Change is a good thing… right?

So what’s been going on in my life since the last time I blogged, you ask?

I’ve read eight books, done freelance work, gone for a job interview, celebrated Mother’s Day and my father’s birthday, found out I got the job, taken lots of photos of Smudgy, baked goodies for a colleague’s birthday, been to the emergency room with my Significant Other, watched a lot of Mythbusters, started using Herbalife products, gone on leave, joined a gym (or “health club”, if you want to get all fancy about it), obsessively cleaned the kitchen from top to bottom… you know, just your run-of-the-mill kind of stuff. Nothing major.

I am extremely excited about my new job as an Editor at OUPSA! At the moment it’s pretty much the same as my old Project Management position, but I am now permanently employed at such a phenomenal publishing house, thus it only seems logical to take pride in that (while, honestly, feeling a bit flattered as well).  ‘Editor’ sounds far more impressive/ fancy/ sophisticated/ important than Project Manager, right? Now it’s a whole new role for people to misunderstand! [I’ve already been asked, “oh, so you just sit and read books all day?” In schools publishing? Honestly? *sigh*]

The big change that’ll greatly affect my life is our Wellness Routine. I’m doing the shake thing in the morning for breakfast to support my Significant Other, who has to take a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch, and then cut out carbs for supper (i.e. no bread, potatoes, rice, pasta, pizza, etc.) We had a Herbalife representative come talk to us and do an assessment nearly two weeks ago because my Significant Other generally hasn’t been feeling well. An improved diet to reactivate his metabolism plus partaking in exercise at least two to four times a week will help him to lose some of the weight he gained after he stopped smoking while also making him feel more energized.

And I, ever the good wife, have joined him in his quest for better wellness…

…which is how I ended up doing something I never thought I would: joining a gym. Tonight I get to make a fool of myself when we attend an aqua aerobics class. If I don’t die from embarrassment (in my one-piece and swimming cap), I might end up drowning myself in the pool. Not sure which one would be preferable.

Thus far things have been going great for my Significant Other. He says that, after just over a week, he already feels much better and can definitely get up easier in the morning (great relief for me, who has to struggle for 20 minutes to get Mr Grumpy-Pants out of bed, or at least awake enough to drink his coffee). I suppose I’m doing all right, as well. The only thing that bugs me is that my morning ‘shake’ – actually fat free plain yoghurt with raspberries, honey, mixed seeds and the vanilla shake powder – makes me ravenous. Not just hungry: all-out STARVING. And I am not someone who gets hungry often (if ever)!!

Another thing I’ve been wondering about is whether or not the shake powder is intensifying my headaches… it could be that or the yoghurt, since I’m not big on dairy products… I’m going to see how things go for a month, though I suspect I should just buckle down and go to the neurologist/headache clinic already. Except for the shake, my diet hasn’t really changed, which leads me to think that the increase in headache severity isn’t because of a detox effect on my body (note: I could be wrong).

At least the Wellness Routine gives me something new to be obsessive-compulsive about… except cats… and books… and cleaning… and and and 😉

Have a great week, everyone!

Message Sessions III

Dear Department of Home Affairs

You better send me my new ID soon. The fact that you misprinted my ID and never let me know about it doesn’t put you in my good books… not to mention the inconvenience of having to fill in the forms again and getting that annoying black ink all over my fingers for prints. You better not mess up again, or there’ll be hell to pay. Why can’t you just get your sh*t together?!

Fed up,

A hard-working tax payer (likely helping to pay your salary!)

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Dear movie people who determined the release dates of films

I read THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy at the beginning of last year and have been eagerly anticipating the release of the first film since then. However, for some or other reason, it only starts showing in South Africa on the 13^th of April!! Now I have to try and avoid reading people’s tweets, reviews, memes et cetera for the next two and a half weeks. I don’t know why the release dates for films as greatly anticipated as this one need to differ from country to country (read: for us not living in the US), but just know that you have really ticked me off. And then you wonder why so many people download pirated versions of films…

Disdainfully,

An annoyed filmgoer

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Dear writers of dystopian novels

I love you. There’s no better way of putting it.

Warm regards,

An avid reader

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Dear work/job

Thanks for not accumulating while I was away for the last week and a half. It’s nice to think that all the e-mails I came back to this morning were only general updates/admin and the like. Now if only we could arrange for a salary increase with the new contract I received this morning… I don’t particularly want to be jobless from the 1^st of April, but I also feel all the hard work I put in is worth more than I’m getting. Don’t worry – I’m sure we’ll work something out. I think I’ll go crazy if I have to sit at home, unemployed, with nothing to do with my time… unless I start a little home bakery… or the whole book review blog idea picks up.

