Recently

So I've just put in my University application, in which I hope to defer until 2016 while I work and save up money. All very exciting!

My family have just left Australia after visiting for a week and I could not believe how different I was to them. Their accents we're so heavy and in a sense 'ugly' compared to the Australian accent, which I think I've copped a bit of. it makes me wonder, "did I really talk like that?" and "did I really act like that?" which I supposedly did. All in all it was fun, we went to both the Dandenong Markets and the Caribbean markets, into the city and the Melbourne Zoo, to Fountaingate and a few other little places along the way.

Juice

My mum posted an old video on Facebook a few night ago of me and my sisters. My youngest sister still a baby, and the other shoving a bottle in the camera sporting a new haircut I had given her because apparently she couldn’t see through the curls, and me sitting grumpy faced doing god knows what on the bed. I didn’t even know these videos existed anymore. But it reminded me of when I use to sit outside, on the uneven concrete by the sliding door of the ‘kids room’ (essentially a room we were allowed to mess up) and make grapefruit juice from the old tree that Henry Hartnell planted when /or before I was a baby. Now, making grapefruit juice consisted of some very difficult steps, so I’ll walk you through.

Step 1: To Climb the tree.
This was probably the most fun step. The tree was kind of old, and the branches had plenty of bounce in them so when we got to the highest points with our plastic bag we started to worry a bit. (This tree had been through a lot. We use to hammer nails into it to make treehouses, and drag mums pillows and blankets outside to make beds in the tree. ) But yeah, we basically got a shitload of grapefruit.

Step 2: Cutting them up
Mum and Dad didn’t seem to care/ or notice that we we’re using all their good knives to cut grapefruit in half using concrete as a chopping board.

Step 3: Squeezing the juice out:
This step was probably the messiest, and stickiest. We didn't get much juice from the amount of grapefruit we picked, but we always managed to get at least a jug. When we were left with nothing but scraps the pigs would have a field day, followed by a long and smelly dose of diarrhea, which Dad would kill us for. (I think one year the pig we killed actually had a slight grapefruit taste)

Step 5: SUGAR
Yep, since we were kids, we liked things sweet so it was only natural that we add a little sugar…. But a little was never enough so we used ½ to a whole cup of sugar each time. Bad.... I know. When our panel of grapefruit juice testers we satisfied with the taste we would pour a glass and take it out to Dad who was usually building something in the shed, or sitting down having a beer, and his eyes would squint and his lip would curl as he pretended he liked it, and we ran off to get him more.

2014

1 January 2014

Being it the first day of 2014 I feel obliged to write a new blog post! :D The year has really flown by and what a good year it was... To be honest, I can't think of what things I've gotten up so I'm gonna have a sift through my Facebook timeline... Throughout the year I've traveled, battled family problems, I've made friends and lost friends,had great times and had plenty of new experiences and according to lots of people... I'VE CHANGED A HELL OF A LOT!

Here are my most vivid memories of each month of 2013: 

January:  Finding out my exam results from the previous year!

February: Mum's birthday! & Fun at school

March: The loss of a close friend. And also the Harlem shake!

April: My sisters birthday, Camping with my friends, and getting my new guitar!

May: My Illuminati Phase.

June: Biggest party I've ever been to, and my farewell party!

July: My new school! New family! And new country! AUSTRALIA!!! :D

August: Went to the zoo, did lots of art and watched a lot of anime! Also my dad's birthday.

September: Visited art galleries.

October: Felt the Australian heat for the first time! Halloween, And my art exhibition|

November: Met Masato Takasaka, and studied hard for exams! >:D

December: My first birthday & Christmas away from home! & Blue hair





Hopefully 2014 will be even better than the last!
-Ashleigh.