Wow... I can't believe how sometimes, you can be thinking something, and then you see something or someone says something that is just perfect for you in the state that you are in....
perfect
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Sunday, March 16, 2008
parklife
Moving update: We have an apartment!
We're now going to be residents of the Parklands Apartments at Roma Street!! Definitely a lifestyle change... The apartments are right in the parklands, and you have to go into the Roma Street Park to get there... very swish!
The apartment has great views too, overlooking the park...
Two bedrooms, two bathrooms.. big balcony. The complex has a pool, gym, bbq area and the works... plus being right in the park its so close to all the bbq areas in the park itself and everything.
We move in on the 2nd of April, which gives us some time to get everything together, and is actually good timing considering we have to move out of here on the 4th of April. At least we won't be paying double rent!
We're going to do everything above board this time too, ie. we've already told them there will be 4 of us living there... so its all good!
Very exciting... a very good change to make.
We're now going to be residents of the Parklands Apartments at Roma Street!! Definitely a lifestyle change... The apartments are right in the parklands, and you have to go into the Roma Street Park to get there... very swish!
The apartment has great views too, overlooking the park...
Two bedrooms, two bathrooms.. big balcony. The complex has a pool, gym, bbq area and the works... plus being right in the park its so close to all the bbq areas in the park itself and everything.
We move in on the 2nd of April, which gives us some time to get everything together, and is actually good timing considering we have to move out of here on the 4th of April. At least we won't be paying double rent!
We're going to do everything above board this time too, ie. we've already told them there will be 4 of us living there... so its all good!
Very exciting... a very good change to make.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
hopeful again
News flash: We're moving again!
We've decided enough is enough, and are leaving our bitchy building managers behind! We had problems from the start at our apartment, with the managers being incredibly rude and uncooperative and everything has just boiled over this week, so we're breaking our lease.
Long story, but we applied to put Ivan on our lease, to live in the second bedroom, and they turned him down. But at that time, Ivan was already living with us... so we agreed that we would just be a little illegal and keep him in the apartment. Anyway, all was good, we were just sharing the keys between us... Then, we had our first inspection.
Oh boy... I have NEVER had an inspection that bad in my life. The guys did a FANTASTIC job cleaning the apartment before the inspection, we tidied everything away, made sure everything was really clean, only to receive a letter in our mailbox saying:
1. Carpets need to be vacuumed regularly to prevent damage.
2. Shower screens need to be cleaned to prevent soap scum build-up.
3. Marks on living room carpet and main bedroom need to be removed.
4. Hard floor in ensuite needs to be cleaned.
5. Bath in ensuite needs to be cleaned.
6. Benches in kitchen need to be wiped down.
My answer to these 6 points were as follows:
1. WHAT?! The carpets are vacuumed regularly, its the moulting rug that is the problem.
2. Fair call, they are pretty soapy at the moment, but I will clean it.
3. What marks in the bedroom? That stain was there from when we moved in!!
4. So, I moult a lot and there was some hair in the corners.. big deal...
5. Again, stained from previous tenants!
6. WHAT WHAT WHAT?!?!?!?! HOW DARE YOU?!?!?!?!
Ahem... They should be glad they weren't around when I got that letter... far out.. the expletives that came out of my mouth.... GRARH! We live there for crying out loud, and the place was clean and very obviously we are not damaging the apartment at all!
The next paragraph on the letter is a very fair call though... "We believe you have a third tenant living in your apartment and this person should be removed from the premises".
Yes... our bad, we actually have 2 extras.. but SHUSH!!
Anyway, we try to think of damage control and we decide that I will go down to the managers on Monday morning, and tell them that there is someone staying with us, who is Mateus' "cousin" and he is just staying as our guest for a few weeks. We understand that we can't have a third person living there unless we put them on the lease, but he isn't living there etc. etc.
Right, then, on Sunday, the bitchy managers actually run into Ivan when he is taking the rubbish out. And they ask him to pass on the message that I need to see them about him living there because he is not allowed.
This infuriated all of us no end because how dare they assume that he is living there, and how can they just walk up to someone and say that. No who are you? Do you have friends here? Are you living in these apartments etc. I mean, he could have been a friend that was over at our apartment for the afternoon and was being nice and taking our rubbish out!
So, Mateus and I go to see them on Monday.. and we walk in, and we explain that we understand that we can't have a third person, he is Mateus' cousin etc. etc. etc. They will not listen, and will not come to a compromise. So, after arguing with them about having guests stay with us, we say fine, if you won't accept someone staying with us, we are leaving. Whats the procedure for breaking the lease?
They give us the forms, we go upstairs and we bring them back down, signed, sealed, delivered!
So, we are leaving in three weeks! YIKES!
House/Apartment hunting again... We have already put in one application, and the managers there are really nice and were very impressed with our application. They have even done all the reference checks! No word yet... Guess they are trying to get hold of the owners... We'll hear tomorrow morning if not this afternoon...
We're also looking at some houses, as opposed to apartments, in the city area too. Much better because we will have our own space and no managers breathing down our necks.
So... anyway... moving again!! Hah...
Oh, the funniest thing about the whole situation is the fact that we stood up to these managers, and this morning, I got a call from them, kissing my @ss... Apparently they had discussed it with the owners of our apartment, and we would be able to come to some agreement to have the third person in there now... HAHAHAHAHA! If we want to stay we can just go in and talk to them about it... Yeah, we said we'll think about it, and let them know.
NOT LIKELY!
I mean, yeah, we'll think about it... but only as a last chance.
Hehehe... Feels good to have them chasing us for a change... ;)
We've decided enough is enough, and are leaving our bitchy building managers behind! We had problems from the start at our apartment, with the managers being incredibly rude and uncooperative and everything has just boiled over this week, so we're breaking our lease.
Long story, but we applied to put Ivan on our lease, to live in the second bedroom, and they turned him down. But at that time, Ivan was already living with us... so we agreed that we would just be a little illegal and keep him in the apartment. Anyway, all was good, we were just sharing the keys between us... Then, we had our first inspection.
Oh boy... I have NEVER had an inspection that bad in my life. The guys did a FANTASTIC job cleaning the apartment before the inspection, we tidied everything away, made sure everything was really clean, only to receive a letter in our mailbox saying:
1. Carpets need to be vacuumed regularly to prevent damage.
2. Shower screens need to be cleaned to prevent soap scum build-up.
3. Marks on living room carpet and main bedroom need to be removed.
4. Hard floor in ensuite needs to be cleaned.
5. Bath in ensuite needs to be cleaned.
6. Benches in kitchen need to be wiped down.
My answer to these 6 points were as follows:
1. WHAT?! The carpets are vacuumed regularly, its the moulting rug that is the problem.
2. Fair call, they are pretty soapy at the moment, but I will clean it.
3. What marks in the bedroom? That stain was there from when we moved in!!
4. So, I moult a lot and there was some hair in the corners.. big deal...
5. Again, stained from previous tenants!
6. WHAT WHAT WHAT?!?!?!?! HOW DARE YOU?!?!?!?!
Ahem... They should be glad they weren't around when I got that letter... far out.. the expletives that came out of my mouth.... GRARH! We live there for crying out loud, and the place was clean and very obviously we are not damaging the apartment at all!
