awkward city

Have come across an awkward situation. What advice to give to a someone who has realised that they 'like' one of their close friends. A story old as time right? I'm thinking the answer to the question is that the friendship which already exists is more important than the "Great Perhaps" and regardless of what happens the friendship will be gone... at least in its current form. Best option is to suck it up and ignore the situation until it disappears for the sake of the friendship. That relationship already exists and is solid so there's no point jeopardising it for a maybe... 

http://pinterest.com/pin/224687468882017216/

It's a big day tomorrow

Tomorrow is a big day for my class mates and I. We're starting our second practicum in schools across the city. This is the 5 weeks of the year that sort the men from the boys... it's where we really know if we want to be teachers or not and also when we REALLY know if it's likely to happen or not. So right now I'm sitting here just a lil bit (read A-LOT) nervous. Hahahahaha. I know it's going to be fine and the things that I'm stressing about are the things that are going to be awesome but reality is the last thing that is going to help in this situation.

I guess the nerves are good? They mean that I am thinking about and considering the requirements of what I'm doing and giving it due respect? That sounds right. Oh well. My motto is 'Fake it till you make it' and it's served me well in the past. Tomorrow I shall make sure I look fab and simply do my best with what I get.

It's funny. I went into the year just planning to go to class and go to practicum and be done with it but I've actually made some friends that I am going to miss while I'm away from University! When you spend so much time with people and stress out with them and see geek movies with them, they get under your skin and become a part of your day. Oh well, lucky we have face book and text messaging :-)

SOOOOO Fingers crossed for us. Good Luck to Us. May the force be with us. May the children not eat sugar and may they not get nits or other gross things that they pass on to us AND may we all kick ass and be our totally awesome selves.

Bring it ON! ... now what am I gonna wear????

;-)

Procrastination moi? ... yes OK definitely moi...

Here's a random pic of me feeding Nakuru at the zoo this summer. Such an awesome day. OhMiGosh. It was a zoom tour that my mum gave me for Christmas and I got to feed the lions and pat the Rhino. I was on cloud 9 for about a week. Who would have thought that the Rhino would have been cuter than Nakuru? Not me but he really was awesome. I don't have any pics of me that are particularly great with him so I'm not gonna post them...

Why am I posting this pic of Nakuru's cute face right now? ... well.. um... no real reason. It's a great way to get my assignment finished right?? hahahahaha. I am procrastinating so hard this afternoon. 

I'm trying to impress my friend Mike and actually be organised and get my assignment in early so that I can start my placement on Monday with one less stresser. The placement is gonna have more than enough stress attached. I have one assignment done and good to go but let me tell ya dance education is not exciting. Not even a tiny little bit exciting. *yawn*

OK fine. I will get off the internet (except for spotify) and finish this assignment. I am thisclosetodone! just hit a wall. 

I will show Mr M that I CAN pull it together occasionally. 

:)

This is not an ad just ... well.. I love them ok ???!!!???

Sitting in my own comfy chair outside the shop because I was so early

Almost ready for their fans...

Last night I went back to the free yoga classes at Lulu Lemon @ Britomart.

I haven't been for so long that I wasn't sure how I would go but it wasn't too bad at all. I adore Lulu Lemon for providing these classes. I completely understand that it's win-win-win for them and a great business decision but the fact is that I cant afford to go to yoga class and their choice to do this means that I get to experience it.

The staff at this particular store are sooooo cool. They are very skilled at their jobs and really make you feel like they just want you to participate and that they only sell this stuff coz they want to make your life better! They're lovely and really happy to show you stuff and give advice. LOVE THEM.

The classes are run by instructors from different studios around the city so they get to come and advertise which is fine and because the class is free and soooooo packed out they tend to stick to the job at hand and simply work you out rather than hitting all of the notes that you might get in a normal class.

