The turkey has all been eaten, sad times

Well, I'm back in Wales now, after my flying visit home. I had a great time though, and possibly ate my weight in food, plus a bit more. What is it about the festive season that makes us eat so much? And so much nice food? It never occurs to me to have pate at any other time of year, but I munch away at the stuff at Christmas time. It is baffling, but perhaps that's what makes us all so jolly?

And Santa was good to me this year. I got my GHDs! And a sewing machine, complete with a book from my lovely parents with loads of ideas for bags. I just need some fabric now! I got a stocking ful of cow print joy. I think my obsession is getting a bit out of hand. But hey, it makes me smile!

I also got a swish new haircut. I only popped in to Pisanis to say Merry Christmas (I used to work there in my school/college days). I no longer have long purple hair, but rather a shorter look. I feel that it makes me look sophisticated, and it's not so short that I get mistaken for a boy!

But I am happy to be back in Swansea, as much as I love being at home and catching up with people. I've spent a lovely few days with Mike and now it's back to work. Although it is my last week there, so it's not all bad. I'm feeling happy with life right now, looking forward to the new year and new opportunities. Fingers crossed it'll last!

AND I've finished my scarf!

So, here are some festive photos of snow, new hair and family and friend times back in Surrey...

8 hours on a coach...

leads to a numb bum, especially in the cold, when you're stuck in traffic... This Christmas had better be worth it!

Driving home for Christmas

Ho ho ho! I am feeling all festive as I'm going home tomorrow for Christmas! This will be the first time I've been home since August, and I'm rather excited. Home cooked food, a warm house that isn't full of mould and PRESENTS! I think that when you move away you appreciate Christmas a lot more as a time of family rather than a time to get drunk. Of course, I'll be getting drunk too, but that'll be with my family!

So, for nostalgia purposes, my Christmas last year (where I had red hair! This year it's purple!):

I'm not looking forward to the time when I have a Christmas away from home. It's going to be weird. I am looking forward to openening the present from Mike however. I love surprises! He's just left mine and I now won't see him until the 28th, which seems aaaaaaages away, but in reality it isn't. I am impatient!

Snow snow snow... sort of

This is Swansea's attempt at snow... pretty lame, isn't it? I want proper snow! Just not the cold temperatures please!

Ill ill ill

My flat is trying to kill me. I swear. My throat is swollen so badly it feels like I'm swallowing knives. My nose is running permanently, and my ears are getting blocked. It's so cold here! I've got the heating on quite high now. We've given up caring how much it's costing.

In an attempt to escape this freezer, I have spent the weekend at Mike's. Not that his attic room is much warmer, but the shared body heat is good! And he was such a funny drunk on Saturday night! Honestly, the "I'm taking my jeans off but I'm too drunk to stand on one foot so I'm hopping all over the place" dance was amazing, and I couldn't stop giggling. The more time I spend with him, the happier I am, and I'm falling for him in a big way.

For my birthday, 3 good things happened. Numero uno: I got taken for a birthday breakfast by Natalie, a girl I work with. I love hashbrowns. I really really do.

Numero dos: I got the job! Start on 4th January, and I'm rather excited. I must buy thermal underwear first though. Just to survive the sub-zero temperatures of South Wales.

Numero tres: Mike took me bowling! And I beat him! Oh yes! We also went on the big wheel, even though it was really cold. I'm quite partial to bowling shoes. I think my new mission is to find a pair I can wear as trainers that don't make you slip everywhere.

Also this week, I went shopping in Toys R Us with my friend Kieran, as he wanted to buy his brother a jigsaw puzzle. Seriously, I discovered why my mum would never let us go there when I was little. It's AMAZING!!!! Although I saw many toys that I would have loved as a child, and suddenly felt really deprived. Also, the range of toys available to kids these days is mind blowing! We felt like children again!

Keiran loved the kitchen

Look at the battery operated cars!

It spells MIKE... something to brighten his day

Foam toys are the best!

All in all it's been a good week. I'm going home for Christmas on wednesday, although my Christmassy feeling has gone. Hopefully when I get on that coach it'll come back.

