HAPPY CHRISTMAS 2005!!!!

Its my favourite time of year once again, and even though the suburb I live near was the scene of racially motivated riots, and I can't get near the beach, and many other things are wrong with the world (the cartoon above captures the mood right now in Sydney perfectly), I am choosing to decorate the tree, enjoy special time with treasured family and friends (that would be you - whether in person or in cyberland), max out the credit card (hey Mum its OK! I am doing it to give joy to others...and, uh, also me!) and generally join in the spirit of the season.....and I haven't restricted my bonhomie to home, having decorated my department's work area, with my colleague, Michelle, so successfully that we won the office decorating competition, with the prize being an order-in gourmet lunch!

On top of all that, I have got my Christmas newsletter done, unlike last year when aliens abducted me, or I got amnesia or.....ah life just got in the way (see below), and in keeping with the online times we live in, its gone totally cyber. You are now looking at my Christmas blog (short for weblog, or online diary) , which allows me to be way more creative with layout, colours, photos etc, and avoid all those nasty lifeforce-sapping queues at the post office! Its packed full of healthy tips on living, great low carb recipes and....wait that would be "Woman's Day" - my blog is instead full of all sorts of thrilling and exciting (in my own addled mind anyway!) raving about my life and hopefully it will fill you in on what's being going in a life, that may seem a tad banal at times, but is always on its way somewhere, not standing still for anyone.

So I hope this finds you loving life, making the most of it, and ready to enjoy a sensationally enriching, tinsel-covered, relationship-affirming Christmas, and an amazing one-of-a-kind 2006, when hopefully many of your fondest dreams do in fact come true!

Andrew

Postal address: P O Box 967, Sutherland, NSW 2232
Email: aussiemoose@yahoo.com
Landline phone number: 02 9525 0994
Mobile phone number: 0413 919055

Santa is not immune to getting caught up in the Christmas whirl

2004 - The Year That December Ate

So I am sure many of you are wondering what happened to 2004's Christmas Rave? OK well perhaps one of you is. Hmm, not a single query? But you know me - when has that ever stopped me? It succumbed mostly to me starting to date someone at the start of December, and with that tanking in late January, the less said about it, the better, in a very intense way which mneat lots of time being romantic, not so much time publishing a newsletter, putting up the Christmas tree (Yes! No tree! Can you imagine?!) and doing all the things a Christmas junkie normally does, with the exception of shopping, which is never missed!

So here is a summary of 2004, such as it was, in as condensed a form as I can manage...

LOTS OF TRIPS. To Manila in January. To Kuala Lumpur in March/April and June for 8 weeks. Much food, and shopping. Read 'The Da Vinci Code' (I couldn't be the only person who didn't! I just couldn't!). Many airport security checks including 2 in Manila 50 m apart (and no I did not pass any bomb or knife stands in that short length of corridor). Saw a shop in KL called 'Denise the Wine Shop'. Ate much Indian food, with a good friend from the off shore call centre, Sue, and her husband, Bobby. Saw "Saturday Night Fever" the musical. Went up KL Tower and the Petronas Towers. Read "Pandora's Star", a 900 page novel one weekend in an air conditioned hotel room, while ordering in room service - bliss. Also to Canada in November and a visit to Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island - stayed at Chesterman Beach in a gorgeous B & B over looking a driftwood covered grey sandy beach (picture on left above is me on the aptly named Long Beach, near Chesterman Beach).

PACKING UP

Apart from moving myself yet again in June, this time without long time housemate Andrew who moved home, I also packed up and moved my great aunt Liz from her home in Darling Point of 30 + years in February-May, which was sad for her, and us, on some levels since we all had so many memories of her in that unit, but also a wonderful chance to spend time with my Mum, Aunt Helen & Uncle Gary, cousns Ruth (and her husband Roger) and Lois (and her husband Martin). (See photo above of me, Auntie Liz, Aunt Helen & Mum at Doyle's Watson's Bay) But also happy since she would be in a very caring nursing home in Alstonville, in good hands, and with the company she craved. I am minding her exquisite cane furniture which is now my lounge suite so I feel like I have her with me in Sydney still.

