Leaving

So, I know I haven't posted a lot lately. I think I'm a little tired of this blog... much as I love it, and I will never delete it, I think it's time for a change.
So... I have a new blog.

www.internationalcupcake.blogspot.com

All will be revealed... follow the link...

Goodbye, my lovely First Blog. You served me well, over many years (well, just three). I'm sorry I won't be posting on you anymore... don't feel lonely. Blogs are people too!)

ooh, I think it's CUTE!

What's that, you say?

Abby hasn't posted on her blog in half a month?

It can't be, I hear you whisper.

But yes. 'Tis the sad truth.

So I'm posting now.

Even with nothing to say.

Except that...

CHRISTMAS IS COMING!

Garish colours, I know.

To-Do List

First of all, credit goes to Meow. Very original idea, and hers is WAY better than mine. Go check it out.

Second of all: here is my version.

• Throw out all my crap.
• Sew my sock monkey's arm back up (it's falling off a little).
• Catch up and plough ahead on my NaNoWriMo.
• DO MATHS HOMEWORK so it isn't looming over me the whole weekend, ominously.
• Sing Christmas songs all the time and make other people annoyed.
• Learn all the internet short-cuts for the NaNoWriMo chat room (they all think I'm technologically challenged).
• Write to Alex and Brett Harris and beg them to come to Cambodia.
• Grow younger so my back stops hurting (gettin' old).
• Learn ballet and astound everybody with my flexibility and poise (tchah, keep dreaming, girl).
• Update iPod.
• Read classics like Pride and Prejudice, Around the World in 80 Days, etc, so people think I'm SMART.
• Invent stuff.
• Dream of the end of January (you don't know what I'm talking about, right? Don't worry. I do, and that's what matters.)
• Write to the moon and tell her that I love her.
• Sew an Amish kapp.
• Retain my sanity (I think that one's a lost cause).
• Go to sleep, because it's 10:40 PM and I am uber-tired.
• Dream about amoebas.

... yeah. Better get on that.

Not time to say anything but: 5,113 words. Must go and write. And chat. The NaNoWriMo chat room is a very distracting place.

MUST WRITE.

*singing joyously*

it's raining through the weekend, it's raining through the weekend
uh-huh uh-huh, yeah

I have stumbled upon a blog.

Lisa had it posted on her sidebar, and for want of things to click, I clicked.

Oh, sweet serendipity...

The Cherry Blossom Girl is Alix Bancourt, 23, living in Paris, France. She is a minor designer and major blogger who constructs surreal, fairy-tale-like photo shoots with her own clothes, vintage pieces, and those from major designers she has mixed and matched. Her photographs are incredible - in the last few months I have fallen in love with fashion photography and sifted through all the threads of useless articles and web pages out there to find the perfect fashion photographer/designer who has a unique take on style, but so often I have been disappointed.

Her blog - THAT blog, it is the answer to all of my unspoken questions.

• The incredible, arty photography - check.
• The gorgeous, innovative clothes - check.
• The dreamy, romantic settings - check.

Words cannot express the swelling of my little heart... POP. I think it just burst.

x

Tonight was the most fun I have had in a long time. Sera and myself went back to my house for the afternoon and I blow-dried my own hair and hers (because I am an aspiring amateur-hairdresser, that is, aspiring to be a better home-hairdresser) and it LOOKED AWESOME if I do say so myself. Then we got all dressed up - I wore my black jeans and black shirt under this pretty blue summer dress that I had to pin at the back (because it was my Aunty Nicky's) with a white belt and heels. We arrived and hung out with all the guys till everyone else came (25 people from youth group), upon which time we all ate at Pizza World (while David, Isaac and Stewart, the TRAITORS, went off to KFC downstairs) and had loads of fun. Then we went to the arcade, where I was overjoyed to see that they had both Burnout AND Air Hockey. So we played Air Hockey a few times, then I went to try and play Burnout - but all these tiny Khmer kids were on who had NO IDEA what to do and had NO SKILL whatsoever, and me and Caleb were standing there critisizing their every move. Then FINALLY I sat down to have a go, put two coins in, and... THE POWER WENT OFF. ACROSS THE ENTIRE CITY. It was seriously pitch black, and EVERYONE in the arcade was screaming (there were a lot of little kids) and me and Caleb were like...
"So, the power's off."
"Yeah, I noticed."
Then we just kind of stood there, and we could hear everyone screaming for Stewart (the tallest, so naturally the rallying point in times of trouble) and were like... "Maybe we should go see the others." - "Okay."
*panic all around*
*lights come back on*
*Abby is angry, her two coins are lost*
Then I sat back down to play, and everyone was like, "LET'S GO GET ICE CREAM!!!" and I was like GRR. FINE.
But then it was yummy. And we took pictures. Which I will upload, when I get them off whoever took them.
And then everyone left except me, Jessie, Hannah, Von, Stewart, Kwang Eun, David and Matt, so we all went into Lucky (which was closing) and we were mucking about and stuff, spraying the testers all over each other (well, I didn't spray, I just GOT sprayed and almost CHOKED to death!!) and marveled over youghurt. Then stood around talking for ages. It was awesome.

