30 Seconds To Mars blog recommendation

If you’re a Mars fan then I highly recommend popping over to Mohnblumes' blog.

It’s become a regular stop off for me for the latest news and info.

I’m posting this pic just because it makes me laugh!

 

It’s actually really real!

The Mars tickets arrived. Physical proof that in 17 days time me and the girls will be there!

O……………M…………….G………….

 

A Quick Note

Have just got back from seeing Michael Jackson's This Is It. 

I'm feeling drained yet uplifted. Don't know if I'll write it up tomorrow or not. I think I just need some time to absorb it all. 

I feel like I just said a proper goodbye to an old friend.

 Gone but not forgotten. 


   

The Adventures of Clair and Bert!

Following on from my last post, I then had a convo with my Mum. She asked me how I was doing and I explained that I wasn’t having such a good day. She wisely pointed out that I hadn’t gotten out much over the last few days and seeing as the sun was shining, why don’t I go out for a walk? Blow the cobwebs out so to speak. Score one for honesty! Go me!

I thought that it was an excellent idea so I grabbed my phone (for pics) and set out to explore.

Gorgeous day, sunny and breezy. I turned off the road and onto a dirt path that I really hadn’t noticed before.

The path was pretty steep and closed in on both sides with hedgerows. In fact the more I walked the steeper and skinnier it got!

Have to admit there was a time when I thought I might turn for fear of not getting my decidedly unskinny behind through! But I kept plodding.

Glad I did because I saw that there was sunlight at the top of the path!

Kept walking and then…. payoff!

It was a little ‘junction’ if you will, leading off to two fields and more pathway. This is the view from the opposite direction.

I hoiked myself up and into the clearing at the base of the trees.

 

 

It was then that I came across this little guy!

I decided to adopt Bert and take him on the rest of my walk with me. He didn’t object. Btw, Bert is about 20cm long. From the scale of the pic he looks like another tree!

So Bert and I continued our walk down the widening path.

I was wandering along, looking at the ground when I stopped dead in my tracks because this little beauty was taking a break on one of the stones in the path.

He then flew around me for a minute or two before coming to rest on the plants at the side.

Lovely!

We wandered down the track until we saw the beginning of civilisation again (car!) so then turned back and started heading for home.

Twas a lovely hours walk. The only thing that made me have a little grump was one of my pet hates. This is over the road from my house.

Grrr.

So now we’re home and Bert seems to be settling in nicely!

I feel so much better having gone out and stretched my legs. Stretched being the operative word as I’m going to feel all that uphill walking tomorrow!

I have a feeling that Bert is going to be a peaceful housemate, not sure how Sophie the human cat is going to take it. We shall see!

 

Not such a good day today.

I’m having one of those days today. Honestly, I would just like to go back to sleep and wait until tomorrow comes.

I’m pretty lucky that these days don’t happen very often but when they hit, they’re unpleasant.

On these days life feels like a huge chore. Every little thing that I have to do today feels enormous, like if I don’t do it then the world is going to end and my friends will be disappointed in me and my cat won’t love me anymore.

The problem is that my logical head knows this is ridiculous and yet these thoughts still hover like a little black cloud.

A lot of my problem is that there is this big wall between me and those who love me. It’s a stupid wall, I know that because I constructed it myself. At the moment I’m trying to find a way to break it down.

My wall started with a little brick of a question. ‘Hi Clair! How are you?’ My mouth answered ‘I’m good thanks, and you?’ My mouth does that a lot. It thinks independently of my brain and my feelings. Maybe the truth is that today I feel old and burdened and I just want to cry. But you’re not going to say that, are you?

We all know that one person whose wellbeing you ask about only to be met with with a tirade of their troubles. We generally go out of our way to avoid that person because when we leave them we feel drained with a case of TMI.

But, we asked didn’t we? And that person responded in an honest manner and told you exactly how they were doing. Is this a symptom of social conditioning, or a desire to not burden other people with our problems because we don’t want to be a mood hoover and bring someone down?

I haven’t got a clue. So I simply say ‘I’m fine thanks’.

I did it just now. My boss phoned me and requested a meeting with him and a senior manager. I told him I was ok and yes, I would be there.

I’m not ok. My world is not ok. I don’t feel like I’m ok. At least not today.

I know it will pass. I have too many good things to look forward to. But if nothing else then at least I admitted the truth to myself here. Where no one is watching.

Is that a brick I hear falling?

