101 More Things About Me.
So there I was reading my about me page, when it struck me that a whole lotta lotta has changed since I wrote my original 101 things about me…
So here I am, purely for my own pleasure, re-inventing myself…
1. I still despise Mariah Carey. I can’t help it. Poor woman doesn’t deserve it.
2. I am galloping towards thirty five years old.
3. And my little babba is going to be all grown up before I know it. It’s freaking me out.
4. I like ironing teatowels better than I like doing anything else in the world.
5. I once lost nine stone in as many months. Nine stone!!!
6. Didn’t feel particularly different.
7. I was with Mark for fifteen years.
8. He left me in April and I thought I would shrivel up and die.
9. But hey ho, it turns out hearts don’t break.
10. I feel like I’ve survived my worst fear and come out smiling.
11. I miss him like hell. But he’s never coming home.
12. Apparently he’s never really liked the way I do the dishes. I think you will agree there are worst crimes.
13. I am irrationally obsessed with cucumber. Preferably Marks and Spencers organic cucumber.
14. I am a fussy madam. I like what I like.
15. I’m rubbish at looking after myself.
16. Left to my own devices I forget to eat.
17. I truly didn’t realise that being a mum would be at once so heartbreaking and so utterly exhilarating.
18. I’ve given up chocolate. But oh how I miss my violet creams. More than I miss Mark really…
19. I worry that I’ll never meet anyone again. That it will always be just me and my little buddy Finn. I know! It’s only been four months….
20. I suspect I am a little eccentric.
21. No scrap that: plainly I am eccentric…
22. I hate hoovering. I’d have Mark back tomorrow if he’d promise to hoover on a regular basis…
23. One glass of red wine makes me giggle.
24. I feel like I’m teetering on the brink of something wonderful. What a pity I don’t know what it is…
25. I don’t like surprises. They make me cross.
26. In my own nutty, pear shaped fashion I am, I suppose, an absolute control freak.
27. God forbid I don’t know the whereabouts of those I love at all times.
28. I used to think every ambulance that went past had Mark in it.
29. I have a culinary obsession with fallafel and stuffed vine leaves.
30. It will pass: I am fickle about food.
31. I feel like Robbie Williams is my son. All grown up. I kind of ache for him.
32. It has to stop. I need to develop a more mature crush.
33. The thought of never having another baby breaks my heart.
34. My friends would probably faint if they saw me in a skirt.
35. I have never realised a single ambition.
36. Perhaps because I can’t remember having any.
37. I am never scared of being lost. My dad tells me all roads lead to the same place, so there is no need to worry.
38. I believe every word my Dad tells me.
39. I quite like being a single mummy.
40. My friend Clare has to ring me on a regular basis to remind me to water my hanging basket.
41. My Mum rings me every night to remind me to lock my doors. I never, ever, never forget Mum…
42. I still think I’m 21. With a hefty mortgage, big bum and a baby.
43. Lately the party girl inside me won’t lie down. It’s a worry.
44. I have always thought washing dishes was akin to
45. I haven’t been on holiday in ten years.
46. I wouldn’t know what to do with myself on a beach.
47. I used to adore Winter, but lately a fear of the nights closing in is threatening to drown me. Long live Summer…
48. I bite my nails.
49. Sometimes a kind of emptiness grips me in the early hours of the morning and I end up lying awake till dawn trying to work out what it is I am most afraid of.
50. I suspect it might be running out of toilet roll. Or leaving the milk on the doorstep till four 0’clock in the afternoon. I seem to be losing my grip on the little things.
51. My mum has always said that what is for you won’t pass you. I need this to be true.
52. I adore the smell of Johnsons baby powder…
53. Finley has taken up saying, "Oh for goodness sake!" and "For crying out loud!". I suspect his Mother is a teeny bit dramatic.
54. Catching myself on T.V from time to time is utterly surreal and I feel no connection whatsoever with that woman in a pinny…
55. I have decided that I need to live a little more before I will be able to write a novel worth reading. So my pathetic efforts are stashed safely under my bed…
56. I was madly in love with a soldier called Dale when the Gulf War was on. I found the daily arrival of his airline blue paper thin thoughts from the dessert utterly romantic. Forgive me: I was eighteen and oh so in love with being in love…
57. I know which foods make me ill, which perfume makes me feel special and which conditioner turns my frizz into my crowning glory. I just need to curtail the urge to experiment so much…