Aaaaand, that's a wrap!

I've wrapped up all of my Christmas presents now. This is a huge achievement for me. The fact that I've managed to buy them this early is also another acheivement. They're usually bought the day before I go home and wrapped up on Christmas Eve. But not this year! Oh no, I'm ahead of the game this year. And they're under the tree as well!

Yes, I'm well aware the tree is tiny, but it does make it look like we have giant presents!

And so, on the last evening of being 23 I am feeling contemplative about life. I've had my weekly phone call with my mum, who was getting a bit emotional. I think maybe the fact that she has a daughter who is about to turn 24 is making her feel old. She says the same thing every year before my birthday, about how this time however many years ago she was in hospital with the doctors telling her she wasn't in labour, but she was. I was an impatient baby, popping out 6 weeks early. I still am impatient.

I'm just in a pondering mood. Had one of those days where you feel kind of sad for no reason. Nit really sure why. I guess maybe I don't want to get older. I'm quite happy with my life as it is at the moment. Yes, I know money is constantly a struggle, and I have a flat that likes to leak water and eat my clothes and shoes with mould, but I'm loving the independence and the feeling of just being me. I am in control of things I do, the only person I have to rely on is my self, and it's a great feeling. However, I got out of my funk by wrapping presents and watching Santa Claus the Movie. And also knitting. I am becoming a big knitting aficionado. It's very relaxing.

So, this is my last blog as a 23 year old. And how will I be spending my birthday??? I have work at 7am, a stupid 3 hour shift. And then training for my new job. So yeah... fun. But Mike is coming over in the evening and I do have some presents and cards so it's not all bad!

Hangover from hell

Just a note that rosè wine, tequilla and malibu do not mix well together. I haven't been that ill for a looooong time. I wish I could remember the night. I'm sure it was good. I'm clearly getting older :(

New job?

Well, I had my interview today, and it went well. I am going back on Monday for a day of training. I think that's a good sign? And it's not telesales, which is a good thing, as I was a bit worried. It is selling though, but face to face and with businesses etc. Oh well, someone has got to do it, and if I don't like it I'll just start looking for a new job. The best part is that they start working at 11am!!! I mean, that would mean I wouldn't have to get up until 9am! Can you imagine that?! A whole 3 or 4 more hours in bed than I'm used to. I'm excited at the thought already!

In other news, it's cold. My flat is cold. And we have rising damp, which means all the heat is being sucked out of the walls and I'm having to wear many layers inside so that I don't freeze to death. As seen in picture. Yes, I am wearing a woolly hat indoors. I make it look cool though.

I would also just like to say that I have a wonderful boyfriend. Just wanted to share that.

I also have an amazing best friend in the shape of Carys, who sent me a box full of joy. Joy being Christmas and birthday presents. She is truly fantastical and I miss her loads. I wish I had more time off at Christmas so I could go up to London to see her. However with this new job it's not weekends, so I could pop down for a weekend I guess. She said she's going to come up in February as well, and we'll have a little party as she can't make it to my birthday party tomorrow. Oh yeah, my birthday party tomorrow! I'm rather excited about it. And I get to show Mike off to everyone. Exciting times!

myself and the lovely Carys... my mum says we could be twins

Oh the weather outside is frightful

Apparently we have rising damp in our flat, according to the damp proof expert who came today. What this means for us remains to be seen. At least things are progressing and hopefully will get fixed before the mould takes over the flat.

Ponderings

Knitting takes a long time. Seriously, I never realised it took so long! I think I've only done about 8 rows since I started yesterday evening. And my hands hurt! Here is how my "scarf" looks now...

It's not nuch of a scarf I know, but it's getting there! I mean, it's taken me nearly 3 years to get this far! I got this set for Christmas nearly 3 years ago. So I'm rather proud of myself.

My walls have started leaking properly now. This isn't good. I need a new home for my shoe rack now.

I have a job interview on Thursday. I'm tired of the call centre now. The amount they mess around the hours and the rubbishness of the calls... It's time for me to move on, so fingers crossed!

Weather: cold and wet. Standard.