 

T minus 21 days and counting….

(This is the first blog written using Windows Live Writer so is somewhat of an experiment!)

3 weeks today I will have been standing in a queue for around 5 hours. In November. In the cold.

But who cares?! Fact is that when that wait is over I will get to see my most favourite band play live for the first time. Not only that but I get to go with people that I have come to love.

This was taken the first day I met the girls.


30 Seconds To Mars had challenged fans to ‘glyph’ (those are the red symbols you see behind us) our local areas and submit the photos.
It’s part of what makes this crazy fanbase so much fun to be part of! Chances to be creative and step outside the much heralded ‘comfort zone’ all in the name of music and community.

Yep, even the pets get in on the act! I love this photo. Kernow is one of the most chilled pups I have ever met. Gorgeous!
There’s a few reasons why I’m excited. First and foremost is obviously to see the band play live. By all accounts it’s frenetic and energetic and a lot of other good words!

I’m a girl who likes drums. Loud drums. This guy delivers.

Shreds like a muthaf*cka!

According to experts (Karina!) he has amazing stage presence and whips the crowd up into a mad frenzy! Great voice. He can also pull off a white outfit like I can only dream about!


Second, of course, is that I get to go with my girls! Tweaks and I were talking the other day about how it’s going to feel when these guys become actual real human beings! Until now they’ve been living in our stereos and computer screens. It’s going to be weird in the best way.

Third, I get to meet people that I’ve been talking to on the internet for quite some time. Lots of screennames are also going to become real people.


Fourth, dress up time! Homemade T-shirts (T shirt test is happening tonight ladies, will email results!), bandanas and possibly even facepaints!


Fifth, road trip! Leaving home at 4am, queue, see gig, get back in car, home at sometime! It’s going to be a loooong day!


But so worth it. This is going to be a highlight of my 2009. There haven’t been too many hugely bright spots this year, other than the birth of my youngest niece.


I get the feeling that this gig signals the era of good stuff in my life. Don’t ask me why I think that because I really can’t tell you! Hard to define a gut feeling.


I’m turning 35 3 days before the gig and I feel like a giddy teenager at the thought of it! (Is it too early for me to have a mid-life crisis?!) You can’t put a price on that.



 

Technorati Tags: 30 Seconds To Mars,friendship,music,good times

I iz a Fairy God Dragon! (with a parking ticket)

Today I made someone's dream come true. 

I know this because I had a confirmation email. 

The fourth member of our Mars party had to drop out so we had a spare ticket. These tickets are like gold dust. They sold out in 6 minutes and there were so many loyal Mars fans left absolutely reeling from it. Mainly because by 9.10 that morning there were at least 10 pairs of tickets on Ebay for extortionate prices. (Will save my tout ranting for another day).

So I went looking on the Mars message boards and there I saw that someone I have been talking to on there (let's call her A) was without a ticket and very down about it.  

Don't you love that feeling of having a delicious little secret that you know is going to make someones day, month or year?!  

I was like a kid at Christmas, bouncing around in my seat and getting soooo excited! 

I had the loveliest email back from A, telling me that she loved me and wanted to have my children. How often does someone offer you their uterus, huh?! 

I am about to write back and decline her offer but to accept the lifelong love and adoration. ;) 

So as you can see from the past few entries, this week has been a good one. Lots of loveliness happening which I don't take for granted and am making the most of every second. 

I also had a really great appointment with my counsellor and together we are putting things in place for a brighter, better future. 

So obviously I came back to my car afterwards and found a parking ticket on it! Such is the delicious irony of life. 

Have to admit though, I find the whole thing really funny! I shoulda just paid for the car park! 

Lesson learned! Have a great weekend everybody! TFIF!! 

  

Grace the Miracle Kitteh!

One of my oldest and bestest friends, Sally, phoned me today with the story of Grace the wonder kitteh! 

Grace had taken a stroll 3 weeks ago and had not returned. 

The family had posted fliers all over their village but after a week of no sightings, Sally had resigned herself to Grace's fate. Her son was broken hearted and had said to his Mum 'No more kittens'. 

Yesterday there was a knock at the door and her husband went to answer it. There was a murmured conversation and then he asked Sally to come out to the door. 

There was a lady standing there and in her arms was Grace. Very much alive and kicking! 

After a stunned silence and then verifying that the cat was theirs, Sally called her boy out and went he saw the cat he said 'That's my Grace!' with a huge beaming grin on his face!  

