Five little known facts about Curly K

My eccentric Spanish friend Manuel Stimulation has tagged me to reveal five little known facts about myself so here goes:

1. I was once caught with my knickers down at my knees in public! I was about seven or eight at the time and we'd been sent down the road to look for a missing dog or child, I honestly can't remember. Anyway off we went in search of the missing being and got to the end of our road and onto the next road where there was a factory located at the time. We went into the field where the factory was and I needed to wee really badly so with a little encouragement from the others I assumed the position and was mid pee when a man from the factory came around the corner to move us out of the field - die! I don't think I've ever been as embarrassed since!
2. I was pretty much a goody goody at school and never mitched or got in trouble with the teachers. I only got put in detention once for not cleaning the classroom when rostered to do so and that only happened because it was the first day back after the holidays and I honestly didn't know I was supposed to!
3. I once lost out on a pay-rise because I went out for a drink with a guy - that drink cost me about £2,000 IR. I was on a business trip abroad with my boss and clients and this guy had joined our company several times and offered to show us around as he was working in the country on a long-term contract. At the time the clients said "You go, you're the young one in the group, us oldies aren't interested..." my boss agreed with the clients and said I should go but I subsequently learned, after I had left the company that she held back my pay-rise because I had gone out for the drink!!!
4. I've recently developed a slight sunglasses fetish - hey when you're fat with broad feet it's a hell of a lot easier than having a shoe or clothes fetish!
5. Sometimes when my brain is in overdrive and I'm having a thinking overload day I wonder if I'm normal - is that normal?

So there you have it, five little known facts about me, clearly not as exciting as Manuel's but what can I do! I therefore tag CatGirl, Conor, Paige, Doris and Omani. Feel free not to do it and likewise if I haven't tagged you and you would like to share with the group go ahead!

Reflect & Review!

So on my return to blogging after my short sojourn I was going through some old posts and came upon a post from January 2006 where I listed some of the things I needed to do then and I decided to go through it and see where I'm at. I certainly can't be accused of over-doing things by the looks of it;

• Finish report one, which is in draft form, for work - CHECK
• Decide what clothes etc. I need to take on my forthcoming work trip (I always aim to travel as light as possible) and ensure all the clothes that I need to bring are clean and ready to go - CHECK
• Start three other reports for work that are way, way, way overdue - CHECK
• Clean my house from top to bottom (as I've mentioned before housework ain't my forte in life) before Kim & Aggie seriously come to visit - CHECK BUT NOW DUE AGAIN
• Write a reference that someone asked me for ages ago - CHECK
• Visit my friends that live up the country and I haven't seen in too long - CHECK
• Attend for a necessary blood test that is at least two months overdue - CHECK BUT DUE AGAIN
• Do a serious de-clutter on my wardrobe and everywhere else - PART CHECK, LIKE IRISH RAIL - A LOT DONE, A LOT MORE TO DO!!!
• Get my car door fixed (not my fault, some blind prat reversed into me!) - CHECK (WELL SOMEONE ELSE'S PROBLEM NOW!)
• Change my mortgage to obtain better rate of interest (better get someone who could be bothered to understand all that double dutch about interest rates to come with me) - CHECK TO FIRST PART
• Find someone who could be bothered to understand all that rubbish about interest rates - IN THE END SOME THINGS YOU'RE BETTER OFF DOING YOURSELF!
• Trade-in my car for a newer model - CHECK, CHECK, CHECK - BETSY IS A BEAUTY!
• Call a plumber / fix-it person to repair the boiler, install my oven (it's a long story but suffice to say I don't bake a lot!!), repair what I suspect is leak in my attic, put up a blind and some shelve (oh and ALL my photos and pictures) and fix my outside light. - CHECK TO OVEN ONLY - WELL NO POINT IN RUSHING INTO THESE THINGS!
• Get someone to redesign some of the storage in my kitchen, whoever designed the current one obviously has never stood in a kitchen - it just doesn't work! - AS IF THIS WOULD BE CHECKED WHEN THERE IS SO MUCH STILL OUTSTANDING!
• Get the window cleaner and chimney cleaners in - ENTAILS CLEANING INSIDE OF WINDOWS AND INDEED THE WHOLE HOUSE FIRST MYSELF SO A DECIDED NO!
• Ensure guttering is mended and cleaned - I THINK YOU KNOW WHERE I'M GOING ALREADY - AS IF!
• Buy a dishwasher - AS ABOVE
• Buy a garden shed - AS ABOVE ALTHOUGH HAVE ACTUALLY STARTED TO CHECK INTO THIS ONE
• Buy a new computer - HARDLY YET - STILL TRYING TO DECIDE WHICH BROADBAND TO CHOOSE WHEN USING THE LAPTOP
• Plant my garden for the spring - WHAT DO YOU THINK?
• Go to the physio for my back as advised by the bleedin doctor - COULDN'T I SPEND THE TIME I'D SPEND IN PYSIO OUT SOCIALISING OR SOME OTHER SUCH WORTHY USE?
• Lose weight - DOES CUTTING YOUR TOENAILS AND HAIR COUNT ON THIS SCORE?
• Get healthy - I ATE THE OBLIGATORY SALAD THAT CAME WITH MY STEAK AND CHIPS IN THE RESTAURANT THE OTHER NIGHT, DOES THAT COUNT???
• Give up the cigarettes - PLEASE, HOW ELSE COULD I WASTE SO MUCH MONEY IF I DID?
• Try to meet a funny, charming man with a mind and personality - CHECK AT PRESENT- HOORAH, HOORAH, HOORAH!