Achievement of the day

Today I started knitting. I have mixed feelings about this.Does this make me old? Or does it mean I am regressing to my childhood? I'm not sure. I used to knit with my nan when I was little, and knitting this afternoon has brought back memories and feelings of nostalgia. It has also given me aching hands. But I am quite enjoying it. It's helped me pass the time. I shall make this scarf!

And it's still raining...

It has rained all weekend. I'm not shocked about this. It's just meant that I've gone through a lot of socks. Still, I've had a great weekend.

Friday I got all festive and decorated my flat!

Quite clearly I am a master of interior design! But it was nice feeling all festivey. I do love Christmas time. Friday evening I had a lovely night in with Mike. I made moussaka, well, I made a veggie version of it, as that's what you do when you have a veggie boyfriend. It was yummy! I surprised myself! I actually got a meal right the first time I made it! And I also made apple crumble, and Mike got a bit carried away with putting the cinnamon in... But it tasted amazing. I love the smell of cinnamon, it's so Christmassy, you know? I love anything that smells festive. I think I may have been an elf in a previous life. And we had a lovely evening in watching comedy on the tv and listening to the rain and drinking Fosters. It was great!

However, on Saturday morning it wasn't so great as I had to get up at 5.30am to go to work. Which Mike loved, and took great pleasure in making me get out of bed and then cocooned himself in my duvet and told me to have fun at work. Meanie. But it was only a 4 hour shift, so it wasn't too bad. We went shopping in Cardiff in the afternoon, where, guess what? It rained. A lot. We got soaked. And cold. And it was really busy. I think I spent more time queueing for the toilet in the shopping centre than actually shopping! There are some nice shops in Cardiff though, which made me sad that I am completely broke. Maybe one day I can afford the nice things in Habitat, one day. We had dinner in a really cool restaurant called Walk To Walk, where they cooked your order in front of you, and it was in one of those cool boxes that they have on american shows. It was really yummy and really filling, although I did get a bit carried away with the soy sauce! We also discovered this coke can with an interesting and slighty risquè image of Father Christmas on it... Look at his coke bottle!

Tis the season...

Well, we're full swing in to December. It's getting colder. And darker in the mornings. I am most definitely NOT a morning person. I'm even worse in the winter. Honestly, I was nearly late this morning as I refused to leave the sanctuary of my bed (or my fort as Mike likes to call it). It's not that I'm really lazy (well, that is part of it), it's just that I love to sleep! And when an alarm is beeping at me to get out of my warm cozy bed in to the cold freezer that is my flat, I just don't want to know. It doesn't help that our flat is falling apart. Well, not literally, but it's on the way! My room smells of damp all the time, which is just grim. I'm going to spend a fortune on incense and smelly candles! But seriously, the damp in the walls is sucking the heat from the flat. It's not good. The mould is destroying my shoes as well. Seriously less than impressed. Still, we can't do anything except moan and the landlord. And moan. And moan. And moan....

Anywho, I've spent the afternoon (I finished work at midday, win!) snuggled up on the sofa in my duvet, watching trashy tv, and I'm really happy about it! There is no other choice with the sofa. You can't lounge, it's too small for that. You either snuggle up or sit. But on a day like today, it's all about the snuggling. Sadly, not with the boy, but that'll change tomorrow.

So now, back to Jerry Springer and cups of tea... smiles...

Brrrrrr!

You would not BELIEVE how cold it is in my flat! Honestly, I think it might be slightly warmer outside! Winter has most definitely started in Swansea today. When I left for work this morning, the cold air hit me hard and took my breath away, the cars were all frosty and there were dark clouds in the sky. There were rumours of snow yesterday, but sadly there was no snow today. I'm disillusioned by snow anyway. It looks all soft and fluffy and lovely, but it's cold and wet, and then goes all slushy and muddy. But it's pretty to look at.

To combat the cold I'm all about the winter veg!

Sweet potatoes are seriously the best invention ever!

Oh the yumminess of carrots and swede. I had a yummy dinner and it warmed me up good. The heating is also doing a good job, but as we're having a problem with leaking walls at the moment, our flat isn't the warmest place to be.

