Hoxton Girl

No I haven’t finally found somewhere to live, but I do absolutely love this new range from Next. As grumpy as I am that they have their Autumn Catalogue out already, don’t you just love this outfit?

Pain and hospitals and such

For some reason today unemployment and living in another country have weighed me down today and I haven’t quite gotten out of my PJs yet.

What has helped considerably is this wonderful website I just discovered and the story of the The Party reminded me of my surgery last month. Yep, I had surgery in June, after an ambulance admission at the start of the month. Something was up with my kidneys, unfortunately despite gamma camera tests, surgery where they stuck a scope up into my bladder and further and numerous x-rays I still actually don’t know what was going on.

Anyway… I was just reminded of how much fun it must be to be a recovery room nurse and watch everyone high off their faces. Well, fun or incredibly boring day after day.

What I remember from the drug-induced haze was waking up by sitting bolt upright in bed and scaring the crap out of the nurse watching me. He he, that was sort of funny. I was having really good dreams though so I was just pissed that I’d woken up from them and I was in pain to boot.

I then proceeded to have perfectly logical, normal rational conversations with the nurses taking care of me about rude words in Tagalog. I may or may not have told them various words for vagina that are the same as other words that are perfectly normal in Maori.

I also tried to explain that I was normally that crazy and I wasn’t having that conversation just ‘cos I was high.

I think they believed me.

We also discussed visiting the Philippines and I waxed lyrical on Borocay like I’ve actually been there.

They seemed to pile me into a wheel chair and get me out of there with lightening speed. I wonder why.

Also Allie from Hyperbole is a genius who came up with a new pain scaled (you know how they ask you the moronic questions about where your pain is at from 1-10?

0:  Hi.  I am not experiencing any pain at all.  I don’t know why I’m even here.

1:  I am completely unsure whether I am experiencing pain or itching or maybe I just have a bad taste in my mouth.

2:  I probably just need a Band Aid.

3:  This is distressing.  I don’t want this to be happening to me at all.

4:  My pain is not fucking around.

5:  Why is this happening to me??

6:  Ow.  Okay, my pain is super legit now.
7:  I see Jesus coming for me and I’m scared.

8:  I am experiencing a disturbing amount of pain.  I might actually be dying.  Please help.

9:  I am almost definitely dying.

10:  I am actively being mauled by a bear.

11: Blood is going to explode out of my face at any moment.

Too Serious For Numbers:  You probably have ebola.  It appears that you may also be suffering from Stigmata and/or pinkeye.

 

Let me just say if you ever experience Renal Colic (ie, kidney stones or similar) you will probably feel like a 10, but maybe say 9 if you’re optimistic like I am. I’m pretty sure I would have rather been mauled by a bear than wait as long as I did to get effective pain killers in me.

Mind you, most people with renal colic don’t walk back from the run they’re on when the pain starts, jump in a bath thinking that’ll fix it, then drive 3 hours back to London (my friend yelled at me and threatened to leave me behind when it looked like I was going to puke in his car from pain… I just talked myself into being fine after that), then catch a bus to a drop in centre (not an actual hospital) and then have to wait my turn by a nurse to be seen and then get loaded into an ambulance to drive 20 minutes to the nearest hospital and then not get given effective pain relief as flippin codeine makes me sick and I’m still waiting for someone to figure out what the heck is wrong with me on what is probably the busiest night of the year in the hospital.

Trust me you sort of want to punch annoying people who just got drunk and fell over or scream BEFORE the needle even goes near them when you’re in that much pain!

 

 

99 things

I found this sort of fun list and as I haven’t been very inspired to blog late thought I might complete it, it’s a little too North American for my liking… but hey, blogging is sort of North American too. Kiwis don’t like putting that much out there. There are things I WANT to do as well so could be good to refer back to this. I have typed in bold for the ones I’ve done.

I have to admit it’s cool that Paris is such an achievable place to visit right now. I’m going soon!

1. Started your own blog – this is my 2nd blog now

2. Slept under the stars – on fourth form camp – only real memory was how lovely it was and how I woke up coved in dew

3. Played in a band – Symphonic band count? I played in a regional representative group.

4. Visited Hawaii – well the airport, in the days that Air NZ had to stop in Honolulu on the way to LAX. Thank God that is no more, Auckland to LAX is only 11 hours on the way there and I prefer to just get it over with.

