Irritable Much

That’s what I’ve been since Jake woke me this morning. For no reason at all. He slept another full night, and consequently so did I, but I woke up ready to snap at everyone and everything and lots of deep breathing didn’t really help. Neither did hubby telling me he’s gonna apply for new work. Anywhere is better than where he is, but did it have to be now? I’m really trying to be optimistic, and it’s not that hard considering everything. He’ll no doubt get better pay and work incentives than where he is now cos you can’t get much worse!

My little man, who is for the majority of the time perfect, is refusing to sleep. He’s exhausted and I’m exhausted. All I want is a cup of tea in peace and maybe a couple of panadol, but the former won’t happen ’til he sleeps and the latter won’t happen ’til I can drag my arse off the couch, lol. We bought his cot today, picking it up in the weekend. I can’t believe he’s already moving out of his bassinette. He’s 10weeks tomorrow! Where did the time go??

I’m considering signing up for HalfNoC over at KiwiWriters, but I’m not sure. I think it would be good for me to get a routine that includes daily writing instead of just going all manic and writing oodles in one day (hypomania, technically). We’ll see how I feel in the morning. Now is not the time for making month-changing decisions.

Fighting my way back

Yesterday wasn’t a bad day, per se, I was just really bad. Jake was wonderful, as always. Dale helped out heaps. And my little brother came round in the evening and bought us dinner Noodle Canteen, nomnomnom.

By the evening I had scrambled up from complete shit to just having a bad day. Not great, but better.

Jake slept for 11 hours last night. He went to bed at 9:15pm. Grumbled enough to wake me at 2am and 3am but neither time was convincing enough to get me out of bed, and then the next time he woke me it was past 8am! First thing I asked was if Dale had fed him last night, the second was whether I had fed him. Even I struggle to go 11 hours with no food! lol.

Today I’m feeling a little more level. Just chilling out. The weather has eased up, so we’re gonna get out of the house at some point . Should probably get some housework done too.

Oh yeah…

… I have a blog.

I’ve had a quiet few days. Dale has had his first three day weekend of hopefully not too many to come. Thank goodness StudyLink have increased my allowance by that $3 a week. It has been nice to spend some quality time with him, although he has spent a fair bit of time playing Portal. I must admit I was glad I was there when he finished it as the end credits song is very funny. I would recommend playing the game through just for that — I’m not sure the song would be quite as amusing if you don’t know the story, but if you want to check it out it is here.

Last night we had a good old Brown pot-luck dinner. Charissa, my cousin, is leaving home tomorrow. She is moving to ChCh to train how to look after people that play sport. She has been warned that when we get there we will be around at her flat to eat her food, although she insists it will be vice versa. The night was endurable, but everyone wanted to know what I was going to do when I’ve go my degree, and I don’t really know. The “I’m going to do a barista course and work in a cafe” didn’t go down so well except for with Ro, but she has the same temperament as I do, so we think alike a lot. Her belly was huge before Christmas, but seemed about normal this time as she has just entered her third trimester. ‘Henry’ is due on ANZAC day, so he my be called Albert after his uncle who was in Gallipoli. I can hardly believe I will have 14 cousins! Maybe Ro & Andrew will have one more so grandmum has a nice round 20 grandchildren.

As for study. I am a little concerned about my current assignment because it seems to be the easiest assignment ever. Not in the research, but in the writing, the words are just coming to me and flowing right. It’s almost like I’m writing fiction when my muse is talking to me, but it’s non-fiction so it feels weird. But I shouldn’t complain, I should just be glad it will be finished on time to be in tomorrow. I get to celebrate by going to a Gilmore Girls marathon sleep over with Jen, Kim and Panna. I’m not so sure about the sleep over bit, and I find Gilmore Girls hard to watch since me & Tash stopped being friend cos it was our thing, but I’ll just toughen up and bear it.

Dale should have finished watching South Park by now so it’s probably sleeping time. Adios

Decisions and Plants

I’ve been trying to work out what I am going to submit to the Collection Challenge over at KiwiWriters. I wanted to revise my short story I had written during the Waitangi Weekend Word Wace last year, but it’s too long, and I still don’t know where that story is going. Writing endings is the bane of my existance.

But I remembered a little short story I had written for a Zing Thing Challenge last year. I dragged it out of my ‘abandoned’ folder, read it over, and decided it may be salvagable if I re-write the second part and revise the first. It’s about a psycho lady who’s boyfriend dumps her on a date when she thinks he’s going to propose. It’s a bloody end for him, and a sad end for her. The theme of the challenge was to write a genre you never had before (if I remember correctly, it was something like that).

So the amount of work to be done on it is huge, but it’s only a little story and I should be able to manage it before the end of Feb.

As for the plants, most people know I am the worst person to give plants to because I cannot keep them alive. Ever plant I have had has died within months, sometimes only weeks (except for the cacti, they are still alive, oh, & for the record, it was Dale who killed our aloe not me). And yet the other day grandmum brought over some baby flower plants the other day, indicating that I should plant them. Me, are you serious?

Two issues with this: a) they probably won’t live long enough to make it into the ground; b) we’re leaving here in 6 months so I’m not keen on doing any landscaping. The garden was barren when we arrived, it will be barren when we leave.

