of course i shouldn't complain - no one forced me to sign up for the course, it's just that i leave everything until the last minute!
but it's over for another semester - {phew}
so i've just spent an hour downloading some lovely kits and i am going to get cracking on scrapping some more of my holiday photos
;0)
I found this in a signature on the DISboards - my second home - and had to post it here as it is just so funny!
I grew up with books, and lots of them, I love to read, I love the way that it allows you to escape from reality - that you can immerse yourself in a book and get caught up with characters and what happens in their lives - and forget what's happening in yours.
And so I often think that I would love to write.
I know I'm good at writing - as a technical skill - its my job, as an editor I need to be able to form a sentence and spot mistakes in other's work. But what I really want to be is a good writer. To put my thoughts and feelings on the page and have them capture someone's attention - to make them forget where they are and what is happening in their lives, to take them away somewhere else - to touch a nerve or make them think - to offer some kind of escapism - or better still to identify with what I have to say, and think, yeah that applies to me too.
But I just can't seem to manage it.
I started writing a "trip report" about a recent holiday to Disney World - and I chose to do so in the third person - to somehow extract myself from the tale and look at it in a different light. So far my friends seem to like it. But does that mean I'm a good writer?
I'm not so sure.
Sometimes writing in the first person seems to be much more powerful - but I'm only on day one of my tale, and with another 12 to go it doesn't seem right to switch perspectives.
Maybe I should stick at it - and see where it takes me.
In the meantime I found another vox today, by a girl called Sarajea - and she can do it - she can put words on paper that make you think, and want to read more, that take you away, and think about what she feels, and how you identify with those thoughts. In my eyes she is a writer.
Check her out: rocketgirl
What song gives you the most holiday cheer?
Submitted by Roxy.
Girl likes Christmas songs, well most of them anyway, but the one that makes her most festive? Hmm, last year she heard a great track; "Grandma got run over by a reindeer!" That's a great song for the festive season :0)
But for a more traditional track, you can't beat "Walking in a winter wonderland".
What's the most klutzy thing you've ever done?
Submitted by Jecka.
Girl was awoken by the alarm at a very early 6am, to allow for a good breakfast and last minute panic packing, oh and a high impact aerobics session; to ward off the DVT... At 7.30 Boy was woken by the smell of bacon sandwiches, handed his travelling clothes, and bundled into the shower… And finally, at 8.15, Girl and Boy rounded up the two suitcases, duffel bag, back pack and carry on, and with a last check around the house, marched out into the freezing cold morning.
The cumbersome cases made the 4 minute walk to the bus stop a little longer… have you ever tried pulling two trolley cases down a hill? The phrase; “the dog took me for a walk” springs to mind! Of course neither Boy nor Girl were very impressed when half way down the hill the airport bus sailed past…
Now had they been anywhere else in the world the bus might have waited… after all if you see a couple being dragged down the road by two run-away cases you could hazard a guess that they were headed for the airport, but alas, this is Bristol, and that was not the case.
So it was that Boy and Girl found themselves, cases reprimanded and brought to heel, standing at a bus stop, at 8.30am on a cold November morning waiting for another bus.
Some feet stamping and hand clapping was enough to ward off the cold and before long another bus came into view… “woohoo” exclaimed Girl, “we’re going to Disney!”…
The bus ride was short and sweet, and by 8.50 Boy and Girl were walking smugly up to the Continental Airlines online bag drop… isn’t it great how online check in lets you secure fire exit seats and then bypass the queue of disgruntled travellers at the airport?
The next two hours passed quickly, what with emptying bags and pockets for security, stocking up on water for the flight, and a quick read of The Sun. Before long the flight was being called, and Boy and Girl’s adventure was really about to begin… that is of course after an impromptu pat down by the security staff on the way out to the tarmac!
The flight was uneventful; books were read, PSP games were played, and some episodes of Criminal Minds and Xmen cartoons helped pass the time. Just as boredom began to bite the pilot announced the descent into Newark airport, and Boy and Girl were distracted by the New York skyline.
As the wheels touched down Boy and Girl began to prepare for the first obstacle of the trip, making the connection to the next flight…
Hand luggage was collected, and once off the plane they walked as fast as they could to immigration… where they were faced with a “Disney shuffle” of great proportion… “Blimey” remarked Girl, “we’ll be here for an hour! I’m so glad we didn’t dilly dally like the rest of our flight.”
Of course there was a law at play in the immigration hall that day, the law of sod; for as Boy and Girl neared the front of the queue they were told to “pick a booth, any booth” and yes, you’ve guessed it, behind the booth they chose sat the world’s slowest official, and as they stood in line they watched all of those dilly dallying passengers head through to collect their luggage!
With a last minute booth switch getting them to the front of the line a bit quicker they had their fingers printed and their photo snapped, and arrived at the baggage carousel just in time to see their cases appear.
And so they sped through the customs line – nothing to declare here – and dumped their cases in an ever growing pile before being directed to departures. “I wonder” said Girl, crossing her fingers “how on earth our cases are going to arrive in Orlando when we do…”
At the top of the stairs they were faced with a huge crowd of shoeless people, which was of course not some sort of tribal gathering, but the queue for security. “It’s ok” said Boy, grabbing Girl’s hand “there are three of these, and if we go to the next one the queue will be shorter.”
