Pretty pics

I've been getting a little creative with my camera recently. No longer is its only use taking drunken pictures in the pub, but maybe a few nice ones too. So I thought I'd share some with you.. To brighten up your day...

Menopausal Mother

I think that women of a certain age should be locked up for a few years, or until the menopause is over, to save the sanity of anyone who has the unfortunate situation of living/working/or just generally being near them. I don't claim to understand the inner workings of the body, but I know that hormones or lack of them, when they run out, makes women crazy, and by women I mean my mum. The hot flushes, the memory loss, the weight gain, the moodiness are just some of the effects of the menopause. But the change from a normal mum, who is generally sometimes dependable, to this unstable, completely undependable, secretive, sneaky, paranoid and insecure person is a pretty big shock. All of a sudden the person who you think is reliable and will fix everything, isn't there anymore, and you're the one who has to take control and play the adult. Which is a huge change. And I don't like it.
So, lock them up, or at least give them a tablet to stop it. I know they can get HRT but I don't understand the point of going from no hormones to pumping too many in to your body. I mean surely that will only make things worse? Think of the moodswings etc with PMT and then multiply it by ten. Not such a great idea anymore...

Anyway, moan over.

Scary stuff

Today I took out home and contents insurance. Which is scary because it confirms the fact that as from Thursday I will be a home owner. With a mortgage. And responsibilities. Wow. Not bad for someone who has a mental capability of a 5 year old...
Up until now I have kind of put this thought out of my head. After months of arguing with the mortgage company I'd almost convinced myself that it would never happen. I didn't want to get my hopes up. But now it's happening. And thats scary.
However, I do like the idea of being insured. Now even if I do something stupid and damage my house I don't have to pay for it. I can put my foot through the ceiling and its ok. Not that i'm planning to.
I think I am feeling like a grown up. But at the same time I am feeling pretty sick, which I don't think is because I have a hangover, but because I'm scared. Really petrified. But happy too. I think that after 6 months of living at home I'm finding it hard to step out of that protective bubble and go into the big wide scary world. I will have to buy my own food again. And pay bills. And other scary grown up things. But I will have my own house which is pretty cool.

House warming presents are welcome.

Nail in the coffin

And a week after I said I liked my brother's girlfriend...they broke up. Having been together a year and a half, I finally meet her, realise that yes, she is nice, and then he finishes it. Good job Alistair. The ONE girlfriend I like. I feel like I have lost something too...

REALITY V TV WORLD

Recently I find myself having to forcibly distiguish between reality and 'non reality', aka TV world. I think the time has come to turn off the TV. My mind seems to wonder off into another dimension where characters in soaps,films and books are real. What happens to these people affects me too. If they are angry, sad, in trouble, I tend to think about it and think of ways to help them out, and then I realise ITS NOT REAL and come back to real world. Is this normal? I'm hoping that it's just the side effect of watching too much tv in the evenings and not enough talking to real people. Which will change soon when I move into my new house and don;t have to drive that 57 miles to work day in day out. Ahhh. I will have been given the gift of time. So, house warming party the weekend after next... and any ideas of how to turn my shed into a bar would be well appreciated.

And....

And to continue previous post...

Another good thing. Lil Bro's girlfriend has been staying this week. Which generally wouldn't be a good thing, but after finally meeting her, I have decided that she has my approval. Not only is this girl nice, intelligent and pretty, which would generally make me dislike a girl, but she is normal.Not like the last one. No weird alcohol related name ending in an i, which I wont go into, but you know who she is. Anyway, I finally like one of my brother's girlfriends. Which leaves me with a warm fuzzy feeling inside. I think I'm finally maturing.

Good week, Bad week

Today I had a pretty good day, which in general brightened up what has been a pretty terrible week. Which is kind of good. Because its only Wednesday, which means that although the week began badly there is a chance that the overall goodness of the week can improve.
Good things that happened today:
1. The man who waves at me in the mornings on the way to work is back! After two months of disapearance he has returned, and greeted me this morning with a grin and wave. Which pretty much put me in a good mood for the whole day, which is no mean feat at 7am in the morning.
2. My mortgage came through finally which means in a few weeks I will be moving! Yes, I will be a home owner. Scary stuff, because deep down I know I still have the mentality of a five year old.
3. I stuffed myself to the point of being sick with Chinese food to celebrate the aforementioned mortgage.

