Early Morning Manicure

It's 7:21am. The scent of freshly baked bread is in the air. Zeus & Clio are snuggled up together in their soft basket, full from an early breakfast, slightly puzzled as to their early awakening. I woke up at 5am this morning having fallen asleep sometime around two. I think I'm a little excited and stressed about Friday. Not sure what I'm stressed about. Everything's going smoothly. Definitely excited though. It'll be good practice for the long days ahead I guess!

So with nothing else to occupy my time until 9am, I figured I'd do my nails (as girls do). I've decided to go with a French manicure because it's simple and subtle.

base coat dried, begin French ivory tips

I always wondered what made women pay what is sometimes a lot of money for a manicure. I mean you can do it at home (as I'm currently demonstrating). It serves no practical purpose other than suggesting that you pay attention to your grooming which, I'll admit, has it's benefits.

touch up French ivory tips having smudged a couple

A couple of few years ago my Mum treated me to a manicure at the hairdressers. It was such a pleasant experience! There I was sitting in the hairdressers with someone fixing my hair and someone polishing my nails. I felt like a pampered princess, which was wonderful after long hours of studying. Manicures have since become "me time". Particularly the ones I do myself at home. It's a self-indulgent activity which renders me useless (if it requires working with my hands) for as long as it takes for my nails to dry. There's plenty of time to ponder life, the universe and everything when you're waiting for your nails to dry!

On a completely different and non-nail related note, I can hear the sighs of relief from any boys/men reading this, it's amazing the things you discover when you're up early. Today I have discovered that sitting at my usual spot in the living room at the dining table early in the morning is a great place to work on your tan and be blinded.

first coat of French blush (pink) polish

Hmmm... what to write?

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Oh that's right! I just uploaded some of the Brisbane pics the other day. Here's a few highlights.

Cancel that, Zoto are upgrading their servers so the pictures will have to wait. Sorry.

second coat of French blush polish

I have a dilemma. I'm about to go away for four months (eek!) and I don't have a book to take. Careful research has suggested that there are only two bookshops in Doha that sell English books and that it's best to bring your own. It's not that I'm not currently reading anything. It's more that I read quickly and need something that's not too challenging but something that will last. I usually take Stardust with me but, as Nick & Gene will attest to, I finished that on the flight back from Brisbane. It's a bit of a comfort read for me. Not too hard, not too light and it's funny. That's usually what I want after a long day at work.

brief moment of panic as a dog hair is discovered sitting on a freshly painted nail

I toyed with the idea of taking Lord of the Rings with me last night as it's something I've been meaning to read for years now. It would be optimistic though to think that I could get through it. I'd probably just end up writing more in my journal!

At the moment I'm reading The Eyre Affair which is great but I'm flying through it so it's not really an option. Something like Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell would be perfect.

So here I am. Departing in two days with no book to accompany me and only a day to watch season 2 of Battlestar Galactica with Mum & Gene. Life's hard isn't it? :)

top coat

Today I'm going to start packing. No really I am. I've already been mentally working out how I want to pack my stuff into my brand new red travel-pack. It's soooo pretty! It has a million straps to allow a customised fit and compression of your clothes. There's a wet stuff pocket for towels etc. There's even a camera section at the top so you have a safe water resistant place to keep it while hiking. The front section is detachable so you can use it as a day pack. It's just so well designed! Excellent harness too. Fits like a glove and has a 55L capacity. Dad got a black one with a 65L capacity. I figured that I'd go with the smaller one because I'm better off having a smaller pack that I can carry than a bigger pack that gives me back pain.

Packing is hard! It's going to be pretty warm while I'm in Doha. We miss the cool season by a month so it'll be 25 degrees celcius at the end of our trip. We are however considering going to Europe for a quick holiday after Doha. It's going to be cold in Europe. This could be problematic!

Well, my nails are done and it's time for me to get ready to go for my check up so I'll finish here for now. Thank you for keeping me company during my manicure!