Toto I don't think we are in kansas anymore

Hey, Long time no post I know.

Have been busy being jet set which has been amazing. Decided to take a trip down under to the merry old land of Oz.

I arrived in Sydney with no expectations really, normally I spend weeks and weeks obsessively reading up on my chosen holiday destinations but for some reason Australia has never really excited me. I kind of always assumed it was mostly like England but with nicer weather and full of people who were obsessed with bbq food. Oh and I think someone said something about jellyfish.

In fact, so disorganised I was I didnt actually realise we needed a visa until the day of travel...doh! fortunately you can get them fairly easily online!

In truth, its not like England at all really. Its bloody massive for a start. England is the size of a tiny ant. I think going somewhere so big does make you feel tiny and insignificant on the scale of things.

Anyway...It all started well, sunshine, pizza, jugs of tooheys new and chilling in the big city. After 2 days we headed up to cairns. Id heard great things about cairns so I was actually a bit excited by this point to be going there.

And when we got there I was not disappointed. Beautiful day, and it looked gorgeous.

We arrived at our hostel where we were greeted by a typical chirpy aussie who checked us in

'hey guys, yep got you a room on the top floor tonight, but we are going to try to move everyone downstairs tomorrow'

'ok...(we look confused about the moving rooms situation)

'you don't know what Im talking about do you? didnt anyone tell you'

Now Im on my holidays I don't read the news papers and again at this point I was regretting not researching prior to travel.

With that, chirpy Aussie man, (still smiling) slaps a newspaper on the counter. On the front page was a picture of a large storm system...underneath, the headline read: 'The monster'

G U L P

'Yeah, so we are actually recommending everyone tries to leave cairns. There is a flight out to the gold coast tomorrow'

Rob and I look at each other, and just start laughing. Coming from a country where a light snowfall can shut an airport, neither of us have any experience of weather that is really any more extreme than a light drizzle.

Ah well says Rob 'its only a bit of wind'...'lets go for a beer'

Anyway...a few hours pass and we are not laughing so much any more. People are starting to look nervous. Severe Tropical Cyclone Yasi is upgraded to a category 5 storm system. We book a flight out. They close the airport. The storm is so large there is no point driving anywhere as there is not time to get out of its way. All there is to do, is sit back and take it.

6am Im up, not sleeping well due to jet lag and nightmares involving flying cows like in the film twister. When I log on to the news page on the internet the headlines read like the apocalypse. Nothing like media hype for when you need reassurance. The big news now is the potential storm surge, south of the centre of the cyclone the tidal surge is expected to reach 6 metres. The low lying areas are being evacuated. The army has flown everyone in Cairns hospital to Brisbane. One article actually uses the word tsunami.

Now I've never had to cope with any sort of disaster and I always thought I was someone that wasn't phased by much, but at this point, I'm ashamed to admit I cried like an 8 year old girl. No longer was I annoyed that some bad weather might ruin my holiday, this looked way worse.

We go to the supermarket to stock up on batteries, canned food etc. Its 7.30am and its very windy. The cyclone isn't even due to cross the coast until 11pm. Supermarket is obviously shut, we meet an american couple from our hostel on our way back.

'Is the supermarket closed' the guy says

'yeah' I reply

'all day?'

'yep there is a sign in the window'

'is it because of the cyclone?'

Now...if someone was to give an award for dumb questions that would be up there. No its closed because they have run out of eggs. I mean...seriously!!

The hostel makes the decision to ship us all out to an evacuation centre. The hostel is a wooden structure, and they are not sure how it will hold out.

The evacuation centre - the mall

It was an interesting night to say the least. 24 hours at close quarters with 3,000 other people. I still wish that the old guy sleeping near me wore some socks...seriously 24 hours with someones crusty feet in your face...no fun!

The red cross arrive and are brilliant. Ration packs are handed out and they update us hourly which as there is no TV is needed to stop everyone going nuts.

ration time!

The last red cross announcement is at 10pm then the power goes out 'cyclone yasi is a serious threat to life and property' yeah...thanks

I think I actually managed to fall asleep after then, fear is tiring. A baby was born in our evacuation centre there is a lot of howling an banging (from the cyclone, though I imagine the pregnant lady contributed) and after what seems like hours it goes quiet.

