Getting back into the swing of things

It's been almost 7 months since my last post and this is a fact that both appals and terrifies me. Appals me because I really love to write and express myself through my blog and terrifies because now after weeks of stressing, I actually have to find something to write about.

So...what's news in my life? Work is still the same and I really love what I do and the company I work for. After nearly a year here (anniversary in April, yoh!), I feel content, appreciated, encouraged, inspired and given the space and opportunity to learn new things. Just what until I finally save up enough to get myself a Macbook. My newly-acquired InDesign skills are going to blow you away!

Life at home is a little different. Firstly, I'm in a new home. My boyfriend and I moved in together after 6 months of blissful dating. It felt right to us in spite of the "whoa-whaaat?" looks we got from friends and family. It's been a challenge living with someone. We're both quite set in our ways and stubborn about it. Our biggest fight was over what kind of milk to buy. I know it sounds really petty but when you've spent time living on your own, you're very used to doing (and getting!) things your own way. We're both slowly learning to compromise and realise what battles to pick - at the end of the day, we just try to remember the reason we made the decision in the first place, which usually results in very gushy, lovey-dovey sentimental staring-into-each-other's-eyes competitions.

Other news...my family got married! Yes, really. Three members of my family got married within the space of 2 months. First was the littlest sister (bridesmaid of the year slash MOH de jure was I!), then my stepsister eloped on a beautiful beach up the west coast near Cape Town and finally my dad and stepmom made it official. It was a seriously busy December!

This year, I've decided that rather than let me relationship define me and rule my decisions (as I usually end up doing), I'm going to keep focusing on myself and doing things that make ME happy. Luckily I have the world's most supportive significant other who doesn't burst out laughing when I come bounding out of the bedroom in new ballet shoes. Ballet, yoga AND running are just the first few plans I've decided to get more involved in. But I'm sure as the year progresses, we'll find plenty of other things to occupy my mind...

Xx

The girly-girl rant

A friend of mine posted the following on facebook today: 

"As much as I spend my life trying to be everything but a girly girl, packing all my girly stuff out on my new dressing table and loving it, made me think.... I might just be a girly girl after all"

At first I was thrilled. Finally! My hours spent punting my beauty blog and the benefits are sparkly happy bouncing rainbowness were paying off and friends were realising that it's actually ok to be...*whisper*...girly.

But the more I thought about it, the more annoyed I got. I *am* a girly-girl. I love make-up and fashion, spending hours pouring over images on Pinterest, love to shop, adore chocolate and kittens. I wear high heels with pride (even if I can't walk in them) and will happily spend an entire day at the spa. 

Last night? Last night I climbed a wall and made a rather brave, and stupid, attempt to get onto the roof to stop a cat fight. No, I don't mean a nails-out-hair-pulling girl-on-girl barney...I mean an actual cat fight between my kitty and the neighbourhood bully. You see, along with my penchant for "girly" goodness, I am and have for many years been a tom boy.

I first noticed when I was a kid. I loved playing house, although usually my "house" was in a tree in our front garden. I would come home with countless scrapes and bruises after many hours transporting everything from blankets to dolls into my "house". I played with Barbies. However, my Disney's Princess Aurora (aka Sleeping Beauty) and Ken were more often than not renamed Jean Grey and Scott Summers (of X-men fame).  

I've been single for a greater percentage of my life than not. I can change my own tyres, re-wire a plug and dig a metre-by-metre-by-metre hole to plant a lemon tree. I'm not physically my strongest but when there isn't a handy boyfriend around (my dad lives in The Netherlands and I only recently adopted a brother, also in The Netherlands), I'm more than capable of doing it myself. 

I am and have been in charge of my own decisions for many years too. I bought my car by myself. I bought my house by myself. I manage my own finances, make decisions about my insurance and nurse myself when I'm sick. 

I'm fiercely independent and have become so used to fixing my own problems that sexism and gender stereotypes smack me upside the head when I least expect it, because in my life, I don't designate specific roles to specific genders. I play them all.

I'm just as comfortable climbing a gate as I am strutting about in heels. I can make a fire with perfectly manicured nails I did the night before. I'm as handy with a screwdriver as I am with a ghd hair straightener. I drink beer or a brightly coloured cocktail depending on my mood and I love watching ice hockey as much as I enjoy an episode of Grey's Anatomy.

I'm not just a girly-girl. I'm a person. I have interests based on things that...wait for it...INTEREST ME, not because it's what my gender does or I'm socialised to believe are meant for me. I think in the spirit of this month (August is Women's Month in SA), I'm going to fully embrace all the aspects that define me not only as a woman, but also as a human. I think I'm a pretty well-rounded individual.
 

The true test, I reckon, will be when it gets a bit warmer and the guy I'm currently dating manages to drag me camping - as he keeps threatening. I wonder who's going to be more present: the tom boy me who makes fires and gets her hands dirty, or the girly-girl who wants to know exactly where I'm supposed to plug in my hair straightener.

 

The Phoenix - Fall Out Boy

I spend half the week trying to find this song after hearing it briefly on the radio and then someone casually posts it on Facebook. I adore this for reasons unknown.

Growing up

Listening to Paramore this week got me thinking what happened to good old Avril and I found this gem on YouTube. I love how she's grown up but still retained that fun, carefree vibe. Another one for the summer anthem list this year? I had my 10 year reunion this year so this song is totes approps.

Words are all I have

I love words. I love how they change, how they sound, how they evolve to mean different things to different people. Someone asked me the other day what my favourite word was and I couldn't pick just one. His was "fulcrum" because the "c" is a hard sound around which the word is based, like the actual fulcrum of a word. I thought that was awesome.

Browsing through Pinterest this evening, I came across this list of beautiful words and phrases. I especially love the French phrases. Let me know what you think. My favourite is:

Paramore goes pop

I fell in love with Paramore many years ago when an ex asked what kind of music I liked. At the time I was (ok, yes, and still am) loving Avril Lavigne and he recommended Paramore as "kind of similar but not as poppy".

Heard this on the radio yesterday... Apparently Paramore has gone over to the dark side and joined the ranks of happy, bubbly, twirling-around-because-I'm-so-in-love bubblegum pop divas. I love it!

The feels

Sometimes I feel too much...