16: Oh you're having a tea

Miss 16: Yeah. I'd have coffee but I don't know how to make it

Me: (thinking I must have misunderstood but answering anyhow) You just put one teaspoon of coffee and two of sugar and some milk.

Miss 16: Oh, well now I know.

Oh dear...

An Apple A Day Hey?.....

2011-03-03T12:17:00.002+10:30

It just gets ridiculouser and ridiculouser.
(Yeah I made up a word)

I get various ezines sent to me at work to make the day go by a little easier... Most of them are celebrity news related but some are exercise and nutrition related.

One ezine I get on nutrition is "The Food Coach" newsletter.
Everything I read is taken with a pinch of salt, especially in the field of nutrition where trends and fads change daily. No wonder there is such an obesity problem. People aren't smart enough to educate themselves (or maybe they're just not interested which is fair enough), so they read these attention grabbing headlines, telling them what they want to hear, then moan and groan that nothing works for them.

So this Food Coach email that was sent to me today, spoke of apples and how eating them will help reduce belly fat. I'd like to see the peer reviewed article/study that confirms this finding if it exists.
I suspect it doesn't.

It's not possible to spot reduce. It just isn't. Not by exercise and certainly not by diet.
To make this newsletter worse, it also offers a recipe for apple cake!! Yaay.. so you can lose belly fat by eating cake! Who knew!! Everybody go out and buy apple cake or if you're a baker, make one yourself!

Did no one tell this person that eating flour, butter and sugar counteracts whatever belly fat removing power the apple may have??

But we (and I do include myself) want to hear things that tell us it's ok to keep eating the bad things we eat...

How many times have you heard that chocolate is good for you?
Even if it does have antioxidants, or whatever else they're attributing to being "good" the sugar it contains does far more damage!

In the end, it really does come down to eating healthy and moving your body around.

Who was it that said, and I paraphrase -

Eat real food (not processed) not too much, and move your body.

That's it!! That's the diet secret!!

It can't get simpler than that...

With an ego that size, what else could you want for?

2011-03-02T19:14:00.005+10:30

I know I'm just adding to the media frenzy that is the Charlie Sheen train wreck but I just can't sit still on this.

The guy is fricken looney. His recent impromptu interviews couldn't have been scripted better!! It's either utter genius or maniacal lunacy and my bet is on the latter.

That someone can put them self above all others with such determination, and think they are so special, they're not even from THIS PLANET goes way beyond my level of comprehension.

Here are some recent Charlie quotes...

"I closed my eyes and made it so with the power of my mind, and unlearned 22 years of fiction … the fiction of AA. It’s a silly book written by a broken-down fool. "

Whatever your thoughts on AA, to think that someone can instantly be cured of addiction by the power of the mind is... well the logic of a drug riddled person. It would be laughable if it wasn't so tragic.

"I'm tired of pretending I'm not special. I'm tired of pretending I'm not a total bitchin' rock star from Mars."

Oh yeah, he said it... he's special alright but not quite in the way he was thinking!

"I'm on a drug. It's called Charlie Sheen. It's not available because if you try it you will die. Your face will melt off and your children will weep over your exploded body."

If that's what the Charlie Sheen drug does, then frankly, I don't know anyone who'd be interested in it!
Even if he's just trying to wind everyone up, to SAY such a thing so publicly!! What the hell is wrong with his drug ruined brain!!!
Guess I just answered my own question...

"Clearly I have defeated this earthworm with my words - imagine what I would have done with my fire breathing fists." - referring to the show's producer.

Yeah... clearly.. the whole world sees it. Right Charlie?

"I got magic and I got poetry at my fingertips."

And a whole lot of fairy dust and BS

“If you're a part of my family, I will love you violently. If you infiltrate and try to hurt my family, I will murder you violently.”

I guess holding a knife to your wife's throat comes under loving you violently.

"People can't figure me out, they can't process me, I don't expect them to. You can't process me with the normal brain."

I guess it takes one to know one... And I'm kind of glad Charlie doesn't think he's on my level. I wouldn't want to be on his.

"I violently hate Chaim Levine. He's a stupid, stupid little man."

Schoolyard.

"I'm an F-18 bro and I will destroy you in the air and deploy my ordnance to the ground."

More Schoolyard. (yawn) I guess the "you" he's referring to is supposed to be quivering right about now.

"I gracefully ignored this folly for 177 shows...I fire back once and this contaminated little maggot can't handle my power and can't handle the truth."

Yeah, such a model citizen for 177 shows weren't you Charlie. Can you restore your public image with that power Charlie?

"I feel more alive, I feel more focused, I feel more energetic. I'm on a quest to claim absolute victory on every front."

Well it's pretty easy to make a claim isn't it. Lets see where Charlie ends up in six months or so.. that is, if he's still around.

And that's all I'm going to say about it!

Not those pants again...

2011-02-25T20:28:00.001+10:30

From time to time, like other people, I’ve wondered about getting a tattoo.

I’ve thought about what style I’d get, where I’d get it and the consequences of having it…

I don’t have anything against tattoos themselves, apart from the permanence of them!!

Look, I’m happy for anyone who loves their tattoo.. good for you!

But to me, all I can think of is, what happens when I don’t like it anymore?

Say I found a nice pair of pants… would I really want to wear them for the rest of my life? I’m sure I’d love them for some time, but there will come a time when they’re just not fashionable anymore and those pants are going to date me!

Isn’t it the same with tattoos??

Everything changes through time… not only fashion, but art, makeup, movies… you can date most things from how they’ve been made, or the particular style they’ve adopted.

It’s the same with tattoos!!

No, I’d be happy with a temporary one but a permanent one is, well, just too permanent, no matter how pretty it is!

Oh no, not that time of year again...

2011-02-14T13:00:00.001+10:30

I can't escape it so I may as well give my comments on Valentines Day.

I hate valentines day.

It's no secret, I've said it before and I'll no doubt say it again.

Everything about this day bugs me.

Firstly, I hate that there is a day to make people tell each other they they love each other. If you love someone, shouldn't you be showing them by your actions every day? And if someone or something (IE, a special, set aside day) makes you say it, doesn't it devalue the meaning?

Secondly, I hate the competition aspect of it. Suddenly, it's not only a mark of who loves you, but how much he/she loves you!
The more they spend, the greater the love. Women are so bad at this! They'll ask each other "what did your man get you?"
Keep in mind, that the woman who asks this isn't really interested in finding out what you got, but instead is interested in telling you what HER man got her!
Then you can compare which man loves which woman more.

Sorry to be gender specific but I'm sure you can apply that to homosexual couples too...

According to social custom, to survive the day, you need to have an attentive partner, or a secret crush who is willing to spend lots of money on you or who will do something spectacular for you, so that all your friends, relatives and work colleagues can know how much your partner loves you.

I love my husband. I don't need to set aside a day to prove it, I can show him every day. He can show me too, not by buying me gifts, but by doing the things that mean so much to me... and most of those don't cost any money at all!!
Monetary gifts are sometimes a lot easier...

So if you must, enjoy the day, but please, keep it to yourself!

When you just want to sit quietly...

2011-02-09T12:51:00.002+10:30

So how can I explain this?

When I travel to work, I go in by train. The reason I do this is because it's convenient and I can read or do whatever I like without getting disturbed.

It's me time.

The other day when I got to the train station, my favourite podcast hadn't finished yet so I didn't take out my book to read, but decided to have a game of tetris on my ipod while listening to the rest of the podcast.

I chose a seat that's on it's own, and at 90 degrees to the other seats so that I wouldn't have anyone sitting next to me. While I love tetris, it's not something that I want to advertise to the rest of the world that I'm playing!

So I'm halfway through a game when an asian mother and her approximately six year old son come on the train. They sat away from me, but they caught my attention because the son changed seats and came to sit on the seat that was closest to me.
Except I've said that wrong... he didn't sit at all! He knelt on the seat backwards, watching me play my game!

For the first 10 seconds he tried to be discreet as he was trying to see what I was doing, but after that, he didn't care. He leant over the people that were next to him on the seat, just so he could get a birds eye view of my tetris game.
Imagine that.
Who would have ever thought Tetris was a spectator game!

When I realised what he was doing I got quite nervous! After all, I had to show him what a master player I was, without appearing too geeky or uncool.
So much for trying not to let the other passengers know what I was doing!

That day, everyone knew I was playing tetris because this little boy was wriggly on that seat and making himself known.

So what would you have done? Stopped playing? Broken the little kids heart?

I didn't want him to make me stop playing so I kept going. I had something to prove now!

He watched me until the end of my game and then I put the ipod away, even though the podcast I was listening to still wasn't finished.
The kid looks up at me with a "you're kidding right?" look on his face but I pretended I didn't notice and got my book out.

It was actually pretty embarrassing mostly because everyone on the train could see what was going on.

The kid then went to go sit by his mother again..

Sometimes it seems these things only happen to me!

It's a temporary relationship...

2011-02-05T11:03:00.003+10:30

Lately I seem to have a bit of a shoe problem.
No, it's not finding the right size... I've gotten over not being able to find my size easily.... Well that's the wrong thing to say - I've come to accept that I have and will always have, big feet.

But lately it seems that my shoes are just not lasting. I buy them, admittedly wear them every day walking all over the place, and within a month or two, they're broken.
Either the heel comes loose, or straps break...
I can't remember ever having this much bad luck with shoes before!!

Now I'm not out there buying the most expensive brands, but I'm also not buying elcheapo brands and at the very least, shouldn't they last the season? That's all I expect of a sandal!!
Last me the season please!!!

So, with the death of another pair today, I only have a black pair (only bought two weeks ago) and a red pair of sandals from Miss 16 who finally gave them to me seeing as she will never wear them (I've been after this pair for a while!)

Please, please, please, at least last to the end of Summer!!!

Hot weather = Beach walks..

2011-01-31T09:29:00.017+10:30

It's been hot... and that's an understatement!

So hubby thought it would be a good idea to go down to the beach.
It goes without saying that I brought my camera so here are a few shots from our walk.
We were about 30 minutes from the sunset when we first arrived...
You can see the sun going down as the photos go on...

There were about one hundred people behind me as I took this shot!!
Quite a few of them were drunk and ready to chat so I had to be quick!

Deno and Josh waiting for me as I take yet more photos...

Love the colours you get as sunset approaches...

No Deno, that's not THAT kind of pole!

It didn't feel like we were in Adelaide.
How spoilt are we to have this on our doorstep!

While Deno and I were enjoying it, Sarah and Josh
were asking if it was time to turn around yet...

