# Berry's Recovery Thread/Blog.



## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

(Had to name it Berry since Strawberryjulius's looks _incredibly _messy)

I've been away from the forum for almost two days now and I feel a lot better. I, even, dare I say it, could fall asleep quite quickly last night because I was not ruminating over threads or posts made by me on here.

I've decided that I won't come back to the forum unless I've done something significant (doesn't necessarily have to be SA-related) and will only view and make posts in this thread. I'm sorry if others don't agree with that but this is my recovery and not yours, thank you.

I haven't done anything today but I will write something up for yesterday.

*Sunday 2 May 2010

*I went over my sister's house last night. Her boyfriend (lives with her), both his sisters and a couple of other people were there. I felt pretty awkward at first because everyone split off into groups and I didn't want to follow my sister around. She didn't seem to mind me doing so, though. I didn't go up and initiate conversations with anyone but I think I did alright when I was spoken to. There's always room for improvement but I know I won't be able to do this confidently for a long time. I felt a lot better when we were eating and when we were doing things with the whole group. Overall, I wasn't too anxious and I only felt like panicking when everyone had arrived and were talking very loud.

I'm not really worried if no one reads this, I just want somewhere to get it all down. :b


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## AussiePea (Mar 27, 2007)

Good idea berry, no need to read the forums if they only make you upset anyway. I shall read your blogging! Always great to watch someone make progress over time and I would like to think others here will also keep up to date and hopefully you can inspire them to improve as I am sure you will!!

keep it up!!


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## tutliputli (Feb 22, 2009)

Sounds great, berry! :yay


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## Tweedy (Jan 10, 2010)

Cool, little Berry! All the best! :boogie:clap:boogie


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## RyanJ (Mar 31, 2009)

That sounds like a good plan, Berry! :yes

You'll still come and chat with us...right? :b


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## sda0 (Oct 16, 2009)

Good Luck!! Looking forward to the progress


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

Thanks for the support everyone! Yes, I'll pop in to chat now and then.

*Tuesday 4 May 2010

*I went to the library/shopping centre today. Yes, outside *gasp!* At the library I was fine, no anxiety or anything. I used to suffer from blushing when I was in there but I didn't this time! The fact that it was raining and cold outside may have helped but they did have the heat on quite high inside.

I also went and bought my boyfriend a birthday present (his birthday is 4 days after mine.) Very little anxiety there. I still feel a bit awkward interacting with the cashiers but oh well.

When I came home I called up Centrelink and I'm getting to know their hold music quite well. I got some things sorted and APPARENTLY should have an appointment with a job agency by tomorrow. Hopefully. I only felt anxious before I made the call and didn't experience palpitations before or during the call. My heart used to thud so loudly that I'm surprised the person on the other end didn't hear it. xD I was okay talking on the phone as well. I think I only feel worried before doing something, actually doing it is okay anxiety-wise.

That's it for today! I will probably be posting next tomorrow or on Friday. I will most likely come on to chat on Friday as well. So yeah, it better be active. :b (Definitely no posts on Thursday because I will be busy celebrating becoming old.)

Hope everyone's having a nice week so far!* 
*


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## Dub16 (Feb 28, 2010)

Get back here and start talking to us all this instant, or there'll be trouble young man!

Aye, tis a good idea, hope it works oot fer ya buddy!


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Wednesday 5 May 2010

*I got a call from the lady from Centrelink and I now have an appointment at Mission Australia next Monday! Finally things are working out, haha.


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## AussiePea (Mar 27, 2007)

woohoo, great news!!


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## Perfectionist (Mar 19, 2004)

Way to go! :boogie :boogie


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## SilentWitness (Dec 27, 2009)

Good news and good luck.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Thursday 6th May 2010

*I went to dinner for my birthday with my parents, my sister and her boyfriend and my boyfriend. This was his first time meeting them and I think I was more nervous than he was haha. I think it went alright. I couldn't get myself to order my meal which was pretty embarrassing but..oh well. o.0 The restaurant wasn't too busy so I felt pretty relaxed sitting there and eating. I think it went a lot better than most of my restaurant attempts. :b


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## Dub16 (Feb 28, 2010)

^^ Sounds good! Keep it going mate!


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

I forgot to post hawwwwwwwt photos.



And yes, my eyes were red in every photo because of my evil feminist heart.


