The Big MOVE

Hey everyone!

I have made a decision, and I am now moving to Wellington on the 16th January! Hurray!

That is all.

Clairey xx

Strangers

I love it when people smile at me in the street, or say hello. I've gotten used to it being the norm, so much so that I can be slightly offended if someone averts their eyes to avoid my cheesy grin. It's best in the mornings I think - people are generally out exercising, and they seem to be happier and less stressed. I leave the house to walk to work at 6:25am, so I get a lot of the middle-aged women power walking down the street, or the men going for a run. I always say "hi!" or "Morning!", or, at the very least, look them in the eye and smile. When they smile back, it makes my day. Or at least my morning.

Try it - smiles are contagious.

Career-ize

Hey guys! I am just in Rotorua for the weekend so thought it was about time for an update for all my friendy friends.

I got my final semester marks back - they're okay, but not great. B, B+, B+, and an A. That gives me my BSc though, so I am happy! I am working in Hamilton at Convex Plastics, which is an amazing innovative company that manufactures blown films for plastic bags, packaging, and banners. I am a Lab Tech there, but am involved in a really really exciting project on biodegradable stuff - my specialty :D It is awesome to be asked for my opinion and knowledge on various things, and people are so encouraging of my creativity. I can't wait to get back from the U.K. and get into a job with a company like Convex - forward thinking and innovative. The big boss has even said he is happy for me to use Convex time to work on my own personal engineering invention I want to look into! I am really happy there, and really excited about my career.

In January sometime I will be heading down to Wellington to live with my brother Gareth, his fiancee Juliet, her sister Nikki (of Tales of the Red Headed Devil Child fame), and the Devil Child herself. I am very very excited!! Apparently I get to live in the dining room as the new house they found is only a three bedroom. No worries though, now that I have finished study there will be a noticeable absence of the massive green desk and the huge bookshelf of texts, so my belongings will be able to fit into the small room. Just trying to find a job down there now, so if anyone knows any companies that might want a girl with a degree in materials and process engineering and environmental technology, give me a yell. I am hoping to get something in the environmental side of things, like water treatment or landfill design, just because it is an industry I won't be doing my Masters so it will be good to get a taste of it. Mmmmmm, wastewater.

I have attended several Rotary meetings as part of the Ambassadorial Scholarship I have. My sponsor club in Rotorua (Rotorua Sunrise) is really exciting, I got to do a little introductory speech to them and that was cool. I also went to the Hamilton East club, and the Te Puke club. Everyone has been so so welcoming - I spoke at the Te Puke club and I almost cried when I was thanking them for the scholarship - I am so overwhelmed and happy that I have been given this amazing opportunity, I can't describe how grateful I am towards the Rotary Foundation. All the money I will be getting is from Rotary members, normal people, funding ME! to travel and study! I really hope I make Rotary proud.

So this weekend, I had a garage sale at my house in Hamilton. Jenna came round with a carload of her stuff, and we spent from 6:15am to after lunch sunbathing outside the garage and selling things. Then we sorted out the stuff left over - big ticket items we are going to put on trademe, and all clothes and shoes that didn't sell we boxed and are going to take to Habitat for Humanity. So check out my trademe listings, they will be up in a few days. Then I drove to Rotoma for Johny's birthday. He would have been 23 today. His death is still so raw, I am dealing with it a small bit at a time. I miss him a lot - just knowing I will never get to see his goofy smile again is really hard. Some other day I will tell you things I remember about him, but not right now.

Now - it is time for me to go grocery shopping with my dad. We are going to buy lunch supplies for the week. I get to work at Scion tomorrow, for Convex. I worked at Scion last summer, so will be cool to be back in the lab with all the guys there.

Til next time!!

xx

i am still alive :D

hi guys, just to let you know i am still around! Things got incredibly hectic - a very good friend of mine, Johny Jones, passed away on the 20th September, and from there I just ran on automatic. I have now completed my degree (i hope - exam marks are not in yet!), and have started full time work for a plastics company in Hamilton. It is brilliant, but i am fully fully fully busy, still teaching piano and about to get a weekend bar job as well. Then there's dancing, gym, and Rotary as well - no time for blogging.

I am now not moving to Melbourne in January, but rather staying in NZ (hopefully in Wellington) until I leave for Wales in August/September. Exciting!

xx

I am a yellow Pencil.

My flatmate Cameron is wearing very nice business socks today.

Here is a picture of me and my buddy Stella on the swings in Wellington. I love swings.

freeeeeeeeee!!

I HAVE HANDED IN MY ASSIGNMENT ON MALEIC ANHYDRIDE! TAKE THAT!

I am not expecting a good grade, but it was 39 pages of goodness pumped out in a week, so I gotta be pleased with that! I got it in at 4:53pm, 7 minutes before the deadline. Awesome effort I think :D

So now it is the weekend, and I have to do some knitting for Jenna's birthday on Thursday. I don't think she is a blog-follower, but just incase she is, I won't say what I am knitting her. I still owe her flatmate a pair of fingerless gloves for her 21st last year. Basically, I suck. On Saturday night Caleb and I are thinking of going to a social that our dance club is putting on. We went to dancing last night after missing 2 weeks, and we were out of practice! We picked up the new steps the class had learnt easily enough, but our technique was less than good. We've decided that as long as we practice, we can miss every 2nd or 3rd dance class, because we can pick up the steps so quickly. So we might go along this weekend to have a practice and watch some more talented dancers and just have something fun to do on a Saturday night that doesn't involve getting trashed and going clubbing.

The other crazy thing that's happened is that I have had my due dates confirmed for my research project. And they're extremely close. October 15th is my presentation date, and October 31st is when I have to hand in the written report. So I have to get the practical stuff done ASAP - I am going up to Clariant in Auckland in 2 weeks (22nd September) to do all my injection moulding, which means I have to do all my extruding next week. And there's still that 30page literature review I need to do.... I think I'll be needing hypermode.

Lastly, I want to prove how domesticated I am. After the week in Wellington with my favourite family flat, I decided I had to send them some chocolates... And then I decided I should make something. I didn't quite know what to make that would post well, but ended up choosing a non-cook option. See... see...

These are chocolate Oreo's, dipped in melted energy chocolate, and covered in hundreds and thousands.

I conveniently dropped some water in the chocolate when I had just melted a little bit... I couldn't let it go to waste... Please note the awesome apron made for me by the lovely Nikki.

And then I wrapped everything up all nicely, and did some other wrapping at the same time. Wrappity Wrap Wrap. It is also worth noting that there is 3-4 little packages nicely wrapped up inside that big one. I am the master wrapper.

Blogging every day, in every way...

It is 12:32am and I am still up working on this assignment! I am exhausted so I am going to bed.

I think I just wanted to blog about this so I felt good about doing so much work.

SOMEONE COMMENT DAMMIT!!!

It IS past my bedtime...

I just HAD to blog now... It's 10:04pm and I'm at Uni - been here since 8am this morning...

I mean I did go home in the middle of the day for a few hours but I did work there too! I have written 8 pages for my large assignment so far, I think I might just be able to pull this one off... Actually, I take that back, we're putting it into HYSYS (chemical engineering software) tomorrow and I think that is going to seriously upset me. Fingers crossed that the programme takes a liking to my random clicking and loud grunting...

