"Get Happy"

I am in love with Glee. Still. I guess it really just makes me happy.It fills my soul up with warm, sunny feelings. I re-play the songs on youtube any time I like, to re-claim those feelings.



I loved the Get Happy/Happy Days re-enactment with Rachel and Kurt that aired last week.

I loved the friendship between to two characters. Although the song choice was a very 'Rachel and Kurt' decision, I feel that during this performance we see a little more Lea Michele than Rachel Berry, which I like. A lot.

I also love how they played homage to Barbara and Judy through their costuming. Beautiful.

Some clever fan did a mash-up of the two.

Here is the Glee version of the song. If you live in New Zealand, you can watch the last few minutes of the full episode here...Go on, get happy.

"Wrap it up"

I talked a couple of posts ago, about Christmas Shopping. To make this task easier, and surprisingly cheaper, I have started shopping online. Yes, there are no ridiculous fellow-shoppers. There are no screaming children (unless they're your own?). There are no checkout lines or incompetent staff. It is just you, your computer and maybe a cup of tea. All positives aside, I did had a few concerns about online shopping.



Firstly I questioned the legitimacy of some websites. I wondered if something went wrong, would I be able to recover my money.

Then there is pricing. For some gifts I found online, I phoned a few of the retail stores in my area which stock the exact same product to check whether the apparent discount was worth the risk involved. After doing this, some prices seemed too good to be true. Most of the websites offered the gifts at 50% - 75% less than what local retailers were offering. I work in retail. I understand that this is insane.

I also had a few doubts about shipping. All sites that I used offered free shipping. I hoped that the ETA's offered on the websites would hold up their end of the bargain.



Well a week after I ordered some gifts online I have 3.5 out of 6 of them here. So far, each item has arrived well within the estimated time of arrival. The products are exactly as the should be. I am ecstatic. One of the gifts is not due to arrive until next Tuesday, but last night there was a collection card in my mail box telling me that it was being held at the local post office, ready for me to collect (thus the .5).

One website even sent them gift wrapped with ribbons and all. How much more of my time could they possibly save?! (unfortunately due to my pet peeve of having all co-ordinating gift and matching gift tags I did have to unwrap then re-wrap them. This was super fun, regardless of the fact that they aren't for me.)



Here are a few sites that I recommend you check out this Christmas.



http://www.strawberrynet.com/  I have used this site for years and I trust it completley. They sell genuine designer cosmetics, fragrances and hair products at ridiculously cheap prices. The products always arrive within mere days from Hong Kong or Sydney. This site also offers returning customer discounts, as well as free gifts for first time users. Also, unless you buy only fragrance the shipping is free. If you do buy just fragrance, the shipping is still as cheap as chips.



http://www.cdwow.co.nz/ This is the first time I have used this site. Again fantastic shipping time. Fantastic discount deals. I purchased two items from this site, both at 50% less than other online sites such as Marbecks and Real Groovy. Brad checked out the game prices, which he thought were unbelievably cheap. Man in your life that is in love with a video game console? Here is your opportunity to get them a present that they will love for a great price.



http://www.vistaprint.co.nz/ This site is again fantastic. Beautiful personalised stationery items at ridiculously good prices. Often they will email deals, where the products are free and all you pay is the super cheap shipping. Last Christmas I made personalised calendars, with a different photo each month, and with personalised calendar events like family Birthdays. Brad and I gifted these calendars to our Grandmothers. They LOVED them, and one Nana is still raving about it, and showing it off to her friends eleven months later. Surprisingly the rest of our family were quite jealous of this gift (Note to self: personalised calendars are not just a Nana gift).



So there you have it. Three great sites, that can make your Christmas shopping a breeze. Less stress on you, the kids and your bank account. I am so glad I gave it a try.

"Death, be not proud"

A few days in to my Nan's (almost) week long funeral,  my cousins Leah and Courtney,  and I left the Marae for some time out. That day is the earliest memory that I can recall, where a specific behaviour trait that I have took place.

On that day we walked the couple of kilometres back to what was Nan & Papa's house. As soon as we arrived I convinced my cousins that they needed to eat something. And so I cooked. Well, I prepared... Ham and cheese toasted sandwiches. Now, when I am stressed,or something bad happens,or people are in a terrible situation, it is my natural instinct to feed people. I'm not sure if it is the distraction of preparing food that acts as a form of therapy for me, or whether it is ingrained in my psyche from Nan herself to use the feed and nurture coping mechanism.



 I heard the news that the Pike Mining Disaster had taken twenty nine lives on the radio. I turned the news on as soon as we got home. I cried and cried as I watched Peter Whitall bravely announce the news that I had prayed we would not ever have to hear.

I want to hold and comfort each of those family members who have lost an integral part of their lives. I want them to know how much we are all thinking of them, but at the same time I realise that this gesture would probably make no difference to them at all at such a devastating time.



After watching the news, I took a few moments. I went to the kitchen, and cooked dinner.

How I wish I could be in Greymouth tonight, cooking and feeding, or doing just any little thing to make this terrible day a little easier on those who need it most.