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## mind_games (Nov 30, 2008)

Wow! You look spectacular! :mushy I thought your b'day was on the 9th, but in case I missed it happy birthday! And great to hear there is progress on the Clink front. :yes

<And try as hard as he might, poor little mg couldn't get to zoom in on Berry's photo. Again.> :b


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

You missed it, tsk tsk. I wouldn't expect any less from a sibling though. :b

*Saturday 8th May 2010

*I went over my sister's house with my parents for lunch today, her boyfriend's parents were there also. I felt comfortable and had no anxiety but I didn't make any conversation.


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## RyanJ (Mar 31, 2009)

strawberryjulius said:


> And yes, my eyes were red in every photo because of my evil feminist heart.


:teeth

Nice pic berry!


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Sunday 9th May 2010

*I'm going to start off today's entry with a story about Moe because I know he's what you all REALLY want to hear about. :b He jumped off my bed this morning and went downstairs to be let out. I assumed he'd meow and mum would let him out but that didn't happen. So instead, Moe comes back upstairs to my room, jumps up halfway onto my bed and meows at me. I got up a let him outside and he just went out and sat in the sun. Did he run to the garden to go toilet no? Did it seem like he was totally busting to go? Yes.

Is he so adorable that I have to forgive him? Duh.



It was mother's day today and I made cake for my mum. It actually turned out pretty good. We had to rush the icing though since we were going over my Nonna's place. The cake was still warm so the icing melted off a bit.



I did alright today at my Nonna's. I said thank you when she gave me my card but I'm not sure if she actually heard me. How could you find difficulty talking to my Nonna, you ask. Well, I could write about it if people would like to know. It's not one of those things I go around telling everyone unless they really want to know. I also have quite a few things to do tonight so I don't have much time to explain.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Monday 10th May 2010

*I feel like I'm going backwards sometimes and that everything is completely hopeless.

Let's just say that I don't recommend Mission Australia, especially if you get Susan.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Tuesday 11th May 2010

*I made an appointment today with doctor for Friday. I need a new script for my preventer inhaler. I'm allergic to Moe and having him sleep in my bed is triggering my asthma. I'm not sure if the inhaler will help. If it doesn't, Moe will have to find a new bed. I really will miss my foot/leg warmer and alarm clock...and getting woken up by scratching/sneezing/licking/coughing up non-existent hairballs and then realising I need to pee so I have to get off my butt and go. I love him, honestly.

I also called up Centrelink to ask if I could change job agencies. I can! The woman I spoke to gave me a number to call. I called twice and no one picked up so I left a message. If no one calls by tomorrow afternoon I'll ring again tomorrow or the day after.

I'm also getting very good at calling people. I fumbled my way through the Centrelink call but I didn't feel too bad afterwards or ruminate over it too much. I think my lack of coherence was caused by feeling guilty about complaining about Mission and not knowing whether or not I was just being too sensitive.

I'm surprised at how many entries I've done. When I started this I was worried about not having enough to talk about but I guess I was wrong.

And thank you again for all the support, I appreciate it a lot.


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## AussiePea (Mar 27, 2007)

Woo good for you berry, the more calls you make the easier it will become. Good luck with your job search as well, will get there eventually!!!


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## SilentWitness (Dec 27, 2009)

I hope you get a better job centre, I hear Sarina Rosso is pretty good.

BTW, you wouldn't be Italian? 

Just asking , I'm half Italian, from Mira Bella Eclano, Avellino.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

Yep, I'm also half-Italian. Half-Sicilian to be exact, but whatever. :b

*Wednesday 12th 2010

*I received a call today from Centrelink. I changed to a place called CentaCare. I looked at the website and it looks quite good. I'm worried that they'll be crap as well. I guess I'll just keep going until I find something decent. This is my unemployment they're dealing with and I expect them to treat me well and actually DO their job. I won't waste my time on people like that.

My boyfriend came over today. We tried to stop Moe from joining us but he just wouldn't give up, haha.


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## Dub16 (Feb 28, 2010)

Ya left oot the bit aboot the cake mate! (Dub16 likes cake)


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## Tweedy (Jan 10, 2010)

:boogieYay, berry! You are doing so well.


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## AussiePea (Mar 27, 2007)

Good luck finding work Justine! Also <3 moe hehe.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Thursday 13th May 2010*

I didn't do anything of interest today (unless you consider cleaning and Moe stories interesting, haha.) so I thought I'd touch on something that's been on my mind.

