Let It Snow

Its SNOWING!!!!!!!!

I am so excited! More specifically because it happened just as I was leaving the house - just like in the movies. I couldn't keep the grin of my face. I have seen snow before when I've been skiing and while we were in Austria we had a bit of a light sprinkling but this was different. It was heavier and prettier and wonderful and ok I will stop gushing over precipitation but come on - for an Aussie in London this is one of the perks.

Locals say that I shouldn't get to excited and snow means delays with transport, wet feet, miserable days full of cloud and no daylight. But how can it be so crap when it really is so amazing. It makes everything prettier! And its sooooooo romantic! I just want a Colin Firth type character to come into my life and sweep me off my feet and kiss me in the snow. Ok so yes that is the end scene to Bridget Jones Diary but so what! I still want it to happen.

I want it to keep snowing and snowing so I can go to the park on the weekend and make snow angels, then build a snowman, then have a snow fight and then a hot chocolate and then start all over again. And after thats done I want to find a hill and go sledding and build an ice fort and ALL the stuff you see people do in the movies but you could never do because you live in a stupid place that is hot all the time. Ok I take that back Australia isn't stupid and I actually love our climate but in case you haven't noticed I am actually in LOVE with snow. Yep thats right ice particles have captured my heart.

These couple of photos don't really do it justice as it wasn't actually a massive snow fall that sticks but soon enough hopefully you will be seeing photos of a blanket of white and me running around like a mad person in it. Or wait for a blog entry ranting about how much I hate it? haha we will soon see. Sadly it doesn't seem like it will stick around but hopefully it happens again before Christmas and while we are in Austria.

Walking In A Winter Wonderland

Its getting close to that time of year now and I would have to say the lead up to Christmas is much more exciting in London then it ever was at home. Generally at home I am stressed, tired and cranky as I worked in retail and had to deal with stressed tired and cranky customers. Its usually heating up to the point that you work up a sweat while you put up your fake Christmas tree (since the real ones would die due to the heat). But not this year! This year the lead up to Christmas seems a lot more festive.

London is giving Paris 'The city of lights' a run for its money as many places now have their Christmas lights up and decorations in the windows. People have even put their trees up in their windows so I can see them on my walk home from work. Even the cold weather doesn't seem so bad. This week just gone there was snow forecast (but it never did much to my disappointment) and the highest temperature has been 4 degrees. It has taken a bit of getting used to and I learnt the hard way that you always, always, always need your coat, scarf, beanie, gloves and warm socks. But the benefit of wearing 700 layers and having frozen toes is that Christmas is on its way and this time its going to be white.

Friday was Sammy's birthday so we headed into the Winter Wonderland that had been set up in Hyde Park. We met at a bar in Mayfair which is true to its Monopoly form of being very very expensive and actually a bit of a pain in the arse if you land yourself there. Turns out the bar we met in is owned by Guy Richie and it was absolutely swamped with people which made it hard to get a drink. Luckily we had scored ourselves a table so we were out of the way for most of the jostling at the bar. After a quick drink there we headed off into the cold and wandered across to the park. As soon as I saw the twinkly lights I was hooked. This place WAS a wonderland (for those of us that get excited by shiny things).




First thing on our list of things to do was get something to eat and a mulled wine. About five minutes into the night I lost everyone which could have been a nightmare but luckily I soon found them and got stuck into a bratwurst. Lance had the task of getting us all a mulled wine and I was pretty keen to get into it as I had heard people rave about it before. Turns out its just hot sangria and we all know that I no longer drink sangria due to an overdose in Pamplona. I tried my hardest but after two sips had to give it away (which wasn't hard really) and instead go for a hot chocolate with baileys and whipped cream. I know what your thinking and yes it did taste like a little bit of heaven. It also did a fine job of warming me up just a little.

After a very brief look at the Christmas markets we headed over to where the rides were and stocked up on tokens. Siobhan was planning on being our 'Mum' who stood outside and held all the bags but we convinced her to come on a roller coaster with us. It was a great roller coaster as it was inside and pitch black so you had no idea what was going on. Siobhan didn't seem to like it much and pretty much spent the whole time screaming which was hilarious for us as you can imagine. Next on the rides was a Penguin ride that is similar to the teapcup ride at Disneyland. Basically you just spin the capsule around yourself while it goes around in a bigger circle (possibly the worst description ever but hopefully you get what I mean). Siobhan thought it would be fun because the cute chubby penguins you sat in didn't seem so scary and it was a bit of a kids ride. Well Lance made sure that it was no leisurely spin round the park and spent the whole time turning the penguin so fast we spent another few minutes listening to Siobhan scream.







