Okay, finally, here is a birthday post. April 30th was my 23rd birthday and I had a lovely day with my family and boyfriend. We had home made bacon, egg, and cheese English muffins for breakfast, then Josh and I went to the mall to catch a movie and do some shopping.

We saw Arthur, the hilarious latest from Russell Brand. I may be speaking too soon but I think it might get my vote for movie of the year (maybe tying with Gnomeo & Juliet). A good story mixed with humour will just about always get me. After the movie it was time to get some serious shopping on, thanks to the generous pockets of my grandparents and siblings! I found a great set of pale green flannelette sheets for 50% off, and some on-sale underwear as well as a much-needed new bra.

In the afternoon I planned to go 10 pin bowling with my immediate family, so we did just that. Not everyone could make it, but we had enough players for a decent game. My 5-year-old nephew thought it was pretty cool and even managed to bowl without the kiddie ramp after awhile. Then he got bored and played arcade games instead. My 2.5-year-old niece, however, kicked butt. She used the ramp (I think if she’d tried to bowl she would have been dragged with the ball and/or made a hold in the alley) and she almost-always knocked some pins down. It was so adorable watching her pick up the balls and wobble over to the ramp, swaying and zig-zagging as she went. She needed help putting the ball onto the ramp, but anyone who tried to help her push the ball down got in some serious trouble. Anyway, I actually managed to get a strike and did okay for the rest of the game, though not as good as one of my sisters – she owned the gamed! It was a fun afternoon and I think we should do it more.

In the evening my mama made a lovely roast dinner with my favourite Yorkshire puddings and gravy. Sooo delicious and perfect for these colder Autumn nights. The rest of the night was cozy and chilled out. I didn’t want to go out for drinks or anything, I’m such a homebody but I actually love being this way. Although I do enjoy a party every once in awhile I am much more ‘myself’ when I am at home.

Here are some photos of gifts and such, I didn’t take any during bowling because, well, everyone was just too busy bowling to remember.

Sterling silver and turquoise ring from Josh. He bought this unbeknownst to me after we had seen turquoise rings in a jewellery store and I commented on how much I loved them. He really can take a hint.

A goody hamper from one of my sisters and my eldest nephew. So many fantastic things in here! Beauty products, snacks, candy, you name it. I’m spoiled. To the left of the basket is a boxed hand cream from my grandma. I’m a hand cream junkie and I think it may be hereditary and that I get it from her!

So, here’s to the year ahead! I’ll make it a good one.

*You wont get this unless you’ve seen Hot Tub Time Machine.

God, it’s been forever since I posted. Oops. But I got a netbook last weekend, for university, so now I have the ability to blog anywhere, even in lectures! But that would be Bad and Not Very Professional-Student of me, so I wont do that. Just when I got to cafes (like now), or the food court, or am hiding in a corner of the library ‘studying’.

Have you ever had a mochaccino with hazelnut syrup? You should; they’e great.

Last week was the first week back at uni after mid-semester break and I about died from it. I was so exhausted at the end of every night I couldn’t do anything else. Like blog, or even read my rss feeds! Tragic, really. This week has been a little less traumatic, probably because I’m not going to the gym because I Have A Very Busy Week (And Next Week Too), therefore I do not have time. So basically, I can still walk when I get home at 7 every night, and I don’t collapse in a snoring heap by 9.

In non-university news, on Tuesday my man thing and I celebrated our six-month anniverssary. We went to see Hot Tub Time Machine which was fairly amusing. We had some time to kill beforehand so we played in the arcade and Josh won me a little Tigger plushie that is reading a book! Aww ♥ After the movie we went to McDonalds. We weren’t originally going to get McDonalds but both of us neglected to realise the foodcourt by the cinema wouldn’t be open at that time of the evening. So Macca’s it was. They have these new family meal things, with enough food for four people, and you get it in a fancy red cardboard box. We got one of those meals (the Big Mac and Cheeseburger one) because Josh wanted the box. Seriously. (He didn’t keep it though, thankfully.)