The next paragraph on the letter is a very fair call though... "We believe you have a third tenant living in your apartment and this person should be removed from the premises".
Yes... our bad, we actually have 2 extras.. but SHUSH!!
Anyway, we try to think of damage control and we decide that I will go down to the managers on Monday morning, and tell them that there is someone staying with us, who is Mateus' "cousin" and he is just staying as our guest for a few weeks. We understand that we can't have a third person living there unless we put them on the lease, but he isn't living there etc. etc.
Right, then, on Sunday, the bitchy managers actually run into Ivan when he is taking the rubbish out. And they ask him to pass on the message that I need to see them about him living there because he is not allowed.
This infuriated all of us no end because how dare they assume that he is living there, and how can they just walk up to someone and say that. No who are you? Do you have friends here? Are you living in these apartments etc. I mean, he could have been a friend that was over at our apartment for the afternoon and was being nice and taking our rubbish out!
So, Mateus and I go to see them on Monday.. and we walk in, and we explain that we understand that we can't have a third person, he is Mateus' cousin etc. etc. etc. They will not listen, and will not come to a compromise. So, after arguing with them about having guests stay with us, we say fine, if you won't accept someone staying with us, we are leaving. Whats the procedure for breaking the lease?
They give us the forms, we go upstairs and we bring them back down, signed, sealed, delivered!
So, we are leaving in three weeks! YIKES!
House/Apartment hunting again... We have already put in one application, and the managers there are really nice and were very impressed with our application. They have even done all the reference checks! No word yet... Guess they are trying to get hold of the owners... We'll hear tomorrow morning if not this afternoon...
We're also looking at some houses, as opposed to apartments, in the city area too. Much better because we will have our own space and no managers breathing down our necks.
So... anyway... moving again!! Hah...
Oh, the funniest thing about the whole situation is the fact that we stood up to these managers, and this morning, I got a call from them, kissing my @ss... Apparently they had discussed it with the owners of our apartment, and we would be able to come to some agreement to have the third person in there now... HAHAHAHAHA! If we want to stay we can just go in and talk to them about it... Yeah, we said we'll think about it, and let them know.
NOT LIKELY!
I mean, yeah, we'll think about it... but only as a last chance.
Hehehe... Feels good to have them chasing us for a change... ;)
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
buzz
WOOP WOOP!
I (finally) taught my first ever lesson!! And it went smashingly! At least I think it did... ;) I felt like it did, and after talking to other teachers around here, if you feel like the students had a good lesson and you walk out of it feeling like it was a good lesson, it generally is, you know when its not. So, I am super psyched!
Look at me, I'm a teacher! Hahaha!
I taught a Conversation English lesson for an hour, and had a full class of 12 students! There were more that wanted to come in, but I had to close the door on them... Heh... I think that had a little to do with the fact that everyone here at work had been super excited themselves about me teaching and told every student to come along... So nice! Its really great to have all this support... Especially from Mateus; he has been the one that has pushed me that extra little bit to finish this off, and I am so glad he did... And its really great to have all this support and excitement from everyone around me too... Even the students here are excited for me!
Really really happy with it... plus, you get this weird teaching buzz: you realise that you can teach, and the students are enjoying your lesson, and you are too, and its kinda fun. Mind you, I did have a great bunch of students that were really outgoing and I was teaching a conversation class, which isn't anything hard... but, its still fantastic!
Now, what should I teach next week?! Hmm.. off to work on my lesson plan!
I (finally) taught my first ever lesson!! And it went smashingly! At least I think it did... ;) I felt like it did, and after talking to other teachers around here, if you feel like the students had a good lesson and you walk out of it feeling like it was a good lesson, it generally is, you know when its not. So, I am super psyched!
Look at me, I'm a teacher! Hahaha!
I taught a Conversation English lesson for an hour, and had a full class of 12 students! There were more that wanted to come in, but I had to close the door on them... Heh... I think that had a little to do with the fact that everyone here at work had been super excited themselves about me teaching and told every student to come along... So nice! Its really great to have all this support... Especially from Mateus; he has been the one that has pushed me that extra little bit to finish this off, and I am so glad he did... And its really great to have all this support and excitement from everyone around me too... Even the students here are excited for me!
Really really happy with it... plus, you get this weird teaching buzz: you realise that you can teach, and the students are enjoying your lesson, and you are too, and its kinda fun. Mind you, I did have a great bunch of students that were really outgoing and I was teaching a conversation class, which isn't anything hard... but, its still fantastic!
Now, what should I teach next week?! Hmm.. off to work on my lesson plan!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
giggle inside
Anouk has inspired me...
10 things that make me sparkly;
1. - getting any kind of mail, email or mail, and reading new blog posts etc. from everyone.
2. - seeing my niece's smile... ;) videos and pics of my niece...
3. - cuddles and sweet kisses
4. - chocolate sprinkle on the top of cappucinos :p yum
5. - the light after a storm or rain... when the sun is all yellow and golden...
6. - treats such as clothes, shoes, books, dvds, music, games
7. - smelling luscious (karma perfume, lush soap etc)
8. - seeing bats fly around at night, and swallows swooping during the days...
9. - laughing so hard my stomach hurts
10. - the wind blowing in my hair...
and an extra one because I love it so much 11. - the woosh and super speed you feel when a plane takes off... :D Makes me smile everytime...
but there are so many more... *hug*
10 things that make me sparkly;
1. - getting any kind of mail, email or mail, and reading new blog posts etc. from everyone.
2. - seeing my niece's smile... ;) videos and pics of my niece...
3. - cuddles and sweet kisses
4. - chocolate sprinkle on the top of cappucinos :p yum
5. - the light after a storm or rain... when the sun is all yellow and golden...
6. - treats such as clothes, shoes, books, dvds, music, games
7. - smelling luscious (karma perfume, lush soap etc)
8. - seeing bats fly around at night, and swallows swooping during the days...
9. - laughing so hard my stomach hurts
10. - the wind blowing in my hair...
and an extra one because I love it so much 11. - the woosh and super speed you feel when a plane takes off... :D Makes me smile everytime...
but there are so many more... *hug*
Monday, February 18, 2008
midsummer nights dream
Mateus and I are going to buy a van, as soon as we are able. Will be so great to have the option to get out of Brisbane, go traveling a little on our weekends, spend some time whereever we want.
The sweetest summer dream...
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Monday, January 21, 2008
ridiculous office jargon
So, we're having some sort of Marketing "Pow-Wow" in a couple of weeks up at Noosa. I've been invited to go up there, which will be good if I can get a weekend away with M... Anyway, we've all been assigned a particular task and asked to give a little speech at the meeting... Mine, to be shared with the Registrar from Noosa is on "targeting our key demographic group online". So, we have to give a 20 minute talk on this and what we can do to be an industry leader etc. etc. *groan* You can imagine how thrilled I am to be given this task...
