Lookit who I got an email from!!!

Received on Friday...


Dear Magical_M,

Thank you for registering for Spice Girls Tickets. We are so excited about being on tour again and really hope you are one of the lucky ones who get to come and see us!

Remember to keep checking our website for updates and we may even be adding other dates to the tour!

Lots of love

Emma x Geri x Mel B x Melanie C x Victoria x


I really, REALLY want to see their show. I think it'd be a laugh.

In other nerd M_M news, yesterday I pre-ordered my copy of the final Harry Potter book (and will be in the queue at Better Read Than Dead at 9.01am on Saturday 21 July to collect it). I also booked a seat for the 9.30am session of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix next Wednesday 11 July. My thoughtful boss has given me both days off to indulge my nerdiness magicalness.

I'm off to lunch with my godparents now - they're in town for a visit. Best I go put a frock and a bit of make-up on.

xo

Today's Random Observations

1. Bestie Lulu has been on tour forever. I miss her and want her to come home soon.

2. Friday is the birthday of Bestie Ems. Happy Birthday girl! How is the new house in Antwerp? Has my guest bedroom been painted in the citrus colours I requested?

3. Geoffrey Rush fans are a horrid lot. You'd think if you were such a big fan you would have booked a ticket to his show in advance and not turn up at the theatre on the day with 50 other people to queue for one of a handful of return tickets and then get abusive to the box office staff when you miss out.

4. It's amazing how subscribers' death-bed type illnesses magically disappear when you tell them the entire seasons of Exit the King and Keating! are sold out and they cannot exchange their tickets to another night.

5. It is clearly time for me to stop working in the customer service industry when my standard responses to the following questions are thus:

Customer: "So the only seats you have are right to the side/up the back/standing room only? Can't I get something in the centre?"
M_M: "Beggars can't be choosers."

Customer: "But I just want two tickets. Are you sure you only have one?"
M_M: "Firstly, 'just' is not two. And no, I'm not sure that there's only one - I 'just' thought I'd make that up to annoy you."

Customer: "But I promised my dad / mum / brother / lover / friend / whatever that I'd get tickets for this show and its sold out - what am I going to tell them?"
M_M: "How about 'I'm a disorganised, lying, useless dickhead' for starters?"

Customer: "This is a tragedy!"
M_M: "Yes. I'm sure that starving children in Africa or people who lost their homes in the tsunami would agree with you. Would you like to purchase a bit of perspective?"

If I don't get sacked for sheer insolence in the next couple of weeks it will be a miracle.

6. I'm not quite as addicted to facebook as I was. This is good.

7. I can't believe I waited until #7 for this... MY BELOVED BOYS ARE SECOND ON THE LADDER! Go you Hawkies. Should I book my flight down for the grand final now, or is that being a bit eager?

8. The new series of Doctor Who starts on Saturday. I'm very excited about it.

9. Has anyone else read the book "For Esme - With Love and Squalor" by JD Salinger? I found it when I was back in Adders and the mater set me the task of sorting out the pater's old books. It is quite an intriguing read and I wouldn't mind having a bit of a book discussion group with someone about it.

10. I think ten is a good number to stop on. I need to go and plan what I'm going to cook for the boy tomorrow night. Its the first time I'm cooking dinner for him and he's quite sceptical about my culinary habits given he's only seen me burn toast thus far. I need to impress.

xox

Boy

Still addicted to Facebook. Terribly, terribly, horribly addicted. Is there some kind of support group available? I think I might need help.

So in my last post I mentioned that I was going on a date. I did, it went well, we had a second date, a third date, a fourth date and last night he came and met me after my birthday play (opening night of the third return season of Keating!) and I guess you could call taking me out for breakfast this morning a fifth date??

Anyway. I like. He likes. Watch this space.



Planning a retro 80's post for Saturday... for now I'm heading to bed.

The New Black

Facebook is the new black.

I'm addicted to it. Its taking over my computer time. Time away from THIS BLOG. Pfffft. Shocking, isn't it. I've discovered old friends, workmates, even the odd ex-boyfriend or two. I seriously need to work out my priorities. I also have a MySpace, which is also being neglected in favour of Facebook.

I think some streamlining and prioritising is in order. Daily blogs are no longer really viable for me, so I think this blog is going to become a weekly thing. At least that's the goal. I need to have some semi-anonymous outlet for my ramblings. And I think I might have to ditch MySpace altogether. There's too many wierdo Christian-Bondage-MissyHigginslistening types trying to add me as a friend for my liking.

So!

The trip to Melbourne and Adelaide was nice. Even if I didn't get to see my boys open a can of whoopass over St Kilda at the G. Or my plans for oodles of shopping were nixed by the fact that 3 1/2 months after doing some voiceover work I STILL haven't been paid. Grrrr.