There were a few more rides including a massive Giant Drop type thing and another crazy spinny ride which Sam, Lance and Fran all attempted but me and Siobhan sat out. We had started to get a bit chilly (ok I was mainly getting chilly) so we ended up calling it a day after that. It turned out it was nearly closing time and we had spent about three hours wandering around enjoying ourselves - time does fly when you are having fun! As we were heading to the yummy looking pizza stall for a quick fix of something warm and tasty I ran into Ness and Arron who were ice skating. It still surprises me that I can run into people I know in the middle of London. Unluckily the yummy looking pizza stall was closed so we grabbed another Baileys hot chocolate (totally on my Christmas food 'must have' list) we headed home. To a heated house and a warm bed.

It was such a good night and yet another great thing going on in this amazing city. It got me so excited about my upcoming white Christmas in Salzburg, Austria. Myself and the Topdeck family and a few of their friends and family have all hired a house in Salzburg where we can spend our time checking out the Christmas markets (I don't think I will ever get sick of them), cosing up next to a fireplace, making snowmen and doing the 'Sound of Music' tour. I can't wait! I'm...dreaming...of a whiiiiiiiiite...christmaaaaaaaaaassssss <3

Forest Row

After five weeks of working seven days a week and the daily grind of commuting and being a grown up and having to actually take care of myself, this weekend just gone I actually got a day off! Claire my friend from work had offered a little while ago that if I ever needed time out I could go out to her house in Forest Row and spend time with her and her family out in the countryside. So needless to say I jumped at the chance to get out of the city and explore some more of the country.

Forest Row is a village about an hours train out of London, past Gatwick Airport in East Sussex. Claire live out there with her parents and brother while she tries to save a bit of cash and decide what her future is (it will be big - that girl is going places but anyway). Laura met me and Claire after work and we headed on the train out to her place. After a quick ride down we met her parents at a pub outside the train station so we could grab the car keys off them. They were off to Brighton for the weekend so we had the house to ourselves for a bit of a girls weekend which was good - although a bit of a shame we didn't really get to chat. Claire drove us home where we got the grand tour and quickly settled in by the fireplace with a glass of wine. We had some good chats about our future career plans over a yummy dinner of vegetarian shepards pie (sooo good!) before heading down to the local pub.

To get down to the local pub we had to wander by torchlight (because there aren't very many street lights) down a few backroads and alleys which was a bit of a mission after a few glasses of wine. Once we got there we found grabbed a drink and found a possie with two big armchairs that were sitting in what was an old fire. It was a really cosy little pub and would be a fantastic local. Unfortunately I didn't meet a Jude Law look alike as expected after watching 'The Holiday' but it was fun all the same. We stayed until last call before heading back out into the cold and then back to Claires for more drinks by the fire.

The next morning after an amazing sleep and a long lie in in a comfy bed and with block out curtains we were treated to a full cooked breakfast. It was such a good lazy morning and I totally appreciated having a day off work. The plan for the day was to check out the Ashdown Forest and have a bit of a ramble around to see the scenery and basically give us an excuse to wear wellingtons (or Gumboots for those at home). We bundled ourselves into lots of layers and warm clothes and popped on our green wellies before driving over to the forest. On the way Claire just casually mentioned that this forest was actually the inspiration for the 'Hundred Acre Wood' made famous by A Milne and his Winne the Pooh characters. As a big fan of Winnie the Pooh from childhood I was pretty chuffed to be going there. Yes I know that I am a dork.





We had a wander around for about an hour and it was so good to get some fresh country air. I love the big city and have never really been one for lots of outdoorsy activities but I've got to say having a ramble around the moors is a good way to spend an afternoon. I think in Oz its always so hot that when you go on a big walk you almost always end up sweaty and gross but over here because its so chilly you can walk around for ages and not even break a sweat. Your still exercising and getting fresh air but you don't end up feeling gross for the rest of the day. We wandered along and took a few photos of the scenery and had fun walking through the mud and water in our wellies - It was like being a kid again! Me and Laura were also excited about the discovery of mole hills (we actually squealed when Claire told us what they were) and Christmas holly just growing wildly. The best part was there was heaps of cute dogs running around and playing in the mud too so I got my fix of dogs for a little while (although if I had my sausage dog with me I would have lost him in the brush ferns).