Deno showing his playful side...
I like when it comes out

Beach Cricket!
We wanted to join in.

I would only allow silhouette photos of myself!

Sarah and Josh are waiting at the top of the stairs for us

Look at the colour of the sky!!

Glenelg jetty on a hot summer night

And it was well and truly night by the time we finished up back at the car!
A great night...

The Tourist

2011-01-30T10:05:00.003+10:30

Yesterday I had the opportunity to watch "The Tourist"

You can imagine with all the chitter-chatter surrounding it lately, that I wasn't expecting a terribly great movie however, as far as story line goes, I thought it wasn't bad at all.

It wasn't long into the movie when one of those watching it with me suspected the twist... and after that point I lost a little bit of interest.

Having said all that though....
The movie was so hard to watch simply because of Angelina Jolie.
I don't normally dislike her, in fact, I think she's given some great performances in the past, but it was that permanent haughty look throughout the entire movie that annoyed me! I wanted to groan in despair every time she came onscreen!
Yeah, we mere mortal women get it, she's pretty. Was it really necessary to throw it in our faces over and over and over again. How did this enhance the story line? What point did it have for the storyline itself??? None!
At least, very little...

Johnny Depp's performance was ok. He looked different. A little aged and puffy... He didn't stand out but if you had to ask me what he could have done to enhance his character, I don't know. I'm not an actor! Maybe he was supposed to come across as a confused, innocent bystander that's just happy to go along with whatever's happening to him.

Overall, the movie was generic as any other action Hollywood movie and I guess they make them because that's what people like to see.
Same storyline, different actors, different locations.
What set this one apart was the "I'm so gorgeous and I know it" look of Angelina.
If you can stomach that, then go ahead and watch this movie but remember, you have been warned!

When you're right, you're right...

2011-01-21T05:35:00.003+10:30

Well thank you Jennifer Aniston!!!!

I can't believe we're in agreement about something!

After all these years of listening to a certain someone, poo pooing me when I said "there's nothing special about that!!" turns out, Jennifer actually agrees with ME!!

I knew it!

Singing a happy song

2011-01-16T11:20:00.002+10:30

It's been a while since my last blog and it's not that nothing's happened, it's just that too much has happened and I never know quite where to start!

For those interested, my New Zealand blog, complete with pictures can be found here.
click top right for the next day...

So life is slowly going back to normal. I went back to work this week and while it wasn't fun, it was good to wake up and have a purpose, even if that purpose was to go to work!

But the thing that's excited me most of all, and hope it won't be a temporary thing, is that I've joined a choir!

Anyone who knows me knows I love singing and have been singing in one capacity or another all of my life.
I've never really seen myself as a front person but love being part of a singing group so this is just perfect for me!
I went to my first rehearsal Thursday night and new immediately this is where I wanted to be. The women were very friendly, and no one really cared how you sang, they were just happy that you wanted to sing with them because they just love to sing!
At least, that was my first impression.

Now I'm not that idealistic, I know that lots of women (and this is a female only chorus) means lots of hormones which can mean bitchiness and cattiness on some level.
I didn't see any of it that night and I'm going to do my best to keep the mood as positive as I saw it that Thursday night.

The only thing I was disappointed about was that I didn't know the songs yet so I couldn't sing out! I was doing my best to sight read the music I was given but didn't really succeed... Since Thursday night, I've been practicing and feel like I can confidently sing my parts in at least two of the songs.

So now, I can't wait until Thursday!!!

Happy Holidays! What??

2010-12-16T18:27:00.003+10:30

It's that time of year again when the holidays are upon us.
The school year is over and many people take time off work to be with their families.

I'm always in two minds at this time of year.
While I love spending time with family and I love the excitement that the holidays bring, I hate the commercialism that goes along with it.

I hate the crowds that are at every shopping mall and I'm so terrible at knowing what gifts to buy for people that it gets very stressful and I find myself counting down the days till it's all over!!

But this blog today is about whether to Christmas or holiday.

I really don't understand why people would get so upset about businesses wishing "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas" or god forbid "Merry Xmas."
The fact is, there are people all over the world who believe different things.
What if we had a majority of Jewish people in this country? Should we only say Happy Hanukkah? Why should the majority dictate for all?

Those who think we should only say "merry Christmas" in this country would be the first to object if the government decreed we should have a happy Hanukkah instead. There's separation of church and state for a reason!

Doesn't "happy holidays" encompass all religious and non religious groups? And why would I be offended if someone said this to me? Would it change what I believe? Of course not!

People get way too sensitive.

So no matter what your personal beliefs are, please don't be offended this season if someone wishes you happy holidays or seasons greetings.
Remember this season was celebrated as the Winter Solstice in the northern hemisphere before anything else so no-one can claim originality!

Most of all, think on all that is good in your life and love and appreciate the people who love you and accept you no matter what.

Peace out!

Learning from the past...

2010-12-02T21:23:00.004+10:30

If you work in an office, or regularly participate in the activity of receiving and forwarding bulk emails, you would have no doubt, seen the email that goes something like this..

"CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO WERE BORN IN THE
1930's 1940's, 50's, 60's and 70's

First, we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they carried us
They took aspirin, ate blue cheese, raw egg products, loads of bacon and processed meat, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes or cervical cancer.

We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets or shoes, not to mention, the risks we took hitchhiking.

As children, we would ride in cars with no seat belts or air bags.

We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and NO ONE actually died from this.

We could collect old drink bottles and cash them in at the corner store and buy Toffees, Gob stoppers, Bubble Gum and some bangers to blow up frogs with.
We ate cupcakes, white bread and real butter and drank soft drinks with sugar in it, but we weren't overweight because......

WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!!

We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the street lights came on.

No one was able to reach us all day. And we were O.K.

We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no Lawsuits from these accidents.

We were given air guns and catapults for our 10th birthdays,

We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just yelled for them!

Our teachers used to hit us with canes and gym shoes and bully's always ruled the playground at school.

And YOU are one of them!
CONGRATULATIONS!

I've edited the email somewhat but I'm sure you get the picture.

Every time I read this email, it raises my annoyance level a little further. Yeah congratulations, YOU made it! YOU survived, as if we're all so much over the top today. But is that all that matters?

What this email originator doesn't get, is that although we survived, MANY didn't and their deaths/disappearances/accidents & diseases could have well been avoided.

Sure, life is different today and you know why? Because we KNOW BETTER!!!

And while there will always people who will be too careful and too over the top, you should never berate a parent who actually gives a damn about what their kids are doing, who they're hanging out with, and being contactable at any given moment.

We know better.

We've learnt from mistakes and that doesn't mean we're doing it perfectly now... But we are doing it better in somethings and hopefully, we will continue to learn to make this a better world for our children's children.

Quiet please (well I did say please)

2010-11-23T10:30:00.002+10:30

Hubby and I went through a stage where we watched a lot of tennis.

I always found it fascinating that the umpire/referee or whatever you call that guy who sits over the net, could call out "quite please" between games and the crowd would immediately quieten down to a pin drop silence.

It's fascinating but you have to think, why the hell do the players need complete silence?

Can you imagine a football umpire requesting complete silence when a player was shooting for goal?

Can you imagine the cricket umpire requesting for silence when a bowler was coming in to bowl?

In every other sport (apart from golf I guess) crowd participation is not only ok, it's encouraged but no, not so for tennis! They require complete silence to do their best.

Aside from that though, it's the sheer power of the person wielding that command that gets me!
I want a tennis umpire in my living room to say "quite please" every time someone opens their mouth when we're watching tv!!! Heck I'd pay good money for that!

And can you imagine if you and your significant other or children are having a domestic dispute, he could intervene with a "advantage mum".
Yes, I like it!

I know what I want for xmas...

Now excuse me while I just go dd tennis ref to my xmas wish list...

At Last!!!

2010-11-16T16:44:00.004+10:30

As some of you know, hubby and I have been regularly doing the Waterfall Gully to Mt Lofty route lately. I just love it there!

A month or more ago, we were lucky enough to see a koala there. As bad luck would have it, I didn't have my camera!

Every time we've been there since, I've made sure to bring my camera but haven't had any sightings.
There were no more koalas to be seen.

Today hubby and I went there and decided to go a slightly different way to the top. The path was nice and peaceful. We saw a bird with a red splotch in front of it. I don't know what type it was but couldn't get focused on it quick enough to take a decent picture.

Hubby tried to make me feel better by pretending to be a koala but although I appreciated the effort, it wasn't much consolation.

We got to the top, caught our breath, had a drink and came back down. We decided to go back the way we came.

Near Cleland Park, I got a fabulous surprise!

Right in front of my eyes was a kangaroo!!!

It was a small one... It didn't have any fear of us and came out right in front of hubby and I.

I was madly snapping away with my camera. When the kangaroo crossed the path, we saw that it went to join another, much larger (mother?) kangaroo who was waiting for it and they slowly hopped off together.

It seems they expend so little energy for such big movements. What incredible creatures!

And if that hadn't been enough, when we passed the site where we'd first seen the koala, not only was it back again, but it had a baby!!!!

It was the most amazing thing and I couldn't help myself and had to tell everyone who came by the path while we were there

"Look there's a koala and it has a BABY!!!"

Cameras were taken out by all spectators. We were quite the paparazzi!!!

Such a fantastic experience. I can't wait to go again!

When a ml over or under means oh so much

2010-11-14T13:13:00.003+10:30

The girl looked on while the boy, with an intense focus, studied the task he’d been set.

Was he up to the challenge?

Carefully he took the bottle that held the much sought after fluid in his hand and judged the contents, mentally picturing the amount of fluid that was to go into each container.
He had to get it right.

The girl held her breath while the boy carefully started to tip the bottle that held the precious fluid.
“You better get this right” she warned. She just hated it when he got it wrong.
“Well you do it then” he quickly fired back, sick of her constant nagging.
She signed deeply “Just do it”
“Well shoosh then” he replied angrily, focusing his attention once again on the task at hand.

He got down on one knee to have a better line of vision.

Carefully the contents of the bottle started to be poured.

The boy put a little into the first container, then a little into the second container. The girl watched while her heart thumped loudly in the surrounding silence.

The boy checked the remaining contents of the bottle once again and cautiously began to tip the fluid into the awaiting containers, alternating between the first and second container.

He held his breath as the last drop was poured, sure that the girl was going to accuse him of cheating, or of not doing it right. She got down to his line of vision and nodded quietly.

Success.

He liked when she was pleased

They then both stood up, took their individual glasses and drank their coke.

Just another day in my household....

What do you mean work? It's my birthday!

