Rubies from Rianne

Siiiilly bits

2010-03-11T14:18:00.005Z

Just silly bits n bobs from a 'useless' aerobics work out film we made titled "Keep fit for FITTIES" It was a completely unrehearsed video!! We did this on Tuesday for a YSA activity :):)

Hacked off!!

2010-03-01T00:48:00.003Z

Time and time again I vow to NEVER under any circumstances allow myself to cut my hair! It only ends in tears every single time. I know this only too well. And yet, I ALWAYS go back on this vow and mutilate my locks!!!

The first time I attempted to snip away at my hair, I was too cocky. I thought, how hard can this possibly be? I have watched hairdressers in the salons do it hundreds of times!! Surely, that is all the training I needed?! WRONG, WRONG AND WRONG!!! I was not a jolly Molly with my handiwork on that occasion. The trouble is when you get scissor spirited you tend to get a tad carried away. Here, a snip, there a snip - snip, snip, snippedy doo dah!! It brings out the Edward Scissorhands in me :) (LOVE LOVE LOVE that film by the way)

I guess some people are just blessed with "the knack." I am not. Even setting out to do a simple trim - things get a bit 'hairy' .. please forgive my lame attempts at comedy! Like most things it all starts out just peachy but then disaster strikes!!!! Whoopsy daisy you hack off a chunk much larger than you had anticipated :( Which means you have to cut more off in the hopes of salvaging the mess you are making. Inevitably this then leads to a HORRENDOUS HAIR DON'T!! I have had more than my fair share of these.

I have gone back on my vow many, many times and regretted it the instant I complete the task. Last night (actually the early hours of this morning) was no exception to the same sorry story. I looked in the mirror and moped at the pitiful condition of my coiffure. I had been meaning to do something about it for a few weeks but just didn't get round to it. Now you may be thinking to yourself (or asking aloud if you are a bit of a nut job like me!) WHY DIDN'T YOU JUST GO TO A HAIRDRESSER??? Answer: That is too easy! And Rianne is known for making life more complicated for herself than it ought to be. If there is a straightforward way to do something and a difficult, troublesome, stressful, STUPID method for it too - you can guarantee I will select the STUPID path every time. (Yes, this does make me an idiot. It is the way I am wired!!) Also, I am not being miserly but I think the cost of haircuts in England is horrendous so I prefer to save myself these pennies.

As I was snipping away I actually believed I was doing a fine job for ONCE!!! When I had finished I even liked it. It was even and (what deceptively appeared to be) perfectly layered and just exactly how I wanted my hair to be. Pixie sticks! It was all too good to be true. For when my hair had dried, it was horrifying short! Not boy-short but shorter than my hair should ever be. Not only did it become a bob but a crooked, wonky one at that!! I did as much damage control as possible but I still look like I have gone ten rounds with a lawn mower!!!!

A WORD TO THE WISE: (But if you are wise then you already know this, so it's more a word to the foolish) When you are cutting wet hair the length appears longer than it will be when it dries!!! So if you are trimming your own hair or someone else's judge it carefully so that you don't annihilate your hair do! Better still, just splash out on a professional haircut. One that won't break the bank and won't make you look like a scarecrow!

When I am feeling brave enough, I may put up before and after pictures. Don't hold your breath!

Oh!! The stupidest incident AFTER my hair horrors was as follows: Trying to salvage my 'do by straightening it. It did make it look a teeny bit nicer. Although, on account of my tiredness I moronically placed the straighteners on top of a plastic bag while I went to brush my teeth. When I returned the bag had melted into a pink pile of gloop and encrusted plastic gunk all over the straighteners (which in fact belong to my perfectly Goldilocks-haired little sister!!) Uh-oh! I'm in big trouble!

Love love love

2010-02-15T18:59:00.004Z

I wanted to follow up my last blog post with a more positive one about love (since it was Valentine's Day yesterday!!) I am not even going to dwell on the fact that yesterday was the 25th Valentine's Day I have been single on. I am not even going to mention how lonely I am either (well, after typing it just then obviously!)

A lot of lonely hearted singletons always deem Valentine's as a fantastically depressing day. It doesn't have to be that way!! I am of the opinion that the holiday was not created to make the unmarried and un-taken lads and ladies feel depressed, wretched or self-pitying! (although that seems to happen year after year)

It should be a celebration of l'amour, amore, die Liebe, LOVE!! <3 You do not have to be "in love" with somebody to participate in the celebrations. We all LOVE someone - our friends, our families, pets ... or something like your car or Nintendo Wii if you don't actually know any mortals! I hope you all took the time to express your love to the people that you do love :)

My heart was filled with an overwhelming sense of love last night. Unlike anything I have ever felt before. It was all consuming, pure and real. It even resembled something close to charity 'the pure love of Christ.' I thought about hundreds of different dear friends that I cherish and the impact they have had on my own life. Most of them live many, many miles away from me and we are separated by oceans or simply life getting in the way. I longed to give every single person a hug and if it were physically and financially possible I would have done.

Consider this that hug from me!! :) :) I wish it were real but this is as close as I can get to that right now. I am so thankful to have known and loved you all. My love will not stop. I think of you all constantly. Love is 'like oxygen' it keeps me alive and what's more it makes life WORTH living. My heart ached deeply as I thought of all my wonderful friends - particularly the ones I do not get to see very much. (If only I could see you everyday I would!!) I sobbed into my pillow because I miss each and every one of you more and more each day.

I want EVERYONE in the world to know that there is ALWAYS someone who loves you unconditionally. This man treasures you. He loved you even before you took your first breath and he will love you even after you take your last. He will love you for ETERNITY! And what's even more incredible is that - there is nothing that you can do or say to make him STOP. He is Heavenly Father and you are his literal offspring! We are all a child of God. If this is not something to celebrate everyday or to rejoice in .. I don't know what is. God is LOVE and that is the best and most true kind of love there is.

Love STINKS

2010-02-15T18:54:00.002Z

A silly poem we made at Institute last week! We don't really think these things :)

Romance is dead. Never will we wed.
"Til death do us part. Forever in my heart"
These words make us sick. They are taking the mick.
Most men are cruel. And treat you like fools.
Don't believe their lies. Evil inhabits their eyes.
Forget 'happily ever after.' It just ends in disaster.
So when a guy winks, remember: LOVE STINKS!!!

Journal Jewels - from an 8 year old me

2010-02-05T18:19:00.007Z

These are some little quotes from my very first journal that made me giggle and I hope that they will put a smile on your dials too :) :) I have always been an avid writer from a young age. At school I used to write the longest stories in the whole school as extra homework. I was so smug when my teacher would read them sometimes instead of storytime!!