I realise that a lot of people might read this and think, "You seem pretty functional, you mustn't really have SA. You have a boyfriend, you mustn't have SA. You seem pretty happy*, You mustn't have SA," etc etc. The truth is that I've never been this functional. I've come this way from months and months of hard work. It isn't because I have a boyfriend or because I'm this that and the other. Trust me, sometimes having a boyfriend can make my SA worse. The truth is, I'm terrible at giving up. I'm terrible at accepting the status quo. Having this attitude and working hard IS what has helped me overcome some of my SA.

I'd like to add that I've leech-blocked SAS chat and I'm actually unsure of how to unblock it now, haha. So you might not hear from me in there for a while. :b

*I don't think I've ever really been that happy except for a short period when I was 14-15. I'm just very good at pretending to be happy. In fact, I'm hiding something right now and no one suspects a thing.


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## tutliputli (Feb 22, 2009)

It sounds like things are going really well sweetie, I'm glad to hear it. Hope you keep it up, although I miss your presence around here. And I would love to hear Moe stories!


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

I saved all my entries today just in case someone comes in and derails my thread and the mods delete it and I lose it all. I know people just can't help but post their opinion so I thought I'd be safe.

*Friday 14th May 2010

*I went to the doctors this morning. It went fine, I haven't been anxious over doctor's appointments for a while now. Apparently she wants me to get another blood test done so we can see how my iron levels are. I wasn't keen on doing it today since I've just had a tsunami from the red sea. I was also really tired (I woke up at 6:00..slept in until 6:30. I think I had 6 hours sleep) and couldn't be bothered hearing about how dainty my veins are.

I received an email today about doing a phone interview next week. I love that these people are actually setting up dates/times for phone interviews rather than call me up randomly like the other *******s do. I'm not sure whether or not I'll do it, but I have until Monday to decide.


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## Atticus (Nov 10, 2003)

I enjoy this thread lots. I really hope you keep moving forward and keep us posted on Moe's progress, too :yes


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## RyanJ (Mar 31, 2009)

By the way, congratulations on hitting 4,000 posts. You may now wear this button:


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

Thanks for the button, I'll wear it with pride. :b And yes, many many more Moe stories to come, haha.
*
Saturday 15th May 2010*

Today I was reminiscing about the time my sister and I played some sort of bug rescue game. We'd find dead bugs and try to bring them back to life. What did we do? Oh, we chucked water on them. We did not revive any bugs from death but I do think we woke one up from its slumber. Yes, we were so very cruel and innocent. :b

I guess it shouldn't surprise anyone that I want to play the bug revival from death game for a career. Except, they will be furry, scaly or feathery rather than bug like. And sorry, no pet revivals from the dead, I'm think of attempting to help keep them alive.

If you haven't caught on yet, I'd like to study Vet Nursing. Being surrounded by animals that will scratch me to death and expect me to clean up their poop is my dream.

Sometimes I like to remind myself of why I'm here and why I'm doing this.

I actually feel less anxious now that I've posted that for some reason.

I spent today getting ready for the phone interview and updating my resume. Not exciting stuff, but stuff I have to do to get me out of the situation I'm in. I also studied a little more for my learner's test. This giving way crapulence is starting to make sense. If the thought of Berry out on the open road scares you, I'm scared of it too.

I'd also like to let you all know that I'm not a stinky person. I ran out of deodorant and have now experienced deodorant-less armpits for the first time since I was 10. It is very sticky and uncomfortable, but it isn't smelly unless you really shove your face in there and give it a good sniff. (This is for all you armpit fetishists out there.)


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

Oh, and if anyone thought of this when I said "out on the open road" you are now in my good books.






I can only dream of this happening IRL.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Sunday 16th May 2010

*I do love it when job adverts are to the point. None of this..we are prestigious, with 50,000 employees and 200 years experience! Come work with us if you're a can-do go-getter self starter! You must have 10 years experience, be aboriginal and have involvement in a Christian church!

(I'm exaggerating the experience but there was an advert that asked only indigenous people apply and another where you needed involvement in a church.)

This is what I'm talking about:

_"Hellene Food Brokers located in West End of Brisbane. The job entails administration work and invoicing. The position is full time with flexible hours. The position will be assisting office manager and MYOB experience is essential."

