...all Alex and I did today was play Mario Kart Wii, watch House, and eat.

It was sublime.

Okay, this NEVER happens in England. Like EVER.

But every single line of public transportation I could use to get into work today are suspended or completely cancelled. This means I have the elusive SNOW DAY today!!

Woohoo! (this brings me right back to childhood).

What did you do in 2008 that you've never done before?
Got engaged!!!!

Do you remember your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
Yes I do...I resolved to become more social. And I did :-) For this year I suppose it'll be a lot of cliche ones in regards to wedding preparation, ie. lose some weight, tone my arms, find a flower supplier I don't want to kill...those sorts of things ;-)

Did someone close to you give birth?
Yes! one of my besties, Ags on the 4th November. And then supporting from our friendly country to the left, Handley and Stacy!

Did anyone close to you die?
Fortunately no. Although one came close.

What countries did you visit?
Italy and Cyprus! (thank you, Sarah, for reminding me that that wonderful trip was, actually, in 2008 and not 2007 as my goose-brain originally thought)

What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
More defiance. It's been a tough year, and I often fall victim to "tough years" because I allow them to get the better of me. But this year, even if there are mistakes, setbacks and tragedies, I want to have that inner voice that goes "sod you I'm going to keep hustling on." Almost like a petulant child. But more positive ;-)

What dates from 2008 will remain etched in your memory?
November 4th, November 16th, & December 28th

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Duping the man I love into proposing ;-)

Did you suffer illness or injury?
Damaged tendons and ligaments in my foot which had me on crutches for 2 weeks, and a couple of chest infections.

What was the best thing you bought?
I can't really pinpoint that, but the best thing that was bought FOR me, was the D-SLR camera (fancy-pants Canon no less!) that I got from Alex for Christmas.

Whose behavior merited celebration?
Tash's. My cousin survived an incredibly violent assault and stabbing and is proving to be amazingly composed and in control.

Whose behavior made you appalled or depressed?
One of my friends' partner for not being supportive enough, and the "man" who caused the above.

Where did most of your money go?
My mortgage.

What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Getting engaged!!!! (okay, I'm sorry...already I'm turning into one of those boring people who can't talk about anything except their impending wedding. Apologies!)

What song will always remind you of 2008?
"Chasing Cars" by Snow Patrol.

Compared to this time last year, are you: happier or sadder?
Happier. Most definately.

Thinner or fatter?
The other one from "thinner". :-P Unfortunately the combination of being a bit lazy and a bit depressed has caused me to put on weight. But nothing like a wedding to motivate you to lose it again! (see what I did there? I talked about my wedding AGAIN)

Richer or poorer?
Richer! I got a promotion at work to "manager" :-D

What do you wish you'd done more of?
Trying new things.

What do you wish you'd done less of?
Accepting mediocrity. Both for myself and others.

How many one night stands?
None.

What was your favorite TV program?
Of what I hadn't watched before: The IT Crowd. Otherwise still Friends, 24 and Charmed (I watched the DVDs, so I say they still count for 2008!)

Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate at this time last year?
No...sometimes I wish I could hate certain people, because it would be easier. But I don't seem to be built that way.

What was the best book you read?
Angels & Demons by Dan Brown. It's been a while since I've read a page-turner that actually forced me to stay up all night so I could finish it!

What was your great musical discovery?
Cat Power.

What did you want and get?
A ring ;-)

What did you want and not get?
A lottery win.

Favorite film(s) of this year?
The Dark Knight and Wall-E...I desperately wanted to see The Changeling but didn't have a chance. I also need a put in a special mention for Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Perhaps it was because I went to the cinema not expecting much and therefore was pleasantly surprised when I couldn't stop laughing and nearly ended up wetting my pants, but for sheer stupid entertainment it gets my thumbs up. For 2009 I'm looking forward to seeing Frost/Nixon the most, I think.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 27 and I still had to go to work! But I was taken out for a gorgeous Thai meal by Alex, and met by my brother and some close friends :-)

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Did I mention somewhere above that I wanted to win the lottery?? :-P

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
"find something that fits". For some reason my wardrobe never seemed good enough in 2008, never seemed to fit properly or nicely (probably me just being paranoid about that gaining-weight-thing), so I went on endless shopping trips telling myself I needed to "find something that fits". But other than that, I've started injecting more colour into the clothes I wear. Purple, or red, for example.