Guess some day I'll become organised, efficient and a complete health & cleaning freak - live in hope, die in despair as they say!!

Six months, where have they gone?

I said I would be back, didn't think I'd be away for so long but hey c'est la vie! Curly K is back in the blogosphere! So, where did I go for six months (I can't believe it has been that long!)? Well, work was busy, dial-up is a pain in the arse and I was trying to sort several things out (changing mortgage, buying a car....), thought I'd get a lot more done in the time but that's the story of my life!

Firstly, apologies to those who I have really missed but not kept up with as I've not been online; CatGirl; Omani; JL; Doris; Conor; Treasa; et al; your blogs are part of the reason it's taken me so long to come back, I felt I should have kept up daily and didn't - so where does one pick up? The longer you leave it the more guilty you feel and the more work to catch up you believe you have. So for now I've decided I'll just try again from the start and play catch-up as and when I can.

I hear the Blog Awards were brilliant (how could I have missed Conor O'Neill dancing whilst inebriated??) Also, it seems there are lots of great new blogs I have to get to read but all in good time.

So what have I been up to? Good question - here goes. Changed mortgage - nightmare which went on for months. Initially was going with EBS via a general finance broker - they (EBS) broke my heart; to be fair if I'd gone via the local EBS broker it would have been fine but alas I didn't do so chosing, as I thought at the time, the best possible option in an independent broker. But EBS corporate in their fatcat headquaters had other ideas; put her through the mill, ask every in-depth question you can think off and then tell her fuck that - you have to pay the fees we said we would pay. Two months after the ordeal began!!! Two good things I can say about the whole experience, the broker I dealt with had the decency not to charge me for house valuation that they had paid for as they recognised the shit I'd been through and most importantly the fact that local banking/mortgaging etc. is best. I cannot speak highly enough about the manager of my local TSB, a gentleman, efficient, easy to deal with and talk to and a breath of fresh air in mortgage application terms! All sorted in less than a week as opposed to almost three months with EBS corporate and nothing but being treated like a leper to show for the trauma!

So mortgage change in place I did what I thought I'd never do; I bought a spanking new car - Betsy II - a Seat Ibiza 1.2 Metallic Black and a complete beauty! She is fantastic everything I hoped for and more!

Further to my post of the 23rd August last year (scary) I went on my date, met a fantastic guy and have been seeing him since! He's clever (sometimes too clever!), funny, attractive, doesn't talk for the sake of talking (unlike me!) and intriguing. We're very different which is brilliant sometimes and challenging for us both at other times! It's really good to be able to sit beside someone in silence for a long time and feel comfortable, it can also drive me to distraction as he can sit without saying anything for a hell of a lot longer than I can! When we're good, we're really good, as for when we're not; we could drive each other to distraction by our misinterpretation of our differences to the other!

Work has been really busy and I'm glad I don't have to travel again for a wee while, arriving home to Dublin Airport on the 22nd of December was not my idea of fun! I'm waiting anxiously for several friends to have their babies, get engaged... and the best news for me right now (friends impending births notwithstanding of course!) is that I'm finally getting on a sun holiday after four years! I can't wait!

Do let me know what you guys have been up to! Talk soon.

Technorati Tags: Curly K Seat Ibiza Blog Awards

Photo (c) http://www.seat.ie/

Curly K lives!

