Things I'm loving...

  
A long, long time ago (maybe a year or so) I saw a picture of some cute bookends in a magazine and ripped it out.  It eventually ended up in a stack of "paper stuff" that I sorted out recently and when I came across it I gave it to my sister as a birthday present idea (my birthday is in August).

Instead, she surprised me and a parcel arrived today holding these two pretty items...

If you can't tell, its a mouse sitting on a stack of books to the left and a cat peering over the top on the right.  If you love them just as much as I do, you can get a set here.

Very apt seeing as last night my Meow brought in an alive rat and decided to let it run away into the spare room.  I attempted to catch it but when I moved the bag it was hiding behind it jumped over the towel it was supposed to run under so I could pick it up and scared the absolute shit out of me.  I went from a crouching down position to a standing up a metre further away on tiptoes screaming position and my poor tummy muscles, which are still recovering from surgery, gave a great big lurch of ouch. 

So I called MR and had a cry over stupid rats and stupid cats and stupid tummy muscles and stupid no emergency-rat-disposal-flights home from Newman at 10.30pm and then I realised I could call my Dad so I did and he very kindly drove half an hour here to get rid of the rat for me.

So, I'm loving my book ends and my Dad for emergency rat disposal but the Meow is definitely in the bad books!

More loving at Paisley Jade's!
 

Framing it

Now that the old chest of drawers has moved to the craft room, as was planned to happen back in about June last year, I can start to think about how I want to display the bits and pieces I've collected over the years.  I've been playing around with a few combinations.

 

Do I want them in a nice neat line?

 

Or perhaps a bit of a triangle?

 

A cluster?

 

A cluster with a fabric-ed hoop?

It's all just a bit too hard to decide! And of course, first I need to fill the four blue nesting frames and the white scallopped edge one that I got for Christmas.  And find frames for the belle and boo prints and the sewing meow print before I can really work out how to set them up but it is fun playing!

  

 

What sort of shape do you think I should go for?

 

Drenched. Happy.

  

Some people walk in the rain, others just get wet.

- Roger Miller

I love summer rain.  Really, I love any rain, but summer rain is the best to go walking in.  Today I didn't bother with walking though.  I just stood in the backyard and savoured it.  Don't you love the feeling of dozens of big fat plonky rain drops hitting your skin all at the same time?  The assault of your senses with the sound of thousands of raindrops hitting the roof interspersed with loud claps of thunder (that make you jump and almost fall backwards over a chair), that wonderful summer rain smell, the feel as the raindrops hit, causing you to tingle all over.  So invigorating.  You just can't help but feel alive.

 Ok, yes it's our shed.  But look at the rain!

Drenched.  Happy.  Alive.

 

  

  

 

A Year of Good Things

26/366 ::For my soul::

Standing outside in the rain, soaking in the energy.

Today

I am hiding inside away from the heat.  It's a quiet Australia Day for me, MR is at work and I am not at all interested in going out to party.  Most of my friends are childless so that's what they do.  I was just sitting here thinking about how different my life is now to this time last year.

Last year I was looking forward to starting a new job the next day, planning on making new friends and going out lots, house hunting, dreaming big...

The job was great, I did make some friends but I certainly didn't go out lots.  We found a house and the big dreams are still there, just slightly postponed.

So keeping me happy on my quiet Australia Day is

 The neccesity.  It's currently 41.6 degrees here.  Yuck.

 Who can go past an Australia Day without the Hottest 100?

  Every Australia Day the last few years I have thought hrm, I don't have a radio, must fix that but I never have.  So I end up streaming it from my laptop.

 

 A good book to get lost in

 

And a punnet of grape tomatoes to nibble on

  

Happy Australia Day!

What's keeping you happy today?

 

The Art of Nesting

My Meow is the Queen of Nesting.  She doesn't just keep it to one or two places.  And she rotates her favourite spots regularly so none of them feel left out.  This week I am capturing via instagram all the places I find her nesting but I thought I might share all the photos I have of her nesting in different places already.

Baby Meow

Inside Meow

Outside Meow

In other news, how annoying is it that Picnik is closing.  I am pissed! Does anyone have any recommendations for an (easy) online photo editing program to use instead?

 

A toast. Or two..

