10 day challenge - 6 places

1:Inkwenkwezi Game Reserve, South Africa. I spent a month volunteering here in 2007 and it was amazing! The safari park was brilliant, and it was here that I rode on an elephant, bottle fed lion cubs, and met Heinz Winckler (the very good looking winner of South African Pop Idol!) As volunteers we lived in tree houses, and spent many a happy evening drinking round the camp fire. In addition to this another favourite place is Buccaneers Backpackers in Cintsa, South Africa, where we spent our weekends. It is right by the sea, and is a gorgeous place full of wonderful people! When I have some money I want to go back, as I really miss the place!

2: Dublin. I love the Irish accent, and when I visited I fell in love with any man who spoke to me - just because of the accent. Temple Bar is the most vibrant, fun place, with live music, Irish stew and lots of friendly people. The drinks are very expensive, but being a girl from the UK helped, as men bought us drinks because of our ‘cute’ accents. I definitely think they sounded much cuter! 

3: Falmouth. A lovely little Cornish town where they do the best Cornish pasties I have ever tasted! Pasties don’t taste as nice outside of Cornwall! A little fun fact for you - did you know that pasties were made for the men down in the mines to give them a meal of meat and two veg? The crust round the edge was for them to hold with their dirty hands, and would be thrown away when the rest was eaten. A little snippet of Tremelling information for you there!

4: My new house. I love my new house with Joe! We are almost all unpacked and are getting things how we like them now.

5: Egypt. A great place to visit, and seeing the pyramids is breathtaking! I just couldn’t believe how big they were! Although I got a lot of hassle out there (being blonde) I still had a great time, and it deserves a place in my six.

6: Bath. And that is not just because I work here! Bath is a beautiful city. Walking along the Royal Crescent you can really imagine being in a Jane Austin novel. The city is full of wonderful places to eat, boutiques where you can pick up different styles of clothes and gifts and tourist attractions like the Roman Baths, Pump Rooms, the Assembly Rooms and the Abbey. And if you do visit Bath, pick up a copy of the Bath Chronicle! (Shameless plug!!)

10 day challenge - 7 wants

1: A pair of Jimmy Choo shoes! I really want to own a pair, and have seen so many I like! Since I failed to get any free when I interviewed him it looks like I will have to pay for my own. And at the moment I don’t have a spare £700 lying around, so looks like it will have to wait for a while. But one day I will own a pair, it is just a case of narrowing down the choice and picking just one!

2: A helter skelter. I love them, and have decided it will be so much fun to have one in my garden. At the moment I don’t have a garden, so that is a slight set back. But when we buy our own place Joe has said I can be in charge of the garden! (I think it was to keep me away from ruining the house!) So a helter skelter will take pride of place! Haha!

3: A pet elephant. Apparently this is not practical or allowed (so I have been told by Joe). So I will have to figure out how to do this!

4: A bag of mixed green sweets. Green sweets are the best in any pack of sweets. Fact! So instead of opening a pack, and only having a few greens I want a bag with just green sweets. Well, they do say you should eat all your greens!

5: A trip to DisneyLand in Florida. I love Disney films, and so what better place for me to visit than Disney land! I need to embrace my inner child (not that I need any encouragement!) And also there is the Harry Potter Wizarding world attraction, that is a must! And that brings me nicely on to my next want....

6: An acceptance letter to Hogwarts. My school was so boring, and I want to go back and do it properly at Hogwarts! I spent years waiting for the owl to deliver my letter to the most amazing school ever, and now at the age of 26 I can only think that it must have got completely lost! So if the people at Hogwarts can sort it for my letter to be sent, and accept me as a mature student that would be great, thanks!

7: To be able to whistle. This is something that I have never been able to do. I just spit everywhere which is gross! And I think it sounds really cool. I would love to be able to walk down the street whistling a tune. I am starting to give up hope!