And what would you know, Boy was right. So they joined a slightly smaller queue of shoeless people, and once again emptied pockets and removed laptops, and despite being ridiculed for their cardboard boarding passes “what, paper not good enough for you two?” they made it, without a beep, or a pat down, to the other side.
By now it was nearing 3.30, giving Boy and Girl just enough time to wolf down a cardboard McDonalds, and visit the bathroom; “hooray we’re in the USA, but why is there a one inch gap around the toilet door, I get nervous with people watching me pee”, before boarding the next flight at 3.40. “What’s with the cardboard boarding passes?” Says the attendant, “You gonna give someone a paper cut?” “Geez” said Girl “I just wanted to make sure they didn’t get crumpled!”
It appears the flight has been overbooked, and the lucky recipient of a first class upgrade prefers to sit with his wife and elderly mother in steerage, leaving a mother and child unable to sit together. Girl and Boy watch in vague amusement as the air hostesses try and complete a giant IQ puzzle, who to move passengers around the plane to ensure that all interested parties can sit together. Girl did of course consider volunteering for the seat in First Class, but that didn’t seem fair to Boy, who is a very nervous flyer.
Entertainment over, and all passengers seated somewhat satisfactorily, the plane left the runway at 4.15, on course for the Land of the Mouse.
After some complaints about the lack of leg room, how dare Continental switch planes and cause Boy and Girl to be sitting in a row with no fire exit, and a small nap, these rather tired but excited travellers found themselves leaving the cramped plane behind and boarding the monorail for the main terminal.
By 7.30 the luggage had been collected and loaded into the rental car, and Boy and Girl hit the road, driving on the wrong side, which of course is the right side, and within the hour, and only one U-turn, were pulling up in front of the villa which was to be called home for the next 13 nights.
“Looks good from the outside,” said Girl, as she typed the code into the key store to free the key. She handed it to Boy so he could open the door, and waited to step into the hall. As the door opened and Girl peered inside she let out a gasp, for there, where you would expect to see a hallway, with a place to store your hats and coats, was a swimming pool! A real Narnia moment if ever there was one.
Tiredness suddenly forgotten Girl and Boy went from room to room, exploring their new surroundings and exclaiming, about the size of the tv, and the fact there was a pool in the house, and the size of the rooms, and the fact there was a pool in the house, and the entertainment system, and the pool that was in the house… I think you get the picture!
Sanity returned, Boy and Girl drove the short five minutes to the local Publix, for breakfast supplies, and then returned “home” where Girl smiled at the pool, pulled some pyjamas from the suitcase, and Boy and Girl collapsed into their four poster bed, and slept a well-deserved sleep.
Chapter Two – Planning, planning planning
Of course there are several long months between February and November, and in this time Boy had a birthday, watched the World Cup and played on his PS2, while Girl planned, and DISed and TGMed and planned some more.
She filled her notebook with park hours, parade times, places to eat, unusual places to take photographs, things to buy, which rides were closed and when, and other such important information.
And there were t-shirts to design, and postcards to make, and luggage tags and other printable activities.
And as this was their first DIY trip, accommodation was considered, and reconsidered, and booked and cancelled and booked again. What started out as a shoestring trip with a room at the Fairfield Inn became 13 nights in a 3-bedroom villa with a private pool, and a secret night at the Animal Kingdom Lodge thrown in for good measure.
And then, with all planning complete, and the bags packed, and passports and tickets in hand, Boy and Girl were finally ready to embark on this, their Happily Ever After trip.
On a cold February day, not three months after the return from their Fairy Tale Wedding trip Girl got a familiar feeling, an itch so to speak, and she knew that it was time… to request a return to the Happiest Place on Earth.
“But we only just got back” said Boy,
“Yes”, said Girl, “but it’s our first anniversary, and we’ll never have another of those, and you did promise me a trip for my 30th birthday.”
Boy laughed: “But that was before we went there to be married…”
And I’m sure dear friends you can imagine what happened next, Girl started researching, checking prices, asking fellow DISers for cheap hotel recommendations and codes for car hire. Within days Girl had filled a notebook with pages of calculations and options; plan As and plan Bs.
And she presented these to Boy, with her sweetest smile… and Boy handed over the credit card and told her to book it.
And so it came to be that on November 4, Boy and Girl found themselves seated on a Continental airline, bound for the Land of the Mouse…
Once upon a time in a small town in the South West of England lived a Boy and a Girl.
One dark blustery night in October, Boy turned to Girl and asked her to be his wife, and the Girl, of course said yes… on one condition… that they be married within the sight of a Princess’ Castle, in the Happiest Place on Earth. And luckily for her the Boy agreed.
And so after months of planning and DISing and TGMing and dreaming of wedding dresses and glass slippers the Boy and Girl embarked on their Fairy Tale Wedding trip… but that is a whole other story, for this my friends, is the tale of their Happily Ever After…
Good luck with your writing. I'm in the same boat. read more
on Why can't I write like that?