cyberspace junkyard

I am rather excited by the new India.Arie album being released next week. To celebrate this momentous occasion in the life of Vron, here's a trip down sentimental lane - lyrics from one of my favourite songs of hers. Enjoy!

Ready for love

I am ready for love
Why are you hiding from me
I'd quickly give my freedom
To be held in your captivity

I am ready for love
All of the joy and the pain
And all the time that it takes
Just to stay in your good grace

Lately I've been thinking
Maybe you're not ready for me
Maybe you think I need to learn maturity
They say watch what you ask for
Cause you might receive
But if you ask me tomorrow
I'll say the same thing

I am ready for love
Would you please lend me your ear?
I promise I won't complain
I just need you to acknowledge I am here

If you give me half a chance
I'll prove this to you
I will be patient, kind, faithful and true
To a man who loves music
A man who loves art
Respects the spirit world
And thinks with his heart

I am ready for love
If you'll take me in your hands
I will learn what you teach
And do the best that I can

I am ready for love
Here with an offering of
My voice
My eyes
My soul
My mind

Tell me what is enough
To prove I am ready for love
I am ready

The door closes softly, gently
Finality echoes through the silence
The end of a night
The end of an era

Where laughter once reigned
Now memories
Where ideas sprang to life
Now distance

The bond between us never dies
Shimmering across time and space
The start of chapter
The start of a new day

Well, it's over. My final official duty as Creative Arts Director at my church ended as the last of my leaders rose after a satisfying meal and fellowship, stepped across the threshold and journeyed back to the Hills.

I feel sadder than I thought I would. Part of me wants to keep holding on, to keep me hand in here and there and influence things. But I know I have to let go - to let these leaders that I've raised up and trained find their own way in the ministry and use their own passions and gifts for God.

The next time I see them at a major Creative Arts event, I'll be sitting in the congregation at Christmas Eve, cheering them on as they see their hard work come to fruition and enjoying their ministry which will encourage me and point me to God. Two years of sowing and watering has left a legacy which I didn't realise until tonight and I know it was all God's work.

*sigh*

Thanks to yet another online quiz

Your view on yourself:
You are down-to-earth and people like you because you are so straightforward. You are an efficient problem solver because you will listen to both sides of an argument before making a decision that usually appeals to both parties.

The type of girlfriend/boyfriend you are looking for:
You are not looking merely for a girl/boyfriend - you are looking for your life partner. Perhaps you should be more open-minded about who you spend time with. The person you are looking for might hide their charm under their exterior.

Your readiness to commit to a relationship:
You prefer to get to know a person very well before deciding whether you will commit to the relationship.

The seriousness of your love:
You are very serious about relationships and aren't interested in wasting time with people you don't really like. If you meet the right person, you will fall deeply and beautifully in love.

Your views on education
Education is very important in life. You want to study hard and learn as much as you can.

The right job for you:
You have plenty of dream jobs but have little chance of doing any of them if you don't focus on something in particular. You need to choose something and go for it to be happy and achieve success.

How do you view success:
You are afraid of failure and scared to have a go at the career you would like to have in case you don't succeed. Don't give up when you haven't yet even started! Be courageous.

What are you most afraid of:
You are afraid of things that you cannot control. Sometimes you show your anger to cover up how you feel.

Who is your true self:
You are mature, reasonable, honest and give good advice. People ask for your comments on all sorts of different issues. Sometimes you might find yourself in a dilemma when trapped with a problem, which your heart rather than your head needs to solve.

We have two new people starting at my work today. Cue the whooping, welcome lunches and general excitement. We are a relatively small company, after all. Did I mention how much nicer Malay laksa is than Thai laksa? I was reminded of that today at one of the welcome lunches. Too bad Neutral Bay is overrun with Thai restaurants and not a single Malay place! But I digress.

Given the size of the human population (a few billion!) and the Sydney population (over 5 million), we really shouldn't be saying "it's such a small world!" as often as we do, huh? Strange thing is, I know one of the new starters personally (friend of a friend) and the other new starter has the same name (first name and surname) of my first boyfriend. It's such a small world!