We have ignored the request for the past week, and now we are actually starting to freak out about this 20 minute talk... we're planning all sorts of evil plots to get out of it... such as fleeing to South Africa, I get to be the stow-away, reading out fairy tales, my fellow partner is a fan of Sleeping Beauty, I was thinking of reading a little golden book.. hehe... Baking scones and feeding that to them instead of talking..etc. etc.
Anyway, as a very helpful gesture, my boss decided to send through an explanation of what he expects from us, and some guidelines... Check it out:
*ahem*
After receiving this email, I then proceeded to wallop him around the head, and sent back a reply:
*gulp*
We have ignored the request for the past week, and now we are actually starting to freak out about this 20 minute talk... we're planning all sorts of evil plots to get out of it... such as fleeing to South Africa, I get to be the stow-away, reading out fairy tales, my fellow partner is a fan of Sleeping Beauty, I was thinking of reading a little golden book.. hehe... Baking scones and feeding that to them instead of talking..etc. etc.
Anyway, as a very helpful gesture, my boss decided to send through an explanation of what he expects from us, and some guidelines... Check it out:
Hi Liz and Linds
Since Linds is struggling to find anything to do on a slow enrolment day, here are some further guidelines to consider on your website presentation:
Ideally, any strategy will enable e-business mindshare, integrate transparent infrastructures and exploit best-of-breed web services in a fully brick-and-click value-added communities optimization environment. Through recontextualising vertical vortals, intuitive pictorial media and implementing other out of the box action items, it will empower a 24/365 uber-mindshare matrix.
The implemented functionality should retarget frictionless schemas through innovative intuitive models in such a way as to redefine impactful users and rescale current educational dot-com paradigms. It must continue to e-enable proactive paradigms and, ideally, expedite cross-platform ubiquitous marketing channels through meshing extensible infomediaries.
I hope that clarifies what we're after.
Cheers
*ahem*
After receiving this email, I then proceeded to wallop him around the head, and sent back a reply:
after ringing it through a thesaurus! Bloody weasel words!!! The translation of Ian’s ridiculously incomprehensible email…… still freakin’ hard to understand…
Hi Liz and Linds
Since Linds is struggling to find anything to do on a slow enrolment day, here are some further guidelines to consider on your website presentation:
Ideally, any strategy will enable electronic business (e-business) development of consumer awareness (mindshare), put together (integrate) clear (transparent) communications (infrastructures) and use (exploit) the best product of (best-of-breed) web services in a fully both offline and online (brick-and-click) value-added community (communities optimization environment). Through redefining (recontextualising) websites that provide gateways to information (vertical vortals), sensitive (intuitive) graphic (pictorial) media and implementing other out of the box action items, it will give power to (empower) a 24 hour a day, 365 days a year (24/365) ultimate development of consumer awareness (uber-mindshare) mold (matrix).
The implemented functionality should retarget smooth (frictionless) foundations (schemas) through original (innovative) instinctive (intuitive) models in such a way as to redefine influential (impactful) users and rescale current educational dot-com examples (paradigms). It must continue to electronically enable (e-enable) hands-on (proactive) examples (paradigms) and, ideally, speed up (expedite) cross-platform ever-present (ubiquitous) marketing channels through interconnecting (meshing) flexible (extensible) middle-men (infomediaries).
Thanks so much Ian! Your fantastic explanation has helped us a lot…
*gulp*
Wednesday, January 09, 2008
letter for tiger
Isn't it cool when you first move into a place and you get mail??! I got a little package today in the mail... Some sweet little candle holders! Thank you Kerstin! I have them up in my apartment already. And thanks to Papa for sending the nut and the shifter... most appreciated! Mail is so sweet.. I had forgotten just how special it is to get a letter!
The phone is finally working... had slight issues getting it connected, and almost had to get a technician to come out and check the cable, but then it fixed itself.. love it when things fix themselves.... :) And I just got an email from my new internet provider... Internet is connected too! I will run home tonight and connect it all up. (Its not like I haven't been disconnected anyway, with this free wireless I found, but I think my connection will be a lot quicker than the wireless one we are currently using).
OH! More news... I handed in an introductory letter to Pam (my schools director of studies) to start my trainee teaching here!!! Finally, I am going to get that going... I have 7 hours of teaching to complete, 2 hours of observation and around 20 hours of preparation... (how they mark that I do not know. Preparation time.. that means me preparing lessons... I'll just kind of whip them up... hehe...) Anyway, it will be scary, and I hope I can teach well... I'm already asking other teachers for advice! So, good luck to me!
The phone is finally working... had slight issues getting it connected, and almost had to get a technician to come out and check the cable, but then it fixed itself.. love it when things fix themselves.... :) And I just got an email from my new internet provider... Internet is connected too! I will run home tonight and connect it all up. (Its not like I haven't been disconnected anyway, with this free wireless I found, but I think my connection will be a lot quicker than the wireless one we are currently using).
OH! More news... I handed in an introductory letter to Pam (my schools director of studies) to start my trainee teaching here!!! Finally, I am going to get that going... I have 7 hours of teaching to complete, 2 hours of observation and around 20 hours of preparation... (how they mark that I do not know. Preparation time.. that means me preparing lessons... I'll just kind of whip them up... hehe...) Anyway, it will be scary, and I hope I can teach well... I'm already asking other teachers for advice! So, good luck to me!
Saturday, December 29, 2007
settled
Finally, its all over. And just beginning.
I am moved, I am living somewhere new... Its really fantastic here. The new apartment is almost all set up... we still would like to get a few things such as shelves, and little tables etc. But the rest of it is all set up. Its so good. I am really relieved that its all finally done and dusted. I no longer have to worry about moving, or cleaning, or anything... so good. These past 2 days have been so great, just because I don't have that moving thing in the back of the mind.
Mateus and I are really loving it. It finally feels like we have somewhere thats our own, and can be ourselves completely without having to worry about timing or anything. Its really really good. We can actually relax and just be...
I am loving being so central to everything, its proving very very convenient. Just thinking that I don't have to catch a train home is bliss!
I even had my hair done today to celebrate! Again, finally... Feels much better being shorter and darker...
So things are settled, and I am feeling 100% better. Just have to shake this slight cold...
I am moved, I am living somewhere new... Its really fantastic here. The new apartment is almost all set up... we still would like to get a few things such as shelves, and little tables etc. But the rest of it is all set up. Its so good. I am really relieved that its all finally done and dusted. I no longer have to worry about moving, or cleaning, or anything... so good. These past 2 days have been so great, just because I don't have that moving thing in the back of the mind.
Mateus and I are really loving it. It finally feels like we have somewhere thats our own, and can be ourselves completely without having to worry about timing or anything. Its really really good. We can actually relax and just be...
I am loving being so central to everything, its proving very very convenient. Just thinking that I don't have to catch a train home is bliss!
