Playing with fire

I've been home for a bit over 24hrs now and about the only thing I've really managed to accomplish is getting all of my (hundreds of) photos on to my computer. I had a lot of fun with my camera so expect a few photos in entries to come.

Little Boy and I had a ball in Tassie and managed to see a fair amount of it. While it is the Little Island of this homeland of ours in order to see it all (good bits anyway) takes a lot of driving on some not so flash roads. You can drive from one end to the other in not too many hours but if you don't pull off to the side you'll miss a lot of the history (and photo ops). We were a little off the beaten track and boiling the billy for most of our stay...

There were a few definite highlights of the trip and a couple of lows too (pirates even). My sis has spent a week in hospital up here while I was away so there was a lot of phone calls back and forth checking up on her and my soon to be nephew/niece. She's home again now and better than she was and bub is all good.

Hopefully I'll get a few Tassie entries written in the next couple of days before the chaos of normality and school resumes.

From the Road to the Sky

It's 1am, I should be sleeping and failing that I should be packing our bags to leave tomorrow (today if you want to be pedantic). We're off to see my Mum this time round and in the past that meant heading a coupla hours north along the coast. When she moved from there it meant a 5min walk down the road a bit but now it means jumping on a plane and hopping across to the little island. I'm not good with planes, I'm not even good with the thought of planes at least not when the thought includes me too. I've only flown once before just a couple of years ago with my friend who, while being very supportive of my irrational fears, had a good chuckle at my expense. This time around I'm not supposed to be allowed to freak out, I'm not supposed to snap "I can't talk right now!"... This time around I'm in "Mum" mode and have to be all grown up and brave so as not to freak the boy out...

In reality most of my freaking out is done internally anyway so i just have to ensure it is ALL done that way this time round. I'm sure my darling Little Boy with manage to get a chuckle at my expense too!

On the up side... I am really looking forward to getting off the plane in Tasmania and exploring a little, especially with my camera.

Miss you guys, will catch you when I get back!

P.S where's Dani gone people?? When I got back the other day I noticed she'd blogged at some point but now it's all gone... You out there Dani?

The Road to...

This entry will no doubt be long and boring for you lot but I'm writing it for my own benefit so too bad hehe I need to get back to writing something, anything and here's as good a place as any to force myself to do it. Besides I need to get some little bits down just as little memory joggers. I was always going to write the "camouflagation" entry but didn't get around to it so I'm making the point of doing this one now...

I'm home, for a few days at least. I'm enjoying this summer break even with all the comings and goings. The two weeks of xmas and New Year were rather hectic but for the most part in good ways. Drew was away for most of that time and when he came home on the first it was only for the night and we both left for my Dad's the following day.

I enjoy taking friends with me when I go to my dad's, especially their first time down there. It is a voyeuristic pleasure I get from seeing them experience the "culture shock", for want of a better phrase. No electricity, no mobile phone service, no computer or internet access but inevitably the biggest shock for most is no flush dunny.

This time around it was my friend-landlord-p/t employer D (really must think of appropriate title for her) and her 2yr old daughter who made the trip down with us. D had been looking forward to the get-away for weeks and was happy to be on the way. The drive down the coast was pleasant enough, if you take out the couple of times we had to pullover on short notice for my darling boy to spill his guts. We made it into "The Bay" and I stood in Maccas for 20min amid the lunchtime rush of tourists squashed on top of each other in some form of a queue (as it turned out the fryer had fucked up at the beginning of the lunch rush which explained why the "fast" food giant was crawling along on it's belly). After watching people order mountains of shit and walk away with multiple trays it came to my turn and I ordered just one thing, a Big Mac. You know why I stood in line for 20 min for one bloody burger that I personally think tastes like rubbish? Because my father has a very strong and unhealthy desire for said burger on any possible opportunity and our next stop was his workplace 25min down the road in "town" (Moruya), which happens to be one of the few innocent places as yet untouched by any of the evil fast food giants. And so, we made it to town and I introduced D to my Dad at work and handed over the still warm burger... ok maybe I just wanted to be the favourite daughter for just one day.

