I'm just feeling a bit confused at the moment. There are so many directions my life could take, and none of them stand out as 'the right one'. But first, some context.
I was dragged into my current job, kicking and screaming (metaphorically, of course). I had a few ideals of my dream first real job, and this one was the exact opposite. I wanted to stay in the city where I was living at the time, I wanted to teach classroom music at a high school. I ended up getting posted in another town 5 hours away, far too close to my parents, teaching at a primary school and singing teaching at a high school. The funny thing was, I loved it, and I still do. Except for the fact I'm meant to be writing the students' reports at the moment, I usually can't believe I get paid to have so much fun! However, I'm still doing a hodge-podge of different positions (3 jobs at 4 schools to be precise), none of which are permanent, and they don't add up to a full-time workload (although, that's probably a positive. I love my 3 day weekends!)
A few weeks ago, I was talking to the teacher in charge of music at one of the schools where I work. Let's call her Miranda music teacher. Miranda has been a fantastic, albeit unofficial mentor since I started working. She's planning to retire at the end of next year, and was talking to me about the possibility of me taking over her position. That would be a full time role in the same town where I'm living now. However, that means I couldn't keep going with the singing and percussion teaching that I'm doing now, which I love doing. The instrumental teaching is only 2 1/2 days per week at the moment, but I inherited two very small programmes, which have been growing since I've been here, so it could increase to three or four days a week over the next few years very easily. I also work one day a week at a primary school that really needs a full time music specialist (that they claim the budget won't cover!) In a lot of ways, although I find primary classroom work more stressful, I see it as being more important than the instrumental work. So arguing my way into a full-time position at that school is another possibility. I've also been head-hunted by both the Christian schools in town, who heard on the grapevine that there was an underemployed music teacher living in their midst. Overall, the biggest consideration is how long I want to stay in town, and why I'm deciding to stay.
It always takes me a while to settle into a new town, but I'm starting to feel like I've made it here. I've found a great church, made a lot of close friends, and have found things to do in the evenings besides watching TV. And now that I've moved out of home (again), even living in the same town as my parents is a positive thing about being here. There are still a lot of things that I miss about my old city, but each time I go back for a visit, I find that I've drifted out of the loop a little bit further. Essentially there are two tangible things keeping me here. When I think about it, both of them are pretty stupid things to base major life decisions upon.
The first is my students. As an instrumental teacher, I teach the same kids over long periods of time, rather than getting new ones each year or semester. Part of me wants to see my first crop of year 8s through to year 12, and see what my choir is like when it's full of kids I've been teaching for five years instead of one.
The other is Garry. Yes, as in Garry the guy-I-kinda-like. We get along really well. He's a fun person to hang around with. I feel I can just be myself with him, and conversation just flows. However, he's never given me any indication that he wants to be anything more than friends. And I'm being the good little Christian woman who kissed dating goodbye and is just waiting for him to pursue me. (Actully, I never kissed dating goodbye, dating has never really said 'howdy'.) See how ridiculous it is, for me to base decisions upon a relationship that maybe potentially could possibly happen in the distant future!
So what do I do? Do I hang around here in one or more of any number of jobs, loving life but somewhat stagnating? Or do I venture forth in search of new horizons? Do I passively wait for Garry to figure out where things stand between us, or do I declare undying love for him, secure in the knowledge that if everything goes horribly wrong, the UK worker's visa application doesn't take too long :P
Sorry about the long-winded whinge, anonymous internet traffic, and thankyou for listening. I'll try to make sure the next post is significantly sunnier.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Monday, May 14, 2012
Boys can be silly
I have to justify this statement by citing some conversations that I have been a part of over the last week. For the purposes of keeping all things anonymous, let's refer to these particular members of the male persuasion as Barry from bible study, Freddie the friend-of-a-friend, and Garry the guy-I-kinda-like.
(In the context of a discussion on polygamy)
Barry: "I can't even find one wife, where am I going to get two?"
