So then I cried... twice

I was never much of a crier, I spent years not shedding a tear at all. I staunchly refused to shed tears over boys who had done me wrong, or girls at school who took delight in deception and petty backstabbing. I did not cry when I left my daughter's father nor when I found out a couple of months later I was pregnant.

Just like so many other parents have admitted though I became a cliche once TC was on the outside of my body. I cried at commercials, I spent weeks in tears after September 11, I cried when I saw something beautiful, when I had a fight with my mum, when I burnt dinner, when the washing got on top of me & especially when I looked at my baby/toddler/smallchild/and now pre-teen daughter and realised that *I* made and was completely responsible for this person!

Er so before we get even more sidetracked as the title suggests I cried twice, in public and at the footy no less.... And it’s not even the finals!

Before the Swans vs St Kilda game on Sunday there was the GF of the International Games (or something I don't know we missed the game). There were male, female and mixed teams from nations around the world here to all play AFL. They had the teams come out and do a lap of the ground they all got introduced and it was like the Olympics (but on a much smaller scale obviously). This is when I found myself tearing up twice in the space of 2 minutes.

The first time was for the team from Japan. Happy guys and girls waving and jumping and smiling, two of them were carrying their flag, on it was written a heartfelt message thanking everyone for their support and donations during the recent earthquakes. I cannot remember the exact words nor did I take a pic as I was blubbering much to TC’s embarrassment. But it was such a lovely gesture and a testament to the beauty of the Japanese people.

A few teams later out came the Peace Team, men and women (there were also a couple of kids on shoulders not sure about their playing status) from both Israel and Palestine who had joined together to play AFL and foster friendship between the Muslim and Jewish communities in their region. They were jubilant holding hands and smiling and waving to the crowd. So happy to be together as a team, reminding us there is more to their part of the world than just the mortar shelling and deaths. It is them in the pic above hugging the Swans mascot Siggy.

Now the end of the story is obviously I was totally hormonal and that night I also cried several times during the Block – it was a proposal I am a sucker for that shit!

xxpt

Hump day Happiness

I’ve had to dig really deep this week to find anything to smile about. Aside from one massive high most of the week has been pretty shitful to be honest so here goes....

TC performed at the Opera House as part of the Combined School Recorder Ensemble, all 700 of them. My mum (the Nana) came down to Sydney for it and we had seats in the 4^th row from the front. MrPt, the Nana and I are all so damn proud of her, it was the 1^st time TC and the Nana had been inside the Opera House too so that was extra super cool.

Prior to the concert the Nana and I had a glass of wine and a mezze plate at one of the Harbourside restaurants, it was really nice to just have time for the 2 of us and while we stressed at a short timeframe to get the food in case we missed the concert. We both calmed down enough to enjoy the wine and the view just the two of us.

Circular knitting needles and the magic loop, I had a go at making a couple of beanies over the weekend and due to the available chucky wool and the 9mm needles I had they came together in under a couple of hours. It is a shame I didn’t try this at the START of winter however if I keep doing this I will have a stockpile of little gifty type things (in theory of course) for the relo’s and mates at Christmas.

And some quick ones - new episodes of TrueBlood with my girlfriends on Monday nights, turkish toast with butter and vegemite, stripey pyjamas,birthday dinner invites & possible tweetups this weekend if kiddo arrangements can be made.

Oh and finally I’m wearing my ugg boots under my desk today and I do not care!

xxpt

ps. If you click on the photo I have circled TC's head...

10 Things I Love

Taking a leaf out of Sass’s book (blog?) here is my list (for today anyway)

1. My little nuclear family, me, MrPt and TC. We aren’t a poster for perfection by any standards there are spats, attitude, yelling and we all from time to time take each other for granted but there is genuine love between us and a feeling of safetyness (which is so now a real word)

2. Girly colours – pink, yellow, red and green clothes of these colours or tea cups or furniture or rooms or ice creams and cupcake icing.... or hair!

3. Twitter, I cannot tell you enough how lovely it is to be able to have conversations all day with friends I have met on there. So many beautiful/funny/touching stories and people are found each day.

4. TV I am unapologetically a fan. The car crash reality TV the well scripted & produced shows the low budget community shows that populate TVS (& Bris 31) and old TV shows from the 70’s & 80’s

5. Modcloth.com just looking at this website fills me with happiness, I do not even have to buy anything although 9 times out of 10 I do (shh!)

6. Weddings, maybe one day I’ll have one but for now I will live vicariously thought those celebrated by my mates and those shown on Four Weddings & My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding (car crash TV) Oh and I'm a total crier at these events too I even have a special wedding hanky!(don't judge me)

7. T-shirts I have far too many in fact my whole family has far too many. They’re just so damn practical and comfy and easy to launder!

8. Nail polish I have ugly but strong nails so anything to disguise them is welcome. I am a sucker for the really bright crème colours in the $2.95 bin out the front of the chemist!

9. Vintage fabric and sewing patterns, I have many, I may not marry the 2 very often as I fear screwing up the gorgeous fabrics but I do love them!

10. My mum (who arrives for a lightning visit today!) a strong woman who takes on more that she should and loves as fiercely as a mama bear. She's also at times overbearing and over sensitive and I don't think she will ever forgive me for moving away from the hometown and taking her beloved TC with me but she's my mum and I don't know what I'd do without her!

xxpt

Hump Day Happiness

Not sure if Naomi over at Under the Yardarm is doing this this week but a few things have made me smile this week so I have decided to post mine here.

My 30 Day Yoga course something I have begun for the month of June (I’m doing the one for busy people, here if you are interested). It is only 10 mins a day but in this second week of the course I have found myself stretching it out for at least 20 mins each session, remembering poses from the classes I took for years and just stretching, I’ve noticed that my body does not want to leave the mat once I am on there, its often just the getting there that is the hard part. The course is delivered online so I can do it when and where I please, on the weekdays this has meant that I am doing it in the afternoon when I get home from work.

