Planning a wedding can be FUN

If you like arty stuff and design and details... not if you don't like spending money :-S ...... So I've been spending far too much of my work days researching researching researching with the help of Google and a couple of wedding blogs. Yes, wedding blogs - some people actually start a blog where they can keep people up-to-date with everything they're planning for their wedding. They even post pictures of dresses they're considering, flower arrangements, hairpieces... and I love checking out their ideas. I would even consider making a wedding blog, just for fun and because I have collected SO many pictures. But then nothing would be a surprise! So instead here are some fun pictures that I've come across that I love. We may or may not steal these ideas and use them in our own wedding!

Did you know - weddings are expensive?

We have been looking into invitations and I found an online store that stocked pre-cut invitation cards (saves us the trouble of cutting and scoring them) for a reasonable price. They were listed as being about $25 for a pack of 25. So I called up the shop which is located in Sydney and asked for two samples cards, one in each of two shades.

The shop assistant emailed me a quote for the sample I had requested. The quote said:

Colour #1 single sheet - $1.00
Cutting and scoring service - $10.00
Colour #2 single sheet - $1.00
Cutting and scoring service - $10.00
Postage and handling - $10.00
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Total: $32.00

For two pieces of card!! So I called the shop in question and asked "why does it cost you $10 to cut and score each piece of card?" The girl replied "I can remove that charge if I send you a card that we have already cut and scored. Then you will only need to pay a total of $12." Me: "I can't really afford to pay $12 for two pieces of card. Why does the postage cost $10?" Her: "Because you're in Tasmania." Me: "But I can send a letter anywhere in Australia for 50c and an A4 letter for $1." Her: "Yes but we use registered post, so that things don't get lost." Me: "They're only samples... I'm happy for you to just stick them in an envelope with a couple of stamps and risk them getting lost." Her: "I'll check with my manager and get back to you."

*Sigh* Still haven't heard back.

Sydney... I Love

For the past couple of days I have been in the above city - maybe my second favourite in the world! For my job (graduate project officer in the small business section of Dept Economic Development, Tourism and the Arts) I'm working on a national project to make all business licences and related things online and accessible, reducing governemnt red-tape and all that. Because it's a NATIONAL project, I get to travel! Sometimes.

We couldn't get flights to Sydney Tuesday morning for the all-day meeting, so we flew up there Monday morning, which gave me all of Monday afternoon and evening to myself! Another girl who I work with travelled up there too. We ended up parting ways after checking into a very swanky hotel (paid for by work) and I then caught a train out to Miranda's Westfield shopping centre, 1 hour away. I was there to pick up a couple of bridesmaid dresses. I only had half an hour there, but OH GOSH I wish we had a Westfield here in Hobart! This one was huge and I decided that had I had time, I could've shopped for everything we need for our entire wedding and found it all there, in one place, all in a day.

That night I caught up with Ilise, a good friend of mine who made the move to Sydney a couple of years ago. We went out for Thai and generally had a really good catch up.

Observations of luxury hotels (we stayed at The Grace): No matter how spacious the room is, or how comfy the feather doona is, or how flipping expensive everything is, I'm not going to be able to sleep if the air conditioning does not go below 18 degrees!!

I love Sydney. I do get kind of attached and get all wistful when I get home, wishing I could go back, or maybe live there for a while. Oh, and the picture I have now uploaded is exactly why I love Sydney!

Talent

It sure has been a long time...

Nearly a year in fact! On a couple of recent occasions I've had thoughts and ideas that are bloggable so it's about time I made the effort to write them here.

My interests tend to happen in bursts. I used to write on my blog a lot, and then I had a dry period (maybe due to lack of inspiration) and then I got into it again and then sure enough was bored of it again.

From the age of about 14 I wrote in a diary quite regularly. This is most awesome and I totally recommend it because now I have the pleasure of reading back over my teenage musings and laughing a lot! Throughout my mid-teens I thought my life was far more dramatic than it was, which makes for some great reading! So I definitely recommend writing in a diary - especially when you're a teenager and you have a crazy imagination.

Anyway, I kept this up, writing in my diary whenever I had something to write about, until about last year - in fact, it was when Adrian went to Bolivia. Since then I haven't written a thing - I just can't bring myself to! It all seems like too much effort, or unnecessary, or something. This is a bit sad, because when I look back later on in life there will be a big patch of nothing, and I'll never know what I was thinking/doing for all of that time!