 
My life has been a bit uneventful of late.  The weather has been hot and muggy so I have been hiding inside apart from doctor's appointments.  I also have a dreadful cough which I think has turned into a bit of a chest infection.  I am on industrial strength, really big antibiotics, along with all my other myriad of tablets but I'm still waiting for the effects to kick in so I can walk from the bedroom to the kitchen without feeling puffed. 


 
I talk to MR on the phone and he asks about my day and I can sum it up in a sentence.  I slept, coughed, read/watched tv.  On a good day it might extend to add a load of washing or a bucket of weeding in the evening.  I have nothing of excitement to blog about.  Blogging provokes thoughts and then come unpleasant thoughts wafting around in my head if I sit too long so I ignore them in a book or a movie.  Good Things are on hold because that would involve leaving the house.  There are only so many Good Things one can do for theirselves or their cat without feeling that the world may just be losing interest.  Of course, I am still doing Good Things for myself and my cat.  Namely sleeping lots (me) and suppling prawns (when I make it to the shops) and lots of cuddles and pats (cat).  I just don't feel that blogging about the same Good Things everyday is a Good Thing for you.  Am I doing a Good Thing by not blogging about boring repetitive Good Things? 

Toast seems to be a popular meal lately.  Lunch is unheard of seeing as I am busy eating breakfast at  that time.  Toast, of course.  Yesterday I was quite proud of myself because I managed two loads of washing, changing the sheets and sorting my fabric stash into the drawers of the tall boy now residing in my craft room.  I do have to admit, these accomplishments were were not single handed.  My sister came over to help out for a few hours.  Although, when she left I then did two buckets of weeding and cooked a proper dinner of chops, mashed potato and veggies.  My goodness, the motivation! 

Unfortunately today motivation and energy have left me.  Maybe I overextended myself yesterday?  It still seems ridiculous that doing so little can be overextending.  Thank goodness I don't have to go back to work this term.  It's 10.40pm and I am yet to have dinner.  It is looking like it will be toast.

Retail Therapy on a Budget

  
Last year I didn't often get out and into the secondhand shops because I never seemed to be out of school before they closed and weekends tended towards quiet time at home (and I'm seeing the trend continue this year, at least regarding weekends).  This year, with the lack of money but much more time, I'm occasionally calling in to a couple on the way home from hospital appointments when I'm in need of retail therapy.  Not working for Term 4 last year and not going to be working Term 1 this year has seen my tighten the purse strings a bit when it comes to retail therapy but some days I am in desperate need to purchase something, sometimes anything, in the attempt for a bit of a mood boost.  So I'm more inclined to head to a secondhand shop than say the local shopping centre where I might be tempted into buying clothes (I very rarely find anything clotheswise I like at secondhand shops and admittedly I hardly ever look for them, being more inclined towards homewares and craft supplies)

Luckily I haven't resorted to buying any old junk yet (although we won't ask MR to comment here), at a pinch a chocolate eclair or a vanilla cannoli will go a long way - a purchase and comfort food all in one, my goodness, hello 10 minutes of happiness.

 This cute decorative glass is a bit like one I eye off in David Jones everytime I go there however it was $2 instead of $89 so it got to come home with me too.

Even though I haven't taught since September, I still can't help myself and $4 for over a metre of fabric in a cute number print was just too good to turn down.  Super Number Star capes for students to wear for the day if they work really hard at recognising their numbers or counting objects perhaps?  I've certainly got plenty of time to sew them!  And the buttons?  Well, I do have a bit of a weakness for pretty buttons.  Especially cheap, pretty buttons.

And this tin was just too cute to stay  behind.  It's not really my style but I'm thinking it might just feature in a destash of crafty supplies giveaway in the not too distant future.  And the doileys speak for themselves really don't they?

 

 

And that was me happy for another week.  Although, I have to admit I did also win an expensive leather bag from a shoe shop and on the way back to the car after picking it up I may have gotten confused gone in the completely wrong direction and stumbled accidentally into Kikki K to buy a diary and oops, Witchery was in my path just across the road on the real way back to the car and they had a sale so I also may have bought a cobalt blue tunic singlet for $20.  Small discrepancies. 



 
Joining in with Flea Market Finds

 

The Great Unveiling

One pretty pile of stitched in ends

So, I'm a bit excited to show you all my first big Finished project, the pink granny blanket.  I've had so many projects on the go for so long and I really do suck at finishing them.  To finally be finished this one is very exciting because it is definitely my biggest craft project to date.  If I remember correctly I started it in November 2010!  Super slack!

