Our Service Project

Right! So, I've run out of inspiration due to boredom, may have an angsty rant later about my bad day yesterday, but for now, here's a recount of our service project at school from last week.



Day 1

8am: Arrive at train station, make innumerable phone calls to determine exactly which train everyone is on. Get the wrong train.

8:30am: Arrive at next station, see large group of fellow classmates getting off the train directly after yours, catch them up, exhale large sigh of relief.

8:45am: Finally find correct platform, catch train to next stop, walk to childcare centre

9:30am: Work begins!

Having arrived at the childcare centre, it became clear that most of the Monday would be spent clearing the garden. As a result, we spent the entire day pulling out fish fern, of which there was a massive (and apparently multiplying before our eyes) quantity, pruning hedges that had overgrown, removing the rose plants because they were spiky (and posed a health risk, thankyou OH&S) and attempting to uproot other stubborn plants.

Unlike the superior intellect of the human, and even the animal brain, which would have given up once it realised that it was fighting a losing battle, the plants decided not to cower even under threat of the clippers, and as a result, many of our group received minor injuries (many were scratched by the rose plants, which put up a good fight). However, all the annoying, overgrown and unnecessary plants were uprooted and bagged, leaving the playing field at the end of the match – us 1, garden 0.

After lunch, we decided to continue uprooting the leftover bits of weeds and all the other stubborn green stuff. Zil and Lauren had spent the entire morning trying to remove a deeply rooted stump, and after 4 hours of digging finally managed to wrench the thing out of the ground, replacing the stump with a large crater where the stump had once sat. (us 2, garden 0).

At 3:30pm, it was time to go home and reattempt the challenge that was the train system. We had removed 36 garbage bags worth of plants, swept the paths outside the centre, and all in all, the place looked a lot tidier.

And very, very bare…

Still. That was to be fixed up on Day 2.


Ciao for now!
~Pia

I'm all alone, there's no one here bessiiiide me...

So, Ari's toddled off on Trek and now Di's gone to Paris.

And I'm at home writing my account of our school charity project. It's fun, don't get me wrong, but I wanna go somewhere exciting!!

I'm currently talking to another friend who's also gone to France for exchange, and she's loving it there, though she's convinced she's going to die of passive smoking... so Di will love it as long as she doesn't breathe much.

Also, I've run out of Caramello Koalas, which is disappointing cause I was having fun devising different ways of getting all the caramel out. XDD

So, basically, I'm working on my singing at the moment, because next year I'm trying out for Australian Idol. I bring this up now because as I speak the final is on live TV, with one of my besties in the backing choir, which makes me supremely jealous. I'm a little concerned I'm going to be killed when I audition because I've had basically no vocal training - I did lessons 6 years ago, but that wasn't training, that was "go into a room for half an hour and sing Disney songs". Fun, but not very constructive.

So I may be setting myself up for a fall, but to be a singer is one of my dreams, so I'm going to go for it as best I can. Next April, I want to be ready.

Bye for now!

~Pia.

I'm off to France!!!!!!!!

I said to myself I was going to blog over the last little while, but I got so busy! We’re being very neglectful of the blog! So now I’m really writing to say I’m leaving! I leave for France on a school exchange tonight!
I am, at this point, very excited, but also very scared. I’ve spoken to my host sister on the fabulous Facebook, she seems really nice and I’m hopeful that we get along well! My mum has spoken to her mum too, and she seems really nice as well. They speak very good English, but her mum said within a few days they will speak French!
Anyway, I’m signing off for a month, but you can read about my adventures; or misadventures as they will probably be on my other blog: http://livsmisadventuresinparis.blogspot.com
I’ll be back on the 21st of December, and I’ll tell you all about it! A bientot!

Bisous,

Di

EXTREMELY IMPORTANT UPDATE!!!

GUESS WHAT I JUST DID?!

I disembowelled a Caramello Koala.

Seriously. You have NO idea how long I have been wanting to do that, and now that I have I am pleased.

Aaaanyway.

See ya round!
~Pia

Bludge starts... NOW!

Right! Exams are over, so we're starting year 11 work (or at least, that's what the teachers say, everyone just sits around in class and does sod all.) So, I spent the last two maths lessons watching Good News Week on my iPod and reading Jeremy Clarkson books!

And today we had the year 10 creative arts night, which I was hosting with a friend. I brought my blazer, thinking it was all very formal, turns out we had to be a duo, so we ended up going as James Bond and Bond Girl (I was Bond, of course - the dress looked TERRIBLE on me!) I spent the whole time MCing cracking awful James Bond jokes, like:
"Those acts KILLED me, and I thought I was the only one with a licence to kill!" and
"Well, that's all for tonight ladies and gents, I was going to finish this hosting by losing an epic gun battle with a nemesis, but James Bond never loses, so I guess I'll just have to die another day." *groan*

Still, was fun!

