Promises

One of my best friends in living the good life in gay Paris. Well, she's au pairing and struggling on the language front a little, and missing home. So when i asked if she'd like a wee knitted present, she immediately requested grey mittens. 

righty-o.

i can't seem to find any nice, slim fitting mitten patterns. I don't like how most are quite bulky. ick. 

So i'm going for fingerless gloves, considering by the time they get to her, it'll probably be spring.

Wandering round knit world lately hasn't been particularly inspiring, and then i remembered South Seas Knitting. 

oh dear.

Seeing as i'm on a budget, i'm thinking this pattern in this yarn with these needles. i think i'm drooling on the keyboard. yummmmmmmmmm

On another front, it is list writing day. On that list is going to be 'stop drinking so much'. Not really hungover today but i can tell my body is unhappy with all the liver abuse that has been going on. So post-birthday (next week!), the aim is to drink as little as possible. and seriously this time. 

Liar, liar, pants on fire

I just lied. LIED people. it's eating me up. It doesn't feel at all good.

Scenario:

1 pregnant flatmate. 1 very unpregnant leaseholder flatmate. 2 other flatmates. Only leaseholder flatmate, apparently, knows how to clean, and has been doing so for the past week, to compensate for distinct lack of cleaning activity over past 4 months.

1 pregnant flatmate sends text to newly unemployed leaseholder flatmate (me) at the unholy hour of 7.30am this morning. To say:

um, want to talk to you as i've put my name down for a flat in case baby comes early. I've put your name down as referee. (what??!). Said i can move in a month, but would like to talk to you about it.

ok...have a minor stress and then to think happy problem-resolving thoughts.

I shall talk to my landlord and see if we can get out of the lease 5 weeks early (hopefully they will be understanding, and it will save me some rent).

Right, ok, can deal with that.

I spend the day pleasantly, watching Grey's Anatomy, knitting, walking to Lyall Bay for coffee and then sewing.

Phone rings.

Hello?

Hi this blah blah from blah blah property management. [Pregnant flatmate] said i could call you as she's put her name down for a flat.

mhhmmm.

so, what is she like as a tenant?

oh, she's ok. I don't have any problems with her. (semi-true. she's a nice person most of the time)

So how would you say she is on the clean and tidy front?

oh, she's fine. i don't have any problems with her (She has left hair dye all over the bathroom which has stained the new lino, and i have seen her wipe a bench. once. i just threw out two bags of mouldy mouldy bread so green you couldn't tell it was bread any longer)

And um, how about paying rent?

oh, she's fine, i've never had any problems with her (again! missed her very first rent payment when she moved in, and completely forgot to do it again last week)

is that all?

yep. she's fine.

hmm. i thought blogging about it would make me feel better. Apparently not. I am, though, much too nice for my own good. 

sigh.

Grey's Anatomy therapy - part 2.0

Yesterday I left my office for the last time. I didn't really want to leave. I kinda liked my job. I really liked the people I worked with, and the endlessly dynamic environment.

As i got in my car to go, the cathedral bells tolled. How appropriate.

I had coffee at the Dowse, and wandered round the 17th Annual Wallace Art Award exhibition. I love the Wallace exhibition. I wrote notes - which will become the next blog post.

At my parents', i sat on the couch and put on season one of Grey's Anatomy. Ahhh, bliss. Having already covered off season two and three a couple of months ago, it's quite nice to watch episodes where Meredith and McDreamy's relationship is still entertaining. Mmmm McDreamy. I could do with one of those.

Complete, unadulterated pop culture. It makes me laugh, it makes me cry, it frustrates me and makes me think. Best of all, it makes me feel better.

Tash hearts Wellington

A picture says how many words?

Toast Martinborough - i said 'this is the life' for the first time in a long, long time. bliss.

I'd like to teach the world to sing

I was going to comment on Nikki's latest post, but then came up with too much to say.

My two cents is (are?) this:

I was brought up in a Roman Catholic home and all my schooling bar two years at intermediate was at Catholic integrated schools. I can't remember the last time i went to mass, but walking into a church, no matter the denomination, it always seems like a great weight is lifted off my shoulders. 

I can remember when i first realised that some people had no concept of the 'treat others as you would like to be treated' idea. While i have absolutely no claim on being saintly, this is one of my most fundamental rules of how i go about my daily business. It regularly surprises that people aren't quite sure how to take it. There have been people who have taken advantage of my generous nature, and times when i wonder why i bother. 

What it comes down to is that while i don't go to church, and haven't picked up a bible in a very long time, the values i was brought up with are a central part of who i am.  They aren't all unique to the Catholic faith, but in the argument of nature vs nurture, in this one nurture wins.

Something that really bothers me is all the conflicts caused by religion. War in the name of values and beliefs is in my mind completely contradictory. I would never force what i believe on anyone else, and resent those who try and force theirs on me.

So the simple answer to Nikki's question, i think, is yes. I know people from all backgrounds and beliefs and have no problem with it. Conversations around religion can be fascinating so long as the participants are prepared to look at the argument from all angles. 

I have a friend who is a one-eyed National Party supporter. We had one conversation (read: argument) this year about politics and she refused to consider or even attempt to understand  the left point of view. So I refused to argue with her, and we now have a rule to not talk politics. 

What i'm trying to get at is that we need to be prepared to accept that people have differing opinions and perspectives. Religion, politics, it's all the same really. I have great respect for my Nat voting friend and actually think she'd make an amazing politician. We look at the world completely differently and yet we get on like a house on fire. 

Not sure if that makes any sense whatsoever. It seems kind of simplistic and idealistic in the end - let's all just like each other even if we don't believe the same things.  Just like Coke would like to.

the view

from my window. . .I shall miss it.

i'm baaaack and revealing some little secrets.

Whew. That was mad. Still is, in an end-of-school, it's almost Christmas, don't have a job  much longer sort of way.

Secret number one: I worked in the office of the guy who won in this electorate in the weekend.

ok so that's my only secret really. and lots of people knew it already. It meant lots of very long days, weekends, and actually quite a lot of drinking to keep me sane (is that a contradiction or what?). 

But it was a total blast. Working in the office has been amazing - I have met some incredible people, been to some pretty cool places (even if they were only in the Hutt) and have a new appreciation of our society. 

I even got to hang out with the now former PM a couple of times. And get her coffee. Oh the exciting life I lead.

But now my boss heads into opposition and I have plans of my own. 

I am free to head off into the big wide world and take advantage of the perks of my Dutch passport. So my plan moving forward is to do a whole pile of work on this project, be a starving artist for a few months until my lease expires, and then jump on a plane to London.

It also means i have much more time for blogging. 

So tonight, Matthew, I have some random bullet points:

• I don't drink coffee. I now have a two-a-day habit. My little walk across the road to Green Land below the Ministry for the Environment building is a little ray of sunshine. They are awesome. Try their afghans.
• I am going to run every day now i have the time. I am slightly more round post-campaign and none too happy about it
• I love voting.
• I love sleeping.
• I finally got my socialising groove back. I know some pretty damn cool people, and am so lucky to get to hang out with them.
• I'm sad to be back at my flat and no longer have the daily company of my family (hi mum!), who fed me and gave me a bed to sleep in for the last two weeks, and then put up with grumpy me on sunday morning.
• I love taking photos and am determined to carry my camera everywhere with me from now on.
• I think a nation is measured by the way it treats its most vulnerable. And i'm concerned the new government won't treat them so well. But good luck to them. I'll be back in 2.5 years to help win the next campaign.