Without further ado...

It didn't come out quite as large as I had envisioned but I'm pretty happy with the finished result.  I was a bit lazy and didn't block it, in keeping with my style of never having blocked anything.  I figure if I want to block it later down the track I'll just grab it off my sister.  Hopefully she likes it!
 

Crafternoon

  
Today I had a bit of a sewing afternoon with Sarah.  She came over to my house with her machine and we sat and chatted and sewed and chatted some more, so much in fact that we forgot to eat cupcakes left over from my liver's three month birthday yesterday.  Mainly because I forgot to bring them out.  Oh well.

Instead of starting a new project, I decided to finish off some more WIPs.  The feeling of Finishing Success after the pink granny blanket was not enough, now I needed More! 

So I finished off the table runner that I started back in August.  Not too long in the WIP box for my standards!  I've decided I'm going to leave it at that and not make 4 more placemats.  I really didn't like the linen I used for the projet, it was really slippery and hard to work with.  And afterall, two placemats and a table runner is perfect for me and MR!

I backed it with a slightly odd choice of fabric but my theory was that this way I have two very different table runners. The blue/red/white side for fancy and also I can use it at Christmas, and the tree side for everyday use.  Brownish background so a few spills or crumbs or dust don't show up so much.  And the trees are just so pretty!

And then I got continuing on with a pink Christmas stocking for my sister which is almost, almost finished, except I am up to the lining bit and that always makes my brain hurt so I decided to have a break.  And now it's dinner time and I'm looking forward to watching August Rush on TV, it looks like it has potential!

It was so good having a bit of a sewing afternoon, I really need motivating to do sewing for some reason.  I hardly ever just get out the machine and get sewing.  Having a friend to sew with makes all the difference.  Sarah was working on a quilt top which looked just so lovely I don't think it will be long before I am asking her to help me have a go at making one!  I've left everything set up on the dining room table.  No putting it away just yet.  More sewing tomorrow afternoon after I'm finished with hospital appointments.  Hopefully, anyway!
 

Happy Liversary

Today, or rather yesterday seeing as it's after midnight, my liver had its three month birthday.  It felt like it should be a somewhat momentus occasion, except it wasn't.  MR being away and me staying at home the whole day by myself in my pyjamas.  So I baked it some cupcakes.  Raspberry cream cheese cupcakes.  My favourite.  My liver's too coincidentally.  Actually, it would be nice to know what my liver's favourite cake used to be.  Or  favourite anything.  You know, so I can mark the occasion in proper form. 

Also coincidentally, yesterday Curlypops gave me the heads up about the FilmLife Project as a part of Donate Life Week in February.  So I'm joining in with the Blogger's Challenge.  I'm not quite ready to put my face out there on national everything to talk about it on film.  Small steps.  I'll get there.  It's just still a bit too fresh.  You can join in the blogger's challenge too.  You don't have to have had a transplant, or even know someone who has.  We're all just doing what we can to raise awareness about organ donation.  I wouldn't be here without it.

What’s your take on or experience with organ donation, and why did you choose to take part in the FilmLife Blogger Challenge?

Until very recently, my experience with organ donation was minimal.  A signed consent form saying yes, I'd like to donate my organs when I first got my license.  A discussion with my Dad which didn't convince him that he'd say yes if he ever had to face that decision.  A discussion with my sister to encourage Dad to say yes.  Her telling me likewise.  

Until a day in September last year when I ended up in hospital with advanced liver failure.  You see, I also was diagnosed with Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia in March 2011 and the medication I took for that decided to chew up my liver.  Except I didn't notice.  Apart from feeling a bit more tired than normal I was fine.  And my leukaemia medication caused fatigue and it was the end of term at school so I didn't think too much on it.  Then, I started throwing up my medication within an hour of taking it.  Thinking it a bit odd I went off to my doctor who sent me for blood tests.  The next day I was in hospital.  

I was taken off my leukaemia medication and pumped full of many other medications to try and encourage my liver to regenerate.  Livers are pretty special, they can recover and regenerate from some pretty hard abuse.  Unfortunately, my liver was too badly damaged and within a week the doctors started mentioning words like possible transplant, then definite transplant.  By this stage I was suffering pretty badly from encephalopathy, meaning the toxins my liver could no longer process were affecting my brain and I had gone a little crazy.  I don't remember much of this time and the last two days are pretty much gone but I remember my nurse coming in really early one morning, so excited because they had a liver for me.  I was excited too but I couldn't remember anyone's phone numbers to call and tell them, or how to drive my phone and find them.