_Note the strange use of the word "entails."

Although, I'm now unsure whether they are food brokers or if Food is Hellene's first name. I am, however, hoping that food brokers _entails _free food samples.

Oh my, Berry is rambling in her posts again! Does this mean that you haven't done any SA bashing in the past couple of days?

No no, I haven't. I need time to restore my sassy SA bashing skills. I don't know if anyone else feels the same way, but I find going out and exhausting my social energy makes me tired and therefore I have to relax for a couple of days. Otherwise I'd burn out and take two steps backwards.

I hoping that, regardless of lack of SA butt kicking, people enjoy reading my incoherent posts.


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## Tweedy (Jan 10, 2010)

strawberryjulius said:


> I do love it when job adverts are to the point. None of this..we are prestigious, with 50,000 employees and 200 years experience! Come work with us if you're a can-do go-getter self starter! You must have 10 years experience, be aboriginal and have involvement in a Christian church!


:teeth

That job sounds awesome. Do you also need to be able to sell ice to eskimos, hit the ground running and be a recent school leaver?


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## AussiePea (Mar 27, 2007)

Well I sure do Berry!!! It's nice to see how you are trying to improve yourself and the ups and downs involved, just to give people an idea I suppose and also see that you don't have to sit back and whine about SA and do nothing about it. You WILL continue to improve without a doubt!!! Well done Justine!


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

That's funny Tweedy, I think I have actually seen "hit the ground running." I don't know what they expect me to do, actually put that stupid crap in my cover letter? Seriously? I am a not-do, don't-get, ****-starter, in that case. I apply for the "recent school leaver" ones with a little more hope than I usually have, even though it's often accompanied by "2 years experience in a similar position." What the HELL. Anyhow.

*Monday 17th May 2010

*In non-unemployment news - this ashtray smell/taste I'm getting is from my oat milk. That is the hypothesis. Unless my cereal and coffee are secretly made from the same thing. How I did not notice oat milk's ashtray properties beforehand I will never know.

In stupid idiots/Berry's unemployment news. Inspire Education are a bunch of ****tards who ask for "excellent communication skills" that they themselves lack. I called them up this morning to set up a phone interview - I was transferred to a dumbass called Susan. (I'm seeing a pattern of Susans being incompetent) Susan is very impatient and rude, because of her impatience and rudeness I end up not knowing that I had to call them up for the phone interview. Mr Brent somethingsomething sends me an apologetic email about a misunderstanding and wondering why he hadn't heard from me. **** you. No I don't want to set up another interview, idiots. (I also made the assumption they'd call since Suze asked for my phone number.)

In much more happy, exciting news. I am sleeping over my boyfriend's place tonight. There may be a possibly that I'll meet his friend. I'm not too keen on that but oh well. :b


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Monday 17th May 2010 cont.

Warning: If you are down about not being in a relationship, you might not want to read this post. I've been there before and know how you all feel - so if it will upset you in some way, please do not read this entry.

*Apart from feeling out of place and not being able to sleep I had a nice time at my boyfriend's place.

I'm a bit disappointed I couldn't get myself to sleep because I've fallen asleep on him a couple of times now. I guess it's okay because this whole SA thing was worsened by a sleepover. I should trust my boyfriend to not suddenly turn around and be a ******* but it's happened so many times I'm not so sure I can.

I feel a little bit like I've let him into that part of my personal space that I haven't let anyone else into. I'm not sure how I feel about it.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Tuesday 18th May 2010

*I'm feeling a little strange today. I haven't really done anything which makes me feel guilty. I'm also not in a particularly creative mood so there'll be no interesting writings from me tonight.

I'm not feeling up to going that job agency tomorrow, sigh.


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## Tweedy (Jan 10, 2010)

strawberryjulius said:


> *Tuesday 18th May 2010*
> 
> I'm feeling a little strange today. I haven't really done anything which makes me feel guilty. I'm also not in a particularly creative mood so there'll be no interesting writings from me tonight.
> 
> I'm not feeling up to going that job agency tomorrow, sigh.


Awww, all the best, Berry!! I hope you feel up to it tomorrow. I'm thinking about going to a job agency myself.


