Mental Hands

Way, way back last Winter, I decided that I really wanted to learn to crochet. Even bought a kit.

Turns out I have mental hands that do not behave, and cannot process simple instructions.

But still, I'm trying again. All formal like, with classes and everything.

Believe me, these hands are hard to teach. 

Most people could probably learn this way, but sadly not me.

Crooked and wonky chain stitch and just can't seem to work out how to hold the yarn.

So, in anticipation of being finally able to crochet a Granny Square, I have a little supply of wool. Practice wool from my new local craft shop, Onabee.

Because I don't want to be the class dunce, I will try, try again, ready for that first class.

Random Monday Images

Given the frequency that I hear my tweeny son say random, I can hardly bear to say it. 

But here we go. 

Random Monday Images, or RMI's.

My lovely new Pom Pom slippers, courtesy of my Mum.

Pistachio and Cardamom Kulfi with Rosewater Syrup. So, so good and very easy to make.

Homemade finger buns and yellow nail polish.

Birthday boy out for lunch.

A bit of cheery street art sighted on the weekend.

 The tiny thought of a pet Guinea Pig.

And  a cat that just won't leave me (or my tea) alone.

Liberating

Because I am such a crazy, risk taking kind of person, I've done something dramatic. I've wiped the slate clean so to say. My out of control google reader has been deleted. Yep. Starting again. To say I am feeling panicked is an understatement, but really it had to be done. I've even removed the sidebar of blogs I follow. 

So. What I am hoping you will do is give me a hand. New inspiration is needed. Tell me your favourite blog and send me a link to yours. 

In the mean time, I'm heading back to the printed word and finishing off a book or two without worrying about trying to keep up with google reader.

Aahh. Feeling better already.

My Legs

Too much colour? Well it's hard to say.

Difficult to see here, but I am also wearing teal coloured knitted socks (thanks Mum).

Either way I don't really care. It's one of those drab, grey Melbourne winter days, and with a temperature to match, things needed warming up a bit. I've spent the day outdoors, digging, pruning and sighing. Lots of sighing. Hard to imagine that I will one day have a nice, orderly back garden.

This however, I can imagine better. This space is the bane of my existence. I know you don't need a fantastic kitchen to bake good food, but geez...what were the previous owners thinking when they designed this beauty? Black laminate tops and woodgrain cupboards??? Not just ugly but shoddily built, with very limited storage.

I really can't wait to move into a properly functioning kitchen again, and although it is at least 12 months away, it's exciting to be planning it. The photos are a bit crappity (yes, I've been on photo booth again), but no fancy camera can make this room appear anything other than what it is. 

And back to those purple legs. As long as nobody comes to the door, I think they are just fine.

The Garden

Old photos, but ones that make me want to get out in the garden and do something.

These are spring shots of the garden, so bright and colourfilled, full of flowers and promise.

If only you could see it now.

Won't show you though, because it is so neglected, soggy and sorry looking. Haven't even pruned yet. It all looks truly dreadful, and with renovations planned for next year, it is hard to get enthused about it. My overall design for the garden is going to have to change to accommodate the proposed building work, and I'm at a bit of a loss as to how best to achieve this. Things will have to be dug up and moved, and my lovely old lemon tree will have to go. All a bit overwhelming really.

Building plans aside, I've gone from being a person who read plant catalogues at bedtime, to someone who can barely be bothered weeding. Plant wish lists and expeditions to far flung nurseries have become a thing of the past. Somehow six months have passed without me planting anything new - no bulbs, seedlings, shrubs or trees, but the bones of the garden are good, hedges are growing well, and bulbs are popping up.  With the dog gone, no more plants are being dug up, lain on or chewed.
I know I will get my gardening mojo back, a sunny day or two may just do the trick. 

Photo Phobia

Always have been. So here's what I did today.

Played with photobooth, and ooooh, I like being able to take AND then delete photos of myself. Was after a shot of my lovely apron. And then couldn't stop. Many shots later, and I've spared you the ones of me holding up the eiffel tower, swimming under water, and looking all pop-artish, and I actually have some photos I am happy with.