Today has been another classic hypermode day, which is awesome. If I work like this for the next 6 weeks then I will be Miss I-have-a-degree-Ramson. Good idea! I think I will do that. I may also die of exhaustion, but at least not of wondering.

xx

Hypermode

Hello!!


I have gotten so much done today and it is only 3:30pm! I am currently uploading some photos which I will then post on here for you people to see. I think my blog is going to be way more interesting with photos. Hurray!!

Here is the first one of me and Jutey in Wellington - note the old lame-o gappy fringe I'm sporting... I like how Jute is pretending to be a biscuit-eating pirate.

Now here is me after my hair cut... Apologies for the bad lighting, it was early morning :D Fringe is better, yes?

Finally, here is me working in hyperdrive to get my assignment done - ever wondered how you get so much more done when you are super busy? That came out a bit odd. I mean, when I get stuff done, I really get stuff done.

Alright, I admit it doesn't look very hyper-drivey. Perhaps I will post all my project reports on here, then you'll see my hyperpace. Hmm? Anyone want to learn about Maleic Anhydride or Polylactic Acid? Anyone?

Where Have I Been?

Good Evening!

I am currently abstaining from assignments and watching Batman Begins instead. It is rather entertaining, although watching Katie Holmes play a character I define as Maggie Gyllenhal is not so great. And I have a lot of work to do. Meh, it's only 9pm... Many ad breaks to go.

Today marks the last day of my University holidays, sadly. There are now only 6 weeks of school until I get down to some serious study for exams. I am SO over Uni, it is just a matter of holding on until I graduate. I think I can manage a few C's this semester :D

So I've had a week in Wellington with my brother, Jute, Nikki, Tobin, and Hannah. It was really awesome - we didn't do much, just hung out, did some study, went out for lunch... For once, I really do feel like I have had a break, although I am very stressed about the weeks ahead. I always say that! This semester has been the hardest of my whole 3 years at University though, and it always gets harder in the second half. Apologies for the whinging!

I got a hair cut. It has taken me a good 4 years to find a hair dresser that will do what I ask, and cut my fringe right. And she's in Wellington. Great. She is also Juliet's hairdresser so if any of you know my future sister-in-law, you'll know she often rocks a funky fringe, courtesy of Rosie at Zoar - Go there! This also means that I must return to Wellington to get another trim before I leave for Melbourne - oh, what a shame.

Mum and Dad came over today for Fathers Day and we went to Candyland. It was really disappointing - firstly, we'd missed the 2 shows they have on Sundays, the last being at 1pm. So all we got to see was the shop, which was about quarter full of products they don't even make themselves - Mayceys and RJ's and others. All of their chocolate was compound, yukky fatty stuff. Lastly, the entire building, inside and out, needed a thorough clean and perhaps a repaint. There are some awesome decorations there, but they are old and tired. It kind of made me want to buy the whole joint and do it up. I wish I was rich like Bruce Wayne.

Well, I think that is about all I can squirm up for now. I wish to stay up late and write a few assignments tonight but I am exhausted. Perhaps I will crash after Batman? Yes. I think so. Goodnight guys, perhaps next time I will be a more interesting blogger :D

Back in the Tron

Good Evening each and every one of my avid readers !!

(i am not actually sure how many of you there are, I know of 2 maybe 3...?)

Today, I arrived back in Hamilton after a 3 day weekend in Rotorua, where my parents reside. I am not sure if I normally use this font but it is my weapon of choice for the night. I have survived the last week of term 3!! This now puts me half way through semester B, and at the beginning of 2 weeks holidays. I have SOOO much to do though, but I am just chilling for tonight. Tomorrow I will sort some stuff out (such as buying a toothbrush) and do two assignments, and then on Wednesday I can get ready to go down to Wellington where I will be for a week. That's right, no blogging for a week. Which is not going to be surprising. But I thought I would try for effect there.

So, my friend Ashley D. Easter graciously picked me up from the bus stop this afternoon, which was awesome because it was raining out and I had a heavy bag. I left my toothbrush in Rotorua which is extremely annoying because it means I have to go into town tomorrow and town means spending money. Hmmm... Anyway, gracing Rotorua with my presence also meant attending several parties and a couple of night clubs. Slash Lava's - can you call that a night club? I had a good weekend, and got to spend time with my extended family and some old friends so that was O for Oarsome. Gazzy and Jute brought my 22nd birthday present up from Wellington with them (vase), so when I got home this afternoon I went out into my garden to see what beauty I could bestow upon it... Didn't come up with much, but I still think it looks pretty :

This was the best place in my room to put it. As you can see, it's too crowded already, by I mashed it in there because I love flowers and I love the vase and I want them in my room. Yes. Good. The clock behind is the present G&J got me for my 18th birthday - they have good taste, I just don't have enough room!! One day I will be rich and build a whole house around the gifts they have given me. And I won't fill vases with rosemary and bits of tree.

So pretty much, that was the first photo I've blogged. *pats self on back*

Anyway, that's about it for today. Tu-rah!! xxooxx

the curse of being female

They found Deon on Thursday morning last week. Then I cried, it's real now. RIP DEON xx.

I have 2 tests this week worth 10% each, a report to write, and big assignment to work on, and two other assignments to get started. But I am in cruise mode. Hence the blogging at 11:45pm. I totally am not motivated at all for these University assessments. Although I should be, I need top marks to study in the UK. BUT I suppose the tests are only worth 10% each, and I'm a bright cookie, I should be able to pass just from going to lectures. So I'm only going to be missing out on 5% in each subject. I can handle that.

Now that that is sorted, let's discuss my social life. Chelsea turned 22 on Saturday, and I crocheted her a neck warmer in cream and dark olive. The two buttons I sewed on cost $7 A BUTTON! they were cool, but only from Spotlight so I am still shocked at the price. The neckwarmer turned out pretty cool though, I hope she wears it. Nikki - it was made of 50% wool so you should be proud of me :-) ... I also baked Chels a carrot cake to which I added a couple of tamarillo's as well. I love tamarillo's. Loving the baked goods idea for people's presents, so handy and economical. It's my dad's birthday this Friday, but his gift is already hanging out in Wellington at my brother's house - boys, you are lucky if you have sisters, I am always hooking Gaz up with presents for the 'rents! Although he did choose this one whilst I was down there, so big ups to him. Must be growing up. Jenny (Juliet and Nikki's mum) is having her 50th this weekend as well, on the same night as Debbie's 21st. So I will be late to yours Deb! And I don't think baked goods is going to cut it for you... I will have to see what other thrifty things I can come up with... help, Nikki?

I have heartburn. I get it pretty much every night if I stay up late. I should have some Quickeze handy but I am in denial that I even get heartburn. My heart can't get burned, it's made of Stainless Steel.

