THE LATEST ACTION HERO

Hubby and I had a good friend over for dinner last night. He's spent the last three months driving around America, visiting his internet buddies (so jealous). He's a musician/environmental scientist (weird combo, I know) and he came back with some cool pics of musical haunts, architecture, etc but this pic was my fave.


JESUS - ACTION HERO







After I almost wet my pants from laughing so hard, I wondered what Jesus the Action Hero could do...turn water into wine? That would go down a treat in my house.

I was intrigued and goggled him this morning. Here's the blurb:


Jesus Action Figure
Everyone has a different take on Jesus. Muslims saw him as a prophet; Buddhists say he was enlightened; Hindus consider him an avatar (the incarnation of a deity in human form) while Christians hail him as the Son of God. But, wherever your theological compass points, you will agree that this is the coolest action figure since G.I. Joe. Each hard plastic Jesus Action Figure stands 5" tall with poseable arms to reach toward the heavens and wheels in his base for smooth gliding action. Comes in our illustrated package with biblical quotes on the back.

Jesus Action Figure
item 10746
$8.95 ea.


'the coolest action figure since G.I. Joe' - LMAO AGAIN but a little disappointed. The mind boggles!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD

We braved the storm to celebrate my Dad's 60th Birthday. A few yummy curries, lots of wine and birthday cake. A good time was had by all.



MY COUSIN AND HIS GIRLFRIEND VISITING FROM ENGLAND



THE BIRTHDAY BOY




THERE'S A LONG STORY BEHIND THE PIC ON THE CAKE BUT BASICALLY DAD FELL OFF HIS BIKE AND HAS NEVER LIVED IT DOWN.





I'M GUESSING YOU KNOW WHO THIS IS



APPARENTLY MY MOTHER DOESN'T DRINK MUCH...ME THINKS I WILL KEEP THIS ONE AS EVIDENCE

WHERE THE HELL IS KB?

I watched this video on my friend

MARJA'S

blog and it got me thinking...I'd love to visit my blog buddies and do a happy dance with them. Hmmmm, perhaps I would take a rain check on the happy dance and knock back a couple of wines with them instead. Actually, come to think of it, this would probably be followed by a happy dance. Can you just picture it...KB's pub crawl around the world *giggles*

So far, I have invites to:


America
Australia
England


Any other takers?


Love KB
xxxx

AWWWWWW-HOW CUTE

Is the world suddenly intensely beautiful, or is it your hand holding mine that makes it so?

-Anon

BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES

This is my third attempt at writing this...the power keeps going off!

The North Island of New Zealand is experiencing one of the worsts storms in a decade.
We are expecting widespread rain and gale force winds of up to 130kmph.

We've been told to only go out if necessary. Sounds like a great excuse to stay in my pyjamas if you ask me. I was lucky enough to fill up the kettle, heat up the house and fill up the bath tub before the power went out the first time, woohoo!

The yard outside is a mess. We've already lost one of our huge trees which was thankfully not too close to the house.

I'm supposed to be going out for my Dad's birthday dinner this evening but we will have to wait and see. The height of the storm is supposed to hit later on this evening. Probably as I sit down to watch the NZ/Australia Rugby Test.

I'll keep you posted.

Love KB
xxxx

FLASH 55 - GHOSTS

From the darkened room he watches her sleep. He knows every curve of her body, every story behind her many scars.

Finally, his time had come to be a man again, to embrace her, to feel the warmth of her soft lips. Alas, the time traveller had warned him he had but a single day...



A snippet from a story I'm working on. More to come if you likey!




Flash Fiction - Each Friday we compose a short story of 55 words - no more, no less. If you want to join in the fun and games...post your story, report to the boss -

G-MAN

to let him know. If you're not interested in contributing a story, feel free to read what the others have posted. I'm sure any comments you have would be appreciated.

Happy reading and writing!
Love
KB
xxx

MEN HAVE ALL THE FUN, FOLLOWED BY RAMBLINGS

It's been raining here in Auckland (or as I like to call it - DUCKland) for days. Every time I put on my shoes to take Coco for her walk, the rain poured down again. I decided to take a walk on the treadmill instead.



Coco came to see what I was up to and proceeded to spend half an hour staring at my feet. I couldn't stop laughing, I could imagine what she was thinking...

"Why is Mum walking without me? Why are her feet moving but she's not going anywhere?