I'm not going to type up entire entries just selections (and I will spell the way I did in my journal and not correct bad grammar or punctuation!) and if I feel the need to elaborate on something I will write it in bold

Friday 19th November 1993 -

Today was not only my 8th birthday but baptism day also.... I was scared when I got in the water daddy said it was cold. So I started to cry. But it was alright after a while and daddy baptized me. It was very quick and I enjoyed it.

Saturday 8th January 1994 -

On Friday in the middle of the night mummys waters broke (( I doubt I knew then what that actually meant!!)) So in the morning When I got up it was odd for me because I heard nannys voice... It was lunchtime we had salad. When we had finished daddy phoned up again to say that we had a baby brother called Jozef richard and was 9lbs 1 oz. Then we went to see them at the hospital. Jozef had fair hair and dark blue eyes. After we had seen him we went home to bed and did our prayers. Saying yipee.

Saturday 5th march -

I went to see aladdin at cinema it was quite good... Jasmine pretened to love Javar And kissed him on the lips. ( (Scandalous!! Was that the first time I had seen kissing in a film??))

Tuesday 8th march -

Jozef is two months old at 12 o clock ( (I was so specific!!) ) I'm really pleased that Jozef is my brother. I love him very much. I wish there was brothers day and sisters day.

Thursday 10th march -

I read a book called the swan and the geese. I'm glad the cook didn't chop the swan. ( how was I GLAD after my swan ordeal when I was two??!)

Wednesday 16th march -

Louise came round her name means to me Princess Louise. She is a lovely girl and my best friend ever and in the whole wide world too.

Friday 18th march -

I like watching videos and films its my hobbie I love them. I just wish I had all the videos in the world but thats greedy.

Monday 21st march -

We had f.h.e that stands for family home evening I think if I explained, my friends would do it too.

Wednesday 23rd march -

watched the jewel of the nile it was excellent I loved it anyone would of if they watched the great thing. Loved it all.

Sunday 27th march -

It was Jozefs blessing day as well as church. When I was in my primary class mum came in to ask if I wan't to go home. Yes I said.

Wednesday 30th march -

In the night when jamie was awake he said I'm the fat man to amy and jumped over her head and banged it. He's not allowed to watch weastling. ( Haaa, I guess I meant wrestling. Jamie used to love it! My family laughed so hard when I reminded them of this tonight) )

Friday 8th april -

I played cluedo with mum and jamie it was so much fun that we begged for three go''s So thats what we got.

Sunday 10th april -

We went to church I enjoy going to sing to pray and to think of Jesus. I also like after primary to Play with my nice friends.

Monday 18th april -

grandads birthday we went to the beefeaters. We had a very big dinner. I was very very very fat indeed the icecream was nice.

Wednesday 20th april -

Louise told me the good news I'm joining brown-ies next tuesday. I want to do what Louise doe's she my best friend in the world.

Saturday 23rd april -

It was the music festival I sang doe a deer but I didn't know when to start and I didn't have a costume. Thats probably why I was bronze. ( Not that I was RUBBISH then?!)

Wednesday 27th april -

Amy came up with a rash I didn't like the look of it and the calamine lotion stinks but I like the smell ( I was contradicting myself even at 8 years of age)

Thursday 28th april -

Dad found a wasps nest outside our shed when dad was clearing it so there was space for a new cupboard. I said lets kill them. ( What a sadistic child!!)

Wednesday 4th may -

Leanne teased me today she made sure everyone could hear but miss and said to Louise your my bestest friend in the whole world. Everyone felt left out.

Saturday 14th may -

I watched you've been framed it was very funny but hurt the people.

Friday 15th July -

Last night I had a very good dream. I met Louise on the way home from school. She said why are you coming home this way. Because I have moved house. I live over the road from you.

I went in, inside you come into a big green room. It is a jumping room ( a room just for JUMPING?? I actually want one of those when I get my own place!) My friends live there as well. We have a very big garden with lots of flowers.

We have a very big dog called corky he bites but it dosen't hurt. Sometimes we ride our bikes to the stables we leave them there and they fly back to our house. My horse flys over the rooftops.

Then I went to the ice cream shop and brought one then I woke up.

Friday 22nd July -

We played follow my leader. I was the leader whatever I did and said and went. They did it too. ( I was such a bossy boots!)Then we played knee. Someone is mum they sit on a comfortable chair. then there's one person who is naughty. Whenever this person does something naughty you say knee. Then they have to bend down and you smack them. It was fun. ( Where did we learn this from?
)

Friday 29th July -

Grandad came around. He brought us are tea. It was chips and diet tango for a treat. It didn't make us fat the tango. It was a lovely treat.

Sunday 31st July -

Amy played kiss chase with tristan, she kissed him tons of times. He kissed her on the lips. We had to go home then. ( Haaa, Amy was only 3!! Tristan was her first kiss :) Sorry to embarrass you Amy!)

Tuesday 9th august -

I found a shell it was big but I dropped it because there was a spider in it. I asked Peter to wash it out. So he did.

Tuesday 16th august -

We went to Southsea. At first we went to the pond. With a fishing net. I said mum we need a ham sandwich to catch crabs and fish. Mum wouldn't let me.

Friday 2nd September -

Went to west wittering today. Tried to catch some fish but the shrimps did't agree. So I went out on the boat on the waves it made me go fast it was fun. So dad waited for a big wave to come then let me go the wave turned the boat upside down. I was under the sea for ages a lot of water (salty) went in my mouth.

When I finally got out of the water I gave dad a kick and he got soaked. Then I ran to mum to tell her what happened ( What a snitch! ) She said Rianne likes the water and now your making her hate it. ( To this day I have quite a fear of being in water. I wonder if this is where the fear initally stemmed from)

Tuesday 6th September -

On this particular day I realized I had to be brave. Met my new teacher Christy Beaumont she is very pretty. Barrie keeps writing love letters to her. Barrie and Richard are the teachers pet. At the end of the day I felt really sensible brave and responsible and a bit older.

Hope some of these made you chuckle or brightened your day! :) Look through your old journals - it is so much fun to relive past memories from your childhood. My family have enjoyed me reminding them of all these silly little anecdotes too. I am digging up more of my journals so look out for more crazy tales from my past. As I get in my teens things become more juicy ;)

Swans - my sworn enemies

2010-01-26T22:29:00.004Z

DISCLAIMER: This blog is not written to cause any animal lovers distress. So if you are easily offended then AVERT YOUR EYEBALLS NOW! Although, if you have an amour for or affinity with SWANS I would question your sanity!!