2010-11-13T06:43:00.003+10:30

I was sitting in a public area, quietly minding my own business (ok I was playing Tetris on my ipod touch) when I overheard a couple of friends talking.

They were discussing what shifts they were on next week.

The first person, a male, said he was on 7.30 starts and the woman he was with exclaimed her horror at that.
She said "I'm on 8.30 starts and thank god for that because it's my birthday on Monday and there's no F******G way I'm getting up at 5am on my birthday to come to work"

Well who's a spoilt little princess then?

Are you kidding me? Since when did we start taking holiday's on our birthday's?
Oh please, what did you do? Just survived another year!! That doesn't entitle you to have a day off work!

Sure, get a few gifts, get a few birthday wishes, go out for drinks/dinner etc, but life goes on and ulitmatley, no one really cares about your birthday but YOU! (oh and perhaps your mum!)

To think that having a birthday is an excuse to not go to work is just beyond my comprehension!!!

Singing a happy song...

2010-11-11T21:39:00.003+10:30

I don't want to speak too soon but life has been pretty good lately.
The major exception to this is that I still am not able to run but I'm trying not to dwell on that...

When I was in high school, my best friend and I were into biorhythms.
Being the rationalist that I am now, I know that's all bunk but I must admit there are times in your life where everything just seems to flow.

Birthday celebrations are almost over. They've lasted for almost two weeks with the final bbq for friends and family this Saturday.
Two cakes have been made, one bought and another one to be bought for this Saturday. So far everything has pretty much been a success.

The photo of the banana cake is quite flattering and doesn't let the viewer know how awful the icing was... whoops.. made a little error there but no one will remember that from the pictures.

The berry cake tasted nice but looked messy.. it's the taste that counts right!

And believe it or not, work has been pretty good lately! I don't want to go into details but things are working out for me there too.
Everything is working out just fine.

Oh and to cap off my good mood, I indulged in a little retail therapy today. I bought a new lens for my Nikon D90.
It's very yummy!
I could hardly wait to get home to use it! Can't wait to experiment a bit more

Thank you world, keep shining your light on me a little longer!

Step away from the jeans...

2010-11-06T12:58:00.002+10:30

I should have known better...

Today I took Miss newly 16 to the shopping mall so that she could find some new clothes.
First order of business? New jeans!

In one of the stores we ventured into, the saleslady was so helpful that while miss 16 was trying on her selections, I decided to get her to pick some jeans out for me.

I told this saleslady that I never wore jeans as I hated the way I looked in them. I told her of my problem spots, trying to spare her the gory details and asked her what she recommended...

She, very confidently, took me to some jeans and picked out a couple in the size she and I both thought I was.

When I got in the change room, I wondered what I was doing. I was never going to fit into these!

Well, with a bit of huffing and puffing, I did put the jeans on. It took a while but I was proud when the zip went up and the button was done.
Now the dilemma.
Do I go outside, and risk other people seeing me, or do I just assess how I look in the small confines of the change cubicle?

Feeling courageous, I opened the door and stepped outside, but not before making sure any overhanging flesh was covered by my top.

It took about .00000056 of a second for me to realise the jeans were a huge mistake.

I retreated back into the change cubicle and started to take off the jeans.

I swear I almost heard an audible sigh from the jeans as I undid the zipper.... they were glad they were coming off too!!!

Against my better judgment I tried on the second pair and as I opened the door to check myself out in the bigger mirror, Miss 16 came out of her cubicle. She didn't say anything but she didn't have to.. they looked terrible!

So, no jeans for me today....

But I'm happy to say that Miss 16 found a perfect pair of jeans, a skirt and a couple of tops and she looks great in them all!

I hate the Melbourne Cup

2010-11-01T15:46:00.005+10:30

I hate the Melbourne Cup

There, I said it.

I can't understand it.

Sure, I can understand the gambling side of it. Offices all around the country will be participating in Melbourne Cup Sweeps. I get that.

I also get how everything stops during the race.

This is never more apparent than when you work in a call centre.
The lines will be frantic then all of a sudden... nothing!
And sure enough, as soon as the race ends, the lines are back to frantic.

But I hate it, and here's why.

My hatred of the Melbourne Cup was born sixteen years ago.

Sixteen years ago, on the day of the Melbourne cup, I was in hospital. I was heavily pregnant with my first baby and had been diagnosed with pre-eclampsia and ordered to do nothing but lie in bed. My blood pressure going into the hospital was 190/130.

When you have high blood pressure though, you don't have any symptoms so I felt fine! And the last thing I wanted to do was lie around in bed all day!

This was before the age of computers and hand held time wasters (at least it was for me) so I had no other option but to watch TV.
What do you think was on EVERY GODDAMN Channel???
The Melbourne Cup!

Oh my god I just wanted to die. I couldn't believe how slow the day was going. I couldn't understand why anyone would be interested in anything else but who won! If I'd had my baby already, I would have been lost in new mummy wonderment but that time hadn't happened yet so I was just lying there, counting down the seconds until the next obs, meal, coffee or any other distraction.

And every year since, that's what I'm reminded of...

However, every bad has a good and although I've now got an ingrained hate of the Melbourne Cup, a miracle occurred a day later and my beautiful bundle of joy was born. Who could have known at that point that just one year later (with that damn cup just having been on) I'd be back in the hospital having my second bundle of joy.

Just recently I was looking through cupboards trying to find my old High School Year book and I came across some old photos. They were of the kids and I when they were still so very young. I looked at their smiling faces and was just overwhelmed with emotion.
What a joy they have been.
Two beautiful souls full of love, ready to learn about the world they were being brought up in.

I've been so very blessed in my life and no matter what happens from this point on, they're one thing that I will always be so very proud of.

Love you S & J

xxxx

One size fits all?

2010-10-28T18:18:00.002+10:30

In my last blog I mentioned girls being excited about fitting into clothes that although were their size, were tagged with a lower number.
It got me thinking about sizes and numbers and how ridiculous it all is anyhow.

Take the "one size fits all" label....
Really?
I don't think so.
At the very least, that "one size fits all" garment is going to look a hell of a lot different depending on the body it's adorning.

I once saw an article in a woman's mag that showed five different sized women.
Not only did they have different body types, but they were all different heights as well.

They had these women put on the same size12 garment. This size was used as it was supposed to be an average woman's size and they wanted to show how different that "average" could look. For the record, our size 12 is an American size 8.

Although the tall girl was thin, it looked really tight and silly on her. If you had seen her in the street however, you'd think she was thinner than average however her natural size was probably a 14 - 16.
On another girl, the top fit nice but she was actually quite pudgy and if you saw her in the street, you'd think she was overweight. Her natural body size was probably and 8-10.

Every girl wore the size 12 garment differently and if you didn't know, wouldn't have been able to pick they were all the same size.

My point is, anyone who wants to go around saying they're a size this or that can't realize that it means nothing!!!
What counts is the clothes you choose for your body type... Even if you have to go up or down a number to get a flattering look.

And whatever you do don't get caught up with numbers. They mean nothing.

Fooling Ourselves

2010-10-27T12:53:00.003+10:30

We love to fool ourselves don't we?

What do I mean?

Well take today for example, I was in the upstairs bathroom because the bathroom on my floor was being cleaned.

As I walked out of the bathroom, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and remembered how much I like using this upstairs bathroom because the mirror makes me look thinner!!

Now obviously, I'm not actually thinner, but it still makes me feel better than when I look in the mirror of the regular bathroom!

In another instance, I heard a radio talk show where the hosts had a "bra whisperer" on. Sounds strange but in reality all she did was fit women correctly as apparently, most of us don't know how to shop for bras and are usually wearing the wrong size.

They had a whole lot of women brought in and fit them on the show.They asked the women what size they normally wore and they were all surprised when they found out from the "bra whisperer" that they were actually a bigger size than they first thought.

I listened to their exclamations with wonder. Did they think that just because the bra whisperer had given them a different number, that their boobs were an actual different size??? Nothing had changed! What was there to get so excited about?

About 15 years ago I went to one of those party plan parties. The saleslady was selling a line of clothing. She had quite a few samples there and at the end of the presentation, we were able to try some of them on to decide whether we would buy them or not.

Turns out, the sizing was VERY generous... If you were a size 12, you'd be an 8-10 in this clothing line...

Flattery will get you everywhere!!!

The women bought up big and I was left dumbfounded.Did they think they actually looked different??

Just because the tag says a smaller number, doesn't mean anything's changed!

Sometimes our illusions and delusions are harmless, other times they can have dire consequences.

Luckily, for most of us, they fall into the harmless category and hey, if it makes you feel good, who am I to pull the wool out of your eyes!

Clever Advertising

2010-10-25T10:44:00.004+10:30

Look at these two logos.
What do you notice??

When I used to go the the gym, it would frustrate me to see women lifting a few weights, then talk about how they were going to have a cake and coffee because they
"deserved" it.

Then they'd moan about how long they'd been going to the gym but had never lost any weight...

I easily fall into the same mindset... "I've run 70kms this week, I think I can have a splurge or two..."
This thought creeps into my mind, uninvited and unless I snap myself out of it's hypnotic, pleasurable tones, I will find myself falling for it, even though I know better!

But the other day while I was enjoying some TV time, an ad for the woman's only gym "Curves" came on and I thought, "isn't that logo just like the Cadbury one? Surely that's not an accident!'

Nothing in advertising is an accident.

What those clever Curves people have done, is told ladies that you can "work out" in a gentle, non aerobic way, then go ahead and eat your Cadbury chocolate because it's all part of the Curves experience.

Cheeky!

But we all love to be treated and there will always be an abundance of people who love chocolate!
I guess I have to commend them for good advertising

When almost perfect is almost as good....

2010-10-22T19:13:00.001+10:30

Ok ladies, tell me if you've had this experience.

You've known for some time that you really need a new pair of black sandals. You've looked for a while but never saw any that fit the specifications you were after.
Finally, you decide you can't wait a moment longer and off you go to the shops...

The first shop you go into, yields the perfect shoe. You can hardly belive it!!
It's the exactly colour you want, style you want, heel you want and even in the price range you were hoping for...
More amazing still, they actually have your size! (which is a factor in my case!)
You put the sandals on and they feel divine!
"Yes" you reason to yourself, "I could walk around in these for hours. They are so comfortable!"
Unfortunately, things that seem too good to be true, generally are...

I took the shoes home and wore them immediately. It didn't take long for me to realise that these sandals were going to leave me with two nice red blisters at the back of my feet!
Of course I was in complete denial and continued wearing them...