And there are things to look forward to for the other two days before the weekend. Friday is not only Cookie Day at work, but also a dress down day. Which is good news. But generally I am more happy that its cookie day, because I had to refuse last week as I was sick, and I had the pleasure of watching everybody around me eating, warm, gooey, delicious cookies. This week its MY turn.
I also turned down drinking last weekend, so Friday and Saturday are going to be good nights. Also HAPPY BIRTHDAY to My fellow Beaver leaders, Mallak and Tigger, otherwise known as Michaela and Suzanne.

And, yes I know, there's more, I get to judge a carnival on Sunday. I decide who wins and loses, which is pretty awesome for this little control freak.

Good times, good times.

at the car wash..lalala

I think the most productive thing I did today was washing my car. Probably because I hadn't planned to. I was just making my packed lunch, it was 9pm, kinda getting darker outside, and time for bed for boring, no social life on a weekday me, and then it just happened. In about 15 mins. And the fact that I did it before my brain got in gear and realised I had done it was a bonus.
So shiny car for moi tomorrow. Woohoo.

Also, as a reward for saying nice things in a survey about working environemnts recently, on Friday work is paying for an icecream van to come round and give us free icecreams. Which is pretty cool. Cos we all know I can be bought with free icecream. or cookies. or alcohol, lets fact it the list is endless....i'm just cheap.

Harry Potter!! Woo woo!!

This weekend has been perfect. Just perfect. I went out Friday night. Had a great time. Got wasted. Saturday morning I woke up early with no side affects from the night before, and the postman delivered the book I have spent the last two years waiting for. I then spent the entire afternoon in the garden, sitting in my fantastically comfy deck chair, and dangling my feet in the cool refreshing water of the paddling pool, reading the amazing book. By midnight last night I had finished it.
I won't ruin it for those who haven't read it yet, but I do feel traumatised by the ending. It's fantastic, but the storyline just gets darker with each book. And I admit I got a little scared at parts. And I really feel like I have lost a friend, when a certain somebody dies. Well maybe not a friend, but I do feel sad, and a little dead inside. I'm one of those people who likes the happy endings, being the reason why I never watched the ending to Titanic. As far as I am concerned, they got together, hooked up in a car, and that was the end. That's when I pressed stop on the VCR anyway. Because I knew if I carried on watching people would die, so if I didn't watch any further, nothing bad would happen to them. This is how my mind works.

So now I am mourning the loss of such a great character in Harry Potter, but also celebrating such a fantastic book. And I'm sure people will start talking to me again now that I don't remind them in every conversation just how many days/hours/minutes until the book was released.

I never really realised I was this much of a nerd, but apparently I am. Nerd Power.

Pica

I just realised that you haven't had the pictures of the carnival that I promised. Well, I had all intention but my camera is being a dick right now, so you will have to wait. But they are coming soon. BTW I made the local paper, dressed as an elephant. Woohoo. Thats a pic you won't want to miss.

Spawn of the devil..

Why are so many people having babies right now. I've been trying to work out what was going on 8-9 months ago that causing it. Maybe nothing, and they were bored. Or maybe some huge big deal that just makes people want to have sex and spawn kids. From my exhaustive research (BBC website) I found out that not much was going on. I think Cambodia got a new King, and there was a big uprise in mental health problems in China, but thats about it.
Anyway, for some reason all these people are having kids, which in my mind is pretty inconsiderate. I think it could have been planned better, you know, spread out a bit, so my wallet has time to recover from the obligatory present buying before the next batch.
And I've also noticed that babies have been getting uglier. I'm finding it increasingly hard to tell these brand new, immensly proud parents that their kid is lovely and pretty, when in all honesty you feel like shielding your eyes from the horror that is their face.

So, basically think twice before spawning any more of these kids PLEASE.