Tomorrow I have a party for a friend who's going on exchange to France (and it isn't Di, funnily enough!! Weird, eh?) It's Made Up Superheroes, and I'm not sure what I should go as. My ideas thus far are:

-SuperDork (which is just me in a nutshell, really)
-SuperTemp (DONNA! XD FTW!!)
-Extreme IronerGirl (We have a sport at school that my friends and I claim to do whenever anyone tells us we're not sporty enough, which is "EXTREME IRONING!!" So I could do that.

Anyway. Should be fun, nonetheless.

See you round!

~Pia

Something was bound to go right SOMETIME today!!!

Firstly, this title is awesome song lyrics from Snow Patrol; look up ‘The Lightning Strike’ from their new album, it’s a really long song, but the bit I’m talking about is in the last 6 minutes or so…but listen to all of it, awesome song, awesome lyrics, awesome band!!!
Anyway…
I too have been neglecting this blog, as I have been in exam mode also! Four down, three to go!!! However, I feel the need to blog about my day; it started off badly, but got better, surprisingly enough!
Started off badly; I had my maths and history exams today, and I thought I was well organized, did my maths cheat sheet last night, got up early to make sure I was all sorted, and couldn’t find my history practice essays sheet. I had planned to do one of these history essays during the double period between exams, so I was a bit concerned. I had all my maths out though, and put it in a folder and left my cheat sheet out of the folder so it could go on top and be easy to find. Good plan.
So when I couldn’t find this history sheet I went into a stress attack looking for it, and put another folder which had my history sheet in it on top, which I found, and then I left the house. So I was in the car with mum, and I wasn’t 100% sure I had my sheet, checked the folder and realized I’d left it underneath that folder! So Mum had to take me home to get it, and we lost about 20 minutes of our morning. She was not impressed! So, then, with all the stress of the morning, and about exams and other things in general, I had a meltdown in the car, and ended up in tears. Snow Patrol (see above) and holding my yin necklace, Ari’s parting gift before she went on Trek (she has the yang half) calmed me down a lot, and though I don’t think I did brilliantly on my exam, it was better than the last one!
Then after buying chocolate from the tuckshop (which also made me feel better), I went to the library to study with friends…didn’t really study that much though! Then I saw a friend of mine in year 12 who was studying at school, so I was talking to her for ages, and then we went and had lunch, and another year 12 friend joined us. So I actually enjoyed my lunchtime instead of studying, and then I had my history exam, which I think went okay, I had started preparing for an essay topic, which though worded slightly differently was on the exam.
As soon as I got home, I discovered a letter from Ari in the mail! I was so excited!!!! Like literally grinning for about five minutes before I even opened it, and going 'omg, yay!!!' repeatedly. I couldn’t wait to read it! She made me laugh before I even opened it, with the back reading ‘From: The middle of fricken nowhere! (and loving it)’ so I knew straight away all was well. Her letter made me laugh and cry at the same time, but it felt great to hear from her! It was the perfect time to hear from her given the morning I’d had. Bit freaky really, I was thinking this morning as I was walking into school ‘I wish Ari was here to give me a hug right now!’ but after hearing her whole group had gone without deodorant for 5 days, maybe I’m happy she wasn’t!...only joking!
She’s having a brilliant time by the way, it was pouring with rain when she wrote it, and apart from sore feet, bruised shoulders and a few blisters, she’s fine!
So anyway, sometimes its’ just amazing how a bad morning can turn into a pretty decent day, if you’re willing to let it!

xoxo Di

Uuuuuupdate!

I have been verily neglecting this blog.
Forsooth.
Egads!

There we go. Out of my system now.

Anyway, we're in exam mode at the moment - School Certificate (a Board of Studies exam - yeuch). We had English and Science today - both were bludgy, but I fear the maths exam tomorrow may not be so easy. Just cause it's maths. And I don't like maths.

I've also eaten a LOT of chocolate. I have to sell boxes for our school's charity thing, but I keep forgetting not to EAT THEM.

Also, I bought two bags of those eclair things to eat during exams - they're very handy - I was starving during the exams today so I kept slipping them out of my pocket and eating them!! yum :P

I think I'm typing wrong, my wrist hurts.

Anyway, I'm off to practice for the maths and AHGCC exams (remember AHGCC? BOS mandated torture.) and then on Wed is the computer exam, which is RIDICULOUSLY EASY.

We're talking "which button do you use to centre a piece of text?"

Hmm, lemme think about that one for a while.