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity – yes, I used to be a little ‘silly’ with my giving. Well, probably the giving was fine, I just wasn’t saving much. 

7. Been to Disney World – with a sweet lovely man too. Good test of personalities I say.

8. Climbed a mountain – yes, hey, I’m from NZ there are a lot of mountains. NOT a huge one though. I actually lived halfway up a mountain in Wellington for 18 months. Buns of steel developed! Ha, not really.

9. Held a praying mantis – I’m sure I have

10. Sang a solo – for everyone’s ears I would like to think I haven’t, but I have on Singstar

11. Bungee jumped – never, no way

12. Visited Paris  - soon soon!

13. Watched a lightning storm – in Sydney they are amazing.

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch – cardmaking is pretty self/internet taught for me

15. Adopted a child – how would one do this??? I wish… unlikely it’ll ever happen though in the countries I can live in

16. Had food poisoning – probably… still not sure if the vomiting bug I had in April was from Nigerian food or just a bug… put it this way, any traditional African food isn’t appealing much these days after seeing it again at 1am. 

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty – you can’t do that right?

18. Grown your own vegetables – yep, miss my little vege patch

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France – Paris… soon…. I promise

20. Slept on an overnight train – hmmm….. overnight coach, never the train. Would love to do it on a fancy one in a place like India actually

21. Had a pillow fight – I’m sure I have

22. Hitch hiked – never. But I have picked them up once.

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill – it’s called a Mental Health Day in NZ (unofficially). He he.

24. Built a snow fort – nope, never really been around snow that much. Certainly not as a child.

25. Held a lamb – how many lambs should I count????  

26. Gone skinny dipping – went in February with my friend at the beach at 6pm at night on the quiet beach! It was liberating. Our white asses were probably visible to everyone walking above though.

27. Run a Marathon – aim is to run 10km this year.

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice – not top of my list, it seems very touristy in Venice and tourists in Europe are my current bug bear after dodging them all day in London today.

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset – too many to count. Best sunset was in the Keys. Loved sunrises when I was shift working in Wellington.

31. Hit a home run  - ha ha ha, softball not my strong point.

32. Been on a cruise – nope, need someone to do that stuff with.

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person – nope

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors – I’m in the UK, so yep…. drove briefly in Wales just need to go to Ireland and Italy now. 

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught yourself a new language – teeny bit of Spanish… teeny

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied – I am happy but really broke right now.

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person (i’ll have to scan the pictures and post them one day) – it’s really near where my Italian family are from. I will go soon.

39. Gone rock climbing – only abeiling

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David

41. Sung karaoke – I’m sorry to all the dogs in a 100km radius

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt – nope but seen the Pohutu in Rotorua.

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant – oh gosh I need to do this oneday.

44. Visited Africa – have a wedding invite to there in December….

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight – many a time. Love our beach house!

46. Been transported in an ambulance – twice, most recently when I was admitted last month. 

47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing – just normal fishing in a boat – not sure that’s ‘deep sea’ though

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris – Paris I’m coming….

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling – I think I need to get over my fear of those.

52. Kissed in the rain – ha the men I know wouldn’t do that! I did have an interesting experience last week in the rain with two dogs and a kindly man though…

53. Played in the mud – YES! This one time it rained really hard and then some stock came through the paddock and the whole paddock was mud. Dad got me out there to play in it! So much fun. Oh and I used to play field hockey, that was pretty muddy. Half the reason why I played.

54. Gone to a drive-in theater – no such thing anywhere I have lived.

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China – no it looks a pretty challenging place to go

57. Started a business – yes! Just a little one…

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia – I would really love to go to St Petersburg

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies – well Girl Guide biscuits. Yes every year.

62. Gone whale watching – in Kaikoura. So amazing.

63. Got flowers for no reason – no there has always been a reason I think.

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma – used to donate to premmie babies, which meant taxis to and from the clinic and being treated nice. I’m an extra special O- donor who hasn’t had a particular virus that 90% of the population have had.