What kept you sane?
Alex. And work, surprisingly. They were very supportive.

What celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Oooh, I would agree with Obama.

What political issue stirred you the most?
The American election.

Who do you miss?
Who do I not miss? All my close friends in the States, my mum...

Who was the best new person you met/got to know?
Hazel.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
In a lot of ways, I don't feel 2008 taught me much, but I think that says more about my state of mind than the oppotunities that I'm sure were thrown my way. But if I have to take something away, I would say that the greatest tolerance I can learn is the one where I accept my own mistakes and failures and aim to move on. I haven't exactly embodied that yet, but it's a good start.

This is when I despair of the human race.

...my cousin is very lucky to be alive.

I hate my commute into work.

It took me 2 hours to get in today. TWO HOURS!

I once said I would never travel over an hour to get in and out of work, and look how quickly it took to just get used to it. But I was thinking today what an absolute waste of time it is and how anxious I spend nearly every morning worrying that I'm going to late yet AGAIN. I wish I was somewhere 1/2 an hour away max...it would feel so much easier.

:-( boo.

Hold your breath ladies and gents...Alex and I are engaged!!! Whoppee! :-P

He took me to Green Park in London, and proposed in the drizzling rain with an engagement ring and wedding band he designed himself to symbolise the Eygptian Eye of Ra. They're so gorgeous I cannot begin to explain it. And I'm just completely wrapped up in this euphoric bubble at the moment!!!

I wish I knew how to upload pictures to this thing....

On wednesday, 5th November at 6:19pm, one of my best friends, AG, gave birth to Freddie who weighed in at 8lb 0.5 ounces.

He has a big head. I cried when I thought about her labour.

Anyway, he's the sweetest, cutest, softest thing ever, and watching AG with him is so amazing.

God I'm feeling broody.

I feel so happy and positive today! What a change around....I still feel slightly traumatised by how much has been going on recently, but overall I'm feeling good about myself and motivated to sort things out.

It's like everything needs a spring clean, and I started last night.

*le sigh*

I have the best boyfriend ever.

This morning has just been a bombardment of calamities....

* I wake up, can't find the alarm button, so swipe my hand across my glass of water and it spills all over the floor.
* I run out the door to get to work and halfway to my bus realise I've left my diary and other important documents at home so I have to run back.
* I miss my bus.
* My handbag strap then snaps. I have to carry it around in the nook of my arm like a baby.
* I realise I've forgotten my doctors appointment for 8:40 this morning!
* I manage to get a piece of glass stuck in my sandal and slice open my heel.

YAAY!

*rolls eyes*

Oh, and by the way...ADAM! Happy birthday...for yesterday. Sorry! :-P

x

ETA: Following Alex's (at the time) bizarre response, I've realised that Kirsty posted her "happy birthday" post to Adam just after midnight...and when I read it, I thought it was still thursday. So I thought I was late. But I'm not :-D

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADAM FOR today :-D

A good friend of mine is getting married tomorrow, and in many ways it feels like the wedding is mine. Not because I have been involved in every small detail (quite the opposite actually...her fiance's family are incredibly cloistering and as a result she has quite gracefully bended to their "ohmigodineedtoknoweverythingthatsgoingonsoIdon'tmissanything"afflictionand thereby unintentionally leaving the rest of us to imagine what her dress looks like, or imagine what flowers she'll have, so on and so forth), but because I am absolutely exhausted from all the perparation. This entire week has been about what needs to be shaved, what cards and presents need to be in order, who's picking up who, finding a suitable strapless bra, putting runs through endless tights because I'm too tall so having to go out and purchase more, through to rehearsals and texts and phone calls and fittings (multiple), and goodness knows what else to make sure that everything runs smoothly.

Add to the mix 4 hen parties and you can imagine how knackered I and my wallet actually are.

I don't mean to be unfair to my friend... I think the wedding is going to be lovely, and I'm sure it will all be worth it. I even had a small cry at the rehearsal so I know if it means that much to me to see her get hitched it means all the more to her.

But I also can't help thinking that the run-up to her special day has been a complete guide on How Laura Will NOT Conduct Her Very Own Wedding.