NOT!!

anyway, see you round!!

Byee!
~Pia

Ari is on Trek!!!

Hello all

Due to her busy-ness preparing for her month long Trek into the bush, fellow Outlaw Ari has not had time to write a farewell blog, so I shall do a very poor job in her absence. She is hiking, cycling and rafting through the bush for an entire month, including a 48 hour solo, completely on her own! She'll have no contact with her family and friends for an entire month, and she only gets one mail drop towards the end of the trip, after her solo.
She left this morning, and will return on December 5. We will all miss her terribly (we already do, it's been very quiet around already and she hasn't even been gone 12 hours! lol), and Pia and I wish her an amazing journey, and we look forward to hearing all about it upon her return. Hopefully once she is home and rested she will write a ridiculously long blog describing all the highs and lows of Trek!

cya about!

xoxo Di

Knight in Shining Armour Rescues Pia from Bad Mood.

And his name is Darwin.

From the 1998 TV series "Duck Patrol"

He's a dork
He's a nerd
He's a klutz
He's head over heels in love
He's hopeless when it comes to girls
and he's GORGEOUS

*ahem* If you have not seen the gorgeous Darwin in this series, go on over to Youtube and watch. NOW!

It has improved my mood immensely and I hope you like it.

Just a short one from me. So long for now!

Byee!
~Pia

Boys and Brownies

Sadly, I am talking about the Junior Guides here, not the edible kind…

Thursday was very interesting. Ari and I, along with two of our close friends at school met up with a couple of guys we met a few weeks ago at a school day. We go to a girls’ school, and the teachers think it wise to introduce us to the opposite sex, therefore providing the need for days with neighbouring boy’s schools. So, after our day with one of these schools, we had been chatting to a couple of the guys we met on msn, and decided we’d meet up for ice cream. However there was a slight miscommunication problem...okay, it was more than slight...we’d organized to meet them at the ice cream shop on a very long road, which goes through two (or possibly more) suburbs, and we hadn’t exactly explained which end we were on, and they went to the wrong end, which would have been a very long walk for them, so they had to get off the tram they were on, catch a train back to closer to our school and catch yet another tram. Thankfully, they made it eventually, and we had a great time talking over ice cream. Then, Ari and I had to leave, as we wanted to get to my Guide unit. I am a Junior Leader at Guides, so as part of working towards an award, so I help the leaders and run activities for the girls (ranging from the ages of 8-11). I had told my leaders that I probably wouldn’t be coming, because at that time we were going to get ice cream as it was Ari’s second last day before she leaves (she shall explain where she is going herself), and the leaders suggested I bring her along, as it would be a fun Halloween night, complete with dress-ups, for the girls. Ari jumped at the chance (I’m not sure why...I go to a lot of these things and I don’t particularly enjoy them, but we figured it would be a bit of fun, and she could see what I do at Guides, and why I complain about it at times!).
So, we got home and got dressed, Ari as a witch, and me as a devil (though apparently I didn’t look very sinister), and headed off to Guides. Our tasks for the evening were simple - we took the girls out for five minutes while the leader was preparing an activity, which involved me leading a game of ‘follow the leader’, decorating the back room with really bad decorations which were not remotely scary, making the ‘Dragon’s Blood punch’ (Lemonade, with frozen ‘hands’ – food dyed water frozen inside latex gloves) and making ‘trick or treat’ bags for the girls.
It was a very hot night, and Ari and I decided to take our shoes off (her in leather boots which would have been really horrible, and me in leather sandals). We went into the back room to decorate, and there were some little wooden toothpicks on the floor where we were walking. I had the misfortune to step on one, which obviously hurt. I lifted my foot to rub it, and saw that the toothpick had imbedded itself in the ball of my foot, and was sticking out at a very bad angle. I looked at it, and showed Ari, whose jaw dropped looking at it. I hobbled over to the couch, and attempted to pull it out, as I didn’t think it could have been in there very far, but it hurt, a lot, and I winced. “Are you okay?” asked Ari. She squeezed my hand, and somehow kept a very clear head throughout the entire thing. She carefully packed up the remaining toothpicks, and went do get a leader, hiding her panic to prevent the younger girls from becoming aware of the predicament.
As soon as the leader saw what had happened she was like ‘Oh...’ and went to get paper towel and an ice pack. Ari held my hand and started chatting to me to try and take my mind off the fact that my leader was trying to remove the skewer from my foot. It came out, and fortunately didn’t bleed much, but it still hurts; now I just have a little bruise where it went in. I’m really hoping there’s none of it still in there, but I don’t think there would be. I’m okay now, but I’m definitely going to remember this event at Guides!
xoxo Di