Things I'm an expert at...#Blogtober14 Day 17

I have a thing about people that like to blow their own horn, it annoys me because they usually come across as self-important and pompous. I would never claim to be an expert at anything unless I know absolutely 100% about said topic... Having said that, I have come to the conclusion that I'm not really an expert at much, so here goes:

I am an expert at being me! Nobody else can do Simone quite like I can and I wouldn't want to be any different from the way I am. I have an outgoing personality which I love and I have some darn good talents.

I'm really good at being optimistic, I always try see the positive side of a situation and there's always a smile on my face!!

I'm an expert at being on holiday, I nail that 100% EVERY TIME!

I'm an expert at letting plants die, I cannot keep them alive. Last year September I got the perfect plant for me, it's called an Impala Lilly, they grow in the Kruger National Park, that's where I bought it, they only need water like once a month, it's perfect for me!

I'm an expert at eating vegetables, seriously I would eat vegetables everyday if possible, the one time I even got a bit (maybe more than a bit) upset because we hadn't had vegetables for like a week. It was holidays and who cooks vegetables over holidays, it was more like burgers and hotdogs etc all the time. So I got so upset that I started crying and made Riaan take me to Woolies so I could get a huge microwavable bowl of spinach and butternut! I love all the vegetables, except brussle sprouts, they are Satan's spawn!!!

I am really good at remembering song lyrics, and at correcting Riaan when he's singing the wrong lyrics!!

I'm really good at baking, I love it, one day I might tell you about the time I won the Sunday Times Best Chocolate Cake competition. I'm also quite good at cooking.

I'm an expert at brushing my teeth anywhere BUT in the bathroom. I dunno, I just really like to wander around the house while I brush my teeth. I even do it when we sleep over at friends.

I'm an expert at loving animals, especially giraffes and fluffy animals! Excuse the high quality of the picture!

So that's just a few of the more interesting things I'm an expert at. I'm also an expert at being clumsy, just FYI!

#Blogtober14...Day 1 & 2

So today I stumbled upon the #Blogtober14 challenge over on Helene in Between's blog, and I decided to do it because A) It would give me a chance to do some serious blogging and B)It would give my readers the opportunity to get to know me better! So I obviously missed day 1, and day 2 is an hour shy of being over, so here goes - Day 1 & 2!

Day 1 - If I won the lottery I'd...
Well it all depends on how much I win, but lets be optimistic and say I hit the big time, a couple Million Rand, a few Hundred Thousand Pound, yeah, that sounds about right!!

After doing my little Sue Heck scream and a happy dance, my rational thinking self would immediately want to put about half of the winnings into some form of savings/investment and settle any debts we have owing - Boring right!!!

Then my spending splurging self would do the following:
1 - Give both my parents, Riaan's parents, and our siblings a portion of the winnings.
2 - Go on an amazing vacation or 3 - like proper bucketlist vacations or if I could I would pack up our stuff, put it in storage and travel the world!
3 - Buy a giraffe or 2 and a place to keep them - a farm or manor of sorts.

Me with my absolute favourite animal in the whole world!

4 - Open a bakery/cakery.
5 - Splurge on some high tech gadgets.
6 - Do a bit of a wardrobe overhaul.

Basically I would live out the uninvested money and enjoy life, it is short afterall!

Day 2 - Dream Job when I was little...
When I was about 5 I wanted to be a marine biologist. I had visions that my days would be spent swimming with dolphins...in hindsight I think I was probably watching The Little Mermaid WAY to much!

As I got older my dream "when I'm big" job changed, I wanted to be a doctor, then a veterinarian (this was highly protested by my family, because I would most likely bring home every animal that didn't have a home or had to be "out to sleep").

Then the big one - I wanted to be a singer/actor, I wanted to be famous, to make it. I watched grease and dirty dancing countless times. I wanted to be the girl on tv. That kind of stuck...I watch Glee, I'm a self-confessed Gleek and I still catch myself daydreaming of what it would be like to have a day job that requires you to entertain people and to be a completely different person than yourself. I love expressing myself creatively.

Then I wanted to be a paediatrician, then a teacher... HOLY COW! It seems like I didn't know what I wanted! Or that I had big dreams for myself!!

 
My parents always always said I got the brains in the family, they encouraged me to follow the academic route, because I was good at it and it was a more certain thing. So even though I love singing, dancing, painting, and all things creative, that's what I did, now I am well on my way to becoming a Qualified Certified Chartered Accountant! Not bad eh!! I am proud of myself and my achievements, it most definitely hasn't been easy, but that's what makes it worth it!

As a side note I do think it is important to encourage your children to follow their dreams and to keep their creative juices flowing even if it isn't exactly what you had planned for them.