58. All of a sudden I feel grown up. Cast out to sea, but grown up all the same.
59. I get the most hideous PMT.
60. I never step outside the door without concealer and lipgloss. Must not scare the kids…
61. Give me a bookshop over a wine bar any day.
62. I have very bad taste in men. I still consider Bob from Emmerdale to be one of the sexiest men on t.v…
63. I wish I was as glamorous as my Mum and Helen, but my Dad frequently tells me that he and I were blessed with untidy faces…
64. I want a house with a proper laundry room more than I want anything else in the world.
65. I only need to feel safe to feel content.
66. In life before Finley I was responsible for far too much of the stencilled ivy in the good homes of the Northwest.
67. I have never, ever entered the lottery because I don’t want to win.
68. Drunk people scare me.
69. My feet are always dirty. I have no idea why.
70. When I write poetry a whole new funny me comes out. Think she must live in Siberia the rest of the year round.
71. I don’t feel betrayed by Mark. And wonder if that is because there is something missing in my brain, or because there was a certain inevitabilty to his behavior I’d long seen coming.
72. I like January better than any other month in the year. It just feels so clean.
73. My glass is always 99% full.
74. But my purse is always empty.
75. I get a lot of parking tickets.
76. I hate the fact that I am no longer part of a traditional family unit.
77. I never finish what I start. It’s a sickness.
78. The green wallpaper on my landing makes me feel sick.
79. Having a king size bed to myself is utter bliss. The next man I meet will have to sleep on the floor. Or maybe in the house next door.
80. I am forever buying things at car boot sales I would be too embarrased to show you. Good taste gets lost in a frenzy of tat for a pittance…
81. I sneak into Finley’s bedroom in the dark and throw away his toys while he sleeps.
82. I am never further than a foot away from a pair of tweezers. They just come in so handy…
83. I recently caught texting disease. This isn’t a good thing: I am plainly not a teenager.
84. I wish my sister Helen lived round the corner instead of miles away. I haven’t got the concentration skills to tackle the motorways between us.
85. Drinking hot water with lemon first thing in the morning has changed my life. Thank you Clare.
86. As did buying a dishwasher.
87. I can’t knit, crochet or ride a bike.
88. My Mum can read me like a
89. If I never moved house again I’d probably be happy.
90. The Major and the Minor with Ginger Rogers is my favorite film of all time. Oh to be sitting in my Nana’s living room watching it with her just one more time…
91. It mystifies me how I will ever meet another man. If I run away with the milkman you know it’s because he’s the only man who ever came a knocking.
92. Portraits of women are my favorite flea market discoveries. Who was she? Why is she so sad?
93. I am disproportionetly impressed by the skills of plumbers. Seems to me that plumbing is up there with brain surgery.
94. I hardly ever buy new clothes and I lose every pair of earrings I buy.
95. I have a compulsive urge to buy more washing up liquid than any woman with a dishwasher could ever really need…
96. I once worked as a hair salon receptionist and was probably the worst one they ever had.
97. Turns out you can never really know a person. I thought I did. I really thought I did.
98. Sometimes Finley’s gorgeous little voice drives me to distraction.
99. Other times I want to go into his room and wake him up just so that he can tell me a superhero story. I miss him when he’s asleep.
100. I know I am a hopeless friend. Accept my apologies?
101. I couldn’t have got through the past few months without all of you. Women continue to amaze me…
Have a scrumptious day!
Alison, I have been reading your blog for several months and have passed it on to like minded friends I knew would love it a much as I. You are an inspiration to us all, such a strong, honest, intelligent lady and your babba is just gorgeous. We all wish we were your friends!! Take care, you truly represent the saying, "To thy own self be true." x
Do you know – I think I prefer this list lady…
Oh and I completely understand the Bob from Emmerdale thing… he for some reason makes me become all unnecessary….(mmmm – perhaps I need some therapy…..I also have a bit of a thing for Stephen Fry and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and James May from Top Gear…. now really what is that about…)
…The 9 stone in nine months – tell me how – if you do, you can be sure of a new man as my doctor (who always tells me as sweetly as possible that perhaps being built for comfort rather than speed is not the best thing for me) will almost undoubtedly propose on the spot to the source of such inspiration.
glad I am not the only one who can't stand mariah carey, my friends would also faint if they saw me in a skirt, love emmerdale but not sure about the bob thing,LOL
glad I am not the only one who can't stand mariah carey, my friends would also faint if they saw me in a skirt, love emmerdale but not sure about the bob thing,LOL
Alison your new list reflects the brilliant woman you're becoming – okay, a tear and a hiccup occasionally sneak in, but overall, you're inspirational! You've really triumphed in rebuilding your life and emerging as a stronger, happier person. Lovely photograph.