I even had my hair done today to celebrate! Again, finally... Feels much better being shorter and darker...
So things are settled, and I am feeling 100% better. Just have to shake this slight cold...
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
stressed i must be
So, found out the other week, that I must be stressed... why do I say must? Well, I broke out in these weird blisters. Horrible things on my chin and my neck. I had the flu already, and my glands swelled up, awful, never had that happen before. Then I broke out in these horrible blisters on my chin and my neck. At first, I just ignored them... lalala, its nothing. Then they got worse... and they didn't go away. I decided that the next step would be to look up these things on the internet and self diagnose myself. HA! You want to know what came up when I typed in "cough +swollen glands +blisters"? The PLAGUE! hahaha... oh joyous me. I seem to be dying... Yes, then I continued to ignore them... and then they got worse. Fine, I decided to go to a chemist, see what they thought. They thought I should go to a doctor and get a prescription for an antibiotic. Ahh... so, to the doctor I went, and she put me on antibiotics. At the worst possible time in the world, the day before my Christmas party!!! GAR! Last year I had a joyous time at our Christmas party and got rightly sloshed... I was looking forward to spending another Christmas party doing the same... and now couldn't! Great... Anyway, the doctor confirmed that it was a stress thing... Apparently we have all these bacteria on our skin, and when we get run down (flu) and stressed (moving) they can sometimes break out. Ahh.. so I really am stressed. I didn't really realise... but yeah... its funny the way stress manifests itself. And breaking down in the doctors office when she asks me if I am okay would confirm it... :}
Anyway... things are better now. The blisters have stopped growing.. and now I have what looks like a vampire bite on my neck. Just two dots... I like 'em... hehe... I vant to suck your blood!!! >:) muwahahahahah (do you like my evil laugh?)
I have started packing my house... its going well. Just have to pack the kitchen things, and some other random stuff that accumulates around the house. And clean... *groan* Might actually get a start on that tonight... cleaning the windows, maybe attempting to scrub the mould out of my shower... scrubbing the scum of the shower recess wall thing.. what is that called? Shower screen? Whatever... It will not be pretty... hehe.
Have even started Christmas shopping! Woo-hoo! Ahmm... for all those family members that are overseas... your presents will be late. SORRY!!! The rest are coming along nicely... ;)
So, things are coming along much better. I plan to be all packed up and ready for a quick move next week. Well, Christmas first... then come back to move on the Thursday. Thank you for all that have said they would help... tis much appreciated!! *hugs* I will make it up to you one day!!!! You just name it!!
I also have discovered some new music... I know I have been posting a few videos lately. Its what I've been doing at work lately... (We're pretty quiet at the moment, and I'm looking forward to having a week off. So I spend my days doing little bits of work interspersed with checking my email for the 157th time, checking blogs, checking flickr sites and checking facebook... haha, and finding favourites on etsy too... ;)). Anyway, my new discovery... heh... I love the film clip, and actually, the lyrics are really appropriate for what I went through in my recent breakup.. but anyway.. Bat for Lashes. My new discovery. Do a search sometime, I think you'd like her... :)
And now, the film clip: (P.S: I want my own bizarre bicycle posse!)
Anyway... things are better now. The blisters have stopped growing.. and now I have what looks like a vampire bite on my neck. Just two dots... I like 'em... hehe... I vant to suck your blood!!! >:) muwahahahahah (do you like my evil laugh?)
I have started packing my house... its going well. Just have to pack the kitchen things, and some other random stuff that accumulates around the house. And clean... *groan* Might actually get a start on that tonight... cleaning the windows, maybe attempting to scrub the mould out of my shower... scrubbing the scum of the shower recess wall thing.. what is that called? Shower screen? Whatever... It will not be pretty... hehe.
Have even started Christmas shopping! Woo-hoo! Ahmm... for all those family members that are overseas... your presents will be late. SORRY!!! The rest are coming along nicely... ;)
So, things are coming along much better. I plan to be all packed up and ready for a quick move next week. Well, Christmas first... then come back to move on the Thursday. Thank you for all that have said they would help... tis much appreciated!! *hugs* I will make it up to you one day!!!! You just name it!!
I also have discovered some new music... I know I have been posting a few videos lately. Its what I've been doing at work lately... (We're pretty quiet at the moment, and I'm looking forward to having a week off. So I spend my days doing little bits of work interspersed with checking my email for the 157th time, checking blogs, checking flickr sites and checking facebook... haha, and finding favourites on etsy too... ;)). Anyway, my new discovery... heh... I love the film clip, and actually, the lyrics are really appropriate for what I went through in my recent breakup.. but anyway.. Bat for Lashes. My new discovery. Do a search sometime, I think you'd like her... :)
And now, the film clip: (P.S: I want my own bizarre bicycle posse!)
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Monday, December 10, 2007
anticipation
I seem to be in a state of constant anticipation.
Its terrible.
I can't move in to my new place until the 24th of December. Yes... incredible timing. I was thinking I could move on the 24th, in the morning, and then go home for Christmas in the afternoon, or maybe just skip Christmas this year... but then I slapped myself around the head. Stupid! As if I could miss Christmas! So, I have now thought better, and decided to go home for Christmas and move afterwards... around the 27th or something. Just a little frustrating that I have to wait a month after I've been accepted for an apartment before I can actually move into it!
Gar...
Anticipating a bit of revenge from my boss too.. hehe. Its our work Christmas party this Friday. And I did upload some hilarious shots of him walking around with a tie on his head for his birthday onto facebook. Hahah. Incredibly funny, although I believe I may have signed my own death warrant with that... hehe.. chuckle chuckle. It was worth it.
I don't really like living in this state of anticipation. I don't want to think about things too much, cause then I get all caught up in it and worked up. But at the same time, I know that if i don't start packing soon, I will end up in a little bit of a flurry when I do actually have to move. But, that will be okay, as long as I can get the whole moving and Christmas being at the same time.
Christmas shopping is a nightmare. I went out to get a secret santa present today for work and found myself glaring and muttering at the crowds. Arg... they are too slow. I need to get in and out, not wander through and look at things.. mutter mutter. Haha... When I have time to wander I will, but not when I have to get something quick on my lunch break...
Why are we waiting, slowly dehydrating... :)
Its terrible.
I can't move in to my new place until the 24th of December. Yes... incredible timing. I was thinking I could move on the 24th, in the morning, and then go home for Christmas in the afternoon, or maybe just skip Christmas this year... but then I slapped myself around the head. Stupid! As if I could miss Christmas! So, I have now thought better, and decided to go home for Christmas and move afterwards... around the 27th or something. Just a little frustrating that I have to wait a month after I've been accepted for an apartment before I can actually move into it!
Gar...
Anticipating a bit of revenge from my boss too.. hehe. Its our work Christmas party this Friday. And I did upload some hilarious shots of him walking around with a tie on his head for his birthday onto facebook. Hahah. Incredibly funny, although I believe I may have signed my own death warrant with that... hehe.. chuckle chuckle. It was worth it.