Just goes to show that little miracles happen every day. :) 

 

Stealth Attack of the Best Kind!

Karina dropped off my Sookie books today. We were supposed to meet for coffee but the poor little lamb has a stinker of a cold. 

We had arranged for her to drop the books in my garage because I had to go out to the supermarket. Came home and checked the garage, grabbed the bag therein and came in out of the cold for a coffee.  

Coffee made, I came and sat down in my tiny home office (it's not actually an office, it's my box-like spare room which has the computer in it) and stuck my head into the bag when....BAM!! 

I get hit with an AMAZING FRIEND STEALTH ATTACK!

Into my innocent looking book of bags she'd slipped a little present and a card. 

There were quite a few was a lot of tears as I read the words she'd written inside. Thank you Karina. One of the best stealth attacks evah!! ;)

Actually this is the second stealth attack I have been subject to in these last couple of weeks. The other one was a long distance stealth attack!

Normal day. Postman came and I sifted through the usual bills and assorted junk mail until I came to an envelope which I knew straight away was from my cousin Sian who lives in London. I say cousin but really she's so much more than that. We were close as kids but as adults our bond has become impenetrable and so very precious. 

   

Completely unexpected. Tears were shed by the bucketload as not only had Sian written beautiful words of love, support and encouragement but had also included another little card with yet more amazing and heartfelt words. I will share these at the end of this entry. 

So back to today. Shortly after receiving Karina's card I had my daily 2pm phone call from the Tweakster. This has become a routine since I've been off work and is always welcome and looked forward to. :D Tweaks and her husband Steve have been incredibly generous and bought us a lanyard and bandana for the upcoming Mars gig. After the phonecall I received this via text. 

 

There was some squeeeeing and a fairly big rush of excitement! OMG! Less than a month to go! Thanks Tweaks and Steve. Absolute stars. 

Just when I thought my day couldn't get any better I got an unexpected call from my sister. We love each other very much but communications are sporadic. No real reason, just the way life goes.

She'd just phoned to see how I was doing and I was so happy to hear from her. Really topped my day off perfectly. 

 So today is about me counting my blessings and appreciating the warrior angels circling me in the shape of my friends and family. To a person they have all taken time to let me know that I am special, that I am appreciated and that I am loved. 

I'll leave you for now by sharing these words and hope that if you're not having such a good time of things, then in some way, they will be of some comfort. 

Everything's Going to Be Okay

Things are going to get better soon.

And because you are the special person that you are,

I don't think it's going to take very long.

I want to give you every bit of encouragement I possibly can.

Believe in yourself because you really are wonderful.

And don't forget that beyond the clouds that sometimes get in the way, 

the sun is shining just for you.......

and everything is going to be okay. 

 

Is it normal to have blog envy?!

And I mean this in the nicest way! 

I look at other blogs and go 'wow, these people are funny and succinct' and I wish I could be too! 

Oh. I just googled blog envy. It's pretty common apparently. 

I just answered my own question. Succinctly. 

Go me! 

 

 

Stuff I've learned recently

This turned into a really long post. Good luck and thanks in advance if you actually get through it all!  Please comment if you do. It would be much appreciated! 

Having been off work for a ridiculous amount of time, I felt the need to share and to prove that I haven't wasted this time. Which is just stupid considering that I am off work for a legitimate reason which is to improve my health and get a handle on this thing called 'anxiety'. 

I think the worst thing is the guilt. My parents instilled a rigorous work ethic into me which is brilliant but problematic in my current situation. I feel like I'm skiving, pulling a sickie, blah blah blah, etc. But logical head says that if I was in my workplace now then I would be in a much worse position healthwise. So the reason I am going with my doctors recommendation and not rushing back to work is that I don't ever want to be in this position again. It's just horrible. 

See what I'm doing here? I'm trying to justify myself to people who may read this and therefore judge me. *facepalm* 

So I am going to make a list of things I have learned or have learned about in the last 2 months. To make myself feel better. And to 'prove' that I'm not just a lazy git. 

Things I have learned: 

• Don't be ashamed or embarrassed to admit when you're struggling. Life can be tough and we all need help sometimes be it professional or otherwise.  

• Don't try and minimise your problems. This is something I am particularly guilty of. I tell myself that people are coping with cancer, bereavement, poverty, marriage breakdowns, etc. so why am I whining that I'm feeling like this? This kind of thinking really doesn't help. My issues affect me on a daily basis, therefore I have the right to do the best for myself in whatever way I see fit. 