I found out afterwards that the doctors had given me about two days to survive with my liver in the state it was in and that I would have most likely have been moved to ICU that day if I hadn't gotten the transplant.  That in itself should be the answer to why I decided to join the FilmLife Blogger Challenge.  I am So Lucky that a liver became available so quickly and So Grateful to my donor and their family for making it possible for me to have another chance at life.  The ultimate gift and one that I can never repay. 

If you were to donate your organs, which one would you love to donate, and why?(nb. this question is intentionally quirky so feel free to be creative and have some fun with it)

I don't know if anyone would want my organs now, presumably if I have leukaemia so do my organs?  I don't know enough about it but it's definitely something to ask the doctors.  But for the sake of quirkiness, let's just say that I can.

I would happily leave my lungs to Curlypops, they don't have a big capacity Cam but they are healthy (minus the leukaemia) and have never smoked a cigarette in their life! Other than than I would love to donate my retinas.  I love reading and could not imagine not being able to do that.  The gift of sight is precious.  And I'd also like to see my new liver go on to another home (if that is possible?) We in the crafty world are all about recycling and vintage and wouldn't it be lovely if my liver could save multiple lives?  The regifted gift that would be guaranteed to be loved at every new home. 

Who in your family would you need to talk to about organ donation, to be sure your loved ones knew your wishes?

My Dad is now a convert to organ donation.  He'd want to be wouldn't he?  Once I find out from my doctors if I still can donate, I'll need to let my Dad, Mum, sister and MR know.  I have no doubt they would all happily sign those forms if the need ever arose.

 
 
A Year of Good Things
15/366 ::For the world::
I added my piece to raise awareness about organ donation.

14/366 ::For my liver::
I baked it some three month birthday cupcakes
 
 
  
Excuse the poor photo quality.  Courtesy of my old iphone which seems more interested in background focus than foreground.  Good thing the thing in the background is so good looking!

Decisions, decisions...

Now that I am Oh-So-Close to finishing the pink granny blanket (I have woven in alllllll the ends (which took a lot less time than I thought it would) and done an edging but decided that I want the edging to be a bit wider so am going to do another couple of rounds before taking final photos) I am starting to think 'what next?' 

I haven't quite worked it out yet but I have narrowed it down to something from one of these books, two of which I received Christmas 2010 and the other Christmas 2011, and all of which I have not made a Single Thing From.  Dreadful!  The other components I have narrowed it down to are a) something which is quick and not too difficult and b) something which does not require much/anything to be purchased.

I know one thing... I am going to have fun deciding!
 
 
 

In other Very Good Thing news - we have bought a matching tall boy (second hand from gumtree, so excited to find a matching one listed!) for its brother in the bedroom so the unmatching old one is going to be shifted to the craft room for fabric and bits and pieces storage.  Craft room Order and Organisation, here I come!  Secondary Good Thing - new display space!  Yay! (The other tall boy in the bedroom has a TV and a playstation on it... very attractive display that)

13/366 ::For the craft room and MR's sanity::
A new set of drawers for the bedroom means an old set of drawers for the craft room.  Time to finally finish setting up the craft room and making it beautiful! (hence easing MR's mind at my insane levels of clutter)

12/366 ::For myself::
I've started to see a kinaeseologist in an attempt to work through my issues (along with the help of counsellors at the hospital) and get my body back in working order.  Fingers crossed
 

At my Grandad's

Today my Dad, sister and I went on a road trip down to Australind to visit my Grandad.  We took lunch down to have with him, roast turkey, salad and bread and butter custard.  I'm not all that close to my grandparents, haven't really ever been as we didn't live very close to them when we were young.  My Nan has passed away now though so Grandad is on his own.  He is really into ham radio and has a 'shack', his own bedroom turned into a completely covered with old radio parts, Radio Shack.  It's quite cute to hear him say, 'Oh, that's in the shack.'  I have to admit though, all he talked about other than his radios was computers with my sister, who is a bit more technologically minded than I am.  So I took a wander of the house, looking at things in quite a different way than to how I used to on the odd occasion that we would visit.  There are some top vintage pieces in there!  Here are some of my favourites, via instagram...

