Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Holidays.

"I cannot go to school today"
Said little Peggy Ann McKay.
"I have the measles and the mumps,
A gash, a rash and purple bumps.

My mouth is wet, my throat is dry.
I'm going blind in my right eye.
My tonsils are as big as rocks,
I've counted sixteen chicken pox.

And there's one more - that's seventeen,
And don't you think my face looks green?
My leg is cut, my eyes are blue,
It might be the instamatic flu.

I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke,
I'm sure that my left leg is broke.
My hip hurts when I move my chin,
My belly button's caving in.

My back is wrenched, my ankle's sprained,
My 'pendix pains each time it rains.
My toes are cold, my toes are numb,

I have a sliver in my thumb.

My neck is stiff, my voice is weak,
I hardly whisper when I speak.
My tongue is filling up my mouth,

I think my hair is falling out.

My elbow's bent, my spine ain't straight,
My temperature is one-o-eight.
My brain is shrunk, I cannot hear,

There's a hole inside my ear.

I have a hangnail, and my heart is ...
What? What's that? What's that you say?
You say today is .............. Saturday?

G'bye, I'm going out to play!"


-Shel Silverstein-



I feel a little bit like this poem. These past couple of weeks I've had 'holidays', a two week waiting period for my end of semester exam. These past couple of days, I've been trying to use every possibly reason to get out of studying, out of having to knuckle down and get my work down, purely because it's work. But, I did knuckle down, I did study, and I did do the exam! Which means that I now have people telling me that today is Saturday; I can now go out and play! Nothing holding me back! No commitments, no work to do, nothing! I'm a free woman! But now that I've been given this enormous amount of holidays and freedom I feel a little bit out of my depth. What am I supposed to fill it with? How can I be productive and enjoy my holidays?

So, my bucket list for my holidays:

explore somewhere entirely new!
go to Windsor and find a cute coffee shop
go to Ikea
create something new every week
bake!
paint a painting
send letters to my friends
go on coffee dates with some of my favourite people
write in my journal more
walk bridge to bridge along Nepean River
take a polaroid
keep my birthday plant alive
go on a holiday somewhere grand!
ride a horse
get back into running

Lets see how far along I get!

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Coffee Goodness.



"I live in two worlds. One is a world of books. I've been a resident of Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha County, hunted the white whale aboard the Pequod, fought alongside Napoleon, sailed a raft with Huck and Jim, committed absurdities with Ignatius J. Reilly, rode a sad train with Anna Karenina, and strolled down Swann's Way. It's a rewarding world, but my second one is by far superior. My second one is populated with characters slightly less eccentric but supremely real, made of flesh and bone, full of love, who are my ultimate inspiration for everything."

- Rory Gilmore, from Gilmore Girls

Time with Pip over some herbal tea.

Laughter.

I love Gilmore Girls. Today, I watched an episode from season 4, and it was the exact episode that first got me hooked. Mum used to run a program called Shine for teenage girls, and once they had a sleepover at our place, and that night, they watched a lot of Gilmore Girls. This was about four years ago, and I had heard of Gilmore Girls, but hadn't ever really seen it. In this episode, Lorelai and Rory take part in a 'Living Pictures' event, dressing up as famous artworks, and Sookie gets ready to have her baby. I couldn't help but sit there and grin, falling in love with the characters more and more. The town, the people, the atmosphere, are all reasons why I love this show so much. The two main characters, Lorelai and Rory are mother and daughter, and have an incredibly strong bond, like best friends. I remember seeing that, their relationship, and feeling all warm and gooey on the inside. I am really close to my Mum. She is my Mum, but she is also my friend, and I so treasure the times we spend together. When I was first introduced into Gilmore Girls, I didn't like coffee. But, seeing how Lorelai and Rory bonded over coffee, I wanted to get into it. I started with Caramelattes (double shot of the caramel!) and worked my way to flat whites. I love coffee now. I love the taste, the texture, the smell, the way it warms me up. But most of all, I love the way it brings people together. I love what a good cup of coffee and a good conversation can do! I love getting a coffee, sitting opposite someone and hearing about their day, their struggles, their triumphs. I love connecting with people, and I love that coffee is a way to do that. And I have Gilmore Girls to thank for that. I love that Gilmore Girls is such a down-to-earth show, that doesn't deal with unrealistic plots, but lets us enter Stars Hollow, and become a towns person; attend Taylor's town meetings, Miss Patty's dance shows, see the different professions Kirk takes up, have blueberry pancakes at Luke's diner, and see Lorelai's and Rory's relationship grow and develop. Like the quote says, that world of Gilmore Girls is a rewarding one for me; it makes me feel warm and fuzzy and cheers me up in just the way that I need it. But what is far more rewarding, is my own life; my own Lorelai, my own Kirks, Miss Pattys, Babettes, Lanes, Jess', Lukes. My own Stars Hollow and my own family and friends. I feel so incredibly blessed to be placed in the Blue Mountains, with Glenbrook as my home town. I feel so excited that I have such amazing friends that make me laugh. I love my family, that although we may not always be together, we still have an incredible bond, and love to spend time together. I am now on holidays! Seven weeks of holidays. And I so hope that these coming weeks will be filled with loveliness, coffee, bonding, and fun, as I embrace my own Stars Hollow that I am lucky enough to live in. Thank you, my friends and family, for being my inspiration and happiness in life.

Last week, my two best friends, Ape and Min, and I had a Gilmore Girls day of eating out, and more eating, and coffee. It was the most lovely day, filled with music, love, reminiscing and bonding.