Gratefully,

Obsessive-compulsive workaholic

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Dear Significant Other

Thanks for the few ‘lunch dates’ while I was on leave, for helping me download books to read, for making me laugh when I felt bored/depressed/listless, for watching CONAN THE ADVENTURER with me (and enjoying it!)… and for just being you. Oh, and for reinstalling/fixing my laptop – you always know best *haha*

Oodles of love,

Me xxx

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Dear Mr Awesplendmarkable

Thank you sooo much for sending me your latest novel a while ago – I read it in a day and LOVED it (I’ve told you that already but it’s worth repeating). If I were a publisher, I’d definitely snatch you up! Thanks also for being such a great friend and for letting me be one of the first people to immerse myself in (and comment on) your works of fiction. It’s much more fun than schools publishing. You ROCK!!

Signed

Your biggest fan… 😉

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Dear life

Get yourself on track. I know I’ve been joking about having a mid-twenties crisis, what with the boredom and listlessness I endured while on leave, but that was probably to be expected after working hard for an extended period of time and then finding myself with no obligations and nothing to do. Let’s think about what we want to achieve in the year to come and take better care of ourselves (i.e. let the exercise regime & development of new interests begin!)

Tough love,

Yourself

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Dear narcissistic people

You may think you’re amazing now; you may get away with being rude and obnoxious all the time, throw tantrums to get want you want, and only contact others when you want something… This, however, will not always be the case. Just know: your day will come. That whole “do unto others” saying has been around for ages, and it holds a lot of truth. I am not someone who gets angry often, but I am really close to giving one or two people a piece of my mind. Your distorted view on the world (and everyone who isn’t as marvellous as you believe yourself to be) is going to come back to punch you hard in the face someday…

Definitely not sincerely yours,

Unimpressed & edgy

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Dear coffee

Stop smelling so good. I just might give up all restraint and fall back into your aromatic (proverbial) arms… which, after 27 java-free months, likely wouldn’t be the best idea.

Tempted,

An ex-coffee drinker

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Dear daily headaches

Stop torturing me! You just seem to be getting increasingly worse, and I deal with it, but we both know this isn’t normal.

Quit it,

Un-amused

Putting the happy in my day

It’s heeeeeere!!

After months of anxious waiting, it has finally arrived: the latest Stephen King novel hits shelves today!

Since I find myself not situated in the US or UK, I’ve readied myself for the fact that I shall have to wait at least a day or two (or ten, with my luck) before I can lay my hands on one of these glorious tomes… but still, the excitement is there 🙂

Stephen King is always my pick-me-up. I have my Significant Other (aka The Husband), who is the light of my life, the wind in my sails, the blood and oxygen that keeps my heart pumping, and all those lovely clichés (all of which I truly mean! *love you Sweetheart*), but luckily he knows my devotion to the works of my favourite author as one of his ‘Dear Readers’.

As ‘fate’ would have it, I even wrote a blog post about this last year… almost a full year to the date, if you can believe that! At the time I had been feeling ‘off’ (check), suffering from my usual bout of bad headaches (check) and feeling nauseous/ light-headed/ dizzy/ listless (that is affirmative). Once again the famed Master Writer has come along to save the day – to make me forget about how icky I feel and helping me to escape into the wonderful world of words, what-if wishes and well-plotted suspense. At that occasion FULL DARK, NO STARS had just been released… and, now that I think of it, it was most likely also released on the 8^th of November or thereabouts, since I had to wait just over a week before it was in stores here.

Next year March/ April (in time for my birthday, hurray!) we have THE WIND THROUGH THE KEYHOLE to look forward to for all you DARK TOWER fans, and closer to the end of the year – probably in November, if you ask me, why not stick with the trend? – we can expect DR SLEEP (the much anticipated follow-up to THE SHINING!) Oh mortality, how fleeting you are, that you already make me wish that death never goes a-knocking on Master King’s door…

Okay, weird little sort-of worshipping rant aside, the latest novel is called 11/22/63 and takes a look at the Kennedy assassination. It’s another wonderful ‘what if’: what if you could go back in time and stop those three shots from ringing out, stop death and confusion and all that was still to come, putting the world onto an alternate course of history? Well, fellow readers, we shall see…

Now if only I could get my Significant Other to phone the bookstore and find out when they’re expecting the much anticipated novels *hint-hint, grovel, blatant plea, sad kitty eyes*

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UPDATE: How wonderful is my older sister Libby? After reading my blog entry, she phoned the book store and enquired as to when they expect to have the book in stock, to which they answered Friday. Thank you sooo much, sis! xxx