After a little while in the cold and a good walk we headed back to the car and drove down to a tea room that was on the edge of the forest. The tea room was sooooooooo cute and cosy and just perfect for having a snack and getting out of the weather. We had a 'Sussex Tea' which was a scone with jam and clotted cream and a pot of tea. I don't think you could as for a better way to experience something 'English'.



Unfortunately we couldn't spend the whole weekend down there as I had to work on the Sunday and Laura had a friends leaving do. It was a shame we couldn't have spent a bit more time in a cosy family home (which feels sooooooooooooo good) and spent a bit more time just the girls talking each others ears off. The best thing is Claire has said we are welcome any time so hopefully I can go back out there in the Summer and spend a bit more time in the sunnier and (slightly) warmer weather.

Family Dinner

I have often referred to my Topdeck friends as my London family because I guess thats exactly what they are. They are the ones who took me in while I was couch surfing, who listen to my whinging, cheer me up when I am sad and homesick, cook me dinners and give advice as well as basically just having fun and hanging out. We've had a few family dinners along the way and even a family trip to Scotland. For Christmas as many of us are orphans (with out our Mums and Dads who are at home in Oz or NZ) so we are going as a family to Salzburg in Austria to cuddle up next to a fireplace while it snows outside.



Since leaving each other to go out separate ways in May of this year there hasn't been one night where we all the Topdeckers living in London have been back together until last Tuesday when we had a dinner all together. Amy and Charlie had ended up flatting together so it seemed wise to have a potluck dinner at the 'Topdeck clubhouse'. We all brought around a meal and got straight down to chatting and drinking. With a feast layed out before us of all the different meals we spent the night all catching up on each others goss and planning our trip at Christmas. We will be missing Amy at Christmas as she is off on an adventure to the states but it will still be a great holiday surrounded by friends. I am really looking forward to the time away and I am really happy to be spending it with such good friends. These guys have made the adjustment into life in London a lot easier and I am lucky to already have such a great group of friends a few months into my London adventure.

Work Girls

When I lived in Brisbane I had such a great group of work friends that they ended up being some of my best mates. It was the only downside of leaving my job at home was leaving such good friends. When I got my job at the NMC I was pretty lonely for a while as I was the only one working on my task and wasn't really included in a team. Everyone was friendly enough but I didn't really have any work friends. As we worked in a hot desking office (where you just choose your desk when you arrive at work and log on to the computer and the phones) there was never really anyone next to me except for senior management (boring!).

One day someone sat in Claire spot and the only seat left was next to me. Once she sat there once and we got chatting we ended up getting along so well she never moved again. Since Claire sat there it became easier to have a conversation with the girl on the other side of her Caitriona and we often got chatting through the day. After a few run ins in the lunch room we got chatting to Laura who was a Kiwi hired through the same temp agency as me. The four of us had a couple of Friday nights out on the piss and have now become a bit of a little group and good friends. Which makes work a lot more bearable and less lonely.

A few weekends ago we broke away from tradition and instead of going out to a bar to get pissed - Laura and I went to Caitrionas house for dinner and drinks. It was Guy Forkes night and we had planned to have a quick bite to eat before heading down to a big common to watch the fireworks go off. Due to the dodgy weather (rain! what a surprise in England) we opted instead to just stay in at Caitrionas and have a few drinks there. It was such a good night in with a feast of Chorizo pasta and a few bottles of wine. The only downside was that Caitriona lives a little further away then my usual haunts and it was a bit of a mish to get home when you've had a few. A night bus and the last tube home left me slightly seedy the next morning when I woke up bright and early to go to work at the cafe.

It was such a good night - hopefully sometime soon I can get the girls out here and cook them a meal although lets be honest I need to up my game cooking wise if I am to top the meal we had at Caitrionas. While I love my topdeck crew and enjoy spending time with my housemates its always good to have another group of friends in London. Especially as I get to see two of these girls five days a week they make work a lot more fun which is something my work girls at home did.

