April 2009 Archives

I had a plan. A bold, smart plan.  Catch the bus into town, replace my travel concession ticket due to stupid loss of my uni student card, then head to the State Library to spend the day researching my next major essay. How hard can it be, right?

Yeah... not hard... unless... you find yourself getting an attack of 'teh blonde'...

Read on... this is how the day ACTUALLY panned out...

6.30 Bloody Cat wakes me up.
6:31 Kick Bloody Cat out of bedroom and wedge the bedroom door shut so she can't break back in (has been known to happen).
8:00* Slap alarm clock and get up, shower, dress, eat breakfast etc.
8:50 Walk up to bus-stop
8:55 Ride the bus to town on pre-paid 'travel-ten' ticket fare. The last fare left of the original 10.
9:40 Alight at Wynyard Station (bus terminated here) so decide to walk to Central Station rather than buy another fare as didn't have prepaid and wanted to avail myself of usual student concession.
10:10 Arrive at Central Station and search for the designated Concessions Office.
10:20 Finally find it. Walk in and present self to Officer and hand over the requisite documentation.  Open Backpack to find wallet.
10:21 Turn bag inside out, checking every pocket for wallet.
10:22 Repeat.
10:23 Give Up in disgust and despair.
10:24 Note that only cash I have is at the bottom of the bag and amounts to $2.05.  Observe rather desperately that cash for bus across the bridge to retrieve wallet does not cost $2.05. Is twice that...
10:25 Remind self...good air in;bad air out.
10:27 Call old boss who just so happens to live very near Central Station and snag his home phone number in the hope his Gorgeous Mrs. is home... and that she is feeling magnanimous...
10:30 Sigh of relief that she is, and she is.
10:35 Walk up to Castlereagh St and meet Miss 9 at Reception.
10:36 Travel up to the apartment and have a nice cup of tea and a sit down with Gorgeous Mrs. which, incidentally, includes entertainment from Miss 4 who is, in short, a Party of One. Go past 'Go' and collect $5.
11:10 Head back downstairs and walk back up to Wynyard to catch bus back across the bridge.
11:30 Buy Ticket, say goodbye to $4.20. Get comfy while waiting for bus.
11:45 Get on Bus.
12:15 Get Home.

I was so fed up, of course, that I decided not to bother going back across the Bridge, wasting more time sitting in the bus, or more money paying for tolls and car parking so instead, spent the day alternately freaking out that my day was wasted and actually starting to consolidating the data I had managed to find for this essay.

The thing about all this business is that on days like this I'm reminded just how important it is for my emotional landscape to have my life under control and just how infuriating it is to get tripped up by my own stupidity.

However, in its favour, a day like yesterday makes me work that much harder NOT to let it happen next time around and so today I've had to get my ducks in a row to get some control back.  Consequently, I've had to make a tough decision that means that I've withdrawn completely from the 'Bigger than Big' thing happening in the city next week. I would love to go, and as always, I'd love to be taking the pictures... particularly as it's a great chance to catch up with a bunch of my friends in the movement who don't live locally... but I really don't think I can take 3 days out of my uni assessment and freelancing schedule to make it happen this year.  Given that this will be the first time I've missed Presence in the 10 years I've been in Oz, it's going to be weird not to go.  Weird... and a little disappointing.

However, I believe it will pay off... both in terms of achieving the results I want on the assessment, and as importantly, it will help smooth out my emotional world and give me back some of the feeling of actually being back in control...

...at least until the next attack of 'teh blonde.'



*bet you're jealous... student life has its compensations...

I have watched this video of Susan Boyle from Britian's Got Talent over and over again.

Watch it..., and tell me... did you judge her??

[Links to Youtube - embed disabled]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY

I've given quite a lot of thought to how to write this post.  Actually it's been going round and round in my mind since I wrote the last one.  It's tricky, mainly because it impinges on my pride, but I'm writing it because I really want to keep a record of the journey.

So, since I wrote last there have been some really lovely developments and some of the people in my world have been amazing to me.  I'm all at once humbled and delighted by how gorgeous they are and I sincerely hope that when I am in a position to do the same I have the chance to pay it back, or forward as the case may be.

In my last post I alluded to the possibility of a contract to do regular website updating for someone and I'm delighted to advise that I was awarded the contract and have started work for them.  What a relief.  It is a slightly diverting story in that on the first look at their requirements I would have turned it down (mostly out of a lack of confidence) but in looking closer and with that edge of panic - I realised that I needed to step out and actually just accept the learning curve required.  It was worth it, because it's regular work and will pay what I would have got from Centrelink and a bit more... so... first stop... bedrock restored.

I am amazed at how attentive to the things I say are my friends have been. This has now rendered me torn about being honest about my situation because I just don't want them to think I'm fishing for help! But bless them, I had a birthday in the last week and some of the gifts my delightful friends gave me were...

A freezerful of meat... enough to last me a month or more if I were to eat at home every night... or eat meat every night... and as I do neither it's going to last me quite some time...

One of my girls who's also one of my blog readers gave me a birthday card with a fifty in it with the express instruction to only spend it on coffee (noting from my last post that my coffee consumption was being limited by my budget)... I ❤ that, I ❤ that really a LOT!

Some of my girls from church chipped in and bought me a gift voucher for a haircut with my fave hairdresser.  I was planning on going budget this time around but out of the blue I'm off to see Mel to get my good hair mojo back!!!  *bliss*! Roll on Thursday 1pm.

The above three things all came about because people listened and took note.  Like I said, humbling and a little bit embarrassing but utterly lovely and welcome as well.

There have been other gifts that I would be infringing privacy to account for but in the long and short of things I count it incredibly fortunate to be surrounded by such extraordinary people and I'm constantly surprised to be so well thought of by them in that they would offer a hand when I needed it.

All in all, I'm very thankful.  Thankful to my friends for their care and attention, thankful that I have skills to be able to make money and thankful that God sends people my way who need those skills, thankful for the good vibes and encouragement I've received from you my blog buddies.

Life is good, a journey, to be sure, but all in all, it's good, very good indeed.