Happy Birthday!!

Today I'm really excited to be able to say Happy Birthday to not just one, but two of my favourite ladies of all time!

First up is my little sister Amy, who's celebrating her 16th Birthday today!

She's a gifted comedian, with aspirations to be an actress and knows more random facts than almost anyone else I know! On the whole, I think she's got great taste in music (we both love Michael Buble and Maroon 5) and TV, and I love the trips we take to the cinema and museums...next up will most probably be "Sherlock Holmes" in the Christmas holidays! We do have our differences though...for example, she's about the least girly girl I know, not having worn a dress since she was old enough to choose her own clothes and taking no interest whatsoever in makeup! And that's Amy; all that's left for me to say is that I love her lots and I hope that she has a fantastic day, even if her 16th is making me feel very old!!

And secondly, celebrating a birthday which is a bit larger than 16 is my best friend J. I first met J on the bus we used to get to high school. I was about 12 when we met, she was a year older and we've been best friends ever since. I've celebrated many of her birthdays with her; the most memorable ones include her 16th where I went to my first ever concert and slept over at hers afterwards and her 18th when her parents hired a function room at a local pub, and being unused to alcohol, I got drunk really quickly but still had a fantastic time, as did she! However, as we've got older, things have changed. She moved about 2 hours away to attend university, and, over 8 years on, she's still happily settled there, meaning that we only see each other about 3 or 4 times a year. Despite that, our friendship is still going strong, and I was touched and honoured when she asked me to be her chief bridesmaid last year, even though she has a whole group of close friends in her new(ish) town. And in the same way, I know that if there comes a time when I'm picking bridesmaids, she'll be the first on my list!

So Happy Birthday J! You're one of the most caring and passionate people I know, and a true individual! I also love the fact that you've never lost your sense of fun and your quirky sense of humour despite the fact you're now a grown up, and I'm happy that you've found a husband who shares that with you :-) Hope that you have a fantastic birthday and am looking forward to hopefully seeing you over the Christmas holidays! :-)

Spot the difference!

Just a short post today...I know I said last night that I'd do a "What's in my Wardrobe" today, but now this evening's come around, I'm feeling quite tired and not in the mood to dress up (no matter how sparkly the clothes are!). So I promise that I'll post it on Thursday...I'll even take the photos beforehand so I've got no excuse not to! Tomorrow's post is still going to go ahead exactly as planned and I'm really looking forward to doing it...it's going to be the first one of its kind and I'll be posting for a very good reason :-) And that's difference number 1...why my blog post today isn't anything like what I thought it would be this time yesterday!

And as for difference number 2...well, can you spot it?? Everyone who guesses correctly will win a prize! Well , technically at least. It won't be an actual physical prize...just a lovely warm feeling inside that inevitably comes with the sense of enormous satisfaction that you feel when you get the right answer! :-)

Monday Monday

Well, it's Monday and my day has mainly been spent:

• not working...it's the last week of term, so I was expecting it to be quieter than usual. I do have a half day booked for tomorrow, but that's it so far.





• on the Internet...Facebook (I'm currently addicted to Cafe World!) and Blogger have been my main websites of choice today!





• being domesticated...I made this dessert:

(nothing too complicated, just mandarin oranges on a biscuit crust...basically a cheesecake without the cheese!)

• I also washed up, and cleared my summer clothes out of my wardrobe and put them away for the winter!

• and listening to the radio...my songs of the day have been Tik Tok by Kesha, Bad Romance by the Gaga, Whatcha Say by Jason Derulo and Fairytale of New York by The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl

This is what I've been wearing:

Black and charcoal 2 in 1 pinafore : Lime at Next, Black leggings: Peacocks, Grey boots: Rocket Dog via Amazon, Watch: Present, Pearl bracelet with butterfly detail: Primark, Diamond cluster ring: Asda (present off my Mum and Dad for my 21st)

(Except for this morning, when I was wearing work trousers instead of leggings and black flats instead of my boots!)

