The first time

Something prompted me to blog about the first night I got hammered tonight (actually, it was a reference to me being the MacGyver of alcohol (thanks Charp!!) on twitter), so here goes ... hope it might make you laugh a little ...

So, I was 14, I think. I got one of my brothers mates to buy me and my bestie a bottle of Southern Comfort (ew). He was 3 years older than us, so getting the booze was no trouble for him. I had the venue. We lived in the country, and we used to have a caravan in the backyard for relies who came to visit to stay in, kinda like a spare room. Anyhow, me and the bestie got the booze and organised a sleepover. Then we took to the van.

To start with, let's get this out of the way ... I did not have a lesbian experience this night.

I did however get raucously drunk. We drank the Southern straight (how, I have no idea. That shit burns and tastes like utter shit). We turned up the music. We drank some more. After some time we decided we needed to pee. The outside dunny (yes, true country form, outside loo) was literally 15 metres from the van, but NOOOOOO, that would be too easy and lady like. The bestie and I decided the best thing to do would be to both squeeze our butts out the van door (at the same time I might add) drop our daks and pee on the step (classy, I know). At that VERY MOMENT in true 'first time getting pissed without parents knowledge, my dad opened up the back door, which was in direct line of site of the van door to check whether we were okay or not!!!

Needless to say, I'm not sure I have ever been able to look at my dad the same knowing that he saw mine and my besties bums hanging out the van door taking a drunken pee ...!!!

Ah, good times. That van holds soooo many memories for me. It became 'the' hangout for years. Boys were able to be snuck in and with 2 double beds, there was plenty of room!! So many bottles of crappy alcohol were drunk and shared there and so many memories made.

A couple of years ago, after years of decomposing, Dad burnt the van to the ground. All that was left was the axle ...

Burning away the thoughts of what his youngest daughter did in there perhaps?!?!? :D

What am I forgetting?

So, it's less than 2 weeks before I embark on my adventure, and I really feel like I am forgetting something ...

I have my passport, it's new, so it's one of those machine readable ones that I need to get into the states. I don't need a Visa, as apparently I sign a form (a Visa Waiver Program document) that lets me into the US as a visitor on holiday. I have travel insurance. I have my flights booked and accommodation ready to go. I have a new suitcase. I have all manner of travel containers for shampoo, conditioner etc etc that I need. I have ordered US dollars which I will pick up from the bank next week. I have shopping lists (yay!!), camera (need new SD card though as I can't format the new one I bought, dammit), phone switched onto International Roaming. I've bought 2 books for the plane. I have a mini laptop .... I have clothes, shoes and myself .... I have my iphone full of music and also considering taking hubby's ipod nano ...

What am I forgetting?

Trashed, again

I'm sitting here thinking. I'm thinking about lots of different shit, but this thought is recurring. I wonder how many years of my life I am losing by drinking alcohol on a regular basis. The thing is, I use it as a stress reliever. So what I wanna know is what would kill me quicker? A calming glass of wine on a daily basis or the heart thumping stress and anger built up by years of raising children and feeling ENORMOUS mother guilt?

If you know the answer, please let me know :D

Escaping!

In 3 weeks time I will be nervously waiting for Monday morning to arrive as I will be getting on a plane to go on a trip to the States. Alone. No kids and no hubby.

Consolation for my hubby is that I am flying our nanny from Perth over for the 10 days I am away (clarification: she is 18 and hot). The rumour mill is already in overdrive over this, and I already know that my parents, hubby's parents and all our friends (especially the guys) will be here often for a stickybeak!! :P

Since I married so very young (child bride springs to mind), I never got the chance to travel like most of my friends did and then when I finally got enough money to do it, I also had my 3 beautiful ferals which meant that I couldn't.

Then one day hubby and I got talking and he suggested that I just go and do it. Book a trip and go. Do all the things I wanted to do.

The only stipulation was that he rather I go somewhere that wasn't as appealing to him. I have wanted to visit LA since I was a kid. As a teenager I studied acting and wanted like ever other wannabe starlet to see Hollywood. And being a shopaholic and total utter shoe lover, I want to shop!! Easy decision to make. Los Angeles, here I come!