65. Gone sky diving – probably unlikely to

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp – on the list when I go to Poland.

67. Bounced a cheque – ah yes. Haven’t had a cheque book in 8 years, but I have bounced a few in my student days. Was never that big a deal in NZ though.

68. Flown in a helicopter – dammit no!!!

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy – my Bert hand pupped, and my Pinky, a pink rabbit

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial – nope, not really on my radar… I guess if I was in DC I’d go. Lots of other places that are far more significant to me though.

71. Eaten Caviar

72. Pieced a quilt ha, I’d never finish a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square – NYC I’ll come soon I promise.

74. Toured the Everglades – drove right near the Everglades, for someone who’s been to Florida so many times I need to go and do one of those airboats oneday.

75. Been fired from a job – can’t be fired in NZ. Ha.

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London – nope actually never have. But been around Buckingham Palace etc. Should I go this week????

77. Broken a bone – pretty sure I broke a toe once.

78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle – tons of farm bikes as a kid and on the back of J’s very cool Harley. The no helmet thing in the US is pretty frightening…. that was the only thing that scared me, wondering if my travel insurance would cover it. Might I add this was pre-brain injury.

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book (would love to!)

81. Visited the Vatican  – Ah Rome… soon… I promise

82. Bought a brand new car – nah waste of money.

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper – few times, some for band stuff

85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve – never had a kiss at midnight ever

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating – eels, fish.

88. Had chickenpox – yes when I was 15, hell.

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous – a few… Richard Simmons was one. 

92. Joined a book club – loved my book club back in Wellington

93. Got a tattoo

94. Had a baby

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit – ha I’m a NZer…. that would never happen! We don’t really do that sort of thing.

98. Owned a cell phone – um who doesn’t

99. Been stung by a bee – of course… once in my eye and my whole eye closed up and went black.

May update

It seems a little bit of a contradiction that once I got a life and got busy I stopped blogging, just when I have something exciting to write about as well. I really do want to record my time overseas a little better so I need to get to be a better blogger.

Life is one big crazy blur sleeping in random beds for me right now. Luckily, I don’t have insomnia issues at all so I can basically sleep anywhere and never need to take anything, I’m so exhausted! God is so gracious as well, really there has been an ease to coming here that I wasn’t expecting completely, maybe part of it is that I’m more grown up and settled now too.  Hey, this life is still infinitely better than my recovery from the brain injury. Infinitely.

Let me tell you, I absolutey love my proximity to Europe as well, I got so excited when I flew out to Madrid on Monday that I could just jump on a plane and be there in 2 hours. It’s quite mind-blowing for a little kiwi girl. And this means that, right now, I don’t think I really want to go back to NZ in a hurry. I haven’t really told many people at home this. Really, other than my mum and dad and my dear friends there isn’t much there to pull me back at this stage in my life. I need to get something resembling a career started again and I think actually it might be easier to do this in London than Auckland, given that it’s a much bigger market and I have no negative history either.

The good news is that I have a job interview on Monday for a role with a Charity that sounds really interesting. I’m not sure the money will be very good, but it’s in a great location in Docklands so I could very likely live very close and walk or bike to work which would save a huge amount of money. I also have good friends living about 15 minutes walk from the office as well, so it’d be nice to see them more. In London you definitely want to live near your friends as it makes life so much easier. The other option is probably to live in South-West London as Kiwis and other Antipodeans tend to congregate this way a bit, but I would rather be closer to work I think. I’m also looking into temp work, which could be fun too, just to see what is out there.

Yes, it has come as a bit of a surprise to find out that I want to live in London and do the big city thing again. But so far, I really enjoy it. It’s hard to explain how different it feels here than last time. I think I just feel more a part of things. Like I belong. I have been to a few areas that I frequented before and I think everything was so new and foreign and loud and big. But I was from a city of 150k people then. I’ve lived in Sydney, in Auckland since and things that scared me before now excite me. I must have been a funny little kiwi girl back then, that is for sure.