That is all

Lil Bro

Who the hell thought it was a good idea to invent little brothers. Why oh why? Why couldn't my parents abstain after having me? Lets face it I'm perfection, why try for more, you're thinking.. Yes and I agree.
I think my problem lies with the fact that I am anally obsessive about my property. Note: CHARLOTTE DOES NOT SHARE. Which would be fine if I was an only child, but causes a few problems with two younger brothers who like to break everything. Boys are careless and mean.
Not only that, when I yell I have to look up to them, as they're both taller than short arse me. Which kind of means they don't take me seriously. I'm older and they should respect that, not gang up on me, damn it.
RAHHHHH!
My younger younger brother, who we affectionally term 'the mistake' has taken to stealing my DVDs when I'm at work, then not returning them and leaving them lying all over his floor getting scratched. This may seem like a petty, little, non mentionable thing to do, but it is driving me CRAZY! I can't even keep my stuff protected in my bedroom! Oh the joys of living at home!

Anyway, a matter of weeks left. House is going through quickly now and that means I will soon have a HUGE mortgage which is scary, but at least my DVDs will be safe...

Happy Days

Today I found out I passed my exam! So now I am a fully qualified investment professional. Which sounds really cool. Anyway, that's made me happy, and kind of taken the edge off the hangover. Although having just ate a huge cheese burger I think I need to sleep for a while.

Tomorrow is Carnival Day in Hunstanton. I will be dressed as an elephant and yes I promise you pics on Monday. So be there or be a non circle, oblongy shape.

Charlotte.com

I just googled myself, cos I am that sad. There's actually a site for the Charlotte Observer, which could be a stalking website dedicated to me, or maybe a newpaper for Charlotte NC. http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/
There is also a Queens University of Charlotte, which is pretty cool, cos I would like to be the Queen. http://www.queens.edu/

Country Bumpkin

I have recently realised that despite the fact I'm moving to a 'city,' which isn't really a city, but more a large town in the middle of the sticks, with very little going for it, apart from nightclubs, a shopping mall and one or two 24 hours supermarkets, which is more than Sunny Hunny has to offer, that I really am more of a country girl. As much as I hate to admit it, I like quiet nights, that everybody knows everybody, and the lack of traffic. I like going to the pub at the weekend and it being like a school reunion every week. I like walking into a quiet country pub and being a 'local' and getting to give those 'foreigners' strange looks. And by foreigners I mean anybody not from Hunstanton.
So why am I moving away? I don't like those crowded trendy bars where you can't move, get served or even get near the ladies toilet, I have even got past the liking nightclubs phase. I mean I like dancing and drinking, but I don't know why people insist on going to a crowded and generally shit nightclub with sleazy men, expensive drinks and crappy music. If I wanted to get hit on by pervy men I just have to go to my local, at least I can hear what they are saying to me there, rather than guess by gestures.

I've had a niggling in the back of my mind for a few months that I am getting old before my time.

Last night I went out in Peterborough with some guys from work. We all went to the greyhound races, which was a great night, but then they all went on to a bar and club. As I was driving and didn't fancy a crowded smoky bar with a load of drunks, I dropped them off and went home. I thought I would feel like a loser, but I didn't. I actually felt glad that I wasn't going. I felt a little superior. They were surrounded by girls dressed like slappers, sleazy guys and generally a bunch of pricks and I got to go home to bed and avoid it all.
That is not to say I don't have a social life. I am out every weekend. We go to the same pubs and meet the same crowd each week. But it's comfortable. I know these people. I trust them to an extent. That's the difference.

Anyway, in my round about way I'm trying to get to the point of this blog. Yes unlike many this one does have a point.
I have finally accepted that no matter what I pretend to be, I'm me. I can't change that I'm a country girl and I have finally realised that I shouldn't feel ashamed of it. Ok, so Norfolk might have a high level of incest, and locals generally have, shall we say, a slightly less than average intelligence, and most people have never left the county let alone the country, but its home to me. Not that I tolerate or condone incest by the way..

So there you have it. The inner workings of my mind for the past few days. Feel special.

I'm melting...

I cannot believe how HOT it is. 33 outside at the moment and in the tone of the wicked witch from the Wizard of Oz, 'I'm melting.' Literally. I wonder if I can lose weight this way..