The Mater was pleased, yet flustered by my surprise visit... she had a busy week planned for herself which involved buying a new car. Apparently car purchasing takes months. Took me two hours last time I bought a car... the fact that it ended up at the wreckers less than two years later probably means my approach is not the best one.

Anyway, my sis and I had a lovely time shopping and drinking champagne and eating cheese. And my eldest niece (16 going on 35) allowed me the fun of doing her history homework (an essay on Martin Luther King). She preferred to concentrate on her physics homework and got cranky with me when I couldn't answer some question about quantative somethingorothers.

Clearly we are not genetically related. I couldn't even do the 12 year old niece's math homework, let alone touch a physics paper. But that Martin Luther King paper was fun. She got a decent grade on it too. I think I'd like to go back to uni and study history and literature. I wonder if there's a career to be made in writing essay papers for 16 year olds who have no interest in history or literature?

So, um, what else?

I apparently have a date tonight. A date. You know, with a boy. I say apparently because he has yet to confirm what time and where... and since its now 6pm, I may be stood up yet. I don't have high hopes for my place in the dating world really... I don't think I'm very good at it. Still, you never know. He might be alright. Can't be any worse than the last bloke I went out with.

Anyhow. I have to go and help my flatmate find a new outfit to wear to the Sydney Film Festival opening. Considering its about 13 degrees outside, with teeming rain and gale force winds, I don't think the little black frock we selected yesterday is really going to cut it.

Oh and I missed Amazing Race last night because I was at opening night of an awesome play at work (its called Tender. Go see it... its brilliant), so Bevis hurry up with your recap will you? I hope Charla and Mirna are still in it. They crack me up.

Love to all!

x

Gone Fishin

Apologies for the few of you that still tune into these pages... I meant to write a post before I left but ran out of time. I have been freezing my patootie off in Melbourne for the last week and a bit (note to self: when visiting Melbourne at this time of year, pack warm clothes). Now I'm in Adelaide and the same note to self applies. Luckily my 16 year old niece wears the same size clothes as me so I can always borrow from her very stylish wardrobe.

I will be back in sunny Sydders next Monday and will update y'all on the world then.

In the meantime, I'll leave you with a topic for discussion.

Charla from the Amazing Race.

Your thoughts in the comment section please.

xox

Buddy Marvellous

All hail the Young Chief.

[cue music - "Hail to the Chief" played by a brass band]


Nine goals yesterday against the Bombers.

NINE GOALS.

Five of them in the second quarter alone.

The last Hawk to score nine against the Bombers was Jason Dunstall. The Big Chief. We do not refer to him as the Old Chief because that would be rude. We love Jase.

I can see a return to our glory days... as I write this we are in the wonderful position of 4th on the ladder. FOURTH!!! We haven't been fourth on the ladder for decades.

[insert joyful, happy dance]

Oh and its me, m_m, by the way. I doubt any of my lovely guest bloggers would write on such a subject.

Snaps must also go to my other favourite boy, Campbell Brown, for such a sterling effort in the back pocket. He kept them well quiet.

There was much silent cheering going on from my sofa yesterday afternoon. Silent because I have no voice... a glandular virus has swollen my throat to almost unbreathable proportions. I made up for the lack of volume with lots of arm waving, clapping, punching the air and bouncing up and down on the sofa.

What a wonderful day.

Oh and on things non-football related, a belated Happy Birthday to the lovely Vetty, whose birthday it was on Friday. Much love to you Cake!

xox

Laws of adoption

Sorry bestie Ems again and yes I've been drinking but as the Flems say I really need to get this off my liver!

As you know - I think. My beloved and I are starting the process of adoption and we have hit a brick wall. Here it is. If you life within the EU you cannot adopt from any other EU country or the US. The list of countries you can adopt from consist of all communists states in the world, Russia, Most of South America, and all other dictatorships. Now while I couldn't give a rats arse where my adopted child comes from - it REALLY gets my goat when regulalry on BBC and CNN they report from 1st world countries - Italy being the latest. Where orphanages are full and - get this one. In Italy they have bought back the system where you leave your baby on a revolving tablet outside a convent, monastery turn the wheel and Voila! one unwanted baby delivered into the hands of the gods. Why have they bought this back? Because too many babies are being abandoned in stations, shopping centres etc only to be found too late!!!!!!

The developed world adoptions policy is basically that there aren't enought babies in Europe or the US to go round within their own countries, so you must adopt from further afield.

So here we are; we have both chosen to wait to find the right person to have a family with. Me especially, considering my back record most people would agree with my waiting. We discover the fact that we may have to undergo IVF, if we are lucky. So ws good people we think - lets adopt.

Lets give our love to someone who needs it.