Those who have lost their lives, and their families and friends are in my thoughts and prayers. Hope for rescue may have been extinguished, but I pray for recovery, return, closure and comfort in the coming days.

"All I want for Christmas"

This past week our house has been a flurry with the excitement of Christmas. We have planned out our loose plan for the day, I have typed up a gift spreadsheet and in the coming week my attention will be on decorations.



Christmas present shopping can be difficult. First, you have to factor in the competition. That's right the thousands of other people searching for perfect gifts for their loved ones.Some of the most annoying members of the opposition are (not limited to, but) as follows:

• Those who sluggishly meander around a store, failing to navigate the intended flow of the store. Get out of the way! This is business, not a casual stroll.

• Those with screaming children. Sorry Mommy Bloggers, your kids are cute, but not cute enough to make up for thirty minutes of straight hollering. 

• People who have bumped in to friends and stand in the aisle, or doorway chit chatting like there is no tomorrow. 

• Snobby shoppers. Probably my least favourite. Usually aged over forty, commonly a woman, who claims territory over a shop, a product or shop assistant because they assume they are spending more than you.

So well done to all of you have done some Christmas Shopping and have left the store or mall successfully*



Last Christmas (and the time before, I think?), my family all had trouble buying gifts for me. So, I wrote a huge list. A list full of a mix of wishful thinking and realistic opportunities. Brad started with the list, made his selections, crossed them off and passed it on. The list went round all of my family, including his. The beauty of it was that I got beautiful gifts that I loved, but had no idea on the day which gifts I was getting. Brad and his Father, being men of logic, decided it was my best idea yet. This year I have created no such list. It turns out that after a few years of gift list prompting everyone has plenty of ideas on what to get me. Win-win.

 Taking a cue from Angela, here are a few things I would not mind. Some realistic, some not.

O.P.I Nail polish, Allyson Gofton's 'Bake', Sam Edelman 'Niland' heels, Hermes Birkin Bag, Stella McCartney 'Stella' perfume, Food Processor, Fly My Pretties concert tickets, Tiffany & Co. 'Legacy' Ring, Giada De Laurentis cook book, Sony Handycam.



*Without assaulting the competition.

"The wealth of globed peonies"

I love Peonies. Love.

They make me feel better when I am feeling down. Their beauty cheers me up.
It could be that they only bloom for a short period of time. 

It could be their bright, yet at the same time, soft colour.

Or it might be that they remind me of every person I've ever loved, and every one that loved me in return.

"We looked! Then we saw him Step in on the mat! We looked! And we saw him!..."

One day I was sitting on the lounge floor doing some scrapbooking. I heard a tinkle (not that tinkle). I turned around and there, in my house was Max.  

Meet Max. Max is a cat. He is not our cat. He lives down the road from us, but he likes to hang at our place. On my first meeting with Max I called the number on his collar, and his owner informed me that he likes to go on adventures.

He comes in through the front door, or open windows and rubs around all the furniture. We give him a little ear scratch and he makes himself comfortable. Sometimes he just cruises round all the rooms, checking everything out. This is not so much an adventure for Max as it is a ritual.

We don't mind having him visit, he is so sweet and so strange.

"Food in a Minute"

Today's TFF will be the last "regular" one. I think it's best if I leave my Top-Fiving for when I have a really good list, instead of trying so hard to think of something to bring to the table.



Today's TFF is inspired by food finds that I am in love with this minute.



5. Look out for pre-made Croissant, Fruit Danish and Pain Au Chocolat, in your frozen foods section. These bake-at-home babies are going to make my Christmas morning breakfast scrumptious and easy. I couldn't find a website, but in my supermarket they hangout near the apple pies and are about $5 a pack. Awesome!



4. Monteiths Crushed Pear Cider is refreshing and sweet. This may be an issue for me (and my bank account) this summer.



3. Abe's Wholemeal Bagels. Holla! I love these. SO delicious. Even if you're not having cream cheese or some fancy filling, peanut butter, honey or jam are delicious on one of these tasty toasties.



2. Sundried Tomato flavoured Feta by Bouton D'or. This. is. amazing. I could eat this by itself, that's how good it is. I have it with herb roasted cubes of pumpkin in a salad. I recently had it with pumpkin and sliced, toasted almonds at an event, which was also amazing!

1. Thai Green Curry à la Greggs. This recipe is delicious, simple and easy. Seriously easy, and seriously delish. Some times I stir through some boiled cubed Kumara right at the end, to make it go a bit further if need be.

"I cut the cord from my Mother"

 

• Playing pin-pong with StudyLink. I am enrolled, I am not enrolled. They are paying my fees, oh no they're not. I am getting a student allowance, but only until tomorrow. You don't need to re-apply we'll do it for you, no you need to re-apply. FAIL.