Anyway, having spent the weekend in a drunken haze, I am now partied out and ready for a quiet week, with no studying. Yes, you heard right, NO STUDYING. The exam is over and fingers crossed I'll pass and you won't have to hear me moaning for months on end.

This weekends highlights have included:
1. Spending too much time with friends with no inhibitions at all. Which is a little worrying when you don't know what they will do next... randomly breaking out in song in the middle of a crowded pub , wearing ladies leggings (they are male), giving a very detailed enactment of being born, spilling a drink over some random girl, and then trying to rub it off, whilst 'accidently' groping her breasts, following this by slapping some girl's bum, as she walks past with her boyfriend, who didn't look very happy.
2. Getting home at 5 am when it was supposed to be a quick few drinks and not a mad one.
3. Walking home at 5am when the sun has risen and the town is quiet. A very surreal experience.
4. Learning and remebering a joke, which I then told everybody I met.. Why did the monkey fall out of the tree? Because it was dead. Funny on so many levels, and because I like dead jokes.

Anyway, now I have 'shared' I am gonna get back to the task in hand. Looking for an affordable air conditioner so I don't die this summer.

Innocent?

So, Michael Jackson is innocent. But just to be on the safe side, how about not making your kids share a bed with a 40 year old of questionable reputation... I'm sure there are other bedrooms in that huge mansion of his.

I didn't think he would get off with it this time. Although the family of the kid was obviously out for the money, but I don't believe MJ was completely blameless. I just wonder how much the jury was influenced by his celebrity status, I know I would find it hard to be objective in that situation...

I think anyone that scary looking should be locked away anyway, for the sake of humanity.

exam stress

Argh! The exam stress is kicking in big time. Sleep is non-existant and I am getting a slightly wide eyed, manic look about me. 1 week tomorrow. I CANNOT fail this time! I have realised that when you're stressed about one thing, all other little problems seem HUGE and terrifying.
Anyway, my car is running! Something to celebrate!
Probably not making too much sense, but I will once I get some sleep and exam is over, I promise! Keep your fingers crossed!

This morning I am a little hungover. My throat hurts, my eyes are sore, and I have that horrible slightly sick feeling that just won't go away. I'm hungry, but all I want to eat is junk food. And I just want to watch TV and doze. I hate Sundays.
I have also lost the remote control which has pretty much ruined my day...
I am always losing things. Where do they go? Last night I lost my beer for half an hour. I searched everywhere, only to find it in the shower. (Yes, the shower beer tradition has returned.) Yesterday I found my car keys in the fridge, alongside my video remote control. If I am like this now, what will happen when I'm old?

Urgh, too much to think about. I'm going to sleep again.

All work and no play makes Charlotte a dull dull girl

This week I have realized something about myself. I have realized that since getting this job, I no longer have a life. I spend evenings and weekends studying and worrying about exams. My bedtime has moved forward a few hours, so now I go to bed while it’s still light outside because I have to get up so fucking early it hurts. I go out one night a week, and then feel guilty about it the next day.
This morning I woke up at 9am and got up to listen to some CD Rom about the FSMA 2000 Act. It’s a Saturday! My eyes actually hurt. Seriously.
When people ask me what I did over the weekend, there’s this awkward pause while I try and remember something fun. All this for a job that I don’t really care about in an industry I really do NOT understand. And even though there is potential to earn big bucks one day, right now that seems like a long way off, and anyway, I would probably have to be good at the job to get that far, and lets face it that isn’t looking likely.

Anyway, I have decided that I need to give myself goals and make the most of my non- work time (as soon as exam is over and if I pass it this time). And also as soon as I move into my new house, and don’t have early mornings so I can do something at night.
So now the excuses are over, one day I plan to do these things.

1. Get a cheap flight and go somewhere for the weekend. Paris, Rome etc..
2. Go visit friends and family more often.
3. Return peoples phone calls and actually catch up with old friends.
4. Do something in the evenings, other than watch TV.
5. Do a course in something fun and interesting.
6. Get a holiday!
7. Go for a bike ride.
8. Buy a bike...

Any other ideas anyone? Whilst I'm all up for the self improvement thing.. it might not last long.