A cuckoo!! I had no idea they had it. 
It is on the wall in a room I never see him in, covered in dust and cobwebs and not wound up.  So sad!  

 

Beautifully crafted granny rug, looks so wonderful spread out on the bed! 
Grandad isn't sure if Granny or Nan made it or if they bought it.

Look at this gorgeous butter dish!  Hand painted in Norway, or Finland, I forget now - no good at remembering these details on the stamp on the bottom!

This little boy and girl set are very cute

 

Carousel horsey tin!  Adorable!

A Year of Good Things
10/366 ::For my Grandad::

I made him a nice big bread and butter custard, his favourite dessert.  And three bowls of leftovers for another day!

All together

Finally!

Just the edging and sewing in the ends to go.

Good Things 9/366

::For myself::

I ate comfort food.  Vanilla cannoli.  Yum.

Find more Good Thing Do-ers here

  

  

Also, thank you to those who commented on my post yesterday.  All your reassurances were much appreciated.  In good news, while I do have to go back on medication for the leukaemia which has spiked from 2% to 16% in a month, I don't have to take the twice a day 3 hours of fasting ones.  Thank god for that.  Once a day tablets and no fasting.  Very relieved. 

I am a hypocrite

  
A total, utter hypocrite.  I don't think it's deliberate.  I am trying to fool myself too.

Do you do that?  Say something in the hope it will be true while in reality you're not quite so sure.

Positivity will get you everywhere.  Apparently.

So why am I here?  What did I do to deserve leukaemia and a liver transplant?  Yes, I totally understand I am really really lucky to have got a liver.  Really lucky.  I get that.  And I am lucky I have a form of leukaemia that is managable.  Non life threatening.  I get that.  I don't need to be told that.  Life is precious and I am alive.  I am lucky.  And I know I have probably The most perfect man in the world who has stood by me through this whole thing without batting an eyelid.  But I knew I was lucky in him already.  I didn't need this to prove it.  And neither did he.

But why me?  I wasn't one of those horrible bitchy kids at school.  I've always tried to be responsible and kind and considerate.  Sure, I've had my moments of meanness.  I'm not perfect.  But what fucked up thing did I do to deserve this?  Why have I been sitting here crying for the past 7 fucking hours?  Great work on the positivity.

And why do I have to feel guilty about wondering why me when I know I'm lucky?  Why can't I just wonder why me in peace?  Why can't I just be like any normal thirty year old wondering why they aren't married and having babies already?  That was the old me.  Back at 29.  Now I have to wonder how my body is going to cope with new leukaemia drugs.  Which interact with my anti rejection drugs.  Back to three blood tests a week.  Oh, and maybe with my heart as well.  ECG's on order before and after starting meds.  And how the fuck am I going to manage to fast for 3 hours a day twice a day.  I like eating.  Really like it.  And babies?  Well who knows.  Not for at least a year say the hepatologists.  Not until the leukaemia is in remission says the haemotologist.  As soon as possible says the oncology gynocologist.  I feel like I'm falling apart at the seams.  Physically and emotionally.

But that's fine.  I'm tough, I can deal with it.  Nothing a cup of cement and a 'harden the fuck up' can't fix right?

Positivity will get you everywhere.

If you can find it.
 

One Word

  
I have been sub-consciously musing over Maxabella's One Word for 2012 idea for the last few days with nothing really coming to me.  Until today.  It just popped into my head.  This is what I need for 2012.

 

to thrive.

my health

my life

our relationship

our garden

our home

This is the year for growth and change, development and improvement, health and love.

Positivity will get you everywhere.

A Year of Good Things


8/366 ::For myself and for Bloggers::
Today has been another day of quiet.  Nap filled to (attempt to) restore energy.  Contemplative of 2012 goals and One Word as above.  Lots of blog reading.  Lots of commenting love.  Surely that is a Good Thing in itself?  Everybody loves comments. 

7/366 ::For some friends::
Yesterday I went to MR cousin's (L) housewarming party yesterday and I organised with MR's direct family (parents/brothers) to go in together to get a Good Present.  L had been talking about how she wanted a nice big frangipani tree to go out the front of their house but of course, a tree is a bit expensive for most people to purchase, including them.  Listening to what people talk about liking so you can get them awesome presents is a Good Thing.  So together we put in and got the biggest one I could find.  The tropical version with pink flowers of course!  It only just fit in my car on the front seat floor.  I had to peer through the leaves when I wanted to turn left!  It's looking a bit windswept here but that's what you get on a windy day!  Do you like my attempt at wrapping?  A cheery yellow (windswept) ribbon around the trunk.  Is it called a trunk when it's that small?  You can't really call it a stem or a stalk?