So this weekend just been I got to borrow my mum's car, the berocca tablet. It is a burnt orange Kea Rio, SPORTS EDITION! WOOOOHOOOO! After a few minutes I got used to the clutch and it was actually quite nice to drive. Did good at sober driving the troops into Rotorua town and back on Saturday night. The Pig was pretty good, and Chelsea and her friends had a weird game going where two teams tried to score as many points as possible in doing these little challenges. Most of the tasks involved members of the opposite sex, so I didn't really get too involved as I'm far too conservative! This poor guy was left extremely confused after one of the girls kissed him and then promptly turned her back on him. After 10 minutes of watching him stand there trying to get her attention, I had to apologise and explain to him it was a game and that he should forget about the girl. At which point he tried it on with me, so I ran away pretty quick. He was obviously a loser just out to score, but I still felt sorry for the guy. Unfortunately we got to Lava's after 1:30am so weren't allowed in. It is lame how Rotorua clubs shut at 3am, when I make the effort to go out to town I like the clubs to stay open til 5am! Anyway, will maybe be out again next Saturday after Debbatron's 21st, will be good to see Lava's again. I don't spend much time in Rotorua these days, and the only clubs I get to see are Wellington and Auckland. and Hamilton when Stell drags me out. I guess that's actually quite a lot. Hmmm.

Last night I got to talk to my other best friend, Luke, who lives just out of the Gold Coast in Australia. I haven't really really spoken to him in a few weeks, so it was awesome to talk about what's been going on in our lives etc. I didn't have much to suss out with him, getting the scholarship has made things relatively stress free! One thing I did realise though, is how picky I am with the boys I am attracted to. Obviously I am very picky with who I get into a serious relationship with, but even the boys that I want to go on dates with are few and far between. If the guy doesn't cut it, I am just a social retard with him. I mean, more of a social retard than I normally am. Actually, maybe there's no difference in my lack of social skills, but I definitely feel really uncomfortable when my gut is telling me that he's not awesome. Some of you that have met me may be a bit confused at me calling myself a social retard. You haven't seen me around boys I like - believe it or not, I am very shy! And I am blatently honest, and like to lay my cards on the table straight up front, which often leads to me blurting out inappropriate information 2 seconds after meeting a guy. I really should try to create some mystery one of these days.

Yesterday Jenna picked me up from the busstop and we went perfume smelling. She wants a new perfume to have as well as her signature one, Miracle by Lancome. I am also planning on picking up a second signature one when I head to Melbourne, so I did some choosing of my own. Jenna was not so successful, but I came away loving Cinema. Miss Dior Cherie is nice too. When I was in Melbourne last year my cousin Anna and I went to a perfume store, and after telling him I liked vanilla and this and that, a really helpful guy brought over some perfumes for me to try. His first two that he thought I would like were Vera Wang - Princess (my current signature perfume) and Cinema. So I guess he's pretty freaken awesome at his job, because more than a year later, they are still my top 2 frangrances ever. So I will stock up on those duty free :D. Also gotta grab some feijoa 42 below vodka when I go through, can't beat it!

I think that's about it for me, I've written quite a substantial blog this evening/morning!

Y'all want some news?

Kia Ora!

I am back! I am 22! I am still tired! My birthday was awesome - went out clubbing in wellington and wore this totally rocking top that my mum made, SO 80's! it is terrific. Then I spent the rest of the weekend and Monday in Wellington with Gareth, Juliet, Nikki, Tobin, Hannah, Chris, Stella, and ME! I got to see the wind turbine - so freaken awesome. I am heading down again on 28th August so will get to hang some more.

Unfortunately a friend of mine from high school, Deon Cowdrey, drowned on Saturday night 2nd August. Really gutted about that, and my heart really goes out to my friends that knew him better. He was definately a good guy. It hasn't really sunked in yet, perhaps because they haven't found the body yet. RIP Deon.

Uhh... now. Great news - Yesterday I got a huge scholarship to study overseas in 2010! It is awesome, I was concerned that I wasn't ready to study next year because I am feeling burnt out, but this way is perfect - I will take next year off to work in Melbourne, and then do one years study in the UK - perhaps Wales or Ireland, or England, or even European France!! SO EXCITING!!

So that's my news, good and bad. I am still sick at the moment, stupid cold has had me off uni for most of the week. I'm all blocked up and have a very sore head/eyes etc. BUT now I can focus on the rest of the semester without worrying about next year OR the year after - I WINNED!!

xx

I AM STRESSED

Hi guys - no news, I have been SO busy with school it's not funny. Tomorrow is my BIRTHDAY so I am taking the day off and heading to my brothers place in wellington, Stella is coming down too. Hopefully it will relax me and prepare me for the next 3 weeks, then it is semester break for 2 weeks :D ALTHOUGH i have a huge assignment to be done in that time. Hmmmm.... Last Semester at Uni, time for some fails??

xx

McUpdate

Hey everyone!

Just a quick blurb today. I have had a nice few days off - Saturday to Wednesday at my parents house visiting my cousin Anna from Australia who was staying at my Granmas. My Grandmother then fainted, and spent 3 nights in hospital - drama drama drama - was quite scary because it happened when Anna and I were in town with her, so I called the ambulance and got everything sorted out. Anyway, then Thursday I spent all day in the lab, before Friday I had my whole family + Anna (who is family) over for lunch at my house. Then we went and got professional photographs taken of our beautiful selves... yeah...

Then i have just spent the weekend chilling out, watching movies, getting ready for school tomorrow. Tomorrow is the start of a VERY busy semester which i am quite worried about, but i am sure i will be alright! have tightly scheduled in my class hours and I don't seem to have much room for exercising - which doesn't fit too well with my new "lose weight" plan. Which isn't so new after all, I am just trying to make it work... Anyway, we shall see.

So a friend and I are having new challenges each week - the following is NO TAKEAWAYS. Hmmmmm.....

Exciting week though, new classes, and on Saturday is the girls day out in Auckland - me, mum, jenna, her mum, her god mother, all going to Auckland to shop and then go to Cinderella on Ice !! Exciting! Then only the following weekend is Sarah's 21st, and then one more week until i fly to Wellington for my 22nd Birthday! HOORAH. Let's hope I have zero assignments then. I doubt it.

Oh I also made one and a half scarves - crochet - great to be back in to it :-)

Ok, gotta go, it's almost 10pm - my new bedtime. Hahaha

Right...

Blog myself. About.

Nikki Whyte has graciously (and unknowingly) provided me with a way to blog today without actually being inventive at all. Greato, my creativeness is severely lacking today - perhaps I coughed it all out with the cold I've had for the last 9 days and counting!

The rules:

1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning

2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.

3. At the end of the post, the player tags 5 people and posts their name, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

What was I doing 10 years ago?

Although Nikki was starting High School, I was starting Form 1 - my last year at Lake Rotoma Primary School. There is no website for that school, because it is a tiny 3-classroom place in the middle of nowhere. I love it. 1998 was the year I won Dux (hurray!!), and I had my hair down to my bum. I was right in the middle of the chubby phase (although I seem to have grown back into that...) and it was my second year of being on the hockey team. Isabella Felber was my best friend at school, although that lessened when she started dating my brother ... Zoe Matthews was my other best friend, and I hear she caught up with my Wellington family a few weeks ago in fine alcoholic style. 1998 was also right in the middle of my 5 year love obsession with Pip Skudder. Poor boy.

Five snacks I enjoy in a perfect, non weight-gaining world:

Pasta with cheese sauce! and bacon in it! or chicken! hurray! pasta! ... chocolate primo, dairy milk chocolate, the raspberry and white chocolate cheesecake my flatmate Rach makes, the Mandarin cake my flatmate Jacki makes... I love my flat.