Fisher: "You're sitting at a table with company that includes three gorgeous, age-appropriate, Christian girls, none of whom, to my knowledge, you have ever asked out, and you say that you can't find a wife?" (This was in my head.)
Freddie: "Hey, I haven't seen you for ages. Do you want to catch up for coffee sometime?"
Fisher: Totally unsolicited freak-out and stretching of the truth in order to avoid said coffee and catch-up at all costs.
Garry: "..." (except for a facebook like)
Fisher: "You're the most amazing man I've ever met and our babies will be smart AND beautiful!" (Again, this was in my head.)
Okay, so perhaps judging from these conversations all laid out, I might be the silly one. It's just so much more satisfying to blame everyone else for my problems. I'm not particularly proud of any of the responses I made (even though they were mostly in my head).
On a previous occasion, I have gotten quite angry at a friend who wanted to play the simple game with the complicated name: 'Let's-take-all-the-single-people-over-the-age-of-sixteen-at-church-and-decide-who-would-make-cute-couples'. Church, although a good place to meet potential life partners who share values, interests and faith, is not a match-making agency, and shouldn't be treated as such. Church should be a place where everyone is accepted, even if they've reached the ripe old age of twenty-three without settling down with a spouse and children. It irks me when it is assumed that two single people around the same age and attending the same church must be right for each other (which is exactly what I did the other evening). So sorry, Barry, for trying to set you up and not simply accepting you as you are.
I spent a fair bit of time with Freddie over the weekend. We saw each other at a mutual friend's wedding, and he spent the whole night being very friendly - coming over to my table to chat several times and asking me to dance. We did spend a fair bit of time on the D-floor, which involved plenty of twirling and a close waltz grip. (Had I known, I would have worn a skirt with a bit of a flare, rather than my fairly basic shift dress.)He spent the whole night, unlike Stephen Sondheim's musical theatre heros, being both charming and sincere. The signals I was getting were on the border of friendship and flirtation. And so I did what I usually do when faced with an uncertain, possibly romantic, situation - I panicked. I spent ages the next day composing a reply text that contained no out-and-out lies, but neglected to mention the fact that I could have seen him, but chose not to - mainly out of fear. After the last time I was in a similar situation, I promised that I wouldn't let my fear of relationships hold me back from having adventures. So much for promises made to myself....
And Garry...I think two out of three justifications aren't bad. He can remain a silly boy!
(In the context of a discussion on polygamy)
Barry: "I can't even find one wife, where am I going to get two?"
Fisher: "You're sitting at a table with company that includes three gorgeous, age-appropriate, Christian girls, none of whom, to my knowledge, you have ever asked out, and you say that you can't find a wife?" (This was in my head.)
Freddie: "Hey, I haven't seen you for ages. Do you want to catch up for coffee sometime?"
Fisher: Totally unsolicited freak-out and stretching of the truth in order to avoid said coffee and catch-up at all costs.
Garry: "..." (except for a facebook like)
Fisher: "You're the most amazing man I've ever met and our babies will be smart AND beautiful!" (Again, this was in my head.)
Okay, so perhaps judging from these conversations all laid out, I might be the silly one. It's just so much more satisfying to blame everyone else for my problems. I'm not particularly proud of any of the responses I made (even though they were mostly in my head).
On a previous occasion, I have gotten quite angry at a friend who wanted to play the simple game with the complicated name: 'Let's-take-all-the-single-people-over-the-age-of-sixteen-at-church-and-decide-who-would-make-cute-couples'. Church, although a good place to meet potential life partners who share values, interests and faith, is not a match-making agency, and shouldn't be treated as such. Church should be a place where everyone is accepted, even if they've reached the ripe old age of twenty-three without settling down with a spouse and children. It irks me when it is assumed that two single people around the same age and attending the same church must be right for each other (which is exactly what I did the other evening). So sorry, Barry, for trying to set you up and not simply accepting you as you are.
