Sick squeak squawk

I am sick. Not fair :(

Nick has gone out to buy me more drugs- bless him. The drugs I have must be working, because when I speak, the only ones to hear pain are those listening to me. My throat is nicely anaesthetised, but I sound AWFUL. Really awful. I've taken to using mime based sign language instead. Then I look completely stupid, so I've taken to staying in bed.

This is not fair. I think I caught cold at Christmas (when I insisted on wearing my pretty summer dress saved for the day, even though it was the coldest Melbourne Christmas on record). Now, with a New Year's Party at our house tomorrow night, I cannot speak, and I have very little energy. This sucks.

Speaking of NYE, does anyone know the best way to secure a piece of string to a skull? Eh, never mind... I'll explain later.

I'm a-going on the railroads...

My train tickets for Europe just arrived. Yay. Have just realised that, between my Europe plane tickets, my and Jackie's New Zealand plane tickets, and my and Lisa's train tickets, there are an awful lots of expensive pieces of paper floating around my house waiting for me to lose them...

Christmas food babies and postponed giraffes

So that's it. Christmas done. Despite the exhaustion from the insane running around I undertook on Christmas Day (Kew - Ringwood - Moorloobark - Bentleigh via partial diversion to Kew - Berwick - Kew via diversion to Resrvoir), as well as a few Xmasy outings on other days, I had a really good Christmas. It was great to see everyone, some really great presents and lots ( AND LOTS) of delicious food. I swear, after eating Christmas lunch followed in quick succession by Christmas dinner, I looked a little pregnant (with a food baby). Ah well, if you can't pig out at Christmas, when can you?

*sigh* The giraffe job (KidzBodz, teaching health at primary schools) has been postponed. The managers were planning to hire me, then replace me for the term I will be in Europe, but apparantly this was a logistical nightmare. Instead, they have made an employment file for me, and promised that if I contact them when I return from Europe, they will get me work, because they love me. Aw. Hope that happens! I am so keen to do this job - dressing up and singing and dancing for little kids? Sounds AWESOME. *ahem* Sorry, let me just compose myself.

Very happy, because when I booked all my train tickets for Europe last week, I forgot to book my return ticket from Paris - London. The sale on Eurostar was supposed to finish Dec 22, but luckily the website had not been updated (ha ha ha) and on Boxing Day I was able to book my train ticket for the special price :) Yay. So soon my tickets should arrive in the mail. How exciting.

It is only two weeks until I go to New Zealand, and about three months until Europe. Seriously, how jealous are you? This is SO exciting!!!!!!!!!! :) I can't wait. Weeehhhh.-

The desensitisation of the Christmas spirit

Have you noticed that Christmas sneaks up on you? When you were little, there was a real sense of anticipation surrounding Christmas, and all the decorations and advertisements only heightened this feeling. But as the Christmas Creep (in which advertising for Christmas becomes earlier and earlier) advances (soon we'll have Christmas adverts straight after the post-Easter sales finish), I am finding myself immune. I have special built in Christmas blinkers.

Christmas is different when you get older. It's not all about the presents (but they are still fun. Don't stop giving me presents!); it's about seeing your family (and spending a fortune in petrol doing so as you drive all over the city); it's about sharing time, gifts and food with your loved ones (and working out how to cook a turkey!?!); and it's about relaxing after the Christmas rush. Isn't that mad? We find that we need the holiday to relieve ourselves from the insanity pre-empting the holiday!

I suggest that some of this insanity is due to the anaesthetising effect of the Christmas Creep. For months there have been Christmas decorations, Christmas sales, Christmas carols in the stores. For months I have been ignoring them. It was only when I coincidentally watched a Christmas episode of a DVD that I realised Christmas was only two weeks away and I hadn't even put up any decorations. I felt so Scrooge-like! Nick has been feeling Christmas-blinkered in much the same way, except that in his case he hasn't had time to finish his Christmas shopping ( I split gift shopping with my siblings, so we have to find a time when we can all shop together, which leads to pretty good organisation to make it happen, preferably early).

This is the seventh Christmas since Nick and I got together; it's the first Christmas we will share in the same city as each other. We've been planning to have dinner together Christmas Eve, and then see friends or Nick's sister. That said, we hadn't made any tangible plans until we realised Christmas was fairly well upon us, resulting in a mad rush to get food (an enormous turkey roll, what will we do with an enormous turkey roll, how do I cook that anyway?!?) and invite people to spend some time with us. Don't even mention the food I haven't yet bought to take to various family gatherings on Christmas day. For all the blatant "Buy this" lines, I have bought very little at all. I have not thought about Christmas sufficiently to organise myself, and now Christmas is a hassle!