My phobia for swans is not an unfounded fear. It is real. It is all consuming. They frequent my nightmares. Even pictures of the brutes fill me with trepidation. It all started a loooooong time ago, when I was just a gentle, 'butter-wouldn't-melt-in-my-mouth' toddler. My family would often go to feed the ducks at the park. I'm sure it was something I even LIKED to do maybe even loved. BEFORE .. that is.

I don't remember much about the befores and afters of my ordeal. (And I do not call it ordeal lightly. This really has scarred me for life or longer.)All I remember is waddling over to a swan completely unoblivious to the aggressive nature and sheer power of the 'pretty ducky' I didn't have any bread left but I thought the swan may be hungry (so you should note that what I am about to tell you I did out of good intentions) and with that I produced a sticker out of my pocket. The menacing monster was watching my every move. I prised open it's beak and tried to shove the sticker in .. out of what I thought was the kindness of my heart.

Now this did not go down very well with Mr Swan! His beak clamped around my chubby little fingers and bit me hard! Then the beast cruelly knocked me to the ground :( I don't remember crying - I was either trying to be brave or was too shaken up. I tried to escape the frenzied sociopath but to my terror I was surrounded. The murderous swan army chased me until my parents came to my rescue. (They were not being bad parents I had taken off and I was FAST!)

I swear all the swans I meet now KNOW the events of that tragic day. I'm very lucky to have not been pecked to death!!!! Every single time I am taking a walk by a lake and a swan or a SWARM of swans rock up I still freak out. They glare at me with evil eyes and swim stalk me alongside. Some I am convinced are plotting my murder as sweet revenge for their swan friend that I could have choked on my sticker.

The most vicious creatures in the UK are still free to attack unsuspecting humans. It is illegal to kill them in England as they belong to the Royal Family! I can't understand for the LIFE of me why the Queen would like them enough to spare their lives!!! I think she just hates me and wants me to live in fear forever.

I say swans MUST BE DESTROYED!! They will strike again. And next time it could be fatal. It could happen to someone you know, someone you love. You must suppress any urges to feed these savage succubuses. Don't dooooooooo it! They'll only throw it back in your face. I implore you for your own safety. Swans do not deserve your love or sympathy.

I don't actually want them all to be killed. I wouldn't really want any of God's creatures to die. I feel terrible if I only accidentally squish an ant. I just want their fierce and unmerciful nature to change. Yes, everyone thinks they are beautiful and graceful gliders on the water. DO NOT BE FOOLED! Now you know the truth.

Naughty no more

2010-01-06T21:14:00.004Z

Rianney anney, it is not only a brand, sparkling new Year but a whole new decade!! :) :) The NAUGHTIES (Noughties) are officially over and behind you - the good, the bad and the ugly from those ten years are now just memories and lessons learned.

This is bittersweet for me. Lots of truly incredible things happened to me between 2000-2009. They were full of magic moments, meeting lots of new people, strengthening friendships, travelling to lands I love!!! But also full of disappointment, heartbreak, misery, anger and depression. I know that I made a lot of mistakes especially between 2007-2009 and hurt some people that I cared so much for. I can't take them back. How I wish there was a way to do that!!! Now I need to just move on (easier said than done, I am very aware of this) Time for a fresh start. New beginnings! :)

I want to be more positive this year and find true happiness. I don't want to be lonely any more. Even though I have lots of friends .. sometimes I don't feel like they are all GENUINE friends - lots are people who I know and spend time with but they don't know me inside and out. They don't have the faintest idea who the 'real' Rianne is. I am fortunate enough to have some of the most absolutely amazing friends and I would lay down my life for any one of them.

There are sooo many things I wish to do, millions of dreams I hope to achieve. The world is my oyster and I can't let anything stop me in the way of pursuing something I love.

Finding someone to love and a person who can love me in return is perhaps top of my list. It's not that I am desperate to get married despite many of my friends marrying, becoming engaged or at least have a boyfriend or girlfriend. I just don't want to be alone any more.

Next, I want to get into acting again. It was always my greatest ambition to become an actress. Not necessarily famous but successful. I would love, love, LOVE to be part of a cast of a TV show .. something family oriented like an English version of Neighbours. Something fun! :) Sooo, that means I need to work hard.

I have to begin working out. I have NEVER really made exercise a part of my life. I never made room for it as it wasn't something I particularly wanted to do or felt I even NEEDED to do. But that has changed completely. In 2009 when my stomach condition settled down and I stopped being sick I put on almost two stone in weight as my eating habits didn't change. The chocolate binging INCREASED dramatically if anything. To the point where I am wholly convinced I will bleed chocolate if I am cut :S I MUST now watch what I eat and stick with a balanced diet, cut down on the chocolate and naughty treats and start exercising so I can fit my clothes again. I can't afford a new wardrobe!!

I would like to thank those magnificent friends in my life. I am so lucky to know each of you! :) You make my world a prettier, crazier, shinier, and more chocolatey one :) I'm not sure why I have been so blessed to have you, but I must have done something a bit darn special in the pre-existance. I love you all to itty, bitty pieces. I hope that this decade will make all your wildest dreams a reality and that you will experience joy beyond measure :)

So long, farewell, Auf wiedersehn, goodbye 2009! Don't come back, you will NOT be missed. 2010 PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE be better!! I know that I can make this year the best and most wonderful one if I just let myself. So GO ON GIRL!!! Make it a beautiful one :) x x

No glove, no LOVE

2009-12-21T22:43:00.006Z

At this frosty and wintry time of the year I have become especially thankful for gloves!!! They have saved my chubby fingers from the icy chills of December.

My current work assignment has had lower work loads due to the Christmas season so I have been leaving work earlier. When this happens I opt to walk the short, twenty minutes home (normally I get a lift back as at 5pm it is dark and I am far tooooo terrified to walk home!!) As the temperatures have plummeted recently I am not just up against the regular cold but have the wind chill to contend with also. So I happily pull on my trusty thermal gloves or mittens to show love for my fingers!

It started to snow huge flakes of snow on one walk home. It was like someone with a massive head was up in the sky shaking out their dandruff on the unsuspecting walkers home!! The flurries continued and my hands were nice n' toasty thanks to my pair of 'socks for hands' (that's what I like to refer to gloves as!)The same cannot be said for my now icicles for legs!!

When I lived in Idahooooo I used to sing "I cannot feel my fingers, I cannot feel my toes. The snow is all around me .. it's everywhere I goooo!" (to the tune Love is all around by Wet Wet Wet - made famous on the soundtrack of Four Weddings and a Funeral) My blood circulation in my hands and feet in particular is feeble. I have been freaked out at the sight of those body parts starting to turn bluey before so now I have to take extra special care. I can't have my fingers and toes falling off ... how would I write then? My elbow?!! Hmm I guess I will have to practice.