Speaking of exercise - it's almost time for my annual check up with the Doc. He's been my doc for about eight years and he's the best one I've ever had. Last time I saw him he was pleased I was off all my meds and well, that hasn't happened for a long time so I was pleased too, woohoo!. He weighed me - hate that part. He told me my weight was fine but (isn't there always a but?), I'd been steadily putting on a little weight each year since I'd given up smoking and he wouldn't want me to gain any more. He put it in a nicer way than that but I knew what he was saying.

Next came my favourite question (NOT), how much was I drinking? I used to lie through my teeth when this one came up but I decided it was time to fess up. The Dr almost fell off his chair when I replied. He informed me that I was consuming the equivalent of what was suggested for a man to be drinking and since I was clearly NOT a man, I should cut back by at least half. Bugga, men have all the fun!

Luckily for me, my eldest step-daughter is a personal trainer. She asked me to keep a diary of what I ate and drank for a week. She told me I was eating too many carbs and not enough protein. Which was true, I love spuds, bread and pasta. When hubby was away I tended to live on noodles and beans on toast. She made up a food plan for me and stuck it on the fridge. She also worked out an exercise programme for me...bless her.

One of things I've learnt from these changes is how much the food and drink I consume affects my mood. I have suffered with depression on and off for years so I have to make sure I look after myself physically which in turn improves my emotional well being. I woke up this morning feeling tired and grumpy. I thought back to what I'd been eating and drinking for the last week or so and how often I'd been walking. Hmmmm, too much pizza and wine me thinks. The last thing I wanted to do was get on the treadmill but I did. I cooked myself a healthy dinner too and now I feel so much better.

I'm happy to report I've lost 4kgs in the last year and have cut down on drinking. I still want to lose a little more weight and cut back even more on the red wine but I'm pleased so far. Hopefully the Doc will be too. Wish me luck!

Which reminds me of something else. I'm such a rambler today. A fellow blogger recently asked me why I sometimes talk about personal stuff on my blog and did I do it for sympathy. It wasn't said in a nasty way, just an onbservation. It's been on my mind for some time so I thought maybe there was some truth in it. I do like the attention but anyone who writes on a blog must be the same way, if they didn't want to share stuff...they would make their writing private.

I love my blog, I write about topics which interest me, experiences I've had in life. Writing what's on my mind is like therapy for me some days. Sometimes I share my thoughts and other days I post them privately.

Why shouldn't I write about my anxiety and depression? It's nothing to be ashamed of. One of the reasons I was depressed was because I was trying to be something I wasn't, I was trying to be what was expected of me. The therapist I saw explained to me that the anxiety attacks I was experiencing were part experiences I had been through and part hereditary. I was trying to be perfect so as not to upset others. Keeping all those emotions inside had to come out some how and in my case, they came out in the form of anxiety. It wasn't until I started talking to people about my problems that I learned of the history of depression and anxiety in my family. If someone had told me at my lowest point that I wasn't alone, that other people experienced these things and it was OK to be me, well, I think things would have turned out differently. Maybe sharing my experiences here will help someone else realise they are not alone.

Working through these things (with the support from my family and friends) has made me the person I am today, it's part of who I am. I've accepted this and feel much more comfortable speaking my mind. I'm not going to change who I am for others. If you don't like what I share...read something else!

Righto, that was a long ramble, I'm not sure if it will make much sense to anyone else but I feel much better for it.

COCO GOES BANANAS

Just a wee note for my new readers. This is my girl, Coco. I'd be lost without her...she's my baby. She's a good listener, pays attention when I ramble on and never interrupts. Shame men can't be trained to do those things *giggles*.

She's crazy (much like her mum) and if given a choice, prefers to eat bananas rather than dog treats (also like me). She will often do what I refer to as a 'fruit drive by'. She will walk past the fruit bowl and subtly glance longingly in it's direction. People don't believe me when I say she eats bananas but now I have proof.

Enjoy
KB
xxxx

THE LIFE OF RILEY

Olive Riley was the world's oldest blogger. The dear lady passed away last week at the age of 108.

She had written more than 70 entries on her blog, or as she referred to it 'blob'.
Including topics such as - raising her 3 children, living through 2 world wars and the Depression.

Wow, what an inspiration. I hope I'm still blogging at that age. I'd have to consider changing my name to Krazy Grey. I have enough trouble remembering what I did five minutes ago and can't imagine being able to remember and record what happened 80 years ago.

