The Snugget vs. The Man Pillow

Today a friend of mine who lives in Ghana amusingly bought to my attention "The Snugget" a helpful invention frequently advertised on African TV. When I checked out the website containing a convenient "Video of the product" I giggled to myself. How innovative of some entrepreneur somewhere to invent such a product that enthusiastically asks me if I "Want a blanket that keeps you warm and cozy while comfortable to perform other activities?" I joked with her that this was a special "Single Girl" product but that I would much rather have a "Man Pillow"....

Then it got me thinking about products that pray on vulnerabilities of the "Single Chick" So I decided to objectively look at (based on advertising alone) which one was more crap "The Snugget" or "The Man Pillow"......

Team Man Pillow:

• Do you hate sleeping on your own?

• Are you unable to sleep on your own?

• Divorced, separated, widowed or just lonely?

• Is your partner away a lot?

The Man Arm Pillow is the answer. It’s the ideal bedtime companion with many advantages over sleeping with a man:

• Does not toss and turn

• Does not snore, cough or sneeze

• Does not wake you up in the middle of the night

• Will never complain

• Is always faithful

Team Snugget:

Want a blanket that keeps you warm and cozy while comfortable to perform other activities?

Snugget is a super soft, light weight fleece blanket with sleeves which can be used indoors as well as outdoors.

• Specially designed sleeves for ease of use

• Easy to use, easy to store and machine washable

• Keeps you warm and cosy

• For Indoor & Outdoor use

• Simplistic and practical design keeps your entire body covered

• Big enough for adults and kids to stretch out in comfort.

• Available in Large and Medium

• Comfortably walk around the house

• Perfect for outdoor sporting events

• Save on your heating bills

• Can replace any normal blanket

I think they are both shit, but you decide!........

And the Boy Version......
"The Girlfriend's Lap Pillow"

Don't they look peaceful??.......

Lay your head on your "girlfriend's" lap. Soft plush pillow comes complete with red miniskirt. Great for bachelor parties or actually quite functional for reading in bed.

Somehow not playing so much on the emotional side....I wonder why?

A Letter To My Old Life....

Dear Old Life,

I feel it is only fair for me to write you a farewell letter, we have become very well acquainted in the past few years......We have been waiting here at the bus stop of life for 6 years, not really moving anywhere, just waiting.........Waiting for something or someone to pick us up and take us to the place were the fun is.

We have worked hard.....Very hard, cried in the toilets, got annoyed when people didn't do what they are paid to do, voiced opinions only to have then thrown back in our face, we have been shouted at, punched and kicked, been criticised by managers over the small things...When we have tried our best to give 110% and gained no thanks, we have supported other members of staff when they have been unable to cope. We have been good....No we have been excellent at our job!

We have watched from the sidelines as others got married, had babies, met new partners and generally moved on with their lives. We have been happy for them but all the time wondering "When is it my turn?" We have been unhappy and lonely but tried not to show it. We have smiled and laughed on Christmas day and cried Boxing Day. Lived at home and made to feel worthless, thought about the same person who doesn't think about us, been self critical and depressed, but all the time we have patiently waited.........

Well the bus is here, time for us to part, as I pay my fair I wave you goodbye, thank you for the experiences you have given me but I can't say I will miss you. Now its time for me to travel to a new destination, to the place were I can be the person I have always wanted to be.....The happy, fun loving person who loves life.......The real me!

Take Care Old Life x

Why My Travel Agent Hates Me....

Remember me telling you about my love for my travel agent Rory??...When I first met him he commented on "What an easy customer I was"...... How wrong he was! I think I was probably agreeing to anything he said because of his smoldering good looks, but now I think I have turned into a nightmare.....You know the one..... The indecisive first time traveller with a stressed out mother! Oops! I feel the love affair could be over....

When I first went to STA Travel in February I had a female travel agent who was Japanese, a lovely lady but I couldn't understand her, so the second time I went in I took a friend and we saw "My Rory" He kept telling me the other travel agent "Would be free soon" but I asked if I could stay with him...He was a bit uncomfortable about stealing his work mates commission but eventually agreed.

At first I wanted to go to Oz, New Zealand, South America, and Africa. I had him on the phone to all these different overland tours and he happily booked me on them. The third time I went in I took my mother who was stressing out, seen as though she has never left the country and is convinced I am going to be murdered. She bombarded to poor guy with millions of questions...Eventually he explained what "local charges" were and it blew my budget so I had to cancel the South America section.....More messing for him, cancelling tours, working out new prices and changing my flight from Rio de Janerio to Auckland. (I was becoming a pain)

The fourth time I went in my mum had to come because she had a massive credit limit on her credit card and although I had the money in the bank I wanted security of payment on a credit card. Again she asked lots of questions.... all the while I kept elbowing her and muttering "Just give him the card!" Until eventually she handed it over......

Everyone was happy until I read in one of my hundreds of travel books under the heading "When not to go" and I quote "March: Rains soak your safari and make roads impassable" Not the best when you are in a truck on an overland tour! So yesterday I plucked up the courage to email him (because I was to chicken to speak to him directly) and told him that I wanted to change my tours, outbound dates and pretty much everything again! The poor guy... I'm sure he will end up putting me on that plane himself just to be sure that I have actually left the country!