Caribbean Night

Yet another fun night in revolving around drinks at food at the Pulborough house. It was Siobhans birthday but instead of heading out and getting on the piss we had a Caribbean night at home. Fran had picked up a cookbook featuring Caribbean food as a bargain along the lines and after much perusing Siobhan picked a few dishes to try out.

Due to a tube strike Siobhan got to work from home so her and Fran spent a good few hours preparing the food before the rest of us got home. We were treated to a feast of spicy chicken wings, coconut and bean rice, pumpkin squash and eggplant mixed with tomato paste and garlic and chunky coleslaw. They also made a creamy fish pie with a sweet potato crust which ended up being one of my favourites even though I usually dont like seafood dishes. To go with this amazing meal we had a pomegranate punch and a few glasses of red wine. It was such a good meal it was hard to resist going back for seconds and thirds but we had so much left over most of us got some for lunch. The photos below don't really do it justice but you can see how much yummy food we had to chose from!




The only downside of this meal was the washing up which ended up taking up the whole kitchen as nearly every pot and pan had been used. We even took turns washing up in shifts. Still it was worth it for an amazing meal. I am lucky to live with such good cooks - I often get to try out some dishes or am lucky enough to get a serve of whatever is going. My contributions so far have been meals that I have wanted to cook from home but are too big to cook for one person like quiches or meatballs. I've also cracked out a lemon slice for home which has been eaten for dessert but I still can't compare to most of the meals I get in return. The benefit of living with such good cooks is that they are happy to help me with cooking questions and I can learn a bit here and there. I will never be as good a cook as my mum but hopefully I am getting better.

Trick or Treat?

This weekend it was Halloween and I was pretty excited about actually celebrating it. Throughout my childhood I think I trick or treated...maybe...once? And since then I've only been to one Halloween party and while that was epic and crazy fun its not the same as celebrating like the Americans do.

Little did I know until I moved here that the English are big into Halloween too which meant a long build up to the weekend and lots of Halloween parties to go to. On the Friday night my friend from work Claire invited me to go to a house party with her so and you guys know I am never one to turn down a party. Especially as all my house mates were going to Shapeshifter and I would have been a sad lonely loser all by myself. I knew I had a party on the Saturday night but didn't want to be an outfit repeater (good god no!) so I had to come up with another outfit that was cheep and cheerful. Luckily for me my housemate Lance offered me a costume that he had tucked away. A full body Crocodile suit. I was a bit skeptical about wearing it as I was going to the party as a random and a bit worried everyone would be like ' who is that weird girl who went WAAAAYYY to hard out?' but once I tried it on and saw how awesome it was I couldn't say no. Plus I had checked with Claire and apparently it was a hard out costume party - awesome! My Favourite!

Claire was planning on going as Charlie Chaplin and had sourced everything for the outfit from her friends and brothers - all but the bowler hat. Since I lived nearby to the party the plan was we would drop by the costume shop on the way to mine for pre drinks and then head over to the party. The only hitch in this plan was when we arrived at the costume shop there was a line up out the door and security manning the queue so the chances of us getting a bowler hat before closing time were slim - If there were any left at all!

We headed back to mine and opened a bottle of wine while we tried to work out a costume for Claire. Shea was heading back to mine after work as she needed to crash for a little while as she is still trying to find somewhere to stay and she called to let me know I was going to be late. When I told her that it didn't matter and we were still sourcing a costume and she came to the rescue and told us she could steal some from work. Shea works for a creche and they had all dressed up so she pinched a couple of outfits and made her way to our place. When she arrived Claire had the option of a Witch or a Devil. She popped on the red dress with a headband with horns plus a pair of my fishnet tights and Voila! A Devil costume in five minutes! Once we were all set we headed down the road and jumped on a bus as a Crocodile (Me), The devil (Claire) and Little Red Riding Hood (Shea) and since Halloween wasn't until Sunday we did still look slightly out of place.




After getting a little bit lost on the way there and getting approached by a random stranger asking if we were going to 'Arties and Mikes - cuz its fancy dress there' ( we were actually going to Kirsty's so we were like ahhhhhhhh no) and then we dodged the gang that hangs outside the building we finally arrived at the party. The host Kirsty was dressed up as Diana Ross and her housemate was Cleopatra and they were hard out so I needed had worried about being over costumed. We hit the punch and got chatting away and spent the night awing at costumes such as Banana Man, Bill and Ben the flower pot men, two Amy Winehouses, Alice in Wonderland and Hermione. There was also a group of nerd/banker/braniac looking people in suits, glasses and laptop bags and after much consideration and stalking we realized they were actually nerds, bankers, and brainiacs. It was a good party and we managed to have mad chats with and meet heaps of cool people but as it was getting late and we both me and Shea had to work the next day me we headed home.

