I had been back for about an hour when it was time to pack up and leave and head to the neighbouring town of Corby. Starlight were to be performing over a number of nights- dancing to a medley of songs whilst two men sang them. We did the same last year with a ‘Dirty Dancing’ theme, but this year was a random mix from the early 90’s to present day. It got given the name of ‘Pop Party’, but I’m not sure if that’s just something we made up ourselves! I had learned half of the routine before I left for my tour as I knew that I would be able to perform in at least a couple of the Corby shows on my return. However, I wasn’t expecting to be performing that night!!!! As much as I fought, I couldn’t wriggle my way out of it, a white vest was thrust upon me, and thankfully a dance position at the back(!), a seat was found for me in a car and then we were off!
I’m not going to lie, I had forgotten most of the choreography, at one point I just stood and span in a circle hoping no-one was looking at me! But the dance floor was filled with drunk people trying to join in so I tried to incorporate them into my moves! As a bonus, we were given two festive hats to walk around the tables with for donations from the crowds and didn’t do too badly as it happened!
As it was Friday night, I found myself going back to Jacc’s house for our usual junk food and rubbish TV sessions, taking in a little detour on the way. StarlightKids and Juniors were performing their Christmas review show the next day, so after the Corby debacle we made our way to Asda for some late night food, then had to go to the studio to set out 80 chairs for the show, set up the raffle before we could even think of relaxing. So after leaving the house in Norfolk at around 7am, I finally made it ‘home’ for the night at 1am. We had bought a hot dog pizza which was as awful as it sounds, and after trying my hardest to stay awake and help Jacc with the music for the morning, my eyes finally gave way and closed around 2.30am.
I was rudely awoken at 8am by the man of the house bursting in, swiftly followed by the dog, who proceeded to lick my face until I made any sort of movement, and was subjected to Christmas songs blaring from the laptop while Jacc was editing music for the show. Now I’m not a happy chap on a normal day until I’ve had breakfast, but considering my lack of sleep the night before, I was livid! But, there was a show to be done, and at 8.45 we were off again. The review shows went really well and the kids were the cutest things ever! Of course during final rehearsals there was the obligatory shouting from his nibs, but it worked and all the parents loved it. I seemed to morph into my mother and took charge of the raffle- I don’t know what it is about the women in our family, we all love a good raffle! And after the second show (attended by the Lady Mayor nonetheless!), the kids were treated to a visit from Santa! I got to be one of Santa’s elves! But all that meant was that I got to put a broken Santa hat on with my Starlight uniform and stand outside the makeshift grotto letting the children in!
I had never been more glad to see the end of the day, and to see Kettering at night! Myself, Jacc and Claire ventured out into the great unknown for a night of drinking and had a fabulous time! We found a new bar, I found myself a beautiful barman to flirt with, and a wondrous time was had by all! I even managed a cheeky bit of Karaoke to a crowd of six! (The six including Jacc, Claire and the beautiful barman!)
Of course we drank far too much but the next day I was feeling very perky indeed! I was doing housework and singing around the house all day! Lovely! I had stayed at Jacc’s that evening but hadn’t seen him in the morning out of sheer laziness at not wanting to climb any stairs. But I was shocked to receive a phone call at 4.30pm saying he’d just woken up! He sounded ridiculously rough but I just put it down to the alcohol. After all, I’d lost count of the number of cocktails! Oops!
Monday arrived with insignificance and rolled by in a cloud of nothingness until my phone rang at 3.40pm. It was Jacc: “I’m really poorly, can you teach my classes tonight?” “Of course, what time do they start?” “4pm”
Aaagh! Typically with the freezing temperatures, my car decided that it wasn’t going to play, my dad was visiting his own father in hospital so my only other option was a taxi. A frantic phone call and a dash around the house later, I was on my way and only ended up being 15 minutes late. Thankfully Audrey was there, and as she knew all the kids names, I let her do most of it and I did the rehearsal music for her! I knew Jacc must have been properly ill as he would never not take a class. I just hoped I hadn’t caught it!
The week rolled by, more Corby shows were performed (to a much higher standard as I knew what I was doing!) and before I knew it, it was Saturday and the final Ballet and Tap classes of 2010! I was really looking forward to tap, I’d really missed it, and had been practising wherever I could, despite the absence of my tap shoes! I felt a bit out of the loop as I had missed so many weeks but I kept up, and we started to put together a cute little routine to Hollywood by Michael Buble. And then came ballet! There I was, looking forward to a nice hour of doing pirouettes or whatever was thrown my way, but no, Claire made us do awful stretching for an hour, with my legs practically over my head! I wasn’t amused! That night I headed back to Jacc’s for a game of the always challenging Trivial Pursuit! We had played with Craig earlier in the week and I’m proud to say that I was the ultimate champion! But that was not to be repeated! I was absolutely thrashed! In my defence it was a new edition of the game where you can buy your answers and in my opinion, that’s cheating! I tried to come back with a vengeance when we cracked open the Monopoly Revolution. That’s right, Monopoly on a round board with an electronic centre with credit cards instead of money! I was doing quite well at the start but yet again was trounced and ended up bankrupt! It’s just as well, Jacc throws a paddy if he loses at Monopoly!
A couple of days later I made my way to one of the craft shops in Kettering to but some materials to finish Jacc’s birthday present, and found myself embarking on one of my new year’s resolutions. While touring, on many an evening I have sat down with Eden and we have crafted together; me cross stitching, and he knitting. I had given knitting a go a few years back but got in an awful mess and had given up, but now I had decided to give it another go! So in the craft shop, I told the man that I wanted to knit, he set me up with what I needed and to be honest, my first project is going very well indeed! Admittedly, it is just a scarf, and I had to re-start it about ten times, but it’s looking beautiful, and I might even be finished with it at the end of the week! New year’s resolution number one- learn how to knit, done!