I think it’s also easier to just let things slide over when you’re older, the settling in period has had little ripples, not rollercoaster dips. Part of this is probably better mental discipline. To explain what I mean I’ll tell you about my friend’s brother and his partner, we were on Skype last night and she announced that she is leaving him and moving back to the UK from NZ after not even a year in Auckland. The three of us hearing this could only say, she’s young, she should have given it a year. We know… things get better after a year. I guess that’s what your twenties are for though, making mistakes and learning.

So really, I’m busy learning how to become British and European, which is interesting after a few years of being far to (in my opinion now) engrossed in a certain other country. I’m trying to ignore things a bit from the other side of the Atlantic really and focus on where I am right now. Partly, because I find some of it just too frustrating and really because adjusting to one country is hard enough without worrying about another. And chances are I’m never going to live in the US anyway (another long story) and I can’t waste headspace thinking about that unless there is something definite.

The interesting thing will be if I get this job, that I’ll be working with mostly Muslim immigrants from the worst part of the country, but within a Christian Charity. Right at the coal face! It will be an education and I’m really quite passionate that the UK hasn’t really done enough to integrate the enormous amount of people they’ve welcomed to the ‘motherland’ and then they wonder why they have some of the problems they have. Getting my head around it more will be a wonderful challenge. Watch or read Brick Lane if you want to understand more about this.

Well, that’s enough of an update for now. More to write in the coming days.

Flags

Flags lyrics
Come, tell me your trouble
I’m not your answer
But I’m a listening ear

Reality has left you reeling
All facts and no feeling
No faith and all fear

I don’t know why a good man will fall
While a wicked one stands
And our lives blow about
Like flags on the land

Who’s at fault is not important
Good intentions lie dormant
And we’re all to blame

While apathy acts like an ally
My enemy and I are one and the same

I don’t know why the innocents fall
While the monsters still stand
And our lives blow about
Like flags on the land

I don’t know why our words are so proud
Yet their promise soothing
And our lives blow about
Like flags in the wind

Oh oh oh oh

You who mourn will be comforted
You who hunger will hunger no more
All the last shall be first
Of this I am sure

You who weep now will laugh again
All you lonely be lonely no more
Yes, the last will be first
Of this I’m sure

I don’t know why the innocents fall
While the monsters stand
I don’t know why the little ones thirst
But I know the last shall be first
I know the last shall be first
I know the last shall be first

Falmouth

This is where I am this week. It’s been sunny and lovely most days but not ‘summer’ like London has experienced.

The good with the bad

Well, things are a little hard right now in some ways but I’m not going to dwell on the specifics other than to say I hope I get a ‘real’ job in London sometime soon.

But my experiences in the UK in the last 2 and a bit months need to be recorded a bit as well. Whenever you move countries there are things you miss, things you find quirky and things that you love I find. Here are some of my observations.

• The weather has been much better than I remembered, actually it is much better than it should be. It’s been 27 in London this week, which is good summer weather so amazing for April.
• British people like to queue. It’s a national hobby. Jump a queue and experience wrath, I quite like the order.
• They don’t know how to make coffee. I don’t know how many shite coffees I’ve had. I should give up.
• I miss having someone to pack my groceries for me in the supermarket, or at least move a bit faster than the checkouts here. Then again I’m not that fast at packing so maybe it’s ok they’re slow.
• There some sort of backward evolution going on with a certain level of society. I over hear conversations on the bus that make my cringe and stare a bit. Watch Jeremy Kyle, that’s their show.
• I love being in London. I feel alive.
• I also love the country side. It’s so gentle and rolling and there are cute houses.
• Gluten and dairy free food is currently my downfall. There are amazing biscuits (cookies) that are crunchy and yummy and I have to try all the new products of course.
• It’s quite good not owning a car as petrol has gone up so much, but public transport can be a curse too. I hate buses.
• On the flip side, I walk a lot so it keeps me in shape.
• The weekend newspapers are so good, I’m still trying to get through the Sunday Times from yesterday
• I miss food that doesn’t need to have a country of origin label (it is local) but it’s nice to have variety I guess. And some things are cheaper than home for my diet
• I’m going to Paris in two weeks time. I can’t wait! I just wish accommodation was cheaper and I don’t really want to be in a dorm room in a hostel. I’m so excited that I can be in Paris in just over 2 hours and that it really doesn’t cost all that much either.
• I have lovely friends who have taken care of me and let me stay, which is great. I even got a stomach virus and puked all over my friends spare room last week and then couldn’t leave as I was too sick to go anywhere and she was still a gracious hostess.
• I think I’ve seen more of England now in 2 months than I did in a year last time. It’s been great. I like the small towns too.
• I haven’t really been homesick at all. It’s been quite cool. Of course things are a little unsettling, but I am not pining for NZ, listening to NZ music and comparing things to back home all the time. I have seen a few kiwis since I got here as well, but I really don’t feel like I ‘need’ to see kiwis at all. People are people.
• The job market is a LOT tougher than when I was here last time. I just keep reminding myself that if God wants me here, He’ll open a door.