Five snacks I enjoy in the real world:

Unlike Nikki, I am phased with putting on weight, so I don't eat the above. However, I have a very low level of self-control, and therefore I do eat all of the above whenever it is offered to me. In the case of pasta, that is several times a week. five other snacks i like that are healthier are bagels, grapes, vanilla yoghurt, feijoas, raw broccoli and beans. Mmmmm...

Five things I would do if I were a billionaire:

1 - Pay off my Student Loan and study full time next year in Melbourne instead of part time, and pay off my brothers and his fiancees loans too. and maybe Nikki's. Nah, she's old enough to pay it herself.

2 - Move to France, get a canal boat, and just absorb the culture.

3 - Finance one of my many helpful ideas into a fully-fledged engineering project that will eventually help the world in some biodegradable/environmental/green way.

4 - Get laser eye surgery, contact lenses are a pain

5 - Pay some trainer to help me lose weight and buy a whole new wardrobe

Five jobs that I have had:

- Teaching children piano/keyboard at primary schools in the Waikato - yesterday was my last day! I had some really great kids, but not so keen to be a teacher...

- Dressing up as an animal (buzzy bee, fluffy bunny) in the middle of Rotorua City and asking people to donate to SAFE for animals.

- Being the Student Engineer for the BioMaterials Engineering Research Unit of Scion in Rotorua, which involved extruding, injection moulding, and testing - working big machines whilst wearing a white lab coat and safety glasses. Hoorah.

- Being the Business Development Unit Assistant at Waiariki Institute of Technology in Rotorua. They had a killer hot chocolate machine.

- Being a Promo girl for Shell, the petrol station. This involved standing outside supermarkets wearing red and yellow t-shirts and handing out awesome voucher pockets. Yay!

Three of my habits:

Taking long showers, biting my nails, and being late. Everywhere.

Five places I have lived:

- Manurewa in South Auckland

- Lake Rotoma

- Kawaha Point in Rotorua

- Cambridge

- Ohakune

Five things to do today:

- tidy my room - this will take most of the day.

- do my washing

- print a whole lot of my CV so I can ask people to give me money for next year

- decide what's for dinner

- cook dinner. whatever it is.

Five people I want to get to know more about:

- my best friend Stella; she is a box of surprises

- my brothers fiancee Jute; we do not spend enough time together missy :D

- the hot guy that was in my exam the other day

- all the rich CEO's... I want to know how they have done it, so I can replicate it!

- anyone who has an interesting story to tell (and I bet Britney does)

The End! That was super fun. It wasted a lot of my time. Goodo.

I tag DebbieAwesome, Nappy, Jacki, and whoever else feels like it.

Good Day Kind Sir.

Updatalicious.

Apparently I need to update my blog. According to some beatnik. She doesn't know WHAT she is talking about - me? Update my blog? I shall put her out of my mind.

Now, in a completely unrelated subject, I have decided it is time to update my blog. I have had the last 3 days off, waiting for some chemicals to come into the lab so I can actually do some work. TODAY - they are here - I will pick them up this afternoon and place them in an easily accessible area of my laboratory, clearly labelled with my name and contact details. So for the last 3 days I haven't really done much - did some strenuous aerobics on Monday, followed by a good walk with my flatmate Rach. Tuesday I just sorted out some appointments (ie:booked the dentist) and then went to work. CRAP! I just remembered I have work this afternoon!!! How could I forget! Idiot! I have been off with Emma walking through the Hamilton Gardens this morning, and then came home and did some pilates. It is good to have time to exercise again.

The weekend was awesome - went to stella's mum's 50th ball at their house, worked the bar, drank a little too much sav, sang april sun in cuba with the live band, and then came back to hamilton in time to go out to lunch with alice on sunday. This weekend is Lauren's 21st so should be same story, minus the bar work and the singing. Although, you could twist my arm.... :D

Tonight I am going to the movies with my flat - we are seeing Kung Fu Panda. But now, I have half an hour to get to work and I am still in my work out clothes. Lame - o.

Ciao!! xx

And then, there was One Semester Left

I did my one and only exam of the semester this afternoon - Environmental Technology. It went pretty well I think. I had a nice bit of eye candy to look at whilst I rested my hand from writing, so I must say it was one of the most pleasant exams ever. Hurray!

Anyway, now I just have research to do, and another semester. That's 4 more A's I need to get into Honours... Hmmm... Sounds fun.

Anyway it is pretty cool i think

now there is a good movie on so this is the extent of my blog.

xx

Stupid Boy telling me I can't do what I want to do

After 2 and a half years of studying Engineering, I have come face to face with my first significant sexist encounter. This stupid boy told me....

1) I can't be an Engineer because I am doing a Bachelor of Science, even though I am going to do Honours, and then a PhD. So basically I will be the man. And I will be applying for ENGINEERING jobs. And the jobs I have already had have had the title "Engineering Student". But apparently I can't be an engineer.

2) I will never make it to a top management position within Engineering, because I am a woman. I can see where this opinion comes from, as women have the disadvantage of having a uterus, so even if they choose to put their kids into daycare at a young age, they still have to take off about 3 months per child. As I want many kids (read 4 or 5), and seeing as I am a fan of working on the mother-child bond, I think I will have to take 10 years or so out of my career - and this is quite a large chunk.

BUT I WILL FREAKEN MAKE IT TO THE TOP BECAUSE I AM GOING TO BE THE BEST.

So.... I am pretty mad about that, but at the same time happy that these issues have been brought up now, and in this way, so that I can quietly deal with it, so that when they come up when I am out in industry, I am more prepared. I hope. All is not lost - I have learned from today :D

Suddenly, Luke was Gone.

Hey everyone.

Today is a sad day. This morning at 5:50am, I stood inside Auckland Airport, and said goodbye to one of my two best friends, Luke. He is now staying with his parents, just out of the Gold Coast in Australia. In a few weeks he will move to Brisbane, where he will be living for the rest of the year at least. And then.... US. Me? I'm in NZ until mid-February next year, when I move to Melbourne. So although I want him to go where the wind takes him, I really hope that our paths cross again - MSN conversations are just not the same as the spontaneous discussions that pop up when you are hanging with someone in the real life. Luke has been staying at my flat for the last 3-4 days, and I have really been reminded of why we are best mates. He is an amazing person, and just blatently brings such a different perspective on things. We have been mates for 8 years now, and our friendship has gotten to the point where we can have these incredibly interesting, intellectual conversations, and actually disagree. Disagree! On huge world issues! And that's okay! We allow each other to have opinions, and this means we learn so much more, because we are open to the other persons reasonings.

Like with anyone close that moves away, I will miss hanging out with Luke, but we have lived more than an hour away from each other for the past 5-6 years, so I'm kind of used to it I guess. But losing the opportunites to have those thought-provoking conversations? That's really sad.

So, all I can do is keep in touch, and hope whatever paths in life we choose, cross along the way.

my eyes are like sandpaper

ahhhhhh.... here i am, smack bang in the middle of the last week of Uni. My life has gotten very crowded as of late, which is not so good. However, I am doing okay. I kinda feel like I have taken an exceptionally large bite of a big sandwich, and I've been steadily chewing it for a while, and now I'm just at that last bit just before you take a huge gulp to get it down - where it's kinda a bit too much to swallow but you still try it, because you know that it will all be over soon.

Yes, that's exactly how I feel.