Reading about Olive, made me realise that my blog will still be here when I've left this world. I never considered this before. Kinda cool really, something for people to remember me by. I wonder what my future blog entries have in store for me...

You can check out Olive's blog here:

Blog no longer active

P.S. Thanks for the info Mr Snake

P.P.S. Keep the 'Riley' comments to yourself M

BY REQUEST

I was gonna shave first but I thought natural would be acceptable. LMAO!




Sorry G, I couldn't resist xxx

If you have no clue what this is about...it's probably best if you are kept in the dark. LMAO

Have you any idea the filth I had to sort through to find this pic people? If you have kids just keep an eye on what they are googling. Good grief.

Later gators
KB
xxxx

WHAT DOES YOUR TASTE IN MUSIC SAY ABOUT YOU?

TAKEN FROM

Blog no longer active


What was the first music album you ever bought or owned? Do you still listen to it or have you moved on?



The Jam - Dig The New Breed.

I owned a few records before this one but this was the first I bought with my own money. I would have been about 13 years old. Funny actually because I didn't even like The Jam much but... you guessed it... a boy I liked was really into them. Some things never change, hehe. I listened to it repeatedly so I could learn all the words and impress the boy. He still didn't realise I existed after all my hard work but all was not lost as I became a huge fan of the Jam's music.

I would love to listen to this album again but it's a vinyl and my record player hasn't been working for years. Oh man, does anyone even remember vinyl? God I feel old now *giggles*

What Your Taste in Music Says About You

Your musical tastes are upbeat and conventional. You are an easy going, optimistic person. Family and friends are very important to you. You enjoy caring for and helping other people. You thrive in a tranquil environment, and you do your best to keep things peaceful. You enjoy your life. You have your priorities straight.

What Does Your Taste in Music Say About You?

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Someone to tell it to is one of the fundamental needs of human beings.

- Miles Franklin.

FLASH 55 - PARTY FOR ONE

Wrapped up in her pyjamas on a cold winters night. First wine goes down smoothly with her tasty stew. Movie is sheer misery, she'd better knock back another few. Feeling tipsy she bursts into song. Whoops, spilling wine down her front. Reaches for another. The bottle's all gone? Time to end this party for one.





Yes, I know there are two glasses in the pic...I was hoping for some company!

FINAL STOP - TONGA

We had a couple of stops in Tonga. Vava'u was Ok but the weather was terrible when we reached Nuku'Alofa and we decided to stay onboard the ship.

We walked into town in Vava'u, the heat was too much for me so we stopped in to a local travel agency to ask where the nearest place was to go for a swim. He must have seen us coming. We paid $45 Australian to be taken to a 'resort'.The taxi driver picked us up 90 mins later dropped us back in town and then wanted to be paid AGAIN after hubby specifically asked him if the $45 was for a return trip. We were so grumpy and tired because of the heat (well I was) we just paid him and went back to the ship. I wouldn't visit Tonga again, I wasn't impressed. I suppose the impression you get from any country depends on the places you visit and the people you meet and I'm sure only having a few hours to explore didn't help either.








I had a lot of fun on the trip home, two days at sea with nothing to do but eat, sleep, drink, read and do crosswords. Woohoo!

The weather into Auckland was terrible, 30 knot winds apparently. Luckily, I drank so much wine the night before...I slept through the bad weather and woke just in time for breakfast. Only time I was up for breakfast during the whole trip.

I would definitely go on another cruise but not this one. The ship was much better than the previous one we travelled on but the destinations weren't as good.

I've always wanted to do an Alaskan cruise...better start saving up!



Cheers!
KB
xxxx

BLODNE

Dear Dickie has been giving me grief on his blog and suggesting I dye my hair. All over some perfectly innocent comment I made earlier *polishes halo*. As for the blonde jokes Dickie...I've heard them all. Hubby reckons that between my step-daughter and I, he has enough material to write a book on the subject.


I'm sure there is no need for me to point out my blonde moments. All you have to do is read my blog, I'm sure I slip up on here on a regular basis. Actually, I know I do cause I have the grammar police, spelling police, the retired police and Steve taking great pleasure in informing me when I do so. Sorry about that Steve, I didn't know which category, "Ya blonde or what!", would fall into. Taking the piss of blondes police?

