The End

Well here we are... a whole year and 213 blogs later, and I can't really believe it to be honest.  I had these grand plans to have this beautiful reflective piece for my final blog on 22adventures, something that looked over everything and talked about how far I had come and what happens next.  But the truth is, I don't really know if I can write that at the moment, because I am sitting on the floor at a Big Band rehearsal, feeling very tired and sick.  My nose is running and my head is stuffy and I am just not sure what will come out as I continue to type.  However, the fact is, today is the 8th of April 2010, which means tomorrow I turn 23 and the adventures of me as a 22 year old come to an end.  So whether I feel like it or not, I need to write something to tie it all together.

I find it really hard to believe that exactly a year ago I had an interview in Castlemaine, and getting a job, moving out of home, moving to the country was just a little idea that I wasn't really considering because I didn't want to jinks the job.  Yet here I am writing this blog, a year later and everything, and nothing at all has changed (if that makes any sense).  

There are lots of things that are still the same.  I am still Emma, I still love Disney, blogging, eating and Dave, but now I live in Castlemaine and visit Melbourne.  Now I have a 'real' full time job, not a part time fun thing.  Now I can cook and clean and do general adult things, because I have to and no one else will do it for me (unless they are feeling particularly generous).  Now I have lots of new friends, people who I hadn't even met a year ago today.   

I feel like I have grown a lot since I moved to Castlemaine, and I am not really sure how much of this is just me getting older and how much of this has been because of the fact that I had too.  There have been some really low times, like homesickness, being lonely and getting used to being away from all my friends and family, but there has also been a lot of fun stuff to, and some really really great stuff... my new friends, the things I have seen and the places I have been...oh that rhymed, nice.  I have no idea how to actually sum up this last year other than the fact that I am different and I like it.  I know that I haven't done this by myself and that I my life really has been in God's hands through it all. But I guess when it comes down to it... I am really glad I went to the interview, I am really glad I was offered the job and I had enough courage (and support) to move and give it a crack.  I am also really glad that I have been able to share this with all of you (even if its just Mum, Dad and Dave at times).  Thanks a bunch for reading... my blog would be no fun if no one read it, so thanks for dropping by!  

So what happens next... well I am glad that you asked.  For now, I stay in Castlemaine, and because I can't give up I will continue to blog.  But as I am no longer 22 my blogs will have a new home: www.emjlewis.blogspot.com, so please keep dropping by and checking it out.  But after that I am not really sure and that's ok.  I still have plenty of adventures left in me and I am kind of excited about what is still to come... I guess I will just have to keep to posted, because I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Wordless Wednesday

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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My Valentine

I am so super spoilt sometimes its not funny!  And because I am a princess and a little obsessed with romantic comedies, I LOVE VALENTINES DAY.  I know for most people its just another day, but I love it!  I love the gooeyness, the cards, the flowers, the little messages in the paper and of course I love the fact that its a great excuse for a Date.  So this weekend, this valentines weekend I have been in Sydney with Dave and it has been sooooooo super lovely.  I have seen Wicked (yes, again), I have seen Sydney Harbour for the first time, along with the bridge and the opera house, and I have also been to see Top Gear the stage show, complete with fireworks and I haven't really had to spend a cent...I am just super super spoilt.  However, I did think that this weekend there might have been one valentines surprise.  In fact I was pretty much convinced! 

Leading up to this trip away, I had a number of people tell me that they thought that maybe Dave was going to propose... In fact, before I left Mum even gave me her blessing if he did... and when I thought about it, it did seem very like Dave... I mean Dave is a a bit of a romantic and so Valentines Day seem appropriate, He was taking me to Sydney, we were staying at a fancy hotel, he took me to see both Wicked and Top Gear, we went to my favourite Chinese restaurant, had lots of delicious food but... the weekend is over and my left ring finger remains naked... so I guess it wasn't quite my time.   

Now for those of you that are panicking about the fact that I shouldn't be sharing this on the internet and that Davo might get offended...don't stress, because Dave was also aware of 'the signs' so to speak, and on Friday night before we headed off he told me that it wasn't going to happen this week, so that I wouldn't be disappointed or waiting all weekend, which is kinda nice I guess, but it has left me wondering what he has planned for me...and us.... But I guess now we just wait and see...