Then I went home, full and happy. Ah, nights like these.
x

Blog Action Day 2008 - Poverty

Today is BLOG ACTION DAY.
So, I am TAKING ACTION.
This year's subject is: poverty. And of course, living in Cambodia, I am provided with a unique and insightful view into the dynamics and realities of such poverty. If I do say so myself.
Of course, any soft-hearted human being walking down the streets of Phnom Penh would see a child begging, in rags, with a dirty face and runny nose, and feel a whole lot of compassion. They might go so far as to give the child (who may or may not be sitting next to his or her mother, father or older sibling) the petty change that they have about their person. There are several problems with this 'commonly accepted' act of ignorant tourists (sorry all Ignorant Tourists out there, it must be said) like the following...

• There is no way to know if the children begging on the street are really dirt poor, or if they 'dress poor' (this seriously does happen) while their mothers or fathers sit around the corner sniffing glue, waiting for their children to bring them the money to spend on alcohol and drugs. Also, women have been known to 'hire out' babies to give Ignorant Tourists an incentive - give the 'mother' money to feed her 'child'.
  
• Certain street kids tend to get pushy and rude when you don't give them money - they come into establishments and beg off you, or they follow you around with those big puppy eyes, begging and whining. And then there are those guys that sit outside the Star Mart all day, totally stoned, and when you come in to park they direct your car (poorly) like they have the authority, then blackmail you into giving them money. After all, they DID direct your car into the completely empty, easy-to-park-in space. You OWE them. You might have had an ACCIDENT without them, even if you've been driving for 20 years. Tchah.
• If all people do is give them money their whole life, how will they learn to aspire? To reach for their goals? They will begin to rely on the handouts of Ignorant Tourists. Not good.
  

I, for one, get really really annoyed at the stoned guys who sit outside the Star Mart, lounging in the dirt (by choice). They could find a more constructive, polite way of asking you for money. And not spend it on drugs. But - those really little children who look at you with huge eyes and just whimper a little bit for money, saying please, please - I find it so, so incredibly hard to ignore them. Jesus said to give to the poor and care for them in every way possible, and though I would love to do that, giving money to begging children is a BAD IDEA. You never know if there is a druggie parent around the corner (even if the kid is innocent enough) - and if so, then none of the money is going towards the health and well-being of the kid at all.
Instead (all Ignorant Tourists, listen up), buy them some bottled water and some bread or something cheap and filling from inside the Star Mart - it will only cost you a dollar, total, and it goes directly to THEIR health and well-being, not towards fulfilling the addictions of their family members. Have some compassion. If you're taking home leftovers and happen to be stopped at the lights with kids begging outside your window, just hand it to them. They are probably so much hungrier than you.

But, the one point I would like to leave you with... think twice before giving money to begging children. Be a responsible tourist/citizen.



NB: I realise that I was a bit judgmental of begging children in this post... but seriously, this is what it is like. Well, it has been for me, anyway. There have been so many occasions (mainly when we first came) that we would give some money to beggars and then see them run off around the corner with it, and then, when we drove around the corner, the parent would snatch it from them and keel over again, lost in self-pity or whatever. I'm just basically venting my feelings.

silly superficial side?!?! well, i guess.

Your Psyche is Blue

You are deeply emotional and very connected to everything (and everyone) around you. By simply understanding other people, you are able to help them heal and let go. While you are a very deep and thoughtful person, you do have a very silly, superficial side. When you are too blue: the weight of the world's problems hangs over you When you don't have enough blue: you lack perspective and understanding

What Color Is Your Psyche?