• Talk about it. Share what you're going through with your loved ones. You don't have to give a blow-by-blow account, that's probably not helpful but let them know. Having a loving support structure in place can only ever be a good thing. 

• Take the help that's offered. I have the world's best doctor. Fact. Dr S is a jolly German man with sparkly eyes and a lovely smile. My whole situation came about after I'd gone to him because I hadn't been able to hear out of my right ear for a week. So we did the ear stuff and, bless him, he just turned round to me, smiled and said 'How's everything else, alright?'. Cue a sizable meltdown. He handed me a medicated tissue. (Amazing how you notice the small stuff, huh?!) He listened and very gently asked me why I hadn't been to see him before. He took me seriously and for that I will be eternally grateful. This is the second time that the anxiety has crept up and bitten me on the bum but last time I didn't take the proper time to really sort it out. Dr S put me on low dose meds, promptly referred to a counselling service and then told me in no uncertain terms that I was not going back to work for the time being. Dr S is my hero. 

Things I have learned about: 

Paint.net  
This is a lovely piece of free graphic design software. I tried photoshop before but it's just too complicated for simple little me! 30 Seconds to Mars were holding a competition to design a sticker for promotional purposes. It looked like so much fun that I caved and downloaded paint.net. Despite not being able to draw or paint, I have discovered that my brain understands digital art. Just the basics but enough so that I have fun and make some cool looking stuff. If you go to my profile you will see the picture of Pegasus that I made for a friend but ended up keeping just cos I loved it so much! 


Buying gig tickets on the internet. 
Holy hell, this was a stressful lesson! When your favourite band announces that they are doing a warm up gig in a 1400 capacity venue to showcase their new album before the release, then you have to go, right? Of course you do..... you and 3000 other people.... 

Karina and I were on the internet and Tweaks was on the phone. It was like a military operation. Error screens, jammed phone lines, blood pressure rising, a moment of hope before another effing error screen.... and then, at 9 minutes past 9 came the dreaded words, SOLD OUT. I swear the ticket sellers do this just to make you feel extra bad. It's not just sold out, it's SOLD OUT!! 

Oh, the misery and depression that ensued was tanglible. I could feel it down the phone line as my comrades and I tried to console each other. I'll admit that there were tears. 

Fast forward to 2.30pm that same day and I woefully decided that I needed to go and fill my car up so I decided to check my online banking to see what cash I had. Numbers flashed and I registered that there seemed to be a sizeable chunk of cash missing from my account.  Slow motion time. Check email. Email has magic words 'Confirmation of ticket order...' 

Those error screens had lied to me! Filthy fibbing error screens! Turns out that my first order had actually gone through and we were the proud owners of 4 tickets to see 30 Seconds To Mars! Bought at 9.03am and confirmation email sent at 12.08pm.  
I will be better prepared next time!  


And last but most definitely not least, I learned about blogging. I love it. I love the fact that we're all opening a little window into our minds and inviting each other to sit and watch awhile. 


Thank you so much for reading this. You deserve a medal. :) 

 

X Factor. Sunday 18/10/09

So much to talk about! 

First, I thought Cheryl Cole was really good.  Professional, polished and some tight dance moves. I am monumentally jealous of her boobs. And then I remember that she's at least 10 years younger than me. *sigh* Check it out. 



And then came Whitney..... Have a watch before I fling my 2 pence in. 



Whitney is a legend. A true diva. I have spent many a happy hour singing (painfully) along to her songs. Her voice is still beautiful. She is beautiful. 

But I cannot resist the chance to laugh at a wardrobe malfunction however much it may pain me to do so. The dress seemed an odd choice from the start. It's way too long and I got distracted by her constantly hitching it up. Did she not try it on before the performance? 

As for the back snapping and coming apart, someone said on the Xtra Factor "Someone's getting fired!". Which I would tend to believe. 

I just loved the fact that she noticed it and then gave this kind of 'meh' reaction and carried on. A complete pro.  

So, to the main business of the night. Who's going?

Poor Rachel being in the bottom two for the second week running. I really felt for her.  The twins, whom the British press have apparently now dubbed 'Jedward', are through to next week and half of me groans and half of me goes yay! Another craptastic performance on Saturday night! 

Rikki went after the sing off and I have to agree with Simon's choice. (Have I mentioned that I *heart* Simon?)  

