2010 - New Me

Ok, so I have put on a bit of weight over the past... I don't know... 3 years? Slowly, but it's definately gotten worse. All through 2009, I've told myself week after week that "this is it" and vowed to lose weight once and for all... And then I'd fail and eat my failure... Again.

But I've decided once and for all that I'm just going to get it over with and 2010 is going to be the year for me to get back to the old me. I owe it to me, my health and my beautiful girlfriend. There is a history of high blood pressure and diabetes in my family, so I really need to get this under control.

It's been about 4 weeks through 2010 and I'm going ok. I'm not turning my blog in to a weight loss blog, but thought it was worth mentioning!

It's a bit late, but hope you all had a good New Years and looking forward to blogging in 2010!


- Val

I need to create!!

Not create another life or anything... no... not now...

No. I need to create some artwork. I have know to dabble in a bit of painting, drawing, photography and the such, but i'm thinking of starting an arty sort of blog?...

Watch this space!

P.S: Sorry for the non-existent blogs as of late... I've been tied up... In a non-dirty way...

Dear Mr. Prime Minister

Today I wrote a letter. I don't normally write letters to politicians, but I just felt like it today. So here goes nothing....

Dear Mr. K. Rudd, I am writing to you as a young Australian who happens to identify as homosexual. I know you must receive a lot of correspondence regarding gay, lesbian, bisexual and trans gender issues, but all I can do is let you know how I feel. I am a lesbian and although I do not intend to marry any time right now, in the back of my mind, I know that I can't. Not because I don't want to, but because Australian law says I can't. I understand that you are a religious man and I respect that. I understand you may not change the law because of your personal beliefs. I don't agree with that. I know a lot of people have religious concerns about gay marriage, but my concern is of human rights. I can't choose who I fall in love with, the same way you couldn't help falling in love with your wife. I just happen to fall in love with women. The common misconception of homosexuality, is that it is a choice. This is not true, as you may already know. All I am asking is that you think about the issue and raise the issue in the future. I realize a lot of people are against it, but at the same time, a lot of people are all for it, gay AND straight. I appreciate you reading my email and hope to hear a response from you sometime in the future.

Don't ask me, I'm just a girl!

The other day, I was watching TV and a show about motor racing and cars came on. I'm not usually a fan of watching TV shows about cars, i'm more of a practical girl when it comes to cars. But, this particular show was talking about Holden's (oh yeah!) so I watched. That segment of the show finished and then it went to another segment about a woman learning how to maintain her car. Ok, a woman learning how to maintain her car. Could be useful for some of the ladies out there who aren't sure how to change the oil etc. But I kept watching and it made me angry, frustrated and just plain annoyed!

The woman they decided to use as their little experiment was beyond clueless. She talked like a 5 year-old asking her parents what petrol is. She didn't even know how to select the right oil at the local auto shop. She became nervous when it was suggested she might have to 'use a bit of muscle'. She giggled so many times, my ears hurt. Ok, so I know a lot of women are unsure about oil, oil filters, changing a flat, etc. but using this particular woman in this segment was just plain silly.

Now, i know a little bit about cars, which might have been why I was getting angry, but I thought that it was borderline offensive. No wonder mechanics never want to put girls on as apprentices because it's this kind of person they think all girls are like when it comes to working on a car. Sure, a guy can be a hairdresser, there's nothing wrong with that, but when a girl wants to be a mechanic, an engineer, a labourer, whatever, all of a sudden she's too weak or not good enough. A couple of jobs i've applied for, they have said "Now, there's a bit of heavy lifting, so I don't think it's very appropriate for... you". Bullshit.

I'd love to hear from any other women who have had any problems at work or social life regarding gender or orientation because it's so unfair for us to have to deal with stereotypes when trying to look for work or go through life. It's one thing I would love to see gone before I leave this life.

Image: theinstitute4womenautomechanics.com

Gay house???

I was just looking through my local newspaper, as I do, and saw that there was a room available in a share house. Normal to see a few in the weekend paper but what surprised me was these two words: Gay friendly.

Now I have seen gay friendly rentals and rooms available in cities, but this is my small home town? I've had trouble even walking down the street without a judged stare! I've had trouble holding my girlfriends hand in public here. I was happily surprised to see it in my local paper.

Is there simply more homosexuals in my area? Or are we feeling like we can be more open about our sexualities? Or both? Whatever the answer is, I'm happy. I know it seems small and insignificant to see this is in the paper, but as someone once said to me, if we can gradually decrease the stigma of homosexuality, one person at a time, then we can slowly make our society accepting of anyone and everyone, regardless of sexuality.


- Val