I spent a fair bit of time with Freddie over the weekend. We saw each other at a mutual friend's wedding, and he spent the whole night being very friendly - coming over to my table to chat several times and asking me to dance. We did spend a fair bit of time on the D-floor, which involved plenty of twirling and a close waltz grip. (Had I known, I would have worn a skirt with a bit of a flare, rather than my fairly basic shift dress.)He spent the whole night, unlike Stephen Sondheim's musical theatre heros, being both charming and sincere. The signals I was getting were on the border of friendship and flirtation. And so I did what I usually do when faced with an uncertain, possibly romantic, situation - I panicked. I spent ages the next day composing a reply text that contained no out-and-out lies, but neglected to mention the fact that I could have seen him, but chose not to - mainly out of fear. After the last time I was in a similar situation, I promised that I wouldn't let my fear of relationships hold me back from having adventures. So much for promises made to myself....
And Garry...I think two out of three justifications aren't bad. He can remain a silly boy!
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Holy Week #Likeaboss
Confession: I totally stole this!
The pastor at the church I used to attend while I was at uni posted on Facebook a step-by-step guide to Holy Week. Here 'tis...
Embrace your inner Anglican and do holy week #likeaboss
1) Today or tomorrow: Put a palm branch in a vase at the centre of your table and pray each night for the Messiah's peace.
2) On a night this week (preferably Thursday) have a (passover like) meal with some friends and wash each other's feet.
3) On Friday, go to church, then come come and YouTube Miserere and play at full volume
4) On holy Saturday, consider the burial of Jesus.
5) On Easter Sunday, go twice as crazy as you would at Christmas. Eat wonderful food, drink wonderful drinks, be with people you love. Tell them: "Christ has risen" (They should say "He has risen indeed!").
For soundtrack, try Handel's Hallelujah Chorus. Or track '70's with Keith Green's Easter Song. Or even U2's Window in the Skies. Celebrate like the resurrection actually happened.
I may not be following the guide exactly, but I'm doing an okay job. Especially since I'm not really an Anglican.
I completely missed Palm Sunday, since I spent the morning driving 5 hours home from a friend's wedding and the afternoon playing in a concert. And there aren't too many palm trees around here, so I can't use them to decorate my house.
I am however, having friends around for dinner on Thursday night.We're going to eat roast lamb and flat bread, and watch The Passion of the Christ. I might have the buckets and towels ready for some improptu foot washing, but I doubt that will happen.
I will be going to church on Good Friday, because I'm on the music team. After coming home, I'll definitely bust out Allegri's Miserere, but from a CD rather than Youtube. And I should probably look up a translation, since my Latin is getting a little rusty.
My plans for Saturday are still a bit up in the air. I'll definitely find some time to contemplate Jesus' burial
And bring on Easter Sunday. After waking up ridiculously early to play at an Easter dawn service, I'll go to church, and after that to a Christian music festival. I'm totally up for greeting everyone with 'He is risen!'.
My favourite sentence that my ex-pastor wrote in that status update is 'Celebrate like the resurrection actually happened.' Sometimes it's all too easy to forget the cross, or take it for granted, but it is central to my faith. Easter often gets overshadowed by Christmas in our culture, but if you think about it, Christmas is just a prelude to Easter. It is a lot easier to think about Sweet baby Jesus in the manger than it is to contemplate the horrors of the crucifixion. All that pain, all that suffering for my sin. Just because God loved me, despite my inherent unloveliness. Enough to seek me out when I was actively rebelling against him. How amazing is the God that I serve!?
The pastor at the church I used to attend while I was at uni posted on Facebook a step-by-step guide to Holy Week. Here 'tis...
Embrace your inner Anglican and do holy week #likeaboss
1) Today or tomorrow: Put a palm branch in a vase at the centre of your table and pray each night for the Messiah's peace.
2) On a night this week (preferably Thursday) have a (passover like) meal with some friends and wash each other's feet.