I don't really like living in this state of anticipation. I don't want to think about things too much, cause then I get all caught up in it and worked up. But at the same time, I know that if i don't start packing soon, I will end up in a little bit of a flurry when I do actually have to move. But, that will be okay, as long as I can get the whole moving and Christmas being at the same time.
Christmas shopping is a nightmare. I went out to get a secret santa present today for work and found myself glaring and muttering at the crowds. Arg... they are too slow. I need to get in and out, not wander through and look at things.. mutter mutter. Haha... When I have time to wander I will, but not when I have to get something quick on my lunch break...
Why are we waiting, slowly dehydrating... :)
Friday, November 30, 2007
movin' on up
Guess what? I'm moving!!
Into the city. Actually, bit funny, into George's new apartment building! Heheh. Yes, there shall be much mischief! ;)
Yes, I have decided to move into the city. Moving into a two bedroom apartment which I will share. It's going to be great... As soon as I actually move. At the moment, it is a little exxy with all the bond and everything. But after I get in there, I will be making a huge saving with rent! Which I am REALLY looking forward to. At the moment we can't move in until the 21st of December, which is not the best time to be moving. But, we may be able to move in earlier if the current tenants will move out earlier. *hope*
Its going to be so good. I will be living around 5 minutes from work, and paying less rent, not paying for transport anymore... and yeah, right in the city, same building as George, which means I'll be a better sister... heheh ;)
My current landlords have been great about me moving, saying that I need not find a new tenant as they need the space for family visitors. They have also said just to tell them when I find a place and that is that. Sweet!
I think a move will be a good change for me. I realised that I have been living in the same place for 2 years already!! More than two years... thats the longest I've been in a place other than home home. I didn't even realise it had been so long... Definitely a good change.
Bit apprehensive about the move, mainly the packing. Not sure where to start. It has been a while since I moved, it all seems a little daunting. Like the cleaning... arg.. two years of accumulated dust I will need to get rid of... All I can say is, do not look under my bed... hahah!
It will be a big relief once I have actually settled... Cannot wait for that day.
*daydream*
Into the city. Actually, bit funny, into George's new apartment building! Heheh. Yes, there shall be much mischief! ;)
Yes, I have decided to move into the city. Moving into a two bedroom apartment which I will share. It's going to be great... As soon as I actually move. At the moment, it is a little exxy with all the bond and everything. But after I get in there, I will be making a huge saving with rent! Which I am REALLY looking forward to. At the moment we can't move in until the 21st of December, which is not the best time to be moving. But, we may be able to move in earlier if the current tenants will move out earlier. *hope*
Its going to be so good. I will be living around 5 minutes from work, and paying less rent, not paying for transport anymore... and yeah, right in the city, same building as George, which means I'll be a better sister... heheh ;)
My current landlords have been great about me moving, saying that I need not find a new tenant as they need the space for family visitors. They have also said just to tell them when I find a place and that is that. Sweet!
I think a move will be a good change for me. I realised that I have been living in the same place for 2 years already!! More than two years... thats the longest I've been in a place other than home home. I didn't even realise it had been so long... Definitely a good change.
Bit apprehensive about the move, mainly the packing. Not sure where to start. It has been a while since I moved, it all seems a little daunting. Like the cleaning... arg.. two years of accumulated dust I will need to get rid of... All I can say is, do not look under my bed... hahah!
It will be a big relief once I have actually settled... Cannot wait for that day.
*daydream*
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
hide me
Today is a sack day.
You know those days when you wake up and you can't stand yourself? Thats today... When you wake up in the morning to take a shower and realise that you feel disgusting today. You try not to think about it though, especially the fact that you feel flabby. Getting dressed is horrible. You can't think of anything that will look good. When you do finally decide on something, you put it on and then rip it off because it makes you feel worse and after digging through your cupboard you realise that you have nothing to wear that will alleviate this problem. GAR! Fine, so you throw on a shirt that covers yourself as best you can and try to assure yourself that it looks good. Then you look at yourself in the mirror and you look at your hair and realise that you need a haircut, your hair needs a colour and it has decided its not going to cooperate. You also don't look normal. Your face has meta morphed overnight to become something ugly and unrecognisable. But you swallow it all, you suck it up and you step out into the day trying to make out that you feel great. You look fabulous! HAH! What a joke, and you know it.
So you spend the day, trying to throw yourself into other things. Concentrate on other things, work, life, study, anything... Just don't think about it. But it is there, simmering away. Everytime you go past a shop window you see your reflection and can't help but cringe...
That is my day today... oh joy. This is of course worsened by the fact that I have only had 2 hours sleep and am starting to get a cold... oh j-o-y!
I've realised that this feeling is worse because my clothes are getting tatty... this skirt is fading fast, so are my shoes... I need a haircut and I know it, but at the moment, I have no time and funds are reserved for other needs. No new clothes, no new shoes, no haircut, no relief from this feeling. You have to battle it out...
Don't look at me today, I am not the best...
You know those days when you wake up and you can't stand yourself? Thats today... When you wake up in the morning to take a shower and realise that you feel disgusting today. You try not to think about it though, especially the fact that you feel flabby. Getting dressed is horrible. You can't think of anything that will look good. When you do finally decide on something, you put it on and then rip it off because it makes you feel worse and after digging through your cupboard you realise that you have nothing to wear that will alleviate this problem. GAR! Fine, so you throw on a shirt that covers yourself as best you can and try to assure yourself that it looks good. Then you look at yourself in the mirror and you look at your hair and realise that you need a haircut, your hair needs a colour and it has decided its not going to cooperate. You also don't look normal. Your face has meta morphed overnight to become something ugly and unrecognisable. But you swallow it all, you suck it up and you step out into the day trying to make out that you feel great. You look fabulous! HAH! What a joke, and you know it.
So you spend the day, trying to throw yourself into other things. Concentrate on other things, work, life, study, anything... Just don't think about it. But it is there, simmering away. Everytime you go past a shop window you see your reflection and can't help but cringe...
That is my day today... oh joy. This is of course worsened by the fact that I have only had 2 hours sleep and am starting to get a cold... oh j-o-y!
I've realised that this feeling is worse because my clothes are getting tatty... this skirt is fading fast, so are my shoes... I need a haircut and I know it, but at the moment, I have no time and funds are reserved for other needs. No new clothes, no new shoes, no haircut, no relief from this feeling. You have to battle it out...
Don't look at me today, I am not the best...
Monday, November 05, 2007
we should be letting go
Instead of holding on...
Went to see this funky little band last night, called Fat Freddy's Drop. They're from Un-Zud (New Zealand). So much fun. Made me realise how much I have missed going out like that, rather than to clubs... Clubs are so overrated. Live music is so much better!
So, I have made a vow to go out and see more bands...less pop.
Its part of the changes I am making... the evolution of Liz. ;) heh
What else is changing? Well, small things... my hair for instance. It's got a new part. Very exciting I know... Apparently it makes a huge difference, from all the comments I've had about it. Which is nice.