Some of hubby's favourites from me are:

KB - It must have rained hard last night.

HUBBY - Why?

KB - There's too much river in the river.


Hubby - What's the weather like in NZ?

KB - There isn't any

Hubby - What do you mean?

KB - There isn't any weather at night silly



Sometimes I wonder if I come from another planet to be honest.



Here are a few recent examples of convos I've had with my youngest step-daughter.


H - Wow, those fruit are so big

KB - Yeah, I bought them at the big fruit shop... (dripping with sarcasm)

H - Cool, where's that then?

Oh dear!


We have one of those 3D pictures which were popular years ago up on a wall. H stared at it for a while.


H - You've had that pic for so long. Does it still look the same?

KB - Laughs ass off

We attended a Riobbie Williams concert a few years back (don't hold it against me) Duran Duran were the support act and of course Hayley had never heard of them. H has a beautiful singing voice and decided to sing along to Girls On Film. She belted out - Girls On Pills at the top of her voice, LMAO!



Aww bless her. Sometimes it surprises me she isn't my own flesh and blood. Here's a pic of her car license plate. I think it speaks for itself.



Love ya girl
xxx

I wonder what ever happened to Robbie?

KEEP THIS IN MIND...IF YOU INVITE ME TO DINNER...I MAY NEVER LEAVE

Hubby's brother invited us to dinner last week and we stayed for three days, hehe!

I love staying at their place, it's like a home away from home. We ate lots of yummy food, drank too much (for a change) reminisced, watched movies, read books (well I did) and surprisingly... DIDN'T sing.

Something to keep in mind if you invite me to dinner is...if you are going to watch a movie with me afterwards...make sure it's a good one or I will have no choice but to make my own entertainment.

I can't for the life of me remember the name of one of the movies we watched but it was a horror and starred Dylan Mcdermott. I thought we were off to a promising start.

I must go off on a bit of a tangent here - as I do. Dylan Mcdermott (The Practice) has gorgeous hands. The first thing I notice about any man is his hands. I feel the same way about men's hands as our G-Man feels about women's feet.

So the movie starts and Ian tries to convince me Dylan has ugly hands. I spend at least 20 mins pointing out to Ian the difference between Dylan's hands and the other hideous pair which must belong to his stunt hand double.

The movie is moving along...barely. Lizzie and I come up with a new plot, change the names of several of the characters and replace the actors with people who can actually act. See what I mean about making my own entertainment!






WHAT HAPPENED TO LIZZIE'S HAIR?



ALL I WANNA DO IS DRINK MY WINE AND B-I-L JUST HAS TO TIE UP MY HAIR



I'm not sure if we will be invited back. Coco decided to have a private party in the lounge while we slept. The following morning, she looked sheepishly at the chicken bones strewn all over the floor and I just knew it was her.



COCO AND HER BEST BUD



We had a fantastic time, I felt so relaxed afterwards. It was kind of like staying at a spa for the weekend, except for all the drinking, unhealthy food and lack of exercise.

I'M SURE THERE WAS A RAINBOW WHEN I TOOK THE PHOTO




Ian reminded me of an interesting story I have to share but it may have to wait till tomorrow...I've been here way too long already.

Love You All
Yes, even you Dickie but you are going to pay for those blonde jokes Mr
xxx

CALL OFF THE SEARCH

Settle down people, I haven't been away THAT long. Although it was nice to be missed and have so many mails to come home to (apart from the one from Dickie - no I haven't been sitting in a corner, sulking over the All Black loss *frowns*).

Hubby, Coco and I went to have dinner at hubby's brother's house and stayed for three days. Not unusual for our clan. I have some pics to post later (for a change) and what I hope is an interesting story.

Later gators.

I love you all (except Dickie...well maybe a little)

KB
xxxx

DIS AND DAT

I have lots of odds and ends to report today.

I have a few topics in mind for my Flash 55 this week but they are all mixed up together at the moment... which could be hazardous considering topics include warm spots in swimming pools and disturbing behaviour in lifts/elevators. So, I created a poll, it's over there, on the right *points*. Help me out and vote for the topic you'd like to see and I'll do my best. I've left the poll open till next week because I'm not sure if I'll have time to write a 55 till then.

In other news...the overnight low in Auckland is 0 degrees this evening! We've had snow in NZ in places it hasn't snowed in ages. Global warming...MY ARSE. That's a topic for another day. I mean Global warming...not my arse!