I just can't help myself...

Tonight I was going to try and go to bed before midnight but I watched Jersey Girl on TV and it left me feeling a bit sad in regards to the whole wife dying business.  Not that I have a wife who died, or a husband for that matter.  But people dying in hospital hits a nerve with me at the moment (apparently, because I'm still teary and the movie ended an hour ago).  It's odd how that happens.  You think, yeah I'm cool with everything, I'm going good, I'm getting better, life is great-ish and then you see/hear/smell something that brings back not so cool memories and all of a sudden life is not so great-ish anymore and you are a sookybum.  Well, that's how it works in my world anyhow.  And I was the sick one.  I can only imagine what it would be like to be on the other end of the stick and how all those worries would come flooding back after watching that movie.  Especially seeing as I had no idea what it was about.  I saw Liv Tyler was in it and I thought, oh yeh, I could watch that while I work on this blasted pink granny rug which I am truly beginning to be considerably annoyed at for taking so long to finish.  I think Liv Tyler is very beautiful, and Ben Affleck has his moments of appeal as well. 

So instead of going to bed and feeling sad, rehashing my hospital stay and not being able to sleep, I'm going to do my Flea Market Finds post for tomorrow, which is now today but I haven't slept yet so it is still yesterday.  If you catch my drift.  I haven't joined in a Fleak Market Finds for a very long time, so it's nice to be back with some second hand goodness.

Not working at the moment means I shouldn't really be spending money.  Things are going to be a little bit tight this year and I have been trying to keep that in mind but well, the title says it all.  Especially when they are such gorgeously covered old sewing books.  And only $3.60 each!  How could I resist?  Really!

Hopefully I will be able to use them to make clothes that actually fit and that I'll actually wear.  That would be nice.  But I'd have to get my sewing machine out first.  Still waiting for that motivation to strike!

I also picked up a couple of old pillowcases and a patchwork magazine with a quilt I sort of like the idea of.  MR's Mum has offered to make us a quilt if I find a pattern I like and choose the fabrics.  I am not letting go of an offer like that!  She offered a couple of years ago but I am yet to see a pattern I like in its entirity. 

Where do you get your quilting patterns from?  I think it is time to start looking in earnest rather than just keeping an eye out!


Head over to Sophie's for more second handery!
 

Odd things that gross you out

The only picture I could think of that
wouldn't be totally disgusting

I have been religiously oiling my scar with Bio Oil, Dermatix and now Vitamin E oil daily, twice most days.  I wonder if its best to stick to one type of oil?  I don't want to risk missing out on the super scar remover oil, whichever one it may be so I'm just rocking them all.  Plus, the Dermatix is expensive! $60 for a finger sized tube. And it is very sticky so it only goes on at night when I can walk around with my singlet folded up around my boobs for an hour or so.  Thank goodness it's Summer!  And apologies for the lovely imagery I've left you with there.

So anyhow, onto the odd stuff that grosses me out.  Belly button fluff.  I cannot stand it.  It is Deeeesgusting.  MR gets it a bit, generally blue from his blue singlets.  Yuck.  It really does gross me out quite a bit.  After my operation my belly button (which is normally as round as round gets) was squashed shut and I was quite paranoid that it would be full of yukky stuff.  And now, with all the oiling of the scar, my belly button is collecting fluff and turning it into soggy mush. Gross!

The other odd thing that makes me squirm is other people's feet.  Particularly male feet.  Male feet in my experience are smelly, dirty, unmaintained, scraggly nailed things.  Yuck.  But I wouldn't really want to touch a strange (or familiar, unless it is my own) foot either.  And the odd thing about that is that I worked in a shoe shop for five years.  And I had the anti other people's feet thing before I worked there!


So I'm interested, at this ungodly hour in which I should be asleep, in what grosses you out.  Not the normal things like spiders and snakes (which totally gross me out too - the way snakes move - eugh!) but the odd stuff.  Stuff that maybe isn't gross or disgusting really but it SO is to you.