In the bleak mid winter ALWAYS make sure that you have gloves HANDy (ho, ho, ho!! I'm such a joke cracker!) Don't stay inside and miss out on all the winter wonders! Layer up and take advantage of some of the most spectacular sights of a winter's day :)Make the most of the most 'wonderful time of the year!' and go walking in a 'winter wonderland.'

Whoever invented gloves I want to KISS YOU!!! Let yourself be known so you may collect your reward.

You just haven't met ME yet!!

2009-12-10T23:33:00.003Z

HIM, AS A PERSON - HE'S BEAUTIFUL!! :)

Dear Michael Buble,

I am certain that you will never read this, but if by some small miracle you stumble across this you should know that I have now fallen crazy in love with you!!! I'm not entirely sure how it happened (all those dreams probably don't help! I'm not creepy, I promise! They haven't been rudey ones) but I now am completely convinced that we are meant for each other.

There is one teency little problemo. It sorta stops us from being together right now. See, you are a global superstar and I am a ... eeeesh what even am I??! You tour the world and make women fall in lust with you. It's your gorgeous voice that mesmerises us and reels us in! I blame your talent.

Of course, it doesn't help that you are also a rather handsome fella and a volcano of charisma to boot :) :) It really isn't any wonder that there are thousands and thousands of ladies who want your babies!! And *you* just encourage them with your sexy performances and your cheeky chappiness! I almost feel sorry for them as NONE of them will ever get YOU! They are far too undeserving.

I am the one who can make you know true joy. I am the one who will do ANYTHING for you. I am the one who loves you with her whole heart. I can be the one that you want.

All we need to do is meet in person. I have no doubts that you will fall deeply for me and want to take me as your wife. The question is where and WHEN?? I will drop any prior engagements for you, I will blow off all my friends and family to be with you. Name the date! Oh, and you will have to let me know exactly when you would like to get married so that I can send out the invites :) :) (I keep a rough draft under my pillow) We are going to have the cutest wutest little babies :)

You are "always on my mind" and when I am in bed "all I do is dream of you" People may "call me irresponsible" but I am "lost" without you. Michael, you really are "EVERYTHING" to me!!

You have captured my heart. It is YOURS. Forever.

P.S - I love you x x x

Nothing's better than cardboard sledding

2009-11-23T20:45:00.008Z

.. in the slushy snow!!! (well, okay maybe that's a bit of a porky pie - yep, I can feel my nose tingling ready to do a Pinocchio! CHOCOLATE may be the *one* thing that beats even that) Seriously it is the BEST fun :) I am longing for it to snow here but it is toooooo wet and mild. BOOOOOO you miserable, yucky English climate! Fun SPOILER!!!!

My Christmas wish this year (and most years!) is that I will get the chance to do some cardboard sledding. Though it won't feel right without my USA chums, if that opportunity does come my way. The first time I had a go with my friends on a snowy Idahoan evening I fell in love with the game :)Now Rexburg has a very special kind of snow. It has a certain kind of magic. The kind of snow "that made the happy happier, and the giddy even giddier. A snow that'd make a homecoming homier, and natural enemies, friends, natural." If you have never sledded upon a flattened cardboard box let me tell you, you have not LIVED!! It is a winter MUST DO.

Not only does it provide hours of giggles and amusement but it is completely freeeeeeeee. All you need is a cardboard box and a hill of some description where the "snow lays round about, deep and crisp and even!!" It'll only take one sled ride and you'll be eternally converted. And it really is fun for all the family :) Don't try any of those "I'm-too-grown-up-and-mature-for-this" excuses on me; they won't wash with me!

A cautionary note:Do NOT attempt cardboard sledding in slippers; your little toesies will frrrrreeeeeze. I can tell you this from personal experience. I never learnt my lesson on this one. I was constantly walking around my apartment complex wearing my slippers in the snow!!! Not quite sure how I managed to come home to England with all ten of my toes still intact. What a feat! (haaaa geddit feat .. FEET. I do amuse myself so!) And your tushy WILL get wet or soaked rather ;)

AND WATCH OUT FOR YELLOW SNOW! Ewwwww :S

After all, "What is Christmas with no snow?" "I want to wash my hands, my face and hair with snow!" Christmas with no snow is like Easter with NO Easter eggs :( :( I'm not just dreaming of a White Christmas, I'm dreaming of a WINTER WONDERLAND :)
Now come on Jack Frost 'get nipping at my nose!' Come on snowman and bring the snow (to Southampton) and put a great, big, smile on somebody's (Rianney anne's) face :):)

Age ain't nothin' but a NUMBER!!

2009-11-17T23:29:00.006Z

I say this to cheer my spirits as this Thursday I turn 24. Just one tiny year before the big quarter of a century milestone. To say that this age is one which fills my heart with trepidation is something of an understatement.

On reflection of my nearly almost 24 years of life I feel like I have actually achieved very little.

The "I AM NOT'S"...

*married
*financially secure
*in a career I love - I am merely a temp
*heckity, heck I am not even dating
*certain which direction I am heading

The "I HAVE NOT'S" ...

*travelled the world
*had children
*made a difference to anything in life
*accomplished the grand list of life to do's before I turn 25. I haven't even started it.
*moved out of my parent's house (can't afford or else this would be ticked off! But I have lived away from home before)
*graduated from university (eeek I am a statistic drop out from BYU-I)

There are thousands more I could add but this list is depressing enough for me. I am willing with all my might for Thursday not to come. Can we just skip past the 19th of November this year? Let me be 23 for one more year!! Give me a chance to enjoy and embrace 23 as I haven't done that at all while I am/was this age. In my experience of "23" it is true what Blink 182 sing "nobody likes you when you're 23" It has been a bit of a rollercoaster year for me so I am hoping that 2010 will bring me more peace, laughter and love.

When I was younger I really believed that I would have my own family by now. And that I would be content. That I would have a better understanding of the person I am (or will become) I don't have any of that. It's not my time yet. I'm sure it will be someday, just when it is right for me. I know that EVERYTHING happens for a reason and serves a purpose. Although I may not know what they are yet and that makes it all the more exciting.

I RESOLVE TO ...
*Find the joy in EVERYDAY of my eternity
*Not complain about the things I am not and do not have but instead learn to appreciate what I am and what I already have
*FULFILL MY DREAMS! (Haaa maybe not my glorious Michael Buble one but my true ambitions)
*Make my 24th year the BEST yet :) :)
*Keep an eye out for that special someone who is looking for his Rianney anney anne!!!! If you know who that might happen to be, be an angel to your good chum and TELL ME!!!

x x x

"To sleep perchance to dream"

2009-11-16T22:36:00.005Z

I'm somewhat of a dreamer. No, not dreamy! (although you are more than welcome to think that of me!!) When I do eventually slip into a deep state of sleep I have the most vivid and unusual dreams. Dreaming is one of my favourite things to do EVER!I am always excited for sleep to see what dreams come my way. My family have felt the sharp side of my tongue on disturbing me from my slumber when I am in the middle of a wonderful dream.