So if anyone is reading this and wants to make my (crazy) dreams come true that would be fantastic! :)

10 day challenge - 8 fears

1: Small, cramped spaces. I am really claustrophobic. I hate being anywhere that is cramped and small as it makes me panic. One such embarrassing incident happened on a school trip to London, where I fainted on the tube! Even now I avoid tubes as much as I can. I would also march up flights of stairs than take the life - keeps me fit though!

2: My teeth all falling out. I keep having this recurring dream that all my teeth fall out. When I wake up it feels really real, and I can remember the feeling of spitting all my teeth into my hands! As I do with most of my weird dreams I googled it - and found out it reflects anxieties about my appearance and how others perceive me. Well I don’t think I am anxious about my appearance - not more than most people anyway. But after that dream I am worried about my teeth falling out - I don’t want to have to get false teeth, and leave them in a glass beside my bed when I go to sleep!

3: Losing people close to me. This is probably one of the most common fears, and it is one that you cannot control.

4: Spiders. I hate the things! Luckily at home I have Joe to remove them for me. He is used to me screaming, and having to rescue me from one of the gross things! When I went to Africa there were spiders almost as big as my hand. But (and you may think I am weird) they didn’t bother me. Whereas the little spiders you get here do! I think it is because the big ones didn’t move, and you could catch them and remove them from your house. But the little ones scuttle really fast, which I hate!

5: Cherries. Especially the evil singing kind! See my previous post to understand this bizarre fear!

6: Blood and needles. This is ironic seeing as I am the health reporter! I hate them though. I feel physically sick at the sight of blood. One embarrassing work related visit to the hospital saw me almost fainting when a man who was on dialysis wiggled the bag of blood attached to him! Needles have the similar effect, and I have lost count of the number of times I have fainted before, during, or after an injection. The most embarrassing was when I had to have a number of jabs for my trip to Africa. I thought I was ok, and walked through the waiting room to where Faye was waiting for me. I don’t remember what happened next, but Faye said I fainted and landed face down in a mans crotch! the poor guy was just sitting in the waiting room minding his own business when I dive bombed him!

7: Cancer. An awful disease. Most people know someone affected by cancer, and I worry about it happening to me, or a close family member or friend. One day I hope that medical advances will be made so that we can eradicate this awful disease forever.

8: Going blind. My eye sight is very poor, and I correct it with my false eyes - contact lenses to be exact. I would hate to go blind, as I don’t know how I would cope with no eyesight.

10 day challenge - 9 loves

1: Joe. And before you all go blergh, and make sicky noises I am not romantic often - so give me a break! Haha! Joe has to be number one on the list - if only for his ability to make me feel better if I have had a bad day. He also stops me from doing silly things that would ultimately end in disaster! When I come up with a plan that I think is brilliant I am often reined in by Joe, who asks if my crazy scheme is really a good idea. So for putting up with me, being the sensible one in our relationship, and making me smile he is top of the list :)

2: My family and friends. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without my amazing family, who have rolled their eyes at me during my crazy moments, supported me through the tough times and celebrated the good times! My amazing friends make me the person I am today, and I need them around for the giggles!

3: Shoes. Anyone who knows me will know that I love shoes! To the extent that poor Joe almost had a heart attack at the amount of shoes I had when we moved in together. I think that shoes make an outfit, and the right shoes always make an outfit look so much better! I have my favourite pair (white heels with a t-bar strap and brown heel) casual flats, boots, and trainers. To my delight I was also offered the chance to interview both Jimmy Choo and Manolo Blahnik, two of my heroes! Jimmy Choo even praised my favourite shoes - now dubbed ‘Choo Approved’! Unfortunately I didn’t get any freebies. Though I am still hoping a pair may be delivered to my office in thanks for the stories I wrote! Haha!

4: Elephants. These are my favourite animal, I think they are beautiful! I have always loved elephants, and when I worked in Africa for a month I have a chance to ride on one. It was amazing - one of the best days of my life! And the keeper told me that my elephant would remember me if I ever got the chance to return, which I hope very much I will! I would love a pet elephant, but Joe said it would not be practical or legal to steal one from the zoo and keep it in our flat (see what I mean about being sensible and reining me in!) So I make do with my elephant collection, including teddies, models and photos.