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Thanks Jess

Tonight I had the pleasure of having Dusty, Jess and Brad up to visit. Last time they came up I got a little embaressed, because all around my house I have photos, but to my shock Jess brought to my attention the fact that there were no photos of her. Now some of you may say big deal...but it is, because I even had a picture of Jacob's ex girlfriend still up and they were only together for a short time, Jess has been part of our family for like 4 or 5 years or something crazy, so as you can imagine, I felt really bad, and of course Jess and Dusty didn't want me to forget.

So this time, when I knew they were coming, because I hadn't had anymore photos printed, I told Jess to bring a photo with her so that she could go on the wall. So today Dusty, Jess and Brad drove up from Melbourne during the day and made it to my place and made themselves at home before I got home from work. So being a good sister-in-dating I sent Jess and sms just to remind her that she should bring a photo with her... and this is the response I got in response...

"Oh u don't have to worry about that, I have it covered! Have a lovely day at work and we will c u later on!!!"

Being a little cheeky at times, Jess' text made me a little worried, I started to wonder what exactly she meant by the fact that she had it covered and what I would find when I got home. I thought that perhaps she would take down all the photos and replace them with ones of her, or maybe even just replace some of the photos, with the same photo of her and Dust, but what happened was definitley unexpected. This is what I found when I got home:

Yep lots of little photos everywhere, and one massive photo of jess right above the fire place. Classic, so thanks Jess, I think I have enough photos of you now, and yes you can stay on the mantle. Although Dave did tell me that he feels like you are watching him while he sits on the couch doing nothing now, I think it makes him feel guilty about being a slacker.

 

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Kilmore

Saabie and I have been on another little adventure tonight...this time we made out way across central Victoria...to Kilmore.  Why would we make this trek... to visit my friend Pez. 

The trip itself was actually quite nice, because unlike the trip to Melbourne, it was only on the boring freeway (which I love coz it takes much less time, but is very very very boring to drive) half of the way.  Instead of just freeway, I actually got to see things, like bush land and farms and even some small towns.  I really love just going on these little adventures, it makes me appreciate the things that God has made for me rather than just bypass it all. 

Anyway, it was heaps nice to catch up with Perri in her little cottage in Kilmore, her little house is much like my little one in Castlemaine, except she has a lot more rooms, all small, but more than one.  One of my favourite rooms though at her place is the toilet...where my knees can almost touch the door in front of me when I am on the toilet...crazy. 

Now we are both semi city girls living in the country, for work...leaving our boyfriends behind and carrying on.  Its nice to be able to share my experience with someone else and know that I can share what I have been through and that it might actually help someone.  Of course its always nice to hang out with good friends, even without a reason. 

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Dexter's New Home

Well its been a little while since I posted a blog about my little dog and there have been a couple of reasons for this:

1. Nothing really that interesting has happened to him...he did go for his first swim at the beach but other than that, not much.

2. I figured that after the influx of posts when I first got him, it was only fair that I gave everyone a break and...

3. He hasn't been living with me. 

This last reason is something that I am a little sad about, because I love him to bits (despite our initial struggles) and I miss him stacks, none the less he is a very active dog and I have a very small house in which he has to get locked in all day because my landlord keeps letting him out and the poor little thing is just a puppy with no road sense. 

Anyway, over summer, and a little bit before that, Dex has been living with Mum, Dad, the boys and his new best friend, Harley and the two have been getting very attached to each other.  And while this has been good for them, because they have become good company for each other, eventually, when I get a bigger house, I would really like Dex to come back and live with me, but the more attached he gets to Harley the harder this will be to do.  So this week I have made a decision (well not just me, in-conjunction with the others involved, except Dex and Harley, because they are dogs and they can't talk), one that I think is best for both Dex and me.  Until I workout how to have Dexter up in Castlemaine, in order to prevent two very depressed little dogs, Dex is moving in with Dave. 