Still more news - the average person spends 25 years of their life sleeping. This can't be right, I reckon I've spent that much time asleep already and I'm only forty.




More exciting news! Hubby bought a 42 inch TV without informing me. KB was not happy! I watched an episode of Bones last night... got to see David Boreanaz naked (all 42 inches of him...gulp) in the bath tub, wearing a beer hat...that's him, not me. KB extremely happy.

EVERY GIRL'S CRAZY BOUT A SHARP DRESSED MAN!



HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YA WOMAN? GET YOUR LIPS OFF HIM - HE'S MINE!





I'll head off now and see if I can plug my Playstation into new TV. I'm visiting Brother-In-Law tomorrow night. Want to get some practice in so I can kick his ass at SingStar.





It's been great catching up. How are you?

Love KB
xxxxxxx

I almost forgot. Me likey this quote ALOT! Unfortunately, I'm not sure if it's quite right as I was on the red when I wrote it down and it's barely legible. Also, I have no idea who said it...heard it on the TV show - Criminal Minds.

He who controls others may be powerful but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.

Later
xxxX

TOP 100 BOOKS - I've read 19

This is a pic of my car boot. A friend and I *waves to dl*, were at a charity book sale (which was almost at an end). I asked the organiser what would happen to the unsold books and he informed my they would be picked up and recycled. Eek! The thought of all those books being chewed up. I batted my eyelashes and asked him if I could take a few after the sale (he was really old so this worked a treat). My friend and I filled up the boot and back seat and we're still working our way through them.

The Big Read reckons that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they've printed. Well let's see.

I didn't do the whole... to be read and books I love thing because well, you know I don't like doing what I'm told!

1) Look at the list and bold those you have read.
2) Italicise those you intend to read.
3) Underline the books you LOVE.
4) Reprint this list in your own journal/blog so we can try and track down these people who've read 6 and force books upon them ;-)

I reckon Muttars would have read more than me because he eats books for breakfast.Toadee will be reading one of them on the toilet right now (was that too much information?) andWhitesnakewill have read one by accident because he doesn't know what a book is. As for the rest of you, I have no idea but would be interested to find out.

1 Pride and Prejudice
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D'Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveller's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones' Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight's Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
4 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte's Web - EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

BOOK REVIEW

I received this wee book from a friend. It's filled with exercise and workout tips from the residents of the Hundred Acre Wood, it contains all the Do's and Don't's of fitness in the Forest, and will teach the Astute Reader what many already know: the best exercise is a lot like KB, I mean Pooh - short, slow, and always with a snack in sight. LMAO!

Here's my favourite tip:

It is important to warm up before exercising. Stretching is an easy way to do so. (If you have no intention of exercising, a good stretch is also a nice way to warm up for a nap or a little mouthful of something.)

Ahhhh, finally an exercise book which suits me.

LAND AT LAST - FIRST STOP, SUVA, FIJI

I'm so blonde, I published these holiday posts out of order. Must have had a lot of wine at the time (for a change)

Bula! Welcome to Fiji.

The Republic of Fiji, consists of 322 formed Islands. It's one of the most populous island groups in the Pacific, with approximately 900,000 inhabitants.

For hundreds of years, Fiji was a land torn by intertribal skirmishes. As in many p arts of the Pacific, cannibalism was practised there.

The first European to sigh Fiji was Abel Tasman in 1643. Captain James Cook sighted more of the islands in 1774.

Suva is the nation's capital city and has a population of around 360,000.

Hubby and I didn't spend much time ashore. The place was too smelly, hot and crowded for KB. The locals would pop out of nowhere and try to persuade us to go with them to find 'bargains'. I swear if one more local had grabbed me by the arm and tried to sell me something, I would have hit him with my handbag. Time to go back to the safety of the ship and drink more wine, hehe!




USELESS FACT OF THE DAY - The plate washing brigade on board wash approximately 12,500 plates, 10,000 glasses (mainly mine) and 15000 items of cutlery every day.

THE WAIT IS OVER

Yay, the first match of the Tri-Nations tonight, time for some real Rugby, hehe. New Zealand, South Africa and Australia dukin it out. My boys (All Blacks) v South Africa tonight. I'm wearing my All Black jersey, have my wine and looking forward to a crackin game. I'll let you know how it turns out. Go the Mighty All Blacks, woohoo!!!!!!!

