I got tagged by Glacia
17 Jul 2005
10 years ago: I was living in London, working my arse off and partying like Claire Swires. I had just started a relationship with the man to whom I am now married, technically my boss, and married to someone else. Oops. I make that sound worse than it was, they were separated (by about a week) when we got together. There were no children. I was working for an American oil company in a new business area and the office was staffed pretty much solely by Australian, Kiwi and South African travellers. We worked like dogs every day and drank like fish every night. We were each others families, all orphans of choice in a foreign country. There were romantic trysts, impassioned break-ups, intense discussions on love and foreign affairs. I saw the queen walking the corgies out of the window of my office block (well it was an older lady in a mac and with a scarf on her head and a walking stick and it was in the garden of Buckingham Palace - it is likely to have been her). We earned a fortune and blew the lot at Terence Conran restaurants and bars, on Joseph suits, Ghost dresses and expensive stillettos. It was the start of the Cool Britannia era, and we were all too cool for school. Oasis and Blur, Suede and Catatonia, Robbie Williams was still in Take That. I led a charmed and intoxicating life - I loved it. I was thin.
5 years ago: I was eight months pregnant with my second child, a girl called Blair. After marrying in London in 1997, we had moved back to my home town in Australia in 1998 when I was pregnant with my first child, a boy called Louis. I wanted to give my children a free and easy childhood with fresh air and surf. Blair was born in August 2000. We had built a new house and had been living in it for one year. I was working at the local council as a public servant accountant. I was struggling with the suburban turn my life had taken. I was overjoyed with motherhood, but I felt stifled by the small town mentality and what I percieved as boringness of my colleagues. I wasn't too popular at work I don't think. They all thought I was 'up myself' - I thought I would commit suicide if my life was as boring as them. My work was mundane and unsatisfying. I was enormous.
1 year ago: We had committed to buying the house we live in now. Trouble was, we had not yet sold our other house (the one we built). We thought this would be no problem, as we weren't due to settle until October. How wrong we were. I think I timed the listing of our house sale perfectly with the collapse of the property market, we were looking down the barrel of financial disaster. Our marriage was not holding up too well under the pressure. I was working two part-time jobs, one at the local university, and one at my old office, having quit fulltime work the year before. My son had started school in January and wasn't settling in as well as I had assumed he would. My self-esteem was in the gutter. I really really really hated ageing, I found new faults in my appearance every day. I was taking strong diet pills. I had a lump in my breast (turns out was nothing).I think back now and find I could easily have been clinically depressed most of last year.
Yesterday: I dressed my son up as Ron Weasley and went to the local library for the HP launch. I think I was as excited as he was. We bought one copy and borrowed one copy and I sat and read the whole thing. I can't wait for my husband to finish it so we can talk about it.
Today: I did some washing, some shopping for school things and bought some new gym clothes. Wrote on the blog and did this meme. Still time for some knitting and a drink or two.
Tomorrow: After taking Louis to school I'm going to swankygym and then I promised Blair we would do some craft together. I will probably walk with the fantastic knitting friend I have across the road in the evening.
5 snacks I enjoy: Cheese and bikkies, dips (especially middle eastern ones), Potato chips (although I try not to eat them), rice crackers and Reeces peanut butter cups.
5 bands/singers that I know the lyrics of MOST of their songs: Meatloaf (typical Aussie eighties bogan chick), Cold Chisel (typical aussie eighties bogan chick), the Smiths (angry teenager), Oasis (drunk) and Billy Bragg (political activism and folk music - my favourites!).
Things I would do with $100,000,000: That is the most ridiculous amount of money. I would fix up the house, set ourselves up with income producing investments, do the same for my sister and parents, and in laws. I would buy some properties in favoured locations and send my kids to a better school.
I would pay to have Bush out of office.
I would give the rest away to charities involving helping stop children starving and living in poverty.
5 locations I'd like to run away to: Paris, Milan, Barcelona, Marthas Vineyard and London.
5 bad habits I have: I smoke in secret, I love spending too much money, I whinge, I don't do enough housework and I hate getting out of bed in the morning.
5 things I like doing: Knitting, drinking wine, eating good food, reading/writing and going on posh holidays. (yes that's six)
5 things I would never wear: Anything orange, hiking boots with jeans (unless hiking), the shell suit, a fur coat or a g-string leotard.
5 TV shows I like: House, Survivor, that funny show with portia di rossi sort of like a documentary, the office (the UK one, the US one is a crap knock-off), Silent Witness.
5 movies I like: Truly Madly Deeply, the talented Mr Ripley, gattaca, american beauty.
5 famous people I'd like to meet: Simon Cowell (I bet he'd be great fun), Micheal Moore (I bet he's a prat in real life), Sir Bob Geldof (but what would I say?), Robbie Williams (I'd get him to sing Angels and then we'd have a drink), the dalai Lama, Mary Magdalene.