We left Dad at work, dropped in to Woollies and grabbed a few essentials and headed "up river" to my second home. I've not always had the opportunity to see my friends reaction blow by blow as they make their way up river especially during daylight hours. Half the time it is dark by the time we get there and on other occasions friends have made it down on their own and I've been there waiting for them. I must say D proved to be the most entertaining so far. On sighting the upcoming dirt road she emitted squeals of delight and trepidation amongst "oh my god", "I'm scared", "I love this" and various other very short sentences. The squeals and short sentences did not stop and neither did my laughter. I was ordered to take photos (like the one above) so that D could show her husband what he was missing out on. D's mobile managed to stay in range long enough for her to receive a phone call from her teenage daughter (who was staying with her father for a few days) asking when she would be home and uttering her disbelief that we hadn't even got to our destination yet. After about five relatively slow kilometres* of dirt road D asked "are we almost there now?"... She really hadn't understood the "27km out a dirt road" part I'd repeatedly told her.

D professes to "love camping", she goes annually with a friend and their combined families to a camping ground in a coastal town an hour or so south of home. But she's also petrified of spiders and anything that crawls with six or more legs. I was a little worried about her freaking out camping at my Dad's if she happened to see a spider or some such (there was a pretty damn good chance of it). I also worried that snakes may have an even bigger reaction from her and being summer and in the middle of nowhere I also thought there was a good chance she'd see at least one. I had voiced this concern a week or two beforehand and was surprised by the reaction. D actually wanted to see a snake, out of pure curiosity as she'd never seen one "in the wild" before. Apparently the image of snakes on TV or seeing them in a zoo don't make her squeamish and she wondered if she'd be scared. Mind you, her husband on the other hand had forbidden D to camp with their daughter while away with me because he was scared Little Miss would get "eaten by a snake".

So as we continued up the dirt road D's awe continued, she handled the actual driving well and continued to amuse me with her joy and excitement of just being there. Distracted with the camera to my face trying to get the photo's D requested, her hard braking took me by surprise, though not as much as her sudden elevation in excited squeals and screams this time with the word "snake" thrown in there. The snake had slithered off the road by the time I knew which direction to even look but it took several minutes for D to settle down enough for me to ask her what her first impression of seeing a "real live snake in the wild" was... It scared her, even with the safety of the car between it and her.

We made it up river and D met my stepmother, Curly, as well as the friends who were also camping. Within just a couple of hours of being there D's husband had called the house, since he discovered the mobile wouldn't work, several times checking up on her and his daughter. D loved the house which Curly had built almost 30yrs ago (with the intention of living there alone) and as nine of us sat around the table finishing off dinner at 10 that night the phone rang again. We were all absolutely convinced it would again be D's husband and as such my Dad chose to answer it with a gruff; "This better be fucking good ringing me at this hour!" which after a short silence on his part was followed by a feeble "Oh hello J", my sister clearly heard our laughter from her end of the phone...

D only stayed a few days but she provided a shitload of laughs in that time simply because she speaks whatever it is that comes into her head. She camped close to the house, just behind the pile of Hakea which none of us felt the need to tell her was the one most likely home for a reptile close by. She spent a little time looking for the "flusher" on her first trip over to the dunny, even yelling out to make sure she wasn't missing it. My sister and I wondered just how deep she thought that hole in the ground was... On her first morning she asked where the toaster and the kettle were to get herself a cuppa and Little Miss some breakfast, she looked a little bewildered when she was answered only with laughter, the wood stove hadn't yet been lit... She enjoyed the river and the surrounds as well as my sister's growing array of "farm" animals. I enjoyed giving her that experience almost as much as I enjoyed poking fun at her.

