This is the actual pedicure!

This is the actual pedicure (see point 2) with my actual sister (see point 1)!

It’s taken a while to get to this batch as it marks the infamous low point of my 5 stages of expatriation.  This little phase wasn’t pretty.  The good news is…. I still found 10 cool memories even in this dark time (yahoo!)  Here we are then 10 of the best and after this it all gets happy again!

  1.  July 13th:  My sister arrives as a surprise.  This relates to para 1 whereby I had got so mizog that I summonsed my Mum back.  She secretly had called in reinforcements in the form of my sister, a paramedic capable of tough love, soft love, hugs and potential medical interventions.  And there she was.. stood in our lift lobby.. an unexpected guest from a long way away.
  2. 20th July:  My first ever expat pedi.  With aforementioned sister.  In expat-land a pedicure would appear to solve most things.  I went shocking pink.  I have since been every colour of the rainbow.  I broke a seal that day.  (Not the animal kind).
  3. Aug 2nd:  Breakfast w*****s. At this stage my salvation guests had gone and Colon decided to take me to a lovely place.  The Rasa Sayang in Penang.. CLUB!  Oh how lovely this was.  Until some snooty evils at breakfast asked the waitress for us to be removed because Ben was crying.  Dicks!  We didn’t ask to be allowed in club 😉
  4. Aug 8th: Holly’s Potty Training begins.  Weird memory, but hey.  This happened.  It wasn’t too terrible.  Number 1’s smashed by day 2.  Number 2’s I won’t mention in case this blog exists when Holly gets her first boyfriend.
  5. Aug 24th:  Holly’s 3rd Birthday Party at JKidz.  Here I realised that I am a “throw money at the problem, non-cake making” type of mum. I’m happy to be her.
  6. Sept 1st:  I bought some Jimmy Choos.  I’m realising now this blog post is making me look like a totally superficial idiot.  Sorry.. it doesn’t get any better….see point 7.  I think I do something worthy in Q4 2014 (watch this space)
  7. Sept 7th:  I drank some Dom Perignon with Kiwi Justine!  I’d never had it before, it was lush.  Thanks KJ!
  8. Sept 22nd:  I got Hand Food and Mouth:  OK, not a great memory, but probably the most rubbish lurgy I have ever had!  6 months after the initial spotty hands and feet my finger and toenails were still dropping off.. ick! And grown ups aren’t even supposed to get it!  I don’t get ill much but when I do.. I do it weirdly!
  9. Sept 27th:  Singing New Seekers with Chinese John Lennon & My Father in Law:  Some moments you cannot see coming.  This is one.  It was BRILLIANT!  I sang Morningtown Ride with an Irish ex cop from Thailand and a Malaysian guitarist who looked like Chinese John Lennon.  AND I CAN’T EVEN SING!  Boo-ya!
  10. Sept 28th:  One Fabulous Drink.  Me and Colon went to Marinis.  I had a Kir Royale or something like that and we came home.  Sometimes that’s all you need. (Colon had a beer.. sometimes that’s all he needs – not often though).

And Pow!  Back in the room for the acceptance phase.. coming soon.