I also had a warming shower, with my purple monkey. Nothing beats a warming shower. You stay warm all the time, unlike a bath. I always make baths too hot and then have to add more cold water and it gets cold quicker. Baths confuse me.

The monkey still needs a name... Hmm....

Play that funky music...

I've had a great weekend. Just want to put that out there. Had my work's Christmas party on Thursday, which was... interesting. And left me with a huge bump on the back of my head. Apparently my head and tables do NOT mix.

I've spent all weekend with Mike, and things are just going so well I can't really believe it! We made fajitas on Friday night. He's a veggie, but that's not really a big problem because I like Quorn food. The fajitas were yummy! And we watched a film and things just felt great, being cwtched up in front of the TV. And then he met me from work on Saturday (after a very long and boring 9 hour shift), and we went back to his and watched TV and drank wine and cwtched, and it felt so perfect. And just chatting as well, it all seems so easy.

And he got me a PURPLE MONKEY!!!!!

It's a bath mitt, and it's so cool! He's so random and silly, but it's great.

And today we just chilled and Mike showed me his guitar skills. Isn't he gorgeous?!

Thumbbbbbbbs

My mind wanders when I am at work. Usually to random things, never really to important things that I should be thinking about. Today... I pondered my thumbs. I think thumbs are strange. I can't quite put my finger on why. But thumbs are definitely strange. They move in strange ways, they look strange. No thumbs seem to be the same from person to person. This could be said for most parts of the human body, but today for some reason, my thumbs stuck out. I find them oddly captivating at the same time. Mike said I have lovely thumbs when I shared this viewpoint with him... I'm still not convinced.

This is my left thumb... does it look odd?

How about the right one?

Another great weekend

So, I've had another great weekend. It made me happy in lots of different ways. Friday night was spent with the wonderful Binty McBintpants (aka Alex), where she cooked me dinner and we drank wine and danced around her room to Steps and other dodgy 90s music. Then we went to Sin City (is there anywhere else to go on a Friday?! I think not), where we danced around like nutters and drank far too much. Standard Friday night really. Unfortunately Mike couldn't come out and he was sad about it, so I sent him this picture to cheer him up!

And Saturday saw the arrival of a certain Stubbs 1, and much drunken hilarity ensued. I do love Stubbs, he's like the big brother I don't have. Although I often forget how loud he is! And he is celebrating this whole "Movember" thing... he has grown a tash. Which lead to this....

We then met up with Mike in town as it was his birthday. I was so nervous about meeting his friends, but it went really well. I guess alcohol helped. And then I got to spend Mike's birthday with him the following day, although it was a bit awkward meeting his parents for the first time looking rough from the night before. I'm now in a relationship with Mike and couldn't be happier! Seriously, I never thought online dating would actually work!

Rain Rain Go Away

Once again it is raining in Swansea. I can hear it making a commotion on my window. I am kind of indifferent to rain now, what with it raining all the time in Swansea. It annoys me when I am walking somewhere and am caught unawares. Or I've spent ages making my hair look nice. However, it does give me a chance to wear my cowprint wellies! Aren't they awesome?!

In other news, I have been on a cleaning spree. I've cleaned my kitchen, bathroom and bedroom! I don't know what has come over me!

I'm also supposed to be meeting Mike's family on the weekend. It's his birthday and he wants me to stay over. He still lives with his parents, which is kind of intimidating. I guess I've lived away from home so long now that I forget people my age live with their parents. It's weird as we've only been on a few dates, but things are going amazingly well. He keeps telling me he really likes me, and I like him too. I feel happy and myself with him. I'm still not over-analysing things, which is a first for me. I have all my fingers crossed that I'm not going to mess this one up!

Little rays of sunshine

OK, so my date went REALLY well. I couldn't believe how nervous I was for it. And I spent an age straightening my hair only for it to rain on the way to work. Such is life. But we got on very very well. A few of my friends were worried when I told them that I was meeting someone from the internet. But he didn't turn out to be an axe murderer or a 40 year old weirdo. We got on very well, had a great evening. Ash were really good live.

