I do a lot of confessing in this blog. And this post will be no different. And I’ll start by admitting that I’m kinda cheating with this post.

I was recently tagged by the lovely Jo (a virtual blogging buddy I hope to meet in the flesh one day) via her blog, And anyways… and given a Very Inspiring Blogging Award which is obviously SEVERELY overdue. I mean, is anyone more inspiring than moi?! And while we’re on the subject, I cannot believe the Nobel Peace Prize Committee hasn’t come-a-knockin’.

Like the Miss Universe Pageant, the award comes with some rules I must adhere to, lest I be de-throned (like Miss Universe Vanessa Williams and Tour de France cyclist Lance Armstrong):

1. Display the award logo on your blog
2. Link back to the person who nominated you
3. State 7 things about yourself
4. Nominate 15 other bloggers for the award and link to them
5. Notify those bloggers of the nomination and the awards requirements
6. Nude photographs or YouTube videos will result in disqualification.

Okay. So… I may have made that last one up. Thankfully I can swear to you that no such things exist. (Mum, I promise!!!)

But this is where the cheating bit is gonna start… I’m only going to sort-of follow the rules and I know Jo won’t mind.

I’ve done something similar before and shared some random facts and been tagged in a international espionage ring blogging game, so I thought I’d vary the challenge a bit and do a recap of my weekend. While I know my posts are mundane (yadda, yadda, yadda) I rarely talk about day to day crap or about the non-food/exercise related things I do. (And you’re about to learn why!)

1. Staying ‘in’
I allocate time first thing on a Saturday and Sunday morning to blog-related stuff. On Saturday I drafted a post for my other blog – about the challenges of living alone and did a HEAP of blog reading. My Google Reader started at over 100 unread posts, but I got it down – reading all, commenting on some, chuckling at others and nodding knowingly at the remainder.

Even though I’m not planning to leave the apartment I force myself out of my PJs first thing and into ‘normal’ clothes, though I don’t worry too much about how I look!

2. Lifting my blogging to the next level
I don’t ever envisage getting rich from blogging, or even making a living from it, but I’m starting to look at ways to earn money doing this thing that I love. Last weekend I finally added my Public Relations / Advertising page (see tab at the top) and updated my ‘Media Kit’. This weekend I spent some FRUITLESS time trying to upload advertising opportunities onto my sidebar. I’m not an idiot but I’m struggling with CSS code (and I don’t even know what that stands for!). Usually I just google things like “Trying to change column width in Thesis theme and it won’t change” and hope that there’s an answer there! Alas… no luck so far! (Two – three hours of my life I’m never gonna get back!)

3. Binge-reading
I’m an obsessive reader. I recently had to go cold turkey as my reading habit had gotten out of control. I was basically reading a book a day EVEN on weekdays, which meant constant post-midnight bedtimes. But, I’m legitimately allowed to binge-read on weekends and I have indeed done my share this past weekend – while in the bath. Naturally.

4.  TV/DVD watching
The three most relaxing and enjoyable things I do are reading, watching TV and lolling in the bath (note I’m not including eating/drinking!). The first and last I can do together, but until they invent a waterproof television I’m screwed.

I record/TiVo a lot during the week so catch up on weekends (rather than renting DVDs). Saturday night I FINALLY started watching the final four episodes of the TV show House. When the show started here (all of those years ago) I loved it and like almost everyone, found Hugh Laurie ridiculously sexy (despite him being a drug-addled bad-tempered prick ‘n’ all). It lost its way for a while there, but I sobbed my way through the second and third last episodes (disappointed though with the actual finale!).

5. Brunch with the besties
On Sunday I caught up with my three besties for a late brunch. I’ve talked about them before, including my BFF who now lives o/s. We don’t get to see each other as much nowadays but we go back a long way. In fact I was at University with two of the gang in the mid-late 1980s! I suspect I take them for granted and am not always a particularly good friend, but treasure our time together. Always. I know they don’t read my blogs but if they ever do I’d like them to know they are appreciated.

6. Aborted festival plans
A neighbouring suburb was hosting a festival on Sunday and I had planned to attend for a while, bask in the beautiful weather, fabulous stalls and great music. Alas, I drove around for about 35 minutes trying to find a park before giving up and heading back home. I had my gorgeous new clutch purse thingy in tow and was keen to visit the store from whence it came… in case it was feeling lonely and I could cheer it up with some siblings.

7. Catch-ups with my mother
I talk about my mum a bit in this blog. My family was always close, but we’ve become closer over the years. I suspect I once judged people who had overly close relationships with parents (feeling that inter-dependencies were bizarre on some level). But, now I talk to my mum most days (I refrain from doing so every day). She is my rock. I wish we lived closer so our catch-ups could be face to face, but for now I rely on the telephone. In fact, she is the ONLY person I call. Now that I have my cute new car and bluetooth connectivity she gets random calls at odd hours as I pass the time tripping about town. This particular photo was taken last weekend when she went whale watching. I’ve mentioned before that she’s a great role model and exercises regularly. She’s also super-busy and her ‘things I did on the weekend’ would leave mine for dead!

So there you have it. Obviously there was a heap of other stuff – tidying, grocery shopping and the like, but these give you a bit of an indication of the inanity of my life!

I’m now supposed to award some other bloggers, but I notice there’s also a ’30 things about me’ post going around, so most people I’d tag and award are already doing something similar. Instead, if you feel the urge, I’d love to hear what you got up to on the weekend!