So I found a new procrastination tool. Last night I stayed up until almost 2am at Stella's house with her brother Nolan. I was working on a tree project report and he was writing dialogue in Spanish to speak in his oral exam this week. He had some words to look up, and during his procrastination, he found an awesome website that has a digitised human face and shoulders, that reads out excerpts in several different languages. It is SO cool! SO entertaining! We spent a good hour or so writing things in - pick-up lines, robotic words, gangsta words, funny sounding words, even Beastie Boys lyrics! Oh, and the Fresh Prince theme song. Unfortunately I have forgotten the website. No more procrastination for me.

Have a test on Friday, as well as a presentation. ARGH.

Onwards and Upwards I say!! HooRAH!!

Sad Bad news.

Good Morning!

Oh poos. Now it is 12pm and am just finishing up checking my emails and checking out 1-day, bebo, and facebook. OH facebook, haven't checked that one!

Anyway, now I'm just heading into my last 2 weeks of semester - so many assignments, many tests, a few presentations... and then a couple of weeks off before my 1 exam. And then it's research research research before back to Uni for my final semester of my degree! :-) Hurray!!

In bad news, I have been neglecting my craftiness - no knitting, no crochet. Actually have written a few poems so I guess that's cool. Just Uni is getting SO busy! so so busy! but not in a bad way, I am okay, the stress is not at breaking point yet!

In gooder news (yes, gooder, like gouda cheese), Luke is coming to stay! Luke is one of my 2 best friends - Stella being the other, with several other close friends! anyway, Luke is moving to the gold coast to live with his parents for a while, and I haven't seen him in ages already, so it is actually quite sad. But he will be arriving not this wednesday but the following one, or thursday, and then I will drive him up to Auckland on the Saturday night and watch him fly out :'(

I am actually going to be quite gutted. But I will deal with that at the time.

Now. Some terrible news. In 2006 I lived at Orchard Park at the University of Waikato - Uni flats. My flatmate was a guy called Benjamin Urry - a 2nd-3rd year accountant from Gisbourne. He was one of most loveliest guys I have ever met - always smiling, always caring. We lived together the entire school year, and have had the odd coffee and christmas card since then, although have not really been close friends. On Tuesday last week his body was found in a river between Napier and Gisbourne. There is not much information yet, but it is said he slipped, fell into the river, and drowned. Because I haven't talked to Ben in awhile, and we weren't all chummy, I am sad, but I am not devastated. The real tragedy is that Ben himself now has no future. He had big plans; he had just started his career in Tauranga, and I don't think he had met anyone to marry yet. He was the kind of guy that everyone just counts on to be there, and he deserved happiness. I am so ANGRY that all of this got stolen from him! And of course, my heart goes out to his parents and brothers. How utterly horrible.

RIP Ben - although your life on Earth was cut short, I hope things are bitch'n where you are. xx

fire ! pretty ! maths ! pretty ! ...?

Today i totally made fire at uni. My leaf-tree drying-then-burning-then-weighing-ash-to-get-calorific-values project is coming to fruition. Today I got to burn the first of 2 sets of tree matter - and oh did i burn them. I lined up all my crucibles in the furnace and got to watch them burn everytime i opened the door to get some out/put some in. The fire was so pretty! it was highly exciting! at first, i was a bit alarmed because i wasn't sure if things were supposed to actually be on fire, and i thought i might burn down the entire large scale lab. But then i realised that when you put dry leaves and wood at 500 degrees celcius, it is pretty obvious that they will catch fire. So once i figured my lecturer and the lab technician knew it would catch fire, and that this was normal, i had a ball! AND i get to do it again next tuesday with the second set! Hurray!!

Now. in other news. Go here. Totally. it is mind boggling. and reminds me why i want to be a philosopher.

http://polymathematics.typepad.com/polymath/2006/06/no_im_sorry_it_.html

even though i don't know how to be a philosopher. can you really get paid to think? i would earn mega-bucks, because i overthink everything.

boys i like.... hurray! (this means any boys in my life)

this morning it came to my attention (thank you stella) that there are a number of boys i have my eye on. I feel this is not a indication of the talent i am surrounded with, but merely how my boredom leads to a roving eye. I think i like the idea of liking someone, even if i don't actually like the person themselves. Right. Let me describe the current victims of my razor blade stare.

EDIT - just realised the boys under debate will probably know i am talking about them, so have added in boys that are just my friends as well.

Boy number 1) - let's call him BN1 (creative, i know). He lives in Wellington, and has been on this list for the last 13 years. He's not really a true candidate. I just like him.

Boy number 2) - BN2 lives in Hamilton, and does Science (hurray!). He likes playing sports which is good, I like sports, and he makes me laugh.

Boy number 3) - BN3 lives in Hamilton. He is the one i am probably better friends with. Even though i don't really know him. But he is cool to talk to, so that is something.

Boy number 4) - BN4 lives in Rotorua and he is hot. Tried dating him for a while and that didn't work out, but whenever I hit the clubs in Vegas I am on the lookout for him :-)

Boy number 5) - BN5 from Auckland - this one is actually an old Boy that is not on this list anymore, but I thought it would be good to mention him as we are much better friends now i am not trying to kiss him all the time..... weirdo....

Boy number 6) - this is BN6 from Wellington - I just met him. He is very nice, and seems quite smart. Which is good. Don't really know this guy so don't have much to say about him - but definately needs to be on this list!

Boy number 7) - BN7 eats rice and peas. He sometimes showers with his clothes on. I may have made BN7 up.

Boy number 8) - BN8. He lives in Wellington, and he is tall. and pretty. and i like him.... BN8 is one of those guys that you spend a lot of time talking to, but don't really know where you stand with them.

Boy number 9) - BN9 is my favourite number. He lives in the South Island. I haven't talked to him in a few months. BN9 is from my High School, and we didn't get along that well until a few years ago. It would be cool to hang out with him more but he is so far away that i will just have to stare at him longingly.

Boy number 10) - BN10 is awesome. He lives in Wellington, but is moving soon. He is always around when I need to talk to him about stuff, and he is one of the 4 people I would say truely know me.

RIGHT. I think that is enough procrastination for one morning. I am officially assigning myself to my assignment. Oceanic Tidal Energies - here I come!

xx

Speed-dating? Speed-Blogging!

OLA!

hello friends of mine! So my tree project is going good, my computer game is finished and i am onto writing websites, and my research project is still at a standstill. The knitting and crochet are on hold, I have two Jodi Picoult books that are half-read, and I am trying to learn Latin on the side. My room is a pig-sty (as usual), my bedsheets need washing, the clothes on my floor need putting away, my desk needs ordering, and my "craft corner" in my wardrobe needs a huge overhaul. I have a stupid assignment on tidal energy that needs doing, and I still haven't figured out how many hours I have worked so I can put my payslip in. Boys=zero.

I should probably continue with my bid to get funding for 2009-Melbourne as well.

uh oh.....

some of the bark we separated to air-dry is growing mould....

pathetic blog. do not read.

ARE YOU SERIOUS?

I JUST WROTE AN ENTIRE BLOG AND FREAKEN DELETED IT! i am going to cry. seriously. i was just up to the part where i say i am having a shit evening. i swore even, that's how bad. ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGHHHHH

but i feel i must update my avid readers. bullet point form?

Monday - 5 lab reports, in, good.