The next day when it was time to get dressed, I looked longingly at my sandals but knew I couldn't wear them... not even with double bandaids at the back of my feet.

The following day I tried them on but again and the blistered area was still too sore however, I realised I could just drop the back strap from behind my feet to underneath my feet and wear them under pants without anyone realising!

Success!!!

So until my feet heel and I ease them back into a relationship with these sandals, I'll be wearing them with the back strap down!

Maybe they weren't perfect but they were pretty damn close!

They say....

2010-10-14T21:34:00.002+10:30

They have a lot to answer for.
Don't you think?

Who am I talking about?

Well you know! THEY!!!

They come up in just about every conversation you have! "They say" this and "They say" that.

Most times, "they" are not defined yet we listen and take what they've said as if it were a universal truth.

So, again I say, they have a lot to answer for!

What are their credentials? Where is their scientific research to back up their claims? On what facts are their statements based? What fad or cultural event is driving their claims?

How many times have you been in conversation with someone, and hear the words "well they say..." and without questioning the person your speaking to about who they actually are, just accept what's being said!
We all have been guilty of it.

Whether we're talking diet, fitness, psychology, social events or whatever topic you're conversing about, they will have a fact! A fact that the person you're speaking to will convey with great confidence.

No more! I will trust my instinct and "they" can listen to me for a change!

Unless of course, they show me their researched facts about the topic they're speaking on,

Then I'll humbly consider the evidence as deserved.
That's what I say!

I've got a blog?

2010-10-04T14:07:00.003+10:30

Ok so this blog has been dormant a while and while I have plenty of things to write about, I just can't think of them when I sit down to write! I should get back into the habit of writing them down as they happen...

For example, if you've seen my facebook status, you'll know that yesterday I finally got fed up with having no fringe (bangs for you Americans!) and decided to snip a little here and there to create one.
The benefit of having curly hair is that you can't really mess it up too much!

But while I was doing it, my son came in, gave one look at me with my scissors and hair in hand and he said "This can't end good" and walked out.
It was hilarious at the time but you probably had to be there...

Today I've spent a good portion finding old Italian songs on you tube. When I say old, I mean from the 70's and late 80's.

I went to Italy with my mum in 1989 as a young girl (young is relative so leave me alone...) and as a lot of my relatives were younger, the artists they were familiar with were older, hence the 70's portion of my nostalgic listening today... Then I discovered Zucchero and instantly fell in love with the raw rock sound, and the delicate ballads... Magic!
So I've been revisiting the songs.

Deno's out riding and Sarah's on the computer next to me while I'm singing at the top of my lungs. She hasn't complained because she's just happy I'm allowing her to go on facebook!

Having said that, there is a time and place for nostalgia and I think I've had enough now. Besides, my throat is getting a little raw!

I've been getting my singing bug back and have started recording a few little tracks.

The next song I want to cover is "Tears in Heaven" by Eric Clapton. I'm doing the music portion of it now. Don't know how I'm going to go singing it as I always think of my dad as I'm doing it... It's such a beautiful song with such beautiful harmonies.
Can't wait to start putting it together!

Would I Lie To You?

2010-09-17T23:26:00.000+09:30

People generally are gullible and like to believe what they want to believe so they will choose to listen to those who support their beliefs.

Whether we're talking about diet and nutrition or the meaning of life, the theory still holds true.

I was thinking about this today because regularly in my job, I have to fudge the truth a little. I don't outright lie... well... in any case, whatever I'm trying to relay to the customer isn't going to affect their billing, and will give them comfort.

In other words, sometimes a little lie is easier than a long winded, confusing explanation!

And sometimes, I really don't have a clue what I'm talking about but I say those words with such confidence that the customer I'm talking to believes me.
Again, I'm not talking about anything that's going to affect their account, just inconsequential things...

But isn't it true that if someone speak with authority, unless we stop and check ourselves, we tend to believe them. This is so wrong!

Why is it that someone else's personal experience is more valid than mine? Why should I trust someone's personal experience if I haven't had that experience? Especially when we're talking about opinions or supernatural events. That is, things not based in fact.

I regularly read message boards that cover a wide range of topics. Diet and nutrition, to running and exercise.
Opinions vary greatly!!
Why should I believe someone else's opinion over mine especially if they're as equally uneducated as me!
I'm not talking about facts here, just opinions.

It's good to know what someone else thinks, but with anything, you take it on board and see how what they're saying matches up to what your experiences have been.

In the end, we make our own ultimate truth.

2010-09-12T21:14:00.004+09:30

Dedicated to my mum's birthday this year...

Our Mum & Nonna

She's a great cook and with hardly any notice,
She'll have a feast ready and be a great hostess
If it's mince that she's got, she'll be ready to fry it
Not for her or her guests, but for Richie's rich diet.

She'll buy up a storm, a retailer’s delight
Harris Scarfe employees know her on sight
With technology she may not be up with advances
But she'll give it a shot and just take her chances!

Studious she is, and with that lap top she's right
Studying Peggle and Briscola, into the night!
She's a smart woman, I know and I've heard
That from time to time, she'll even make up a word

She loves a good swim, in the spa she'll relax
And enjoys the bubbles while with new friends she chats
You sure couldn’t call her a lazy girl
Even giving the climb to Mt Lofty a whirl!

If we chose our mothers it'd be her that we'd choose
With a mother like that, we know we can't lose
She’s caring and honest, God sent from above
To bring joy to our lives and fill our hearts with love.

Mr Idiot

2010-09-10T18:13:00.001+09:30

Life in my job is rarely boring.

My very first call this morning was a very disgruntled customer.
So focused was he on telling me how disgruntled he was, that five minutes into the call, I still didn't know what the issue was!

I kept trying to identify the account so I could look at the previous notes to ascertain what he may be so angry about...

"May I have your name to access your account" I asked.

He didn't want to give it to me as he said he'd given it a million times before....
So what was he expecting from me????

I told him I couldn't help him unless I could see his account and my one wish was to help him work out whatever issue he had.

Finally after I asked for his name a third or fourth time he said "Mr Idiot"

Understandably this set me back a bit so I asked

"I'm sorry, what did you say your name was?"

Now the reason I asked him to clarify was because I SO wanted to call him Mr Idiot!!
He came back at me with smugness, thinking he was being so clever "Mr Idiot".

"Mr Idiot?" I questioned.

"Yes well I must be if I keep ringing you lot wanting to get my problem fixed"

I must admit, I thought that was funny but by that time we had been on the phone for almost 8 minutes and I still didn't know what he was actually calling about!

As I started to perhaps get a clue, he asked to speak to a supervisor so that was the end of that!
Mr Idiot... well I think he sure hit the nail on the head with that one!

Finally a result!

2010-09-07T15:17:00.005+09:30

I'm someone who finds Politics absolutely boring.
Not because, as the media was was putting it, there wasn't much difference in the two party's. That there weren't any real issues... but just because I find all governments are corrupt as each other.
In the end, we had to vote for the party we least disliked... and that's what I did.

I don't presume to know anything about Politics... but this election sure caught my attention!

What angered me were the people who went around promoting a 'donkey' vote. That is, doing your duty and going to vote, but voting incorrectly, thereby making your vote void.
Look, I'm not completely for one party anyhow but by me not voting, I'm not contributing to anything!! It's not going to bring about any change... and look what happened!

We have waited 17 days since election day to get a result.

That result hinged on the vote of three independents, who had to give their support to either the Labour or Liberal party...

Every day we were told "a decision will come soon" but days turned into a week.. then another week.. then "tomorrow"... then it was the day after that...

Finally at 2.30pm today a press conference was called and after thirty minutes of mindless waffle they gave their decision.

These three nobodies have decided the fate of this country because the rest of the country couldn't be stuffed putting in an informed vote and these nobodies were treated as if they were superstars.
Every day we wondered if a decision was imminent but why were they the ones making it?

I couldn't help thinking this was like a reality show final where we're all huddling to see who the winner is....
It's probably a fair analogy anyhow because the whole thing, in my opinion, has been a popularity contest/joke.

Tony Abbott wearing those infamous budgie smugglers and Julie Gillard

Having said all that, I did vote for Labour and I tend to like Julia Gillard... but only because I've been unimpressed with the ridiculous things Tony Abbott says... and you know, I want to like the guy because he seems to be into fitness but I don't have any confidence in what he says and don't like the way he reacts when he's cornered. Julia seems to handle the cornering better....

All in all, I'm glad the whole bloody mess is over and hope that all you Australians will actually vote next time!!!
Even if you're only voting for the lesser of two evils....

A Husband and Wife team

2010-08-25T10:08:00.003+09:30

On Sunday the 22nd of August, I had the privilege of hearing Gisele Blanchard and her husband Mario Bellanova sing

When Gisele and I were teenagers, we were part of the same church and at times, were in musical items together. I always loved to hear her sing and knew she had what it took to take her talent to a professional level.

Gisele has sung all over Europe and as far as I'm aware, currently lives in Italy but is currently visiting Adelaide and luckily for us, scheduled in a performance.

She and her husband were just fantastic! I was mesmerized the whole time. They not only sang the various aria's beautifully, but they actually "performed" them, acting what they were singing. It was magical!

From a couple point of view, it was interesting to see them interacting when they were off stage, no doubt encouraging each other and discussing little things from what they had sung, or were still to sing.

It made me wonder how they handle it when they're arguing? All couples argue right? All couple get annoyed with each other from time to time and singing is such a delicate act that I don't think you could fake it if you were pissed off with your partner! And it's not just a partner, or someone you see from time to time, but in this case, it's a spouse!

I didn't see a hint of this with Gisele and her husband but it made me realise that I wouldn't be cut out for it! :)

And while I was sitting there held captive by the beautiful voices, I glanced over and noticed one of their sons sitting in the front row. He was sitting head back, looking up to the ceiling and seemed, dare I say it, bored! How would it be to have two opera singing parents as a kid? To grow up with two people in your household with beautiful gifts. It would just be normal to you!
Can they appreciate what they have in their parents? Probably not until they're a lot older!

Gisele and Mario it was wonderful to hear you sing and I hope I get another chance very soon!

I Did It....

2010-08-15T16:27:00.005+09:30

So, where do I start?

I guess at the finish. I completed the marathon in 4 hours and 18 minutes. At least, that's the time my Garmin gave me. Have to wait for official results but that's about it.

The weather was against us but by race day I was resigned to it and it didn't phase me before the race although I'm sure it affect my time along with everyone else.

It was tough to say the least...

And the westerly drove the water from the ocean up onto the path for that part of the course. It was brutal!