That’s enough random thoughts from my head… promise I’ll write more about my experiences soon!

So many new experiences

 

I hardly know where to start to document what has been happening in my life in the last seven weeks. Wow, it’s only been seven weeks. Gosh.

I’m currently at my second client, which is going very well. Probably the less I say about the first one the better. It was completely horrible. Really, it was. Horrible house, horrible wife, horrible situation. But lovely client and I need to remember to pray for them all. Such a horrific situation really. Just something I couldn’t deal with.

I currently sit at a private jet airport half the day and just help out periodically and then do the morning and night routines. It’s all been great and I’m enjoying the English countryside. I’m sorta wondering how you get to move to a cute village like this really. Unfortunately, the economy isn’t great so unless I just did whatever random work was around I suspect there might not be much going. However, random work is also sort of appealing.

I’m off to Cornwall on the 20th for 3 weeks, I will be down there for Easter and the Royal Wedding so that could be really nice or really depressing. I’m not sure which one. They were already gearing up at Buckingham Palace last week for the Wedding and all the festivities and Brits always like a bit of a celebration anyway, I think we all need it to be honest.  It’s fun to be here for it.

The job down in Cornwall sounds like a good one too, so I’m hoping to get a few of these really nice clients regularly and then I’m sure I can stick with this work for a while. It’s interesting to get to be part of people’s lives for a while that is for sure.

There is so much more I could say right now, but I’m tired and it’s bedtime for my client so I’ll leave it to another day.

Sunny London

From the last photos I uploaded you might think that it’s always grey in London and this just isn’t true. In March before I left for Florida there were some lovely days, even if they were a little chilly. I enjoyed one lovely afternoon exploring in London and the city looked stunning. I went to Borough Market – I’d been wanting to go for so long Rabbits hanging in the butcher. It was really amusing, some people in front of me leaned in to look closer at the rabbits and the charming butcher behind made them jump out at them, scaring the crap out of them and slightly startling me. Be warned, I think it’s part of his routine.

This is The Shard, it’s going to be the tallest building in London when it’s finished. I think it’s pretty darn cool.

Underneath the Millenium Bridge

Stunning St Pauls, isn’t it beautiful?

Me walking over the Wobbly bridge.

I finished off the night at a Sisterhood event for the girls from church, was inspired by the Snr Pastor who’d just climbed Kilamanjaro, what a woman! They were raising awareness of

London

Ok so I know I’m really behind on my blogging, been too busy actually living life and not writing about it, but I really want this blog to also be a record of my time away being a gypsy travelling. Up until the last few days I’ve been having a blast so I thought I should share a few of my pictures of the adventures so far.

I went to Windsor in February, here is me posing in front of the Castle, I didn’t go there this time as I’ve been before and those places aren’t that cheap to get into.

We wandered over the bridge to Eton for a lovely Pub lunch just as the weather packed in completely. Brr.

I did a big walk down the river after meeting a friend for coffee – all the way from the City (was trying to get The Gerkin and St Pauls in this one) to…

The Globe Theatre. Which, just in case you were wondering, is NOT the original from Shakespeare’s day. Yes, I did overhear a couple of people saying that in the Museum of London. Guess they hadn’t heard about the Great Fire of London?

I tried to get a little creative on the South Bank

I kept walking… the view back to the City here…

I’m not sure when the thrill of seeing Westminster, Big Ben etc wears off… but it hasn’t for me yet.

See Big Ben is cool!