I love my grandmum very much, and appreciate the gesture, but not really an appropriate gift and now I don’t really know what to do with them (if they haven’t already died. I watered them, but they don’t look happy).

Oh, and my study area is being taken over by little jumping spiders. I don’t mind one here and there, but when I see more than one it makes me a little nervous.

I’m Back!

Although I’m not quite settled back into it yet. We got home last night, but it really didn’t feel right. Something was missing. It didn’t take long to click: the cat was still at the cattery. No, we hadn’t forgotten about her, I could never do that, we had organised to pick her up today.

So this morning grandma arrived and we drove out to pick up the poor thing. She is not happy with me for ditching her for so long, but it had to be done. And now she has the sneezes. The cattery lady claims it’s hayfever, but I’m concerned as she never has before. She is a very healthy cat normally. I’ll keep an eye on her, and we may take her to the vet .

As for the holiday, it was good. It was nice to relax, and see family. Richard turning 18 makes me feel really old! He is working for iLike Computing for a year, and hopefully next year he’ll find his way out to uni somewhere. Sarah was stoked to see me. I let her read the first 2 chapters of Forbidden Knowledge which she said was “above average”. That’s exciting coming from someone who reads ALOT! but it is a rather biased opinion. I have left the two chapters with my father who is going to do my cover art.

I have also picked up a writing job. I am so excited! Not because of the job itself, it’s a commentary of sorts for a documentary/advertising thing for Hokitika, but simply because I will be able to do something that involves using my degree (and I haven’t even finished it yet ). If the initial DVD is successful it will be an ongoing job, yay!

I don’t know how I’m going to find time to do all my projects. I have two assignements to get done, and I need Forbidden Knowledge finished by the end of March. That’s 30k a month but Jan is almost over and I haven’t written anything on it. I also want to get this recipe book done for Ro, but it’s her birthday on Thursday, so I don’t know how I’m going to get that done. Looks like the holiday is over.

The end really is nigh now.

Grouch of the Day: I thought I had got lucky this year, and that I was not going to get preached at or have my beliefs questioned this ‘holiday season’. I even avoided my grandma’s cousin at the Brown Christmas get together to encourage her to leave me alone. But no, I can’t have that little gift can I? *sigh* The thing that really bugs me is that this year the attack (for lack of a better word) came from my father. Just back off, please! (Thank you all those people who did not leave comments attacking my beliefs).

Right, with that grouch out of the way, today is going to be a full day. I have started writing the essay (yay). For all those that haven’t studied, the writing of the essay is the quick part; it’s the research that takes forever. I still need to do a heap of editing on Forbidden Knowledge which will take about 3hrs, so I’m not sure when I’m going to squeeze that in because I still have a bit of work to do on the spare room to make it inhabitable for when Amber arrives tomorrow morning. I’ve also got a movie to watch before I return it this afternoon. It’s V for Vendetta; I haven’t seen it. Is it worth it??

So onwards and upwards into my busy day.

And on to the next project.

So I haven’t actually finished most of my current ones, but that is how I work. This is why I never finish anything. But I get these ideas and I just have to get into it straight away otherwise the enthusiasm wanes and I end up not even starting.

It’s my auntie Ro’s birthday next month. We are good friends. Andrew (one of mum’s little brothers) married her exactly a month before Dale & I got married, and they were the only extended family that made it to our wedding. Since then we’ve spent heaps of time together, and she will be one of the few people I will miss when I leave Palmy.

Anyway, she was the one that told me I had to make my potato salad for the Brown Christmas, because it is, “the best potato salad I have ever tasted” (she said that not me, but it is pretty awesome). She also loves my choc brownies (she even admitted they might be as good as hers). I think everything I have made she has loved, from pumpkin soup to choc muffins. But because we will be moving next year she will be deprived of all my awesome cooking. So I have decided to make a collection of my recipes for her.

It’s going to be fun, and it will be a good excuse to make some good food because I can’t just write ‘a touch’ of that and ‘a dollop’ of that. That’s how I cook most meals. It’s only when I’m baking that I pull out ye olde measurers.

Hmm, I’ll have to buy her some measuring cups too. When I was visiting last week we made ginger bread and she has no measuring cups!!

I’ll also have to convince Dale to let me give her his great Russian Fudge recipe. Not that I could see her making it, it takes two solid hours to make. But it is so worth it!

Christmas is Over

Yay! It is so exhausting. Yesterday was lovely. I just spent the whole day with Dale. We got some movies out and just had a blob day with good food and lots of chocolate .

Today was the big day. I made potato salad and chocolate brownie this morning, and then spent all afternoon at my Aunt & Uncle’s house (Stephen & Leanne’s). All 13 of my cousins were there, although Charissa was working so turned up late. Only one family drama and my uncle Cliff ended up walking out (that was unexpected, he’s normally really easygoing). I somehow managed to avoid getting preached at! Normally every family get together someone starts on me or Dale. I don’t mind them being Christain, but I wish they could keep it to themselves.

So now I get to sit down with a nice glass of wine, compliments of Bossman (Karl, Dale’s bosses boss).

Dale is recovering from the busiest day of the year. The shop was full from open to half an hour past close. I don’t know why anyone would brave town on boxing day, yet thousands do. Makes me wonder about this recession; they only did 2k less than last year (which is not really a lot in a store like EB Games).

Anyway, back to enjoying that glass of wine .