Slap me on the bum and call me a naughty girl

Well, what have I been up to over the last four months? Certainly not writing on here!

Lucy's wedding is now in four weeks - I am Maid of Honour, and have been rather busy helping out. Including:

• Making tiara, and bridal jewellery
• Making the wedding cake
• Helping to organise the hen weekend (which is next week - aaaargh!)
• Typing out 18 pages of Order of Service this morning - these Catholic services are huuuuuge!
• Losing 3 stone since January to get into my bridesmaid dress. Yay - it fits!
• Doing a reading in the church
• . . . and all the other stuff - trying to help finding cars, going to dress fittings (aw, she looked so pretty!), helping to write out invitations and on the hunt for dresses for the little bridesmaids!

Yep - 3 stone lost. If any of you are trying to lose weight, I can heartily recommend a website - http://www.nutracheck.co.uk/. It is fantastic and yes - I have lost a wopping 42 pounds since January. Clothes shopping is overwhelming now, and I have a mental list of all the pretty boys that will be at the wedding . . .

I have just been promoted at work as well which I am quite happy about (well, extra dosh is always good) and even better than that, they are moving us this weekend to a different floor. That means I no longer have to sit next to my hoarder of a boss who has a desk you can't see under the crap he keeps on there, and for the first time in 7 years with the company, I have a window seat!

My flatmate is still bringing back men to sleep in her bed, but categorically "not to sleep with". One turned round and said that he fancied her, upon which she got all upset and stopped talking to him. I wonder what she expects . . .

I am off out now to go and buy a peace lily to put in my new window at work. He will be called George. If you are good, I will post a picture of George in his new home tomorrow . . .

Inappropriate things to say in front of children #1

This evening, myself and a friend went up to Alexandra Palace to watch the big fireworks show.

It was a pleasant evening, full of buying strange glowy things to loop round heads, hotdogs and beefburgers that you need to take a mortgage out for, and lots of people . . . oh, the number of people.

So Jen and I bagged a spot on the steps of the BBC Reception area - a perfect spot, where we could see over the heads of the hundreds of people in front of us, rest our backsides on the wall behind us and put our bags on the handily located windowsill.

Being a popular spot, various children and adults congregated on the steps in front of us, and I like to think were looking at us enviously in our prime firework observing spot.

The fireworks were fantastic, as they always seem to be up there. All done to classical music this year, and we were treated to various choons such as Romeo & Juliet, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, the theme from Pirates of the Caribbean, the Flower Duet from Lakme (the BA theme sung by two women), and finishing off with a couple of bits from Carmen.

As the music crescendo'd into "Toreador" from Carmen (see, I know my choons!), Jen leant over to me and said "It'll be the BIG fuckers now!!!" . . . Quite loudly. In front of little children.

Oooops.

Goodbye to the old, hello to the new

I am feeling a little sad. Lucy moved out last night, and in with her fiance. I suppose we couldn't be flatmates forever, but I did feel a little woeful. We have shared two abodes for more than two years.

And now she has to go and live with a boy.

I now have to get used to a new flatmate (something new to me, as I have always shared with people I already knew). Sam is younger than me - eight years younger, to be precise, and from The North. She is very tiny (less than five foot), blonde, and seems to be very sweet.

To a Friend

"A friend is the person who knows all about you and still loves you."

Elbert Hubbert

Today it is Lucy's birthday.

There is nothing that makes life so livable as having a friend who knows you better sometimes than you know yourself.

Someone to lean on.
Someone to lean on you.
Someone you can be stupid with, and know that they "get you".
Someone who sees the worst and the best of you, but loves you all the same.
Someone with whom you can share your deepest secrets. And never worry about them being spilled.
Someone who you can be mutually stroppy with. But it will blow over in a second.
Someone you can have a really cathartic bitch with.
Someone to share those moments of uncontrollable, unstoppable laughter.
Someone to equally share the moments of uncontrollable, unstoppable tears.
Someone with whom you can just . . . . be.

Happy Birthday babe.

And thank you.

"My friend, if I could give you one thing, I would give you the ability to see yourself as others see you. . . then you would realize what a truly special person you are"

Barbara A. Billings