5: Books. I am a proper little book worm, and I read anything and everything. A good book takes you away from everyday life, whether to a street in New York, a fairytale castle, or into space. With a good book turning every page is an adventure. I love reading new books, and finding new authors, so if you have a suggestion of a book for me to try let me know!

6: Jelly Tots. They are not just for kids! I love them, especially the green ones! When I first started going out with Joe he made me a Jelly Tot Bot out of a chewing gum pot, with flashing eyes and hands you can move (honestly it is a lot cooler than I am making it sound!) It even has a compartment for the jelly tots, perfect!

7: Positive thinking. There are a lot of things in life that can get you down - if you let them. But I believe in positive thinking. instead of thinking about all the things you don’t have, or that make you sad, think of the good things in your life. Things that will make you smile! And with positive thinking (and a little bit of fairy dust) anything can happen!

8: Polly. my teddy that was mentioned in my last post. Yeah, the one I talk to. Reminds me of being a child, and no matter how much he falls apart I will never get rid of him! I got him at a Christmas party when I was about 18months, and the funny thing is that the person who was Father Christmas was my dad! I didn’t have a clue at the time, but looking at photos now it is so obvious!

9: Travelling. I love visiting different places, though unfortunately due to not having lots of cash I don’t get to travel abroad as much as I would like! I have been to some amazing places, and am frantically saving to visit more! In the meantime I am content with travelling to different places in the UK, which is fine as the UK has some beautiful towns, cities and countryside i have not been to.

10 day challenge - 10 secrets

I have decided to take part in this little challenge for something fun to do, and for you all to find out a little more about my crazy life! (Whether you want to or not!) It probably won't be done in 10 days like it is meant to, as I am too busy to blog every day. So I am going to cheat and do it as and when I get a chance! So sit back and enjoy an insight into my muddled little life!

First up, 10 secrets. Well, I am quite an open person, and I share most things. So I am sure that some of these will not be secrets to certain people! But here goes anyway:

1. I am scared of cherries. Ok most people know that I hate cherries, I think they taste horrible. But how many know that I am scared of them? Well, I am. It is since that horrible Three advert, where the cherry sings to the little girl. You know the one I mean....'If you leave me now.....'. That freaked me out when I saw it, and still does now. Even now I can't look at cherries for fear of them growing a mouth and teeth and singing to me! And I hate the song!

2. I love Stobart spotting. To the extent of sadness. My name is Laura and I am a Stobart spotter! I get massively excited when I see a Stobart, and have a satisfaction writing the names in my book! I may be one step away from a train spotter - but I am not ashamed!

3. When I make a cup of tea I have to stir it twice anti clockwise and twice clockwise. I really do, next time I make you a cup of tea watch me! Don't ask me why, it's not like it makes it taste any better! It is just a weird ocd thing I have! Don't blame me for being strange!

4. I talk to my teddy. I know many people do but at the age of 26 I have not grown out of it! I have had my teddy Polly since I was a year old, and he is my favourite! We have been through thick and thin together, and he has been repaired so many times by mum. Well he sits on my chest of drawers and when I am alone I talk to him about my day. I think it is because I hate not having people around, and you all know I like to chat! So in the absence of anyone else I talk to Polly!

5. I have to have the volume of all televisions and radios on an even number. I hate odd numbers, it makes me uneasy! Everytime I have the television or radio on the volume must be on an easy number. Joe has had me shouting at him so many times to put the volume on an even number that he now does it automatically!

6. I fancy Phillip Scofield! Love a bit of the Silver Fox! It would be my dream to interview him one day - but that may not be a good idea as I would not be able to act in a professional manner! Haha!

7. I cannot read maps, or direct people. I really am rubbish! I am the sort of person that directs someone for miles before realising that the map is upside down, or I am following a river instead of a road. At a camp in year 6 I got the whole group lost while on an orenteering exercise. My parents got me a sat nav for Christmas a few years ago and it is one of the best gifts I have ever had!