• Not many people know that the name of my region, Kāpiti, is actually an abbreviation. The name, in its entirety is actually 'Te Waewae Kāpiti o Tara rāua ko
  Rangitāne'. As my high school Māori teacher explained to me, this name describes the stomping grounds or tribal boundaries of Ngāi Tara and Rangitāne. So when this Warriner person, gets all up in arms about a single macron, over the 'a' in Kāpiti, it really ticks my tock. Just when you think it couldn't get any worse, he throws comments around like this one:

"At the end of the day, this is New Zealand  it's not Maoriland. I
didn't come to Maoriland, I came to New Zealand. I speak the New Zealand
language, I'm a citizen of New Zealand."  - Mr Warriner

If you are a person that has racist tendencies problems accepting other cultures, then here is some advice: Do not move to a country which has a history built on multiculturalism, and then try and change it to suit you. This is New Zealand, Aotearoa, not little Britain. If you don't like Māori culture, that is your choice. But you have no right to try and change elements of a culture, especially one that you have no affiliation to. Perhaps if a macron is too much to deal with you could just move home to your Mother?

People like this make me so angry and so, so sad.  

• Outrageous Fortune ended. It was a crap ending.  In fact it was a crap last season. I am severely disappointed and Outraged indeed. Season 3 was THE best. Caution clip contains swearing & general Westie sex, drugs and rock'n'roll.

 

• Seeing footage of the Uni students protest in England. Really guys, was that necessary? I mean protest for your cause, but don't get violent. It's not the fault of the poor Police officers, but you injured them anyway. Good one *scoff*.

"The Love kick starts again"

On Monday, after my last exam (yuss!) I had lunch with an old co-worker. It was awesome to sit and chat and eat and drink.

Whilst I was sitting/chatting/eating/drinking with that friend, another friend, Erica, called me. I answered with the obvious "Hello". That was met with "I'm a bad friend! How did it go? I'm so sorry I forgot".

I love that my friends care enough to txt me or email me to wish me good luck for such things. And it's hilarious when they forget and answer the phone with "I'm a bad friend", when they are quite clearly the opposite.

I arranged to meet Erica once she'd finished work, so I could get a ride half way home and catch up with her and my G.D.



I met with Erica, and we headed to the Crèche to collect the cherub. She saw her Mum and beamed, and toddled towards her for cuddles. As usual she smiled when she saw me and reached out for a cuddle. When Erica handed her to me, she started to cry. This had never happened before. I was sad.

Erica went to get her lunch box and bag, and I held her. She cried and cried and ran to the baby gate as fast as she could. She held on to the bars of the gate, as if she were imprisoned - and as if I were the warden. Erica mentioned that maybe I had become unfamiliar to her, as it had been two weeks since I saw her last. This made me sad again. Oh - and guilt ridden.

We got in to the car, buckled her in, and set out on our way home. She screamed and cried for the entire twenty minute drive home. I had never seen her cry so much. Erica said it had happened a few other times when she was teething. I was sure it was because of me.

We arrived at Erica's and pulled in to the driveway. Erica un-buckled her from her seat. Aaliah snuggled in to her Mama, and the crying stopped. I guess sometimes, all a girl wants is her Mum.

We went inside, and it was almost as if someone had waived a magic wand, Aaliah was back to her normal happy self. She toddled straight over to me and climbed up and gave me a big hug and a kiss. Relief. She still loves me after all. They don't know it yet, but I am going to see them this weekend. Even if just for half an hour. I am not taking any risks at missing out on this...

"Nailed it!"

All this talk of make-up and what-not got me to thinking. I shared a while back my favourite mascara. Today I'm talking about my fave brand of nail polish. O.P.I.

Brad's sister Laura gave me one for my 20th Birthday, and ever since I've been hooked. Well as hooked as one can be on my budget. They are pricey. But I do maintain that you pay for quality. More often than not I have to re-do my nail polish because my nails have grown a gap between the polish and the cuticle. It hardly ever chips away before this happens. I love how this nail polish is so easily applied, and has such bold coverage. With seasonal and international inspired colour collections, these beauties are hard to fault.

Here is my slow growing collection...

One other thing I love about O.P.I is the often quirky names.

From left to right: Bubble bath, Eiffel for this colour, Miami Beet, You're a Pisa work, Purple with a purpose, Domestic goddess, Techno girl, Nicole Alert!, Monsooner or later, Personal Shopper. 

Face/Off

After reading this post over at Striking Keys, I got to thinking about how high-maintenance I really am.

I wouldn't really call myself high-maintenance. Probably as I know of a lot of women who are more high maintenance than me. Reading Angela's list made me re-think my standing on the scale. I thought long and hard about it. I checked over her list a few times. I decided that the things on my own list, that define me as high-maintenance are not consistent in my life. I do not always get my hair cut. I cannot always be bothered straightening my hair. I hardly ever get manicures and pedicures. So in my own little world, these things don't count. And I'll tell you why...because if you were to turn up at my house for a surprise visit, you have equal chance of finding me in trackies and a t-shirt, sans-make-up with my frizzy hair in a bun, as you do of finding me all dolled up, straight hair and full make-up. Honest.



Although...one of the things that I have become a tad high-maintenance about is make-up. Ok, I've always had the mascara and nail polish dependence going on, but it has now grown to an all new level. I hardly leave the house without wearing foundation, unless it's to go to the gym or netball. This is shocking and weird for me.

I have even started to impose upon myself "No Make-up Monday's" as a counter balance. Today as I sat down to slap some face on, I decided it would be fun to only do one side of my face to compare. I took some pictures.