3) On Friday, go to church, then come come and YouTube Miserere and play at full volume
4) On holy Saturday, consider the burial of Jesus.
5) On Easter Sunday, go twice as crazy as you would at Christmas. Eat wonderful food, drink wonderful drinks, be with people you love. Tell them: "Christ has risen" (They should say "He has risen indeed!").
For soundtrack, try Handel's Hallelujah Chorus. Or track '70's with Keith Green's Easter Song. Or even U2's Window in the Skies. Celebrate like the resurrection actually happened.
I may not be following the guide exactly, but I'm doing an okay job. Especially since I'm not really an Anglican.
I completely missed Palm Sunday, since I spent the morning driving 5 hours home from a friend's wedding and the afternoon playing in a concert. And there aren't too many palm trees around here, so I can't use them to decorate my house.
I am however, having friends around for dinner on Thursday night.We're going to eat roast lamb and flat bread, and watch The Passion of the Christ. I might have the buckets and towels ready for some improptu foot washing, but I doubt that will happen.
I will be going to church on Good Friday, because I'm on the music team. After coming home, I'll definitely bust out Allegri's Miserere, but from a CD rather than Youtube. And I should probably look up a translation, since my Latin is getting a little rusty.
My plans for Saturday are still a bit up in the air. I'll definitely find some time to contemplate Jesus' burial
And bring on Easter Sunday. After waking up ridiculously early to play at an Easter dawn service, I'll go to church, and after that to a Christian music festival. I'm totally up for greeting everyone with 'He is risen!'.
My favourite sentence that my ex-pastor wrote in that status update is 'Celebrate like the resurrection actually happened.' Sometimes it's all too easy to forget the cross, or take it for granted, but it is central to my faith. Easter often gets overshadowed by Christmas in our culture, but if you think about it, Christmas is just a prelude to Easter. It is a lot easier to think about Sweet baby Jesus in the manger than it is to contemplate the horrors of the crucifixion. All that pain, all that suffering for my sin. Just because God loved me, despite my inherent unloveliness. Enough to seek me out when I was actively rebelling against him. How amazing is the God that I serve!?
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Things that make me go :)
A list of moments/events/objects in the last few days that have given me a sense of satisfaction.
1) A cafe lunch at a significantly lower cost.
My housemate is a waitress, and she occasionally brings home leftovers for me. Tuscan spinach pie for lunch - why thankyou!
2) Students with a can-do attitude.
As a singing teacher, I often ask my students to sing solo, so that I can hear and correct what they are doing. Today, two of my students agreed without the slightest look of fear on their faces, and their lack of nerves was reflected in the awesome tone they produced.
3) A busy weekend ahead.
I'm going camping with the church youth group tonight, coming back just in time for a friend's birthday party, leaving that to go to a brass band social, crashing into bed Saturday night in order to be refreshed for church and my housewarming party on Sunday.
4) A fridge full of delicious food that I'm going to assemble in interesting combinations.
I'm planning to make a roast vegie salad and a lemon cheesecake for this weekend.
5) A parcel arriving.
The sheet music that I ordered for my choir weeks ago finally arrived.
6) Happy emails
I want to arrange a cool song for my choir, so I emailed the composer to ask for arranging rights. She emailed back and said she was happy to give them to me. I also emailed my old lecturer from uni asking if my school choir could do a workshop with his university choir. He emailed back and said he thought it was a great idea.
7) Sunshine
I know that my mood shouldn't be so dependent on the weather, but it's impossible not to be hapy when the windows and doors of your house are open to the sun and the breeze.
8) An awesome bible study group.
I've joined a new group this year, and I'm loving it so much. Its mainly the sort of people I've referred to before as the 'old young people', and after living in town for just over a year, I'm finally starting to feel like I know these people and can relax around them. The leaders are a married couple with young kids. I hadn't met them until about 4 weeks ago, but they're just so cool. She in particular has a friendly-sarcastic sense of humor that matches mine really well.