Yes, lots of my dreams are highly disturbing.The kind where you pray that all it is all a very bad, very TWISTED, creepy dream. I don't like those so much, especially the ones that make me cry. A lot of my fears and worries come alive in Dream Land and it terrifies me.

I most likely have had a dream starring YOU at some point and if not I will eventually. Oh, the adventures we share!! They would make excellent movie material. I really ought to start keeping a diary of my dreams so that I can remember them.

Last night I had one of my best dreams to date and I never want to forget it. I'm rather hopelessly devoted to a certain international superstar by the name of Michael Buble. Pretty much everyone knows it. I would marry him in a heartbeat. In my beautiful reverie he made his grand appearance :) :) In it I went to one of his concerts and crawled between legs in the crowd, scrambling my way to the front row. He was singing 'Everything' and our eyes met. Michael tenderly took me by the hand and pulled me on stage. We danced and twirled and floated on air.

He fell in love with me instantly and whisked me away after the concert for a romantic picnic underneath the stars. Just as the handsome man was expressing how he 'wanted' me - morning arrived and shattered my sweetest of dreams. CURSE YOU MORNING!!!! CURSE YOU! I need to let Michael know that I want him tooooooo. Please let me have the chance tonight! This could happen to me (GET REAL RIANNE!!!) His single "just haven't met you yet" is clearly written about me!

Methinks I should stop telling you all about this wonderfulness and hotfoot it to bed now to continue where I left off. So I shall. But before I do let me leave with some final thoughts:

IF YOU CAN DREAM IT, YOU CAN DO IT
Martin Luther King had a dream - so why can't mine come true too?
"A dream is a wish your heart makes when you're fast asleep. In dreams you will lose your heartaches. Whatever you wish for, you keep. Have faith in your dreams, and someday, your rainbow will come smiling through. No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish will come true." (Disney's Cinderella)

Goodnight, I do hope you have nice dreams :) :) (as Giselle from Enchanted would say) x x

I NEED AN AEROOOOO

2009-11-15T19:19:00.004Z

Last night we had Stake roadshows and they were such FUN! :) :)
I thought I would post the words to our ward's olio act. I changed the lyrics to 'Holding out for a Hero' to make it all about CHOCOLATE. And they were all very much inspired by my life and my hopeless devotion to my gorgeous and calorific love. Hope you enjoy this! :)

oooh oooh oohhh (x3) aaaar aaarrr!!!
Where have my malteasers gone and where's the quality streets?
Why is my fridge empty? why can't I see my feeeettt??
Isn't there a snickers or twix or a crunchie?
Late at night, I toss and I turn and I dream of GALAXYYYYYY!!!

I need an AEROOOOOOOOOOO
I'm craving a toffee crisp, or after eights
I cannot be strong
No I cannot give in
And I'll never ever watch my weight
I need an aerooooooooooo
Healthy snacks of fruit and vegetables we hate
We don't calorie count
We don't go to the gym
And we don't care if we get FAT!! (if we get faaaat)

oooh oooh oohhh (x3) aaaar aaarrr!!!

Somewhere inside this house
There MUST be a mars bar
Somewhere just one toblerone
Maybe there's some in the car???
People often tell us we have such a greedy gut
But we don't even care about all the pounds going to our BUTT!!

I need an aerooooooooooo
Why oh why would someone be so cruel and hide it
Choc helps through the bad and sad
Through the tears and the pain
Likelier for pigs to fly than us diet!!!!
I need an aerooooooooooo
If someone tells us to weight watch we say BE QUIET!
We will scream and we'll shout
We will cry or we'll die
Without goodies we go INSANE!! (go insane)

We will go insane, we will go insane, we will go insane

Ohhh OHHHH
I need an AERO!

Rianne and the petits pois

2009-11-10T21:29:00.005Z

This is a tale inspired by my inability to sleep currently and an unashamed rip off of 'The Princess and the Pea.'

Once upon a time there was a petite but feisty (FAKE!) redhead named Rianne. She lived in the kingdom of Chandler's Ford; most of those who dwelt here were snooty and rich. However, Rianne actually lived in a kinder and poorer neighbourhood.

She lived at home with her crazy family. Although Rianne drove her siblings and parents ROUND THE BEND AND BACK AGAIN they tolerated her wacky ways. During the days she toiled hard to earn a crust and perhaps several choccie bars (droooool!) The hours were long and the work was monotonous. Rianne was sad that she did not get to see the sun. For it was usually dull and dreary when she went into work and when she left the stars were already twinkling.

Miss Montigue was not an actual princess but she liked to make believe she was. Everyone who knows her would agree that she acts like a spoilt little madam! She longed for a life of diamonds and pretty dresses. But the truth is her life was no more than ORDINARY.

The little girl dreaded the end of the day. When normal people were tucked up warmly in their beds and sleeping soundly she was not. Now you may be thinking she must be a vampire like the Cullens in Twilight. Others have mistakenly come to this conclusion due to her dazzling beauty and pale complexion. I can confirm she is not a blood drinker! She merely could not sleep.

The reason for her insomnia is unknown and cannot be medically proven. Witch doctors in the land concocted potions and herbal remedies for her to try. Alas, they were not successful. Not even the delight that is hot chocolate would do the trick. Rianne began to despair. What is wrong with me?!! Why can I not sleep?

Night after night she would lay in her bed hoping that sleep would find her and take her to the mystical world of dreams. It never did. After a month of this ridiculous sleep deprivation cycle she could take it no longer. The ginger gal's genius brain remembered the plight of the Princess and the Pea. Could it be?! Maybe this was the evil root of her sleepless nights. One, tiny, green ball underneath her mattress preventing her from enjoying her precious zzzzzzz's?

Rianne raced to her pigsty of a bedroom and whipped off the mattress. And what should she find? Not just a single garden pea, my friends. Oh nooooo. An entire bag of petits pois had been cruelly stowed underneath her mattress! No wonder she was unable to get her beauty sleep. This explains why her bed felt so lumpy and bumpy and why her (rather peachy .. er NOT!) bottom was mysteriously bruised like a banana!! She rustled up the petits pois as a nutritious snack and scoffed them all!

Sadly, the young maiden was not of royal blood; merely the recepient of a heartless prank! So she remained regular Rianne for the rest of her days but at least she was now able to snooze to her hearts content.

And she lived NORMALLY ever after. The end.