I love how I feel after a really hard yoga class but I am yet to find a way to make the buzz last. All of the people I've met who do yoga regularly from students to teachers to sales staff are all so lovely and of that uber-healthy and majorly perky ilk. Normally those kind of people make me uncomfortable but with the yogis not so much. I tend to find more motivation and things to aspire to when I'm hanging in that world. whodathunk!!! 

My goal is to one day have enough money to actually buy something non-edible in Britomart and I think I shall begin with a Lulu lemon yoga mat! LOL. I may be a touch brain washed but what can I say... results don't lie! 

Now, as I said, I just need to find a way to make the buzz last past the bus ride home... 

Yep. Today I called an old man a jerk.

Yep. So much for keeping it classy. Today I was sitting in my favourite cafe at the bottom of town just about to tuck into my post math test treat and I get engulfed in clouds of smoke.

It's one of my major bug-bears with people. If you want to smoke that's your decision by MY decision is not to SO don't be so selfish as to negate my choice by blowing your disgusting second hand poison all over me. Just THINK for a second about where you sit and where you blow that crud. 

I am certainly not very proud of the fact that I made a big deal about picking up my things ... including a full coffee and moving out of my awesome armchair in the sun to the other side of the open space at a table in the shade and called the man a jerk as I passed. He was being a BIG JERK but I wasn't particularly grown up or classy either. I think I made other people a little uncomfortable so how embarrassing is that! UGH

Number one cafe on Queen street is awesome. I love the staff there and the coffee rocks and the music is generally outstanding. I would love to pinch their Ipods! BUT they have no alternative to sit apart from the smokers and this is such a pain in the ass. It happens ALL THE TIME so perhaps I need to find a new fave place to enjoy my caffeine for every body's sake. *SAD FACE*

Or you know ... find out where they sell those mythical chill pills.

Someday Someday Maybe

After my Gilmore Girls mini marathon on Saturday I was excited to dive into Lauren Grahams debut novel. It didn't disappoint in the slightest. I really really enjoyed this and all the more so because the personality and voice of the author really comes through and as I was reading it I was imagining her narrating. It was very cool for the fan-girl in me :-)

The story of a young college grad trying to become an actress in New York isn't particularly original in itself but I like this take on a character that feels like she's almost there... like her break is so close you can feel it, even if pretty much for the duration of the story she has set back after set back and nothing really good happens. As a reader you get the impression that Frannie is beautiful and talented but not really aware of it and that she is somehow lacking in the  self promotion and cut throat gene department. She doesn't really seem 'hard' enough to make it.

As much as I enjoyed the story the only thing I would have liked to see is a little more grit. It's all very wholesome and clean and easy. A bit of .. 'something' might have jazzed it up a bit. Perhaps an actual sex scene instead of simply alluding to the fact. A little more attention to the grungy nature of her surroundings instead of throwing a line here and there about how it's 'dangerous out there'.  A little struggle would certainly have made it more authentic. I would almost say that the lack of this sort of content would make this an ideal transition book between the YA section of the Library and the Adult section.

Also, and this deserves its own paragraph, DAN.  I love that character and if you're going to write this kind of book why not go all in and give the readers the complete ending that they're after. Just sayin....

I could see this as a movie. Frannie is Ashley Benson or Jordin Sparks or Hilary Duff.  Maybe Anna Kendrick for her best friend ... or Rebel Wilson or Khloe Kardashian. Hmmm lets see... Dan Radcliffe or Harry Shum or perhaps Adam Brody as Dan?  FUN. I should so be a casting person. LOL

I must put in a quick note about this beautiful cover! LOVE IT. It's so pretty and sets the tone really well for the story. The hard, grey bridge and the hopeful girl in the bright jacket with her arms outstretched taking it all in... LOVELY - and she gets a cover note from some pretty awesome people! (I'm talking about you Meg Cabot..)

Keeping in mind that this is a debut I will give it 4/5! It's not perfect BUT it is a really enjoyable read that gives you what you want it to. I cant wait for the next book from the author and I know that they will only get better and better. 

