A Curious Girl: An exciting few days

Good grief. I have a project for next year to get sorted and all the titles look so boring. Perhaps it's just because it's a Friday afternoon. I'm toying with the idea of leaving this until tomorrow and trying to find an internet cafe, but then I don't know if I'll be able to access the titles then. And I can't leave this until Monday.

My sister is now married. Yay! Wedding was wonderful, naturally, she looked beautiful, he looked handsome, the bridesmaids (including me) looked nice and an usher chatted me up. Which was kinda sweet, actually, it's nice to be asked to dance (by two separate people!). The photographer was really great. He just seemed so nice. Bet the photos are brilliant :)

It might have been nicer for me if I hadn't pronged my right big toe and had to go to A&E on Friday. I had a definite limp and ended up doing the wedding in my black dancing shoes (yes, I actually own dancing shoes, thanks to the Gilbert and Sullivan society). Ironically, they were the shoes I was wearing when I slipped off a step on Thursday night and pronged my toe. It swelled up and then I got bruises later. Strangely, it was easier dancing than walking.

I saw Keith and Sian at the wedding reception. Yay!

So if I may backtrack to Thursday night, I was in a concert! It was an exciting few days basically - concert, election, A&E, wedding... The concert was my choir - the Revelation Rock Gospel choir to be precise. With much variety and, naturally, musical talent, we took to a local church to perform everything from Shackles by Mary Mary to Keep on Moving by Five, passing a couple of African spirituals, a DC Talk song, and some very happy clappy gospel along the way. And, I did a solo. I was so nervous about it, but I'm really pleased I did. I realised just before the concert that Holly van Daan is based on me more than even I thought she was. See:

“Sorry,” she said. “It’s just I find singing soothing.”

“Really?” I said. “In case you hadn’t noticed, I find it terrifying.”

and...

She stopped there. And looked at me thoughtfully.

“What?” I asked her.

“You’re a good singer.”

I raised my eyebrows comically high.

“What have you done with the real Ivy Banks?”

and

This is it, I thought, as my stomach did a few agile back-flips, you’ve got to sing in public.

and

“Let’s go carol singing.”

She was the strangest girl.

“Why?”

“Not for money – we’ll make a sign that says, ‘No money please, purely for your enjoyment.’ Let’s go out and entertain people.”

“As opposed to force them out into the cold to hear us screeching?”

She squealed at me. “Get over it! Don’t you remember what thingy – John McKane…”

“Jack McKay.”

“…Said about our singing? We’re great! And people need a bit of Christmas spirit.”

The funny thing is, I always imagine Ivy saying 'Get over it' in exactly the same tone Christina used to say 'Get over him' of my long time crush on David-the-head-boy.

But yes, the solo went really well. Thanks to my friend David (not the head boy David) and to Dr Who James for telling me that I can sing.

Afterwards, we got a taxi home - David, who introduced me to the choir, and with whom I occasionally meet up for coffee - paid, because he's lovely like that. I then put my foot under a cold shower and got to bed (but after Kathleen, my next door neighbour, assured me that my performance was great and I can sing. hehe) I woke up at about 3am from the pain and was trying to decide whether to turn on the television and find out who was prime minister. Only I couldn't bear the thought that it might be Michael Howard, and then I'd have nightmares afterwards. So I waited until the morning. And overslept. Called Mum in floods of tears about how I was in pain and how I hadn't a clue how to get to the B&B where I was staying for the wedding. After my trip to A&E, I got a cross country coach which cost me less for a return fare than the taxis to the hospital and back had done.

So yes - I eventually got into Oxfordshire with a bit of kerfuffle. The wedding went well, as I said, then the next day we had lunch with Mr and Mrs Hunt (!) and then Dad drove me home. Aw. I showed off my flowers to Kathleen.

Random word for today: mondegreen

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