I would be FAR too stressed, FAR too out of pocket, and quite possibly begrudging the entire day by the end of it.

One of my acquaintences from high school got married at the end of July, and although obvious she, her family, her now-husband and or husband's family have gobs of money to pull it off, they had the sweetest and simplest wedding I've seen in a long time. So casual and chilled out.

Surely THAT'S a nicer option than the headaches that come with strict formality. (Just to give you an idea...At my friend's rehearsal, when the vicar asked her and her fiance to hold hands, he quickly rapped hers and snappily said "No, put your hand UNDER his." *rolls eyes* Hello? Where's the romance?).

Anyway, nothing I have to be worrying about in the present. Just musing as I'm thinking about all the stress that's surely to come with our scrabble to get ready tomorrow morning :-P

As Alex has pointed out in his own lj ( I really should learn how to cut in posts), the little bastard has returned home.

I'm so relieved I'm almost mad at him. But not really. You know what I mean.

Phew.

I'm convinced that someone has had him in their home, thinking he's a stray or something, because he didn't come back until after I pushed leaflets through everyones door on our block demanding they look in their gardens for him. But then that's still weird because we offered a reward, and you'd think someone would want to claim on that.

(Side point here: One of our neighbours across the road took one of our leaflets and promptly set out on a hunting party. At the time I was thinking how incredibly sweet it was that my neighbours were banding together in the face of our plight...now, I'm thinking they might have been motivated by those red letters spelling "reward". But ah well.)

My cat is missing.

I'm freaking out.

...to Kirsty!! :-)

Hope you had a great day.

xxxx

This morning, the tram I was on almost killed a small boy.

It stopped so suddenly, and all you could hear was wailing from outside. Some of us got out, and saw the bike squashed underneath the tram. Several people started weeping as the mother kept screaming "my boy! my baby!" over and over again.

I was trying to crowd control, because someone else on the tram was a doctor and rushed over, but everyone else was trying to get closer, trying to watch.

And then, the most precious and horrifying sound ever: The boy, crying.

I don't know how the tram driver managed to stop fast enough to barely clip the kid, but the point is he did. And that boy will now live with one hell of a story to tell and, hopefully, better road and railtrack sense.

Everyone around me seems to be having babies and it's making me really hormonal.

In other news (and it's not very *new* news, but something I haven't shared yet): My mother has found love again *le sigh*. It's all very thrilling, because since my parents split my mum didn't think she'd ever trust a man again to be able to fall in love with him. But by goodness she has! (And I think I always felt she would, but our family has been through an awful lot of abuse of trust and whether you like it or not that can do quite a lot of damage).

What's even better is that he's still encouraging her to move back to England rather than come his way (Colorado!) and has been looking at jobs in the country. He seems very nice and he's super smart. HELLO, he's a bonafide rocket engineer! People JOKE about having intelligence like that. So he suits my mum down to the ground. I think I'll get to meet him at Christmas, which will either be supremely awkward or like he's been in the family for years already.

I'm still feeling tired and slightly grumpy, which I'm sure is just loads of fun for Alex.

x

Arrghhh! .....the harder I try to put saving money away the more I find I struggle with my budget. Why is that? This is the second month in a row in over 3 years that I've reached (and breached) my overdraft, and it just feels so ridiculous.

Our house is desperate for a good tidy and clean, yet my motivation for this is resting comfortably at zero. Amy stopped by before we went off to finish cutting out bridesmaid dresses and visiting her fiancee in the hospital, and I actually felt aghast with shame at our kitchen. And it's not that we're unclean people by any means, it's just that the poor design of that whole space of our house is so shite that nothing fits (so it looks like we're messy), and nothing is finished (so it looks like we're happy to live in filth).

Perhaps I'm exaggerating slightly, but I just got to a point of such frustration and dismay today that there is so much that doesn't fit or work right for our living in the house that had a sledgehammer been handy I might have just given it a swing to see whether that prompts us into action.

We ARE getting there. But I want it to happen faster.

(I didn't think I was feeling this grumpy, but apparently I am!)

I have just been accused of "piercing [Alex's] bubbles with [my] needle of curiosity".

Yeah. I'm like that.