Apologies for the lack of posts in the last week or so but things have been hectic here in Curly K land. Between organising conferences, travelling to Europe for work and even a few dates thrown in for good measure, I haven't had time to blog or more importantly catch up on my favourite blogs!

Fear not, Curly K will be fully back in the blogosphere in the next few days when I eventually get my desk cleared (or a little clearer at any rate!)

Touching base

Just a quick post to let ye know that unlike Paige and Pippa I've not decided to leave the blogosphere - come back you two and quick smart! Hopefully Omani and some of my other favourites who've not posted in a while are simply taking time out and will not go the route of Paige and Pippa.

For me, it's just been a very busy week with work and one thing and another and the next two weeks ain't looking any less busy. But I will try to do a proper post asap (with all the juicy gossip!) and indeed get back to commenting on my favourite blogs when I can get sorted out, although the change to beta-blogger has become more of an issue re commenting in the last day or so!

Will hopefully get a chance to catch up with ye all and with what's going on with ye, in the next few days but bear with me as will be out of town for most of this week and indeed next week.

Beta Blogger

Currently having some problems commenting on my favourite blogs so bear with me folks. I am still dropping by, via bloglines etc. Plus I haven't got around to putting some new blogs I'm visiting up here but will get around to it eventually.

Sorry but that is just plain weird!

Watching a programme on Channel Five right now and the people in it are weird to say the least. They are practising Attachment Parenting, where a lot of them are just 100% devoting all their time to parenting their children. Giving up work, breastfeeding on demand till whatever age the child wants to stop, home-schooling, never giving out to their children; using persuasion only, not using prams or cots; constantly carrying their children and even practising something called Elimination Communication where they never use nappies and let the kids just poop and pee everywhere.

Sorry but that's just plain weird, as well as ultimately being extremely unfair on the children. They will get some shock when they go out into the real world and realise that it doesn't actually revolve around them, the way that their parents have lead them to believe!

Technorati Tags: Attachment Parenting

Being an imitidating woman apparently

There are always moments in life that make us sit up and take notice and tonight I had one of them- I was talking to a woman who is slightly older than me and whom I have the utmost of respect for. She married a younger man when she was older than I currently am - but yet tonight she informed me to be careful, that I am intimidating to men! Not a position I'd ever considered myself to be in, to be quite frank! What worries me about the allegation is the sneaking suspicion that she is probably right!!

Now whilst I've never, ever thought of myself as a shrinking violet, likewise I've never thought of myself as a 110% gung ho woman who is intimadating to men!

But apparently I am, which: came as a surprise to me. Now, as I mentioned earlier, I don't exactly labour under the illusion that I'm girly girl or a sex goddess but I was knocked for six to be informed that I am perceived as ultimately very intimidating with regard to relationships to the vast majority of men in my social and work circle . And not only that but the remainder of guys in my social circle, could, apparently be forgiven for presuming that I'm simply one of the guys!!!

So my question is very simple; if you're not a girly girl. If fluttering your eyelids is something you don't do, unless you've a fly in your eye - where do you position yourself?

Where do you fit in if you're not a fluffy girly, girl but equally you're not a lesbian or a woman who does not want relationship?

I soo don't do fluffy: and what was clarified for me tonight is the fact that men actually find me either really intimidating or really amusing, as in, one of the lads!

My problem is that whilst I am a 100% hetrosexual woman I fail consistently to be anything approaching what men apparently consider to be either their ideal woman or approachable enough to meet them half-way - apparently what I am, with regard to men, is intimidating!

UPDATE: Mental note to self, do not post on blog in the early hours of the morning when drunk!

Good manners cost nothing

If there's one thing I can't stand it's really bad manners. Now I am not talking about watching all your P & Qs and all that etiquette stuff. I'm talking about down to earth simple things like please and thank you. It costs nothing but some drivers have just no manners especially when pulling out into the road.

If I stop to let you out please at least put your hand up to say thanks, it's not much to ask. I've been polite enough to stop, all you have to do is put your hand up, you mindless moron. But of course you won't especially if you're the type of driver that has never heard about the fact that there are indicators on the car for a bleedin reason or if you're one of those gobshites who believes that driving your car halfway out into the road is going to force me to let you out. That simply turns your behaviour into bullying as well as bad-mannered.

Be nice, it doesn't cost anything, won't take oodles of your obviously precious time and would make the roads more enjoyable for everybody.

End of rant.