>>> see now that wasn't so bad was it?! I am sure lots more happened but I didn't journal it so it is now lost to the sands of time, much like Australian democracy of late....

Santa loses everything but the weight

WHEN FRUIT FALLS FROM THE FAMILY TREE

Mum and Dad's enthusiasm for researching the family tree yielded, among a dizzying array of charts showing a whole phalanx of long gone relatives, the fulfillment of a desire to reconnect with parts of Dad's extended family, with whom he had lost touch many decades before. So Mum & Dad hot footed it to Sydney in September for a week of catching with these relatives including Dad's cousin, Jean, a thoroughly delightful lady who lives in Woolloomooloo, and couldn't have been more warm and welcoming. She hosted a number of get togethers, including a couple I was able to get to, and I got to meet a whole new section of the family which was wonderful. Jean's daughter, Jenny and her husband, Michael, put Mum & Dad up, and were brilliant to talk to, even going so far as to adopt me as their Sydney son, since both their kids are now away from the Emerald City. I also saw my own cousins, Ngaire and Moirag (the daughters of one of Dad's sisters), very briefly, and the plan for 2006 is to get to know them much better. After years of a small circle of, admittedly wonderful, immediate relatives on my Mum's side, it has been delightful discovering all these extra family members, and I certainly hope life, busy though it is, allows me the time to get to know them better.

It was the year that Bird Flu stalked the globe, fanned by much tabloid media hysteria, and sadly some much loved icons (above) were caught by this supposedly deadly menace. Has anyone seen Big Bird lately?

MORE MOVING THAN A BUNCH OF BEEFY BLOKES IN BLUE SINGLETS

Following on from The Great Move of June 2004, when I split from my long time flatmate, Andrew - not due to any fallout at all between us (we're still great friends) but his decision to move home for a whole host of reasons (lucky guy has family close by!), I moved in with my former flatmate, Maxine's fiance in Cronulla (and an existing flatmate, Roger) into a townhouse in Cronulla, about 1 block from the beach. They were both great guys and we got on well, and my power walks at dawn along the beach were magical - is there anything better than watching the sun rise over crashing waves? Well yes I guess there is cheesecake, and Lindor Balls, and.....well you get the idea - but in February this year, the owners returned from the Emirates, and so off I went again, determined to get a place of my own where I had some control over long I could stay...

.....I found it pretty quickly in a modern 1 bedroom apartment (see above) in Miranda, conveniently opposite a Coles supermarket and just a block from Westfield Miranda mall. It has the combined lounge/dining room you see in the photo, an attached quite large kitchen, separate bathroom, and a good-sized bedroom. I am liking the freedom that having the apartment gives me, and I am making sure I get out lots so I don't become a hermit, like I almost did the last time I had a 1 bedroom place in 1995. The landlord is delighted with me, and wants me to stick around for years so assuming I don't fall madly in love at some stage and move in with someone, I have the security of knowing I have a roof over my head for as long as I want it. Not that I am holding my breath given my history but its looking good for now.

This was the year that the Pope died - as well as Ronny Barker ('The Two Ronnies') and Don Adams ('Get Smart') - although I am not sure everyone fully understood what happened. Is that right George Dubya?

Fedex and the Art of Staying Sane in an Insane Place

Following the movement of the call centre to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia last year, where I spent 2 months helping with the transition (lived in a 5 star hotel, all meals out...yes it was just horrible and I suffered greatly! LOL), I had a choice between redundancy, or staying with Fedex as a representative in a newly created department called Customer Care. Now I could have walked from Fedex with a nice fat redundancy pay out but I decided to stick around, which just goes to show that even intelligent people can be utter idiots! LOL Sometimes I do wish I had walked but even on the bad days, this job is way better than the old ball and chain of customer service. No calls dropping in, no timed calls and a lot more freedom to do what I like when I like, which gives me lots of freedom to structure my day. I have also built some great relationships with my customers, which is far better than the 'call and run' interactions I had in the call centre. I am also blessed with some great colleagues who I like working with, 2 of whom are ex-customer services reps. So all in all, while it ain't perfect, its a darn sight better than the job which preceded it, and at this stage, I plan to stick around till at least July 2006 (10 years at Fedex!!)to get my long service leave (8 weeks + my usual 4 weeks leave), which means I can potentially be on holidays for 1/4 of next year! Ya gotta love that!