Wardrobe evolution... that is a slow one, due to the fact that fashion these days is terrible and nothing like the things I would like to wear. But its all good... getting some assistance with that one and my confidence levels... ;) heheh
In the back of my mind is a relocation. Thinking of moving... My place is great, but I'm a little over it... That one is on the back of the line though. Its a big change, and as much as I would like to move, at the same time, my place is easy.
There is also someone else in my life too... He's great...
Things are very good... Fantastic I would even say! Definitely an improvement!
Went to see this funky little band last night, called Fat Freddy's Drop. They're from Un-Zud (New Zealand). So much fun. Made me realise how much I have missed going out like that, rather than to clubs... Clubs are so overrated. Live music is so much better!
So, I have made a vow to go out and see more bands...less pop.
Its part of the changes I am making... the evolution of Liz. ;) heh
What else is changing? Well, small things... my hair for instance. It's got a new part. Very exciting I know... Apparently it makes a huge difference, from all the comments I've had about it. Which is nice.
Wardrobe evolution... that is a slow one, due to the fact that fashion these days is terrible and nothing like the things I would like to wear. But its all good... getting some assistance with that one and my confidence levels... ;) heheh
In the back of my mind is a relocation. Thinking of moving... My place is great, but I'm a little over it... That one is on the back of the line though. Its a big change, and as much as I would like to move, at the same time, my place is easy.
There is also someone else in my life too... He's great...
Things are very good... Fantastic I would even say! Definitely an improvement!
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
3060 kilometres
So... where should I begin? Well, I'm back. Back from the land of the long white cloud, although it felt like land of the strong wind! So windy!!
Had a string of bad luck at the start of the trip... Beginning on Tuesday night, the eve before we flew out. Uh, I'm not sure how to say it, so I'm just going to be honest. Marcel and I, we aren't together anymore. Its a little complicated, but at the moment, I don't feel the same way anymore, and I told Marcel on the night before... It was difficult, and I wasn't sure about going, but we decided that we would go together and then... So, a turbulent start, to say the least.
Waking on Wednesday, after hardly any sleep (tears all night), I turned to Marcel and said that I was a little worried about the rental company accepting his drivers licence, its expired. My answer was: SHHHHHHHHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTT!!! He had lent his drivers licence to a friend on the farm as an id to go out on the night before he came back to Brisbane and had not got it back from him! ARH! So, we paced and we fretted and we came up with an idea to use a fake one. Which meant, Marcel had to frantically call and message all his friends back in Brazil to scan their licence and send it over here... I know, illegal.. but we couldn't do anything else. Got one and he cut and paste his name over it, while I got ready, and then I finished it off while Marcel got ready. Haha... it was pretty good, it IS pretty good. Right, got that done just in time, and then we had to worry about where we were going to print it when we landed. We were already short on time between when we landed and picking up the van... Decided to worry about that when we got there and went off to the airport. Flight was delayed due to freak storms on Wednesday morning... which meant we would miss the pick up time for the van... But, that was kind of cool anyway, got to spend a night in Auckland. Anyway, we got there, and found an internet cafe with a colour printer. It must have looked so dodgy, haha, it WAS!! We had to print it 3 or 4 times to get the size right... I'm sure that the guy from the internet cafe was laughing at us... hahah. The licence was perfect though. The campervan rental accepted it easy. They didn't even look at it other than to get Marcel's date of birth and full name!!
*phew*
Off we went, had a beautiful van... not the ones we asked for, but it is hard to get them. We had a van called Harakeke... I'll upload photos to my flickr.
Anyway, we set off and all was good. Went to the Bay of Islands, a beautiful coastal area at the top of the north island. Islands and reefs and diving and swimming with dolphins... Actually, we didn't swim with dolphins, was quite chilly! But it was pretty anyway. We drove around, found this perfect spot to camp, with this gorgeous view of a bay and lighthouse... beautiful! I walked around to see if there were signs saying not to camp, and there wasn't, which was perfect! Cooked dinner listening to a Maori meeting happening next door. Singing and chanting and things... was pretty cool. We set up the bed, went to sleep... peaceful... finally.
Only to be woken up at 6 in the morning by someone knocking on the door and informing us that we couldn't camp there!! GAR!!! It was 6 in the morning! Too late.. we had camped... haha.. Anyway, we said sorry, drove somewhere else, stopped on the side of the road and got some more sleep.
When we actually did wake up, we set off again, north. We wanted to go to the tip of the north island... Was pretty remote up there. Lots of trees... haha. Just over halfway there we realised we were running a little low on petrol... Hmm, okay, no worries I thought, there is a town coming up, surely there will be petrol... Nope, okay, maybe the next town... nope... okay.. lets not worry just yet.. surely there will be one.. AHA! SERVICE STATION! We pulled in, relieved that we had made it, only to see signs on the petrol pumps: Out of order. North, nothing, nada, zip, 0. Last petrol station is 60 kilometres south! I went in to see if there was something, anything.. turns out the petrol tanker hadn't been up there for a month or more... Ooooooookay. This is not good... Our only option was to travel south. So, we headed off, coasted most of the way... And rolled into a service station just on empty!
Right, so couldn't go to the top... no worries, there was this other place I thought would be cool, Ninety Mile Beach. Its 90 miles long, original name yes? haha... Alrighty, lets go there. We headed out there, and behind the beach was a small place to park and turn around. There was a bit of a road leading to nowhere, that we parked on, but then thought we should move, incase someone wanted to drive up there. Ha! WHO?? Anyway, we decided to park in this area just off the road that looked perfect, just down a little bank. No worries... Reversing, reversing, turning... Then we just stopped... Oh-oh. What was that noise...? We had reversed down a bank that was probably a bit to steep for us, and into soft sand! Crap. We tried digging and putting rocks under... nothing worked. I even got some english backpacking girls to come and help push, yeah, that was successful. Haha... We found this old sign on a fence up that road that we wanted to get off, said "no shooting".. thought we could wedge that under the wheel, perhaps it would give it a bit of grip. But no... that didn't work either. BUGGER! Stuck. So, I called the campervan company, and they gave me another number to call, called that number and they couldn't help, but they gave me a number of a company that could. Got the tow truck out, pretty fast, I think they thought we were actually on the beach, and that we would be in pretty deep water if the tide came up. Haha.. no, we were in a carpark thing behind the beach! Anyway, the guy hooked us up, and Marcel had to drive a little, only then the campervan started to tip over. It was pretty scary. Got a little worried... so did the tow guy, and Marcel... He got us out though, for a small price... but at least we weren't stuck there. Heh... When we got out, we did actually go to the beach. Was like a little highway actually. Ninety miles of sand... there were tour buses that TORE down the beach like a highway!! So fast... and as far as you could see was the same thing... straight, flat beach. And bluebottles. Water was freezing too.... And again, windy!