A couple of days later I received an unexpected email from Greg, a man who became one of my regular customers at Asda while in my final year at university, after I helped him figure out the new self-service machines! I loved chatting to them while I was working and had intended to keep regular contact with them after we all left Bournemouth- I was going back home and they were moving to Italy. Sadly, as with everybody I intend to keep up with, it never happened, but due to the joys of Facebook, we were back in contact and the email was sent! It was so nice to hear from him and see what they were up to, and I even shed a little tear reading the end of his letter when he congratulated me on the work that I have done. To me, I seem to be going nowhere in what I am doing; I never expected to be performing in Theatre-In-Education shows three years down the line, if at all, and it’s never what I intended to do. I feel angry that I’ve let myself get into a pattern that I can’t seem to get out of, and my confidence has taken a battering. I don’t feel that I can get out of the cycle and get myself out into ‘proper’ theatres which is all I’ve ever wanted to do. I know I should be grateful that I have almost constantly been in work since graduating, so surely I’m doing something right, but I just want more than what I’ve got. I felt really touched at what he wrote, and the fact that he’d remembered me, got back in touch and complimented me made me think that maybe I can do it. No more TIE tours for me, I’m going out there! Thank you Greg! :)
All of a sudden it was Monday again, and the final Monday before crimbo break. We were treated to a lovely routine to Poison by Nicole Sherzinger in Dancercise, and then came the big one, Principal Dance lesson. The torture began. The first half of the class was spent doing Flexercise, attempting to get down into the splits for minutes on end, not fun! Then it was routine time! Of course Jacc had a mad idea of tying us together with ropes! We were split into pairs and had scarves tied around our waists, and I can honestly admit I have never felt pain like it! He tied the thing so tight around me I thought I’d never breathe properly again! It was the smallest my waist had ever been I can tell you! Needless to say, we all got tangled up in a ridiculous mess and the whole thing has been re-thought! But hey, it was a different way to spend your Monday!
I had a phone call asking if I could work a few hours doing a couple of cleaning jobs that week too. I was glad of the money, but the thought of cleaning for 3 hours solid didn’t seem like the best way to be spending my afternoons on my ‘time off’! Thankfully the time flew by, and in the spirit of Christmas I even got a couple of thank-you treats! Why can’t people be that nice the whole year round?!?!
And so, Christmas was upon us! I made my way round to see Jacc and Craig on Christmas Eve to exchange and open presents, which is fast becoming a ritual if I have my way! I was treated to a lovely bottle of Issey Miyake perfume (thank you boys!), and they were chuffed with my gifts to them, although Craig seemed to be the most enthusiastic about a box of chalk I got them for their blackboard rather than the fun calendar and personalised magic collage mugs that I had created! But the Sesame Street T-shirts I bought them went down a treat! My presents to their animals were of course instantly destroyed but I didn’t mind, it was Christmas and I was with the people always guaranteed to make me smile!
And then came Christmas day! I was shocked not to receive any of the obligatory Christmas socks, or even a selection box, but instead was snowed under with enough bathroom products to open my own shop! I think I’m literally set until next Christmas for shower gels! Christmas was quite a sombre affair. We’d just lost my nan a couple of weeks before, my granddad had just come out of hospital and needed looking after, and my brother was ill and barely moved all day! We had Christmas dinner (beef, not turkey, yes I know!) at the very early (for us) time of 12 noon, before my parents had to dash off to do their shift of looking after my granddad while another relative could eat their dinner! Of course with my brother ill, that left me with the washing up to do while he sat and fell asleep in front of his Inbetweeners DVD that I had so kindly bought him. I retired to my bedroom and settled down with one of my DVD gifts (Beauty and the Beast), and did a spot of knitting before the parents arrived back just in time for Doctor Who, Strictly and whatever else they put on the screens that night!
Boxing day brought much of the same moroseness as the day before, germs flying about, leftover food being stuffed in, sitting around and looking at each other. I had a couple of hours of relief when I was invited to my lovely friend Catherine’s house. I hadn’t been there before as I’d been away when she moved in, and we were both touring, but we had a lovely catch-up session, I got to nosy at her house, and her boyfriend and his brother made me a Don Pedro, an alcoholic milkshake concoction! Oh, it was beautiful! Google it, you have to have one!
I was looking forward to a nice relaxing week this week. I’d planned to spring clean my bedroom, getting rid of anything unnecessary and getting some new furniture in. But of course this is my life we’re talking about and things got put on hold rather abruptly on Tuesday morning when we received a phone call saying that my granddad had passed away. The four of us just sat down not knowing what to say to each other again. December had well and truly shat on us from an enormous height. We must have done something really bad to upset someone up there with the amount of bad luck we’ve had over the past few weeks. I couldn’t stay in the house last night, I went to Jacc’s for cuddles and sweets just because there was nothing I could say to anyone in my house. Everything just seems to have happened at once to us and there’s nothing we can do about it. I kept my brave face on in the house because that’s all I could do, but I’m absolutely crushed. For once I’m looking forward to going back on my tour!
But now it’s the final couple of days of 2010! I can’t believe this year has gone by so quickly! Tomorrow is Thursday, and I shall be making fairy cakes with glitter icing and going shopping with Jacc to find him some new clothes. And Friday is the big one! New year’s eve and Jacc’s birthday! The presents are wrapped, my outfit is sorted, my grooming has begun! I’ll be raising a glass to the grandparents and partying like it’s 1920!
I apologise for the bits of gloominess in this post but it’s the best outlet for my emotions! I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas, enjoy your new years celebrations, and I wish you all the best for 2011! Who knows where it’s going to take me...
Nx
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