Left my heart in IDAHO <3

2009-10-26T20:53:00.008Z

Finally, I figured out why I don't feel truly, genuinely happy in England. I had fooled myself into believing that I was happier than a hippo in mud here for a long time. This charade has become very draining and those closest to me in England have noticed the cracks in the mask for a while. It is an act I am no longer able to keep up. I have been deluding myself.

I don't mean to imply that I haven't been happy at home. Most of the time, I am finding joy in my life and having fun with my loved ones. It's just because I know that I have felt happiER in one place that is very precious to me. Who ever would have thought that such a bitterly cold, icy and windy city (if it can even be called a city?! HA!) would have such a tremendous impact on my life? Who knew that it was even *possible* to love somewhere where the snot freezes in your nostrils?!

But yes, it is TRUE. Rexburg (Iceburg) Idaho .. I MISS YOU! My friends, BYU-I, my ward, my classes, teachers, EVERYTHING about the life I revelled in from Fall 06 - Winter 07. I miss it all so very much it makes me cry. Heck, I even miss the blasted snow that I whinged and moaned endlessly about when I had to live with it!!!!

There is something very magical and wonderful about this little town in the middle of nowhere, USA. I can't put my finger on what exactly *it* is!! But I know that I want it back with every fibre of my being. No other place has entranced me in such a way. Yet, I (like thousands of others) have fallen under Rexburg's mystical spell. The second the coach dropped me and my mother off to BYU-I campus September 06 - I knew I had found a second home.

It has been approximately two and a half years since I came home from BYU Idaho :( :( Ever since that painfully sad day, I have not been the same Rianne! I have not felt complete; like I was missing a limb. It is only now that I have realised my heart is the vital body organ that I am lacking. And it is IMPOSSIBLE to live without a heart. Every day that passes I can feel the life being slowly sucked out of me. It's true, it's true .. oh what am I to do?!

They say "home is where the heart is" Surely, if my heart (or at least a great proportion of it) has been misplaced in Rexburg that means that Rexburg should be my home?? Or at the very least that I need to return and collect it (of course seeing all my lovely Rex-BURGERS simultaneously!!) I NEED IT.

My desire to be back in the Land of the Free is overwhelming. I have attempted to ignore these intense feelings and turn my back on them. Yet, this magnetic pull on me to the USA is unrelenting. I don't know how much longer I can fight it or whether I want to at all. "What's stopping you?" you may ask. Obviously all the people I love in England but the main problem is finances. I simply cannot afford to return on a permanent basis (and there are still doubts and confusion in my mind about if living in America is right) But go back I MUST!

This much I do know, England is not where I want to be right now. The question is: WHERE do I belong??? Please send your answers on a postcard if you happen to know the answer :) :) My life may very well be in your hands so choose wisely! One way or another I SHALL be visiting Spud State veeeeeeeery early next year. Make sure I get to see YOUUUUUUU.

I loathe the bus!

2009-10-02T02:25:00.005+01:00

"There has to be a more dignified mode of transportation" as Samantha complains in Sixteen Candles.

And to think, I used to whinge and whine to my parents as they would not let me catch the bus to town with my friends. I was not permitted to go on a bus with friends until I was 12/13 years old. At the time I thought I was SO grown up and mature! Pah!! I think I will be even more protective to my own children. I know children grow up faster in today's world but I think 12 years old is VERY young. My poor future children .. they are going to be bubblewrapped to the point of suffocation. (Please don't hate me future sons and daughters! It's only because I am super duper paranoid and it would destroy me if ANYTHING happened to you)

My experiences with this mode of transportation have always been less than pleasant. They are only now used by me as an absolute last resort!!!! It would be far more fun for me to jab pins in my eyeballs .. I'm NOT even kidding. I dread bus rides.

While on holiday in Corfu in August I genuinely believed I would die on a bus. Most of the roads are windy and right next to the rocky cliff tops. If the bus drivers we had misjudged even by an inch we'd have plunged down to our certain, untimely deaths. Every single day trip we took my heart was in my throat the entire journey! Especially when we were travelling to and from the airport in almost total darkness. The streets are practically UNlit at night! But the drivers most know the roads so well that they could drive it in their sleep. One driver even joked that we would have to help him reverse down a steep hill!! NOT THE WAY TO PUT A TERRIFIED PERSON AT EASE!!!!! I truly feared for my life and consider it a miracle that we are all alive still.

10 reasons I loathe the bus:

1- Their unreliabilty. More often than not they are LATE. (Sometimes just by a matter of minutes but lately I have become an impatient Rianne :S - but when you have to wait in the bitter cold or the rain every second feels eternal)And consider yourself lucky if they turn up AT ALL!!

2- The extortionate fares!! I really don't know how the bus ticket prices can be justified. We are in a global recession for goodness sakes but YES .. go ahead, essentially DOUBLE the ticket cost! And I have been cheated out of my pennies or pounds more than I care to remember. Word to the wise bus drivers - do NOT mess with a redhead (false or otherwise) You will feel my wrath! Many HAVE!

3- They do not have seat belts! This just is not safe. Why is it not illegal to not have seatbelts on buses?? When it is, if you are in a car etc. You are just as likely to have an accident in a bus! Hence, I am a nervous, edgy and jumpy passenger. Ever expecting the worse, I am convinced I will be in a major bus crash and be found mangled amongst the wreckage. (I have a highly warped and morbid imagination!!)

4- They are totally UNSANITARY!! I don't think buses are ever cleaned. You are surrounded by utter filth. The diseases you could pick up from a bus doesn't even bare thinking about!!! Chewing gum stuck under the seats, litter flung everywhere and some very questionable stains. Simply gross.

5- Bumpy and jerky. I have yet to encounter a smooth ride. Weirdly, I always seem to be thirsty when I am bus-ing (probably down to the heavy work out of shopping. Which is an ordeal in itself for me!) and it is near impossible for me to have a mouthful of drink without spilling it all over me!

6- Stinky, strange smells and rancid odours lingering in the air. I have to keep my mouth tightly shut and nose pegged to prevent the inhalation of any such toxic stenches!!!

7- The walk of death you have to take to get off the wretched thing!!!! I struggle to gracefully make my way down the aisle to exit the bus. The bus is still in motion but you have to start walking otherwise you'll miss your stop.

8- Lack of comfort. I do realise this is a bus so there will be no luxury or glamour.But seriosuly, those rock hard seats can't be good for people with back problems!!! In fact, for frequent bus travellers this may well be the cause for such back pain.

9- Nosey parkers who listen to your conversations if you are on your mobile. Or try to read your magazine, book or text messages over your shoulder. MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!!!

10- There is no escape from the weird strangers who sit next to you and ask for your phone number. From the lecherous, old men who stare at your chest until you put your jacket on. You are TRAPPED!

