Fancy that...

I just went to text a message to my sister, and I thought it was kinda funny that when I want to text the word "EAT", the word "FAT" came up first on the list.

Gotta love predictive text!!

I wonder how many people are affected by these kind of subliminal messages?

Happiness vs Sadness...

Just found out that Heath Ledger's wake was held at Indiana Tea House in Cottesloe....that's where I'm having my wedding reception.

And the Chaplain who presided over his memorial service, is the same one who will be marrying N and I.

That's all.

Only five weeks to go...

Butterflies are fluttering...

Bank accounts are struggling...

Moodiness is rearing its ugly head...

Sleep is intermittent...

"Special" songs are spinning through my head...

Plus, I've just discovered that my hairdresser's left the salon I'm booked in to for the big day!!!

But, I'm still excited to marry my boy... 'cos he's lovely.

RIP Heath...

Shock. Sadness. Disbelief. Grief. And I didn't even know him.

I, together with many around the world, mourn the loss of such an amazingly talented actor.

Being a fellow Australian (and from his hometown of Perth), I am really, really, really saddened by this news of a local boy done good, yet taken from this world waaaaaay too early.

How many of us aspire to fame and fortune? How many of us entertain the thought that "if only" we lived a celebrity lifestyle or had millions in the bank we'd be happy? Heath's premature death is proof that happiness and satisfaction are not necessarily part of the "Fame & Fortune" package.

My heart goes out to his family and friends, especially his 2-year old daughter Matilda. I can't even begin to imagine what it will be like for her to grow up not knowing her father.

Update: I've just read that Heath Ledger's family found out about his death via the media!!!!!! What is this world coming to?? Is there no respect for others anymore??? The media have taken it too far this time. I am utterly disgusted.

It is a truth universally acknowledged...

Jane Austen is one of my favourite authors, so I wasn't surprised that I absolutely LOVED Becoming Jane - a movie based on her life.

James McAvoy is the most charming, romantic gentleman (can't wait to see him in Atonement) and Anne Hathaway is really quite brilliant - she does an impressive English accent and her pale, porcelain skin and gentle features make her perfect in the role of Jane. I can't believe she was the star of those awful Princess Diaries! She's come a long way.

I've actually only read one of Jane Austen's novels - Pride and Prejudice - but I've read it three times (and seen a few movie adaptations of her others). I think it's the romantic in me that loves her work so much, and I also appreciate how she portrays the strength of her female protagonists. They believe in romance, but they're also prepared to fend for themselves...much like Austen herself. A good way to be I think.

She is an inspiration.

Who inspires you?

Excuses, excuses...

It's been a while since I last posted, and I'll admit that this isn't even a "real" post, as I'm only writing with excuses as to why I've been so blog lazy.

Two words: Wedding Brain.

It's the same as Baby Brain, but involves flowers, invitations, cake and a dress I will never wear again! And it's damn stressful trying to juggle it all on top of work and day to day living.

15 March is the big day - yaaaaaaay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hope you're all well.

Catch you soon!

Home sweet home....

Howdy all!

I'm back at home after a brilliant holiday.

New York was awesome, as usual, and made even better thanks to the wonderful Ming the Merciless from New York City Daily Photo. He played tour guide to us and showed us all the hip and happening spots in Downtown - his favourite part of NYC.

Our visit to NY wouldn't have been the same without you Ming, so thank you SO SO SO SO much for taking the time to meet up with us - hope I can return the favour one day, when you head to Oz! :o)

That's all for now.

Will update with pics and more travel stories soon.

But for now, I'll leave you with this hilarious billboard we saw at Guadalajara Airport.

Them Mexicans sure know how to keep busy in their own company....hahahahaha!!!

Around the world in 25 days...

Off on holidays.

See you when I return!

Take care.

"Oh, it's to die for".......REALLY???

What could you possibly want THAT much that you would "die" to have????

If you die, you don't actually get what you want anyway, so I don't understand why people say this.

There's a juice bar chain in Australia that has a range of "To Die For" yoghurts on its menu.....even if I was the biggest yoghurt fan on the planet, I'm pretty sure I would prefer to live and eat sorbet instead.