Smirky me.

Serious me.

Booky me.

Hours of entertainment while I ignore the housework piling up around me and the overgrown garden that is desperate for attention.

Photo booth is a lot of fun, and today was the first time I had ever bothered to look at it. Makes me love our Mac even more (and part of me secretly wants to get all dressed in costume and pose all day).

Culture with a C

Bendigo Art Gallery has on a Frederick McCubbin exhibition, so off we toddled for a day out of town. Small people who do not appreciate art were dropped off along the way, while the larger, McCubbin disliking person was told he had to come anyway. 

Disappointingly, I didn't really like any of the other McCubbin's, but LOVED the Boyd's.

Always do. Bridegroom waiting for his bride to grow up, and Leda and the Swan.

On a fridge.

Also loved this Jan Nelson Walking in tall grass (Tom).

And this Emily Floyd cuckoo clock? Love it!

Chicken pie with mushy peas for lunch, perfect really as the day was cold, wet and blustery.

Culture with a K

After a day or two going slightly stir crazy, with kids just wanting to hang out at home, we headed for the city.

The Snuff Puppets were out, and the Tim Burton exhibition was on.

Hordes of people though, and queues everywhere, but well worth it. The sheer volume of work on display was amazing to say the least and I could have spent hours looking at it all if there had been a few less people.

The Gallery itself was quieter, and after gazing at the McCubbin's, Nolan's and Blackburn's, we went through Stick it!, a collage exhibition.

I liked Sally Smart's Femmage Frieze

and Blair Trethowan's Sweating Logos, made from tiny, circular stickers.

Yum Cha for lunch and then home.

Thanks everyone for your kind words about our poor old dog. Life is certainly quieter (and dare I say less filled with dog hair) without him.

Let's go...

I'm off to see Mary Poppins soon, and I have had that damn kite song stuck in my head forever. 

So I made one.

Pretty easy, a couple of lengths of thin dowel, knotted and glued.

Eight pieces of Gaffa tape folded over and stitched to corners.

Then trimmed to size.

The dowel cross bars where notched, and threaded with string, then placed in the little Gaffa tape corner pockets.

The string was then taped down

And more string threaded though from the back to the front

wrapped around the corners

and tied in the centre.

The rest of the string was then wound around a cardboard roll

and a tail attached. 

Now all we need is some wind.


Postscript.
 Given that our in-house air traffic controller/aerophysicist just scoffed as he walked past... I now have serious doubts about it's flying capabilities. You may need photographic evidence that this actually flies.


Watch this space.

Off we go

A quick trip up to the mountains. 

A tour on the Great Alpine Road, through Benalla, Omeo and Bairnsdale, via Hotham Heights and Dinner Plain.

A smooch in the snow

A stroll in the snow

And a toboggan ride or two.

An icy topped snowman

And a warming hot chocolate in a nearby cafe (while I allowed a rare photo to be taken of me). Not sure what I was looking all weirdy eyes about, but it really was a great day.

It was a largely unplanned trip, only booked a week prior to the start of school holidays, and definitely a budget adventure. We self catered the whole way, and it was actually a lot of fun. Picnic lunches, homemade biscuits and pre-made dinners which I could reheat. Chilly temperatures meant everything stayed nice and cool in the back of the car, and we packed a bottle or two of something nice to sip on in the evening to warm us back up again. Easily done, and we are looking forward to another short adventure soon.

Old Dog

What a sad week we have had. Our lovely old dog fell ill and had to be put down. What a dreadful decision it was to make. At almost thirteen, he was getting slower and slower. Dalmatians don't have the longest lifespan (11-13 years), and the last couple had seen him struggling with arthritis and skin cancers needing regular surgery.
Despite his health problems, he was well medicated and still had a great quality of life, and we aren't sure exactly what his final illness was. Very suddenly he stopped eating, became listless with a high fever and just seemed to lose the will to live. With vets talking about ultrasounds, blood tests and long hospital stays, we made the awful decision to put him to sleep. While I know it was the right decision, I still wonder if he could have got over this and been with us for another year or so.

Sometimes being an adult sucks.