A Year of Good Things

  
As you may have noticed, I have joined in with Pip's endeavour to do A Year of Good Things.

And really, this post is just to rave on about how truly awesome it is!  I have been planning Good Things to do in my head and getting all excited about them.  I am Miss Do-Gooder-to-the-Max

Of course, I've always tried to do good things and be a nice person but some days I'm sure I would have missed due to be Major Crankypants or Miss Sookybum or just because I didn't leave the house.  Actively planning Good Things makes me feel happy so Crankypants and Sookybum me are minimised (always a good thing)

Today I did all sorts of awesome Good Things.  I couldn't just stop at one.  I did the one thing I had planned but then I just kept going.  I was paying my parking ticket at the hospital (again, I'm sure I should have an allocated bay with my name by now) and the lady next to me didn't have enough change for her ticket (hospital parking is ridiculously expensive) so I gave her $1.40.  And then on my way to the shops I was a Good and Nice Driver and let people in four times (they all thank-you-waved, people are learning)  And on my way home I let the windscreen washer at the traffic lights person do my windscreen.  He looked like he wasn't having a good day and seeing as I was after all the Good Things I thought why not help him out too.  Good Stuff is TOTES AWSE! (I feel so old typing that because I would so never say 'awse' aloud)

It's so nice to do Good Stuff without expecting anything in return.  Think of all the good karma going around Australia at the moment with people doing Good Things left, right and centre.  I will happily receive a dose of good karma in the form of settling in to my new Leukaemia medication easily and without too many side effects.  Fingers majorly crossed.  Apparently I might have to go back on it at the end of the month.  I was hoping for another month or two off it.  Stupid leukaemia medication.  I am quite anti it now, even though I know it will save my life, I am dubious because it tried to kill me once already.  So I am suspicious.  And wary.  And quite unenthused about it, even though it will be a different type to the one I was on that chewed up and spat out my liver.  My haemotologist appointment is on Monday so keep your fingers crossed for me as well!


A Year of Good Things

6/366 ::For myself::
I was lucky enough to win a $150 gift voucher for Rebel Sport from the lovely ladies at Alice Becomes just before Christmas and I spent it today on some motivating exercise stuff.  A Zumba package with hand weights, a fit ball and some exercise shorts and pants.  Getting fit here I come! (Just a bit slowly and Zumba might have to wait a few more weeks...)

An Excerpt of my life, right now...

  
 The other day I looked after MR's nephew B.  I was so excited to spend the afternoon with him because he is one cool kid and also because I've really missed little kids since not working since September!

We started off by going to a local aquatic centre which had a big water slide.  B was a bit nervous at first so I had to go too with him on my lap, then next to each other holding hands, then just next to each other and then right behind him before he was brave enough to go by himself.  He loved it though, I reckon he spent about 30 minutes on it by himself while I did some walking laps in a waist deep pool next to the slide while watching him.

Afterwards, the plan was to go home and have dinner but when B asked what was for dinner and I replied sausages he asked ever so nicely 'Do you have any fish fingers?' so we stopped in at the shop to pick some up.  And a very late afternoon tea treat.

Of course, while at the shop B saw the very cool playground across the road so we stopped in there on the way home.  It had adult bottom sized swings so I was very happy.  Nothing quite like a good swing! 

Naturally, I had to get a bit creative with dinner.  B saw purple carrots at the shops and asked what they were so we got one to try.  He was very brave and ate the carrot nose all up.

 

 

 Today I started back at Liver Gym after the break and it was nice to come home and feel inspired and a little bit energetic.  I decided that if I wanted to get all my crafting underway and get some of those WIPs finished then I really needed to begin to tidy the craft room.  I say begin because it was an absolute pigsty.  The whole floor was literally covered with things that had been dumped there to get them out of the way for visitors at Christmas and the door has been firmly closed ever since.  So after a few hours, a lot of stuff in the recycling bin and two bags of stuff for the good sammies bins it now looks like this. 

Still a bit of a way to go... 

I was quite pleased because it worked in with my New Years resolutions.  Organise house and recycle more.  As well as the crafty goals because you can't do any crafting when you can't set foot in the door!
 
 

 
A Year of Good Things
5/366 ::For a stranger::
At the hospital today I left my change in the parking ticket machine after paying.  Only $1.20 but finding money is always nice and cheering people up who are visiting people at hospital is definitely a Good Thing!