He was staying at a backpackers near mine....

I overheard this sentence in a conversation a few years ago.

Two girls were talking.

I walked past them.

Those words were all I heard.

I can't recall THEIR faces at all, but for some reason, this (part) sentence has stuck in my mind ever since.

No idea why.

But I'm still intrigued by the story that went with it.

One thing on his mind...

So George W. Bush is in Oz for the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) Summit.

Sydney's in high security, lock down mode. Residents have been granted a day off work today (Friday) and apparently traffic is in chaos as a result of major roads and intersections being blocked off.

With 21 world leaders in attendance, including China's President Hu Jintao and Russia's President Vladimir Putin, it's a high profile, international event, which you'd assume is of great significance to the Asia Pacific region.

So you'd expect the leader of the world's most powerful nation to have been adequately briefed on what was going on, and what event he was actually attending.

Enter George W.

"G'day and welcome to the OPEC Summit."

OPEC = Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

Imagine!

Who would've EVER thought Mr Bush and his administration would have OIL on their minds.

What a joke.

Thanks for coming George W.

Now, please go home!

Bits and pieces...

1. I went to the supermarket at the weekend, and the girl at the checkout had hiccups. She asked me an interesting question....."Do mute people get hiccups?" I didn't have an answer for her.

2. Australian men's magazine Zoo Weekly has just launched a competition. The prize? Win a boob job for your girlfriend!!!!!! WHAT THE HELL?????

3. Two P-Plate (probationary) drivers drove into a tree and a light post near my house on Friday night. 8 people are now in hospital. When I hear stories of accidents involving P-Plate drivers, I've noticed that 9 times out of 10, these P-platers are driving Holden Commodores (with big V8 engines). Perhaps the only way to stop the insanity of losing an increasing number of young people in preventable road accidents, is to ban them from driving this type of car. One of my suggestions is to hand out pre-paid funeral service brochures to everyone who buys a Holden Commodore. Hell - why not offer a discounted funeral package so their friends get a good deal too. Goodness knows they're sure to be some of the passengers.

If you hadn't sensed it, I feel quite strongly about number 3. It makes me sad and angry every time I hear or watch the news and this kind of story appears, which is more often than not lately. The Office of Road Safety can talk about curfews etc all they want, but everything must come back to cause and effect - take away the Holden Commodore (the cause) and the effect will be different.

Finding Facebook....

I've discovered Facebook, and during the past couple weeks, have been spending my precious "blog" hours chatting to long lost friends on that.

Since that time the following has happened:

My sister has officially announced a Nerd Alert on my life.

I've tried on my first wedding dress.....very weird.

My boyfriend turned 33......he also wore the most bizarre jumper/sweater in the entire universe, which for some reason, I had never before encountered in the 8 and a half years we've been together. Where he's been hiding it all this time, I do not know, but I can understand why it was kept well away from broad daylight.

One of my most beautifully gorgeous friends welcomed baby number 3 into the world.

Another of my most beautifully gorgeous friends got engaged.

I picked up a cool black leather satchel I had on lay-by for 2 months.

And I had a cold.

It's amazing how much can happen in such a short time.

World clock.....

A friend emailed this World Clock to me today, but I'm not sure if watching it tick over is intriguing or depressing.

Poodwaddle.com (purveyor of this resource) claims stats were gathered from the World Health Organisation, CIA Factbook, US Census Bureau and other sources.

Check out the World Clock for yourself - http://www.poodwaddle.com/worldclock.swf

(Sorry, a direct link wouldn't work so you'll have to do a bit of a cut and paste job)

Back to the 90s...

I uploaded some old CD's onto my laptop today and noticed that iTunes sorts songs into default categories, one being "90's Music" - I'm pretty sure I didn't set that folder up, so I'm assuming it's a default.

Anyway, it made me remember what I used to play over and over and over again back in my uni days, all great memories.

One of my favourites was an album called Lovelife by UK band Lush. I think they've now disbanded, unfortunately. Have a listen to a bit of Lovelife here.