The Quarter-Life Crisis..Episode 2

In school was never that academic and generally was "Miss Average" in all subjects...... expect Art. In my art class I excelled, I was never happier than when my hands were covered in paint and music was blasting in the background for me to sing along too. In fact, I was even more happier singing than painting, but I never had the confidence to join the choir or sing in public. So I hid in the Art Room and got better and better.

When it came to leave High School, I nervously applied to Art School, got an interview and took my portfolio along. A lady there interviewed me, but worryingly everyone else seemed so much better than me. She looked through my portfolio, which contained work that I had spent hours perfecting. With a face I couldn't read, she looked at me and said "It's not that good, but we have never had anyone from your school before" I did get a place on the course but being the sensitive person I am my confidence was knocked and I felt I had failed.....

A friend of mine suggested nursing which I had never thought of doing, but I felt I would be the worse one in Art School after her comments, so I eventually got a place on a Nursing course and qualified in 2004. I tried to love nursing, but an extremely busy ward was not the place for a perfectionist who couldn't give the care she wanted. So I moved wards thinking that would solve my problem but it made it worse. I have worked hard for five years, worked with some fantastic people and given my patients the best care I can....all the while feeling like my life was standing still....My friend called it my "Quarter-life Crisis" I considered buying a house but when I realised I would be single, in a job I hate and in a life I didn't much like with a mortgage to pay, I decided to spend all the money I had saved for a house to travel the world. So I nervously booked my trip for November this year.

On a day that was the same as any other fate stepped in..... As I put medications into a medicine pot, a patient asked me if I had gone into nursing from high school, I don't know what made me say it, but I told him I had a place on an Art course but didn't take it up. Suddenly he took hold of my hand, immediately grabbing my full attention. He told me he was an Art Lecturer on the course and as it turned out his wife was the woman who had interviewed me! With his encouragement and constructive criticism from his wife, I have reapplied and start University in September 2010. After my "Gap Year" that is.....I know all this may seem crazy to some people but I'm hoping this is the start of a happier, more confident phase of my life......The life I was supposed to lead!

And the Oscar goes to......

harry 017, originally uploaded by Noonie28.

This little angel is Harry; A few months ago Harry’s mum had a new baby, so good friend as I am I got her a present. Deciding on a soap set so Harry's mum could pamper herself, I found some pretty wrapping paper, wrapped it and took it round to Harry's house. Harry got very excited when he saw the present and asked his mum if he could open it, with the enthusiasm of a 5 year old he ripped the wrapping paper off and loudly exclaimed "WOW!" When Harry's mum enquired what it was, Harry said "I don't know"

An Oscar winning performance if ever I saw one!.....

It was acceptable in the Eighties!

As a darling of the eighties I feel I am well within my rights to moan about my recent experiences in relation to the sudden and unexpected revival of 80's fashion. Apart from the birth of myself and most of my friend's, nothing actually happened in the eighties did it?

However, imagine my horror when I was innocently going about my daily shopping business, when I stumbled into New Look only to find the eighties were back with a BANG! It was like stepping into a time machine, where no one had actually realised how repulsive eighties fashion was. With "I think we're alone now" by Tiffany playing in the background, hanging there like they weren't a crime against fashion were illuminus earrings, in various sizes and colours....bright pink, bright yellow, bright blue, waiting for some innocent chav thinking they are a trend setter to actually purchase them. In my haste to leave the shop I nearly fell over a display......When suddenly there they were.......goading......mocking me for once owning a pair.....Pink Leg warmers! Arrh!

Hoping it was confided to New Look alone, I escaped into what I considered a more upmarket shop only to find that they too had be infected. At that moment I knew I would see them again, I knew they would raise their ugly head.....I prayed that the general public weren't that stupid, that they had learnt their lesson the last time and burnt every last reminding pair........But today, there they were!.... Walking past me in the Trafford Centre.....The dreaded ski pants!

Now I am convinced it's only a matter of time before I see them again, before someone somewhere digs one out of their wardrobe, dusts it off and sends firefighters everywhere into a blind panic......Before the year is out someone, somewhere in Britain WILL wear a Shell Suit in Public! God help us all!!

The Quarter-Life Crisis..Episode One

I was chatting to my friend in Ghana today, she informed me she is having a "Quarter-Life Crisis." Intrigued and slightly amused I asked her what that was and she sent me a link to a Wikipedia page.... Apparently the quarter-life crisis happens in your twenties to the early thirties.

Characteristics of quarter-life crisis may include:

1. Feeling "not good enough" because one can't find a job that is at one's academic/intellectual level.
2. Frustration with relationships, the working world, and finding a suitable job or career.
3. Confusion of identity.
4. Insecurity regarding the near future.
5. Insecurity concerning long-term plans, life goals.
6. Insecurity regarding present accomplishments.
7. Re-evaluation of close interpersonal relationships.
8. Disappointment with one's job.
9. Nostalgia for university life.
10. Tendency to hold stronger opinions.
11. Boredom with social interactions.
12. Loss of closeness to high school and University friends.
13. Financially-rooted stress (overwhelming college loans)
14. Loneliness.
15. Desire to have children.
16. A sense that everyone is, somehow, doing better than you.
17. Frustration with societal ills.

My friend quickly diagnosed that I had recently been through my "Quarter-Life Crisis" hence, the life changing decisions I have made about my life (I'm going traveling, then leaving nursing and going back to university to study Art) Hmm, I think she could be right!.....It must be true if its on Wikipedia, Right??.....