I love your new list. Much better than the last one. I'm also heading at speed for 35 and newly surprisingly single. I am holding on to the belief that there is a man out there who truely deserves me and I know that there's one for you to. You've just got to believe it and you'll find each other. You are an inspiration to us all
I love your new list. Much better than the last one. I'm also heading at speed for 35 and newly surprisingly single. I am holding on to the belief that there is a man out there who truely deserves me and I know that there's one for you to. You've just got to believe it and you'll find each other. You are an inspiration to us all
WOW! Your picture is gorgeous…is that your new "bling" around your neck?
I'm so glad to read your list and most importantly to hear from you again!! I check on you each day. Take care and keep letting us know how you're doing!!
WOW! Your picture is gorgeous…is that your new "bling" around your neck?
I'm so glad to read your list and most importantly to hear from you again!! I check on you each day. Take care and keep letting us know how you're doing!!
Your new list is great–funny, thoughtful and full of awareness of how you're changing as life changes. Finley is great and I want your parents and sister to adopt me.
Your new list is great–funny, thoughtful and full of awareness of how you're changing as life changes. Finley is great and I want your parents and sister to adopt me.
I loved reading that. Its so honest. And underneath it all I think we are all so alike. Some of the things you list – I could have written myself.
And I never, ever liked Mariah Carey either!!
Josee
I loved reading that. Its so honest. And underneath it all I think we are all so alike. Some of the things you list – I could have written myself.
And I never, ever liked Mariah Carey either!!
Josee
I love your honesty, your transparency. It makes the rest of us suddenly feel not alone in the world anymore. There is someone else who never finishes things, someone else who rarely buys new clothes and can't pass up funny things at a sale.
The "new" you, seems so real to me! I love the photo – you look as if you've gone from a cute "girl" to grown-up sensual woman who knows herself inside and out!
I wondered when you were going to update it! You don't feel betrayed by HIM 'cos you know he wasn't your soulmate.You look amazing, v.Ronni Anacona (who is the best, especially when she spoke of her love of books and the beach as a child)but I digress, isn't it the best to feel the party within?! But was has shocked me most of all is The Major and the Minor, I can't believe there is someone else, under the age of 80 who knows and adores this film!!!!!!!!!!!! Next time you watch it look out for the scene where Ray Milland's fiance is wearing a black evening dress (jersey fabric I think) nipped in at the waist with the BIGGEST diamante broach, that was the moment I knew that I don't belong in this era and the first time I saw Natalie Wood in GYPSY. I feel your greving is over, treat every day with exciting trepidation, remember someone awaits in the wings. Bravo Alison!
I wondered when you were going to update it! You don't feel betrayed by HIM 'cos you know he wasn't your soulmate.You look amazing, v.Ronni Anacona (who is the best, especially when she spoke of her love of books and the beach as a child)but I digress, isn't it the best to feel the party within?! But was has shocked me most of all is The Major and the Minor, I can't believe there is someone else, under the age of 80 who knows and adores this film!!!!!!!!!!!! Next time you watch it look out for the scene where Ray Milland's fiance is wearing a black evening dress (jersey fabric I think) nipped in at the waist with the BIGGEST diamante broach, that was the moment I knew that I don't belong in this era and the first time I saw Natalie Wood in GYPSY. I feel your greving is over, treat every day with exciting trepidation, remember someone awaits in the wings. Bravo Alison!
Though I am 30-something and quite hetero, I believe I have a old-fashioned, adolescent girlie-crush on you. You're so cool.
Though I am 30-something and quite hetero, I believe I have a old-fashioned, adolescent girlie-crush on you. You're so cool.
Alison, I wish that we could sit down & have a glass of wine & chat (as I think that most of your readers do)…I know from everything that you write that it would be an amazing, laugher-filled, hearts-open, hours long conversation! You look fab, by the way…keep doing whatever you are doing.
Alison, I wish that we could sit down & have a glass of wine & chat (as I think that most of your readers do)…I know from everything that you write that it would be an amazing, laugher-filled, hearts-open, hours long conversation! You look fab, by the way…keep doing whatever you are doing.
Arent you stunning! lovely inside and out! I shall buy a boatload of lemons in the morning and hope drinking them in hot water first thing has the same effect on me,ha ha!:)
It was great reading this Alison! 🙂 It's nice to get to know you better. Deep down inside we're all girls and have a lot of the same dreams, hopes, and fears. Take Care, Susy
It was great reading this Alison! 🙂 It's nice to get to know you better. Deep down inside we're all girls and have a lot of the same dreams, hopes, and fears. Take Care, Susy
Oh gosh, but I must admit one thing… I really do like a lot of Mariah Careys music! 🙂 Hey I was a city girl who grew up in Chicago, what can I say? I guess I'm both a vintage AND ghetto girl at heart! I hope I'm not banned for this 😉 -Susana
Oh gosh, but I must admit one thing… I really do like a lot of Mariah Careys music! 🙂 Hey I was a city girl who grew up in Chicago, what can I say? I guess I'm both a vintage AND ghetto girl at heart! I hope I'm not banned for this 😉 -Susana
I want to be you when I grow up..and I am 4 years older than you!…"bookshop over winebar"..Kindred is the word that comes to mind…Your total willingness to put yourself out there, out here for all of us is an inspiration..xoxo
You are fabulous.