After that we headed south... Camped in a holiday park that night. So that we wouldn't be woken up at some ridiculous hour. Hah. The next day we headed around the coast south, and took a couple of wrong turns... We were going down this road, and I had this feeling it was wrong. So, we decided that we should turn around. But, country roads in New Zealand are rather narrow. There isn't much room either side of them... especially not if you've got a campervan! Saw a little area that had green grass on either side, we could probably turn around there... Pulled over, into the grass, stopped, changed into reverse... what was that noise...??? AGAIN?!! (Okay, this is where I threw my temper tantrum... kicking and screaming... haha.. loud enough that the whole valley we were in could have heard). Tried to get out and push and everything, but then we started slipping down the bank. There was a bank, and a drop, that if we went down, we would be screwed... Luckily, it wasn't far from a small road and a house, and luckily someone had just decided to go into town. I stopped him, and asked if he would be able to help... He got out of the car, and all I saw was Mr Martin! Haha.. Exactly the same! A dairy farmer, completely country, weather worn skin... same way of talking.. Very funny. He got us out no problems with his car... towed again. He advised us to stay on the roads from now on, everything was green and wet and muddy, too easy to get stuck, especially in our van. I noted that down, we agreed not to go on any earth material at all, no dirt, no grass, no sand, no rocks.. it was bitumen or nothing! Hahah. We did turn around in the end... and went all the way back, only to realise that we were going the right way. Haha.. great.
We drove on, and on and on, and on... south south south. Went down past Auckland... around to the east a little. We stopped in a couple of places, spent sleepless nights being blown around. The wind was so strong over there, it would rock the van at night! And there were people camping in tents!! Hahaha.. crazy!
We headed down into the thermal area, saw some mud.. and some craters... and smelt some sulpher... Lots of steam. Was pretty amazing actually. Very different landscape.
Headed down to Lake Taupo... which is where I bungy jumped... absolutely amazing. The craziest thing I've done. Bungy jumping is just what I thought. You can sky dive, and that is amazing, but if you really want to feel like your falling, do a bungy jump. You get up there, and look down... and woah... Its incredible. I jumped over a lake, so there was water below. Beautiful turquoise water with deep blue water around. 47 metres, its not the highest, there is one on the south island that is 150 metres or something ridiculous... So bit of a baby jump anyway.. only, it doesn't feel like it when your there! Was freezing cold, had started to rain and as always, windy! The feeling when you jump, I can't explain it. I jumped and I swear for a couple of milliseconds, I couldn't breath, I couldn't scream. Its like that feeling you get when you have the falling dreams just as you fall asleep. That little gasp... and then I started screaming. Hah.. And you go over, and the only thing you think is, I'm falling!!! Was amazing... I want to do it again actually! Hehe... check the video out at the bottom of this post... haha.. makes me laugh everytime.
Definitely the highlight...
We headed down to Wellington after that.. that city is quite cool indeed. Again, windy like all heck. The roaring forties or something tear through that area... And it is seriously windy... Everyday... I liked it there though. Was really nice. Think that would be a place I could live easily... heh. We spent a couple of days there, to have a break from driving. Was good.
After Wellington, we headed north, really quick actually. Saw a lot of beaches... A lot of farms. Cows next to the beach... very different to Australian beaches and the paperbark ugly hot bush you get here next to the beach. Over there, it was all dairy farms! Haha.
Anyway... Headed back, stayed in Raglan on the last night, this hippy surf-ish town that reminded me of Byron Bay a little. Was pretty nice there. It had a beach nearby that is pretty famous on the world surfing circuit, longest left hand break or something. Heh.. not sure.
So, back to Auckland, only to realise that maybe Marcel would be asked a lot of questions coming into Australia cause he didn't have his ticket out of Australia... Hmm.. stressed about that... But, it was all easy through customs. Then, home sweet home.
Good to be back.. still turbulent.
I have never cried so much in my life... but, I'm getting stronger... and sorting things out in my heart.
Had a string of bad luck at the start of the trip... Beginning on Tuesday night, the eve before we flew out. Uh, I'm not sure how to say it, so I'm just going to be honest. Marcel and I, we aren't together anymore. Its a little complicated, but at the moment, I don't feel the same way anymore, and I told Marcel on the night before... It was difficult, and I wasn't sure about going, but we decided that we would go together and then... So, a turbulent start, to say the least.
Waking on Wednesday, after hardly any sleep (tears all night), I turned to Marcel and said that I was a little worried about the rental company accepting his drivers licence, its expired. My answer was: SHHHHHHHHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTT!!! He had lent his drivers licence to a friend on the farm as an id to go out on the night before he came back to Brisbane and had not got it back from him! ARH! So, we paced and we fretted and we came up with an idea to use a fake one. Which meant, Marcel had to frantically call and message all his friends back in Brazil to scan their licence and send it over here... I know, illegal.. but we couldn't do anything else. Got one and he cut and paste his name over it, while I got ready, and then I finished it off while Marcel got ready. Haha... it was pretty good, it IS pretty good. Right, got that done just in time, and then we had to worry about where we were going to print it when we landed. We were already short on time between when we landed and picking up the van... Decided to worry about that when we got there and went off to the airport. Flight was delayed due to freak storms on Wednesday morning... which meant we would miss the pick up time for the van... But, that was kind of cool anyway, got to spend a night in Auckland. Anyway, we got there, and found an internet cafe with a colour printer. It must have looked so dodgy, haha, it WAS!! We had to print it 3 or 4 times to get the size right... I'm sure that the guy from the internet cafe was laughing at us... hahah. The licence was perfect though. The campervan rental accepted it easy. They didn't even look at it other than to get Marcel's date of birth and full name!!
*phew*
Off we went, had a beautiful van... not the ones we asked for, but it is hard to get them. We had a van called Harakeke... I'll upload photos to my flickr.
Anyway, we set off and all was good. Went to the Bay of Islands, a beautiful coastal area at the top of the north island. Islands and reefs and diving and swimming with dolphins... Actually, we didn't swim with dolphins, was quite chilly! But it was pretty anyway. We drove around, found this perfect spot to camp, with this gorgeous view of a bay and lighthouse... beautiful! I walked around to see if there were signs saying not to camp, and there wasn't, which was perfect! Cooked dinner listening to a Maori meeting happening next door. Singing and chanting and things... was pretty cool. We set up the bed, went to sleep... peaceful... finally.
Only to be woken up at 6 in the morning by someone knocking on the door and informing us that we couldn't camp there!! GAR!!! It was 6 in the morning! Too late.. we had camped... haha.. Anyway, we said sorry, drove somewhere else, stopped on the side of the road and got some more sleep.
When we actually did wake up, we set off again, north. We wanted to go to the tip of the north island... Was pretty remote up there. Lots of trees... haha. Just over halfway there we realised we were running a little low on petrol... Hmm, okay, no worries I thought, there is a town coming up, surely there will be petrol... Nope, okay, maybe the next town... nope... okay.. lets not worry just yet.. surely there will be one.. AHA! SERVICE STATION! We pulled in, relieved that we had made it, only to see signs on the petrol pumps: Out of order. North, nothing, nada, zip, 0. Last petrol station is 60 kilometres south! I went in to see if there was something, anything.. turns out the petrol tanker hadn't been up there for a month or more... Ooooooookay. This is not good... Our only option was to travel south. So, we headed off, coasted most of the way... And rolled into a service station just on empty!
