twenty one and one quarter!

that's right. a whole three months has passed since the day i have entered the world of grown-ups. (missy toto, i am sure you will recollect the anniversary of a certain event that this date also signifies... back in '98..)

not many things have changed, i don't think. i still cannot drive. at all.
i still have a silly mole under my nose. i am still cheeky. my cat tessa is still the most gorgeous little lady in the whole entire world. i still watch scrubs and full house far more than is good for me. and i am still at university. yup. still there.

but a lot can happen to a girl in three months. i no longer have my tooth pimple. i have new slippers. they are teal and sparkly. i organised a camp and took my first exam in three years. (it was freaky. i swallowed a piece of chewing gum by mistake i was so nervous.) i have experienced snakes, on a plane. i have read several grown-up novels (ie not baby sitters club). i am on a committee. i have met new people, such as gareth and julia and eileen and rachel and kirsten (the junior officer ;). i had the pleasure of spending a weekend with 9 crazy 15&16 year olds, some crazier 20 somethings, a couple of 30 year olds and the cutest baby in the world. i had the very different pleasure of spending a weekend with no concept of time or preparedness. jo lowe came back, to wellington, forver - whoopee!! i branched out from the safety of music into the strange realm that is english literature, and got a real job...kind of :) (does it count as a job when your boss is your best buddy?)

so in three more months i will be halfway to 22.. scary. exciting things will happen before then: skiing (!!!) and bonding in ohakune, confirmationing, retreat/advance/sleepovers, spring wines and children's holiday clubs and people's birthdays (ie rich dave jo kate michael sarah laura joe sarah jakob - of whom two will be 21, one will be 25 and one will be 1), and lots of other stuff. (passing papers would be handy..)

i have this feeling something big is about to happen. i could not tell you what or when, but it is going to be big, and good. (not unlike my tooth pimple..) things are coming together for a reason.

suggestions

i have been informed this evening that my blog has been going downhill and i need to write more decent things. suggested topics have been:
- my nasty horrible boss
- the use of the words awesome and fantastical
- snakes...ON A PLANE
- laying on of hands - dodgy? and how many hands are we talking about here? does that mean i get to lie down?
- my preferred pronunciation of my name
- teri is great

so i will do my best to please you all.

1. my nasty horrible boss.
her name is huggies, or hugg-a-ma-ries. which you should all call her from now on. she makes me work ALL day, as if i were being paid for it or something. she is always throwing darts at me and telling me what to do and blaming me for things. and she makes herself seem soooo nice by letting me alphabetise but NO, it was all part of her tricky plan to give me paper cuts. she is so mean that by the time i get home in the evening (sometimes she even DRIVES me home - the nerve!) i am too tired to do my readings or write on my blog to you lovely people! worst of all, sometimes she has conversations with me and gets me juice and hangs out with me at lunchtime. i tell you, it is so frustrating! :D

2. the use of awesome and fantastic.
see, these words used to mean great things. not just "great!" or "cool".
awesome means awe - some. meaning it is full of awe. like God, sometimes i am awestruck by him and i want to say he is awesome - but i can't. it is not fair! God, you are not just aaaaawesome, but AWEsome. amazing is perhaps a closer synonym. i am in awe of you.
now fantastic. basically and adjective for fantasy, so if something is fantasy-like or has elements of fantasy in it, i is fantastic. i would love to use this word in this context, but i can't because no one would understand. so i have to say fantastical and that can easily sound dodgy.

3. snakes...ON A PLANE!
that's right, tomorrow the snakes will _actually_ be on the plane! i am a little scared, i had a dream that i went to see it and i had to sit far away from people i knew and the movie was real freaky, like almost as freaky as the ring. and then i think i got trapped in the movie theater...
as long as the snakes don't climb out of the tv screen and eat us though, i think it will be okay.
(do snakes live in wells?)

4. laying on of hands.
so in 10 days i will have some hands layed on me. (laid?) i would like to know exactly how many hands this entails, and will it be good touch? does the term 'lay' imply that i will be lying down? asleep? okay so i am being silly: i am saying these things because i am going to be confirmed soon, on sunday september 3rd. if you are reading this you are definitely cool enough to come. (all saints church in hataitai). more soon...

5. my name.
many of you may be aware that my name is natalie. today i have decided that i would prefer for it to be pronounced "nata-LIE", as in the emphasis is on the last syllable. also, for those who are interested, my full name is natalie lauren danger reid integrity m.

6. teri is great.
yea, self-explanatory this one. i mean, she has been mentioned on this blog at least 4 times already!! ooh, and i am on the subject of j-frows, guess who is turning 9 months this sunday!! (and i will be 21 and 1 quarter. if you add me and jakob together, you would get a whole year.)

7. skiing! (extra for experts)
i am the luckiest girl in the world because next week i get to go skiing!! i get to hang out with some very special people and i have a lovely boss who doesn't mind that i will just up and leave work for four days. it is going to be beautiful! i love mountains! and snow! (whoever thought up those things sure was on to something...)

you are invited..

this is great! like a birthday party or something.
i do hope that there will be take-home bags.

meanwhile, it has come to my attention that many readers of this blog do not understand what i mean when i say "for good, or for AWESOME".

you can remedy this by clicking here

if pleased with this, other essential viewing includes:

dragon

and

sibbie

and who could forget:

ducks! brien sisters privilages

1-2-3! email me!
2-3-4! email me more!

give me a wink..

..and i'll give you a smile

not copping out

well, trying.

two things

1: smart thing
mr bennett says that lizzy has more "quickness" than her sisters. does she? where abouts in p&p does lizzy's quickness affect what happens in the story?

2: silly thing

[in which natalie is annoyed at tv shows, movies and classic english novels]

why are all the stories sad?
they all make me confused and they all leave you asking more questions and questions.
what happened to the stories that used to be lovely? the ones that you looked forward to reading? the ones that didn't make you want to curl up in bed and forget to come out? stories these days are sad, or lonely, or happy in a way that makes me feel bitter.
i don't remember the last time i heard a good story.