You are fabulous.
That's so funny I was only thinking about your 101 list the other day and how it must have changed.
I really think you should show us all your car-bbot finds!Maybe we could have a worst thing bought competition.I think I could give you a run for your money.
Nice to see you back sweetie!
That's so funny I was only thinking about your 101 list the other day and how it must have changed.
I really think you should show us all your car-bbot finds!Maybe we could have a worst thing bought competition.I think I could give you a run for your money.
Nice to see you back sweetie!
I am just a reader of your blog and I am so impressed with what you "know" at your age and your willingness to share! You will certainly meet someone who treasures exceedingly more than the wonderful 101 things about you.
I am just a reader of your blog and I am so impressed with what you "know" at your age and your willingness to share! You will certainly meet someone who treasures exceedingly more than the wonderful 101 things about you.
That was beautiful….
xo
Gail
That was beautiful….
xo
Gail
Alison…….you crack me up!! I can hear the smile in your writing. Really, you should write that book. Just like I should really publish my own that is already written about my silly little poppets. UG!! The things we think we CAN'T do!! Drat it all!!
Blessings & Peace beyond measure!
Alison…….you crack me up!! I can hear the smile in your writing. Really, you should write that book. Just like I should really publish my own that is already written about my silly little poppets. UG!! The things we think we CAN'T do!! Drat it all!!
Blessings & Peace beyond measure!
You are so beautiful and so very clever.
You are so beautiful and so very clever.
You are so pretty, you deserve only the best!!
You are so pretty, you deserve only the best!!
I`m enjoying your blog very much 🙂
I was married for 10 years with two children. They`re now 21 and 24….they grow up so fast!
Was alone for 8 years with only casual dating until 7 years ago. I finally met a wonderful man (hard to find those) and we were married this past June.
Never stop believing and for now, this inbetween time…get out there and enjoy yourself with no guilt!
tea
xo
I`m enjoying your blog very much 🙂
I was married for 10 years with two children. They`re now 21 and 24….they grow up so fast!
Was alone for 8 years with only casual dating until 7 years ago. I finally met a wonderful man (hard to find those) and we were married this past June.
Never stop believing and for now, this inbetween time…get out there and enjoy yourself with no guilt!
tea
xo
Firstly you are a very gorgeous woman who will definitely meet someone else when the time is right!
25 – I hate them too. Too much of a control freak me!
51- Your mum is soooo wise!!
54 – Explain, have I missed something, are you on TV?!
59 – Me too honey
74 might be because of 75!
I loved your list, I laughed at many and nodded along with quite a few. You are a fabulous writer Alison.
In 2002: After 15 years, my man woke up and said he didn't love me anymore; could I please go away now? So I did, I struck out on my own with nothing, barely surviving.
2004: Had lunch randomly with a strange, hilarious, tall, dark, and handsome widower. He is so not my type, but what's a lunch?
2006: Happily married to the real love of my life, career finally flourishing, with two beautiful stepkids and a baby wonder of my own. Oh, and hubby's job means I get to live in Europe for the next 4 years! It gets better dear, and it will end up the way it is supposed to. You will do fine! Better than Mark, I'd reckon.
In 2002: After 15 years, my man woke up and said he didn't love me anymore; could I please go away now? So I did, I struck out on my own with nothing, barely surviving.
2004: Had lunch randomly with a strange, hilarious, tall, dark, and handsome widower. He is so not my type, but what's a lunch?
2006: Happily married to the real love of my life, career finally flourishing, with two beautiful stepkids and a baby wonder of my own. Oh, and hubby's job means I get to live in Europe for the next 4 years! It gets better dear, and it will end up the way it is supposed to. You will do fine! Better than Mark, I'd reckon.