I plan to start doing courses in web content writing at Fedex's expense, of course, next year so that by the start of 2007 I can get myself into a less corporate, more creative line of work. Then there's also the novel, which has finally reached manuscript stage, and has been seen, to positive response, by at least one publisher. No contract yet though, but I aim to push hard for that next year. I am feeling increasingly burned out from customer service/care and getting into some creative endeavours will be just what the soul doctor ordered!

Above - (left) Gervase, Motass & Roy; (right) Latha, Andrew (me) and Christine (manager). My other colleague Michelle was away that day.

AN EVENTFUL TIME WAS HAD BY ALL......WELL ME ANYWAY

No visits to the Open Air Cinema this year to soak in amazing celluloid delights against the backdrop of Sydney Harbour but not for want of trying! I booked for three nights - the first time I wasn't well enough to go and forfeited the tickets, the second time a thunderstorm rained us out, and then the third ticket, which I was going to use with someone I was seeing at the time, went to them and a friend when we broke up. Well, I was hardly going to see a movie with an ex! LOL (laugh out loud). But I am planning to go at least twice next January/February, assuming weather and relationships permit!

I did however make it to Symphony in the Domain, which is a massive outdoor event held in Sydney City as part of the Festival of Sydney, and involves about 200,000 people all bringing picnic food, blankets etc and listening to some great classical music under the hopefully clear Summer skies. Its just magical, and a great night to spend with friends. This year I made it there with my friends, Margot and Tracy (see above, along with a photo of the stage) and a great time was had by all! No really it was...

And in a year where I only made it to one concert, what a concert it was! My friend Ellen & I made it to one of REM's concerts at the Entertainment Centre in March, and it was worth every cent of the $130 we spent. We had a brilliant view of the stage, Michael Stipe, the lead singer, was in perfect voice, and they played all the big hits and new stuff in creative way. One of the best concerts I have ever been to!

March 2005

My friend Kerry, who I went to university with, and who remains a very dear and special friend, came a-visitin' (not sure why I can't find the 'g' and have come over all hilly-billyish) to Sydney to support her friend Alex who was dancing in "Strictly Dancing" on the ABC in the only all-male couple to compete in the series. When all the dancing was done, Kerry and I caught up in person for the first time in years and spent a Saturday doing the sights in the Blue Mountains, including the ever inspiring Three Sisters (behind Kerry).

CHRISTMAS 2004

Part of the family in the loungeroom after the present unwrapping carnage had subsided. From L-R : Auntie Liz, Dad, Andrew (that would be me), Heather (Steve's fiancee), my brother Steve and Nanna; in foreground Mum and my sister Rachel

I'M HOW OLD ??!!!

40! That's right, 40! Innocent, unblemished, youthful me - 40! Can you believe it?! I actually wasn't too traumatised by the event really since I am still very much young at heart and living life accordingly, but my brain still took a while to process the information! I am now happily processed - like a slab of cured ham it seems at times! - and remembering most of the time that I have left my 30s behind. Although I have been told that 40 is the new 30 - and 50 is the new 35- so I plan to extend my 30s for at least another 15 years!

I managed to celebrate this milestone event in 2 countries:

CANADA - I wasn't actually in Canada for the birthday itself but in the firm belief that birthdays should be celebrated for at least a week minimum either side of the actual date itself, I threw myself into celebrations with Sandra and Ken with gusto. They took me out to "Earls", one of my favourite restaurant chains in Canada, and I downed salmon (of course) and yam mash, washed down by a glass of Pinot Gris wine, and 2 Peach Bellinis (peach schnapps, peach nectar, rum, chanpagne and sangria- see above), and no I was not driving! I had quite a happy birthday buzz going though, the best part being that the Bellinis were really sweet, which suited the aging sweet tooth in me! Sandra & Ken gave me this really funky art print I had admired in Kitsilano (see following story) which will be a lovely reminder of reaching middle age!

