missing home... wherever that is.

just going through one of those phases where I want to be 'home'. I got a message from a friend last night who i haven't seen for years. Good old Alex Chester, ha, thought he had fallen off the face of the earth. Reminded me of the funtimes we had with our super patrol back in scouts (Me, Tori, Alex, Michael, Matt S). oh, we were a kick butt patrol... and then the fact that i'm visiting home in a few weeks and i'm not there now. i actually had some random bad dreams about home. and then the kids are being a bit hard this week, and i'm tired and starting to get sick. all these factors add together to make a not so happy deev... just want a big hug.

but, i'll move out of this phase soon. went ice-skating with some people from my church last night, outdoors at Somerset House (and the fact that is my street name in Aus). It was a fab night. I am enjoying myself over here, so hopefully this phase will pass. anyways, in a few days i will be in barcelona, hopefully that will cheer me up a bit.

take care
a big hug
deev

manchester, Swanmore and more...

well, only 8years after chile and Matt and I are still meeting up. Oh and i didn't get a photo of Maria who Kristal and I met in Thailand by accident (the sister of Matt, who we made friends with in Chile, we then met his sister 4 years later in Thailand, small world in scouting circles.) anyways, i went down to Swanmore on the weekend to spend some time with him and had a fantabulous weekend. it was great to get away from london and catch up with him. (and to have my own tour guide in the area who of course knew everything there was to know about the area, or not... i think i knew more about it than he did!!! ha) Being in the area did help me with my history, we toured around Winchester, an area very close to Matt, that William the Conqueror had a bit to do with, and I am teaching the Battle of Hastings at the moment, so quite fitting.

and the weekend before last one, i went to visit some new rellies in Manchester. (get this relation, my new aunty's sister's family). so, caught the train up there and had a great time. i even got in a bit of babysitting and learnt how to say duck the proper way... such a proper way that i couldn't actually understand it!!! 'is that a quack quack or a woof woof, catriona?' this was also an educational visit, as Manchester was a booming industrial town, and i am also teaching about the Industrial Revolution... maybe i should have got school to have paid for these trips.

umm, what else?? oh, my cousins sent me a lovely teddy bear for christmas that i accidently opened (as he was straight in the box, promise i didn't unwrap a christmas present early!!!), but glad i did open him as i found a great aussie proud bear. he will be fantastic for both the rugby and the cricket... c'mon aussies!!!!

no more photos are going up at the moment, internet stuffing up, so these will have to do, now bear (excuse the pun, ahh haa haa haa) with me whilst i tell you what they are...
first, me and aussie bear. yay, (thanks jen, reyna and marissa, i love him!!! and he keeps my other teddy thomas company, not that i now have 2 stuffed bears),
next photo me and matt on the river, it was pretty cold, but the pub we went into was lovely and cosy warm, especially next to the fireplace.
next, king arthur's round table. don't know how they used to meet as it is hanging on a wall, would have been hard to stand sideways, i spose that is why they were so great!!!
the beautiful Catriona in Manchester, ahhhh.
and matt, walking through the umm, something garden next to the great hall in Winchester.

that's all folks for the moment.
love youse all
deev

p.s.those of you who are in aus still, put the 23rd December in your diaries. Rodgers family annual christmas party will be that date and i will be home for it (and a few days either side of it.) i will post an invite on my blog when i get it sorted out. would love to see you there, as i probably won't have time to see many of you apart from that time! just a flying trip, mainly to spend time with my poppy who is quite sick. and then family and then well, whoever else i can squeeze in, so would love it if you could come to our shindig on the 23rd.

i love my job.

and that's all i have to say.

i will however post some photos and a story or two soon

shebu

ok, so i already know that it isn't a proper day unless i see a sirened car, let alone 5 on the way home from school. (i walk down an access road to a major road and near a hospital, so it is very likely on any given day) and yesterday was no exception.

don't tell mum this, but on my way home from school (3:50pm), i was crossing the green and saw 4 police cars with some of the green sectioned off with police tape... ok, not sure what was happening, so just walked my merry way home. get to my street and a few houses past mine are 5 more police men standing around with another sectioned off area. this area goes around the corner with more police men standing there. interesting. so, tori and i have a bit of a sticky beak on the way to the shops (we have to walk past this area) we ask the police man what happened... apparently just a bit of a fight... mmmm, blood stains all over the pavement and a few sections of road sectioned off equals 'just a bit of a fight'. when i went to spanish class at 6:15 there was a lady taking photos in the sectioned off area.

don't know the story, but it was quite an interesting day!!! love the bush.

what a wonderful world we live in!