I still have to ride the bus on occasion.. grudgingly. I do wish that all the buses were wiped off the Earth but that will never happen. I hope all of you have happier and safe bus journeys. RIDE THEM AT YOUR OWN PERIL :)

Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo

2009-05-28T20:23:00.004+01:00

Did you ever wish you had a Fairy Godmother? Not necessarily one that can turn pumpkins into spectacularly beautiful carriages for Cinderellas. But one that cares for you, watches over you and comes complete with her magic wand and sparkles appropriately. I thought it would be something I would grow out of it. It just didn't happen.

Sometimes I still wait for my very own Fairy Godmother to make her grand appearance in my life. So many occasions have passed me by where I have just yearned for her to come along and wave that wand of magic to make my troubles disappear. If only life worked that way. But that would be too easy wouldn't it? How would we learn? How would we grow?

I mess up. I make horrific, horrendous mistakes that I beat myself up over and over mercilessly for. I can be my own worst enemy. If I had a Fairy Godmother she could erase all those bad decisions I made and all the terrible things I have done.

I have now come to realise that I can be my own personal Fairy Godmother. I have within me the power to be forgiven and to forgive myself. To make life more rewarding and joyful for myself. It is me that is holding back not my Fairy Godmother. There are no magic spells that I can cast to do this .. that pathway will not be a smooth course but I can make my way along it. I will reach my final destination. I won't let myself or any other factors prevent me succeeding.

No longer will I be a damsel in distress!! I will find my happy ending. I will do the seemingly impossible.

"The world is full of zanies and fools, who don't believe in sensible rules. And won't believe what sensible people say. And because these daft and dewey-eyed dopes, keep building up impossible hopes - impossible things are happening everyday" (Cinderella)

When your best friends are named .. Ben and Jerry!!

2009-03-24T14:24:00.000Z

What does it say about a Rianne when all she has to come home to is a tub of Half Baked? I think EVERYONE I know has moped over their troubles over a tub of Ben and Jerry's. When you are down and blue and you don't know what to do ... there is something you can *ALWAYS* depend on to be there for you no matter what.

Maybe it seems rather silly for me to be devoting an entire blog to this but in all seriousness this ice cream has got me through some tough, rough times. If I could personally thank Mr Ben and Mr Jerry for developing the world's most popular and scrumdiddlumptious flavours of ice cream known to man kind I would. Heck, I would run up to them, throw my eyes around them and anaconda squeeze them with gratitude!!

I know many people seem to be under the disillusion that I have hundreds of friends. I KNOW people but they don't necessarily know me and it doesn't make me the best of friends with them all. My truest friends are more precious to me than life itself but they do not amount to that kind of figure!! Don't be fooled by my social butterflying ways! The truth of it is I am something of a loner. I do feel lonely sometimes. Sometimes I like being left alone to have my way with my pot of SUGAR AND ADDITIVES!!

I am writing this at 2.00 am so this is somewhat muddled and random! I should be in the land of Nod!! Perhaps I am avoiding taking my meds :( Bleurrrggghh! There is something oddly comforting about blogging. Even if nobody reads this - it makes me feel better and more serene. Ugh, I need to get out more.

Sadly, I am not a culinary wizard. So while I do take comfort in food I am not the creator of gourmet masterpieces. This means that the gourging on ice cream, chocolate and other ridiculously-bad-for-me ready made junk food is all the more frequent. And without then I get savage and that is just not pretty!! I think a combo of blogging and scoffing B & J makes for the *PERFECT* therapy :) I may even suggest it to shrinks globally.

Okay enough Rianne!! The warmth and coziness of my bed is beckoning. Stop typing!! Night night my lovelies x x

Blood tests as much fun as BARBED WIRE!!

2009-03-24T13:02:00.000Z

If you play around with barbed wire, you are liable to get cut!!

"I am not a fainter!!" These were almost my famous and cruelly ironic first words as I stepped into the Doctor's office. She had sized me up as I skipped into the room and asked if I was one.Doctors always think that I am these tiny, frail girl. DON'T be fooled Doctors of the world I may be small but I am a TOUGHIE!! (most of the time, that is)

I have always had perhaps a gross, twisted, sadomasochistic pleasure from pain especially injections and Chinese burns. And now you are wondering if I have descended into an abyss of irreversible lunacy! Haaaa - JUST realised?? Before Friday 19th March I had always had lovely experiences with such things. Note the buzz word 'HAD' here.

The nurse gently stabbed the needle into my barely visible vein. I didn't flinch. The little prick was familiar and oddly comforting. After a few seconds I quickly realised that the process wasn't going as hoped. The nurse remarked that her hands were sweating.

A dark mist clouded my vision and I was overcome by a sense of WOOZINESS!! And not the nice kind of woozy. The scary type. I have only ever been close to passing out once before. This time it was different. My blood pressure was low and it frightened me. I have never felt so strange. It was like an out of body experience. The nurse could see what was happening and asked if I wanted to continue. I was eager to just get my blood tests over and done with so nodded. She asked me not to be brave. But I didn't feel brave, I felt cowardly and embarrassed.

The nurse tried with every ounce of her strength to squeeze out more blood from my arm but the blood flow was stopping. (FREAKY, eh?) My blood circulation was having NONE of it!! I sensed the Nurse's rising panic. She stated what I already knew and said I would have to return to get the final 3 tubefuls of my blood. Oh, the joy(!) When I spoke I sounded "cannot handle heavy machinery" drunk and told her "It's just cos I'm little" and I kept repeating this sounding like a drunken seal. I was forced to lie down until my head stopped spinning. When the Nurse was convinced that I wouldn't FAINT on her she fetched me a glass of tap water for me to sip on.

Fortunately, yesterday's blood test went a THOUSAND times more successfully. It was relatively pain free and I even managed to enjoy it. The reason I write this blog is not to be the recipient of sympathy but to warn others. When you go for a blood test make sure you DRINK LIKE A FISH - looooooooots of water!! And don't go on an empty stomach, foolishly like I had.

Cannot be wooed with tuna salad!!

2009-02-15T19:01:00.001Z

But I can be wooed with strawberries and profiteroles!! <3 That's a heads up for anyone who may be even remotely interested in me :)

Fellas, show us that romance isn't dead .. you don't have to be a ta-wit to woo!! (Geddit??)I know that a lot of guys don't have any patience for hearts or flowers but don't make the girls live vicariously through those Victorian romance novels! We want heat, we want romance, we want to feel like frickin' ladies! Without mystery and passion the soul withers and the heart turns to stone and that makes for a very lonely life.