What this simple sentence involves however, puts us at risk of compromising all our other ethics. Firstly the average cost of adoption is 12,500 euros. This process takes 3 years during which time you have to visit the country where the child of your choice is from, at least twice. Sorry about the carbon footprint folks - we were only allowed to love certain children ie; ones you have to use a lot of airmiles to get to. Next dilemma the actual european costs amount to about 750 euros - the rest of the money goes to the country where the child was born - in other words funding some militia that will only continue to produce unwanted children because of drugs, or the childs sex, the radiation fallout in the country, aids etc. Next dilemma 3 years - so basically this child will have been living in an orphanage or with foster parents - already had its life ripped apart by its own parents, then by the institutions, then we come and take it away from all it knows just when its about school starting age. I mean can we really be held responsible for the pshycological repercussions of that. Sorry but to me at this moment in time this no longer smacks of LETS GIVE LOVE TO SOMEONE WHO NEEDS IT. This smacks of a total and utter fuck up.

This is not how adoption should surely be. yes I know Angelina and mancessory are doing their bit, but little miss human rights activist DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR MONEY IS GOING? So i guess no more dresses for me for a while and I had better get used to self injecting lab grown cancer giving hormones into my belly.

Why because I have morals.

And Mands - bless ya - I know but I do have an age limit to adopting and no matter how hard you try you are not young enough to be my daughter!

Somebody help me here.

This Time Its Me... Promise!

Sorry if you've been confused over the last two posts... due to my shocking lack of blogging Bestie Ems in Belgium decided to commandeer the blog and put something - anything - up there for the readers.

A bit of guest blogging if you will.

And hasn't she done a super job. Well, I think so anyway. Its almost like listening to her chat away... something I haven't heard in a very long time, since we don't get to chat anymore... being in different timezones and everything. I miss her a lot. Apart from maybe Bestie P and Bestie Lulu, she is the person who knows all my sordid secrets and loves me despite them!

I seriously need to get some $$$ together and get my ass on a plane to Europe for a visit before I turn 100. Anyone got any frequent flyer points they want to donate to me? Suspect not. Ah well.

Bestie Lulu will also be posting a guest blog at some time in the not too distant future, while yours truly tries desperately to get her head together to think of something interesting/entertaining/insightful/witty to say about the world.

The fact that I have discovered that my blog is now known to several people from my long distant past whom I wish it wasn't known to is one small factor affecting my lack of blogging... the other factor being a total lack of time.

Doing a play at the moment you see. A long play. 3 hours a night, plus time either side for prep. But stupidly I decided I didn't really need to take any time off from my other job, so have been putting in 20 hour days and am really feeling quite rubbish for it. As you would.

Back in my corporate whore days in London (which Ems will attest to because she was alongside me for the majority of them) 20 hour work days were a cinch. Most of the time they were assisted by a 7am sausage bap from the company cafeteria, a quick lunchtime bevvy and curly fries at the Horny & Shallow pub across the road, followed by an order-in dinner and several Pink Lemonade Snapples from Gourmet Schitza or Chili's and a late night cabcharge home to NW3. Too easy. Weekends were spent clubbing or jetting off somewhere in Europe and sleeping more than four or five hours was considered wasteful.

Nowadays, sleeping more than four or five hours is considered a luxury.

A big luxury.

Blogging is getting to be a bit of a luxury too... its just as well my typing speed is still pretty decent otherwise you wouldn't even have had this today!

So, lovely ones, rest assured I haven't forgotten you, I still love you and I will be back. In a very non-Arnie way. In the meantime, please enjoy Ems & Lulu's guest postings. And if you would like to do a guest post yourself, please email me and I will send you the magical password.

xoxoxo

What to wear?

So having successfully begun my packing I was alarmed at how many clothes I keep accumulating and still have no idea how ANYONE can live with a capsule wardrobe.

For those of you not in the know a capsule wardrobe usually consists of the following: 3 pairs of shoes; 1 smart, 1party, 1 casual, 2 belts, one for trousers one dressy, a pashmina, two necklaces, 3-4 bracelets 3 pairs of earrings, 3 handbags again 1 smart, 1 casual 1 party. The clothes bit of a capsule wardrobe consists of Trouser suit with skirt and dress that can be worn over trousers, to save on luggage space when travelling. customary 2 white tshirts and one white shirt, Long floaty skirt that can be worn with all, party top, and long sleeve top that can fit over tshrts, dress, under shirt etc. That is your lot.

EXCUSE ME but really how can ANYONE with a LIFE live with such a small wardrobe, and even clean out and update it four times a year? I take more than that on a two week holiday. I live a pretty regular life, well I like to think so, and forgive me for stating the obvious but where in all of this is the cleaning clothes? The slobbing in front f the TV outfit? The gym kit? The I'm premenstrual pass the tents and chocolate coloured clothes? The I'm gonna get this guy outfit? The does this suit say pay-rise to you boss outfit? The standing around in the bad weather supporting your mate in a marathon outfit? The ski-wear? The beach wear? The climbing wear? Oh and the babysitting clothes that MUST be payground friendly.