Sure was an experience for my first marathon and everyone says it will make my 2nd a piece of cake. I hope so because I can't tell you I didn't want to quit.
I had hip problems, cramps and a goddam stitch that wouldn't quit.
I hit the wall at 34kms and started walking... I ran again after about 500mtrs but walked a few more times after that. All in all, I don't think I walked more than a km but my time was so bad.
Based on my 30 and 32km run, I was hoping to get around 4 hours so I was really really disappointed with my time and disappointed that I stopped to walk.

My husband followed me on his bike the whole way and another friend joined him for the last 10kms or so. I'm not sure if that was a help or hindrance as I think I got a bit sooky when there were others to hear of my plight...

And I don't work well with encouragement!! the more they told me I was doing great, the more I wanted to put less effort in (well if I'm doing great, I've got room to slow down right?)

Anyhow, it was an experience.

I was so excited this morning. When the alarm went off I jumped out of bed and said "it's time" which kind of reminded me of a woman who feels the first stirs of labour during sleep and wakes her husband with the same words...

But with everything considered, I still can say I have run a marathon and regardless of how bad I thought I did, I have that achievement and I've left myself a lot of room for improvement for the next one!!!

Photos will be on facebook as I find it too hard to post them here...

It's Almost Over

2010-08-12T19:25:00.001+09:30

It's almost over. In 60 hours or so I'll be running in my first (and perhaps only) marathon.

I can't believe how worked up I've gotten myself over this. It's just a run.

This morning as I was leaving for work I said to Miss 15 "Three more days!" and she replied "Yeeeaaah, I can't wait".

The reason she said that is that she, and the rest of the family, have been suffering as much as I have! They've had to endure hours and hours of marathon talk.

And besides that, it probably isn't nice to hear "thump thump thump" coming from upstairs as your mum goes thru her training. One hour and 18 minutes of thumping each day would be more than most people could bear yet my family stay silent knowing that this obsession too shall pass....

And in writing that, I really hope it doesn't pass. I mean I'd love to compete in the Gold Coast Marathon next year... that is, if I don't frazzle myself completely with this one...

There are so many things I'm worried about I won't go through them again here. Why good would voicing them do?

Instead I'll leave my next post to be a race report. (oh yes, the family are already dreading that!!! )

I already toyed with the notion of speaking into my mobile phone to record what I was feeling at each stage of the race but come race day, the only thing I'll want to do is finish I'm sure!

So... until my next words are read on this page, I'll lay my typing fingers to rest.... and add that I can't wait to read them myself!

So Much For The "Perfect" Water Belt

2010-08-04T17:49:00.001+09:30

I have to take back everything I said about that damn water belt.

It was my own fault. I ran with it on Saturday and for some stupidly insane reason, tied it around my waist, directly on my skin. Tights below, sports bra on top, but nothing round my middle...

And sure, I felt a "scrape, scrape" as I ran so I tried to adjust it.

Now let me just explain, this belt is filled with Velcro straps. Velcro to do it up, and Velcro for the three water bottles it holds.
After a couple of kms, I couldn't really feel it anymore so I thought I'd adjusted it right.

When I got off and had a look, I was stunned. I was completely red raw. I had a shower, yelping every time the water hit my sore spots!!
A few days later I'm less traumatized by it but I still look like I have some strange kind of pox around my middle and I'm so glad I wasn't wearing any clothing as that belt would have completely ruined my good running clothes!!

So....
I won't be using a running belt for the marathon.

I've decided,
I'm resolute,
I will just hold my own water bottle in my hand for 4 hours... and if I need more, Deno will be around on his bike somewhere to help me out.

And I'm happy with that decision anyhow because I couldn't get used to the weight of the water around my middle....

And now... I just have to do it.

A New Temporary Favourite

2010-07-30T18:09:00.001+09:30

I think I've found a new store to love and believe it or not, it's not related to food!

My new favourite store of the moment is "The Sports Boutique"

It's not that I've just noticed it... oh I've seen it was there! I walked past it a million times... even ventured in... and quickly out a few times!
Why was I so reluctant to go in? Because I felt like I didn't belong!

This is the ultimate store for women runners. It's a little intimidating because the women who run the store look phenomenal. Not in a model way, but in a sports/athletic way.
THEY look like real runners!!!

In comes dumpy, frumpy me and they probably write me off as someone who's buying for a runner... or someone who has just started out...

But today I went in there and joy of all joy's they had a water belt on sale that is almost too perfect!!It consists of three little bottles and a pouch for a few goodies. The belt itself is elastic and much better than the other bulky water belt I bought from the internet a month ago.

The only down side is that my ipod touch doesn't fit into the pouch... but I'd rather run without that than without knowing I have an adequate water supply for the marathon!!
The whole time the sales assistant was talking to me about it, I was making myself NOT bring up the fact that I was running in the Adelaide Marathon in a few weeks time. I bet they are too!!

In any case, even if they are they'd never recognise me on the day, with my hair back and no make up on....so now I have a water belt that I can actually feel confident with!

I can't wait to try it out this weekend!

Parental duties...

2010-07-28T22:20:00.002+09:30

I've had to be at my childrens school every night this week.

The first two nights was so that they could get their government
supplied laptops (thank you taxpayers of Australia)
The third was "band night".
Miss 15 is in band. While I love to hear her play, I don't relish
having to sit thru other concert bands until finally she's on.

It's always stated "we can go after I've played" but she's either
in the last group or the exit is right next to the stage so you
can't do it discreetly.

To endure the time before she was on tonight I did the unforgivable
and brought my iPod touch.
I got a bit nervous when the teacher in charge of the music section
started hovering around. I felt like I was going to get a tap on
the shoulder and be sent to detention.

As you can see it didn't stop me writing this blog.

He's still behind me but I'm putting it away as Miss 15 is on now with her group.

Yay!!
Almost home time!!

I just don't get it.

2010-07-26T13:29:00.002+09:30

Today I came across this story of a forty year old woman who died of a heart attack.
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/7935025/britains-fattest-woman-dies-of-heart-attack

She was allegedly Britain's fattest woman and had spent the last four years in hospital because she was no longer able to walk.

What makes this story stand out to me is the point where it says people would smuggle food into her!!

This isn't the first time I've read this sort of thing in similar cases.
I once watched a show on television which followed another guy who'd been hospitalized for the same reason, and they were keeping him on a calorie controlled diet to try to restore his health and give him some life back... His partner kept bringing him in fatty foods!!!
What's wrong with these people!!

That's like someone being hospitalized because of suicidal thoughts/attempts, and their loved ones smuggling in razor blades....

I don't understand it.

And I feel so sorry for this poor woman's family. She's gone and left four children who now don't have a mum. What lesson have they learnt? What have seen and experienced?
It was such a needless tragedy and to think that it was helped on by her friends and relatives smuggling in food is just to horrible to contemplate.

A new old obsession

2010-07-15T21:04:00.002+09:30

Hubby and I are going through a bit of a 24 craze at the moment.
We came in late with the show.
We started at about series 5 and watched each subsequent one until the final series just this year.

To satisfy the 24 need, we went out and sought the first few series are are now halfway through series two, after watching series one in a couple of days.

Obsessed? Well, it sure passes away a cold, wintery day nicely!

Speaking of 24 and Jack Bauer, I came across a pretty funny you tube clip this week.

And don't think I haven't thought about what I'm going to do when we've watched every show! What will I do without my 24?

Come back Jack Bauer, the world still needs you! (dammit)
If you make the show, I'll wach it! I give you my word!

Have you ever noticed that about the show? "dammit" is said so many times and Jack continues to say "I give you my word". Wow! His word! If only I'd get the same belief in my statements when I pledged "my word".
"Yes I'll pay that bill by next week, I give you my word!"

And how can so many double agents infiltrate CTU? Aren't they a highly secure area? Yet somehow all these double agents make it through with back ground checks that can hardly be thorough!!

But we don't watch the show for it's realism...

And now I'm just waiting for that man of mine to get home so we can watch a few more episodes!!

shhhhhhhh

2010-07-08T09:48:00.001+09:30

I seem to have access to this at work again..

oh the joy!

Please, please, please don't let them take it away again!!

Reality hits

2010-06-25T22:08:00.002+09:30

So as I've already written on my running blog, I've entered the 2010
Adelaide Marathon.
I'm scared to death about this but I'm going to give it my best shot
and hope to just finish it. If I get a time under four and a half
hours I'll be really happy but won't be focused on time.

The marathon is set to start at 6.45am.
Every morning now at that time I look at the conditions and wonder how
the he'll I'm going to do it!

I'm supposed to be doing a "long" run on Saturday and I'm going to be
outside no matter what the conditions. Yikes!

It's good to have a goal to look forward to though.

And after this August 15 race day I will be taking a well earned break!!

How much for an opinion?

2010-06-22T17:57:00.001+09:30

Besides the fact that I have no creativity when it comes to doing things with my hands, I don't think I could have been a hairdresser because of all the small talk involved.

My hair dresser tries and I know she has a good heart but I'm so sick to death of all the chatter I have to hear as a client!!!

Customers say the most boring, inane, egotistical things and she nods, agrees and adds to the conversation, never questioning what is being said to her. I wish I could hear what was going on in her mind as she's listening to her clients drivel.

Then again maybe she likes it?

Although I do know for a fact that she doesn't give her true opinion because I've seen her change it within seconds when it became apparent she hadn't understood what her client said.
Sometimes I just want to slap her and say "tell me what you really think!!!"
Ok.. so I'm kidding about that part! But it does make conversing with her a chore because I know she's just doing it because she feels it's part of her job.

I'm just not a small talker and that's why the job's not for me.

But I'm sure glad my hair is finally done and she did a great job of that!

Go Sarah!

2010-06-14T19:30:00.001+09:30

I'm listening to Sarah at her band practice. It's the first time I've sat in. I'm pretty impressed.

The guys are great and I just love Sarah's
voice and I don't think it's just because I'm a biased mum!

They love their music that's for sure. It's all about the music. They seem like they could play for hours and not notice the time go.

I'm trying real hard not to be the geeky mum.
Go Sarah!!

Dessert for dinner?

2010-06-10T20:14:00.002+09:30

Well that was a birthday dinner not to remember!!!

We really wanted to go to the souvlaki brothers at Glenelg tonight as that was the man of the house's choice, but they were closed for renovations.
Bummer.
It was cold and we didn't want to walk back to the car so we went to Nando's.
Big mistake.

First of all there weren't many people in there but the seating was crowded. There was only one table where we could really have sat and that was right in front of the door so everytime someone went in or out, we felt the cold wind rushing in.