9) Finally getting my fitness levels up so that I can enjoy basketball.
Even though we only have one or two games left, I feel so much healthier from playing in this season. I've only scored one goal, but that's not too bad considering this is the first season I've ever played.
10) My tea shelf
This feels a bit like I'm clutching at straws to round the list out to ten items, but it's true. I'm living in an older style house, and the stove in the kitchen has a mantlepiece above it. I've turned this almost into a shrine to tea. It makes me so happy to look up at that shelf and see rooibos, chamomile, lady grey, peach and rasberry, lemon and ginger, orange pekoe, english breakfast, an espresso mug, coffee grounds, caramel latte, hot chocolate, milo and a teapot all in the one place.
11)I've thought of one more
When you're reading a book (currently Tess of the D'Urbervilles) and you come across a delicious simile (describing the sun coming through clouds at dusk as 'a piece of day left behind by accident').
1) A cafe lunch at a significantly lower cost.
My housemate is a waitress, and she occasionally brings home leftovers for me. Tuscan spinach pie for lunch - why thankyou!
2) Students with a can-do attitude.
As a singing teacher, I often ask my students to sing solo, so that I can hear and correct what they are doing. Today, two of my students agreed without the slightest look of fear on their faces, and their lack of nerves was reflected in the awesome tone they produced.
3) A busy weekend ahead.
I'm going camping with the church youth group tonight, coming back just in time for a friend's birthday party, leaving that to go to a brass band social, crashing into bed Saturday night in order to be refreshed for church and my housewarming party on Sunday.
4) A fridge full of delicious food that I'm going to assemble in interesting combinations.
I'm planning to make a roast vegie salad and a lemon cheesecake for this weekend.
5) A parcel arriving.
The sheet music that I ordered for my choir weeks ago finally arrived.
6) Happy emails
I want to arrange a cool song for my choir, so I emailed the composer to ask for arranging rights. She emailed back and said she was happy to give them to me. I also emailed my old lecturer from uni asking if my school choir could do a workshop with his university choir. He emailed back and said he thought it was a great idea.
7) Sunshine
I know that my mood shouldn't be so dependent on the weather, but it's impossible not to be hapy when the windows and doors of your house are open to the sun and the breeze.
8) An awesome bible study group.
I've joined a new group this year, and I'm loving it so much. Its mainly the sort of people I've referred to before as the 'old young people', and after living in town for just over a year, I'm finally starting to feel like I know these people and can relax around them. The leaders are a married couple with young kids. I hadn't met them until about 4 weeks ago, but they're just so cool. She in particular has a friendly-sarcastic sense of humor that matches mine really well.
9) Finally getting my fitness levels up so that I can enjoy basketball.
Even though we only have one or two games left, I feel so much healthier from playing in this season. I've only scored one goal, but that's not too bad considering this is the first season I've ever played.
10) My tea shelf
This feels a bit like I'm clutching at straws to round the list out to ten items, but it's true. I'm living in an older style house, and the stove in the kitchen has a mantlepiece above it. I've turned this almost into a shrine to tea. It makes me so happy to look up at that shelf and see rooibos, chamomile, lady grey, peach and rasberry, lemon and ginger, orange pekoe, english breakfast, an espresso mug, coffee grounds, caramel latte, hot chocolate, milo and a teapot all in the one place.
11)I've thought of one more
When you're reading a book (currently Tess of the D'Urbervilles) and you come across a delicious simile (describing the sun coming through clouds at dusk as 'a piece of day left behind by accident').
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Two weekends
Disclaimer: No deep philosophical truths will be expounded or explored in this post. I just want to write about awesome stuff that I do on weekends.