When we finally get let out, I initially think it has been some cruel joke to make me sleep in a mall as cairns is largely intact.

So in a nutshell (as I have to finish this now as rob wants feeding) it was only a bit of wind for us. Unfortunately some were less lucky and the winds did some serious damage to small communities on the coast. No fatalities fortunately but obviously for those who were effected its no joke.

Its days like that, that put life into perspective, and remind you to check whether its cyclone season before you take a holiday :)

thats all for now

Dawn category 5 crusader :) x

Let me count the ways I loathe thee

Bristol airport. Having popped by a couple of times in the last month (Im very jet set doncha know), Ive remembered how much I cannot stand the place. Now don't get me wrong I know pretty much all airports are a nightmare, especially with all the security checks these days; but Bristol. Well its just a special kind of awful.

Firstly Im pleased to note that they have dropped the 'international' from the title. A glorified cattle shed that flys to gurnsey and the canaries if you are lucky, probably shouldnt have tried to rise quite so much above its station.

One risk with the airport is that you might not actually get to fly anywhere at all. I once read somewhere that Lulsgate Bottom was used by the RAF in the war as a training area due to its bad weather record. I may have made that up but it does make sense as someone only has to sneeze in Bishopsworth and suddenly there are gale force winds and gone are your dreams of sunbathing in the algarve.

Fortunately these last couple of occasions I have been lucky enough to make it off the runway so I must not complain. My real beef for the latest encounter with the place is the down right rudeness of the security staff. Now I'm not saying that I want a hug as I pass through security, though inevitably I do usually get some form of unwlecome touching as the fillings in my teeth or something as minor will usually set off the security sensor. I would just like a bit of politeness thats all. I do not wish to be barked at when (ridiculously) the clear plastic bag I have thoughtfully placed my liquids in does not happen to be, (in the opinion of the miserable bint on the desk), 'clear' enough (I kid you not). Nor do I wish to be fleeced £1 for four plastic bags the Im forced to buy from the machine that is clearly there only to make extra revenue. Is it not enough that I have to take out a mortgage to buy a coffee in the cafe?

I understood that the purpose of the plastic bags were that security could check the liquids as the passed through the control area. So I am at a loss as to why I need to buy bags when clearly my liquids have now all been checked? Maybe Im just being thick? Maybe the 'regulation' bags will actually all protect us from Osama bin laden. Perhaps thats why they are £1.

anyway... I shall go, as whilst I could go on to complain about the fact they have also now moved duty free so that you are forced to walk through it on the way to departures like its ikea or even the fact it takes four years for someone to turn a baggage carosel on when you land again. I am tired and I want my tea. I therefore bring this whinging to a close.

Good night all :) x

Its what you do with it that matters :)

Check it out. Its our new tent for Lowlands festival in August. The festival I am not allowed to get excited about until I have finished my exams ( incidentally which are tomorrow afternoon and friday). Now I hope you will agree that the size of the tent is most impressive. In fact so impressive I've booked the Arctic Monkeys to play in it on the last night of the festival (haha).

My knowledge for my exams... not so impressive unfortunately, but never mind. In other really dull news Ive got an eye test tomorrow too - another exam Ill be failing no doubt! Oh well I've always thought a white stick and a guide dog would finish off my look. :)

Well Id best be off. I worry if I concentrate on anything else for too long bits of information will fall out of my head. Which would be bad as there isnt a lot in there as it is

See you on the other side for the official start to the summer!

Dawn

On a river of red red wine :)

Evening all :)

Its been a while since I have rambled a bit on here so I thought Id pop in!

Its fair to say Ive been a little bit stressed of late and have not been administering my life as I should be. Im thinking now the clocks have gone forward and the days are longer perhaps this is an incentive to get a grip!

Today I arrived at work one hour late as I had forgotten it was thursday. (I go to college on thursday and therefore work different hours) Instead of my law books, I had thoughtfully chosen to bring my ice skates with me. Now as impressive as my skating is I don't think its quite what my lecturer had in mind for todays lesson...saying that he would have been better off with my attempts at backwards crossovers than he was with my opinion on public interest immunity....one out of 5 indeed...how very dare he!