We were hungry so didn't mind paying the high prices that were shown. We figured we must be getting a big meal.

Were we ever wrong!!!

The serves were so small that we were finished in minutes and immediately went next door to McDonalds.

What was funny was that a group of guys who'd been in Nando's at the same time as us, were in
McDonalds too!!

I feel so unsatisfied...

Lucky there's birthday cake waiting at home.

Oh... and no, the man of the house isn't seven, but if you add the numbers of his age up, it comes to seven!
Happy birthday Honey. Is that a smile I see???

Step away from the iphone!

2010-06-10T20:11:00.002+09:30

Went to miss 15's drama production last night. For the most part I was  impressed. There were a lot of really talented kids there...
Not that the lady beside me would have known because she didn't take her eyes  off her iPhone the whole night!!! I'm not kidding!

There were lots of strange looking kids there... As kids can tend to look strange in their quest for individuality... And I'm so glad I 
didn't comment on one of the funnier ones because his mum was sitting right near us!! That could have turned ugly...

My daughter was a star of course. I must admit I got a bit nervous when I saw she was playing a mum but it was ok. I don't think she was being me.
She performed wonderfully. A natural actress!
It made me wonder though if all parents thought their kids were stars as some of the students were real shockers.

All in all it was s hood night and I find myself looking forward to the next production.

Go miss 15!!!

..and life goes on...

2010-06-04T10:22:00.002+09:30

I guess it's about time I write in here.
To say it's been a difficult couple of weeks is an understatement.

I don't really want to dwell on it. What's happened has happened.

I have so many beautiful memories and it's been so good to share those with my family these past couple of weeks.

Last week while my sister and mother were sitting in my dad's hospital room, I thought about how nice it was that we were together, remembering and laughing about little things from the past. Then the reason of why we were sitting there hit me again and I'd get sad.
Still, death is a part of life... although knowing that doesn't make it any easier.

I think of all the things that I wanted to say to my dad. Most of them I actually did say but I wonder if he really understood it. I hope he knew how much he meant to me.

Towards the end when he was no longer able to communicate I kept holding his head or hand so he knew someone was there and was telling him that we were all here with him. I thought if he could hear me, then it might bring him some comfort.

Now that all the ceremony is over, the fact of what's happened is going to hit hard.

I know he was suffering and I'm so glad he's not anymore but thinking about his life and our life growing up with him these past couple of weeks just makes me miss him more.

Thanks dad. I know I wasn't an easy child to parent but you were the best father I could have hoped for.

xxxx

Just because I can

2010-05-18T15:16:00.003+09:30

I got my glasses today.

You didn't know I wore glasses? Well actually I don't!

Specsavers have been running these ads where you don't pay for your eye testing and you don't pay for your glasses (up to a certain price) if your health insurance is partnered up with them.

Well mine is.

I don't need glasses though but I wanted a pair just for the hell of it!

I went for my testing and she said yes, I had perfect eyes. I knew that!
But then I said my eyes sometimes get "tired" when I'm at the computer or up in bed reading... She asked if I wanted some magnification and I said yes please!
She hmmm a bit and said "even those +1 magnification reading glasses you get at the chemist would be too strong for you"
"yes they are" I lamented....
But I just wanted glasses!

So because it's all free, she prescribed a pair that are even less magnification than the lowest, general type ones you can get from the chemist...

And today I got the call that they were ready!!
So now, as I'm typing these, I'm looking through my new, FREE FOR ME, Fcuk prescription glasses.
Deno's come later this week and Sarah and Josh are booked in for their visits next week!
Thank you specsavers!
Question is, do they make me look smarter???
(Haven't been game enough to take a photo of myself in them yet so you'll just have to say yes!)

Life returns to normal

2010-05-18T11:18:00.002+09:30

I haven't written anything here for a while and I'm really not too sure why because normally I have all sorts of observations that occur to me during the day that I like to share.

I have had a few things against me.
1. I no longer have access to blogger at work (I can't tell you how traumatized I am by that!)
2. I think I've been battling lingering jet lag (I can hear Deno laughing right now)
3. I've been covertly worried that I won't be able to get my fitness back to what it was before we left for America.

So to combat those things...
1. I'm trying to work out a new system so I can still write even though I don't have access at work.
2. Nothing much I can do about potential lingering jet lag but just try to sleep when I'm tired.
3. Don't think about my running and just do it! (And yes I do wear Nike's)

I've got my running to 60kms a week so I should be happy with that shouldn't I? I don't know why I keep feeling like it's not enough. I really really really want to run a marathon. The Gold Coast one is in two months but don't think I'll be ready for that... The Melbourne one is in October and it's reasonable to think I could be ready for that except I'm afraid to run outdoors.
Here's another laughing moment for Deno....
Another factor against me being ready for the marathon is that I'm deathly afraid of magpies!! And to run the kms I need to run to train for a marathon, I need to be doing that on the streets...
I'll probably get out there soon enough but it's always at the back of my mind... For now I'll probably just stick to the esplanade because that seems to be the safest route but then I'm battling coastal winds and just straight routes. I like the variety of turns.
I also really hate running in Winter and through the frosty cold...

So there you go. I didn't really have anything to write here but wanted to break the drought!
And now, I'm going to take photos with my new Nikon D90 which I'm still deeply in love with

Tummy Troubles

2010-05-08T06:58:00.002+09:30

A "friend" of mine has a certain Miss 15 in her house.

This certain Miss 15 claims to be lactose intolerant. She may very well be but my "friend" thought it was funny the other night when this certain Miss 15 was complaining of a gurgly tummy.

"Did you have any dairy?" asked my "friend" to Miss 15
"No" said Miss 15.
"Well what have you eaten?" asked my friend.
This certain Miss 15 then answered, "All I had was what we had for dinner. Vegetables and beans."

Ah, there's really not much more to be said on that!

Our Trip Blog

2010-05-02T12:38:00.003+09:30

For those interested, I've finally put up the blog along with a few photos.

The first entry can be found here

I've sorted the entries day by day, so just click the link in the upper right of the page to go to the next day.

Hope you like it!
And if anything you see inspires a comment, don't be afraid to leave one!

Thanks for reading

Back from an overseas trip...

2010-04-28T10:36:00.003+09:30

I've been away for over a month! It's good to be home. Good to get back to a routine although I do miss family overseas. The time went so quickly in the end, even though I was itching to get home, I also miss my family and wish we could just get up and hang out without having to go through travel agents and time zones!

I'll be putting up a blog of Deno and my adventure soon. There's a lot of photos to go through!

When it's done though, I'll post the link here and whoever is interested can take a look...

Typing from good ol' Adelaide once again....

You're not fooling anyone!

2010-03-25T10:05:00.000+10:30

Funny little thing happened this morning.

I was at the train station waiting for my morning train with my nose stuck into my addoku puzzle book when I heard a very animated female voice"Hello David!" she said and immediately followed it with "oh, you're not David! I'm so sorry, you look just like him!"

She went on and on in this vein for quite some time. Her sentences and pauses were flourished by flirtatious giggles and there was lots of "hand running through the hair" gestures!

The poor guy was just flummoxed!

It was obvious to me that she just wanted to talk to him as she kept trying to broach new subjects from that one encounter. He wasn't interested, and tried to be obvious about it by keeping his eyes on his book and only gave one word answers to her questions/queries and comments!

It was the funniest thing to witness!

My Kitchen Rules - At least on TV is does...

2010-03-18T09:14:00.004+10:30

Hubby and I have been watching My Kitchen Rules.

I really liked the show initially but there's so many things they need to change if series two is to grab my attention!

But that aside, watching the couples make the food always amazes me.

In fact Reality TV in general is just so staged!!

Please don't tell me that those couples cooking REALLY finish plating up just as the clock ticks down to zero? They show them still putting different foods on the plates with less than a minute to go. I refuse to believe that!!!

If that was true that they time it to such nail biting precision, you would think that occassionaly they would go even just a little over, and not finish plating up the food on all the dishes... but it's with perfect precision.

And don't you hate the stilted talking? We all know it's supposed to be for dramatic effect but it just makes the person talking look a little intellectually challenged. They must cringe when they watch the episodes!!

It's like when they announce the winner, or a person that's been eliminated... Something that takes a few seconds to say can be dragged out into a few minutes! Longer still if commercials are involved.

But going back to the My Kitchen Rules show, I think it's gotten a bit ridiculous how arty the plates have to look. It's not about the food anymore! If I want to see art work, I'll go to an art gallery! Food is going to taste good regardless of how many carefully placed sauce spots there are on the plate.

Now I do realise the value of having food look good on the plate, but I just think they go overboard and after a while, each dish just looks like another stacked food item, sauced plate dish.

And please, those servings???? They're barely a mouthful sometimes! God help you if you actually have an appetite!

On one of the rounds, the couple cooking made a ravioli for an entree, but messed something up so instead of getting two or three ravioli per dish, they each got one.

Yes you read that right, ONE!!!!!

That's pretty funny isn't it?

So it's arty to place a small amount of food on a place in a stylish way? How about a few rice grains arranged in a pretty way? Could that do it? Only if they named it something exotic I guess... then they'd have a winner!

But still, I'm watching so they're doing something right!

And with the final coming up on Monday, I'm already looking forward to the next series!!

Would you like some hardened arteries?

2010-03-12T12:42:00.001+10:30

I love how at my place of work, the company tries to keep its employees happy but doing little things for them.
For instance, we've really been under the pump with calls and staffing issues lately, so we've all been working extra hard...
Management have been giving us little gifts...
Things like 'donut days' and "morning teas."

The thought is nice...But I thought an extreme was reached today when the supervisors started coming around with little takeaway boxes.
I started wondering what could be in there... six donuts?? The box looked quite big!
Was it some sort of company trinket?

Slowly a smell starting wafting through the office and before I was offered my own box, I knew it was something greasy and artery hardening. When the box was offered to me, I politely shook my head. No thanks! And spent the next hour trying not to puke from the gross smell of chicken and chips.

While I appreciate the gesture, couldn’t there have been a healthy option offered as well? Couldn't they have had subway make up some rolls or something?? At least it would be something that wouldn't stink up the office!

It's so gross...

And I still have five hours to go...

Oh yes I really did....

2010-03-11T06:05:00.006+10:30

The other night I was sitting on the couch in front of the TV with hubby. My mind was wandering as some mindless TV show was on, and I was thinking about how nice it would be to take a nice long bath after my run in the morning.

By the time tomorrow morning came, I would have run 66kms over the last five consecutive days and I thought it would be a nice gift for my muscles.