- 2am finish in computer lab working on comp game

Tuesday - 2 am finish in computer lab again

Wedneday - 5am finish in computer lab

Thursday - 3 hours sleep, catch bus to auckland

- see stell in her graduation gown and cap - yay! so proud of her! really made me think about how admirable it is to have a degree. yes you ashley.

- see mark and blake, mark graduating too. blake = loser like me.

- 15 mins sleep. hurray!

- off to stella's grad dinner at thai restaurant

- wine

- bed at midnight

Friday - awaken. catch ride to hamilton

- write report quickly

- give presentation on computer game

- spend 2 hours sorting leaves, bark, and wood from bags of mulched up tree. hurray. i love studying environmental engineering. This involved peeling sticks with a knife. that was pretty cool actually.

Saturday - shopping with alice

- hanging out with nolan

Sunday - tidy room - epic as. ie: desk still not done.

Monday - another day i was determined to make great. walk to school, and stayed, working, until 5pm. Got home, cooked dinner, wine, was great, until depression set in. got real lonely, had a bit of a bitch about everything, realised i was being a dork, and went back to just being lonely. wrote some poems - not really about being lonely, but oh well.

So the evening has turned out poo. I am sick of being single. 3 and a half years is too long. Where are all my boyfriends? where? Apply within.

-

Looooong Day - Perfect Glass of Wine Waiting at the Other End.

I have had a great last few days - got back from Ohope, did some assignments, then a friend from Auckland came and hung out on Friday and Saturday (Blake). We did shopping mainly - opshopping and dress shopping (although the latter was express seeing as Blake is a boy). We also ate burger fuel and fed the ducks by the waikato river. Then Saturday evening i called in to see my brother who was up at a party, and then headed over to kaharoa (by rotorua) to my cousin Matt's 21st - was real good to see him and his parents and sister Jacqui. Totally keen to catch up with them again. After speeches and the yardy (2 minutes, good work Matt!!), I left, getting back to Hamilton at 1am. I called in on brother Gaz, and ended up staying until about 4:30am - met some really cool guys that are in my brothers car club (www.oldschool.co.nz). Then we went to the supermarket to buy breakfast supplies, then home to bed - up at 9am to cook for stupid boys ;) slept Sunday arvo, and then got up this morning to start work again.

So today, i was all ready for the day to be a great one - i had my positive thinking cap on. I was late to work, but on the way there the song "time is on my side" by the Rolling Stones (i think) came on, and it just made me relax. I got to work at 9:59 - i started at 10. an hour or so later, i was exhausted. falling asleep whilst trying to explain the fibre and matrix interface to students. So i spent the rest of the day trying my hardest to stay awake, stay positive, when all i really wanted to do was sleep. I think i pulled it off though - I really feel like the day was pushing to be crap, and I was pushing back just as hard for it to be good. I won! totally enjoying my glass of wine at home now though - i should do this more often :D

Zonked. Happy Zonked.

Just got back from Ohope - had a fantastic weekend/Sunday&Monday. Hannah, Roz, Jenna and I just hung out in Jen's bach, played charades, watched movies, sunbathed, and walked on the beach. We spent a good half an hour down at the beach drawing in the sand - our names, animals, and several other things - the Ring of Fire, the Rainbow of Doom, and the Pot of Rage (clearly found at the end of the Rainbow of Doom). We also had a heated debate over what Whale Island should be called - I think Snail Island from the Port Ohope direction and Turtle Island from the Whakatane side. Not Whale Island. Ever.

Walking on the beach today and then sitting in the car for the 2-3 hour drive home, I had time to reflect on a few things. Didn't really come to any conclusions, except that I am Happy. How cool is that?

finished project!!

I finally actually made something out of my craftiness. I was at stella's this weekend, who is actually my grandmother's cousin's grandaughter (point of this is that i am close to her whole family), and i was practising my crochet on the couch. Practising because i am horrible at it. Anyway, Stella's brother Nolan was extremely amazed that I was actually making "something" out of yarn. The bright orange yarn. So he asked me to make him a sweatband. He wanted a thin one, so it was actually something I could do - 5-6 rows of single crochet stitch using an H hook with about 4ply bright orange acrylic yarn. He was stoked - i was amazed at his happiness, but yeah, it was great to actually finish something - even if it only took me 30 minutes!

While i was relaxing out at their beautiful home (argh i sound retarded - but it really is tranquil out there), I managed to convince stell, alice, and noley to come over the road to the primary school courts and play tennis with me. I have never played tennis before, and I have severe hand-eye co-ordination issues. I played the whole half hour or so, while the other three took turns (as none of them really wanted to play in the first place). In the beginning I was AWFUL but towards the end I had improved quite a lot so was able to get in some good rallys with Noley. Really glad I did it - played squash yesterday with Jenna, but haven't been doing that as regularly as I should be.

Off to Ohope tomorrow morning with Jenna so hopefully will do a bit more relaxing there - but maybe get some Uni work done also??!!

xx

gearing up for an awesome weekend

Hellooooooo Readers (grand total of 1)

I have had a semi-productive week (it's only Thursday but hey, who works on Friday anyway). I went swimming this morning which was rather refreshing (yay, been trying to slot that word into a sentence for quite a few weeks). For the last few days, inbetween teaching kiddies to play keyboard (part-time job), i have been studying up a storm. However, I kind of think that maybe what I am studying is useless. You know, the time-consuming, high-effort, type of study with no point? Yup, well, that's what I think I have been doing. However, next week I am going to go into the University and doing some Computer Game creating and hopefully this will (somehow) make my Environmental study more effective.

I am quite excited about this weekend. I was going to go to the Hamilton 400 (v8 car racing) seeing as I live in Hamilton and all, and I even got offered a free 3-day pass, BUT I have graciously passed the opportunity on to some Policeman called Jamie who will stay on our couch (he does not object to being mentioned in my blog - I checked). The better offers I had to replace a grease-filled weekend of roaring v8s and smoking tyres were from two of my good buddies, Stella and Jenna.
Stella kindly invited Alice and I to her parents cafe/guesthouse (Out in the Styx in Pukeatua NZ - exquisite, you should try it sometime) for Friday evening and Saturday day - it's in the middle of nowhere, idyllic surroundings, and just perfect for time out. As Stell says when I am stressed and she thinks I need a break - "great food, great views, great atmosphere, great company". So I am really looking forward to that; I always use my holidays for study so I am really lucky to have Stell who forces me to visit her!
The other offer I ditched the v8s for was from Jenna. Jenna and her flatmate Hannah, along with some of their other girl friends, are heading over to Ohope on Sunday morning and coming back on Monday evening, so I thought I would crash their party with my presence. Another chance to relax I think. Am quite looking forward to the weekend!

In other news, I unravelled almost an entire scarf's worth of knitting today - decided it was incredibly ugly and therefore had to be terminated. I saved all the yarn though so that's good. Totally keen on new projects now.

Well, that's about it from me for now. I said I would mention Chris here so he'd feel special (gotta keep my readers happy, they're scarce) so this is officially me mentioning Chris and implying he is a nice guy. Possibly because he is.

EPIC WEEKEND

Hey! Hey HEY HEY!