So last night, Dex spent his first night in his new place, and he looks pretty happy there... The other good thing about this arrangement is that Dave (or so he says) will bring dex up to visit sometimes, which is exciting because I really miss him.  I just hope that he is a good boy and doesn't destroy to much...

I guess that's all part of the adventure!

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Dance like Dave's not watching

Confidence is not something that I have a lot of.  You may be a little surprised by this, but it is true,  I find it really difficult to really be myself, I am always worrying about what people with think or say and while I have become more confident in who I am over the last couple of years, it is something that I still need to work on.

One thing I really love to do though is dance. I am not a very good dancer and this is mostly due to a 'co-ordination deficiency' which is a very seriously genetic disorder, that unfortunately has been passed down the Lewis family line, so as you can imagine, I don't do it very often, but when I do...oh when I do... I really let my hair down, so to speak.  I really like that quote that says 'Dance like no one is watching' however I think that in my case it's more like 'Dance like Dave's not watching' because even though we have been going out for so long, I don't like to make a fool of myself in front of him...at least not with my dancing anyway, not because he will love me less, but because I think that I could possibly be a little embarrassing, I know he will say he doesn't care and he just wanted me to be me...but I know its true deep down inside.

Anyway, tonight I attended Stobie's farewell shin dig and once the crowd had died down and I was there with a few close buddies of mine I decided that it was time for them to see me dancing...not just a little bit of dancing, but 'dancing like Dave's not watching' dancing.  They hadn't seen my full on dancing before because I normally leave that to parties where everyone else is drunk so that they won't remember the quality of my dancing (ironic, given my last blog), but I was feeling particularly comfortable, so I decided that tonight was the night (it probably helped that Dave wasn't there either).  Anyway, I guess I just wanted to say that I love it.  It really is very freeing and thankfully it all went down ok, no one thought I was super weird or anything...not even when I pulled out my favourite, and original, interpretive dance move...plastic bag in the wind.  

Perhaps I will need to start finding more situations to get my dance on, and to dance like Dave's not watching...even if he is...who knows, maybe one day he will even dance with me.  That would be nice (wink, wink, nudge, nudge).

Oh and that's a picture of me getting my groove on...while singing...pretty...I know. 

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Back to work

Here is something that is probably exceedingly obvious...it really really suck to be going back to work while everyone else is still on holidays!  Its not that I don't like my job, I actually really like it, but the thing is, Mum, Dad, Jake, Dustin, Dave and most of my friends are still on holidays....everyone except me and I am not happy about it.

Oh and just to top it off, today I started on a new ward and it was nuts...busy busy busy and I didn't really know my way around, but I am sure I will get my head around it soon enough.

Anyway, the point of this blog is just to whinge...I wish I was still on holidays :(, I already told you I am not made for full time and I miss my 3 month uni break...

I guess that's all part of the adventure!

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Goodbye 2009

Here we are at the last day of 2009.  What a year it has been, who would have thought that this year would have seen me not only get my first full time job, but also move out of home, get a dog and learn to be independent?  Certainly not me!  I can't believe how much I have grown this year, its been pretty massive really, and even as I sit here and write this I am still a little overwhelmed about everything that has happened in 2009.  But instead of doing a recap of the year, I am just going to tell you about my new years...because tonight I have reached a whole new level of cool, oh and the fact that you already have most of my year documented on this blog. 

The day started out very nicely with breakfast in Inverloch with Dad, Dave and Jake and then a morning swim at the beach, which was more like an ice bath that was super refreshing in the heat of the sun!  After that we packed up our stuff and headed back to Melbourne.  Tonight we (Dave and I) have been having a bbq pool party, well actually it was really just a pool party for me because I didn't swim as there was lightening and you aren't supposed to swim in a storm, but anyway, we saw the new year come in, no thanks to the tv count down, which seemed to have very little idea when 2010 was actually coming, and then once everyone left...well that' when the party started.  Once Kitty and I had the house, well the living room to ourselves, we played mario on the wii and boy did we go hard...we played mario until 5:30am because that's what all the cool kids do!  The only downside to this is really the fact that if I wanted to de-nerdify a little in 2010, this probably wasn't the best start, but it was fun so what can you do. 