NEXT STOP - DRAVUNI, FIJI ISLANDS

My favourite day trip during this cruise. Dravuni is one of the smallest populated islands in Fiji, with less than 200 residents. No vehicles to speak of. No department stores. No cinemas. Just white sand beaches, swaying palm trees and warm sea...heaven!

USELESS FACT OF THE DAY: During each cruise the galley prepares a wide variety of dishes. Many ingredients are used, including 5000lts of milk.

FLASH 55 - CRAVINGS

I awake, a craving from within. The smallest taste makes me happy, especially when given by a friend. My lips taste scrumptious, as it melts on the tip of my tongue. Sometimes makes my frisky. I want to tear off my clothes and feast on it naked all night. I want it now.










MMMMMMMMMMMMMM chocolate!

STOLEN FROM WHITESNAKE

Well some of it's true!

Lets101 Quizzes - Fun Quizzes

POSITIVE THINKING

I was chatting with my friend this morning about men (our favourite topic), positive thinking and laundry. I'll save the other exciting topics for another day and focus on the positive.

I've always considered myself a positive person - which having lived in Manchester for 15 years, is quite a feat in itself. I've been up and down emotionally these past few months. I've felt a shift happening recently and I must say, it's good to be back.

Thinking in a positive way is not always easy as we are bombarded with negative images 24/7. Turn on the news or read the paper and the feel good stories (if there are any) are tucked away near the back. Advertisements everywhere are urging us to buy items we can't afford, to lose more weight, to live life at 100 miles an hour and still keep it all together. They would have us believe that being ourselves and accepting ourselves the way we are, is not good enough.

Why do we take notice and keep feeding the negative thoughts? Because that's the way our minds have been trained and it's easier to slip back into those bad habits than it is to start making new, healthier ones.

A positive environment and surrounding yourself with positive people helps a lot. Hubby and I have a friend who is miserable and negative, never a good word to say about anyone. I could be in the best mood and spend five mins with him and feel depressed. We decided we would spend our time with people who make us feel good instead.

I remember when my step-daughter took part in http://www.outwardbound.co.nz/, she came back a different girl, full of life and raring to go. After a week of being back with her old friends and old life, she felt she was right back where she started. She decided to come back to live with me and her Dad so she could get back on track.

One of my favourite books




It's packed with inspirational quotes and has a fun exercise for every day of the year. I dip into it when I need some guidance.

One of the first lessons is to keep a gratitude journal. It's something I love to do. Each night, before bed, I write down at least 5 things I am grateful for. Some days my list Will be full of amazing things and other days, I'll write down the basics...having a bed to sleep in etc.

I love doing this because it makes me more aware of my surroundings and focuses my mind on picking out the positives during the day rather than dwelling on the negative. I'm more 'in the moment'.

I know there will always be negative aspects of life which can't be ignored and have to be dealt with but being in a positive frame of mind makes moving forward much easier.

So how do we work through the negativity and stay positive? You have to work at at it, every day and the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Focusing on the positive or the negative is a choice only you can make.

ALWAYS LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE OF LIFE!

HAPPY FIRST BLOG ANNIVERSARY KB

Actually, I'm a month late...story of my life! Where has the time gone?

Thinking back, I find it hard to believe, I didn’t know most of you a year ago. Crazy really as I consider some of the people I’ve met through Helium and Blogspot my dearest friends.

I’d like to say a special thank you to TOADEE
and MISSY
Toadee introduced me to Helium, where I met Missy and she encouraged me to start a blog. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't know any of you. Feel free to slap them or thank them. I'd like to thank you all personally but then I'd still be here typing away by next anniversary.

Anyway, thanks to all of you for your support, kind words (sometimes not so kind, *points to a certain person* you know who you are and yes, I know I sometimes have to hear it) laughter, friendship and sharing your blog thoughts with me.

Love you all, well most of you, hehe. Here’s to many more years of friendship and laughter.

Love ya
KB
xxxxxxx

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Her eye, her ear, were tuning forks, burning glasses, which caught the minutest refractions or echo of a thought or feeling...She heard a deeper vibration, a kind of composite echo, of all that the writer said, and did not say.

-Willa Cather

WOW

A person who is scoptophobic has an intense fear of being seen.

How on earth does one go through life without being seen? I'm not sure which disturbs me the most; the above fact or that I read about it on a sanitary pad sticker.