I have had the most amazing weekend. On Friday night I went to see step up 2 (cheesey i know) with my friendy Jenna. On Saturday I volunteered at the Balloons Over Waikato event - i stopped traffic to help people cross the road he he - where the work I did raised money for Camp Quality, an organisation that helps children living with Cancer. Whilst I was doing this, I got a call from my one and only sibling, my brother Gareth. He asked me how I was, what I was up to, and then casually slipped in "Me and Jute are getting married!" !!!!!!! I am SO buzzing about it, my big brother proposed to his long-time girlfriend Juliet. She is amazing, I went to High School with her and she has grown into this person I have a lot of admiration for. Wedding will be next year some time, so I will have to fly back from Melbourne. YAY!!

Saturday night, I went to town with my friends Stella and Alice. That was an AWESOME night.

Many bars, many people. My dress was rather short. My arms are longer than it in fact. But it was very very fun and I felt great in it - I got quite a lot of male attention which was a real confidence booster even though it's really not the kind of attention I want. But I think it is really cool to have a night like that every now and again; I had been getting quite down on myself because even though I'm not the type to bring guys home, everytime I go out all my friends get hit on and I don't. I've been told that I look more like a Ms. Right than a Miss Right Now, and that guys out are looking for the latter. I'm glad I don't appear avaliable to every Tom, Dick, and Harry, but sometimes I wish boys would at least look twice! So I had a fabulous night on Saturday night in my little green dress, and I like to think I managed to maintain my dignity!

Thanks Alice for looking after me on Sunday and Thanks Stella for not fitting the little green dress - I do!!

xxooxx

Fantastic Day - New Lease on Life?

Wow! I have had a fantastic day, and I put it down to a simple, yet life-changing strategy. Positive thinking. I'm serious. The other day, I was reading an article about a thing called "The Secret". It means that you can get whatever you want from the Universe, if you just ask for it. If you focus on the positive things, you will get more good stuff happen to you.

So... Today, I thought I would give it a try. Last night, I went to see Matchbox 20 play live at the Vector Arena in Auckland - it was AMAZING. Love them so much!! Aaaaaanyway, so I was quite tired this morning, but I wanted to give the day a go in spite of this. I got ready for school, even in time to walk the 40minutes instead of driving. Right from the word go, everything was good. I was able to shower in a short time. I found clothes I wanted to wear. My hair sat nicely. And as I was wandering through the picturesque research innovation park that stands between my house and my university, listening to my mp3 player, I decided that today was a going to be a great day. I walked with heaps of energy, i mostly had a smile on my face. I got to Uni and taught my morning lab - i had two cool groups of students to work with, and even though now I think about it, the labs didn't go the best, it seemed like they went really well. Then I walked home, smiling at every maintenance worker I saw in the research park- got some great smiles and waves back - enjoyed the sunshine, got my clothes off the line (they were dry!) and went to work this arvo - then made it back to uni to grab more notes, and then went to a friends house to catch up with a few good mates from high school i haven't hung out with in ages. Basically my entire day just had a huge happy spin on it - most things i did went great, and the things that didn't just seemed insignificant.

This is the way I want to Live my Life.

big fat bellies and a shortened life

Hey!!

so i did the relay for life last weekend, and it turned out that me, my mum, and a lady liz were practically the only walkers from our team overnight. i was so bloated for some reason, and weirdly, i got worse when i'd been walking - if i had an hour or so off, my belly became slightly less fat ! it was very uncomfortable though, although my mum said i looked pregnant so i'm guessing everyone else thought i was pregnant instead of fat. excellent.

the walk itself was quite emotional, there were these white paper bags that you could buy and decorate with peoples names that had died of cancer, and then put some sand in it with a tea light candle, and these were all spread around the inner line of the walking circle. so as i was walking around, i couldn't help but read "to mummy" and "my dad, my hero" - and outside our tent - "margaret, my lovely wife with the big heart, 27/03/08" - bearing in mind the walk was on the 30/03/06. Each of those bags were for at least one person, many for more. It is amazing how the world works, and it is so difficult to believe that there is some "grand" plan when there are so many people getting their lives cut short for no apparent reason, and so many people losing people they love. I'm all for a little death here and there - makes people stronger, and shit has to happen to make the world go round. BUT families that are being hit by tragedy not once, but two or three times, is just bullshit. Why so much Pain? why does this have to happen?

i don't think anyone, or anything, could ever justify that to me.

Great Day!

Today went excellently. I got up early and went swimming, then went into Uni and had a hot chocolate with a friend of mine, Jenna. I went into a computer lab class and got another 3rd of my half-semester's work signed off, and then headed to a CAKE meeting. CAKE is something to do with composites - that's what I study, that's what I like. but we also got CAKE.

Then I headed to my lab - this took 3 and a half hours, but it wasn't too bad. Then I went off to find Alice's new house, and took her shopping for her friend's 21st, and then out to dinner. NOW I am home. Phew!

Tomorrow, I am driving back to Rotorua. I am going to be a part of Relay for Life - Fundraising for Cancer by running for 24 hours - the team, not an individual. I am quite excited! First I will hang my washing on the line though, that'll be good.

Right. Time to sort out my awesome enviro engineering crap.

xx

I went WOOL SHOPPING

Hey! Today I treated myself to checking out the Knitting Warehouse in Hamilton. (geeky treat, I know) It was totally awesome! The lady in there helped me out, explained a few things to me, and I walked out with wool to finish my scarf, wool to make my fingerless gloves, needles to make the gloves, a crochet hook, plus the offer to go back if i ever needed help with my work! My mother had told me a certain project would cost lots and lots of money to buy the wool for, but if I make it acrylic I can get it for $36 from that shop! I am SO excited!

About my scarf.... it is SO ugly. It started out as a project to use up some wool i had lying arund with no name on it, and to learn/practise how to knit/purl. Well, i've done that, and now I am left with a scarf that begins nicely (two small holes where I curiously missed stitches), and then goes into this hideous knobbly wool stuff - and the scarf gets wider! MUCH wider! even though I checked, and I'm using the right needles and the right wool - I'm guessing the tension is different... Anyway, then I ran out of that stuff too, and my scarf is only half the length it should be. So I go to the Knitting Warehouse, and the only knobbly stuff they had was this creamy-yellow stuff, so that's what I am doing the 3rd quarter of the scarf in, then plain creamy yellow wool to finish off. So, basically, grey/blue to cream/yellow, with the middle portion being soft and knobbly to wind around your neck. Fan bloody tastic. EXCEPT for the width!! to my great disgust, when I added on the yellow knobbly stuff, it got wider still!! What is the world coming to?? So I added a few stitchs together, and it seems to be undercontrol.

I am seriously contemplating sewing this scarf into the middle of a blanket. Stupid ugly thing.

My Genetic Superiority

Hello!

So! I found out that the weird ability I have to smell ANTS is genetic. As in, I have some sort of gene that allows me to smell ants - possibly the formic acid in them - whilst others can only dream of having such talents. I have been laughed at, ridiculed, and called a liar for the past double decade when I have announced I can smell ants - and now, it is time to say "I TOLD YOU SO!!" to all those untrusting, unfaithful, unloyal "friends" that did not stick by my claims of ant-smelling. "What do you mean, you can smell ants?" I hear you ask. Well. I'll tell you! Say I am sitting on the steps on your front proch. If there are more than 5 ants around, I will be able to smell them. They have a distinctive smell! If there is one ant, and I squash it, then I can smell it too. But I can't smell a single ant by itself just crawling around. But then again, who can? I am an ANT-Smeller! I can only conclude that I am genetically superior to all those that cannot smell ants. Just call me ANT-WOMAN. Amen to that.