Right, so couldn't go to the top... no worries, there was this other place I thought would be cool, Ninety Mile Beach. Its 90 miles long, original name yes? haha... Alrighty, lets go there. We headed out there, and behind the beach was a small place to park and turn around. There was a bit of a road leading to nowhere, that we parked on, but then thought we should move, incase someone wanted to drive up there. Ha! WHO?? Anyway, we decided to park in this area just off the road that looked perfect, just down a little bank. No worries... Reversing, reversing, turning... Then we just stopped... Oh-oh. What was that noise...? We had reversed down a bank that was probably a bit to steep for us, and into soft sand! Crap. We tried digging and putting rocks under... nothing worked. I even got some english backpacking girls to come and help push, yeah, that was successful. Haha... We found this old sign on a fence up that road that we wanted to get off, said "no shooting".. thought we could wedge that under the wheel, perhaps it would give it a bit of grip. But no... that didn't work either. BUGGER! Stuck. So, I called the campervan company, and they gave me another number to call, called that number and they couldn't help, but they gave me a number of a company that could. Got the tow truck out, pretty fast, I think they thought we were actually on the beach, and that we would be in pretty deep water if the tide came up. Haha.. no, we were in a carpark thing behind the beach! Anyway, the guy hooked us up, and Marcel had to drive a little, only then the campervan started to tip over. It was pretty scary. Got a little worried... so did the tow guy, and Marcel... He got us out though, for a small price... but at least we weren't stuck there. Heh... When we got out, we did actually go to the beach. Was like a little highway actually. Ninety miles of sand... there were tour buses that TORE down the beach like a highway!! So fast... and as far as you could see was the same thing... straight, flat beach. And bluebottles. Water was freezing too.... And again, windy!
After that we headed south... Camped in a holiday park that night. So that we wouldn't be woken up at some ridiculous hour. Hah. The next day we headed around the coast south, and took a couple of wrong turns... We were going down this road, and I had this feeling it was wrong. So, we decided that we should turn around. But, country roads in New Zealand are rather narrow. There isn't much room either side of them... especially not if you've got a campervan! Saw a little area that had green grass on either side, we could probably turn around there... Pulled over, into the grass, stopped, changed into reverse... what was that noise...??? AGAIN?!! (Okay, this is where I threw my temper tantrum... kicking and screaming... haha.. loud enough that the whole valley we were in could have heard). Tried to get out and push and everything, but then we started slipping down the bank. There was a bank, and a drop, that if we went down, we would be screwed... Luckily, it wasn't far from a small road and a house, and luckily someone had just decided to go into town. I stopped him, and asked if he would be able to help... He got out of the car, and all I saw was Mr Martin! Haha.. Exactly the same! A dairy farmer, completely country, weather worn skin... same way of talking.. Very funny. He got us out no problems with his car... towed again. He advised us to stay on the roads from now on, everything was green and wet and muddy, too easy to get stuck, especially in our van. I noted that down, we agreed not to go on any earth material at all, no dirt, no grass, no sand, no rocks.. it was bitumen or nothing! Hahah. We did turn around in the end... and went all the way back, only to realise that we were going the right way. Haha.. great.
We drove on, and on and on, and on... south south south. Went down past Auckland... around to the east a little. We stopped in a couple of places, spent sleepless nights being blown around. The wind was so strong over there, it would rock the van at night! And there were people camping in tents!! Hahaha.. crazy!
We headed down into the thermal area, saw some mud.. and some craters... and smelt some sulpher... Lots of steam. Was pretty amazing actually. Very different landscape.
Headed down to Lake Taupo... which is where I bungy jumped... absolutely amazing. The craziest thing I've done. Bungy jumping is just what I thought. You can sky dive, and that is amazing, but if you really want to feel like your falling, do a bungy jump. You get up there, and look down... and woah... Its incredible. I jumped over a lake, so there was water below. Beautiful turquoise water with deep blue water around. 47 metres, its not the highest, there is one on the south island that is 150 metres or something ridiculous... So bit of a baby jump anyway.. only, it doesn't feel like it when your there! Was freezing cold, had started to rain and as always, windy! The feeling when you jump, I can't explain it. I jumped and I swear for a couple of milliseconds, I couldn't breath, I couldn't scream. Its like that feeling you get when you have the falling dreams just as you fall asleep. That little gasp... and then I started screaming. Hah.. And you go over, and the only thing you think is, I'm falling!!! Was amazing... I want to do it again actually! Hehe... check the video out at the bottom of this post... haha.. makes me laugh everytime.
Definitely the highlight...
We headed down to Wellington after that.. that city is quite cool indeed. Again, windy like all heck. The roaring forties or something tear through that area... And it is seriously windy... Everyday... I liked it there though. Was really nice. Think that would be a place I could live easily... heh. We spent a couple of days there, to have a break from driving. Was good.
After Wellington, we headed north, really quick actually. Saw a lot of beaches... A lot of farms. Cows next to the beach... very different to Australian beaches and the paperbark ugly hot bush you get here next to the beach. Over there, it was all dairy farms! Haha.
Anyway... Headed back, stayed in Raglan on the last night, this hippy surf-ish town that reminded me of Byron Bay a little. Was pretty nice there. It had a beach nearby that is pretty famous on the world surfing circuit, longest left hand break or something. Heh.. not sure.
So, back to Auckland, only to realise that maybe Marcel would be asked a lot of questions coming into Australia cause he didn't have his ticket out of Australia... Hmm.. stressed about that... But, it was all easy through customs. Then, home sweet home.
Good to be back.. still turbulent.
I have never cried so much in my life... but, I'm getting stronger... and sorting things out in my heart.
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
better than
What could be better than nowLife’s not about what’s better than
I've decided not to worry about what to do, stay here at this job, or go somewhere else, I'll just see what happens.
So, Byron Bay was fun. It was a last minute decision. Pam was taking her flatmate down there for his birthday, and I had nothing to do, so thought why not. Stayed in a backpackers, went to the beach, went out dancing, went to the beach... got a sunburnt foot... just a stripe on my foot. Very odd I know.. must have had sand covering the rest of it.
New Zealand is next week!! I've booked the flights and I've booked the van... Hopefully we'll get our preferred van. But, no matter which one we'll get it will be great.
We're still not sure where we'll go... I found a driving route that went all around the north island over 10 days, but everyone we talk to says the south island is the best, so we are now thinking of going there too. One slight problem is the fact that our return flight is from Auckland... which would mean driving back to Auckland from the south island after visiting it... hmm... So maybe, we'll just stick to the north island only. I'm of the opinion that we decide that after we get there. Much easier then, because, who knows, the north island could be really fun...
Back to my John Butler then... *funky dance outta here*
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