It's big band week next week. I always look forward to this one. The lovely Michael Buble is performing on the results show on Sunday. That man could sing the phone book and still sound sexy. 

I may have to cancel any social plans for the weekends running up to Christmas. 

  

My True Blood Addiction

The blame is placed firmly at the feet of Karina and Tweaky.


It started so innocently as these things often do. A friend asks a friend if they've seen this show and seriously you have to watch it and so on and so forth...


In truth I had heard about the show and had watched the first ep and really hadn't been overly impressed by it. But seeing as my mates were still talking about and have exceptionally good taste, then I gave it one more shot and watched ep 2.


Vampires you say? Living amongst humans due to the Japanese developing synthetic blood so that vampires are no longer a threat to the human race? There's a telepathic waitress?  Lots of sex, blood, violence and nudity? 

Oh dear. I love this show. I really, really love this show. Praise be to the people who invented streaming so you can watch TV programmes in the UK that haven't been shown here yet. 

If you don't watch the show and want an overview then head here to the True Blood Wiki page. But be warned there are synopses of the first 2 seasons so if you want to give True Blood a watch then avoid reading this due to major spoilerage!

Being off work gave me the opportunity to go forth and watch the first 2 seasons within 2 weeks. Yes, it's THAT good. 

I knew this show was based on a series of books so I hummed and ha-ed a bit about getting them. There are 9 in the series thus far. Next time I was in the bookshop I noticed they were having a 3 for 2 sale on the books, written by Charlaine Harris. Well, I couldn't just walk by and leave them there could I? 

If I'm being honest, I needed a fix. The 3rd season hasn't even started shooting yet and won't be showing until sometime around June 2010.  I was getting antsy. 

I took my books and thought I'd read the first chapter or two. Two days later I'd finished all 3 books..... and bought the next three..... and finished them by the end of the week.... and then bought the next 2...

It was then that I made the seriously fatal mistake. 

I lent them to Karina. Who then bought book number 9 because she found a good deal on amazon (this book is still in hardback) and sent it to my house so I could read it first. (Karina, I salute you. *wub*)

Why a fatal mistake? Because then there were two of us feeding each others addictions and talking constantly about the characters and plot. At time of writing, Tweaky is currently on page 83 of the first book. 

What makes it worse is that the books are pretty much completely different from the show. You would think that that would suck. Oh no. The characters are the same just in altered situations. You would have to read and watch the show to appreciate what I mean about that but trust me when I say it's genius. Because even though I have read book 3 I pretty much have no clue what's going to happen in the third series. 

What I do know is that Karina and I are in serious need of help. We are in the grip of a new disease called 'Eric Northman'. See example below. 



Guuuhhhhhhh.... 

We know we should be in some kind of rehab but honestly, neither of us want to go. It's too much fun to speculate about what's going to happen in Book 10 and Series 3.  So we'll just have to wait it out until Book 10 comes out in May next year. 

Until then it's re-reading the books and re-watching series 1 which has just started in the UK on Channel 4. 

And mourning the fact that Bubba the vamp is not in the TV series. 

*sigh* 

 

The X Factor, Saturday 17/10/09

Whilst commenting on Kate's blog today, I realized that I had a whole post's worth of opinion bubbling up inside me! 

The X Factor, if you don't know, is the British equivalent of American Idol. 

Now before I start my pointless rambling, please watch the cringeworthy hilarity of one of last nights performances. 4.04 minutes of brilliance! 

 

Oh dear God! And yet I totally agree with Simon's Exorcist comparison! 

John and Edward are treading what I call the 'Chico' path. Chico is a former X Factor contestant that had the same 'watch between your fingers' appeal. Bad yet utterly compelling. 

My favourite contestants so far this year are Miss Frank and Stacey Solomon. This is Stacey's first live performance. Just beautiful. 

 

For a full rundown on all this years contestants go to the X Factor website. 

Love: Stacey, Miss Frank, John and Edward 
Like: Olly, Lucie 
Not decided on: Most of them
At the moment not liking: Jamie, Danyl 

I think Jamie and Danyl are very talented singers. There's just something about them that I'm not so keen on. Just can't put my finger in what it is yet. 

