I've found my flip flop!

Well, quite a lot has happened since last I posted, but I can't be bothered to share most of it.
Significant things include:

1) CULEish parties - Halloween and fireworks
2) Evil stomach bug
3) Much panto rehearsal
4) Reaffirming many important friendships
5) Fosse and Drury society of joy!
6) Dyeing my hair purple (though it's now faded to a sort of pinkish red kind of colour. Don't have any photos of me so I can't post what it looks like!)
7) Boy's 21st
8) My friend Saf's big 21st birthday ball

To talk about things in order, I have spent much time with various friends, improving relationships and hopefully establishing lasting friendships. This is especially important for me, as I find it very difficult to make friends and even harder to keep them! But anyway, to this end there have been many one on one lunches and social occasions which have been most enjoyable, and now I have people with whom I can share deep dark secrets because I know I can trust them enough not to betray me! Hurrah!
This has also involved some crying on shoulders, mostly on my shoulder, which while distressing is also a lovely feeling because if there's one thing I love doing it's trying to help people! So I have been feeling a much more rounded and caring person lately, and it helps me to put things in perspective - on the whole, at least.
Also along these lines was my helping Saf organise her ball - more specifically the ceilidh part of it, since that's my area of expertise! After a couple of worrying weeks of bands saying "Sorry, we're away/busy/engaged/recording," I finally managed to get hold of the marvellous Swindlers and Gentry, with whom I've worked before, so they came and gave us a fantastic ceilidh and I got my own round of applause during the speeches at the dinner, which was most gratifying if a little embarrassing! So yeah, if you're booking a ceilidh in the Cambridge area, go for The Swindlers and Gentry because they are a lovely band! They enjoyed playing for us - they said we were the best crowd they've ever played to. I told them that this was because we're almost all in panto and thus perfectly happy to throw ourselves into things and make fools of ourselves :D

Ah, panto. I am having serious trouble with the rehearsal schedule, especially since I'm such a small part that I don't feel inclined to go to too many rehearsals. It doesn't help that my other half is playing the dame and I'm having a few problems in that area atm - the OH area, not the daming area. However the dancing and singing so far has been muchly fun and not as boring as I thought it might be - I've even learned how to moonwalk.....well, kind of at least!

CULES parties are fun. That is all I can say! But not quite as fun as the FOSSE AND DRURY SOCIETY of pure undistilled joy! Last time we danced the Celtic Cross, which is an exceedingly complicated dance in a star set, which I'd never seen before. We need to start thinking about a display for IVFDF fairly soon, and I've a feeling that this'n may well be put forward!

After the dancing, almost immediately, in fact, I came down with an evil stomach bug of doom, which was miserable and upon which I am NOT going to dwell. But it did make for my nextdoor neighbour being very lovely and giving me juice and offering chicken soup (wisely refused!) - but it's the thought that counts.

***Caution. Relationship rant follows***

Since then I have been feeling...well, not so sound in body and definitely not so sound in mind. Most of the issues are due to tiredness, I'm sure, as well as trying to catch up on work while fitting in rehearsals, ball organising and my boy's 21st birthday, for which I made a cottage pie (which took me most of the morning) and generally fretted a lot to make it nice. I have been down ever since, because I feel under-appreciated. I worked hard to give him a happy day and I know I succeeded but I didn't receive any especial acknowledgement, and Saf's ball distracted attention, as did an especially fun birthday card he was given. I know it's childish to dwell on things like this and that I should be doing it for his enjoyment alone, but when combined with all the other factors that are making me feel skanky it's really not helping. Last night at rehearsal, he barely spoke to me - admittedly I was a little cool with him, but I was feeling unhappy and that makes me clam up utterly. I need him to make the first move and it tires me out when time and time again he doesn't. The general lack of communication also bothers me. He's been very stressed this week and as such has disappeared into a work and panto filled void, leaving me wondering where he is, what he's doing and when I'll next be able to spend time with him. Last night he did actually tell me when next he's going to be free, but I've the feeling it's too late. I'm just too tired to deal with everything atm and have the strong desire to crawl underneath my blanket and hide in my own little world of Akkadian and dance. I wish there was some way of suspending relationships temporarily! I could just do without stressing atm.....and it doesn't help that I have to see him every night at rehearsal and that he expects everything to be the same whenever he sees me.

And it's damned cold atm and that always upsets me. My fingers are in such pain, and the central heating ISN'T FUCKING WORKING!

Ah well, at least I have Cecilia Bartoli to cheer me up by singing opera at me (from a CD, of course, not sitting around in my room). If ever I am down and need reminding of all the good in the world, I listen to opera and am reminded of how much beauty there can be. Which coming from someone who up until about 2 years ago hated opera is quite something.....


Oh yes, and I've found my flip flop. It was in my bag of washing.