And then there was Bjork's first major album (I guess you could call it that). Debut was on the top of my 90s list, with Venus as a Boy definitely one of my favourite songs. Bjork's style was so unique at the time, and still is, but I don't think she's ever been able to recapture the magnificence of Debut. What do you think? Have a listen to Bjork's Debut here.

Do you have any 90s favourites?

I have a question....

We got some Chinese home delivery the other night, which led me to thinking......is Chinese food the most popular take away/take out/home delivery in the world?

I ask this, as every time (well 8 outta 10 times) we get take away for dinner, it's Chinese food!

Other cuisines high on my take away list are Thai, Japanese and Indian, so is it actually Asian food as a category that's in fact the most popular take away/take out/home delivery in the world?

And what do people in places like Brazil, Russia, Pakistan and Norway order "to go"?

Hmmmm.....always the important things in life that I ponder isn't it! ;o)

I want it, I need it, I have to have it.....

I went on a little shopping spree last weekend, which was not at all on the agenda for the day.

In fact, before I even entered the shopping centre, I was repeating a little mantra in my head about the actual things I had to do/buy.........and let me tell you, spending 2 hours in one store trying on 36 different items was NOT included.

BUT, I have convinced myself that I bought all the basics I "needed" eg cardigans, singlet tops, t-shirts....plus pieces I just had to have.

Here are just some of the bags and items.....

Is this a female thing? "Desperately needing" this dress, that bag and those shoes, or do males experience it too? And if so, to the same degree?

Or do males just experience this same "desperately needing" feeling upon entering a hardware store, car dealership etc - yes I'm heading down stereotype lane, but you get my drift!

What was the last thing you "desperately needed" to buy?

I have a headache....

I'm going on holidays in October, so I've spent the past week looking up accommodation on the internet......AND IT'S DOING MY HEAD IN!!!

Who would've ever thought there were 3,243,124 websites dedicated to "helping" you find accommodation in New York City?? Well, that might be a slight exaggeration, but you get my drift.

Sometimes, choice isn't the best thing in the world, especially for an indecisive Piscean like me, who also flips out at hotel (guest) reviews that mention words like "mice", "dirty" and "shared bathroom" when describing budget hotels.

Yes - budget hotels.

For those who know me, I'm not a huge fan.....wait a minute....who am I kidding here.....I'm not a fan at all of this type of lodging (give me the Four Seasons any day), but at $400 a night for a 2 - 3 star hotel in New York, I don't have much choice. (Four Seasons would be more like $800 a night at a minimum for those wondering).

And you know what, I still haven't booked anything!

So I called a travel agent to see if I could handball the hard work to her, and she couldn't find me a hotel for less than $500 a night :o(

ENTER LONELY PLANET GUIDE TO NYC.....which lists websites that can organise hosted/unhosted accommodation in studios, apartments etc, for less than/same as the cost of a 1 - 2 star hotel. So there's a separate kitchen, bathroom, bedroom ie room to move.....and no mice!

If you're visiting NYC, check out City Sonnet or Manhattan Lodgings

Now to make a decision between the 10 or so properties I've been sent.

Oh dear - now I have another headache :o(

Lots of green goodness....

Celery, fennel and silverbeet.....talk about a bowl of green goodness!

I loved this display of veggies, which I was preparing to chop up to make a nice big pot of vegetable soup.

The best thing about a pot of soup is that it lasts you days, and as each day passes, the thickness and flavour of the soup just keeps getting better. I'm very lazy when it comes to creating in the kitchen, so one dish that lasts me multiple meals suits me just perfectly!

911...

Do you believe in the philosophy of attracting what you fear most? What about energy flow, that is, if you give something enough energy, you make it happen?

I had a thought the other day.

In the US, the Emergency telephone number is 911.

Imagine the number of people who have used this number over the years. That's countless people giving the number 911 energy right?

Nearly six years ago, two planes smashed into New York's Twin Towers.

The date - September 11.

The equivalent number - 911.

The destruction of the Twin Towers and resulting devastation of the human psyche across the globe was to me, the greatest emergency situation of modern times.

I just thought it bizarre that such a tragedy unfolded on the calendar's numerical representation of the Emergency hotline.

That's all.