At work on Saturday I was pretty tired and slightly cranky as you are when you have to work the weekend and I was having a really bad day at work. Nothing dramatic but you know those kinds of days when nothing seems to go right. Three o'clock couldn't come soon enough and as soon as it hit I grabbed my tips and ran out the door. I stopped by the local shopping centre to pick up some groceries and last minute things for my costume before heading home. Once I walked in the door I was treated to a complete change of house. My housemates had been busy at work decorating our house for the upcoming Halloween party. They had put black sacks up on the walls to darken the living room, spread cobwebs across the ceiling, put up spiders and skeletons and even changed all the lightbulbs to red. In the back yard they had made us all each a gravestone which looked so good later on that night with candles lit underneath them. I got home just in time to check out the decorations, devour a chip sandwich and start getting ready and into my costume.



While my housemates had all gone to the effort of decorating the house I had felt a bit guilty as I wasn't even really able to attend the party as I was going to my friend Clares from topdeck. It was her birthday weekend as well as Halloween so there was no better excuse then to have a party. It was so good to catch up with all the Topdeckers as working two jobs has left my social life to a minimum. There was a coven of Witches as me, Leanne and Toni had all dressed up as Witches but there was some other pretty awesome costumes. The birthday girl had gone as a devil and Sean had a full body skeleton jumpsuit which was amazing but also a bit of a hinderance as it involved gloves and a full mask. Shea had opted to go as a vampire as she had a left over outfit from the creche so we all made a pretty good group. Sean and Clare had done a great job on decorating with candles as mood lighting and skeletons hanging everywhere. We also had Halloween themed jelly shots - ok they were just orange but STILL! JELLY SHOTS! Unfortunately having to work the next day made my night end early but before me and Shea had to leave we got to give Clare her pressies and try the birthday cupcakes Leanne had made for her.



I should have known better that I wouldn't have had an early night as I got back to my house around midnight and found our party in full swing. People were dancing on in the living room and drinking out in the garden and basically if you can't beat them join them. We had a bit of a boogie and one more drink and met a few of my housemates friends that I hadn't yet got the chance to meet. It was good to party with my housemates too as we were all pretty pissed by this stage and had a bit of a boogie on the dance floor. As it was the wee hours of the morning we were actually awake when the clocks went back so I got an extra hour of sleeping time. Once I realised this I could get an extra hour in bed that is exactly where I headed. I had a couple of crashers in my room though with someone on the couch and my bed being shared between three so I didn't think I would get much sleep. About five minutes later I was fast asleep.



I woke up at around 7am to find people still chilling in my loungeroom as they hadn't gone to bed yet. What troopers. I grabbed a bit of brekky and headed out the door for an 8am start. Yuck. Who wants to go out for breakfast at 8am on a Sunday let alone work then. Stupid customers. Thankfully as it was raining/halloween/whatever it was quiet in the cafe and I got to come home early. It was a blissful feeling walking through my door and knowing I had a whole afternoon of nothingness ahead of me. Once again I was treated to something good when I walked through the door and found myself in the middle of a roast chicken being served up. Home cooked roast after being tired/hungover/working 7 days a week is amazing. A quick afternoon clean up of my room followed by four loads of washing resulted in me lazing on the couch for the rest of the arvo.

It was a pretty good way to end the weekend until we kept getting heaps of knocking on our door. We live in a family area with lots of little kids around so we were disturbed by trick or treaters every two minutes. We had run out of lollies from the party and had nothing to give them. After Shea ducking to the shop on her way home to get some lollies we thought we would be ok. We went through two packets in about 45 minutes. It got so constant we had to put a sign on our front door saying that we had run out of 'sweets' (as they call them). Thankfully this worked and we got to go back to watching Casper the friendly ghost (Premium Halloween viewing) in peace.