8. I cried when my old car had to be taken away. Velma the Clio was my first car, I had her for 9 years and was very attached to her! So when she died (all the lights on the dashboard lit up and she wouldn't start) I was very upset. However was slightly embarrassing for me and my dad when I burst into tears in the garage! Provided some entertainment for the mechanic though!

9. Sometimes when I am bored on a train I pretend I am off to Hogwarts on the Hogwarts Express. Well, that would be amazing! Luckily I have never tried to run through the wall at Platform 9 3/4 yet! that would be painful!

10. I am a little girl trapped in a grown up girls body! (Though that will come as no surprise to most of you!)

P is for Picnic

What better way to celebrate the sun finally making an appearance than by having a picnic. And as luck should have it I had reached P in the alphabet challenge list. My friend Amz and her beautiful little girl Sienna were only too willing to spend an afternoon in the sun.

In my opinion for a picnic to succeed there must be three things: sun, good company, and sausage rolls. A picnic without sausage rolls is like Ant without Dec, or crackers without cheese - wrong! Luckily I was well prepared, and armed with a jumbo pack of sausage rolls and other yummy delights we set off.

Picking a shady spot under the tree (Amz is eight months pregnant and really suffering in the heat) we settled down. This is where I discovered little Sienna's immense love of crisps. And she is not alone! Now what is it with children and crisps?! Sienna, a strong willed two and a half year old, told me she loved ham sandwiches. So I lovingly prepared them for her, cutting them into little triangles, with the crusts cut off. This was fine until the pringles came out. The saying ‘once you pop you just can’t stop’ was certainly true for this toddler! To the extent that she was trying to cram in a whole fist full of crisps in one go - crumbs everywhere! Sandwiches were pushed to one side as she concentrated on the hard task of eating as many crisps as she could with one hand, and waving to the kids train that goes around the field with the other hand. Wash them down with a pink sugary cake, and lemonade and we had a hyper child on own hands!

The only logical thing to do was to pack up the picnic, and head for the playground, where Sienna could run off her energy. this was a great plan, as we set up camp in the sandpit, where Sienna made castles and got sand in her eye (on more than one occasion) and Amz and I pretended we were on a beach in the Caribbean. This was followed by an icecream, a perfect end to a lovely day!

O is for Origami!

Not being the most artistic person in the world I knew that origami would pose a few problems for me. I was the child at school who was praised in art class for her lovely drawing of a tree - which was all very well but it was actually a drawing of myself! Hopefully I don’t resemble a tree in real life, and I am just ‘artistically challenged’.

I knew origami was off to a great start when I told Faye that today was a very Chinese day, as we had just eaten Chinese and were now doing origami. With her usual look of pity directed at me she informed me that origami was in fact Japanese. What a great start!

The first animal attempted with my little band of origami friends (Faye, Jay and John) was an elephant. Not wanting to start with anything too difficult I picked a Primary School easy for kids pattern. However looking at the instructions on the laptop I found myself completely confused! As the other three whizzed through the list I struggled with the paper folds, which left my elephant resembling a scrunched up piece of paper. Luckily for me Faye was on hand to bail me out (story of my life really), and patiently refolded my paper, correcting my mistakes! The result was my lovely little elephant - who shall be known as Dora.

Triumphant after making an elephant (with some help) we moved onto a crane. Faye informed me that if you make 1,000 cranes you get to make a wish. I was very confused about this, and wondered how on earth you would make a crane out of paper. Surely it would be too technical. When the instructions started I was even more confused. Wings on a crane?! Head?! It was only after pondering this for a while that I realised my mistake - I had assumed we were making the type of crane that is found in a builders yard and used for heavy lifting. In fact it was the bird variety! Suddenly everything made sense - though Faye still had to help me with my creases!

 

The whole origami experiment left me with an elephant with a bent trunk, a crane that is a bird not a piece of machinery, and a paper cut. But it was fun. I think it will take me a long time to make the 999 cranes I need for a wish!