Diary of a Newlywed Drama Queen (v 2.0)

Everything now here: http://newlyweddramaqueen.blogspot.com/

...and in with the new. From January 2007 you can find me at

Drama Queen III

Why? Several reasons:

1. I'm not really a newlywed anymore (2 years and counting...)
2. V2 is getting a bit unwieldy
3. I like a fresh start every now and again

(You know you must be mad when you find yourself needing to justify your reasons for doing something to a bunch of strangers...)

Hope you enjoy the new blog,

Mookmoo xx

Ah, the office Christmas party. I’m always surprised when people talk about having a wonderful time at these things, enjoying fun and frolics with cherished colleagues and coming into work next day to share amusing tales of karaoke and kisses under the mistletoe. The only half decent one I ever went to was still very much like an awkward cocktail party hosted by the Conservative Party.

I have, you see, always worked for very large companies, and so the Christmas parties have always been held on-site, and have always had Very Important People present in front of whom you cannot get drunk, misbehave, or criticise the company (not that I’ve ever been very good at keeping my mouth shut on that last point – I was once sacked for gross misconduct comprising a full and frank email appraisal of my department’s problems.)

So tonight I shall once again be employing the best office party survival strategy I’ve yet come up with: stay for an hour, slowly drink one glass of wine, gently flirt with the important people, leave quietly...

...and then rendezvous with office pals at the pre-arranged spot down the pub for drunkenness and company-slagging.

Tis the season to be jolly (cunning) after all…

Yes, yes, I'm still being rubbish. Sorry, sorry, sorry.

So, a quick round up:

The Good: got a £6k payrise, had a fabulous day out with Jellie, like my hair again, bought new boots that I love with a passion.

The Bad: might be dropping out of the TEFL course due to the rapid increase in the number of daytime hours required (NOT what I was told at interview...), haven't done any Xmas shopping, am so winter-white I look like a ghost.

The Haven't Decided Yet: might be moving to a new house near here instead of moving away (this relates back to the aforementioned £6k payrise).

I'll try to keep you posted.

When we moved into our first real flat together, it was unfurnished. We had to buy, beg or borrow everything from plates to wardrobes. This included a vacuum cleaner, which was a rather ancient Dyson donated by Mars and Venus.

It survived until last weekend (an impressive four years or so) when it suddenly emitted a shower of sparks, fused all the electrics in the house, and spectacularly died.

So last night we went out to Sainsburys and bought our first ever new vacuum cleaner. Got home, set it up, and tried it out on the living room carpet. This heralded the following discovery:

1. It is possible for one carpet to hold an entire 'bagless canister' of dust, undetected.
2. Our carpet is actually beige, not grey.
3. Dysons clearly DO, in fact, lose suction.

I promised myself I wouldn’t keep apologising for the current lack of regular posting, but I feel bad if I don’t. So I’m sorry. Please forgive me.

Life is a bit of an obstacle course at the moment, which is why certain things, like the blog, have rather fallen by the wayside. It’s not easy working full time, studying part-time, being married and trying to have some sort of social life all at the same time. I wouldn’t recommend it, especially not in winter when you end up feeling as though you never see daylight except through a window above a desk (the desks at work, uni, and my study at home having become the interchangeable settings for 90% of my waking hours).

Still, it’s Christmas in less than six weeks, and while as you know I am not a big fan of Christmas for its own sake, I do like the ten days free holiday that comes with it. I also like any excuse to spend hours in Paperchase buying pretty things without guilt.

I’m so tired I could sleep for a week, and over Christmas I actually might. I’m in desperate need of big comfy armchair and a crate of red wine and no-one asking me to do anything involving a desk or a computer.

Positive things… Do I have any positive things to say…? Oh, yes. As soon as my course ends in January and I (hopefully) qualify, we’re out of here. Don’t know where we’re going yet, but anywhere but here would do nicely. Probably won’t be leaving the UK (although I would love to – have I mentioned lately how much I hate this country? The only place in the world where it seems possible to find oneself veiled with a light coating of stinking rain yet when one looks in the sky find that it isn’t actually raining. Oh, and don’t get me started on whoever decided that matching the pavements and buildings to the sludge coloured sky was a nice idea…) but hell, just away from Essex is a start.


*That’s from a Christmas carol, in case it makes no sense to some of you.

DON'T optimistically offer to be in charge of the cooking for a dinner party when you can't actually cook.

DO say "Yes it is a bloody problem" when your other half tells you he has a band practice (or similar commitment) on the day of said dinner party - DON'T say "No problem, I'll get on with the cooking in peace!"

DON'T lose track of time watching Sex and the City on DVD, and especially DON'T fall asleep in front of the TV only to wake up without enough time to cook what you planned.

DO thank God for Marks and Spencer.

DON'T be so thankful that you buy every item of ready-to-cook food they offer.

DO work out a detailed plan of what time each item needs to go in the oven/microwave and what time it needs to come out.

DON'T drink two large glasses of wine before writing said plan.

DO remember to preheat the oven.

DON'T think that whacking the temperature up to max compensates for lack of pre-heating.

DO find time to make yourself look nice for your guests.

DON'T let your other half arrive home to a smell of burnt food and you in the shower.

And, most importantly of all, DON'T tell your guests the real reason that you're having a takeaway: "We've just been soooooo busy at work" is always a good excuse...

*I am of course an impeccable hostess and none of these things have ever actually happened to me personally.

I can't decide whether it's romantic or pathetic that even after four and a half years, hearing His voice on the phone still makes me grin like an idiot every time.

Usually I tend to agree with things that Oscar said, but on this occasion I'll have to differ. At least in terms of teaching people to speak other languages.

Yes, I had my first teaching practice yesterday. Let loose on real students. The horror!

Actually it was okay. Being a perfectionist of the highest order when it comes to academic stuff, I was never going to be satisfied with it, but my tutor tells me it was very good for a first lesson, and that I have excellent potential. So there you go. I feel like I should be happier with that than I am.

Nonetheless, it was an excellent excuse to have a fat dinner out at our favourite restaurant with lashings of red wine and camembert...

Reason #3478 why I will never properly understand banks and finance...

Having been instantly rejected for a £800 limit balance transfer card by Sainsburys Bank last week, I've just been offered a £3,500 limit by Egg.

Nothing has changed in the interim, and presumably my credit file looks exactly the same now as it did then.

Anyway, shouldn't moan: I can now pay off my TESOL course fee at 0% interest.