The past year **not for sensitive viewers**

I know I have not blogged in ages. This year that has passed has been one of the most challenging years of my whole life.

On the 25th of March 2011, my father collapsed, he had a bleed on his tumour (he was diagnosed 17 years ago) which is situated in his brain, leaving him paralysed on the right hand side and his speech was affected badly. He had to go for an operation to clean up the bleed, that was the first operation, a couple of weeks and he was up and walking and talking better. He then had to go for another operation, the second one in a space of 4 months, they tried to remove most of the tumour, after this operation he was once again left partially paralysed in the right hand side and still struggling to speak, although you are able to understand what he wants to say.

 

It's a year on and nothing much has changed. Dad still struggles with his speech and he still struggles to walk, but he doesn't stop trying.

He is a trooper and never gives up.

This past year I have watched one man's strength and courage grow ten fold.

Every day he amazes me.

Living alone

Recently I have moved into a flat on my own.


I was extremely excited and still am because I love my solitude.


Living with someone was not easy so moving into a flat on my own was a sweet treat for me.


What I absolutely love about living alone is that I don't have to worry about empty bottles in the fridge, shoes loitering the lounge and I get to have my face products all to myself. Most happy about the latter.


You may call this being selfish but damn that, I deserve this.


When I was living in London I loved living on my own, being able to come home to complete quietness.

Loneliness does creep in but luckily this time I have my Bella, she is a yorkshire terrier, she seems to have acclimated herself very well and for that I am thankful.


So, here is how I beat feeling lonely:


1. I watch series, and lots of it, currently I am stuck on Top Gear. Seeing as I have not sorted out the tv aerial as yet, so I don't watch normal tv at all, not that there is much on our local channels anyway.


2. I take dear Bella for a walk when I am bored, she loves going for walks and actually moans by the drawer where her harness and lead is kept. She has become used to her daily walks in the morning, yes, I walk her every morning at 06:30. 


3. I visit my family over the weekends. Bare in mind that I live about 25 minutes drive from them, I spend at least 4 hours with them every weekend, being able to spend time with my little brother and my niece is so precious to me.


4. Every morning I search for a motivational quote to up my mood and then share it with everyone I can. Because, lets face it, being single after a 3 and a half year relationship is bloody depressing but I do say rather be happy alone than miserable together.


So being 28 and basically the only single girl left in my group does not allow for me to spend a lot of time with my friends, I choose not to be a 3rd wheel and I don't want to intrude on their quality time, weekends go so quickly anyway. I know that you want to spend your weekends with your other half.


My next post will probably be on my take of single life and how I am finding it.


Until next time.


Angeline
xxx

Bad boys, bad boys, what you gonna do?

I have been thinking about this for a while.


What is it about a badboy that attracts women? 


While watching Glee (yes, I am a Gleek), I was perving over Puck (Mark Salling) and thought to myself what it could be that interests me so,  about the eternal badboy?

And it struck me...you want to be his hero and the one that helps him on the right path. Liking the thought of people saying, "oh, it's the girl who tamed so and so, the loose cannon!"


But the biggest problems about the eternal badboy is that you become his mother, you mother him into the person you want him to be, mould him into what he is not. 


This is a serious character flaw in women, I believe. We women need to realise that if you meet a man and he is a certain way, you might change him for a while but soon his true character will resurface.


Therefore, as I said in previous posts, find someone with the same morals as you have, someone with the same maturity level as you.


Badboys tend to be immature. Maturity comes hand in hand with life experience, if the person so wishes to learn from it. Badboys do not really learn from it, because of their immaturity, they will coast along thinking everything will eventually come to them.


My view... feel free to comment.


Angeline
xxx

Our Starsigns have changed - I am now a Leo?

Today I read something very interesting.


Please follow the link or read what is quoted below:


http://www.livescience.com/strangenews/your-astronomical-sign.html

"It's a great conversation starter: "What's your sign?"

But before you ask or answer that question, consider this: your zodiac sign corresponds to the position of the sun relative to constellations as they appeared over 2200 years ago!

The science behind astrology may have its roots in astronomy but don’t confuse these two disciplines. Astronomy can explain the position of the stars in the sky but it’s up to you to determine what, if anything, their alignment signifies.

The Constellations of the Zodiac

The ecliptic, or the position of the Sun as it’s perceived from the revolving Earth, passes through the constellations that formed the Zodiac - Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius and Pisces. Zodiac signs were originally determined by which constellation the Sun was "in" on the day you were born.

Early astronomers observed the Sun traveling through the signs of the Zodiac in the course of one year, spending about a month in each. Thus, they calculated that each constellation extends 30 degrees across the ecliptic.

However, a phenomenon called precession has altered the position of the constellations we see today.

Precession and Astrology

The first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere was once marked by the zero point of the Zodiac. Astronomers call this the vernal equinox and it occurs as the ecliptic and celestial equator intersect.

Around 600 BCE, the zero point was in Aries and was called the "first point of Aries." (Figure 1) The constellation Aries encompassed the first 30 degrees of the ecliptic; from 30 to 60 degrees was Taurus; from 60 to 90 degrees was Gemini; and so on for all twelve constellations of the Zodiac.

Unbeknownst to the ancient astrologers, the Earth continually wobbles around its axis in a 25,800-year cycle. This wobble—called precession—is caused by the gravitational attraction of the Moon on Earth's equatorial bulge.