This weekend is a long weekend. This doesn't really affect me, because I don't work Mondays anyway, but it did mean that I was able to go camping with a bunch of friends. I don't particularly like packing for camping, or cleaning up afterwards, but it was all worthwhile on a weekend like this. Six of us went, all mates from church, and part of the group that I refer to as the "old young people" - that is, those of us who feel a bit awkward going to youth group, because we finished high school a long time ago, but we still get invited because we're not married yet. (Is that an issue in other churches? Or do I just have a massive chip on my shoulder that I should get rid of?)
We went to an inlet about half an hour out of town. There was a lovely calm river for kayaking, a decent surf break, and plenty of fishing opportunities in both river and sea. And everybody had a fantastic time. My 'role' was food coordinator, because although I hate fulfiling stereotypes, I really enjoy cooking when I'm camping. Probably because I really like eating. We ate delicious sausages, fried potatoes, onions, lamb chops, salad, pancakes, fish that we'd caught, biscuits, lolly snakes (which I taught my friend how to tie in a knot in her mouth), bacon, eggs, fried tomatoes and mushrooms (although not all at the same time). We weren't allowed to have a camp fire, so instead of toasting the marshmallows, we ended up playing chubby bunnies, which I haven't done since primary school. One morning, I woke up a couple of hours before everyone else, and went for a long walk on the beach by myself and watched the sunrise. That was amazing, seeing a long stretch of beach with no other people within sight or earshot. The 4WD tracks on the beach and the windfarm in the distance were the only evidence that other people existed. I turned off my phone and didn't wind my watch, because half the fun of camping is having no idea what time it is, but eating when you're hungry, going to bed when you're tired and stopping fishing when it gets dark and cold.
Now please don't take this the wrong way, but one of the things I enjoyed best about this trip was spending time with the men who came with us. (I feel like I have to justify this statement by saying that I'm a single woman, I live with another woman, I work with mainly women, my students are mainly teenage girls and I need some testosterone in my life to balance this out!) At my church, it sometimes seems that there isn't much socialising between the sexes, which is a real shame because everybody is unique and special, and has something to offer, and we shouldn't immediately dismiss people simly by their gender. Plus,I don't think it's cool to walk into church and see a row of guys and a row of girls (and never the twain shall meet). So the moral of the story is that I enjoyed getting to know some of the men from my church a bit better (and there's nothing quite like convincing not one man but two to cook pancakes for me :P).
This weekend contrasted a lot with last weekend. I spent a little bit too much time on a couch at my friend's place, eating junk food and staring at a screen while all three Lord of the Rings extended editions played. That was great too, in a very different way. It was so much fun quoting our way through the movies (that I hadn't seen for a very long time, but still remembered really well).
So at the moment, now that I've had a post-camping shower (hello, my friendly hot water tap!) I'm just feeling incredibly satisfied, and grateful to God for his creation, for living in a town that has such beauty on its doorstep, and for wonderful friends that could share all this with me.
This weekend is a long weekend. This doesn't really affect me, because I don't work Mondays anyway, but it did mean that I was able to go camping with a bunch of friends. I don't particularly like packing for camping, or cleaning up afterwards, but it was all worthwhile on a weekend like this. Six of us went, all mates from church, and part of the group that I refer to as the "old young people" - that is, those of us who feel a bit awkward going to youth group, because we finished high school a long time ago, but we still get invited because we're not married yet. (Is that an issue in other churches? Or do I just have a massive chip on my shoulder that I should get rid of?)
We went to an inlet about half an hour out of town. There was a lovely calm river for kayaking, a decent surf break, and plenty of fishing opportunities in both river and sea. And everybody had a fantastic time. My 'role' was food coordinator, because although I hate fulfiling stereotypes, I really enjoy cooking when I'm camping. Probably because I really like eating. We ate delicious sausages, fried potatoes, onions, lamb chops, salad, pancakes, fish that we'd caught, biscuits, lolly snakes (which I taught my friend how to tie in a knot in her mouth), bacon, eggs, fried tomatoes and mushrooms (although not all at the same time). We weren't allowed to have a camp fire, so instead of toasting the marshmallows, we ended up playing chubby bunnies, which I haven't done since primary school. One morning, I woke up a couple of hours before everyone else, and went for a long walk on the beach by myself and watched the sunrise. That was amazing, seeing a long stretch of beach with no other people within sight or earshot. The 4WD tracks on the beach and the windfarm in the distance were the only evidence that other people existed. I turned off my phone and didn't wind my watch, because half the fun of camping is having no idea what time it is, but eating when you're hungry, going to bed when you're tired and stopping fishing when it gets dark and cold.