No matter how much the lady doth protest the majority of us do want the moonlight, chocolates and flowers!! Women today like a little sensitivity. I am not talking about men who snivel at Celine Dion songs .. NO! And we are not asking for the world or expecting a Romeo and Juliet story (ideally the relationship will not end up in suicide!) The truly sad thing is that a great deal of men wouldn't know romance if it bit them on the booty!

I know three eighteen year old guys who gave all the females in our group a rose each with a little poem attached. THIS wonderful trio, now they are true gents and angels among men. I think a lot of the elder men in this world can learn a few lessons from them on how to treat and respect a woman. They put the biggest smiles on our faces :) It is the small and simple acts that show you care! The little gestures that you put some thought into.

Life is short .. so if you like somebody, do something about it!! At least you will know and there will be no "I wonder..." haunting and tormenting you. Show that there are some princes in existance amongst the murky swamps of warty, slimey frogs!! We are searching for you!

No, I did NOT eat the last slice of cheese cake!!

2009-02-12T22:12:00.000Z

Laura Wield, I blame YOU for getting me hooked on the sinful cheesecake!! I really need to repent on my cheesecake lusting. It is shameful! I think a visit to Cheesecake factory is on the cards. They promise that "there is something for EVERYONE!" They all look so beautiful .. I even drooled a little on the keyboard.

Last night I had cheesecake DREAMS! I recall trying to munch into my pillow and aarrggh that was such a disappointment! This could be a potentially dangerous new love affair .. and I have more than my fair share of those bad boys already!!

Yesterday, I was introduced to a new flavour of Ben and Jerry's: Cheesecake brownie!! And words cannot even adequately describe just how scrumdiddlyumptious it was so I will simply salivate *does so* Might I suggest that everyone do themselves a favour and go get SOME!! Seriously. It's a scoop of heaven!!

Life swap

2009-02-12T20:01:00.000Z

Sometimes I think I would like to be another person. To take on the identity of someone else. It's not that I don't like being ME - Rianne Hazel Montigue. It's that I would like to see the world through the eyes of another.. perhaps not forever, just for a little while.

So for my first blog, I decided to think of ten people (or mythological creatures, fictional characters or animals whatsoever they should be!) that I would quite like to exchange lives with for a period of time. I have given this great thought and these are the results (in no particular order)

1. WILLY WONKA - So that I could let my imagination run wild in my very own chocolate factory and scoff away to my hearts content on all the goodies already made. I would befriend the Oompa Loompas and swim under the chocolate waterfall. Drink fizzy lifting drinks, ride the glass elevator and wonkamobile and send out golden tickets to my best friends.

2. ONE OF SANTA'S ELVES – I just want to dress in the cute little elf outfits!! I'd be full of the Christmas spirit and love working in Santa's workshop making toys for children all around the world. I imagine that I would be paid with candy canes and yule log!! (Best type of wages) I'd get to play with the reindeers and help Santa compile the naughty and nice list. I would spread Christmas cheer singing Christmas carols, "feast on the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup." And like Buddy suggests in the film 'Elf' I would want to make ginger bread houses and go ice skating, and maybe even hold hands, make snow angels for two hours, then go ice skating, then eat a whole roll of Tollhouse Cookiedough as fast as we can, and snuggle. I think snow is magical so I am sure I would have a happy life at the North Pole.

3.ARIEL, THE LITTLE MERMAID – Then I could swim around scantily clad in my purple seashell bikini and be the envy of all the merpeople!!(in fact once on holiday aged 9 or so I dressed as Ariel in a fancy dress competition!)Being a hot, feisty little redhead sure is appealing to me :) I would spend my days romancing Prince Eric and exploring the beauties under the sea. I'd find treasures in the ocean and add them to my secret grotto. Everyone would adore my beautiful angelic singing voice. I'd have adventures under the sea with Flounder and Sebastian and all the other magnificent sea creatures. Plus, we all know "Darlin', it's better down where it's wetter, Take it from me! Up on the shore they work all day, Out in the sun they slave away! While we devotin' Full time to floating, Under the sea!" .. sounds BLISS!

4.PHOEBE HALLIWELL (ONE OF THE CHARMED ONES) – I'd be gorgeous, kick ass and have brilliant super powers - premonition, levitation and empathy. My life would be well spent demon hunting to defeat the evil ones and protect the innocents. I would get an enormous high out of restoring the balance of good in the world. A massive incentive is also the BEAUTIFUL men the Halliwell sisters get .. I wouldn't mind a slice of that!

5. WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE – Yes, the Great Bard himself. To get an insight into his genius mind would be such a thrill. I'd love to get even a glimpse into the workings of his brain as to how he conjured up such literary masterpieces .. what inspired his works? How I would love to be such a critically acclaimed and legendary playwright! He has been rightfully referred to as "The greatest writer in the English language" but even such a WORLD renowned writer. It would fill me with pride to have my works studied and adapted in films still today.

6.Agnetha Fältskog: The blonde ABBA GIRL - obviously I would want to have her life in her Abba days .. singing Eurovision, concerts .. wearing the most sparkly and ridiculous disco diva outfits, be a dancing queen and have my songs sung all over the globe!!

7. A CULINARY WIZARD – I'd want the skills of the Jamie Olivers and Gordon Ramseys of the world .. but with the glamour of Nigella Lawson. The Domestic Goddess that she is. I'd whip up dishes from my dreams in the kitchen and keep my home meticulous and beautiful. I'd throw the best dinner parties in all the land and be the hostess with the mostest!

8.AUDREY HEPBURN – What little girl hasn't dreamed of being this starlet at some point in their life? I'd want her acting career, her BEAUTY, regal elegance, grace, and her enchanting spirit. I wouldn't want to live her entire life as it had a sad and premature end. But I would embrace Hollywood stardom and get to work with some of the most amazing leading men of all time: Humphrey Bogart and Fred Astaire in some of the best films- My Fair Lady, Breakfast at Tiffany's, Happy Face etc.

9.MOTHER THERESA - she has always been a heroine of mine. I would like to walk in her footsteps and do the degree of charity work she did. I want the compassionate heart that she possessed and to be able to give of my time and energy as she did.. to better the lives of those who need it most. To help the poor and the needy. An angel of a woman!

10. CINDERELLA from The Slipper and the Rose - POST BALL. This movie adaptation of the fairytale was a childhood favourite of mine and even today it still has a special place in my heart. As a young girl, I always pretended to be this version of Cinderella ..as I believed she was the kindest and prettiest. (And I had a bit of a thing for Prince Edward - not realising he was gay!!) I'd sing all the time and wear stunning ball gowns and glass slippers. No mean stepsisters or evil Stepmother would prevent me from getting my Prince or happily ever after in the kingdom of Euphrania! (my personal Fairy Godmother would make sure of it!)

So who would make your list??