Maybe I've grown out of it? I truly thought that I'd be writing in a diary until I was really old. Why does it suddenly seem so inappropriate?

"The Right to Leave"

I felt kind of sick after reading this. I'm struggling to believe that this has come out of the 21st Century. Not that this sort of thing is being written, but that this is considered NORMAL, completely reasonable and not at all racist. Read on.

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"Australia - The Right to Leave"

After Sydney not wanting to offend other cultures by putting
up Xmas lights..

After hearing that the State of South Australia changed its opinion and let a Muslim woman have her picture on her driver's license with her face covered..

This prompted this editorial written by an Australian citizen. Published in an Australian newspaper.

Quote:

IMMIGRANTS, NOT AUSTRALIANS, MUST ADAPT. Take It Or Leave It! I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their
culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Bali, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Australians.

However, the dust from the attacks had barely settled when the 'politically correct' crowd began complaining about the possibility that our patriotism was offending others. I am not against immigration, nor do I hold a grudge against anyone who is seeking a better life by coming to Australia.

However, there are a few things that those who have recently come to our country, and apparently some born here, need to understand.

This idea of Australia being a multicultural community has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. As Australians, we have our own culture, our own society, our own language and our own lifestyle.

This culture has been developed over two centuries of struggles, trials and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom.

We speak ENGLISH, not Spanish, Lebanese, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society, Learn the language!

'In God We Trust' is our National Motto. This is not some Christian, right wing, political slogan. We adopted this motto because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation, and this is clearly documented. It is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture.

If the Southern Cross offends you, or you don't like 'A Fair Go', then you should seriously consider a move to another part of this planet.

We are happy with our culture and have no desire to change, and we really don't care how you did things where you came from.

This is OUR COUNTRY, OUR LAND, and OUR LIFESTYLE, and we will allow you every opportunity to enjoy all this.

But once you are done complaining, whining, and griping about Our Flag, Our Pledge, Our National Motto, or Our Way of Life, I highly encourage you take advantage of one other great Australian freedom,

'THE RIGHT TO LEAVE!

If you aren't happy here then move on! We didn't force you to come here. You asked to be here. So accept the country YOU accepted. Pretty easy really, when you think about it.

I figure if we all keep passing this to our friends (and enemies) it will also, sooner or later get back to the complainers, lets all try, please.

No matter how many times you receive it … please forward it to all you know.

This comes a little late in the piece, but I'd like to tell you about Navidad en Bolivia!

This is a Christmas fundraising project initiated by Adrian Nickols and friends both in Bolivia and at home.

The project gives us the opportunity to directly impact the life of one of 50 Bolivian children in 3 orphanages. These orphanages rely on donations and at Christmas, it is difficult to put a gift under the Christmas tree for each child.

A series of one-off Christmas sponsorships are available, to support the children. In participating, you can choose from a list of sponsorships to either provide a Christmas present for one of the children, or assist in providing clothes, shoes, school materials, additional tuition, an eye test or speech therapy.

Sponsorships range between $16 and $130. Sponsors will receive a Christmas card to give to a loved one, containing a picture and a brief profile of the child that will receive support (a bit like the cards you can buy from TEAR or Oxfam - but professionally printed with the Navidad en Bolivia design :) ). In giving someone this card, you are also raising awareness of the needs existing in Bolivia.

It's really easy:

Step 1: Go to the Navidad en Bolivia page and browse through the list of available sponsorships.

Step 2: Contact me and let me know which one(s) you've chosen - either email renae.peters[AT]gmail.com or text/call 0439 048 202.

Step 3: I'll provide you with bank transfer details. After funds are transfered, you'll receive a card in the mail.

BUT.... Get on it soon, because sponsorships are running out (running out the door at crazy prices in actual fact). Since Navidad en Bolivia was launched about a month ago, we've raised (and this is current at time of writing) AUD $2725!!! How incredible is that! God is incredible. Our target (the total of the sponsorships) is AUD $4862. So already, we're 56% of the way there! To quote Bill Nighy from Love Actually, "It's going to be a very good Christmas."