Now please don't take this the wrong way, but one of the things I enjoyed best about this trip was spending time with the men who came with us. (I feel like I have to justify this statement by saying that I'm a single woman, I live with another woman, I work with mainly women, my students are mainly teenage girls and I need some testosterone in my life to balance this out!) At my church, it sometimes seems that there isn't much socialising between the sexes, which is a real shame because everybody is unique and special, and has something to offer, and we shouldn't immediately dismiss people simly by their gender. Plus,I don't think it's cool to walk into church and see a row of guys and a row of girls (and never the twain shall meet). So the moral of the story is that I enjoyed getting to know some of the men from my church a bit better (and there's nothing quite like convincing not one man but two to cook pancakes for me :P).
This weekend contrasted a lot with last weekend. I spent a little bit too much time on a couch at my friend's place, eating junk food and staring at a screen while all three Lord of the Rings extended editions played. That was great too, in a very different way. It was so much fun quoting our way through the movies (that I hadn't seen for a very long time, but still remembered really well).
So at the moment, now that I've had a post-camping shower (hello, my friendly hot water tap!) I'm just feeling incredibly satisfied, and grateful to God for his creation, for living in a town that has such beauty on its doorstep, and for wonderful friends that could share all this with me.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Greece
I found out the most exciting news ever today! The final year project that originally inspired this blog (as a form of procrastination) is venturing out into the big wide world. Last year, I submitted my paper to the International Society of Music Education (ISME) for consideration, and now they've asked me to present it at their conference in Thessaloniki. I'm so excited that I have butterflies, but in a good way, and I keep randomly bursting into the happy dance (which involves much waving of fists and squeaking). So come July, I'm going to catch a plane from a southern hemisphere winter to a Greek summer! Since I'm in a bit of a list-ie mood (lists help calm me down), here's a list of things I want to do in Greece:
1) I want to spend time lying on the beach. I know I live by the sea, and lying on the beach is something I can do all the time anyway, but this will be a Greek beach. I won't spend too long doing that, because I'm not flying halfway across the world to sleep, and I'll get badly sunburnt, but a few hours one morning/afternoon would be amazing! Plus, I'll be away for the whole school holidays, so I'll need a little bit of down time before I start teaching again.
2) I want to go to an Island for a night or two. Again, I'm going to be spending most of my time in Thessaloniki, but you can't go to Greece and not set foot on an Island.
3) I want to try all the different foods. My sweet tooth is looking forward to baklava and ghalacto booreeko. . And my brother enjoys cooking Greek dishes, so I'd like to see how his moussaka and Greek salad compare to the real thing. And the same for takeaway dishes like kebabs (soovlakee). Even though I'm a cereal junkie at breakfast time, I'm going to try living without it for the two weeks I'm there and having the local fare of bread (psomee), yoghurt (to yaoortee) and coffee (kafe).
4) Even though I don't go to clubs or bars that much, I really want to spend an evening at an oozeree and try ouzo and chat to the locals in my extremely broken Greek.
5) The nerd in me wants to go to the Areopagus, and recite Paul's "Men of Athens" speech.
6) I want to see the view from the Acropolis, even though it will be swarming with tourists.
7) If possible, I want to find some people that still do folk dancing, and wouldn't mind a random tourist with two left feet joining.