And speaking of coincidences...
Funny, funny. Thanks to Clem

Today has been a day of coincidences. I love coincidences! As my friends can attest, I make a regular declaration about how 28 is my ideal age. I don't know why, but as long as I can remember, I've wanted to be 28. I now have the indisputable, scientifically rock-solid proof! Hehe...

You Are 28 Years Old

20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences.

Well, not gone... just restyled.

Is it wrong to get so excited about a haircut? After all, it's just hair. It must be the years and years of conditioning by my mum and grandmother (when she was still alive) about how important hair was, crowning glory, first thing people notice, yada yada yada. Unfortunately, I suffer from the "can't-be-bothered"s 90% of the time!

To cut a long story short, after a short 6 month trial of blunt cut hair (no layers), I'm back with the layers. And I've fallen in love with my hairdresser.

No, not like that. She's a girl.

No, not like that either!

Anyways... I did some research online (as per usual!) and printed out the cut I wanted. I must have called 4 different hairdressers near my work - all went straight to voicemail except for Planet Hair. It was meant to be.

An Asian guy with an impossible accent booked me in for 10:30am. When I got there, I was pleasantly surprised by all the hairdressing goodness. A personal Japanese stylist, Sonoe. Motorised chairs and basins. Head, shoulder and back massages. Weird face towelette thing to stop the splash. Sweepy side fringe. Dry cuts! (I love dry cuts!). Nice, nice people. And last but not least - a great style cut!

Me happy Vron. Vron who will lose 20 minutes of precious daily sleep due to maintanence of said style, but happy nonetheless.

1. Green olives stuffed with anchovies. Mmmmm...
2. Spending time with my family expressing our mutual outrage at the decline of Australian Idol
3. Alfafa. Don't ask.
4. Reading or watching Trashy TV, namely: Grey's Anatomy, Australian Princess
5. Romance e-books

I've been getting a perverse sense of glee when watching episodes of the latest Reality TV show to hit our airwaves. Yes, our very own Australian Princess. What joy, what rapture.

Actually, it's been a very amusing and guiltily addictive way to spend an hour (especially when you're away at a conference!) I had to stop and think... these girls get constant advice on hair, make-up, clothing, history (albeit British royal history), etiquette, behaviour - and they still manage to stuff up? It is just too too much fun. And yesterday's episode with the girls fighting over some high-brow, low-morals British aristocrats? I was doubled over giggling. No... just no.

My predictions for the next eliminations are, in order, Laura K, Abby, Wendy - leaving Ally as the winner. Why do I even care?

For the 3rd time in a month, Melbourne will once more be graced with my presence, this time for 4 day stay. The bonus? Free internet (we're sponsoring the Internet Cafe at an industry conference). The downside? All the work that I just know will be piling up for me when I get back to the Sydney office next week. Joy.

On a reflective note, I was wondering this morning - when did I transition from having a parent-child relationship to having a friends-business partner relationship with my mum? I think it happened while my back was turned. Aside from the times when dad packs my lunch or mum picks out my clothes (hey, it's a perk!), it's kinda weird to see your parents in a different light - where you get to find out what makes them tick. Interesting...

In the last 2 weeks, I've discovered...

Pride & Prejudice:
- was better than expected
- pleasantly surprised me with the casting (great chemistry all round, age-appropriate sisters, and overall flow (the cuts and omissions worked, IMHO)
- disappointed me with some of the dialogue
- made me laugh out loud several times (a good thing!)

Serenity:
- was right up my alley
- pleasantly surprised me with the plot (great story-telling as usual, Joss)
- disappointed me with the TV episode feel and lack of Kaylee good-ness
- made me purchase the Firefly TV series box set

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory:
- was colourful
- pleasantly surprised me with Charlie's family
- disappointed me with the lack of flow
- made me wonder if the pop-culture references were written into the script or a result of Johnny Depp improvising