Perhaps the Christmas Creep still works on kids, although I doubt it is very effective. Sure, the aim is to make children nag for gifts and sweets. But Christmas advertising used to also make you excited that Christmas, and the associated celebrations and school holidays, were near. When this starts three months before-hand, anticipation can't last. You become blase. Christmas Creep is ruining the thrilling atmosphere of Christmas, and both encouraging and pandering to the me generation who want everything now. These kids don't fully comprehend the joy of sneaking up to the Christmas tree to try and work out which presents are for you. They've been demanding presents for weeks, and it's become boring.

Maybe I'm just getting old. Maybe I am really becoming a 'Bah humbug' kind of person. But, then again, there's a present for me under our 'tree'. It's soft, with a strange harder section I can't work out. Maybe the anticipation of Christmas is still there, after all.

Life is a revolving door

Seriously, what is the deal with revolving doors? I mean those4 elctronic ones which constantly circulate, so you have to get in pace with the door and duck in as it swings by... I am currently temping at a place with a revolving door, but probably 90% of people will walk to the conventional dorrs either side and open them. This got me pondering possible reasons for installing a revolving door:

1/ to discourage terrorist attacks. It's very difficult to burst in brandishing bombs and guns and things when you have to slow down to align your step with the speed of an electronic door. And because they're normally glass, you'll be seen before you can use the element of surprise.

2/ hygiene? Maybe it's better not to touch the doors? I don't know...

3/ you're really busy and don't have time to talk to people, so you have them on high rotation. This way, they're not allowed out of the door, they just call out their greetings as they shuffle past.

4/ to discourage people getting to know each other, by seperating them each into their own door-copartment. This way, when they get to their individual cubicles, they are used to the isolation and don't waste precious work-moments on pointless diversions such as conversation.

5/ as the designer of the door, you are just a nasty eprson who laughs at other people's discomfort; either confusion and panic as they try to enter and exit the door; or nausea as they find it all too much and just keep gong round and round...

6/ it's actually a piece of installation art

7/ the revolving door is a subtle and overlooked artistic metaphor fof life itself, and the neverending inanity we fill our lives with.

Yeah. Deep, huh? I still don't get the point of them.

Concert review(s)

Kylie was spectacular.

Robbie was f*cking awesome.






Oh, ok, I'll say some more. I loved both these shows. People keep asking me which was better, but I think they were such different shows that it's hard to compare.

Kylie was actually A Spectacular (noun, as opposed to adjective)- amazing costumes and dancers and set. You were watching a full stage show, not just a single performer. And the crows were completely flamboyant too, so many people dressed up purty. Kylie's show was emotional because she'd been sick, yada yada, and it was the last of her Homecoming tour in her home town. Aw. Imo and I managed to sneak ourselves up to the stage area for the second half and it was SO MUCH FUN. And I got on the big screen... because I was standing behind flamboyantly dressed people... Still, it seems to be my week for being on screen. Apparently I was on Channel Nine news last Thursday, counting votes.

Robbie's show had the most amazing energy! He is such a performer, the whole time. It was great to jump and shout, and it was such a huge crowd (66,500), so it was fantastic to be a part of. He was also emotional, as he's been touring for 11months or something, and last night was the last show of his world tour. Awesome. My favourite thing about Robbie's music is that it's credible pop music. Robbie is nothing like the boyband stereotype pop singer (even thought he was one, and crows about his boyband past); he's rude, crude and, in his words, 'not a role model.' He's essentially the Anti-Pop. And if a guy like that can write pop music, surely it's fine to like it. He validates his own music. Cool.

Sadly, there was no cross pollination between Robbie's and Kylie's shows (ie either of them gracing the other's concert with their presence), but both of them sang Kids (their duet), Kylie with her sister Dannii (which my sister hated, and my brother loved), and Robbie with a bevvy of backing singers who were not as cool as Kylie.

And that was that. Now I have to work very hard to pay my sister back all the money she lent me to go to these two awesome concerts. *sigh*

Robeeeeeeeeeee

(Yes, also without an i. There is no i in 'eeeeeeeee', is there?!)

Oh my goodness. Now I'm going to Robbie Williams tomorrow night. I owe my sister so much money now... oh dear.

Some might think it ridiculous that I don't have a full time job, and yet am going to two concerts in a row, and have two overseas holidays coming up in the next six months. I would be one of these people. I also find it hilarious. And awesome.

Oh well... after years of living a safe and fairly sedate life, I am taking some financial risks. Good god it's scary! I'll just think of Robbie and Kylie and embrace the warm fuzzy feeling pop music provides. Ahhhh.....