Anyway, tomorrow is my 22nd birthday. I’m pretty excited actually! Josh and I are going to Rainbow’s End (an amusement park) for the day. I haven’t been in years and there’s a couple of new rides, so that should be fun. My goal is go on all the major rides, do the bumper cars and maybe bumper boats, and go-carts. I also want to get a hotdog (the on-a-stick variety) because I forgot how awesome they were until recently. They really are. Not good for my fat per centage, but it will be my birthday so I don’t care.

I would like to give a loud, warbling-and-possibly-awful-but-well-meaning rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ to the marvellous Holly! I hope you have a fantastic day and get to spend it with great people.

Now, on to the procrastination.

161. Would you still love and stay with your significant other if he or she had to have a breast or testicle removed? Yes, of course!
162. Do you believe in fate or free will? I experience conflict over this, really, I do! I think that things do happen for a reason, which I suppose might indicate ‘fate’ in a way, but I am also a firm believer in people being able to choose how they want their lives to go. Of course there are many other, not-so-free, factors that influence one’s choices, like upbringing and opportunities. The reality is that opportunities are not equal for all people, and neither are outcomes, so that undoubtedly affects what a person even can choose to do.
163. Do you believe that only boring people get bored? No, not at all.
164. Can life change or are we all stuck in vain? Life can most definitely change. Actually it always is.
165. What changes are you afraid of? Growing apart from certain people as I grow older, but that’s it. Change is inevitable, so I may as well embrace them all, unless there’s something that I really dislike, in which case I would implement other changes to go in a much more desirable direction.
166. Are you a day person or nocturnal? Both, depending on my mood.
167. What one CD could you listen to for an entire week (no mixed CD’s, it must be an album)? For Emma, Forever Ago by Bon Iver.
168. Which is worse, working in retail, food service, or an office? Food service, because I think you’d get a larger proportion of annoying customers.
169. What’s the coolest job you ever had? My favourite has been the babysitting/nannying ones I’ve done.
170. What is one central idea that your thoughts seem to come back to? What I want my future to be like and how I can make it so.
171. Have you ever wanted to be an actor/tress? Yes, when I was younger. I went to drama for awhile, which was quite fun.
172. If you had the power to control one person and make this person do anything you wanted for a whole day, who would you pick and what would they do? I’d rather keep this blog free of too much R-rated material, so I’ll not answer this.
173. What star sign are you and what is your sign like? Taurus. We are apparently stubborn, reserved, determined, ‘Earthy’, like food, materialistic, and romantic. All of those things are true for me to some degree, but they could be for anyone, Taurus or not! Also, our planet is Venus, so there are ties with the Goddess of Love, so we’re kind of cuddly, love-dovey people, which is definitely true for me.
174. Did the Blair Witch Project scare you? I haven’t seen it. The snot coming out of that person’s nose totally put me off.
175. Are you in constant fear of death? No.
176. Does fear of death keep you from building a life? Nope.
177. Do you like all your movies to be in wide-screen? I don’t really care.
178. Are you a fan of any comic books? I thought Tank Girl was pretty cool when I was younger, otherwise no, because I don’t get to read them much.
179. At what age did you attend your first funeral? Seven, for my great-grandmother.
180. What do you smell like (lotion, cologne, sweat)? Me? I haven’t got any perfume on, so I guess it’s just my own scent, whatever that is.

I’ve been quite absent from blogging lately, mainly because I’ve had assignments due, and owing to my habit of leaving things until the last minute, I’ve been completing them in a mad flurry. The one due tomorrow is in two parts: an essay and three paragraphs on three subjects. Today requires revision of the paragraphs and composing the essay, which is fortunately a descriptive, personal one and therefore doesn’t require any reading or references. So, because I have been busy with all that this week, I didn’t blog about my birthday drinks that I had on the weekend.

I spent Saturday night in great company, new and old, having a fabulous time and enjoying a part of the city I hardly ever spend time in at night. I was staying at the Sky City Grand Hotel with my cousin (and her boyfriend) so we didn’t have to concern ourselves with rides home after a night out. It was a great solution because the bar we ended up at was in easy walking distance from the hotel. I think it’s safe to say we all had a marvellous time, as the Flickr set shows.