Often the thought of a bath is better than the actual event so I knew I'd have to entertain myself. I thought of the books/magazines/music I'd have with me to keep me entertained...
And then a thought came to me.... could I be electrocuted if I listened to my mp3 while in the bath?

And I'm sorry to say, I was seriously thinking it.... And even worse, I turned to hubby to ask if I could electrocute myself if my earbud, or mp3 fell into the water while I was taking a bath.

He had an incredulous look on his face (he wasn't sure if I was trying to be funny) and then said "from a battery?????"
Oh yeah....
"The only thing that's going to happen is that you'd ruin your earphones or mp3!!!!"

Now why does it all seem so clear after the stupid question has been asked?
No, don't answer that!

A Blog When You're Not Blogging...

2010-03-03T12:25:00.002+10:30

Well it's been a while since my last blog and it's not that I haven't had anything to write about, it's just that I haven't been at my computer when the thought comes to me.

I've been busy, busy, busy!

So in a nutshell...
Potential blog posts I could have made over last few weeks include....

1. If children were born as teenagers, the human race would have surely become extinct.Not that I'm complaining about Miss 15 and Master 14 but some days....

2. Have been doing lots of running but have written about that in my blog dedicated to running.
Special thanks to the house Adonis who faithfully cycled behind me, giving me water as I needed it, during my recent long run of 26.5kms. He then cycled back to my car and drove it back to where I was waiting.
And as my mother said... yes, he really does love mexxx

3. Have been speaking to too many stupid customers. I'm convinced it's only stupid people who call in with account enquiries. And here's a tip, if you're next account is $3.30 more than the last one, it doesn't mean your utility retailer is trying to rip you off. There is no rule that says each account has to be the exact value, or less, than the one proceeding it.

4. My family love my low fat cheesecake. I made 2.5 times the recipe amounts and it was gone within 24 hours. Who ate the bulk of it? Well, I'm sure you can guess!

5. Speaking of food and portion sizes, perhaps if I hadn't grown up in an Italian family where it was a sin for anyone to leave the table without being stuffed to the brim, that I can't ever get a "normal" portion size. I always cook for the football team but they don't show up, so my family polish it off instead...

6. Getting excited and nervous about our trip overseas which is coming up faster and faster...

7. Nothing like sitting down after a busy day, relaxing in front of the television with some of my favourite shows...
Shows I'm enjoying at the moment include, "My Kitchen Rules", "Lost", "Grey's Anatomy" (despite the actors in it), "House" and "24". Probably more but can't think of them right now.

I'm sure there was more that I wanted to write about but that will do it for now!

Waiting, Waiting, Waiting...

2010-02-23T11:58:00.003+10:30

I had to go to the doctors today, just for a routine blood test, and was amazed when I was called in right away!

The place where I go won't let you make an appointment. You just go up and wait to be called.
Up until just recently, the wait time was always over an hour, usually close to two however today I was called within 10 minutes!

I was shocked!

So I went into the doctors room and told her I was here for my routine tests and she sent me round to the pathology rooms.

Now these treatment/pathology rooms also have waiting times. You take a number and wait to be called.

I was the third person in the list so I didn't think I was going to have to wait long.

I was wrong.

I knew my good luck was too good to be true!

I don't know what the delay was but as I sat there and waited, more and more people were coming. The line was getting longer. Everytime there was movement by the nurses, every person in that line turned their eyes to them in hope that their number was going to be called.

While we were waiting, some of the people started talking. One woman made sure everyone in the line had gotten the right number for the right room. This same woman then asked the woman next to me what she was in for!!

Yikes!

At that point I turned my head forward and made sure I didn't give her any eye contact. I don't want to be discussing my medical situation with strangers! Especially when there are another 15 pairs of ears listening.

We had already witnessed one doctor bring a teenager around telling the nurse he had to give a urine sample, and the nurse telling him where to go to give and where to sit and wait when it was done. I mean it shouldn't be embarrassing because it's just life but still, some things should just be kept quiet. We saw the kid coming back and all knew he has his urine in the jar in his hand. We didn't need to know that or imagine the warmth he must be feeling from that jar in his hand!

I thought the lady next to me seemed nice enough until she started going on and on about what she was there for. She'd cut herself last night and the locum who'd come out had suggested she take herself to the doctor the following morning.
I was sympathising at first, then when she didn't stop, I started getting stressed that I'd never be let out of this conversation.
She started asking if she was looking pale.
I felt like saying "lady if you pass out, you'll be doing us all a favour and YOU"RE AT THE DOCTORS so it's not like you won't be looked after."

Finally I was called. It was like I'd won the lottery.

I could feel those jealous eyes boring through my back as I got up and away from the waiting area.

At least it's over and done with...

That is, until next week when I go back for the results!

Can you smell that?

2010-02-19T11:40:00.001+10:30

It should be a rule...
In fact, I think it very well may be...
Although sadly it's not enforced!

You should not ever... EVER.... if in a work environment, bring smelly foods to your desk.

I don't even know what this offensive smell is but it's making my stomach turn. Who would possibly think that was ok?

And it's not the normal offensive smell that strikes the nasal passages then goes away, this one comes in waves over and over and over again. God knows what the food source is! I don't think I want to know!

It's almost acidic in it's quality.

I'm sure everyone in a kilometre radius has had their nose hairs burnt off!

I can't wait till MY lunch break so I can go outside and try to restore my sense of smell.

But aside from that, I really love my work colleagues :)

Like a priest selling trickets to a strip show.

2010-02-15T15:37:00.004+10:30

Went for my second and final (for now) appointment to the dentist today and let me tell you, the anxiety level was very high!

I walked into the office and immediately my throat seized up and I wasn't able to swallow. I was convinced I was going to choke to death on my saliva in the chair (Well I did have a one hour appointment!)

But while I was waiting there in the waiting room, entertaining all my fears, a woman came in selling chocolate.
She was slim, petite, pretty and confident. Everything you don't want another woman to be.
OK. I'm kidding about that last sentence...

So she walks up to the reception desk with her box of chocolates and says "Would you like to sell these chocolates here in your waiting room? It's for charity" or something along those lines.

Firstly, can you imagine a dental practice selling chocolate??? Yeah, that's a good message!

So the receptionist politely declined.
The seller said "perhaps you'd like to buy some for yourself then?"
The receptionist answered back, "only after you do" in a nice, slap on the back, type of way.
The seller took a step back and said indignantly "oh no, I don't eat chocolate, I'm a personal trainer"

Oh please. If ever I wanted to poke someones eyes out it was then!

OK little miss chocolate seller in your tight clothing which shows off your toned body, do you think it's really necessary to push the average woman down further still?
So you want everyone else to buy your chocolate but you won't touch it yourself? Nice. It would be like a priest trying to sell you tickets to a strip show! (although on second thoughts, we don't know what these priests do in private. Can't take anything for granted!)
And for the record, I know personal trainers who DO eat chocolate in moderation! They're not mutually exclusive!!!!

So with that, she flicked her long blonde hair back behind her shoulders and moved the perky little butt on out of that dental surgery.

The nerve!

All you need is love... or at leas the thought of love...

2010-02-12T10:21:00.003+10:30

Not only is Valentine ’s Day coming up, but so is DH and I's anniversary. We actually beat the Valentine’s day rush by getting married on February 13 so there is absolutely no problems with restaurants being overbooked when we celebrate!

Because love was in the air, so to speak, I decided to give a chocolate rose to my two closest friends at work today. I got in before both of them so I just lay the rose across their keyboards.

When the first girl came in, I was on a call with a customer so I wasn't able to tell it had been me who'd placed it there (and no I didn't sign my name to it because I'd expected to give it to her personally). The recipient started saying "who left this here?" thinking she might have a secret admirer, and who wouldn't think that?
I heard her ask her male supervisor if it had been him and he quite rightly said it wasn't. I was growing more frantic as I listened to this going on, while trying to aid my customer at the same time!

When I finally did get off the phone, she had asked half the office and it was becoming quite an office mystery finding out who this person was who'd left the rose on her keyboard.
Now here was my dilemma.
Do I ruin her good mood and good feeling by saying it was just me and not some handsome, rich, well cut male trying to win her affections?
I sat there with that knowledge for a while and then told her supervisor as he walked past. He said not to tell her but he's male and doesn't know what scenario's a woman's imagination can quickly get to!

So as soon as I could, I told her it was me and although I thought I detected a bit of disappointment, she soon smiled again and said it was nice. So hopefully it wasn't too bad!

For the record, I've never been a Valentine’s Day fan! Too many people get left out and I just don't like that. Someone's worth is to be judged by what they receive on Valentine ’s Day? I don't think so! Still, it is nice when you get something.... especially when it's from a secret admirer! Although, I've got to add that from what I've heard, if someone receives something from a secret admirer, the romantic factor can quickly turn to an "ewww" factor is the admirer reveals himself!! Better to stay hidden.

So to everyone that won't receive anything this Valentine’s day,
Happy Valentine’s Day!
I'm sure there is someone whose life you affect just by being in it. We're just sometimes too lazy to do anything about it but it's appreciated.

Cos there's nothing better to do..

2010-02-11T14:07:00.002+10:30

I don't know who profits every time they do a major office upheaval. Maybe it’s just for the benefit of the managers who sit around and snicker as the office is reduced to a confusion of moving chairs, drawers, papers and personal effects.

We have four teams of about 18 people here and today, management have picked us all up and thrown us back down into new groups of four.
I don't understand why they would do this.
Fair enough if it hadn't been done in a while, but I've moved four times in the last 12 months!It's ridiculous!!There doesn't seem to be any reason for it.

Enough about that though.
The thing that made today's move different was the disgusting mess that was left at my new desk (and if the last owner of my new desk reads this, please know that I'm not having a go at you, but probably every other person that's sat there too!!!)I'm sure there were quite a few years accumulation of dirt, grime and crumbs at this desk.
What made me throw up a little in my mouth though were the little hairs, that looked like dog or cat hairs, that came out from the keyboard.I feel nauseous again just thinking about it!I don't know how anyone could have operated at that desk!

I'm not saying that I leave my desk in pristine condition (especially when it's surprise move as today's was) but never in my eight years of working here have I seen a desk like I moved to today.

Other negatives about this desk are its location (monitor in full view of entire office) and the lights above it! I feel like I'm in an interrogation! It's so bright!Or maybe I'm under a spotlight and they're all just waiting for me to sing
;)

The good things are that I don't have someone sitting next to me who's going to be looking at what I'm doing (i.e., checking out my screen) or looking to see what I've bought lately (looking in my handbag)And if the person who I'm talking about reads this, you know I love you! But I'm also glad to be taking my privacy back.