Happy New Year

As of yesterday I had been 35 for 7 days!!! High time to make my new years resolutions. I am .. or rather I have been quite the fan of making goals and writing them up all pretty and then forgetting they exist. Perhaps this will be another of those moments but my situation is quite different now. I have the chance to really have a career and settled, grown up life starting and perhaps this time these goals will stick.

I have read that when writing goals it's good to create them in the present tense so here goes...

1. I am attending one yoga class a week and practicing 3 times a week at home.
2. I am working hard on my semester 2 classes and practicum tasks. I am passing all of my papers.
3. I am eating 3 meals a day
4. In 2014 I have a great job in a good school. I am doing well and my class are a well oiled machine.
5. In 2014 I am saving hard for my trip to Canada at Christmas. 
6. In 2014 I am living in my own apartment.

and ... well I have never really put this one down on any list because it's not something that I really believe you can quantify or even choose. I feel like it's something that chooses you when the time is right but

    7. I am dating a cool guy who is a little older than me. He is really smart. 

       He has traveled and has a job and a life.... and perhaps a puppy! LOL

;-)

Two marathons on one day...

Today my American friend and I visited Martha's Backyard which is a store  that stocks American junk food as you can see in the pic of my haul above. There was also a lil packet of Cheetos .... 

It's not that we don't have good junk food here but some of these things hold special memories. I had a most inappropriate reaction to a box of Cinnamon crunch cereal the first time I went there after I got back from Canada. I miss sitting watching a movies with a dry bowl of those things! I think that's the appeal of most of this stuff. The memories attached. I mean North America you make some disgusting junk food! LOLOLOLOLOL

We took our sugar and chemicals home and had a Gilmore Girls marathon. Well it was only 4 episodes but awesome none the less. I still love every episode of that show. Though it's amazing how much time can amplify how annoying Loralai was. I mean Love the woman but gees she needed to get a grip!

 ;P

True that

The best comfort food on a rainy evening

I am so amazingly happy that it's Friday night! Wow this has been a long week and I have to say it's a wee bit scary how much of a blur that it's been. This course is so overwhelming! My Gosh it's so all encompassing that it's hard to take a breath at times. Still we're almost half way done .. WOOHOO!

The weather has turned and while it's still warm pretty much we have RAIN. LOL after the long drought it's hard not to enjoy it ... just a lil bit. This time of year is when I start to enjoy food again! winter food is awesome and my fave thing to do is hop off my first bus at the central transit station and head to Ramen Daikoku where they sell fast and tasty Japanese fare. 

I have no idea what they do but those Japanese chefs have some kinds of awesome alchemy. The meat is so amazing and to this day I have no idea what they do to the deep fried things that stops them being oily! It's all sooooooo good. I love this restaurant because they are so fast and it's hard to find such delicious food in such good portions for the price in Auckland. I really enjoy the Karaage Don and the Katsu Don but at this time of year I crave a bit of this

Curry and rice. MMMMMMmmmmmmmmmmmmm Oh So Good and served in such a portion that you don't need to eat anything else that night. It's cheap and to top off all the awesome you don't eat it with chop sticks.

:-)

A fab birthday :)

I had such a great 35th birthday. Low key and entertaining :)

It started with this

My first ever Star Trek thing! 

I'm not exactly sure what to think. I mean it was technically a great movie. Awesome graphics and amazing acting. Actually I didn't expect the great acting. That Zachary Quinto and Benidict whatshisname who played the bad guy were A-MAY-ZING. I could tell that there was just so much back story and information that I didn't have so it was a little hard to keep up or to really engage with it but still.... I guess I enjoyed it....

After the movie it was home to relax and get all dolled up before heading into town for dinner.  We went to Elliot Stables 

Sadly I didn't take any pics but we were here at the nicest food court in the world! It's so cool and I like to imagine very European :) It's awesome because each person in your party can eat something different and it's all amazing quality.