Ali, as someone who considers themselves to be a friend of yours, and oops a pretty bad one as I only discovered last week that you and Mark had gone your seperate ways. I wanted to say that I am someone you know who has suffered a huge loss and managed to come out of the other side smiling. After Michael died 18 months ago, and suddenly finding myself as a single mum to a fabulous 3 year old, the words that you wrote in the sympathy card you sent were probably the nicest I read. Eventually after all the tears, sleepless nights, and finally facing my fears I did pick myself up and decided to embrace my new found singledom with courage, excitement and the knowledge that i'd survived the worst 6 months of my life. I met Andy who is lovely, we just got engaged and are getting married in June 2007 and i'll be a step mummy to 2 lovely children (which still terrifies me). To top it all off i've resigned from a horrible job I hated, and start university next week to train as a health visitor (in your area so i'll have no excuse for not popping in and having a slice of your delicious quiche).
Ali you really are absolutley beautiful and you are also a lovely kind person. Mark's a fool but your right, your on the brink of something huge and exciting, please embrace it, enjoy it, and love the things you do have. You really do only live once and life really is too short.
Give me a call hon, (or text seeing as you've got the bug) and we'll get together and put the world to rights. Give little Fin a big kiss, but most importantly keep smiling.
Emma O xxx
Ali, as someone who considers themselves to be a friend of yours, and oops a pretty bad one as I only discovered last week that you and Mark had gone your seperate ways. I wanted to say that I am someone you know who has suffered a huge loss and managed to come out of the other side smiling. After Michael died 18 months ago, and suddenly finding myself as a single mum to a fabulous 3 year old, the words that you wrote in the sympathy card you sent were probably the nicest I read. Eventually after all the tears, sleepless nights, and finally facing my fears I did pick myself up and decided to embrace my new found singledom with courage, excitement and the knowledge that i'd survived the worst 6 months of my life. I met Andy who is lovely, we just got engaged and are getting married in June 2007 and i'll be a step mummy to 2 lovely children (which still terrifies me). To top it all off i've resigned from a horrible job I hated, and start university next week to train as a health visitor (in your area so i'll have no excuse for not popping in and having a slice of your delicious quiche).
Ali you really are absolutley beautiful and you are also a lovely kind person. Mark's a fool but your right, your on the brink of something huge and exciting, please embrace it, enjoy it, and love the things you do have. You really do only live once and life really is too short.
Give me a call hon, (or text seeing as you've got the bug) and we'll get together and put the world to rights. Give little Fin a big kiss, but most importantly keep smiling.
Emma O xxx
Hi Alison,
I am so impressed with your website, you really are so clever and talented. Wow!!!
I love the photo, it's gorgeous.
Thanks for all the chats and laughs… Have posted a comment elsewhere on the site but can't remember where because this site is just brilliant and I've been reading it all.
Keep it up you clever glamourpuss!!!xxx.
what a summer beauty! I'm so glad to be a reader of your site.
what a summer beauty! I'm so glad to be a reader of your site.
I ADORED your list… I ADORE your site. Just lovely!
You're as lovely as your site. Truly, there is someone out there who won't believe his luck that you're available for romancing. Courage!
You're as lovely as your site. Truly, there is someone out there who won't believe his luck that you're available for romancing. Courage!
what we would all give for floor space at grandmas watching her favorite film just one more time.
what we would all give for floor space at grandmas watching her favorite film just one more time.
Oh my sweet dear! I've only been on this site last night quickly, and then have spent the last 45 minutes going over this site and reading about how much you love your husband, and then I find this and my heart just breaks for you! I am so very, sincerely sorry. I have gone through a divorce about 15 years ago. There was a time when I wondered if I would EVER find my soul mate, my Prince Charming. It was a long time, yes it was…but I did put that time to good use. Eventually I did meet my Prince Charming and married him 5 years ago.
Continue to take one day at a time and believe always that the pain you may be feeling will ease.
I'm dedicating my next doily crocheting session to you.
Oh my sweet dear! I've only been on this site last night quickly, and then have spent the last 45 minutes going over this site and reading about how much you love your husband, and then I find this and my heart just breaks for you! I am so very, sincerely sorry. I have gone through a divorce about 15 years ago. There was a time when I wondered if I would EVER find my soul mate, my Prince Charming. It was a long time, yes it was…but I did put that time to good use. Eventually I did meet my Prince Charming and married him 5 years ago.
Continue to take one day at a time and believe always that the pain you may be feeling will ease.
I'm dedicating my next doily crocheting session to you.
Goodnight Ali, you are a wonder of the web that much is true, Ive just found out for myself the joys of MSN and talking to you.
Tommorows a new day wake up and smile, you have good reason too x
Goodnight Ali, you are a wonder of the web that much is true, Ive just found out for myself the joys of MSN and talking to you.
Tommorows a new day wake up and smile, you have good reason too x
Alison, I have only known you a very short while, but from what I do know, I really hope we hit it off x stuart x