Technorati Tags: Driving Good Manners

Lovely night

Well met my date last night for a drink. Not going to go into how we met yet, too complicated ;-). We met in a quiet local pub and it was a very pleasant evening. Conversation was easy and he's really good company. Apart from the fact that we had very different accents (he's English) and had to repeat one or two things the conversation flowed all night. Also, quite funny cos he's very skinny and I'm so not - what's it they say about opposites?

Will be meeting again soon I think. Watch this space.

Ssshhh!

Don't tell anyone but Curly K has a date tomorrow night - whey hey! Don't want to say too much right now but happy, happy days. Apart from the former Mr. Right Now I haven't had a date in over a year - jesus my mojo has doubled to dates two a year. If I keep going at this rate by the time I'm sixty I'll never have a night in!!!

Anyway, watch this space............................................and keep everything ye have crossed for me!

Coming on holiday, do you speak Irish sir????

Just after watching the 9 o'clock news on RTE and can't believe what I've heard. This country is gone f**king mad. Excuse the language but seriously - An Bord Pleanala have apparently put a condition on a planning permission for a holiday home in An Cheathrú Rua. The condition is that anyone who will stay in the house for longer than a month must pass an Irish test. Now, whilst I understand the problem with the massive increase in holiday homes and the obvious detrimental effect that it can have on a community - how does putting a stupid clause about the Irish language into planning permissions help the situation? If that clause is put onto all new holiday homes in Gaeltacht areas effectively people cannot go and stay there for more than a month unless they are native Irish speakers. So, if I want to go on holiday for five weeks to An Cheathrú Rua, effectively as a native Irish person who doesn't speak Irish I can't go - yeah now that's logical!

Surely a tax on homes that are built solely as holiday homes would make more sense, it could be implemented on all such homes without creating the ludicrous situation that makes it impossible for tourists or non-irish speaking people to stay in the Gaeltacht for more than four weeks.

Technorati Tags: An Cheathru Rua An Bord Pleanala Irish

Subscribing to blogs & blog abbreviations??

You'd think by now that I'd worked out all the basics but still haven't gotten around to looking into subscribing to other blog feeds so any visiting I do is via web page (even from dial-up sometimes) shock, horror! So decided to ask before I do anything, what is the best way to subscribe to feeds? Might as well do it right first time.

Also, does anyone know if there's a comprehensive list of acronyms and abbreviations that are used in blogging to be found anywhere? Sometimes when I'm reading other peoples blogs I feel thick as shit, 'cos I don't know what the abbreviations stand for!

Technorati Tags: Blogging Blog Subscriptions Blog Abbreviations

Classically good-looking need not apply!

It's a long time since my very wise aunt told me "never go for really good-looking blokes; they've never had to work on their personalities" Her advice has always stuck with me and the wisdom of her words has slapped me in the face a few times.

But tonight I realised that as a general rule I've been equally, if not more, attracted to small guys; like all women who are not skinny or easily placed within the given template for what constitutes an attractive woman, in general small men have to know who they are and have something other than looks to offer. They do not slot easily into the common template of what is supposedly attractive in a man.

I realise that there a lot of men out there who are not attracted to a woman who is not you're classic beauty but likewise there are men who deeply dislike the current dictate of extremely skinny women as the supposedly ideal woman.

Likewise some of the fairer sex, me included, don't idolise the supposedly extremely handsome, six foot guys with a fabulous six pack (to some of us a six pack contains beer and rightly so!!!). Some of us prefer guys who are maybe not as classically handsome but have a hell of a lot to offer - vive la difference! Small, bald, no six pack - whatever, the art of conversation; a lack of arrogance; and a winning smile is sooo much more attractive!

Architecture

Modernism, post-modernism, Prince Charles' famous speech about the carbuncle that was the addition to the British National Gallery in days gone by! Being Curly K is not always easy but the great thing about it, is that, having arrived home after 2am in the morning and after at least 8 gin & tonics I end up watching and enjoying a programme about British Architecture. Points of note are as follows:

• I would love this programme just as much (and probably more) stone-cold sober
• Architecture is such a massively important part of the creative/arts world as well as being a critical part of an evolving society
• Society must embrace the joy of old, but not quite old enough, architecture that is currently being ripped out of the heart of Irish and British towns - not one with a great gra (love) for the Irish language but I must state the obvious on behalf of beleagured architectural styles; their day will come!

Is Friday again!

I get that sweetest feeling, honey the sweetest feeling......la la la la. It's Crunchie time again, thirty eight minutes and the weekend begins again officially. Who knows what it'll bring :-) !