We finally stumbled back to the hotel in the early hours and I became intimately acquainted with room 1222′s toilet. Obviously I had more to drink than my poor body was used to, add to that the variety I consumed and, well, you get the result of it needing to all come back up again. That’s right, I’m a classy broad! But I am comforted by the fact that I am, apparently, a very composed drunk, and that no one really knew I was that drunk until I made a dash for the bathroom.

Suffice it to say, I had a very bad hangover on Sunday and was not able to enjoy breakfast at the hotel as I had wished. I think if I had been in a better state I would have requested a nicer vegan breakfast option. The buffet was substantial and there were some vegan items, such as baked beans, and fruit and nuts, as well as breads which I was not sure were vegan, and an array of spreads for them. When I asked to have something hot prepared, I got a vegetable stir fry that was tasteless and so oily I was only able to eat a couple of bites before giving up altogether. The breakfast was the major disappointment of the hotel, and to a lesser degree, the woman who checked me in on arrival, but other than that it was a pleasant, albeit short stay. I’m sure if I had had longer to make use of all the facilities, I would go there again.

All-in-all, any disappointments experienced were far outweighed by the lovely time I had with my friends. I can honestly say that my 21^st birthday has been the sort of celebration I had hoped for. I had apprehensions of it being a let-down, or somehow regretting not doing enough, but I know I will always look back fondly and think I made the best of it.

Last night I had my birthday dinner with family, even though my actual birthday in on Thursday. One of my sister’s and her son are away at school camp this week so I had an early celebration so they could attend.

We went a local restaurant that was mostly good — a few meals were not so great, but the majority were good. The restaurant were very accommodating to my vegan needs and created a lovely coconut cream and sundried tomato risotto with a divine balsamic vinegar reduction. My mum baked and decorated a vegan chocolate cake for me, which we took to dinner.

The surprises were a beautiful card that everyone wrote it and four A4 sheets of collaged photos of me, from newborn to the present! It was great to see old photos I’d not seen in years and they were obviously a good talking point, too.

Last night was just what I wanted and I can’t think of better way to celebrate my 21^st than that.

I took some photos as well. I will make some of those viewable only to friends and family later in the week, so take a look now if you are not already friends with me on Flickr.

Watch for 0:25. I’m excited like that!

Why?

Because last night I got my 21^st birthday present, a Nikon D60 dSLR camera!! My Dad found a great deal on TradeMe for a two-month-old camera that also came with the 55-200mm lens (the camera’s default lens is 18-55mm) and a three year transferable warranty. I’m so unbelievably stoked right now, you have no idea.

I’m a total novice when it comes to cameras and taking decent photos, but it’s something I’m incredibly interested in and my love of other people’s photographs has slowly grown to the point where I want to learn for myself. And I’m sure everyone I know will see me coming and think “Oh, God, here comes Flashy McFlashFlash” while rubbing their eyes.

So, so exciting!

Twenty-one. Two one. 21. The traditional New Zealand twenty-first birthday celebration is a large party where everyone gets very drunk, embarrassed terribly and the birthday girl or guy goes home having seen a whole new side to Aunt Jane/Uncle John. Or something to that effect, it would seem.*

I’m doing the smart thing and having two separate celebrations: a nice, sophisticated dinner at a restaurant with my family and then drinks with my friends. I don’t have that many friends here, yet, so it’s not going to be a big thing, but hopefully it will be fun and enjoyable. I have a deep-set fear that I am boring and it will be boring and uncool and all those sorts of things; I hope to prove myself very wrong!

I am currently looking at hotels in Auckland’s inner city area because my parent’s are shouting me a room for the night of the drinks. Some of us have to travel a way to get into the city so it’ll be nice have a place to go back to that’s not too far away, etc. It’s making me excited! Before my 20^th birthday I dreaded all my birthdays immensely but now I’m not so terrified of them which is a good thing. They should be fun events where you can be a bit outwardly selfish. Oh, and a bit bossy, too.

Anyway, I have just over a month to organise these two events, send out invites and so on. This past year has gone so unbelievably fast.

*Actually, that’s not entirely true. I haven’t really heard of anyone having a 21^st that was that bad.