Click here to see the web page for my newest obsession - Simple Shoes (for a happy planet). Made from 100% sustainable products such as recycled car tires and inner tubes, and I.S.O. 14001 suede (not quite sure what that means, but sounds impressive, wink). Their designs include the following collections: ecoSNEAKS, Planet Walkers, Green Toe, collegiate, house, and heritage. They also design bags, yay! So hitch on over and take a look. The shoes themselves, while cute and undoubtedly comfortable (and they might also give a boost to your self-confidence, knowing you are saving the world one recyled pair of shoes at a time), are not the attraction so much as the idea behind the product.

Some of their slogans include, with shoes pictured...
"Can't see yourself in these? Get a longer mirror."
"What if you could save the world from the comfort of your own shoes?"
"Go ahead. Wear something trashy."
"They go with your jeans, your leggings... and your politics."

I LOVE them!

It's coming... the last trailer...

Looky looky! Pon and Zi!

^ Falling for you

J'adore!!
x

Mamma Mia!

Mamma Mia! I can see why Aunty Kate went to see it like 5 times. I would see it like 10 times. Eleven giggling girls, a mummy, and a daddy sang along at top notch with the fantastic songs and dancing around all over the place! It was awesome. I MUST have the soundtrack. But how? Sadly, I live in stupid ol' CAMBODIA.
At the end, when Pierce Brosnan ripped off his shirt we were all like EW! TRAUMATISED FOR LIFE!! But he is still like the ultimate bachelor. I made the mistake of saying that out loud and got a death glare from Dad - upon which I said, well, secret agent IS my style.
Harhar.
My other favourite scenes were at the end with Colin, Pierce and that *other guy* in those outrageous costumes - and also, in the song Lay All Your Love On Me (my most favouritest ABBA song of them all) with the guys coming up the beach and dancing in their flippers and speedos. I died.
Allors, if you haven't seen it, aller, aller.

And, is the water in Greece really that CRYSTAL BLUE? If so, hand me that lottery ticket!

Fine. The cute little avatar has swayed me. I'll do it.

Cause of Death: Boredom

You know, I've always been a *goodly* student. It's been YEARS since I've passed notes with the troublemakers on either side of me (wink). But, alas, Year Ten is my first year of the cursed Geography, and it is GEOGRAPHY which has driven me to these extremes... These extremes of boredom so crushing that my mind wanders farther from note-taking mode every second, and slips unconsciously into tortured-poet-mode (and I really WAS tortured - you have NO IDEA how boring Geography is). So, in tortured-poet-mode, the cogs were whirring and the clickers were clicking, and this poem flowed from my pen...

Cause of Death: Boredom

Pen tapping

Nails clacking

Eyes watching

Clock ticking

Teacher droning

Brain zoning

Fan humming

Pulse slowing

Head falling

Eyes drooping

Breath stopping

My latest heart - I Love You To Death by Family Force 5. Kind of screamy, which isn't really my style, but it's the good screamy. I got turned onto it by Nathan's hilarious video on Facebook. Cracked me up. To all my gal pals (wow that was weird) - we MUST do one on Saturday. To a bouncy song. Like something from Toby Mac or Superchick. Or something. Anyway, this song is AWESOME.

Today was HAIR CUT DAY. I was so scared. Because the place we usually go to, twice they BURNED my scalp with the hair dryer. But once they gave me a REALLY great hair cut. A flippy hair cut. But in the actual seat, it looke SHORT in the front and LONG in the back. I was like AH! But I managed not to cry this time, which I normally do, being as I have an abnormal attachment to my hair, and it cuts my heart to see it lying DEAD and WET (from that water spritzy thingy) on that fluorescent pink coat-thing they put on you. It cuts me deep, I tell ya.
And also, I cry mostly because they BURN me with the hair dryer.
But it looks okay now. I love.
x

I was on the Rebelution website and was trawling the Modesty Survey (2007 - 148 questions regarding modesty, 1600 Christian guys from around the world, c'est trés informative) and found a link on the sidebar to three teen girls who wrote what they think a "Real Woman" is (according to Scripture). Though I know some people will not agree with it, I'm posting a link to it anyway because I find it very interesting and, again, informative, since I have not yet read the whole Bible through. Also, if you don't agree with it, don't let it put you off the Rebelution website just because I found it there - it's really worth a look. Or a trawl. So, I encourage you... click here for the Real Woman thingy.

Most people don't expect
you to understand
what we're going to tell you
in this book.

And even if you understand,
they don't expect you to care.

And even if you care,
they don't expect you to
do anything about it.

And even if you do something
about it, they don't expect
it to last.

WE DO.

www.therebelution.com
.