Peek-a-Boo

I've been a terrible blogger I know, not that that's anything new... And yeah I know I've come back with a pretty poor excuse for a photo of my tree but it's the best I could do quickly. I promise to try to be a better blogger come the new year!

I just couldn't go without wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas!!!

I'm right at this moment meant to be cooking various xmas goodies but having got half way I have been distracted and lulled back into procrastination. I'm enjoying the "Season" this year and while I'm busy none of it has been too hard to handle. I think my only painful social gathering will be my immediate family get together on Boxing Day, kinda sounds bad saying that though...

I hope you are all getting into the festive spirit and spending some time with those you care most about. Enjoy yourselves in whatever way works for you!!

Snooze-fest

* Well so much for getting my creative juices flowing... My NaNoWriMo attempt didn't even get off the ground so will have to try that again next year. I've written nothing for almost a month and still there's not much to tell. Last weeks federal election couldn't have gone better IMHO, to see Bonsai lose his seat of 30+ odd years was priceless let alone the libs loss. New PM has been a long time coming and it will be interesting to see how he handles it.

* My little sister's were up for a few days to celebrate their b'days last weekend which was good. While littlest managed to get VERY drunk VERY quickly she impressed me by lasting with me 'til the sun was up (which was more than anyone else.. *cough*Tom*cough*). Was a different night to what I expected but still everyone seemed to enjoy it.

* My brother has yet again surprised me with the level of his selfishness and rudeness but now it just mildly ticks me off because for the most part I've stopped giving a shit. I won't even say what I think of his other half...

* I've almost finished my little (actually it turned into a rather big) photo project and hopefully I'll have it on the wall by next week. That will make me more than a little happy!

* I have started my christmas shopping and dreading the last of it. While I get a kick out of giving the actual physical shopping factor drives me bonkers. Really must try to finish it int he next week so that the real rush of christmas shopping doesn't send me to an early grave.

* Drew finishes school in a little over 3 weeks and the following 5-6weeks are pretty much booked solid. I'm fairly sure we're going to need the month of February to recover.

"Stressed" Teen; Stupid Mother: Great Combination

I just couldn't go past this story without a few words. To summarise for those not wanting to click... It tells of a 16yr old Year 10 student in our nations capital who has been given permission by her school to have smoke breaks. That's not even the best bit, it was apparently on her DOCTOR'S advice as she is "clinically addicted". Well fuck, of course the best idea is to give her all the reason in the world to keep smoking.

So many parts of this story are fucked up I almost don't know where to start. How bout that it is illegal to sell or supply a minor with cigarettes. Or maybe start with the treatment of one who is "clinically addicted" by feeding her fucking addiction. Will we do the same for all the teens in our schools addicted to marijuana, ice, heroin and whatever the fuck else?

I'm a smoker and I've smoked since before I was in High School, I don't claim that as a badge of honour it is just a sad fact. I know damn well smoking is fucking stupid and so does anyone else who smokes. Yes it is an addiction and No it isn't easy to quit. My mother has known I've smoked for the last 10 or so years and she STILL won't even buy me smokes with my own money. No one ever encouraged me to smoke and I take full responsibility for my habit and what I do about it. Having said all that I am looking at this story and find it seriously fucked up, especially from a mother's point of view. Have a look at what this teen's mother had to say about the matter...

Tara's mother, also a smoker, said the situation reached breaking point last month when her daughter was placed on detention, and prevented from leaving the school grounds.

"She was really stressed. She just calms down if she has got a cigarette; otherwise she storms in the door, cranky and angry."

How about taking at look at why the girl was given a detention in the first bloody place and teaching her ways of avoiding that! It's a punishment, of course she should be stressed the idea is to deter the bad behaviour! Show a little leadership and parent your child at home and deal with the storming around the fucking house.

Ms Lewis said she made the request during a meeting with a teacher and the vice-principal.

"I told them her major problem is when she is stressed, if she could just have a cigarette to calm her down and stop her getting angry.

"I said: 'I've talked to the doctor about it'.