Kyleeeeeeeeee

Weeheeh. I am going to Kylie tonight. I am currently of the opinion that happening upon tickets at the last minute is far more exciting than knowing for months you'll be attending a concert. Shannon had bought tix for a friend to surprise his girlfriend. Surprise was on him- his girlfriend hates Kylie and refused to go. So now I have Kylie tickets on a long term payment plan (thanx Shannon). Weeheeh. I'm particularly excited because I had tickets to her last show before she got sick and cancelled :( But we have awesome tickets, gold 'standing' room (which actually has seating, but we're going to run up and beat all the gay boys to the stage. There will probably be nasty bitch fights. Gay boys fight nasty. Sorry Rob, but you do). Weeheeh.

It'll also be fun to go to work the next morning... oy, starting a three week assignment 9 hours after a pop concert ends. Bad idea.

Madness and mourning

Sometimes I think I may be nuts... (I want NO comments agreeing with that statement please...) I am working 9-5 today, and then hitting the city to work 6-12 recounting votes (Thanks Bracksy). A fourteen hour working day. Yeah, good one Nai. Oh well, all that's on for tomorrow is blood donationin the afternoon, so at least I can sleep in. And then I have two interviews on Friday, so I won't be working then either. Which means today is my only working day this week. Suddenly signing on for fourteen hours work seems financially responsible, not completely insane.

So I've taken to hanging out at the local cemetery. It's not so morbid as it sounds, really. I actually find cemeteries very peaceful, and I love looking at gravestones and stuff. Ok, maybe I'm a little morbid...

I've become fascinated with a huge temple-tomb in the centre of Boroondara/ Kew Cemetery. It is the most amazing tomb I have ever seen- huge columns bearing a massive stained glass arched roof, over a beautiful marble sculpture of the mourned woman, an angel and 'human sorrow'. Poetry and inscriptions in English, Greek and Latin cover the Greek style tomb, two facing mourner's seats, a sundial and a gate. Yet nowhere is the deceased named: all that is listed are her dates of birth, marriage and burial; eerily all falling on January 26, 1867, 1887 and 1897 respectively. I had thought to investigate this site and write a blog about it, but it turns out that, unsurprisingly, someone has already done so. You really should check out this blog, if only for he great pictures of this beautiful structure.

Turns out that Melbourne doctor John Springthorpe commissioned the temple-like structure to mark the passing of his beloved wife, Annie, during childbirth. He spent a huge sum of money casting her image in marble and creatign the surrounding gardens, and the next twenty years of his life actively grieving her passing. You can read more about his obsessive and, frankly, creepy period of mourning in this article from The Age, or get the short of it from this wikipedia entry on the 'Melbourne Taj Mahal'

POSTSCRIPT: I actually worked 17 hours- til 3am! Ugh.

When I was a giraffe

So, I had an interview today for a program called KidzBodz. Do you remember Harold the Giraffe who went around primary schools in the Life Ed Van (when I asked my sister this question, she thought I'd asked if she remembered when I was a giraffe. She doesn't remember when that happened...)? KidzBodz is a little similar- minus the giraffe, sadly, but going to different schools teaching Health Ed stuff. Energetic, fun, set your own hours sort of stuff.

Last minute yesterday I decided to make a slide show of me, as all I knew about the interview was that I'd have fifteen minutes in which to 'sell myself'. Turns out that slap-dash slide show was the best thing I could have done- I have a second interview on Friday, and have been told that I set the bar and no-one else they interviewed matched it, let alone raised it. They also advised me that the Eastern region of Melbourne job was pretty much mine if I wanted it. Woohoo much! So, I'm not counting my chickens, something could go insanely wrong... but I think I'll get an ABN, because I'll need one for this job. Argh!

The interview was out near DFO, so of course I had to go shopping, so I also bought a pair of jeans for not too many $. Yay. And I'm working tomorrow. More yay.

A mish-mash of facts

I feel the need to clarify my working position, as I seem to have confused people. I do not have a job. I was offered a job, accepted it, then thought better of it and quit on the morning of my first day (yeah, they love me there...). I am working temp reception and admin, which means that one of my various temp agencies (I'm with about three hundred now) calls me when they have work. Temp work can vary from a year's work, a month's, a week's or, in most of my recent jobs, a day's. I have worked three days in the last four weeks :(

However, I am enjoying drinking wine on my balcony, a book in hand... I am just cutting into my travel funds to pay for my wine, which is bad.

Considering the threat to my wine supplies, I was hoping to win the enormous kitty in our post-Bond poker game on Friday. Alas, this was not to be. But Nick did win, so he bought me dinner on Saturday. Yay!

