oh, surprise

I always thought I'd love a surprise party. You know, coming home, friends leaping out, holding bottles of champagne aloft... But now I've realised I'm not a surprise kinda gal. I need time to mull things over and work out how I really feel. If I were 'treated' to a surprise party I'd probably spend a reasonable amount of time peeved with myself for not creating the right make-up look for the night - which would obviously take valuable time away from dancing which is just plain silly!

It's the whole backyard renovation thing that's made me realise how I just really don't adapt well to change. And that's been highlighted by the sudden changing of the sports uniform at my daughter's school. I need to be eased into things slowly. Firstly, I need to be made aware of the possibility of change - however small. Then, I need to be fed teeny, tiny snippets of information - one at a time - about the change. Then, after I've digested all of this, I may well be ready to contemplate it.

It's like the issue of becoming a meat eater after being vegetarian for 20-years thing. It took me a good 18 months of silent contemplation before I raised the issue with my husband. Then we needed to sneakily try a piece of chicken while our daughter was at school, then fish, then tell her... and then I dived back into carnivorous behaviour - with gusto.

See, chances are, that with a little preparation I will be an enthusiastic advocate of change. But I need to take dolly steps, not a gigantic leap with my eyes closed.