After I post this...I'll be going to rehearsal for an hour, then spending the rest of my evening relaxing and getting my stuff ready for work tomorrow morning!

Tomorrow...I'll be posting another "What's in my Wardrobe" post, all about sequins. I know it'll be a day early but there are a couple of special things happening on Wednesday that I want to blog about then and I'd rather be early than late lol!

So that's all for today! Hope you've had a great start to the week...and remember, only 4 days till the weekend! :-)

She's Googling herself!

Nicole over at You Had Me At Hello posted this a couple of days ago, and I thought it would be really fun to do for myself (I have done a similar thing before but never blogged about it!) and also an ideal weekend post...quick, simple and not requiring too much thought lol! So without further ado, here goes:

Type in "[your name] needs" in the Google search

Julie needs cards for hospital visit for transplant
(I really don't know what to say about this one except no I don't and I hope that the other Julie got what she needed)

Type in "[your name] looks like" in the Google search

Julie looks like an oriental version of Bridget Fonda
(I really don't...although I suppose it would be rather interesting!)

Type in "[your name] wants" in the Google search

Julie wants a job
(Yeah, that's SO true!!)

Type in "[your name] does" in the Google search

Julie does Japan

(Visiting Japan sounds pretty cool...maybe I will do one day)

Type in "[your name] hates" in the Google search

Julie hates, just what she doesn't know

(Now does this mean I hate things that I don't know or I don't know what I hate?? Confused much!!)

Type in "[your name] asks" in the Google search

Julie Asks - Am I an Adult Yet?

(This is something I often wonder...I think the answer is physically, yes but mentally, hell no!!)

Type in "[your name] likes" in the Google search

Julie likes silicon

(I can't honestly say I have strong feelings either way!)

Type in "[your name] eats" in the Google search

Julie Eats Babies

(Ewwww...that's horrible! I really, really am NOT a baby eater, well except for jelly babies!)

Type in "[your name] wears" in the Google search

Julie wears silk busk front corset and cross over frill skirt

(That outfit sounds pretty cool...am just imagining what it would look like!)

Type in "[your name] was arrested for" in the Google search

Julie was arrested for the crime of deliberately exposing children to porn

(I actually clicked on this result and felt really sorry for the Julie in the article. She was a substitute teacher and she was working in a school when a porn pop-up storm occurred on the computer. There was a whole dossier of evidence to show that there were a raft of technical errors that led to this happening...the IT department didn't keep anti malware software and content filters up to date, the school had no Internet security policy and the school administrators didn't provide internet training for teaching staff, meaning they were unable to respond in situations such as this and no proof that the teacher had introduced the porn herself. The situation was dealt with by the school district, but a few parents complained to police and Julie was arrested, and at the time the article was written (23rd February 2007), she was facing up to 40 years in prison. I'm unsure of the outcome but feel very uneasy about the story as a whole.)

"Type in "[your name] loves" in the Google search

Julie Loves Books

(Yeah, Google is speaking some truth there!)

So this is what Google says about me! Hope you've enjoyed reading...it's been mostly fun, but also illuminating for me at the same time. Why don't you give it a go?? This card needing, book loving, corset wearing, job wanting, baby eating(!) oriental Bridget Fonda lookalike (according to Google!) looks forward to reading it!

Pointless nostalgic?

Over the last couple of weeks, I seem to have been spending a lot of time reminiscing about the past, both individually and with friends. I've been thinking about the past, talking about it, looking up websites I used to frequent and almost obsessively searching the Internet for products and places that were well loved but have long since vanished! And the more I reminisce, the more things I find to be nostalgic about. Here's just some of them:
I'm nostalgic for:

• the excitement I felt when I was going out with my first real boyfriend and the openness of my heart back then. I wasn't the bitter cynic I am now; I was fuelled by happiness and and optimism about what the future would hold.
• the hours I used to spend on the Internet in my college lunchtimes: taking quizzes on emode, having my very own animals on Neopets and creating personalised email addresses on another.com. Although I suppose the dropdeadgorgeous.co.uk domani wouldn't go down very well on CVs and application forms nowadays!
• listening to my music on a personal CD player or even a Walkman!
• my favourite chocolate orange lip balm from Boots...I've even tried to ebay this but can't find it anywhere!
• the way the Trafford Centre used to be...I used to be able to watch cheap movies in the morning, grab tuna mayo baguettes from my favourite sandwich bar, have a fantastic night out and soak up the atmosphere and individuality of the "Festival Village" market. Whilst I still love the place, the days of being able to do any of those things are long gone! :-(
• the time when my idea of dressing up for a night out was black trousers and a sparkly top...oh how times (and fashions!) have changed! That said, I'm still a magpie...I love glittery things!
• the thrill I got when being served alcohol underage (such a rebel lol!)
• being able to see my best friend J every week, instead of just a few times a year.
• a time when life was simpler, and seemed more certain... at 17 I thought I knew which direction my life would go in, now I don't have a clue!

However, I know I can't look back forever. As Michael Cibenko so neatly put it: "One problem with gazing too frequently into the past is that we may turn round to find the future has run out on us." And I know that's true. I may look back fondly to my times in college, but there are many things that I am grateful for now and things that I have to look forward to in the future. My family and friends and the enjoyment I get from spending time with them, my future career and relationships, plans for study and travel and the hope that eventually I'll fall in love, marry and have children...it would be a crime if I let the past obscure the good that is now, and that is to come. That doesn't mean I'll stop the nostalgia, after all it's always good to reminisce, but I think I'll try and bring it down a notch from now on. After all, you never know what I could miss out on just because I wasn't looking in the the right direction!

What's in my wardrobe Wednesday - Beautiful bracelets and bangles (and a pair of earrings!)

Well, I haven't done a Wardrobe Wednesday post for quite a while...I always seem to remember on Friday and by then it just feels too late to write one! But by some miracle, I'm online and it's Wednesday, so it feels right that I should restart the series! This week is all about beautiful bracelets and bangles... I love all kinds of jewellery, but gorgeous wristwear is my favourite. I've already shared some pictures of my newest acquisitions in the shopping posts I've done, but I also have some older favourites that I rely on too and these are what will be in the spotlight today!

Copper leather look bangle

This was a gift that I found in my Christmas stocking a couple of years ago. I love this because it's quite simple but really different too, and it looks good worn with a wide range of colours.

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Pearl triple string bracelet with butterfly detail

This caught my eye in Primark earlier this year and I knew I had to have it! I love pearls (real or imitation...I'm not fussy!) and liked the vintage look of the butterfly detailing. Plus it was ridiculously cheap, so it really was a match made in heaven. Again, as it's quite neutral, I've worn it with a whole range of outfits for many different occasions. The only downside is that butterfly has recently broken, so I don't wear it as much as I used to :-(

Brown and gold enamel bangle with diamante detail

This was a present from my mum and dad...although I'm not 100% what for! I'm sure it was something to do with my education...either passing exams or graduating from my degree or post grad course, but I just can't remember the exact occasion! I mainly love this as it's so unusual...I've never seen another like it, and it makes me feel really unique! The colours also fit in great with much of my wardrobe; I own lots of brown, beige, and neutral clothing and the bangle matches well with all of these.

Black and white swirl bangle

I picked this up from a local low cost store to go with a 60s themed outfit for a fancy dress party. While I don't wear this as much as some of the other things featured today, it's the perfect match for any of my black and white tops that often make an appearance during the warmer months as they're all short sleeved! It's also good to wear as it opens at the back meaning I don't
have to force it over my hand when I put it on or take it off!

Gold effect bead bracelet with gold flower detail

I bought this from Dorothy Perkins to go with a black dress and black/gold clutch for an 80s themed murder mystery. Not only was this a real bargain in the sales, it also co-ordinates well with most of my wardrobe, meaning I'm never short of occasions to wear it.