AUSTRALIA - I flew back in on the 25th itself, which meant the first 6 hours of the biggest day of the year, apart from Christmas, were spent in a pressurised metal tube hurtling at breakneck speed over the Pacific! Yippee! I didn't even get wished a Happy Birthday by the Customs officer - yes I am writing a letter of complaint to John Howard - but I did get a really friendly taxi driver, which was a welcome change to normal. I was initially feeling quite peppy and awake after unexpectedly sleeping for 4-5 hours on the flight - I never usually sleep at all - but after unpacking, showering and shopping at the mall with my friend Susie, and having lunch with her (Indian food for those desperate to know), I felt awful, thanks to the exotic souvenir cold I brought back with me (undeclared to customs I might add) and so I slept all afternoon. Woo-hoo!! I did get out for a fish and chips dinner at John and Susie's, figuring I was not about to surrender all my birthday to that dreaded lurgy. After all, its not every day you turn 40! Or 30! Or whatever....

I was feeling better the next night, after much zinc and cough mixture (no alcohol in it though - what is the world coming to?!) when I fronted at "Sealevel" restaurant right on the beach at Cronulla for an intimate dinner with 7 close friends - John & Susie (who organised it all for me), Andrew Geddes (former flatmate), Ellen, Tracy and Ross, a good friend who travelled down from Newcastle to attend - and one really huge helium-filled balloon of Tigger. The food was brilliant - I had Szechuan pork fillet with mango and pear in a Sauvignon Blanc sauce - the conversation sparkled and I had a ball. Dessert was at Ellen's place in Miranda where we ate much Toblerone cheesecake that Susie had made, and other assorted high caloric desserts.....

....and so I turned 40 and the world did not stop moving...well not that I noticed but I was high on sugar from the desserts at the time so who really knows??

OVER A GREAT BIG 'C' AND UNDER A SLAB OF SALMON

Another year and another visit overseas but this time no money exhanged hands with any airline! I discovered to my joy that 60000 frequent flier miles - I am with an American airline, United, and the USA, along with Myanmar (Burma) cling like hungry hyenas on a day old carcass to the old imperial measurements - buys you a return flight to Vancouver, Canada, and so I set off for 12 days in the coolish climes of my favourite Canadian city. The main aim of this jaunt was to celebrate the 40th birthday of my very good friend, Sandra Koziol, who hit that magical mark 10 days before I did. I don't always get to celebrate milestone events with close friends who live far away so it was it wonderful to get the chance to do it this time. I even got to help plan her party, along with her delightful friend and neighbour, Ilesa, which was exhausting but really worthwhile - Sandra loved it all, and had a great time.

When I wasn't planning colour-coordinated parties - we went with red and yellow for those of you dying to know - I was doing some limited touristing (yes it is now a verb!) at Kitsilano, an area that mixes funky one-of-a-kind shops, trendy cafes and beautiful beaches, and downtown, along with much salmon eating (sushi, steaks, you name it!), shopping and veging out. I managed to acquire the cough-heavy cold the whole family had and spend the last 3 days of my holiday watching day time TV including the ever fabulous "Ellen" (Ellen DeGeneres), listening to some CDs I bought and reading all my 'Entertainment Weekly' magazines. I even managed to visit a salmon spawning stream but arrived a little late in the season to find only dead frozen salmon lining the banks. Yes, I see dead fish. (Not quite Joel Haley Osmont in "Sixth Sense" but I tried - sadly none of the fish talked much) So it was kind of a visit to a fish cemetery - mmm, lovely!

Above all, the best part was seeing my wonderful friends, Sandra and Ken (see above), and their gorgeous kids, Katie and Graham, and spending quality time with them. I am immensely glad they are in my life and their unconditional love and support of me is a gift. Of course, Sandra's wonderful cooking is a pretty good incentive to visit too!!