So yes today was a bit of a mess think I may have to spring clean my house catch up with my homework, work out my ten year career plan, organise the wedding and generally regain control of the plot...

yes...Ill do that after I have finished with this wine and galaxy chocolate...Who wants an organised life anyway, its nowhere near as fun :)

so I leave you with the wisdom of the cat empire :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgkHd6eBfoE

Peggy

http://bluntcard.com/compose.php?imageid=450

Love this!

happy valentines day for Sunday

Its glorified rounders and thats final

What to do what to do..January blues are here! Im feeling very tetchy for no good reason.

This is also making me a lot more blunt...Now thinking back I remember a day when I was nice, polite, friendly and sociable...ok I take that back I was never any of those things but Im sure that I was a lot less brutal.

Take yesterday for example. I was in my public law class and ended up (inadvertently mind you) calling one of my classmates a public schoolboy w*nker. Now it actually wasn't aimed at him but when I did realise he had taken that it was.. did I apologise and take it back? No did I b*llocks! I let it hang there in the air (as inside I laughed heartily to myself).

Trouble is I've discovered the one thing over the years that what amuses me most about life are the awkward moments. I absolutely loved the office when it was on TV but I forget that not everyone finds that sort of thing funny.

But is it me?...or is the rest of the world just too sensitive?

Perhaps there is a new years resolution there...be nice to my fellow man (even the public schoolboys with a penchant for cricket)

Lets waste time....stealing cars:)

For me it has not been the best start to 2010. Im actually thinking of taking 2010 back and demanding a refund.

My mum will probably say its because I didn't take the christmas tree down on time. To which I say hush mother...and raise my middle finger :)

Firstly my (not that old) bath has a crack in it. Its not leaking yet but its only a matter of time. Rob is unconvinced at my theory that everything will be fine if we just smother the bottom in poxy resin. But to that I repeat the sentiments previously directed at my mother!

That in itself is annoying but not the end of the world. Following the bath issue I proceeded to lose not one, not two...but actually three pairs of my glasses. Well I say my glasses. One pair was Robs...I think he wants to poxy resin me to the bottom of the bath now.

Again...annoying yes...but the piece de resistance was (while looking for said glasses) I managed to lock my keys in the boot of my car. It wouldn't been to bad had it not been for three things:

1) I do not own a spare key.

2) I am not a member of a breakdown organisation

3) I was parked in a multi-story car park in the centre of town with no other means of getting home.

A very angry Rob (who at this point wanted to poxy resin me to a grand piano and push it off a cliff) and I decided that the only option was to break into my car. Given that neither of us took GCSE car crime at school we didn't really know where to start. (I gather they ran the course at my school judging by the amount of my ex classmates who took up a career in the field...unfortunately I took media studies)

As I had not planned for an evening of grand theft auto I had unfortunately left my crow bar, screw driver, drill, coat hangers & dynamite (for blowing the bloody doors off) at home. So Rob went off to find something blunt and heavy and I went off to find a security guard to explain what we were going to do.

I couldn't find a security guard/policeman/neighbourhood

watch busybody or anyone who gave a monkeys so returned to find Rob brandishing a large brick and deliberating over which window to put it through.

At this point I felt sad however as I was muttering apologies to my precious motor, Rob went for a his first strike. We then discovered that the windows in a ford ka are a lot stronger than they look as it just bounced off! I sighed a sigh of relief and thought that wont work then - we will have to try something else... I had barely finished thinking this when out of the corner of my eye I saw Rob sprinting towards the car with a crazed look in his eye (It might have been my imagination but Im sure I head him do a war cry). This time the window had no chance and in seconds it was snowing cubes of glass.

So what happened then? Were we swooped upon by the rozzers and arrested? Did the car park 'lock down' trapping us in there like the dirty criminals we looked like? Did anyone even care? In a word no. As the window smashed some people in the distance actually cheered and that was it?! I mean what the hell is the world coming to.

So there you have it. Grab yourself a brick, choose a car you like and take a run up. The sad truth is that Probably nobody will stop you.

Shocking!

Anyway so here is the aftermath! Happy new year!