My friends were so lovely. Phillipa and Janelle were first and then came Mr Mike who had come all the way there with a migraine in order to stay for 10 minutes and go home! That's keeping your word!! Next up was the lovely Hue and Elaine with Calvin and Awesome Angela and finally Fleur joined us.  So many personalities on one table. I really wish I had thought to take some pictures!!!

After eating we went here for a drink or two

Fort Street Union is such a cool place! I don't get out much ... really, I don't so this was a great find. Cutest place and nice n clean which is always a bonus. It was crazy expensive.. I mean really $9.50 for a Bacardi and coke?? Uber-unnecessary! Still, a little later the DJ fired up and we got to dance to this

and this

and this

and this

hehehe SO FUN. The DJ didn't even mix the crap outta them as they usually do so it was extra awesome. By midnight the place was really starting to be over run with drunk 18 year olds so we decided that we were old enough to realise that we'd had a great time and really didn't need to stick around at that point so went home happy.

Today I am also coming to understand a new truth ... a 35 year old should not have more than 2 drinks!! ARGH the hangover. LOL. Actually it wouldn't have been that bad if I hadn't already been sick but I DID regret that second Bacardi n Coke when I tried to get up to call my mum for mothers day... nah .. not really. I had a fantastic time so it was worth it.

I am starting the year feeling lucky to live in this city and exceedingly great-full to have so many amazing friends and family in my life. GO MEEEEEE

:-) 

True that

On my last night of being 34 I am...

 

 On my last night as a 34 year old I am reading this book.

I'm not a particularly new age-y type of person but I do believe in karma and getting back what you put out. I believe that things happen for a reason and that you create your reality and that everything is connected. These are all things that Jack Canfield will never fail to make you think about and put into action.

A few months ago I was really on the right track. I was going to yoga and eating correctly for all of the intolerance's I seem to have developed but then the wheels fell off! Tonight I am stressed out, eating a packet of chocolate biscuits and feeling sick! ... well I actually am kinda sick but not the point. I was really into my course and motivated to become a great teacher but honestly tonight not so much.

* So for 35 I hope that I can find a goal that feels really right and motivate myself to work towards it. I do think that education is what I should be doing and kind of what I was born to do so ... 'cowboy up' I guess.

*I know that I feel so much better when I eat to what my body can deal with so there's that. I cant believe how much I need to go back to the free yoga classes at Lulu lemon. They really changed my life! how incredibly bizarre to say that and actually mean it! 

*Lately I really miss Edmonton and by this time next year I would really like to be close to purchasing my tickets to spend Christmas there.  

I really like the Chinese philosophy of starting a new year on the best foot possible so I tonight I shall do a load of Laundry, clean my room and of course read some bits of this book.  :)

Bring it on 35 

The saddest day

Today my lovely friend lost her mother to cancer. What a sad and horrible day!  I've never met my friend or her mother as I met her on Twitter and she lives in my old stomping grounds in Canada.

My heart still aches for her though. Her announcement got me to thinking about how we process things like this. Firstly how awesome that she can make the announcement once via Face book and the chances are that all of her friends will know and she wont need to keep saying "my mum died".

Below is what I wrote on her wall :

 I was just reading your post again & I really wanted to just say that I hope you do, as you say, honour her by celebrating all the time you did have and all of the amazing that she was. Those things never go away and in time I hope that you can keep honouring her by living up to the example she left for you. That's what Kia Kaha means - to stand strong, to have a strong heart ..... and I know you do Turnip  and for those times when you just don't or you just cant there are so many people both near and very far who can do it and be it for you. You got a lot a love lady

I have a quiet goal to one day become a celebrant. I would like the opportunity to make

 times like this less painful in some way for the people left behind. The above encapsulates my take on the situation. That we need to accept the loss and honor the person who has gone on without us. That the best way to carry on is to live well and in a way that our loved one would be proud of. There's a song on the radio right now by The Script called "if you could see me now".  The line that gets me every time is "Would you stand in disgrace or take a bow if you could see me now?" - for me I tend to think about my Grandfather and it really does determine how I make choices and I hope that my sweet friend will also be able to feel her mum around her and live her life to the fullest so that her mother is up there taking a bow for the wonderful woman she left behind. 