It's sad though, that just when you build a good rapport with those around you, you're yanked out of your comfort zone.Although I'm looking forward to meeting new people, I wish I'd been left in my dark little corner, instead of so out in the open under bright lights!

I guess I'll just focus on the positives and know that another move is probably just around the corner!

Creepy Crawlies

2010-02-10T12:42:00.002+10:30

We have had horrible heat over the last few days and for the most part, I can deal with.

What I don't like, are the creepy crawlies that it also brings out!!! And it just seems like they're everywhere!

Everywhere I turn I'm seeing something that's making me scream.

Walking through the house without lights on is a no no right now! I just can't be certain there's no creepy crawly lying in wait for me - ready to jump perfectly on my unsuspecting person - polluting my airspace - intruding my haven.
I want them gone!!!

And with surface spray in hand, I will be victorious!!!

But still, come on cooler weather!! I've done enough screaming for the time being!

Did You Bring Food?

2010-02-05T11:18:00.002+10:30

Working in a large office, it's always somebody's birthday.

That means there's always a morning tea happening somewhere!

Now I've been with the company for almost eight years and in that time, when it comes to morning teas, I've seen the lot! Everything from a couple of packets of chips and biscuits chucked on the food table, to elaborate and intricately decorated cakes and pastries.

My current team tends to fall in the first category. We just can't seem to be bothered! Or it could be that we've had so many birthdays in a row, that we're pretending they're not really happening.

Today's effort was especially bad and I felt sorry for the poor girl whose birthday it was. The lack of effort was certainly no reflection on our thoughts about her!

Now I'm not complaining about the lack of effort, actually, I fully admit that I contribute to it. I don't want to eat from the food table so I don't bring anything for it.If there's nothing on it worth eating, then I'm not going to be tempted to eat something I shouldn't.

I've been in teams though, where competition is fierce! Who's going to bring the tastiest dish? Whose mud cake is the most delicious? Whose dish disappears from the food table first? (That one has caused me a little stress over the years!)

I have enough food issues, I don't need to add morning tea politics to them so I'll gladly excuse myself.

And wish everyone celebrating a birthday a very happy and special day.

Visiting another world...

2010-02-01T16:47:00.003+10:30

Sometimes I think going to the dentist can be like going to another country. It's a whole new world with a whole new language!

I got so stressed thinking about my appointment today that I was just a nervous wreck by the time I was called into the room.

I have a new dentist now as my old one left the practice. She was really nice. She reminded me of one of my old Italian aunties...
This new dentist is a guy and after having a woman for so long, I was a little unsure but I thought I'd give him a go.

So I get into the room, nerves and all, and he asks me how I am.
Without missing a second I go into the lengthy preplanned script about how bad my teeth are and how embarrassed I am of how bad I've let everything get and how my back tooth is infected and got so bad it led to a ear and gland infection etc etc etc.

Have you ever been in a situation where you know you're embarrassing yourself but you can't stop? Well that was me today...

So the Dentist, Darrell, put on his calm voice and said he'd take a look.

He asked me a whole lot of questions about my tooth and said he didn't think it was as bad as I'd said but he'd take x-ray's to be sure...
In the meantime, he gave my teeth a thorough check up.

I'm lying there while he's going through my mouth, calling out various codes to the dental assistant who was dutifully writing everything down.
Don't you just hate dental code? I have no idea what the numbers and letters meant.
I'm sure he meant for me to think it was work that needed to be done on my teeth but he was probably really telling the dental assistant "we've got a loony here! Tread carefully!"

And as his hand is in my mouth I start to worry if my breath is bad, if there's boogers up my nose and how unladylike I look with saliva going everywhere. I wonder when, god when, can I swallow, and if I don't swallow, am I going to choke on my spit and make a bigger fool of myself?

So after the letter and numbers that sounded like they were leftover from a starwars movie, he went to do the x-ray.
He studied the pictures and said it wasn't as bad as I had made him think!

Woo Hoo... good for me..

But I still have five fillings that have to be refilled so he had a lot of work to do (Just no root canals!! yeah!)

He fixed the tooth that I thought had given me the ear infection, then said he had time to do some more on the upper side.
Sure I said! I figured since I was there and worked up already why not? Saves me getting worked up an extra time!

So he jabbed me with the needle again and off he went to do his thing.

I was at the dentist for just over an hour.

Now you know when you've had that anesthetic in your mouth, you feel like you look really geeky but it usually feels worse than it looks?
Well in my case, it looked worse than it felt, and it felt bad!!
I looked like I had been punched in the face and couldn't get my words out properly.

It was really quite funny...

The kids saw me a bit later and were a little traumatized by my look though! They wouldn't let me take a photo of it and Miss 15 even shielded her eyes when talking to me in case she caught a stomach turning peak.
Nice!

But the best news of all, is that I thought I was going to be up for tons of visits and my new best dentist Darrell says he can finish up in another hour appointment in a fortnight's time!

14 days to go....

No More Dexter!!

2010-01-29T10:29:00.002+10:30

I just hate it when you get into a television series that has grabbed you so much, that you're sad when the finale is over.
We now have to wait a whole year for Dexter!!

I just love that show!

I think I even dreamt about it last night after watching the finale.

So I thought I'd put a few of my thoughts about the show down and maybe we'll all see why I'm so fascinated by this show.

There's something a little icky about watching a real life husband and wife team playing brother and sister. It could be worse I guess, they could be brother and sister playing husband and wife... but even so, as they go through their lines acting their parts I wonder if they've just had a domestic squabble about who didn't take out the trash, or who left the toilet seat up again...

or what about Dexter's love scenes with Rita?

He usually doesn't have any but they got pretty close in that last episode and it one point, his face was smothered by her voluptuous breasts. Was his wife watching on as they filmed that scene?

I don't care how much you want to call it acting, it can't be good for the spouse to see that!

Speaking of Debra, Dexter's sister on the show, isn't she tremendously skinny? I'm fascinated by it! Each scene she's in I can't help but look at how small her frame is, how small her clothes are, and how no matter how tiny her clothes are, she still swims in them! There is not one ounce of fat on her! I'm sure if she takes off her clothes all we'll see is a skeletal frame!

I don't understand why they had La Guerta and the other cop marry. Was that just to throw us off the story line??? Seemed to come out of nowhere or maybe they're setting something up for next season?

The final five minutes were totally unexpected and horrifying as they were, were not without their own relief too. I say that because I find the Rita's character just so annoying. She's so sickly sweet yet manages to incite such a dislike. She does nothing all day but then throws the children at Dexter when he comes in from his work/killing duties. A man can only handle so much! She will tell Dexter she's unhappy with a smile on her face so how do you know she really means it? No wonder Dexter is often confused emotionally and has no clue what his reaction should be. Any small effort on Dexter's part to do something nice is met with an over exuberance of love and gratitude from Rita. It's not that she's too perfect, it's just sick!

And it goes without saying that I'll never be able to watch John Lithgow in the same way again.

And now what am I going to do? I have to wait twelve months for new Dexter!!!

I guess I'll just get immersed in my next lot of shows...House, Lost, 24...

TV addict? Who me?

Just when you think you've seen it all

2010-01-28T14:36:00.001+10:30

I can't believe it.
I had my phone in my hand, the camera option being a click away, and yet I was too dumbstruck to do anything to record the moment.

When I left the building for lunch today, I exited out into the back alley. There was a girl walking towards me from the other direction. She had the shortest skirt on I've ever seen worn in public!

Ok so that wasn't the sight that made me think of my camera... it was when she turned into a street moments before me, making her now ahead of me, that I noticed she had a split up the back of her skirt.

This skirt, which barely covered her panties, had a split that showed half her bottom! it was the funniest thing.
She didn't even seem embarrassed!!
She didn't seem anything.
In fact, she looked surprisingly normal.

It was just hilarious. How could she not know that her pink polka dotted panties were showing through the split in her skirt?

Just when you think you've seen it all!

Up Up And Away

2010-01-22T16:26:00.002+10:30

I guess it's worth a mention that soon this blogger and her husband will soon be travelling overseas.

I'm not sure how I feel about the whole thing really. Sure I'm excited! I can't wait to see new cities and to meet his family and see different places that were significant to my Canadian hubby in his past.

I'm not looking forward to the phenomonal amount of driving we'll be doing though.

We land in LA on the 27th of March, drive or fly to Las Vegas a day or two later and from there, will either drive to Winnipeg, or to Toronto and THEN Winnipeg... and we'll have to make sure we drive back down to LA in time to make our flight back to Australia on the 26th of April (arriving in Australia on the 27th)

That's a LOT of driving!!!

I'm going to go mad I just know it!

We're also travelling without the kids and I think I'll regret that more and more the closer our departure date gets.

It's going to be a great adventure that's for sure and you can bet, I'll be blogging, snapping photos and taking video along the way.

By the time I log it all in this blog, you'll have felt you came along with us!

Just over two months to go before we leave....

Florentine Junkie - A Temporary Obsession

2010-01-20T14:27:00.003+10:30

I know you're just dying to find out what my latest obsession is....

Yoghurt Florentines from the health food shop!

Actually, the last thing they are is healthy but they are definitely heavenly divine and heaven is associated with being good, so I'll accept that the yoghurt Florentines are good!

And no, the photo shown on the right is not of my actual Florentine. They don't last long enough to be photographed! It's just an accurate replica I found on the web.

I love the Florentines so much that I'll have them instead of a regular lunch. I've always had a sweet tooth and would prefer sweets any day, but I feel strange going in there and asking for three yoghurt Florentines so I'll pretend I'm getting some for others "Can I have those in separate bags please?"

I sometimes ask for a few different items as well, so they don't think I'm just Florentine obsessed... like I could just take or leave them..
I think they're on to me though...
Luckily, I only work a few days a week...

There is one girl in the health food store who kind of annoys me because no matter what I choose to buy, she always says "good choice".
The first time she said it, I felt like I'd been a good girl! You know, like when the teacher asks you a question and you get it right!Now it just seems fake and it's a little disappointing. Does she even remember that I'm the yoghurt Florentine girl? Am I just another faceless person in the crowd that she says "good choice" too?

Hopefully the extra running mileage I'm doing these days is taking care of what those Florentines are doing to my hips!

Which reminds me...
I read a funny quote today
"There's a skinny person shouting to be heard inside every overweight person, who can only be shut up with chocolate"

Well, peace and quiet is better than shouting isn't it?

Now, enough chatter, where's my Florentine....