Now to the judges. Danni is just meh. Although this year she does seem to be making better choices for her category. 
Cheryl is thus far having problems with the boys. Joe was good last night but Rikki and Lloyd's song choices weren't brilliant. I did feel sorry for her after Lloyds performance and I love the way he went down to give her a hug. Aw. 
Louis wasn't there due to Stephen Gately's untimely passing (see previous entry) as he was his manager and friend. 
Ah, Simon. I confess to having a huge crush on him. He says what I'm thinking most of the time, just in a really cutting way! I just *heart* him. Sigh. 

So tonight should be somewhat epic. Cheryl's first live solo perfomance. Poor girl, I feel sorry for her. She's being followed by Whitney Houston in her first live British TV performance for 10 years. However well Cheryl's performance goes, she will be compared to Whitney and the press will have a field day. I feel bad already. 

Who stays and who goes? I have no frickin clue. Should be good though! 

 

Homophobia, Celebrity and the Media

Those of you in the UK will probably already have a good idea what this is about already. 

For you guys outside, here is some background. 

On the 10th October 2009, a young man of 33 was found dead in his holiday home in Majorca. The autopsy revealed that he had died of natural causes. 

So far, so tragic, so sad. Now let's add in the extra details. 

The young man's name was Stephen Gately. He had been in a band called Boyzone who had loads of success in the 90's and had recently reformed and were doing really well. Stephen had also had a career in musical theatre in the West End of London, working with Andrew Lloyd Webber. He was, by all accounts, a sweet and loving individual who had battled with extreme depression but had come out of the other side and was loving his life. 

When we lose people it's always sad. We've all been there. We grieve and we celebrate their lives and we try and cope with the fact that we won't see them again. When it's a younger person, the pain is all the more acute and my sympathies go out to Stephen's family, friends and his husband. 

Oh wait, did I just say husband? Yes I did. Someone had threatened to 'out' Stephen so in 1999 he came out publicly. I imagine that that's frightening. He married his partner Andrew in 2006. 

So what the hell was this person thinking when they wrote this. 

That article was published before Stephen had even been laid to rest. I have just re-read it again to make sure the link was correct and I am still stunned. 

I would add my opinion, but journalist Charlie Brooker says it so much better than I can here.

The outcry and backlash here has been immediate and immense. And, in my opinion, justified. 

The Brooker article contains a link to the Press Complaints Commission and there is also an online petition  for UK residents should you wish to add your voice.

I look forward to reading Jan Moir's articles about ethnic minorities and religion. I'm sure they will be sensitive and well balanced pieces. 

My thoughts and prayers go out to all of Stephen's loved ones. I hope, now that he has taken his final journey, they can begin to try and come to terms with their loss. 

 

RIP Stephen. 

 

It's so pretty!

Well, colour me amazed! 

A whole new look for the blog and I am loving it! I am especially proud of my little counter up on the left there as I worked out how to make and post it all on my ownsome! It's going to be exciting/weird to watch that little timer tick down to the most anticipated gig of the year! *squee* 

Of course I won't actually be here to watch it tick over onto showtime as I'll actually be standing in the venue! Cannot wait! 

Be warned that the first post after the gig is going to be gigantanormous! 

;) Hmmm.. need to find some proper emoticons... *goes off searching* 

 

*sulks*

I knew I shouldn't have started playing around with the blog templates. 

Humph. A complete re-design may be in order. 

Please bear with me and normal service will be resumed in no time at all!

*looks warily at clock and thinks about complete technical illiteracy* 

:-/ 

A Morning at the Beach

I've had a couple of down days. Days where I don't really want to do an awful lot apart from curl up in bed and read a good book. This seems ok at the time but leaves me feeling like I've wasted a day. Last night I decided that I needed to shake myself up and get out and DO something! 

So I decided to do one of my most favourite things in the world which is go to the beach. 

I'm really lucky. If you go to the end of my road and turn right, you can be in the city centre in 5 minutes. If you turn left you can be at the coast within 15 minutes. That really is the best of both worlds.

It is amazing the feeling of serenity that I get at the beach. Just listening to the deep bass rumble of the ocean is enough to put aside all the crappy thoughts I may be having. 

It also makes me feel like I want to cry a lot of the time when I'm there. I think it's the peace and quiet that does it. I didn't though, too many people around for a moment of complete selfishness. People are sweet. If they see someone having a cry the instinct is to go and make sure they're ok. But most of the time the need to have some kind of mini meltdown is extremely private and is best done without interruption. 

We call them 'healing tears' around here. :) 

I digress. 

