Time runs faster than an ostrich on roller-skates

In 10 weeks and 2 days time I will be in Kenya. I have no idea how we got this far through the year.

I've just returned from a 2 day training course with the company I'm going to Kenya with, which was really really fun :) I met all the people I'm going with and they all seemed lovely, we spent so much time laughing, although I understand how those at uni feel a little bit more now as it was weird meeting new people who know very little about you and who don't record every stupid thing you say! Somehow I actually ended up with the group of girls who were most into drinking; after all the training stuff was over last night we went to the 'bar' on the site where we were and our table of glasses was most impressive (I contributed a pint of pear cider and a packet of malteasers to this compared to their multiple vodkas and shots and WKDs). One of the girls had actually brought Twister which we played in the bar, it was hilarious :D

I am a little worried though as they were kind of repeatedly saying everyone else was going to hate them for being the party girls and getting up to tons of stuff they shouldn't (although they do seem to have morals!) and I don't fancy being hated for somehow getting a reputation like that without doing anything! So with that in mind I left the game of twister at the point that some creepy 30 year old men joined in, clearly only with the objective of eyeing up the girls, and went to chat to other people who were going who I think were a little wary of the group of girls I'd managed to make friends with! I found that these people were equally lovely and not quite so keen to allow middle-aged-men to chat them up (they had had quite a bit to drink by this point) and so chatted to them until we went to bed :) How I ended up in the group that would be considered the 'cool' group if we were still in secondary school I don't quite know but they do seem very nice! I'm hoping to keep a more relaxed position when we actually go out to Kenya though as I don't want to immediately become bound to only a few of the people I'm going with. There's about 15 of us going (and only 2 guys, 1 of whom I spent quite a while debating if he was gay!)

Other than the people everything else was very cool too, I know so much more about what it's going to be like now :) Kenya sounds amazing, you can visit an elephant orphanage and play football with the baby elephants and there's even a place you can ride and race ostriches! It sounds like I'll have quite a bit of time off to explore so I'm really looking forward to that.

Unfortunately we also had a 1.5 hour talk on Things That Want To Bite You, including snakes, rabid dogs, malaria-carrying-mosquitoes, bed bugs and sea urchins that like to stick their spikes in your feet. Apparently one of the guys who went out last time actually caught malaria despite taking all the tablets to prevent it. So I have returned far more excited and far more nervous than before! (not helped by the fact that the classes are generally 50+ children and I have to actually try and impart knowledge to them).

Other than that my last week has included making a tasty looking cake with Will and Makaela (involving a lot of chocolate and buttercream icing), a bit of pubbage/drinks at Josh's house, 'choreographing' a fairly hideous dance for the pantomime with Charlotte, and a very good evening at Charlotte's where we watched a BBC Children's video at 1 in the morning :D I now have the Spider In The Bath theme tune in my head.

We're getting a new mop-head at work

That is pretty much the extent of my excitement most days, hence why I don't update often. My blog would probably read

Day 1: "I worked. The head of the mop fell off. I had to touch it and it smells."

Day 2: "Head of mop fell off again. It rained. I got wet. Ross says we're getting a new mop."

Day 3: "New mop hasn't arrived. Have lost all friends due to lack of interesting blog/life. It rained."

But anyway, other than work I have done several awesome things this week. Guides was fun because my guides are lovely and the little ones are so cute and we played an amusing game of murder in the dark that basically consisted of 20 girls standing in a pitch-black room screaming for 15 minutes. So I went away with a grin on my face :D Dressing up at rangers was funny as always, we have actually started a ranger trend of leaping off tables in stupid outfits because we've got the younger ones doing it too. Aren't we cool :D

Me, Charlotte, Will and Dobson also went to visit Kitty on Saturday which was really nice, it was lovely to spend the day with her and we had tons of fun in London visiting Harrods, the Science Museum and Kitty's House. We also found an AMAZING H&M where I could possibly have bought every single scarf, but after about half an hour we realised Will and Dobson might shoot us if we spent any longer in there so moved on.

Ooh and I also talked to Louise yesterday which was lovely :) She said she enjoys my blog so I've been encouraged.

Beehive Hats and Girly Shopping Trips

I have had a very nice girly week :) On Tuesday evening me, Charlotte and Mak did some cake baking (all coincidentally dressed in very large, scruffy but comfy clothing) and ranger-scarf-knitting (it's changed colour and is journeying between mine and Makaela's houses!) and then some cake decorating on the Wednesday which was much fun :D

We also had a lovely sleepover at Charlotte's on Friday night (where the infamous beehive hat made an appearance, hence the title) with lots of LIDL chocolate and laughing at the outfits mothers dress you in when you are a child. Then Saturday morning we went on a very successful shopping trip to Cabot Circus.

I also chatted to Katharine and Chloe yesterday evening which was soooooo nice after not speaking for so long. I totally miss all of the girls though, it is very bizarre only having three of us around (and being outnumbered by guys for once)

Oh, and phone-wise I now have two phones, neither of which will send texts (despite countless phone calls to indian call centres about this issue). If anyone needs to contact me, my new number is 07531512453 but hopefully this'll change back to my old one later this week.

I shall leave you on the note that Charlotte's beehive hat is surprisingly comfy (but also very easy to forget you have on, so beware!)

Yeahhh phone-ness :P

Armed with wellies and my hoodie I went for an explore on the downs this morning at a time only considered decent by Kitty and after much wandering around and circling benches repeatedly (attracting the gaze of a creepy guy in a white van), I FOUND MY PHONE :D

I still need a new one as I doubt spending 12 hours on the downs has done anything for my phone's pathetic texting ability but I am glad to have it back :)

And now, with soggy jeans and frizzy hair, I should do some work.

Lack of Phone-ness

I dropped my phone on the downs somewhere :( As it was a bit useless and only sent and recieved texts when it felt like it, I'm not overly annoyed, but I'd still rather I had it back. I also now feel a stupid sense of sentimental attachment to it and feel bad for abandoning it on the downs :P Poor phoney.

I might go look for it tomorrow morning. In the meantime, I now definately need to buy a new phone.

Eaten by work

How did my jobs absorb my life? And what happened to the concept of a weekend? I have no days off until next Saturday. Urgggh.

Not that I should complain as my BRINC website work is paying me very well (especially considering I'm sitting around writing this whilst 'working') and is probably going to fund my trip rather than the silly waitressing shifts I'm doing. I've been sent down to work at Cabot Circus twice now and the novelty is wearing off; I don't like it down there. It's dull because the restaurant is so big that you get assigned a particular task to take care of so end up doing a smaller variety of stuff. Plus there's enormous queues the whole time so you never get to stop.


Haven't been doing much other than work. I had an awesome day in Bath (and Gotherington) with Claire on Monday but am now left with a Claire-shaped hole in my life which sucks.



On a happier note, I am full of chocolate and apple rings (I can't go into Cabot Circus without buying something from the stall selling chocolate covered fruit and nuts now), it's vaguely sunny, I get to do some art this evening whilst adulting at panto and I might have some post from Chloe sometime.
:)