Oh and Kitty made another one of her amazing cakes...this time appropriately new years themed.

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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More New Friends

Today has been a massive day, and I have been flat out for most of it. But two things in particular make today super special...Today I made two new friends... let me tell you about them:

1. Samuel Jude Kean - well I guess he didn't really get a choice, I just decided that because he was matt and Fee's baby, he had to be my friend, today was just the first time we met and I tell you what he is sooooo beautiful!  There isn't really much more I can say other than Congrats Matt and Fee you have such a beautiful baby boy! 

2. Was a little more random.  After an amazing evening with my good friend Claire enjoying the sweet sounds and very very attractive good looks of Keith Urban at his Concert at Rod Laver Arena we caught the train back to my car at Box Hill.  However at the station while buying our tickets (which in hindsight I don't actually think we needed to do) Claire and I were asked for assistance by a french lady, we, being the lovely girls that we are, of course said yes and helped her also purchase the unnecessary ticket.  She then told us that she needed to go to Canterbury station but wasn't sure how to as she had lost the group that she was traveling with and they had just told her to catch the train and that she would be fine.  So as Canterbury is on the same line as Box Hill we told her to come with us.  Being super late at night we had half an hour before the train, so we got to know our new friend a little better.  It turns out that she is French, but she has been living in Wagga Wagga for the past 3 years.  She got married in France this year, but her husband is still there, but he is coming over to see her for the first time since the wedding (which was 6months ago) to see her for Christmas.  All of a sudden the 2hours between Dave and I didn't seem that far!  Anyway, it was pretty random, and I guess she is pretty lucky that she bumped into Claire and I at 11:30pm at Richmond station and not someone else.

Oh and here is my favourite photo of Keith from the concert...coz I know that you want to see it...

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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On Stage

Once again I have been back to the theater tonight, this time to see Jersey Boys again, and it was just as awesome the second time…in fact probably better, oh, except for the fact that I had to sit by myself.  However, before the show I got to do something really really exciting...

Before the show Dave asked me to help him carry his stuff down to the pit. So we had to go through the stage door and down to the pit. I really like doing things like that, and because I am a bit of a loser I even wore Dave’s tenor across my back like a real saxophone player just so I would feel the part as well.  But this wasn’t the exciting bit because I had done this before last time Davo played. The exciting bit was after Dave had finished setting up he told me he just want to check out one more thing before we left and that I just needed to follow him. Little did I know we were headed towards the stage and up on to bridge that Dave played on.  So before I knew it, I was standing on the stage of the Princess theater with the lights shining down on me…it was really really really cool.  It rekindled the little flame I have burning that desperately wants to do some kind of theater…it was really cool.  At the time I was so super nervous because I didn't think I was supposed to be there…but once we were outside I was sooo excited, it seriously was one of the coolest things I have done in a long time…thanks Dave.

Oh and what topped the evening off was that after the show I was waiting outside the stage door for Dave to come out (a little further back from the psycho middle-aged women who were throwing themselves at the performers as the came out the door, not amongst them like last time) when Dave called and said he needed help with the instruments again and could I come down...so of course I responded with a 'how?' and he told me just smile go through the stage door sign in and come down...so that’s what I did, I walked around the security fence thing, smiled at the security guard and walked straight in...that felt pretty cool, I tell you what. It didn't make the 'women' very happy though.

Oh and one more thing....I also got to go on a double date tonight…I must admit I acted a bit of a fool, but I don’t care, I don’t know why I was so excited I hang out with other couples all the time, but this was different…

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Fitting in

I have been in my new job now for about 5ish months and this afternoon as I went out with some of my mates from work to say farewell to our speech pathologist, lucie, it dawned on me just how comfortable I had become with these new people in my life. Now don’t get me wrong, its not as if I have been sitting at work thinking about not having friends, because I have felt welcome here from the very start but it just dawned on me as we sat out the back at Saffs that these people felt like friends, they weren’t just the people that I work with anymore.