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## mind_games (Nov 30, 2008)

It's ok if you're not feeling up to going there tomorrow. Because you're only feeling this way tonight. By the time tomorrow rolls over properly you could be in an entirely different mood. Sleep on it. I hope you go. There might be a nudie pic in it for you. la la la la la What? Nothing. Nothing at all.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Wednesday 19 May 2010*

I love winter. I get to constantly dress like a dork for the sake of keeping warm. See the photo(s) below for confirmation.

Here you can see my size 14 children's pants from Target and my oversized Amity hoodie.



In this photo, you can see socks that only a total goddess like me would wear.



Clearly, my style is, unfortunately, not unrivaled where I live. Tracksuit-with-thongs or shoeless is quite common.

My mother turned up her nose today at what I was wearing. She thinks I should be wearing work clothes. No, mother, I have NO winter work clothes. I'd rather look like this than freeze my bottom off. Also, no one goes into job agencies unless they're going to some crap like Julia Ross. (Julia Ross is absolutely hopeless for the inexperienced, so don't ever go with them.)

(At this point, I'd like to add that I was wearing jeans, not tracksuit pants. Thank you.)

For those concerned - my mother turns her nose up at me whenever I go out wearing things that are not in the Patriarchy-Approved Rules of Femininity™ and I'm only ever complimented when I've dressed myself up as a sexbot. However, I'll leave this for another blag.*

Now, I'd like to say that CentaCare Employment is now on the list of Berry's preferred job agencies. Guess what, they actually do what's required of them!

Things were a little messy at first because Centrelink ****ed up but it turned out okay.

The man who I had the initial consultation with laughed at the stupid things Mission had written down, both in my JCA (job capacity assessment) report and my EPP (employment pathway plan.) I fully approve of this.

Apparently, I will have to be assessed by the psychologists upstairs from them. They're pretty much going to tell CentaCare whether or not I'm ****ed up enough for counseling. 

The dude I was talking to has a wife with anxiety so he actually understood. What are the chances? I always feel as though people will say, "HA, social anxiety? No, you're just shy. SA isn't a real disorder." 

In other news, I gave money to an assumed prostitute and a woman yelled at the (not rare) incompetent bus driver that I had the pleasure of witnessing. His driving skills are unmatched since he managed to turn the corner so fast this woman's pram (with her baby in it) fell over. I mean, seriously, want to drive any faster? Ugh.

*Blag is intentional. You all need to read more webcomics.


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## fingertips (Jan 11, 2009)

do you get childrens' prices for movies and things?


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

I've never actually tried, tips. I know that's not a serious question and you're being mean but I'd like to explain how even if I did try, it wouldn't work. :b

It might, possibly, work for seeing a children's movie. I pretty much despise any children's movies that are made post-(my)puberty so that's unlikely. I don't like the idea of strapping my breasts, either.

If it's MA etc., they'll ask for I.D. Oh, wait. Do you have an 18+ person with you? Yeah, sure. My boyfriend taking a 12 year old to the cinema doesn't seem suspect at all. I'm also not keen on pretending we're incest brotherxsister couple.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Berry has WTF moment over SEEK advert + Moe*

*20 May 2010*

As I was browsing through the new jobs posted on SEEK last I night I came across something rather peculiar. 



If weren't for the "demonstrated bookkeeper experience" crapulence* I'd be applying for this job ASAP. If I'd received a dollar every time I was called the "quiet achiever." Christ, I was even given awards for it!

Finally, these job advert writers finally realise that you don't have to be outgoing and talkative to type **** onto the computer! Crazy! Who would've thought!? In fact, you don't even need it to use a telephone! Yes, shy people can use telephones! Crazy, absolutely crazy. All this time I was thinking that I was totally incapable of working because I didn't want to chat to the woman next to me about doing nothing all weekend. 

Anyway, in other news, I have Moe photos.




I enjoy the second one quite a bit because it looks like his tail is about to gobble him all up.

*Did you know that crapulence actually means the act of drinking alcoholic beverages in excess? Thanks for google for being so enlightening. I figured this out when I was typing up my entry on MS Word and it corrected my spelling thus finding out that crapulence is a real word.


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## Tweedy (Jan 10, 2010)

Moe!!!!! What a cutie! :boogie


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## Dub16 (Feb 28, 2010)

strawberryjulius said:


> Did you know that crapulence actually means the act of drinking alcoholic beverages in excess?