have a good friday!
love
deev

potato cakes and parties

last night we had Amy (girfriend of mathieu my housemate)'s party. she's the little one on the left. (i think the other girls name is lucy??) and then mathieu, looking chuffed to be inbetween two girls in a photo.
hey mark, what's that on your face?? it was about time poynts and i caught up, so what better to do than go to remembrance day for 2 minutes silence. london was at a standstill... amazing. just like old times on ANZAC day, but for once neither of us were in uniform.
schelle, Karen Dunn and myself looking sophisticated (the theme for Amy's last night). was nice to finally catch up with Karen who seems to be having a blast over here. good to see you karen!!

the poppy's in the fountain at Trafalgar Square where the service was held. lest we forget. and may we learn from it too.
that beautiful sunset at richmond i spoke about in a previous post. tori, me and schelle, the day we were all here. the next night i was all alone...
me, nick (schelle's new housemate) and Michelle (another one) at a Tapas restaurant in Brook Green. It had really good food and we needed to go there to umm, practice our spanish!!! We are part of the little shebu gang who walk to and from spanish class. last week we had 5 people walking home and branching off at different places, it was quite nice. an almost kind of community in london... never thought it could happen.
me, Evan, Jeremy, Jo and Chris. some of the rovers from back home celebrating evan's b'day. oh and that's my hat jeremy!!!
oh, oh, oh, can you read the name of the band on the drums?? schelle, chris and i went to the Jet gig on Tuesday night. it was pretty good! they are good live.

morrisons (my local grocery store) does my new favourite breakfast thing. potato cakes. they are kind of like a pancake but with pressed potato and you put them in the toaster... soooooo yummy. and probably really bad for you, but they taste so good!

so, my week this week. ummm, have done a bit of a clean-up of my room. putting stuff back in drawers, throwing stuff away, packing stuff that i won't need for a while into my suitcase. ummm, oh and of course then buying more stuff to put in my drawers and cupboard. why?? because i can. I still haven't done my job application, but that is on my MUST DO list of things for today. I'm not sure if i said, but i am applying for my job so that i can go off supply and onto contract so i can get things like sick pay, holiday pay oh and one stress day off a term!!

i think that is pretty much me done for the moment. ummm,

luego! deev

down with skeksis.

caught... watching the dark crystal and i should be applying for my job. whoops. well, i am just really tired and unmotivated. i was thinking that maybe i could do my application and watch the dark crystal at the same time... hmmm, wonder how that will pan out.

'follow the greatest sun, but master, i am only a gelfling.' and the stupid whirring skeksi.... actually, kind of reminds me of a kid at school, maybe i should show him the dark crystal.

well, umm, have a few photos to put online, although me being lazy haven't done it yet and my camera is downstairs, so you will have to wait until another day. saw jet lastnight. they were well good in concert. i forget that live music is really loud. next time i see a band i shall hopefully remember to take earplugs.

saying that, here is one, ummmm, well, ummm, just mucking around on the movember website. ha. hope you enjoy the ummm, changes that i have been through since arriving in London. not bad not bad... let me know what you think of my new look!

what else, not a lot really. having teacher drinks tomorrow night (either before or after spanish class, not sure yet) oh and not including this weekend, i have a few weekend trips planned. really looking forward to them.

ok, should probably try and get some of my good points down in a word document so i can apply for my job (and inturn visa to be able to stay in this country to work after december).

love youse all,
deev

bedtimes and sunsets

well, last night was an interesting night. Schelle moved into her apartment (with 3 most lovely english people) and i came home to a half-empty room and a bed all to myself. it was lovely, but at the same time there was no-one to chat to this morning when i woke up. i think it has been about 5 months of sharing room, bed and space. once i spread my stuff out again i think it will be good. good luck in your new place schelle! and the good news is her place is just around the corner, so not too far to wander there.

On the way home last night, i only passed 3 people urinating and 2 people vomiting. FANTASTIC.... Gotta love shepherds bush!

and the sunsets... my goodness, they are beautiful!! Yesterday Clement and I were wandering in Richmond along the Thames (and could hear the chanting England vs NZ rugby match) and my goodness, the sunset was glorious. and then again today... fantastic!!! they really are!! only problem is they are like at 5:00pm, so the days are getting shorter, colder and darker, but beautiful sunsets. (did i mention the sunsets??)

oh and still loving school, just thought i would share that.
best be doing some work actually, that's why i turned my computer on in the firstplace, but i got a bit sidetracked.

love to you all!
deev
xx

seagulls?

well, last time i checked, White City was nowhere near the sea.

so why all the seagulls on the way to work this morning...

keeps me guessing i suppose

have a great day!

xx