{mosimage}I'm told Paulini enjoyed her chat with me on the phone last Sunday night. Oscar told me she looked really happy when we were talking and Hayden says Paulini said later that I was "lovely".
Humph! I can only assume Paulini meant that in the same way a really nice teacher might tell the parents of a particularly annoying student that their child is "special" or in the way people use the word "cute" to describe someone who is clearly aesthetically-challenged (and usually height-challenged as well – yes I'm speaking from experience – allright!)
Okay, before I say anything else, let me just point out that I DO have some excuses – honest I do!
First of all, it was a surprise Paulini-phone-call attack, launched upon me, all unsuspecting, while I was sitting tucked up innocently in bed, in my daggiest jammies, looking like something the cat dragged in, thought better of it and dragged right back out again!
PLUS I had 3 great honking spotty dogs leaping about excitedly, trying their best to yank the cord out of the telephone (perhaps they wanted a word with Miss P too!).
But really, my cheeks still burn a fetching shade of crimson when I try to recall my one and only conversation with the lovely Paulini.
It began with a voice asking to speak to Jacki. I said "Speaking" and she said "Hello Jacki – it's Paulini!" So then I said "Who?" several times, like a demented owl and she laughed at me. Then she apologised for not getting time to visit the website last week, she had a lot of Divas work to do. So I told her "That's no excuse, its not like you're BUSY or anything!!" How RUDE!
I called Hayden and Kel "Those buggers" when she said it was their idea to call me and I could hear them all hooting behind her. I could also hear the glee in Paulini's voice.
Fortunately, Paulini found this all highly amusing – or seemed to – so it's not all bad news. 
But even as I talked with her, my "other" self was slapping her forehead in despair at the things that were coming out of my mouth!
Most of the conversation is a bit of a blur – imagine a poor kangaroo stunned by approaching headlights and you get a fair picture of me at this point, except in jammies and surrounded by spotty dogs. I know she thanked me for making the website for her (and I say now, like I said then, MY PLEASURE!!!). I also remember talking about what a lovely bunch of people the 'gang" are (as they all guffawed in the background).
{mosimage} I have recollections of saying "Oh my god" a lot (just as well I didnt add WTF BBQ – she wouldnt have got the private joke!), I talked over the top of her a few times (or she talked over me – one or the other!) so I missed a lot of what she said. I also babbled incoherently a couple of times or three and on at least one occassion I said "I have no idea what to say now" and promptly fell silent, for a second or two anyway. Here's an example (paulini in bold):
Wow, you work really hard on that site!
"I love to do it. – (Oh My God!)"
I'm standing here with all your friends around me!!
"Oh they're so sweet."
They are …[laughs]
"And they are in SO much trouble for this!"
[laughs]
"Oh my god, I cant believe I'm talking to you"
[laughs] It really is me!
"Yeah I know. It's just so wierd!
[laughs a lot] You know it's just so great to talk with you jacki (oh she said my name!!)
"oh no! Suddenly I have no idea what to say".
[more laughing]
At one point Paulini asked me where I am. She thought I was in Adelaide, I told her I live in Tasmania and she seemed unable to find the words to deal with that catastrophe! No seriously, she seemed disappointed when she hesitated a while and then said "Um.. I'm not sure we're going to Tasmania with the Divas tour!".
{mosimage}And this prompted my greatest achievement in stupid mindless childish babble yet. It went a little something like this (Paulini's words again in bold):
I dont know….. are we coming to Tasmania?
"No you're not touring tasmania. You never come to Tasmania." (what am I? Five years old????)
That's a ….
"We always miss out in Tassie, …. well except that one time when you were here with Tina but … um ….I couldnt get to that.."
Well maybe….
"So ok, there was the Tina gig but…..oh erm.. and yes … well there was that thing in Beaconsfield recently…
Yes that was ….
"…. but that was really short notice AND at some ungodly hour of the morning
[laughs] Oh yes it was I remember….
"so I couldnt get to that either…. but other than that….."
At this point I realised I became aware of two things. One was Paulini's voice trying to get a word in and the other was my little inner voice screaming "OH FOR GODS SAKE SHUT UP!!! Just stop flapping those lips would ya!".
So I stopped talking mid-sentence and Paulini just kept laughing. I honestly don't know if she said anything at this point because my brain had temporarily exploded. But the next thing I recall was a bit of a pause, a brief moment of … silence.
So, of course I just HAD to fill that silence (as you do when you're nervous as all get out) so I said something about how I'd just "have to come to Melbourne then" and began a bit of a pointless ramble about airfares and getting someone to look after my dogs ["I have THREE dalmatians..." I said!! Like she cares!!!] before she talked over the top of me (mercifully) and told me how much she appreciated all the work I do on the website. (anything to shut me up eh!!)
I finally regained some sense and told her, seriously, to stop worrying about the website and to "just keep on doing what you do 'cos what you do is fantastic!". I also told her to ignore that idiotic score of 4 from one of the judge's as it was clearly nuts. She laughed again. God I love that laugh. And I heard plenty of them all through our chat.
Eventually the conversation wound up with me telling her how sweet it was of her to call me but I wish I'd had warning and her telling me she's so happy to have been able to talk to me etc etc blah blah. And I – reluctantly – hung up the phone.
{mosimage} I sat staring at the phone a moment, while my mind hit rewind and replayed the entire conversation back to me at warp speed. And that's when my face first flushed this delicate shade of I-sounded-like-a-complete-diot-red. A condition which I still have to this very day whenever someone asks me about my chat with Paulini.
My impression of Paulini – what a total champion she is. She sounded very mature, happy, strong and relaxed. She was warm, funny, charming and sincere. She spoke as if she was talking to an old friend. I had heard this about her from others, but until you personally experience how open and natural she is, you really can't get what they mean. And for me, it was a strange mix of talking to a virtual stranger yet feeling like she was someone I know so very well.
I wanted to reach right through the telephone and give her a huge heartfelt hug, not because she's a great singer and I'm a big fan, not because she's famous and a beautiful woman, although all of that is true. Just because of the warmth, humour and genuine joy coming from her through the telephone to me.
I just wish I had been as impressive at my end! LOL Oh well maybe I'll get another chance to make a complete idiot of myself. I hope so!
Thank you Paulini, you made me so very happy!
PS Just a little additional note – I assumed Paulini had called me from Hayden's mobile phone so after about half an hour I decided I'd call Hayden and blast him for the surprise call LOL. FORTUNATELY I couldnt find the right button on the telephone to make it call the number back because if I had I would have called PAULINI back and got my second shock of the night. Hahahahahaha. She used her own phone to call me.{moscomment}
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