Over the past two-and-a-half millennia, this wobble has caused the intersection point between the celestial equator and the ecliptic to move west along the ecliptic by 36 degrees, or almost exactly one-tenth of the way around. This means that the signs have slipped one-tenth—or almost one whole month—of the way around the sky to the west, relative to the stars beyond.

For instance, those born between March 21 and April 19 consider themselves to be Aries. Today, the Sun is no longer within the constellation of Aries during much of that period. From March 11 to April 18, the Sun is actually in the constellation of Pisces! (Figure 2) See also Figure 3, which demonstrates the precession of the equinoxes from 600 BCE to 2600.

Your "Real Sign"

The table below lists the dates when the Sun is actually within the astronomical constellations of the Zodiac, according to modern constellation boundaries and corrected for precession (these dates can vary a day from year to year).

You will most likely find that once precession is taken into account, your zodiac sign is different. And if you were born between November 29 and December 17, your sign is actually one you never saw in the newspaper: you are an Ophiuchus! The eliptic passes through the constellation of Ophiuchus after Scorpius.

Now you really have something cool with which to start that conversation!

Check out your “real” zodiac sign below and see what the sky looked like on your birthday by going to the Birthday Sky application.

Capricorn - Jan 20 to Feb 16
Aquarius - Feb 16 to Mar 11
Pisces - Mar 11 to Apr 18
Aries - Apr 18 to May 13
Taurus - May 13 to Jun 21
Gemini - Jun 21 to Jul 20
Cancer - Jul 20 to Aug 10
Leo - Aug 10 to Sep 16
Virgo - Sep 16 to Oct 30
Libra - Oct 30 to Nov 23
Scorpius - Nov 23 to Nov 29
Ophiuchus - Nov 29 to Dec 17
Sagittarius - Dec 17 to Jan 20"

I was born on the 25th of August and have always thought that I have a couple of Leo tendencies and I left it down to the fact that I am born almost on a cusp. 

What do you think about this? Do you think there is any truth to it?

Angie xxx

Lessons in love - my take

1. When you fall inlove, fall inlove with a personality


What I mean by this is quite obvious. When you fall inlove with someone make sure you are falling inlove with their personality and mind, not the outer shell. Loving someone for what they look like is going to land you in some hot water. Remember that once you have something new and shiny, you play with it for a while and then the novelty wears off. If you fall inlove with a personality, people rarely change and that means you will be inlove forever.


2. Once you lose respect and trust for your partner move on


I know some people are very forgiving, but forgetting is the hardest part, once trust is broken, it is extremely difficult to build it up again. You live in fear of being hurt time after time and if you have been promised a change and your partner hurts you again you will never forget it.


3. Search for someone who has similar morals as you


Opposites do not attract, there are a few exceptions, yes, but it wont always work. If you do not see eye to eye on a certain important point it will be the route of all your arguments. If you are mature and you date someone whose maturity level is not the same as yours, you will run into trouble.


4. Never settle


If you are unhappy, make a change, only you can create your own happiness. Never forget your morals, never feel bad because you do not agree with something your partner does. If it is a cause of problems do not be afraid to leave if it hurts you too much and you fear being alone.


5. You deserve the best


They say every pot has its lid. Your perfect partner is out there. God will send you the right one when you are ready.


6. Love selflessly


If you truly love someone, there is nothing that you will not do to make them happy as long as it does not make you unhappy.


7. You need to be happy in order to make your partner happy


If you are not happy with yourself it will manifest and eventually corrupt your relationship. Make sure you are in the right frame of mind and that you love yourself before you begin a relationship. You have to love yourself in order to love someone else.


8. Movie romances are a lie


We watch movies where people fall madly inlove, love at first sight does not exist and if it does then I have never experienced it. Okay, I suppose I cannot make a call on this if I have never experienced it but I am 28 years old and this has never happened to me and I don't know whether it ever will.


I would love to have your comments on my post. I know everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I welcome them.


Angie xxx

Poem I wrote in the middle of the night

The feeling of your soft touch still lingers on my skin,

You don’t see me,

Your heart has darkened to my tears.

Your once caring heart,

Is deafened to my pleas,

Our hearts are no longer one.

The love we shared was like a butterfly,

It no longer has wings,

It can not fly.

What was once something so beautiful,

Has become nothing,

It’s an empty shell.

The butterfly has now perished,

Deceit has ripped off its wings,

All that is left is a cocoon of heartache.

By Angeline Doonan

Book review - Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

So the last book I read was The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson.


I must admit, the beginning was quite tedious, could be why it took me so long to read. Usually, I read a book within two days at  the most but this book took me almost two weeks to finish.


Once I got my head around the Swedish names, I eventually started to enjoy it. When the plot began to unfold I could not put the book down.


I like the character of Blomqvist and Lisbeth, both are interesting in their own way. I think Lisbeth is a crazy character, who is portrayed as a narcissist and is completely devoid of any conscience at all. 


The story is basically about a girl who vanishes into thin air, namely Harriet Vanger, Hendrik Vanger, her uncle seeks out Blomqvist to investigate a case that he, himself has tried to solve for over 30 years. Blomqvist discovers something different and has to call in a research assistant to assist in the case and in walks Lisbeth Salander.


It is a good book, very detailed and kept me up late a couple of nights. I loved the suspense and the inquisitiveness to solve a mystery drove me to actually finish it.

I give it 7 out of 10.