Really? That's pretty cool. This means that i partake in extreme crapulence every Friday and Saturday. Which is good to know like.


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## Atticus (Nov 10, 2003)

Thanks for, in no particular order;

-Crapulence explained.
-Moe pics.
-Sharing your trials in such a charming manner


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Fancy that, even cereal fails to not stereotype*

I'm not sure which definition of charming you're using, Atticus, but thank you anyway. Or should I be saying you're welcome? Nevermind!
*
Friday 21st May 2010

*I awoke this morning, as I always do, with a cat staring at me for god knows what. I annoyed him, as I do, and debated in my head whether or not to get out of my bed.

The for getting out of bed argument: You can pee and won't have to put up with dreams of using disgusting toilets and not actually being able to pee or if you can, you'll need to pee every 10 seconds. (Trust me, it happens about 3-5 times a week. I'm surprised I haven't wet the bed yet) Also, I'd get to eat soggy ashtray cereal, always a plus.
The against argument: Well..uh, it's warm and comfortable here. Moe's here.

When I look at it, neither of those are actually all that appealing.

Eventually, I got up and walked like a frail old lady (it's delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) from not weight training in forever) downstairs to eat my breakfast.

There was a note for me on the bench, I was quite excited because the last time there was a note for me it was about chicken wings that my dad had left in the fridge for me. But, alas, there were no chicken wings. Nope, just ringworm cream. Yes, I have ringworm, I think. My sister and mum have both had it and we're assuming that it's Moe that's giving it to us. Doesn't really surprise me since Moe and I have been cohabiting for quite some time now.

Why am I telling you this? I'm not sure. I guess I'm kind of confused as to why my mum had to leave a note for me and not like...just tell me tonight? Or is ringworm something I should be trying to get rid of at this very second? I still haven't put any of the stuff on yet, to be honest.

This was also meant to lead up to a post on cereal and plant-based milks. This is IMPORTANT stuff that you need to know in order to get over your SA, alright, everybody listening?

Cereal mixers - I want your photos of cereal mixing and what you believe are the best cereal combinations.

Mine is not the best combination nor is it really that delicious.



This is the combination Ultra-Rice with Psyllium (the lighter coloured infinity symbols) x Rice Flakes with Psyllium. They are a part of Freedom Food's FREEEE from Gluten range.

They recently made "new and improved versions." Which means, we've added more sugar and made it slightly more fibrous! Woo!

If I were not such a wheat/sugarphobe (I'm sure there's actual names for the phobias out there*), maybe I could eat Special K. Special K, is only eaten by attractive women in their 30s that are in a constant pursuit to diet and stay thin. Or, maybe I could eat Nutrigrain, which is, only eaten by athletic "iron men."

I probably don't have to give you evidence, but hey, why not!











You know, there were other things I was going to mention today but it seems I got carried away and went off on a tangent. You know who _I_ blame.


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## Whitney (Oct 2, 2008)

Kix/Fruit Loops is the best cereal mix in my opinion.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

*Saturday 22nd May 2010

*Oh, wow. My writer sense is not all that tingly tonight. Please excuse my less than colourful blog writing tonight. I am also eating a mandarin that might make my keyboard sticky and that would be quite the tragedy.

I meant to tell everyone yesterday that the psychologists that work for CentaCare called me up (actually, I called them because everyone insists on calling my mobile and I never get there fast enough. Thank goodness for this message bank thing Telstra is doing. I bet it's costing me money, anyhow.) and made an appointment for me on Tuesday at 11am.

See! Isn't CentaCare so wonderful and prompt with their service? They are impressing me quite a bit. I mean, I even have hope that they actually might help me! Some part of me doesn't want to put all my trust in them yet though. The SA mind isn't that easy to convince, unfortunately.

Also on my agenda was to recommend what plant-based milks to use with what for my fellow lactose-intolerant SA friends.

Soy milk: I recommend the little chocolate breakfast drinks, they are excellent, addictive, gives you your daily requirement of Satan (i.e. sugar) and if you're anything like myself, you'll be running to the toilet. I have not tried the other flavours. I think I've had the "coffee" one and it was absolutely awful.

Soy milk in coffee (GOOD coffee) or tea is quite pleasant.

I'm not sure yet whether it has an awful affect on the taste of cereal yet, though. I will report my findings in a few days when I'm finished my oat milk.