I guess there's not actually a correct philosophy or a right way to grieve or live when you loose one of the most important people to you. We all process differently but the idea that we should make our loved ones life mean something in the grand design by using the influence they had upon us to live well and make our own mark on the world is the most positive that I can think of.

True That

http://pinterest.com/pin/224687468880515173/

So Much AWESOME :)

This song is so fab

so happy and colourfull

Love LOve LOVE

:)

The last few weeks

(l-r)* Mt Maunganui Beach (my fave place in the world)

*Lone Star Tauranga tribute to Elvis

*Mt beach

*Surfer statue @ Mt Shops

*Mt Bar

*Library bar @ the Mt???? 

*Astrolabe

*My adorable nephew

*The train mercifully empty on a Monday morning

(l-r) *attended the documentary film festival with my friend Michael. Great and very thought provoking doco on American media.

*got a new cell!! yay

*read this 'The Rosie project' Couldn't appreciate it fully as the protagonist could never be anybody but a slightly better adjusted Dr Sheldon Cooper....

*Gala night at the theatre = free glass of wine!

*saw a show with my dad. "Wife after death" at the Dolphin theatre in Onehunga. Would have made a great novel perhaps.....They should stick to Shakespeare. Its something they do phenomenally well.

*drought = broken

*I totally cooked a yummy miso-ish soup. 

*Girl Guide biscuits are a right not a privilege!

(l-r) *Starbucks. busy busy always moving but it still takes so long for my tall soy latte!

*Sparkle cowboy at the Gow Langsford Gallery

*Andy Warhol #1 @ Gow Langsford

*Painted windows by the Library

* Love the new All Blacks in their Suit and tie adverts! They're finally interesting to me!!! Could watch them shop all day :P

*Andy Warhol #2 @ Gow Langsford

*Iron Man 3. No words to explain the awesome. Go See IT!!!

Three slices of awesome

Gosh it's hard to keep up with the intended posting schedule when I've actually been out and about seeing and doing a bunch of blog worthy things. I guess its always the right choice to do it rather than report on it. Rather than have one post that takes an hour to read I am about to do a couple of broken up ones to log in all the awesome from the last couple of weeks starting with two programs on television and one movie I saw that I just love so much and wish everybody could see and experience... 

I missed a bit of this one but 'The New Normal' is just about perfect television. Its funny and modern but behind all the stereotype characters there is a smart and completely adorable show that is developing more depth as it goes on. I watched the episode about choosing god parents for the baby last night and spent most of it smiling like a dork and going Awwwwwww. This show ROCKS :)

My favourite friend is back. Mathew Perry isn't playing 'Chandler' in this one but that's not to say the characters are completely different. Perhaps if Chandler had been a self centered sports radio guy and Monica died in a horrible accident one day then this might have happened in Friends world. I love this show for all of the nutty characters who are treated with sensitivity but their eccentricities are not pandered to. I love that Ryan is evolving and that he is actually a lovely guy under it all and most of all I just think that this show is so charming and lovely.... it's hard to put into words but it's a real grower and if you watch more than one episode you're bound to be hooked.

Now this isn't a perfect pic but it is most certainly a perfect movie. I don't say that easily. In fact I may be almost impossibly hard to please when it comes to capturing my movie dollars but I saw this and ... it's perfect. Nothing else to say. Iron Man 3 has EVERYTHING and EVERYTHING is done impeccably. I just don't have enough words to be more articulate than that. Go See This Movie if you haven't. So So So So good! 

*the one thing that does surprise me about this movie is that Robert Downy Junior and Vin Diesel now have something in common! They both have franchises that get awesome after the first one :) whodathunk!