I probably shouldn't have got so drunk, but Mike was drunk too. It was weird, it felt really easy. Then on Saturday he came and met me in town because I was going in to do some shopping. I hate town on a Saturday. Especially on the run up to Christmas. Everyone is in a rush and completely in their own little world. They like to stop before shop windows, suddenly and without warning. And then get angry with you for walking in to the back of them. Well, if I'd had some kind of warning, I wouldn't have! Seriously, people should be fitted with indicators and warning lights. But anywho, back to what I was saying. Mike came and met me, we had coffee and a chat and it was all very lovely. And then he met me from work yesterday as I was only working until 11am, and we went to the cinema and had dinner, then an evening of cuddles and kisses. Bliss! So all in all, I am a happy little bunny and would definitely recommend internet dating to all and sundry.

I'm feeling rather odd today as well. Aside from being stupidly happy, I feel like I need to do something creative. I really enjoyed baking fairy cakes on Sunday evening, and dying purple streaks in my hair.

But I feel like I need to do something more creative. I should start scrapbooking again. I'm going to print off lots of photos when I go home at Christmas I think. I also actually want to make a start on the sewing clothes thingy. I want to make a cow print bag! And eventually a cow print duvet... that'll always be the dream. I dunno, I just guess I feel kind of wasted without something to keep me busy when I'm not at work, if you know what I mean. So maybe I'll start doing that. I found a shop in Swansea Market that has a huge selection of buttons. Buttons excite me!

Also, Christmas is a getting closer. They have switched the Christmas lights on in Swansea centre, which seems silly to me as it's only the middle of November. There is over a month until Christmas! But sometmes, I feel festivey. When the weather is just right, it's crisp and not too cold and windy, I feel a little festivey and get rather excited. I am looking forward to going home for Chrsitmas. I miss my mum's roast dinners.

Alarming

Isn't it strange how alarms were invented to warn people that something is happening? To get their attention? And all they actually do is piss people off? For instance, there is some sort of burglar alarm going off in my neighbourhood right now, and rather than thinking Oh no, someone is being robbed, I must alert the authorities, all I'm thinking is... SHUT THAT BLOODY NOISE OFF!

On another note, I have a date tonight with the guy mentioned previously, the one I met online. I am actually very very nervous.

Online Dating

I signed up to an online dating website about a month ago for a few reasons.

1. I'm fed up of dating friends
2. I'm fed up finding out too late that guys are losers
3. For a laugh
4. To see who's out there

I didn't sign up properly, as in paid membership, until this weekend. I had recieved a few messages from highly unsuitable guys, who clearly couldn't read my profile and see that I'm not looking for someone who is old enough to be my dad. But then, as if by magic, good looking guys started contacting me! It was a miracle. And I've been talking to one all weekend. He lives close by, is easy on the eye and we seem to have a lot in common. It's just that every now and then I think "This is weird, we met online"... and we haven't met each other face to face... What's the protocol for this? How long are you supposed to leave it? I'm really not lone for playing games, but isn't that what internet dating is about? I mean, he's keen. He also paid up just to email me back... And been texting all weekend. But how does this work?!

Christmas shopping

As much as I do enjoy Christmas shopping, I've discovered that since I've used the internet a lot more, it's lost it's appeal. I do all my shopping online. No longer to I spend afternoons walking around shops and getting excited about the things in the shops and the sparkly lights and festive spirit... Instead, I sit in front of my laptop and browse a few web pages. One other problem I've found is that I end up buying far too much for myself. So now the postman is probably hating me, but I do have some new dvds and clothes! Also, my dressmaking books turned up so I am planning on having a craft weekend, with extra dashings of baking.

I missed Bonfire Night, stupid work. I heard plenty of fireworks though. But it was so cold outside in a way I'm kind of glad because I didn't really want to freeze to death.

Also, had a talk with James. He's pretty much told me to give up all hope of us getting together. It has upset me quite a bit. But maybe it is for the best. And he would just mess me around, and then I could go "See, all men are the same!", which is what I always do. Oh well.... plenty more fish in the sea as they say. I am going to wait for someone to come along who won't mess me around.....

HOW LONG DO I HAVE TO WAIT?!