Also yay was the fact that we got a few of our friends out to swing dancing at Speigeltent this week. Scatpack, including Nick's and my teachers Noni and Josh, performed, and despite being 37 degrees outside, god only knows how much hotter inside, the afternoon was stacks of fun. Sai has already taken a few swing classes following his previous Sing at Speigel outings with us, and now Paul and Deb are expressing an interest. As a result, we may get a gang together at the CBD location over summer. Yay!

I'm too scared to go outside right now. Last time I was out (a few hours ago) it was supposedly 41 degrees. The smoke haze from the bush fires means there's no direct, piercing sun, but instead the smoke is like a blanket, holding the heat in. It's quite intense, although I imagine it's far worse for the many people affected by the actual fires, not just the smoke.

And to finish on a random note, today I made apple and strawberry pies, and they were yum. That's all!

Selling myself

In interviews, I mean. Have two interviews lined up for next week, which is GOOD :)

The first one is at Deakin, and while it's a permanent role, I won't be insanely overworked like the last permanent job I accepted then changed my mind over. It's only three days a week, which would be GREAT, and I think the $ will be better than stingy international school (VIT).

The next interview is for a program called KidzBodz, which is a teaching program that goes to primary schools and teaches kids about healthy lifestyles- eating, exercise, no drugs, etc. I'd like this one, as it's casual- based on as many schools as I book - and they already know I am going to be away for Term 2, but still gave me an interview. I hope it goes well, it would be lots of fun (they expect you to have drama/ performance experience), and the experience of both working in primary schools and teaching health would be GREAT for my CV.

In other news, tomorrow I am driving to Thomastown to do a reception shift. This is what happens when you only get two days work over four weeks- you become prepared to drive crazy distances for a decent wage. Oh well, at least it'll pay for my 80 meals dinner this week and my ticket to Casino Royale tomorrow night. And my share of the poker kitty afterwards...

Countable nouns: poker chips; plastic soldiers; election ballots

I discovered on Saturday that I'm not bad at poker. At the very least, I'm not bad at poker when the person with many, many chips has to go home and starts betting all in, and others try to bluff to get them. :) I'm probably not the poker queen just yet. I'm also not quite the queen of world domination (I also played Risk for the first time on Saturday), but that was a lot of fun, so I plan to try again at that! I enjoy conquering the world... but the game gets really boring if you get wiped out while plays still going on. Oh well.

I'm also not bad at counting votes. Yesterday I did some work for the Victorian Electoral Commission, counting the data to be given to the data-enterers (of which I neveer had the chance to be a part- there was insufficient workload. Bummer, it would have been good money).

I do not understand why it seems so hard to get temp work right now? It's leading up to xmas, and I am registered with just about every agency you can imagine, but they keep telling me they only have permanent work. It's enough to make a girl look back semi-regretfully at the sucky job she quit at the last minute...

In UPPER news, Nick won Temptation. He's still only got a pen as a prize, but he's coming back next year (while I'm in New Zealand) to win the lot. Right honey? And he was so right to turn down the prize they offered- it was this super fancy shiny big barbecue. Not only did the BBQ look fancy than anything we own, we don't have anywhere to put it. It would fill our whole balcony, although there was a suggestion we could turn the sausages through the window...

I'm also fairly excited about my AP role. Lots of stuff for me to do, most of it the boring admin stuff many would turn their noses up at but hey- it's to do with theatre, so it's THAT much cooler :)

Prioritising

So I made a difficult decision last night: the role at the VIT was looking to be 8.5 to 9 hour working days, with only a half hour lunch break. While I'd be prepared to put in these hours for something I was really passionate about, or for super-duper big bucks, this role represented neither of these.

Considering that the AP role I'm looking at is going to be something I enjoy (theatre), and may require more time than I could have allowed with the long working hours of the VIT role; and considering that I am determined to slot right in to Gen X/Y, and 'work to live' rather than 'live to work', I just rang the dude at VIT and quit. Funnily enough, he didn't sound surprised, just flatly expectant. Nick reckons that's cos he knew he was ripping me off :P

:( Negatives of this decision: I no longer work down the road from Caroline; I won't have guaranteed pay over Christmas, including public holiday pay; I just bought and validated a monthly bloody tram ticket.

:) Positives of this: I just had a bad feeling about this place, and really suspect they were going to work me into the ground; I think I was totally getting ripped off on the salary; I no longer have to feel guilty about quitting a permanent position to go overseas; I won't have to remember not to mention my trip (which is proving most difficult); I will not be working behind a snack machine with tempting chippies, chocolate and Starburst jelly babies; I will earn a better rate working temp than I was going to working full time- realistically sick leave means nothing to me, as I never take time off anyway; I like the flexibility of temp work.

Thanks heavens for small mercies...