Locked Out

For the last few Friday nights I've been heading out for a few cheap cocktails and drinks with the girls from work which has been so much fun and the perfect way to the end the week. A couple of Fridays ago I decided to change it up though and went with my Pulborough crew to the greyhound races that were down at Wimbledon.

Fran had found us a deal where we got entry into the venue, a drink voucher, food voucher and betting voucher all for 10 quid which was an absolute bargain considering that entry is usually 5 quid. I've never been to the greyhound races so I wasn't sure what to expect but once we got in there and grabbed a drink and put on the first bet it wasn't long before I realised how much fun (and how addictive) betting on the dogs can be. We grabbed a possie up on the grandstand and sussed out the betting form trying to work out which ones to bet on. I used my voucher to bet on my first dog (1 pound each way - watch out high roller!) and he won! Yay! So I reinvested in a couple more races and each dog in those won too! After a pretty much free meal and drink thanks to the voucher I was pretty much coming out on top. I left the dogs with the same amount of money I went in with but managed to have a pretty great night. After a pit stop at a pub nearby to warm ourselves up before getting the bus home it was fairly early night with us getting in the door around midnight.

The next day I had my first day off in two weeks as the cafe had been kind enough to give me a bit of a break but instead of sleeping in I was up bright and early to have a conference call with my girls from home. It was well worth waking up early for even if I was slightly seedy. I didn't mind so much as I had all day to be lazy and what a day I had planned - get up do my washing/tidy my room, duck down to the shops to get a costume for an upcoming party, hit the library then head home to have several million cups of tea while I watched the Pride and Prejudice with Colin Firth (soooo dreamy...). Pretty solid plan right? Good way to spend a lazy day and not spend much money.

There was a slight hitch though - after a quick trip down to the shop to find a Halloween costume and popping to the library and stocking up on books I arrived at my front door to realise I had forgotten my keys. Oh well I will just call my housemate who is out for lunch and go pick them up. Oh wait. I've left my phone at home too. F&%* What do I do?

So I ended up rumminging in my back for paper and pen and putting a note on the door basically saying ' please come find me I'm such a loser' and heading up to Starbucks to wait it out. I bought one hell of a massive drink and sat there and read. Luckily for me I had been to the library and do love a good read in a coffee shop. Unluckily for me my housemates still hadn't gotten home and Starbucks closed fairly early. So I trudged back down to my doorstep and decided to sit there and read because surely my housemates weren't going to be out that much longer?

About an hour an a half later (and most of a book) the sun was going down and they sky's opened and I got rained out. It was this stage after four and a bit hours of waiting I decided to abandon my shopping and the library books under cover of my stoop and make the walk down to the local tavern and drown my sorrows. Armed with a red wine, dinner and a book I sat and read in a comfy chair until my house mate came to save me. Around 7pm - five hours after I got home and realised I was locked out I was saved by Lance who came to get me and laugh at me. I got home and had a shower and sat down and ate chocolate, watched a girly movie and felt sorry for myself.

The worst part about a wasted day was that many of my London friends were away in Cardiff for a weekend away so I literally had no ones door I could turn up and hope they were home. They were lovely enough to call me and check in and tell me about their day and while I was happy they were having a great time I was like ' WHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYYY? MEEEEEE!' and got a little emo about it all(In fact I'm still fairly emo about it all). This was remedied by a girls night in with my house mate and her cousin which was basically tea and movies - just a few hour delayed on when I planned on doing it.

It was so depressing going to work the next day as I had no exciting stories to tell. No I didn't go out, no I didn't go away, no I didn't see any of London and no I didn't save any money. In fact I had to spend around 15 quid on food and drink just so I had somewhere warm to sit. My day was brightened though when Sam and Lance came down to work to visit me when I finished. After a quick browse through the shops with them we headed home to a promise of home made lasagna by Siobhan (I really do have awesome house mates)as we were turning up to the door I was like ' Don't worry guys! I've got my keys - totally learnt my lesson!' and after a prolonged rummage around in my back I discovered I didn't have them at all and yes in fact I hadn't learnt my lesson and I had left them sitting on my bookshelf. *sigh* Needless to say I am a bit more proactive about not leaving my keys behind but I really do need to sort out some kind of system. The upside is it could have been a lot worse. What if I had left my wallet AND my keys AND my phone at home? Or worst my OYSTER CARD? Thats what I tell myself anyways when I realize I will work the next 28 days straight!