The benefits of this is I get a clear distinction between work time and home time and I have no excuses at that time of the day, there is nothing that needs doing, not dinner or dishes. I’ve finished bolting here and there for the day. I get home have a tea and chat with TC then ask her to have the 10-20 mins alone and she goes into her room to do her homework and I have been getting on the mat. There is no noise from tvs or radios or the bloody Beibs, even Yellow seems to know that he should leave me be, perhaps he’s not as stupid as I thought after all!

The rains and long weekends have made me happy too, warm doonas and tea in bed, a footy win followed by roudy Turkish restaurants for a birthday, the perfect wine and wonderful friends who drive us home, big bowls of pea & ham soup, hot pumpkin bread with lashings of butter, my rainbow crocheted rug and new Ugg boots for me and tc. Plus the heater, the cat and planning a weekend away with my man really soon.

Anything make you happy this week?

xxpt

KYLIE DAY!!!

Tonight we head to the Sydney Entertainment Centre to see Miss Kylie Ann Minogue! I cannot tell you how goddamn freaking excited I am to see this show. This will be the third tour of hers that I have been to and the second I have taken TC to. We have picked out our outfits and have plans for the Worlds Greatest Dumplings before the show... We go with my oldest friend, she cries every time. (and I hope she doesn't mind me telling you that) When we took TC last time to the X tour she grabbed my friend's hand looked her in the eye and said "I get it, I get why you cry." hehe so bloody cute my kid is.

so here I am, at work trying to get everything done in record time and I am on here instead writing about how damn exciting it is and my brain contains nothing but pop songs and disco lighting...

Will report back after the show, no doubt with dodgy iphone pics from the nose bleed section!

xxpt

* I cannot find the source for the photo I have used, I know that this is REALLY bad blogger etiquette but I've had it on my desk top for so long I think it came from the SMH site? If anyone knows please put it in the comments and I will amend. thanks xx

The Yellow Cat

My cat’s name is Yellow*, he is black and he’s a bit special. He’s the first cat I’ve ever had, you see when I was growing up my mum always told me I was ALLERGIC to animals. Horrible yes? YES!

He is also known by the below;
Mister
Dickhead
Senor Ding-Dong
Mr Me-ow-gy
Chariman Me-ow
Stinky Boy

He is definitely a boy cat with questionable hygiene, he was born of a very young alley cat called Trixie. MrPt brought him home cradled in his hoodie for me a couple of days before my birthday, he was tiny and lovely and so very pretty. Which kinda explains how he got his name.
The mate we got him from put a string around the boy cats and MrPt was given instructions to pick a boy, a black one if there was one. So he brought home the black boy kitten who was so pretty we thought our mate had pulled a shifty on us, after cuddles and a few beers to celebrate MrPt and I were trying to think of a name (Ninja er no MrPt) and seriously discussing how we thought he was a girl, I took off the string off and we exchanged the following;
l
Me - “he doesn’t look so girly without the yellow around his neck”
MrPt - “You want to call him Yellow?”
Me - “um um not what I said but yeah, yeah I do”

So that is how Mister got his name, not because he has yellow eyes, nor because when he meow’s it sounds a bit like he’s saying “yell-ow” nor because we are fans of Coldplay (dear god no). Its because of a piece of string.

He’s now nearly 7, fat often surly has gone from a freebie alley kitteh, to a $1125 cheque eating cat who then cost us this much again in vet fees when he had the mysterious vomiting ‘thing’ the vet could not determine the cause of, he hogs the heater and leaves fur on my clothes, he bites and scratches MrPt a lot but not tc or I, nor the furniture.

He puts up with a lot of teasing & being carted around, he wears scarves I make him & as you can see in the pic a Cat in the Hat bow-tie even if he does look mega unimpressed about it, I think this means that he loves us as much as we love him

… or perhaps he’s just sticking around for the free food and lodging.

xxpt

*yep, this is a story just like when people tell you the story behind their tattoos, sorry.

Dear Mr White Falcon Station Wagon

Hey how you doing? After our little run in yesterday, I thought I’d just drop you a line, I’m pt but you may remember me as the rather panicked looking pink haired woman in the other white station wagon on the roundabout yesterday? The one with P plates on? The one that SPUN AROUND NEARLY 180 DEGREES WHEN YOU CUT IN FRONT OF HER IN THE RAIN!?!?!

But maybe no because after seeing that I was already entering the roundabout you accelerated and then you did hold up your hand to the side of your face in effect putting blinkers on thus rendering me invisible! Now I will admit you discovered one of my Super Hero secret power desires, I would be a bit of a dud Super Hero if I tried to be invisible in a massive white commodore station wagon with my head lights on wouldn’t I?

Was it that you did not see that I had my P plates on? The red ones, you may not have seen then from behind your improvised hand blinker but they were there, do you know WHY they are there? It’s to let everyone on the road, not just the coppers know that I am an inexperienced driver! I went to the trouble to display them but it’s a two way street mate you need to take notice and perhaps give a little bit of extra love to the P platers out on the road.

Why I hear you ask? Because we aren’t all young hoons with a death wish playing bad R&B* at deafening levels some of us are 35 year olds who have overcome a fear of driving & has been on the road for less than 12 months. We can drive enough to pass a test administered by one of the trolls from the RTA but we’re new at this stuff...

So even though where you had to go was so very very important I hope that next time we meet you will obey the road rules and maybe even be a bit more aware of the not so experienced drivers out there on the roads too.

I’m so glad we had this little exchange,

Happy Motoring xxpt


*In my opinion all R&B after Marvin Gaye died is bad YES ALL!!