My absolute favourite time to go to the beach is in the winter months when the wind is whipping and the sea is just a field of white horses. As you can see from the first pic below, there is a harbour wall at this particular beach. Nothing compares to watching the waves crash on to this wall and the spray fling 20 or 30 feet in the air. It leaves you feeling completely energised  and humbled at the power of nature's fury. Immense.

Will try and get pics when the weather turns.  

As of now, I feel better, more at peace. This is good.  :)

 

 

 

Random fun stuff, part 1

A good, real, unrestrained, hearty laugh is a sort of glorified internal massage, performed rapidly and automatically. It manipulates and revitalizes corners and unexplored crannies of the system that are unresponsive to most other exercise methods. ~Author unknown, from an editorial in New York Tribune, quoted in Quotations for Special Occasions by Maud van Buren


My Mum and I had one of our semi regular girls nights the other night and we went and saw the Disney movie, Up. I cannot even begin to tell you what a fantastic film this is! As far as I am concerned you are NEVER too old for Disney and this movie is an absolute gem! 

I'm not going to go into details as it would spoil the film should you see it. But I am going to include here a scene with my favourite character Dug, the dog. 

SQUIRREL! 




*giggling* Honestly, if you're in need of a pick me up then this will give you around 2 hours of it! We left with our stomachs hurting and feeling brilliant! 

This is the first in a series of random posts just because we can all use a little laughter to brighten our day! 

It's Friday, the sun is shining and me and the girls are getting very excited because it's only 32 sleeps til the Mars gig! WOOHOO!

Happy Friday all! 

 

Parachutes and Early Mornings

I woke up at 7.30am today with my mind at warp speed and an insatiable need to blog. This is weird. I really do not like early mornings and I was disappointed because I'd been having a really good dream. More on that later. 

This was the first thing I saw when I woke up. 

 Yes, it's bad quality pic but Sophie was approx 5 inches from my face! I love that. I was on my side and she was perched on my shoulder! Then she got majorly overexcited when she saw that I was awake and greeted me like she hadn't seen me in a year. I love my girl! 

So back to this dream. In short, there was a blimp-type thing above the local river and it was taking people up so they could parachute off the blimp into the water. I was determined that I would make the jump! I bumped into some guys that I haven't seen since my school days who were all very supportive and best of all, my brother was there. My bro is a paratrooper. 'Nuff said. We bumped fists and then I remember looking over the side at the water below as we were at jump altitude. Woo! 

And then I woke up. Gutted. 

Being a committed student to the University of Google, I searched for a parachute dream definition. This is what I got. 

Parachutes are associated with difficult situations that you wish to overcome(and get out safely).  

Woah. If you've read my first blog entry then you will know exactly how this relates to me!  

And seeing as I've just referenced that first entry I've decided to redefine this blog and what it's about. I have found blogging to be seriously theraputic. This is my corner of the internet. I have the right to say whatever I want to say. So maybe this blog could just be a stream of thoughts on a day to day basis. It's just that now I don't feel the need to edit myself quite as much. This is a major obstacle in my real life at the moment. A compulsion to present myself as I think other people want to see me, not as I actually am. I think that has a lot to do with my current predicament. 

After the first entry or two, I tentatively emailed the link to a few trusted friends and the feedback was great. Yes, I know friends are pre-programmed to be supportive and all but you know what? It made me feel good. To a person, they complimented me on my style of writing which was a really great surprise.

Words have a lot of power. I hang out on the internet in a place where people rip each other up with barbed sarcasm on a daily basis and take joy in doing so. Needless to say, I don't post much which is a shame as there are some really nice people there amongst the idiots. 

And then there is the flip side. People like Nancy from f8hasit who offered kind words as only one complete stranger to another can. I highly recommend that you read her blog. I was so excited when I saw that she'd posted another entry today! Thank you Nancy for commenting and following. It means a lot to me. :) 

So in summary, I think this is what I'm trying to say. This blog is me. Take me as you find me. And if you do happen to find me, please can you send me back to myself. It would be appreciated and save me a lot of time and soul searching. ;) 

Todays post is sponsored by the f**k it way I found this little book at a New Age fair last year and has caused me many a chuckle! It's philosophy is simple, yet profound. 

Btw, I cuss quite a lot. It's not big and it's not clever but sometimes I just can't find a word big enough to express what I'm feeling so I find that a nice swear word fits in really well!  

And on that bombshell I will leave you with quite a nice picture taken outside my house earlier this morning. 

 Looks like it's going to be a beautiful day. :)