For someone like me, who has spent their life floating between friendship groups, especially through those outside my church buddies, and never really feeling like you fitted in 100%, it was a really nice moment. I felt comfortable and accepted and for once all I had done was be myself.


Back when I first got the job in Castlemaine an amazing man of God by the name of Major Parker gave me a scripture verse to take with me on my journey and verse said…


Mark 6:10-11 “Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them."


I guess at the time I took it to mean that if the town and work place is inviting and welcoming I should stay, but if it wasn’t, I shouldn’t fret or panic, just pick up my stuff and leave…which now that I have just typed it, I still think it means that, so I am not really sure why I wrote ‘at the time’…anyway…I think what I am trying to say is that I feel like today was just another confirmation that I have made the right decision, that I am doing the right thing, because as tough as it has been at times, I know I am in the right place and I am at peace. I have made the right choice, I have been welcomed with open arms, not just by my friends at work, but also by those in the community and it’s good. I think I have grown a whole heap since being up here, sure some bits still suck, but I know its just a season and that the goods out weigh the bads.


I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Photos

For those of you that know me well…well if fact for those of you that have ever been to my house, or my old room in Melbourne, or to any event I have also attended, or even spent sometime looking around on my facebook or my blog, you would know that I love photos… I have photos everywhere and while most of them are self taken and consist of a whole lot of my face and someone else’s face and not much else, I still love them all the same. I think what I like about photos is that they are normally of something fun, happy and/or exciting, so when I look back on them it reminds me of those times and the fun things that I have done. They help me to focus on what’s important and to remind me that my life is filled with people who love and car for me.

So when Ben and Kitty came to visit me for lunch and afternoon tea today I was so excited when they asked me what they should do for the afternoon while I had to work…The took photos of them in Castlemaine for me, because I really don’t have all that many photos of my life up here...because as the photos from my trip to china in 2007 will show you a lot of photos of just yourself are no where near as good as the ones that are filled with the people you spent time with.

So here are a few of my favourite photos from Ben and Kitty’s adventures today…

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Daylesford

So, as I said yesterday, this weekend I am in Daylesford with Brad, Kat, Mim and Dave…and today we after a massive cooked breaky, we celebrated Grand final day in true Australian Style… With a cake decorated to look like a footy (amazing work kitty), an open fire and a lunch fit for kings…sausage rolls, party pies, and chicken nuggets. I really like grand final day, it just makes me feel very patriotic, and the fact that Farnsey and Barnsey we both in the pre-game entertainment was even better.

I think that I have mentioned this a couple times before, but I really love just hanging out with my buddies…it’s just really nice, especially when you are away from all of life’s other distractions. It was so nice just to spend time together, not to go out and do special things but just spend time together, we played a few board games, shared some great food and watched some telly and it was just really nice. I am really beginning to think that I need to start doing things like this more often…

Oh and here are some pictures from out weekend…check out Kitty’s cake…amazing.

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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It's all relative

One thing I have learnt while living out in the country is that distance and traveling time is all relative. Seriously, if I was in Melbourne and I had to travel half and hour or 45mins to get somewhere I would probably complain about how far away it is…but now that my nearest Kmart, Coles, Big W, Myer etc etc is 40mins away in Bendigo, I don’t really mind…it doesn’t actually seem to take that long. I guess just the fact that it doesn’t feel like it takes that long to get home to Melbourne anymore is another good indicator that I am on country travel time, because even though it takes 2hrs…it certainly doesn’t feel like that anymore.

Anyway, the reason I say this is because tonight, I went to Ballarat for tea, which is a good hour from my house, but it really didn’t bother me at all, in fact I would almost go as far as saying I enjoyed the drive. Why did I drive all the way to Ballarat? Well I wanted to catch up and have dinner with my friend Flic, who lives there now. It was actually really nice just to catch with her, and even though I had traveled what seems like a long way it really just felt like a normal drive, as if I was just going round the corner or to the next suburb over in Melbourne. I know it seems strange, but its true…distance is all relative when you are in the country.

Oh and while I was at flic’s place I did get a little bit of house envy…coz she moved to the country too, but her house has like 5 separate rooms…unlike mine which just has the one.