I also threw in a few days in Las Vegas which has horrified hubby as he would love to visit there himself (but I sorta did that without really telling him until after I did it! Ooops! :P )

I'm excited and I'm scared. I've never been overseas, so to be doing my first trip alone is a quite daunting but I know I'm going to have a ball, and the idea of spending hours not being interrupted by a child is awe inspiring.

I'm sure I will miss the kids (and the hubby, of course) but I absolutely cannot wait for this break, as it will be my first holiday since I had Sprat over four years ago. And if I had any doubt over this trip at all, it was alleviated tonight when I read these words in a book I bought today, "The Intelligent Traveller How to plan your perfect trip" by Jenny Herbet (quote is actually from Mark Twain)

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones that you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the tradewind in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

OMG I have it! The Jeebus Phone!!

I have the iphone!!

So it took me a little longer than I had hoped, but nevertheless I am now the proud owner of one!! Yay me :D

Unfortunately for me, I cannot use it yet, as I want to unlock it so that I don’t have to go onto one of Telstra’s specified iphone plans and of course the ‘unlocking department’ at Telstra does not work on Saturdays so I have to wait until Monday morning to unlock it and then put my sim card into it.

But, at least I have one!! And it’s so pretty ...

Please can I have my iPhone now?

So, we moved interstate, moved from the city to the country, and although it is taking time for me to adjust, I can safely say that for the most part I am happy to have made the move. The advantages of moving here far outweigh the disadvantages although these last few days have been hard on me in respect to one thing: the iPhone.

The Jeebus phone.

On launch day, I took a chance at getting one and drove the 1/2 hour up the road to out nearest 'big' town (let me clarify: population roughly 60,000 hardly a thriving metropolis) to queue in the freezing cold for one. I had no luck, which was what I anticipated anyway. I then also had my name down for one (actually two) at Telstra, which they informed me may be a good month before they actually had them in store. I wasn't too fazed by this and had resigned myself to waiting for the pretty little thing until then. Next week, however, I am going down to Melbourne so I thought I would try my luck at one of the stores that actually had the phone for the launch. All good.

Today, however, the Telstra shop nearest to me calls me up, and this enthusiastic young man tells me that they have HEAPS in stock and I should come on up to get one. On my way!!! I exclaimed!

In the car for the 1/2 hour drive I go. Good thing I love driving and good thing I happened to be sans ferals so I was only too happy to be going out for a bit.

Just as I get there, my phone rings again. It's the Telstra dude. "I'm so sorry, but our General Manager has advised us that we aren't allowed to actually sell you the iPhone today."
"WTF??? I just got here!!"
"You're more than welcome to come and look at it though."
Look at it? I KNOW WHAT IT FREAKING LOOKS LIKE OTHERWISE WHY WOULD I BE SO EAGER TO FREAKING GET ONE!!!!!
"When will you be able to sell it?" I asked
"Can't say."

*sigh*

So, today I came this close to being the proud owner of the Jeebus phone, but alas, it wasn't to be. Having worked as a mobile phone salesperson for Telstra in a previous life, my guess is that they will be available tomorrow. In which case I'll just have to get back in the car and drive back up there again to get it.

A mothers instinct

So today something happened to me that I anticipated happening, but that I had thus far managed to avoid. Whilst carrying the newbie (who is now almost 4 months old) upstairs, I slipped on the top step and went down like a ton of bricks. I was carrying her in front of me and I fell forward. Somehow I managed to break her fall with my arms and although I frightened the hell out of her, she escaped unharmed aside from a small scratch on her face from my thumbnail. Somehow I managed to get my hand behind her head to shield it as I fell. It is only now, after having been and done the grocery shopping and carrying really heavy bags that I realise how much I actually hurt myself in the fall. I strained both my wrists and bruised the side of my right hand. I bruised my left elbow and badly knocked up both knees. My neck was also strained and I have some major shoulder pain, yet my little newbie is fine. I have always, always said that I would throw myself in front of a train to protect my children and I proved this today. The amazing part is that it was all pure instinct. It happened in a split second, I didn't have time to think about it, and yet my reflex was to protect my baby no matter what the consequence. I am totally ecstatic that this was the outcome. It proved my theory that I would indeed do whatever it took to protect one of my own :D