Basically, expect photos in a few months time :)
1) I want to spend time lying on the beach. I know I live by the sea, and lying on the beach is something I can do all the time anyway, but this will be a Greek beach. I won't spend too long doing that, because I'm not flying halfway across the world to sleep, and I'll get badly sunburnt, but a few hours one morning/afternoon would be amazing! Plus, I'll be away for the whole school holidays, so I'll need a little bit of down time before I start teaching again.
2) I want to go to an Island for a night or two. Again, I'm going to be spending most of my time in Thessaloniki, but you can't go to Greece and not set foot on an Island.
3) I want to try all the different foods. My sweet tooth is looking forward to baklava and ghalacto booreeko. . And my brother enjoys cooking Greek dishes, so I'd like to see how his moussaka and Greek salad compare to the real thing. And the same for takeaway dishes like kebabs (soovlakee). Even though I'm a cereal junkie at breakfast time, I'm going to try living without it for the two weeks I'm there and having the local fare of bread (psomee), yoghurt (to yaoortee) and coffee (kafe).
4) Even though I don't go to clubs or bars that much, I really want to spend an evening at an oozeree and try ouzo and chat to the locals in my extremely broken Greek.
5) The nerd in me wants to go to the Areopagus, and recite Paul's "Men of Athens" speech.
6) I want to see the view from the Acropolis, even though it will be swarming with tourists.
7) If possible, I want to find some people that still do folk dancing, and wouldn't mind a random tourist with two left feet joining.
Basically, expect photos in a few months time :)
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Because every new house is a chance to reinvent yourself a little...
That’s a modified line of a poem that a friend of a friend of mine from uni days wrote. (Originally, it was ‘Because every new friend is a chance to reinvent yourself a little...’.) I’ve been thinking about it lately, because I’ve recently moved into a new house. While I still love my parents to bits, living with them again was slowly turning me back into my eighteen-year-old-self, which is not a great place to be in your mid twenties. So I’ve moved into a sharehouse with a friend from church. It’s been pretty awesome, but there are always little personality quirks that you only find out about someone after moving in with them. As far as it goes, my housemate is pretty awesome, and I’m hoping that writing out her annoying traits will help me to realise how small and insignificant they are. Here goes...
Things that slightly annoy me about my housemate:
1) She often listens to commercial radio. I would describe my taste in music as broad and eclectic. I enjoy listening to classical music, jazz, and indie music. Commercial radio, with the same mix of songs every day, inane presenters and constant advertising drives me up the wall.
2) We have very different tastes in food. If I only have 15 minutes for lunch, I’ll probably knock up a quick sandwich, or go hunting in the fridge for leftovers, and grab a piece of fruit. She’s more likely to polish off a packet of savoury biscuits, and has barely touched the well-stocked fruit bowl since we moved in. (See, it’s really petty, and not a big deal, but it annoys me!) I’m also of the opinion that most meals are made better by the addition of one or more of avocado, olives, sundried tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, and various curry spices. All of which are foods that she doesn’t like. To the point of picking them out of her meals, rather than just grinning and bearing with it.
3) We have differing opinions on how long dishes should be left before washing. Which usually results in either the sink crawling with ants, or me doing the vast majority of the dishes. Sometimes both. Same goes for sweeping, vacuuming, weeding and making sure the bathroom sink isn’t too mouldy.
4) She insists on hanging up the shower mat folded, which does look neater, but also means that it never dries properly.
5) She’s much more sociable than I am. One of my friends has recently moved away to go to uni, and I was going to have her around for a casual afternoon tea. Housemate got wind of my plan, and decided to invite most of the girls from church around for a tea party (for which I ended up doing the majority of the preparation.)
None of these qualities are deal breakers. And I haven’t mentioned this girl’s generosity of spirit, or her sense of fun, or the way that we encourage each other in our Christian walk or everyday life. And her relaxed nature and sociability are probably qualities that I should encourage in myself.
So I am being reinvented (a little) by my experience of living with this girl, even if it is just gaining patience in the little things that don’t matter. As the saying goes:
Don't sweat the petty things, and don't pet the sweaty things
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