Oat milk: On its own or in tea. In coffee or cereal it interferes with the taste. The way it makes coffee smell is off-putting.

Rice milk: Cereal. It's probably too sweet on its own so if your cereal is pretty bland it helps. I've never tried it in tea or coffee, my dad says it tastes weird. I'm not prepared to try yet.

But, Justine! What about baking or cooking? Well, my mother is such a milk-other-than-cow-pus phobe that we haven't tried it yet.

And yes, this is very important for your SA. If you desperately need to go because of your intolerance that'd be pretty embarrassing and would spike your SA. See, I thought about this.

I wonder why the mods haven't moved my thread to the Just For Fun section yet. :lol Or told me to get a blog somewhere else. :b Sorry, I'll talk about important stuff when it happens!

Since this is becoming a bit of a tl;dr, I'll be saving the rest of this for an anxiety-free day.

Tomorrow I have to go to a baby shower. My cousin is conforming to the nuclear family. I know this is a bit "deargodwhataboutthemen?" but why can't men come to baby showers? o.0


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## papaSmurf (Jun 16, 2008)

strawberryjulius said:


> This was also meant to lead up to a post on cereal and plant-based milks. This is IMPORTANT stuff that you need to know in order to get over your SA, alright, everybody listening?
> 
> Cereal mixers - I want your photos of cereal mixing and what you believe are the best cereal combinations.
> 
> ...


Oh dear. Psyllium always makes for a special evening.

I don't tend to mix cereals, but I once did mix candy sprinkles in with my Lucky Charms. Definitely not recommended.

Clearly Grape Nuts are the greatest cereal of all time, however.



strawberryjulius said:


> Also on my agenda was to recommend what plant-based milks to use with what for my fellow lactose-intolerant SA friends.


Generalizing about soy-based milk alternatives is ill advised, yo. Consistency/deliciousness varies quite a bit between brands and flavors. My years of research in this field have led me to the conclusion that Plain Westsoy Plus is the greatest soymilk of all (at least in the States). It's got less sugar than your usual soy ooze, but is not completely dreadful like the unsweetened flavors. Edensoy is amazing as well (it's pretty much the only soymilk I ever drink on its own), but it contains wheat, which you seem to abhor.

Soymilk bakes one-to-one in just about everything as long as you're not required to scald or whip the milk for your recipe. You'll have less success baking with other not-milks.

Oat milk is strange and gross, rice milk is generally too sweet, and hemp milk is literally the worst thing mankind has ever invented.


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

Thanks for your insight, Smurfy. I probably should've mentioned the brands and that they were just loose recommendations rather than facts. I get carried away when I go into writing mode. :b


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## papaSmurf (Jun 16, 2008)

^Oh no worries, I'm just trying to share my soy-knowledge with the people. Getting carried away is wonderful, please continue.


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## LostPancake (Apr 8, 2009)

strawberryjulius said:


> Special K, is only eaten by attractive women in their 30s that are in a constant pursuit to diet and stay thin.


Yeah, what is up with that? I actually love that cereal, but I'm embarrassed to buy it. I'm actually embarrassed to admit that I even like it. :um



strawberryjulius said:


> I recommend the little chocolate breakfast drinks, they are excellent, addictive, gives you your daily requirement of Satan (i.e. sugar)


Haha


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

As of today, Berry is moving to Wordpress!

I'm moving because A) I will no longer have to censor what I really want to say B) I am not obligated to just talk about SA and C) It'll all be in categories, so if you only want to read about SA you can, if you only want to read my shrill, churlish feminazi* rants, you can etc. etc.

*This is making fun of the dudes who say those things. Not what I actually think.

I will be giving the link out later on tonight when I've actually posted something. Not much point posting it when there's nothing up. :b


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## strawberryjulius (Jun 28, 2009)

Well, you can now all access my new blog from here!


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## fingertips (Jan 11, 2009)

subscribed.

the url makes me squeamish, though.


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## tutliputli (Feb 22, 2009)

strawberryjulius said:


> Well, you can now all access my new blog from here!


Woo, added to my favourites.


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## AussiePea (Mar 27, 2007)

Same!! Awesome to see you making progress! Let's hope others here can read it and hopefully gain something from it to help themselves.


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## Tweedy (Jan 10, 2010)

I was so excited that I tried to add it to my favourites twice!!! :teeth:boogie


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