"Both teachers said: 'Okay, I don't see why not'."

Okay three things:
1) take her to an anger management class
2) get a new doctor
3) change her school

Under the special rule, Tara said she can smoke in school grounds, near the staff carpark, but must remain away from other students.

Tara's mother said she had started rewarding Tara with just six cigarettes a day if she did chores and behaved at school.

"It's not like I want my kid to smoke. I've done everything to get her to stop it, so if I can control it and say 'when you can have a cigarette, you do chores', that might help.

"I don't want her smoking. It's the last thing you want to let your kid do."

If you don't want your daughter smoking DON'T GIVE THEM TO HER pretty bloody simple. Try being the responsible adult in your family and get a clue!

Think I'm done now, I feel better anyway :-)

Purging, the old fashioned way...

I'm still alive and all moved and all that crap. Took a little while to get net sorted which didn't bother me too much. Been back online for a week or two and have caught up quietly reading everyone else's blogs and figure it's about time I did an entry of my own. So I'm starting the clock and doing a 30min purge...

My move ended up happening rather quickly even though I knew it was coming for months before. I fucked around for weeks/months looking for a place in a rental market which is fucked up and even more so for someone in my position. After countless appointments looking at houses and well over a dozen applications for properties each with dozens of other applicants I had no new place and the end of my lease quickly approaching. The real estate I was dealing with were no help and became rather painful to deal with. Then my Plan A came back into play when my neighbour (friend) decided she was moving into (rather than selling) the property she and her husband bought just before he decided to walk out on her and the kids. Meaning I could move into the house she was moving out of and rent directly from her. So I moved a few doors over in the same street and Little Boy remains at the same school and we remain in the quiet little street that we both enjoy.

I've also had a new Little Miss to look after 5 days a week, the daughter of my above mentioned friend and now new landlord. So my daily routine has altered to cater for an almost 2yr old, who is a gorgeous kid to look after. This has also meant my somewhat hermit-esque lifestyle has taken a dramatic change with people coming and going each and every day. I am not sure yet if this is entirely a good thing, I am missing MY time. Today is the first day in weeks that I have not had a kid for any part of the day and have not had to go anywhere with anyone. It's been an enjoyable quiet day!

The move also had a side effect on my family relationships. Heated words were exchanged between my brother and myself after some extremely selfish (in my opinion) behaviour on his part and not helped by actions of his partner. It culminated with the shit hitting the fan on the final day of my move and my brother also having words with both my sister and Mum, I almost felt sorry for him... almost. Since then his partner has had more of an influence and I'm pretty sure that I will very rarely be taking care of my niece from here on in. I always saw that coming as I know that my connection and steady influence with my niece was not liked or appreciated by my brother's controlling half (I'm trying to be nice here). The fact that I won't be having Little Miss as often, in itself does not bother me too much at this point. The 5am mornings and long days of a 3yr old princess are not always fun and though I was getting paid (a little) the constant expectation of more began to wear very thin. Perhaps one day soon my brother will see just how much I gave and for so little thanks.

My new house is beginning to feel like home, even though there are remnants of it's former occupants still around the place, like the fish tank still in the lounge room, there are not so many boxes left to unpack. Hopefully by the end of the year I will have everything in it's right place, the new pieces I still need (want) to buy in place and the last of the excess clutter/baggage/shit gone.

My online activities have also had to change dramatically since my move but that's not a bad thing either. I'm still reading the blogs I want to read and keeping up with the news on here but my own additions to the net have become even less than they were (taking them to zero?!) but that too will change. I (re)signed up for NaNoWriMo and intend to get my writing flowing in some form or fashion over this month. I have no expectation of reaching the 50,000 word mark but I always work better to some form of a deadline and will be happy to write almost anything. I desperately need to get creative in some way.

Well my thirty minutes is up, apologies for the boring ranting and dribble but hey I wrote something!!! I may not be commenting on your blogs but I'm definitely still reading!