I wish...

This is me, officially not caring about University. You have dominated my life for so long, too long, and you plan on holding my full attention for years to come, you evil hussy! I NEED to be happy - to not have that niggly little voice at the back of my stomach, giving me nausea until ALL assignments are completed to A+ standard, ALL exams are A+ through, and ALL lab reports are A+ understood.

I want to be a B student, and I WANT TO LIKE IT!!

.....

who am I kidding? I'm screwed. I'm off to do an allnighter on a research Assignment. How surprising.

My death may be further away than expected..!

Howdy!

Don't the new apple Macbook air laptops look amazing? I want one! so thin.

Anyway, after speculating that the pain in my gut was possibly a twin of mine that didn't separate properly in the womb, it hasn't been hurting today! hooooooray! i'm going to the doctor tomorrow, but i suspect he will tell me that it was all just a random gut ache. Or perhaps he will tell me i DO have a twin after all, and that it can be operated on and then i can keep in a jar. Hmmmmm.....

So i guess i'll be alive for a while longer!!

Went to a cool 21st last night, op shop theme, so wore an awesome floor-length bright green dress i bought for about $12. Also went op shopping that day, and have added quite a bit of mohair to my yarn stash!!

Friend Chels came round tonight and we went out to a really good Indian restaurant. Then, like all good friends should, I took her grocery shopping. How nice of me.

This week is going to be so hectic, I have a huge assignment due on Thursday that I don't actually know how to do, BUT then Friday morning I am catching a bus up to Auckland to spend Easter with my best girlfriend, Stella, so that'll be a cruisey weekend! I think I should do some Enviro Engineering work. Anyway, my computer game development is coming along nicely, I will eventually put it on here for download (if I can do that, can I do that?). Right! Bedtime :D

xx

Update for the last few days

Hello, Cyber World!

Well I just stuffed my gut with a burger and chips(Burgerfuel - best burgers ever!). SOOOO..... I would like to draw everyones attention (yes, all 1 of my readers, counting me) to an awesome chicky and her interesting blog, Nikki Knickers and http://redheadeddevilchild.blogspot.com/

Try it. Go on, I dare you. She is the inspiration behind all of my hermit-like tendencies.

In other news, I haven't done any knitting this week. Oh no, I lie, I did a row to my fingerless mittens whilst sitting on my bedroom floor waiting from my computer to reboot. Why is it, my computer has to be restarted 20 times before it does what it is told? I live with 2 computer technicians, and both of my computers have issues!

I think I am dying. DYING. I have a bad feeling that the dull, aching pain hovering somewhere on my lower left abdomen is something more serious, as it has been there for 3 whole days and worsening. (is that a word?) I'll let you know when they amputate.

Have actually had a good week, have been swimming twice this week, and going again tomorrow and I am really enjoying that, as well as the early morning walk I took with a friend on Wednesday. Did a proposal on the big project I am researching this year, but only got 70% on it, which was a bit disappointing, but i learnt a lot doing the readings for it so that's good. Hmmmmmmmm..... My awesome friend Stella told me about her stupid restaurant boss who yells at her everyday - yesterday, her 16th day of work in a row, he said she was "fucken appalling" at customer service - this is about a woman who has worked in an elite, home-style cafe/guesthouse since she was about ten, as well as working in a flash restaurant in Auckland City, with no complaint about her waitressing skills... Plus she is about the nicest person I know - she is never in a bad mood, and doesn't let anything bother her. I want to hit this boss guy, how dare he pick on the one person that won't say anything back? I think he has short-man-syndrome. GRRRRRRRR

Enough of this blog for today. ciao xx

Another day of teaching small creatures. Childs.

Today I didn't do a whole lot - got up early and did some swim training, then missed my one lecture of the day (which was good, it is boring), so I spent the day trying to write a silly 2% report on energy efficiency, before heading out to Cambridge to teach a few classes piano keyboards. Got a few new kids, they were enthusiastic so a good day really.

cooked dinner - burnt the roof of my mouth. Owww.

End of Day I think, I'm zonked.

First public demonstration

well, today i had zero classes seeing as i am a big 3rd year and can be trusted to be "highly self-motivated" and do papers that have no classes. So this semester i am doing a computer paper, a paper on environmental engineering, and a research paper on something of my choice. i'm doing some top secret materials research, and hopefully by the end of the year i will have a nice fat report concluding some cool stuff and MAYBE even a publication to put in a Materials Journal.

AAAAAANYWAY.... today I just had to teach/demonstrate a couple of materials labs for 3 hours, and then i was free. except... being the idiot i am, i left my cellphone charger and all of my medication (that's right, medication - bring on the taunting!), at my parents house (1 hour away) when i visited this weekend. So i had to wait for my mum, who happened to be travelling my way, to bring it round. It was actually really good, we spent the afternoon gathering all of the fruit in my back yard - I've got 3 types of apples, quinces, grapes, and rhubarb, as well as feijoas, mandarins, lemons, grapefruit, oranges, and tangelos to ripen. Good to see it go to a good home though, my flat never gets through it all. In fact, we generally ignore it all until we have garden drinks and need footballs. I have been eating the grapes though, totally loving them.

well - i suppose i should get to the point of this blog yeah? this afternoon, instead of making my mum find her way to her check-up appointment, i took her, and had to sit in the waiting room for 25minutes or so.... perfect opportunity for some knitting! I totally aced my first public knitting display, even though i'm still slow and still have to watch every stitch, AND i dropped the ball of wool under the chair, I managed to get it all together in the end and leave at the end of a row, with my yarn and my knitting under my arm. so proud right now!

Swimming in the morning, can't wait to get back into it :-) ciao xx

My First Blog EVER!!

Hi! So, my name is Claire and I live in an awesome place called New Zealand. I like apple pie and I like clean lakes. I like music and I like my family.

So I was thinking I need a place to write down all my stuff seeing as I just kick-started my creative side again. Inspired by my brothers girlfriends sister Nikki, I have moved to blogging!!

So I'm thinking of talking about my knitting projects, my crochet projects when I learn to crochet, anything I want to talk about (this happens a lot), and MAYBE, eventually, some of my poetry and possibly even some songs.

Hmmmm. Fun. Right. So there's this really cool website called Ravelry - http://www.ravelry.com/ which is a knit and crochet community. So at the moment I am knitting a scarf and also a pair of fingerless mittens, both so I can learn how to knit properly. The exciting news of the weekend is that I visited my Nana, and asked her if she had her knitting stuff from when she used to knit. Unfortunately, she had thrown out most of it, but she did still have one small box - only one pair of needles, but quite a few small balls of wool. But the treasure of them all - lots of little squares that she has knitted, which I can now crochet together into a blanket/rug which will serve as excellent lessons to learning to crochet good!!

This weekend was also my mummy's birthday, and so I went to my parents house for Saturday. We had a great roast dinner, and then went out for breakfast on Sunday as well. Then my brother got mugged, and now he has broken bones and we're all ropable about the guys that did it. My brother is cool, why you attack him??!! I will need time to process this :-(