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Evan and Sarah

I love weddings, I don’t know if it is just the girl in me or whether its that I have seen way to many chick flicks, but I really like them. They just make me feel really happy and excited and hopeful and today was no different. Today I was lucky to attend a small country wedding in Wagga and it was beautiful.

After a short hiccup with my outfit, (in which I had to go and get a new dress because mum had neglected to tell me I was planning on wearing exactly the same colour as the bridesmaids) Mum, Dad and I (not Dusty, coz he was one of the groomsmen so he had headed out much earlier than us) headed out to a beautiful country property to witness the marriage of an old family friend, Evan and his fiancé Sarah.

It was a really lovely wedding and I think the thing that I like most is how clearly happy they both looked. The wedding had been in the works for two years so the pure relief and joy for both of them was so nice. I also liked all the little touches that made the wedding even more special, my favourite being the sand used in the candle displays was the sand from the beach on which Evan had proposed and they had had it sent over from South Australia for the day…so nice.

Anyway, I guess I just want to say…Thanks to Evan and Sarah for letting me be a part of their special day and that I wish them every happiness and blessing as they start their new life together.

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Boardgames

I also really like boardgames, I don’t know why…I just do. Perhaps it’s the fact that its inclusive and everyone needs to get involved, perhaps its because game they are just fun or perhaps its even because I don’t get to do it very often so they are still a novelty. But tonight I got to play Boulderdash with my good friends from high school and it was great, it was just a really nice way to hang out with them and have a bit of fun. I think I need to play board games more often.


I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Sleep Overs

Sometimes I feel like because I am technically an adult now I am not supposed to do a lot of fun stuff anymore. For example, people look at me funny when I colour-in during long flights, or when I choose to watch a Disney movie over anything else. But last night I discovered that I had almost let something else just slip away without so much as a thought…Sleepovers. Seriously, once you learn to drive sometimes I think that sleepovers just because get lost because you can just drive home and hang out again tomorrow anyway. But last night I had a sleepover with Kitty and it was so much fun, movies, games, chatting, just like old times (although unlike my childhood sleepovers, we didn’t discuss top 5 boys, and who we were going to kiss by the time we were in year nine…which just for the record were very poor predictions on my behalf…although not so much on Kirsten’s…wink wink).

Anyway, I think the reason why I almost let sleepovers is simply a matter of laziness, I couldn’t be bothered to get organized and get stuff together and it seemed like a lot of effort when you were just going to sleep. But I was very very very wrong. Sleepovers are great and definitely worth the effort and I think I will need to make the effort more often.

It does make me wonder what else I may have let slip though…


I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Pheebs and Steve are Getting Married

Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, tonight as I was heading back to Melbourne from Castlemaine, I received a very very very very very exciting phone call from one of my best friends….pheebs rang to tell me that….PHEEBS AND STEVE ARE GETTING MARRIED!!!!! Seriously I am so excited. Steve and Pheebs are great and now they will be great together forever! Oh man I am so so so so excited. Congratulations guys, I am so happy for you both! So happy in fact that as well as the numerous phone calls I have already made to pheebs (and one to steve too) I have been singing a little song for most of the trip home and it goes like this….

(to the tune of the conga line song)

Phoebe’s getting married, Phoebe’s getting married, Phoebe’s getting married, Phoebe’s getting married, Phoebe’s getting married, Phoebe’s getting married, Phoebe’s getting married…

you get the idea! Oh I am so excited….congrats congrats congrats

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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Surprises

Yesterday I had visitors again…and these ones even stayed the night. Yesterday Kitty and Annie came to visit and spoil me with an amazing diner and desert and a few rounds of sing star. But the best bit was the surprises they left behind. When I got home from work today there was a pasta bake in the fridge and note explaining they just thought they would make on incase I couldn’t be bothered cooking…and as if that wasn’t already the best surprise there was also a packet of glow in the dark stars for me to put on my roof, because I had been telling Kat how much I wanted them. Seriously Annie and Kat…you guys are the best! Thanks so much!

I guess that's just all part of the adventure!

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