Blue and grey multi gem bracelet with black enamel and diamante detail

This is probably the "blingiest" piece of jewellery I own and I LOVE it! I bought it from Debenhams last year to match with a blue and black dress that I was going to wear for my work Christmas party. It's from the EB diffusion line by Erickson Beamon, and whilst it's a bit pricier than most of the other costume jewellery I buy for myself, I think it was well worth it :-) I wear it with my party clothes but also to add a little spin to more casual outfits...in my mind there's nothing better than dressing a casual outfit up with some fabulous accessories!

Brown and gold textured bangle set

This was the Secret Santa present I received at work last year. I later found out that my line manager (head of my age group team) was the person who got them for me and can I just say she got me SO right! I love my browns and golds and I love bangles and these are just so pretty...it was love at first sight! They're one of my most frequently worn accessories (in fact, they're jangling away on my right wrist as I'm typing this!) and I think they look great for both work and play!

And finally, here's a little gatecrasher making their way into the post...

Wood and turquoise hoop earrings from Barefoot Maiden!

Remember a couple of weeks ago when I told you that I'd won a giveaway that Holly at Her Southern Heart was running? Well, those little beauties above are my prize! They arrived yesterday, courtesy of Barefoot Maiden's Etsy shop. And while I haven't worn them yet, I already love them! So thank you Holly and Barefoot Maiden!

Fingers crossed, I'll be able to keep up the habit of posting on a Wednesday now! Next week I'm thinking of doing a post on party wear...maybe focusing on sequins, and possibly one on winter woolies after that, but I'm open to suggestions! If there's a particular post you'd like to see, let me know!

Circles

Apologies in advance...this isn't going to be the cheeriest post, my positivity seems to have deserted me at the moment :-(

Anyway, yesterday I went for an interview. Unlike my previous interview that I posted about a couple of weeks ago, not many people knew about this one. Partly because I didn't want to get my expectations up, and also partly because the time scale was so short...I received an answerphone message and email on Monday afternoon, inviting me for interview and to teach a 30 minute lesson on Wednesday morning! So yesterday, I got suited and booted and went along to the school. I taught my lesson which I felt went ok, but not brilliantly and then had my interview, which included a couple of tricky questions, but nothing which left me completely lost! With the interview over, the head, and assistant head thanked me for coming and told me I'd find out their decision later that day.

And about four hours later the phone rang. I'd not been waiting by it all day (I'd done some Christmas shopping to kill time and had only recently returned home) but I was still eager to take the call. It was the headteacher, and she informed me that I...hadn't got the job. She offered feedback; said my lesson was good and gave me pointers on a couple of areas for improvement (things that I normally actually do when I teach, but seemed to have got lost in my nerves) and asked if they could keep my details on file. So far, so positive. But the thing that really got to me was the reason I didn't get the job...they went for a "more experienced" candidate. Now, I know I was trying to be positive about this situation a couple of weeks ago, so if you want to call me a hypocrite for moaning about it now, I won't mind...you'd be well within your rights to do so. But anyway, getting back on track, the reason I'm so annoyed is because there's nothing I can do about my lack of experience unless someone gives me a job! It's turning into a vicious circle: I don't have enough experience so I miss out on jobs, but because I can't get a job I can't get the experience I so desperately need! As strange as it sounds, I'd much rather someone tell me I wasn't a good enough candidate to get the job. There's 1001 ways I can become a better teacher: attending courses, reading books and official publications and applying their insights to my work, trying new things when I'm on supply, watching more experienced teachers and taking advice from them etc etc. But there's only one way I can gain more experience of being a full time class teacher, and that's by getting a job as one!

Suppose I've just got to keep on looking; as for every door that I knock on and get turned away, I must be getting closer to the one that will let me in. So hopefully you'll indulge me and allow me my little moan, promise I'll be more cheery soon! :-)