5 biggest joys at the moment: my new knitting friends, my two children, the unborn puppy I've ordered, my husband and the fantastic funny memories I have of my life so far.
5 favorite toys: The internet. My knitting blog. I'm a bit stumped here.
Finished!
Now I'll have to pass it on:
Jussi
Donni - (I bet we were living around the corner from each other in London!)
Boozehag - who I don't know but I am curious - I bet she's got a good story.
And tigress, I shall ask you in person.
5 years ago: I was eight months pregnant with my second child, a girl called Blair. After marrying in London in 1997, we had moved back to my home town in Australia in 1998 when I was pregnant with my first child, a boy called Louis. I wanted to give my children a free and easy childhood with fresh air and surf. Blair was born in August 2000. We had built a new house and had been living in it for one year. I was working at the local council as a public servant accountant. I was struggling with the suburban turn my life had taken. I was overjoyed with motherhood, but I felt stifled by the small town mentality and what I percieved as boringness of my colleagues. I wasn't too popular at work I don't think. They all thought I was 'up myself' - I thought I would commit suicide if my life was as boring as them. My work was mundane and unsatisfying. I was enormous.
1 year ago: We had committed to buying the house we live in now. Trouble was, we had not yet sold our other house (the one we built). We thought this would be no problem, as we weren't due to settle until October. How wrong we were. I think I timed the listing of our house sale perfectly with the collapse of the property market, we were looking down the barrel of financial disaster. Our marriage was not holding up too well under the pressure. I was working two part-time jobs, one at the local university, and one at my old office, having quit fulltime work the year before. My son had started school in January and wasn't settling in as well as I had assumed he would. My self-esteem was in the gutter. I really really really hated ageing, I found new faults in my appearance every day. I was taking strong diet pills. I had a lump in my breast (turns out was nothing).I think back now and find I could easily have been clinically depressed most of last year.
Yesterday: I dressed my son up as Ron Weasley and went to the local library for the HP launch. I think I was as excited as he was. We bought one copy and borrowed one copy and I sat and read the whole thing. I can't wait for my husband to finish it so we can talk about it.
Today: I did some washing, some shopping for school things and bought some new gym clothes. Wrote on the blog and did this meme. Still time for some knitting and a drink or two.
Tomorrow: After taking Louis to school I'm going to swankygym and then I promised Blair we would do some craft together. I will probably walk with the fantastic knitting friend I have across the road in the evening.
5 snacks I enjoy: Cheese and bikkies, dips (especially middle eastern ones), Potato chips (although I try not to eat them), rice crackers and Reeces peanut butter cups.
5 bands/singers that I know the lyrics of MOST of their songs: Meatloaf (typical Aussie eighties bogan chick), Cold Chisel (typical aussie eighties bogan chick), the Smiths (angry teenager), Oasis (drunk) and Billy Bragg (political activism and folk music - my favourites!).
Things I would do with $100,000,000: That is the most ridiculous amount of money. I would fix up the house, set ourselves up with income producing investments, do the same for my sister and parents, and in laws. I would buy some properties in favoured locations and send my kids to a better school.
I would pay to have Bush out of office.
I would give the rest away to charities involving helping stop children starving and living in poverty.
5 locations I'd like to run away to: Paris, Milan, Barcelona, Marthas Vineyard and London.
5 bad habits I have: I smoke in secret, I love spending too much money, I whinge, I don't do enough housework and I hate getting out of bed in the morning.
5 things I like doing: Knitting, drinking wine, eating good food, reading/writing and going on posh holidays. (yes that's six)
5 things I would never wear: Anything orange, hiking boots with jeans (unless hiking), the shell suit, a fur coat or a g-string leotard.
5 TV shows I like: House, Survivor, that funny show with portia di rossi sort of like a documentary, the office (the UK one, the US one is a crap knock-off), Silent Witness.
5 movies I like: Truly Madly Deeply, the talented Mr Ripley, gattaca, american beauty.
5 famous people I'd like to meet: Simon Cowell (I bet he'd be great fun), Micheal Moore (I bet he's a prat in real life), Sir Bob Geldof (but what would I say?), Robbie Williams (I'd get him to sing Angels and then we'd have a drink), the dalai Lama, Mary Magdalene.
5 biggest joys at the moment: my new knitting friends, my two children, the unborn puppy I've ordered, my husband and the fantastic funny memories I have of my life so far.
5 favorite toys: The internet. My knitting blog. I'm a bit stumped here.
Finished!
Now I'll have to pass it on:
Jussi
Donni - (I bet we were living around the corner from each other in London!)
Boozehag - who I don't know but I am curious - I bet she's got a good story.
And tigress, I shall ask you in person.
posted by knitabulous at Sunday, July 17, 2005 |