Have a good one y'all

Bloody Jamster!

Is it just me or is Jamster the most annoying fucking pop-up website out there at the minute. Everytime I try to look at new blogs or even look for something simple on the net there it is - fucking pop-up of the century!!!

God help me but I'd love to wring Jamster's neck, if it has one!

End of rant.

How do I remove scratches from CDs?

I've managed to scratch a brand new CD quite badly - duh!!! Anyone got any tips on how to remedy the situation? It was the first bleedin time I played the damn thing!

Also, excuse any funny things going on with the blog at the moment - have just switched to the new Beta Blogger and currently playing around with it to see how it works!

Technorati Tags: CDs Repair Beta Blogger

The rise and rise of RoySeven.......

RoySeven are a fantastic Irish band who are on the way up - fast! They've been signed by Universal and their first single "Older" is due for release on the 8th September and they are playing Whelans on the 25th August to launch the single. Paul Walsh, their lead singer has a fantastic voice and his lyrics are wonderful.

Hotpress spoke very favourably about them back in June;

"One band to agree are fellow Dubliners Roy Seven, formely known as Jove, who have got their just desserts after playing a string of highly acclaimed shows around the capital. Their place of residence didnt stop them attracting interest from as far east as Universal Germany. "Basically someone tipped off Universal Germany, they came to see us one night in Crawdaddy, put their money where their mouth was, and that was that," explains frontman Paul Walsh. My, he makes it sound so easy. "It's cool because there's a great history of Irish bands who sign thier deal outside of Ireland and then come back, or who have made it somewhere else first. Ourselves, we signed a worldwide deal, so we're not focusing on one country". Being signed by a label as far abeit as Germany, is it diffcult to attact a similiar buzz in Dublin? "I don't think it's difficult," he answers. "The cream will always rise. If you're good, you're good. People will acknowledge that. In Ireland as a whole though, it's much more marketing and TV-Led. If you're frok down the country and you do The Late Late Show, then your famous, no two ways about it",!!! What will be their first step as signed artists? "The best thing about the deal is that we had the album written and ready to go, so it's out in July. We knew what we wanted and they essentially gave us the money and left us to it,". Epic and grandstanding in the vein of Muse, RoySeven's debut album The Art Of Insincerity is released in mainland Europe first to coincide with a festival appeatance at Rock am Ring In Germany. An Irish release will folow in September which, Walsh says, "is prehaps a good thing because it's much more of an autuminal album".

Visit their website http://www.royseven.com, join them on bebo or even better buy the single for only €1.99 on www.cdworld.ie You won't regret it, these guys are going to be big, you heard it here first!

Technorati Tags: RoySeven Universal CD World Music

BlogDay 2006 coming!

Today I was searching out blog terms etc. on the net trying to come up to speed with all the acronyms etc. that I don't recognise on blogs when I came upon Blogday on Wikipedia, which apparently is 31st August, which of course I didn't know because I wasn't blogging last year.

Seeing as the whole spirit of the thing is that each blogger recommends 5 blogs, preferably from outside their own country or culture I just wanted to the heads up to others like me who hadn't heard of it. Hopefully it will allow us time to come across blogs that we recommend from outside our own current circles. I don't know about anyone else but it can be quite difficult to get to blogs outside your circle sometimes without having to go through a million absolute crap ones.

So here's what's supposed to happen according to the BlogDay website:

"What is BlogDay?
BlogDay was initiated with the belief that bloggers should have one day which will be dedicated to know other bloggers, from other countries or areas of interests. In that day Bloggers will recommend about them to their Blog visitors.

What will happen on BlogDay?
In one long moment In August 31st, bloggers from all over the world will post a recommendation of 5 new Blogs, Preferably, Blogs different from their own culture, point of view and attitude. On this day, blog surfers will find themselves leaping and discovering new, unknown Blogs, celebrating the discovery of new people and new bloggers.

BlogDay posting instructions:

1. Find 5 new Blogs that you find interesting

2. Notify the 5 bloggers that you are recommending on them on BlogDay 2005

3. Write a short description of the Blogs and place a a link to the recommended Blogs

4. Post the BlogDay Post (on August 31st) and

5. Add the BlogDay tag using this link: http://technorati.com/tag/BlogDay2006 and a link to BlogDay web site at http://www.blogday.org

Celebrate!"

Technorati Tags: BlogDay2006 Wikipedia Blog Terms August 31st