So try as I might, I filled 4 dustbin liners of clothes - and those were the definite throw outs I haven't even got to the maybes. I still have one cricket coffin full of winter clothes, one GINORMOUS suitcase filled with the rest of my winter clothes, and my summer clothes take up about the same space and we haven't even got to undies accessories or shoes. So the Question is am I a) Fashionably Challenged? b) not sure of my style? c)have too much of a life? d)in need to Trinny and Tranny to give me a makeover and a 360° mirror?

I have no idea and I imagine that as I am 35, my mother has more outfits than the Queen and I am moving to a six bedroom house just so I can have my own custom made dressing room, that I am past all help. But ANY advice on capsule wardrobes REALLY would be gratefully received.

And now to packing my face with Terry's chocolate Oranges as a case has just arrived from a client with a soft spot for me - Love em.

Ghost writers

Greetings one and all, Well I finally thought it was about time that I own up in true Hollywood Style (think Halle Berry) and confess that I have in fact not been the person you thought I was writing this blog?

Okay so you don't belive me - fair do's

I've Hijacked the space for a bit while Magical M has a life and I do everything possible to avoid packing and moving home AGAIN. Lazy Me? NEVER.

You see its like this. I come from NORMALITY. Think of the perfect English house and family and I lived it. I was the cute curly haired girl in the flowery dresses, with the perfect home, mum, dad, brother, dog, cat etc. Enid Blyton could not have written it better. I grew up in the same house until my hormones got the better of me and from the age of 16 I have moved "home" on average every two - three years. I am now the wrong side of 35, so you can imagine why Yet Again the thought of packing is not motivating me. I mean I haven't even unpacked from the last move, or the move before that or even I think the two moves before that. I am sure one day I will open some of those boxes of diaries and photos to find decomposed insects, rodents, and a mush of paper but until then I shall just fantasise that my memories are sacred and that cardboard is indestructable!

So I am now attempting to regain normality and have bought a house with a boy - I say boy because he is 5 years younger than me and has the looks of a 14 year old boy most of the time. So this is soon to be my version of normality. A 7 bedroom detached house with a garage and nice size front and back gardens. The house will end up being a 4 bedroom house as we will knock two bedrooms into one and make it a deluxe bathroom and one bedroom will be a full on dressing room, but still its pretty normal, it is in the VERY pretty Suburb of Antwerp called Mortsel and is one of THE areas to live, good schools, great hospital, village type shopping feel, tree lined streets, cycle paths - you get the picture.

The only Oil in this sea of tranquility is my hormones, my brain, and THE PAST. Why? Well let's cover these in order;

Hormones - in the last year I have been pregnant three times, all ending in tears. the first I didn't even know I was pregnant, as I had been told the odds were stacked against me. It failed at 5 weeks and I had to have the contents of my womb removed in surgery as my body didn't seem to want to miscarry naturally. The second was similar only I had been put on strong hormones to help me keep the baby, it failed at 7 weeks and I went through surgery again. The last one I was expecting triplets!!!! Hence the large house purchase. Defying medical science I took it easy. New Years eve was spent in Hosptial strapped up to monitors watching one of the three die, while the other two grew stronger and developed healthy heartbeats. During this time they are giving me hormones like I am a lab rat. By week 15 all three were dead and I have now gone through another 3 surgical procedures, more changes in hormones, and am having genetic therapy in the first stages of IVF - GREAT more hormones, oh and we have also started the long process of adoption - obviously being joe bloggs doesn't get you preferential treatment. (if Angelina Jolie's brood ever get kidnapped I am probably prime suspect no.1) .

Brain - with all the above and the past going on, my brain is playing delightful tricks on me. Frequently my 12 personalities try to sabotage my dream, making me horrible to my beloved boy. Think about running away. wondering if I could have done things differently, will history repeat itself and the good old guilt trip of "I did something bad and now its going to come back to bite me in the bum"

THE PAST - Last time I tried NORMALITY I bought a house with a divorced man, had his children move in, and then his dying ex wife. Only to be beaten to a pulp one night, thrown out of my own home and needing my lawyer to come and collect my possessions - that had not already been thrown on the fire.

I know, I know. I can't back out now and I should just go with the flow and relax a bit, while packing but relaxing and ghost writing seems a better fit. one things for sure - Living in Belgium means I have an endless supply of good chocolate and good beer to get me through it and numb the brain a little in the process.

So Missing the ole Magic yet?

Laters xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx