hyperion79

Poetry and Jeanette Winterson

Wed, 06 May 2009 05:24:41 GMT

I love her use of language, and her thoughts on poetry rang true to me.

Poetry joins up the separated space between heart and head, between the left and right hemispheres of the brain. That is because our left-brain processes language as information, while our right brain recognises language as music and metaphor. We need both to be healthy. It is not enough to say ‘Pass the sugar’ not even enough to say ‘I love you.’ We might need to say,
‘I am in love as giants are/that dote upon the evening star.’
Or we might need to say: ‘Had we but world enough and time/this coyness lady were no crime.’ Or we might need to say, ‘the roses had the look of flowers that are looked at.’ Or, ‘When such as I cast out remorse/So great a sweetness flows into the breast/ That we must dance and we must sing/For we are blessed by everything/ and everything we look upon is blest.’

Just like the plushie microbes

Fri, 01 May 2009 10:38:45 GMT

but this can give you a bonus paper cut.

http://www.cubeecraft.com/characters/cubeecraft_pigflu.jpg

For Whovians only

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 04:17:48 GMT

I've just noticed something. Being a "homemaker" for the moment, I've got back into Days of Our Lives (hey, come on, don't judge me so harshly!). At the moment, John Black is recovering after having his mind wiped by the evil Stephano. However, there is a mini disk that has all of his old memories and personality on it - it could restore him to his previous self. Despite having it in his possession, he shows no interest in it, simply has it like a talisman.

My conclusion: John Black is a pocketwatch Time Lord. I'm sure if RTD was hanging around, he'd run with it.
Alternative conclusion: DoOL is rotting my brain.

one of those things

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 22:41:05 GMT

You are Extroverted, Conscientious, Agreeable, Neurotic and Open

Extroversion:

You have medium extroversion.
You're not the life of the party, but you do show up for the party.
Sometimes you are full of energy and open to new social experiences.
But you also need to hibernate and enjoy your "down time".

Conscientiousness:

You have medium conscientiousness.
You're generally good at balancing work and play.
When you need to buckle down, you can usually get tasks done.
But you've been known to goof off when you know you can get away with it.

Agreeableness:

You have high agreeableness.
You are easy to get along with, and you value harmony highly.
Helpful and generous, you are willing to compromise with almost anyone.
You give people the benefit of the doubt and don't mind giving someone a second chance.

Neuroticism:

You have medium neuroticism.
You're generally cool and collected, but sometimes you do panic.
Little worries or problems can consume you, draining your energy.
Your life is pretty smooth, but there's a few emotional bumps you'd like to get rid of.

Openness to experience:

Your openness to new experiences is high.
In life, you tend to be an early adopter of all new things and ideas.
You'll try almost anything interesting, and you're constantly pushing your own limits.
A great admirer of art and beauty, you can find the positive side of almost anything.

The Five Factor Personality Test

Floods to the north of us, Fires to the south, here I am

Mon, 02 Mar 2009 20:19:38 GMT

stuck in the middle without an Autumn. Doesn't quite work I know.

Here in Brisbane we've had a pretty good summer. Not ridiculously hot, or wet, just a standard Brisbane Summer.

However, we've now hit the time of year that does my head in every time. We hit March 1st, my poor wee southern brain thinks "Yay! Autumn! Skooshing through leaves in a couple of weeks! Cold weather!"

Now, I know that right now Victoria is facing a day nearly as nuts as Black Saturday. No right to complain at all - but this is a blog, a medium built for whinging.

Soon the southern temperature (I hope for their sakes) will start to drop precipitously. Where as up here, we seem to have hit the hottest, most humid part of the Summer. Every year this bugs me, every year T points out that here in the sub-tropics, we only get 2.5 seasons at most. Wet, Dry, and a little bit of in-between.

The past couple of nights we've got down to 23, with very high humidity. The ceiling fans look like cake mixers as they stir the sluggish, thick air. Elf sweats, her head and nose covered in small shiny beads of moisture. Thirsty, but too hot to drink. I freeze washers and use them like fans. Eventually it cools enough for her to bear drinking, and then we try to sleep.

3 more years and we're moving somewhere with 4 seasons - maybe even in one day - dammit.

First Playgroup

Tue, 03 Feb 2009 02:22:06 GMT

We went to our first playgroup session today. Luckily enough there's a group that meets a 10min walk from the house, so it's easy to get to with a minimum of fuss. It's a pretty big group, with about 30 kids, ranging from 4 years old down to Elspeth, who was the youngest there (I think the next youngest was 9 months). At this stage it's not really for her obviously, but it was great to meet and chat with other mums. They were all really weloming and friendly, which was good to see - another new mum there told me this was her 3rd playgroup, the other two were waaaay too clique-y. She wasn't made to feel welcome at all.

So in a classic "hall" - wooden, stage at one end, kitchen and shed full of toys, I sat and watched the organised chaos. Toddlers rampaging, fighting and occasionally sharing, smaller bubs crawling at terrifying speeds around the hall, and generally sitting close to Elspeth as she kicked and looked about, ready to protect her from flying toys, chairs, and toddlers.

I'll be looking forward to next week, though i'm not sure if i'll remember the names of all the people I met, let alone their kids!

A Gaiman fangirl

Fri, 30 Jan 2009 05:16:01 GMT

There are a few authors whose writing in any form is something I must read, and own.

Sara Douglass, though she breaks my heart part way through each series (even more so with the current one - she has stopped writing indefinately to battle ovarian cancer. Why must this disease strike amazing women? Having lost 2 close family friends, I don't expect her to finish this series anytime soon... or at all *sigh*)

William Gibson: a fantastic read every time, that always makes me view our world a little differently afterwards

Philip K Dick: so many different flavours of mindf*ck. Some pulpy, some amazing. My favourite so far would have to be A Scanner Darkly (no I haven't seen the nananu film. and on that subject, Cowboy Bebop? Spike? I think NOT!). Though The Pennultimate Truth runs close.

And... Neil Gaiman. Love his books, both adult and kids, and his blog is one of my "must checks" every day. I love listening to him read his work - and have used that to get me through many a long night. Just got hold of The Graveyard Book, but am listening/watching his readings on the net as it's hard to juggle baby and book. Need to track down Blueberry Girl for Elspeth, as Charles Vess's illustrations are always beautiful, and a book for a daughter, by that pair? Must Have. What's triggered this post today though, is this quote from an interview:

...children's fiction can change the world and give you a refuge from the intolerable. It can give you a place of safety and show you the world is not bounded by the world you live in--there's more than that.

So true.

Another Elspeth update...

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 01:39:09 GMT

Elspeth is 9 weeks and 3 days old today. Crazy how much she's changed in appearance in that short time, including putting on a heap of weight... she's now 5.6kg, and I've needed to train up my muscles so I can bounce, nurse, rock her for hours on end without pain! She's grown out of 0000 size, is coming to the end of being able to wear 000. also grown out of new born nappies so she can now wear reusables without looking like her hips are dislocated.

I am a master of nappy origami, my aunt gave us a nappy service voucher so Tuesdays and Fridays a guy comes and takes away the dirty nappies and leaves clean ones which I then spend 30min folding. Will be sad when it finishes up in a couple of weeks, but will survive the increase in washing i suppose.

Lots of things happening over the Christmas break, and before it:

The end of November/start of December had us on our first outings out of the house, and all-day ones at that.

Tony graduated, becoming Dr Gill. Very proud day though exhausting. All day at UQ, with many people keen to see Elf for the first time. A day of firsts really, including first feeds in public (managed not to expose myself, not get nice clothes covered in milk, and to have a whole day without nappy disasters). My grad was the day after, but decided not to go. The CSU honours grad was great fun as it was a close group of friends all celebrating making it. this time around would have been a lot more anonymous. So. I have a Grad Dip Science Communication, who knows where that'll get me. Learnt a lot, met some great friends, discovered it won't take me where i'd hoped.

The night after we celebrated at The German Club with the UQ folk. A big night (stayed out until 8:30pm!) for Elspeth and I, though she did well being cuddled by many. I discovered that Pete used her as pick-up bait - carry baby to the bar when getting a beer, allow ladies to coo over her, reveal you're single and she's not yours : /
Overall a fun night, though she was mighty cranky by the time we got home.

The next big event was The Road Trip. We drove down to Wagga in a borrowed car over 4 days. First day just to Alstonville, near Ballina in northern NSW. T's boss lives there, so he "worked" for 1/2 a day and we stayed the night on their beautiful property. When I grow up, i'd love a place like that.

Then on to Armidale taking the scenic route "The Waterfall Way" via Ebor. Beautiful country, wonderfully cold. Got to use some of the warm clothing people had given Elspeth for the first (and only) time.

Next day on to Dubbo, took in the sights of Dunedoo amongst other small towns. I'm a big fan of the Apex Park, or Lions/Rotary Club equivalent in small towns. Always good shade, a loo, and no Maccas. Every one that we visited for breaks on this trip hosted some kind of family picnic or christmas party - a lovely community feel. In Dubbo we stayed with T's Grandparents overnight. Always feel so welcome and at home there, and as always Nan had made some lovely quilts for us, this time for Elspeth. Very special to have a quilt and wool embroidered blanket just for her - truely heirloom gifts. Nan always gets up early, and she hustled us out the door "before it gets too hot", with a packed lunch and a quick hug.

The final stretch to Wagga also took the scenic route, via Parkes to see T's 2 great aunts, then Grenfell, Young, Cootamundra, etc. Really felt like I was coming home once we hit Coota. My country, my hills, my dry dust smells of home. *sigh* always forget how much I miss it until that smell hits my nose, I see those yellow hills dotted with trees. Spattered a fair few grasshoppers along that road, a sign of the swarms that have devastated some of the wheat harvest. Plenty of elbow-grease required at each petrol stop to clean the windscreen.

Once in Wagga we shared custody between the 2 sets of Grandparents, staying a block of nights at each. Both Mum and Dad (Nanna and Grumps - no that's not a typo!) had already met Elspeth so stayed at T's parents first few nights incl Christmas eve. the cousins were very excited to meet Elspeth "baby Elspeth! baby Elspeth! Look at me! Can I have a hold? Can she talk?" and Christmas with kids is a very different thing. After the madness of that house, it was nice to relax at Mum and Dads. Hadn't seen Chris since last year (07) and he was very weirded out to see me with bub. Add an extra "very" when I breastfed her bwa hahaha. Poor thing didn't quite know where to look.He's now in NY for the next 2 years, and by all accounts loving it.

So, the end of 2008 brought Elspeth, the end of study for both of us, and a ginormous road trip. 2009 began with the end of the epic road trip, and then some exhausted peace and quiet

I started this post 3 weeks ago, and then didn't quite finish it, and obviously, didn't return to it until now. That pretty much sums up how things are going. We're going well, but if my hands aren't full of Elspeth then i'm doing washing or getting myself food, or grabbing a nap while she naps! T helps out when he can, but unfortunately Elspeth's "witching hour", where she's fussy, grizzly and wanting lots of little comfort feeds, is from about 5-8pm, so from when he gets home really.

Elspeth is now smiling, and starting to have little conversations, trying out vowel sounds and concentrating on watching my mouth when I speak. I'm saying "Mum Mum Mum" lots, we'll see if that is her first word.

Will try and update a bit more often... as always, head to my flickr page 'cause i'm continually (well, when Iget a chance) updating it for photos of Elspeth.

Moar Photos!

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 01:45:36 GMT

I'm failing at html at the moment, so here's a link rather than embedded image. Go there, lots of photos of a sleeping baby. She really does sleep that much - pretty much just wakes to feed. Though we're getting more awake time with lots of lovely eye contact.

Starting life in air-conditioned comfort is less than ideal when your home environment is a humid Brisbane summer. We've had some struggles with feeding (who wants to be cuddled up to another hot body when it's 30 degrees and humid?) but we're on track now. Got clobbered by the milk fairy, so no fear of starvation!

For photos, head here http://www.flickr.com/photos/24060542@N02/sets/72157610186482751/

Elspeth Joan

Thu, 27 Nov 2008 08:40:25 GMT

The past week's radio silence has had a good reason for once - Elspeth Joan was born on Saturday the 22nd of Nov at 9:23pm AEST. Things didn't quite go the way we'd hoped, so we only just came home today. She's been fine the whole time, just me that needed the longer stay.

Vital stats:

3.75 kg (no, I don't know what that is in lbs and oz)
54 cm.
and beautiful (yes, that's an official statistic).

Just catching up on lots of emails etc, so there will be a Flicker photodump in the next couple of days for those that want more photos. For now, here's a couple...

<img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3052/3062468369_a711a5f401.jpg?v=0" alt="Yes we're a little tired..." />

Today is a blue moon

Wed, 12 Nov 2008 23:38:18 GMT

I've been slack... just seems like I don't really have any news worth writing about. Life of a nester under the cut.

I am finished with uni, after 3 years of part-time study. Had a look at my journalism subject marks thus far, and i'm 47/55. So... even if I barely pass the final portfolio (Queensland Museum feature articles about sponges and the barcode of life projects) I'll still kick arse XD I worked pretty hard on the feature articles, but at the same time, it was my standard rush at the end. So we'll see. That approach has got me a GPA of 5.8 for the course so far, so i'm not too worried.

The museum studies case study is a little more unsure... the new convener didn't give us our marks back for the proposal, gave limited feedback, and the only other assessment was the big arse essay based on our experiences during the internship. Fingers crossed though! I find out on the 26th of November, so I think that'll be worthy of a blog entry.

As for nesting... T lives in hope that I will miraculously transform into kinda a Nigella/Delia hybrid. A luscious yet freakishly clean domestic goddess perhaps?
Things are washed, folded and organised, various bits assembled (first ever Ikea purchase yesterday, jeebus that place is terrifying! But I like my low rider rocking chair...can sit cross legged in it and reach the Graphic Novel shelf of my library), etc. It's slightly scary how much stuff we've gathered in the past couple of months, though much of it has been second-hand from friends so that's all good.

I'm over this whole pregnancy thing - has been lovely, but i'm ready to move on to phase 2. T can carry bub around for a while! Could be any time from now until the start of December... I'm hoping sooner rather than later.

Apart from that, the garden continues to progress, the chooks give us 2 eggs each day, gobble all the weeds and provide much amusement. The front garden is the next big project... I've planned it all out, I just need to be able to lift more than a book and stand for more than 5 minutes to get it going!

I'm still learning the ways of Ubuntu, but it's not pissing me off every 5 minutes the way windows does, so happy days.

Split down the middle... of 114%???

Thu, 02 Oct 2008 21:23:47 GMT

Well there you go. Based on 30 highly scientific ticky-boxes, I have an androgenous personality. Not a girly girl, not manly. *shrug*

Your result for The Bem Sex Role Inventory Test...

Androgynous

You scored 57% masculinity and 57% femininity!

You scored high on both masculinity and femininity. You have a strong personality exhibiting characteristics of both traditional sex roles.

Take The Bem Sex Role Inventory Test at HelloQuizzy

eedjit

Mon, 29 Sep 2008 07:50:06 GMT

T flew to Darwin yesterday, so i'm home alone for a couple of weeks. It's going to be a long 2 weeks if this morning is anything to go by... collected the chook eggs and let them out for the day, carefully put the eggs down in the basket to pick some broccoli and spinach leaves for the chooks... fed the chooks... and then went back inside without the eggs :/

Looks like the crows enjoyed the eggs from the wreckage I found this afternoon.

Belleh and blogging

Sun, 21 Sep 2008 02:04:34 GMT

P1010032.JPG
Originally uploaded by hyperion79

Yet to get the hang of regularly blogging, but as there is important stuff to do I find myself procrastinating and playing with flickr. We took a heap of photos this morning of the chooks and the back yard, and also finally me.

eh. Lots has happened since I last posted, but most recently I completed a 2 week internship at the Queensland Museum in the Biodiveristy department. It was a requirement of one of my final subjects for the Science Communication degree, but also happily was good fun. I sliced and diced sponges from all over the pacific for DNA analysis - part of the world wide Barcode of Life project. Things I learnt include: some sponges stink like the Bog of Eternal Stench must have, and share a similar characteristic to it - if you get it on your skin, you'll never (well, 24 hours) get it off.

To finish off the 3 year epic that this degree has become (people, never, ever, study part time and work full time. It sucks.) I have to write 3 feature articles, and a 5000 word essay. In the next month. I'll get there...

We finally got our chickens after T built a magnificent chook shed and enclosure and they're laying an egg each a day, eating everything green in sight, and providing much entertainment. Something very soothing about watching chooks wander around and cluck to each other. They'd love a crack at the veggie patch, but we need to make a moveable screen first so that they only destroy the fallow/green manure side. Photos of the chooks and some of our veggies are up in my Flickr account.

Um. Apart from that, T submitted a few months ago so we're waiting to hear back from the markers... He should be Dr Gill by Christmas.

Jugger

Sat, 09 Aug 2008 01:58:02 GMT

So it's been a while, and a long post is due soon... once the large pile of uni work is gone. Promise. Maybe even a photo of the belly for the strange people who seem to want to see it.

The plan for this weekend is the usual house jobs plus slaying of assignments, and then the reward... going to see a game based on a movie that I watched many, many years ago at the urging of a housemate. Stu loved (and for all I know still does) Salute to the Jugger and found it on DVD at some point. We watched it, was a good way to spend a Sunday afternoon but i'd pretty much forgotten it... Until I discovered that some crazy people in Brisbane played a game based on the movie ever other Sunday in Newfarm Park. To learn more about Jugger, have a look at this educational video

It's going to be a fun Sunday afternoon of basking in the sun and watching people bash each other with foam covered weapons in pursuit of a PVC pipe replica of a ~~cow~~ Dog skull.

Vegan Indulgences

Sun, 22 Jun 2008 00:25:25 GMT

Last year I helped out a friend by testing recipes - a very onerous duty :^P

They were wonderful dessert recipes, and all vegan friendly. I'm quite content being an omnivore, but these surprised me by how "normal" they tasted - to the point of being demolished in 10 minutes flat when brought into work for people to try.

As any SOz people on my flist know, Leigh's book is now about to be published, out on the 7th of August. So if you know any vegans out there who have a sweet tooth, or if you like the looks of the tasteys on the cover yourself (they are easily tweaked to sneak in non-vegan ingredients here and there), pre-order Vegan Indulgences! You won't regret it.

The week that was

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 08:17:28 GMT

Snuck down to Melbourne last weekend for a good friends 30th.

Arrived on Friday, dumped my gear at her house and then we headed into the city to meet Steph for a coffee and catch up. After that it was Don Dons for dinner, and then off to the footy. I'd bought Zone 1 (read: the best in the house if you don't count the corporate boxes) tickets to the Geelong game as a birthday present, so Nic and I headed off to see a fairly abysmal nail-biting game where thankfully the best team won. We had no voices left by the end, but I love going to the footy in Melbourne. Everyone wearing the same strip as you is suddenly a long lost mate, and random people will stop and ask how the game went afterwards. Makes me grin (when we win!)

Apart from that and the Saturday night party, I ticked off my standard Melbourne wish list: roasted chesnuts on a cold cold evening, Don Dons, catching up with various elderly rellies, Koko Black hot chocolate, window shopping and cafe hopping in Brunswick St, hanging out with Nic. And getting to wear beanies and scarves and jumpers and coats that never see the light of day in Brisbane.

Was a very busy few days, and I went under the radar missing a few people (Sorry Sue and Darren!). In the end the rellies got most of my time, which I'm glad of. Every time I see them they're just that little bit frailer... an argument for moving south in the next few years.

By the time I flew home on Tuesday morning, I had caught another cold, but it was well worth it - my final trip south without having to worry about a nappy bag! Plus, I can now treat the remains of the cold with Koko Black chocolates that I brought back XD

Introducing Wendy Bob Bean

Tue, 27 May 2008 08:59:43 GMT

As named by T and my sister.

This year's a big year - T will finish his PhD in a couple of months, I have 2 subjects left of my Masters of Science Communication. By the end of the year we'll have finished study and actually have spare time. Well. Would have had spare time... I like things that come in threes, so throwing impending motherhood into the mix seemed like a good idea XD

I shall spare those who aren't interested and put all further talk of babies under El Jay cuts.

A few people wanted pictures from the 12 week ultrasound. Unfortunately we got a DVD of the whole ultrasound, and I don't know how to take screen grabs (yes, I suck). At some point i'll get around to it, but they're standard grainy black and white images of a small alien. If you google 12 week ultrasound you'll get images that resemble WBB and most other human beans.

At this stage, Wendy Bob Bean is 8.4cm long and has all the essentials present and accounted for. Also is in the low risk percentile for trisomys such as Downs Syndrome. The revised due date is 22nd November, 2 weeks earlier than I thought. Either that or Wendy Bob Bean is going to make us millions in the W/NBA. WBB is very uncooperative, wiggling around and pretty much twisting into the most useless positions when important measurements were being done. I suspect a small measure of karmic justice is heading my way 0_o

I think the experience made the pregnancy a little more real for T - more than just something that caused me to have zero energy, no appetite, generally sooky and suddenly the owner of cleavage for the first time in my life.

Anyhoo, that's it for now.

Things that make me grin

Tue, 20 May 2008 07:05:40 GMT

When a favourite of mine geeks out over another favourite. For example, Neil Gaiman geeking out over Doctor Who:

I know that David Tennant's Hamlet isn't till July. And lots of people are going to be doing Dr Who in Hamlet jokes, so this is just me getting it out of the way early, to avoid the rush...

"To be, or not to be, that is the question. Weeelll.... More of A question really. Not THE question. Because, well, I mean, there are billions and billions of questions out there, and well, when I say billions, I mean, when you add in the answers, not just the questions, weeelll, you're looking at numbers that are positively astronomical and... for that matter the other question is what you lot are doing on this planet in the first place, and er, did anyone try just pushing this little red button?"

Wah

Mon, 05 May 2008 10:28:10 GMT

I've just disturbed T with a long loud wail of woe. Neil Gaiman, who is in Melbourne at the moment, did a panel today with Garth Nix and Isobelle Carmody. Now, Garth Nix is an author i've enjoyed reading, but am not too fussed about meeting. However, Isobelle Carmody has been a favourite of mine ever since primary school (and apparently she's finishing that series this year... 0_o).

So, Gaiman and Carmody chatting about influences and then doing signings and such. I was bummed to not be able to make it to Melbourne to meet Neil, but now I'm devastated. Stupid work and money and such. Aaaargh.

Quotes

Sat, 03 May 2008 06:23:26 GMT

I often scribble down quotes from poems, stories, anything really that takes my fancy. But this tends to happen on bits of paper that then get lost in the general debris of my life (anyone who has ever walked past my bedroom door can attest to my habit of dumping anything anywhere). So, i've decided if there's something that stands out to me, i'll post it here. Electronic bits of paper are easier to track!

"To see the world in a grain of sand, and to see heaven in a wild flower, hold infinity in the palm of your hands, and eternity in an hour."

William Blake

New job, new lurgie

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 05:37:38 GMT

The new lab is going well - good people in the lab, the work has finally picked up (the first 2 weeks were a little slow).

However, there are foolish troopers who decide to come to work despite being plague carriers. So i'm off sick, lazing on the couch, and feeling like a zombie.

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 01:33:11 GMT

This is going to be one of those journals with long spaces between posts I think...

After 3 years, I'm leaving my University of Queensland lab. It's been amazing fun, with lots of lovely people that I will miss. A lot have left already (drastic funding cuts happening this year) but those left behind have had to work doubly hard to keep this a great place to work.

I've just had my farewell morning tea, where there were many wonderful treats (so. very. full.) and the obligatory embarrassing speech. VB was charming, praising the skills that I brought to the group and the work that i've done here, and then killed the schmaltz by adding
"and her killer stare, which silenced many a supervisor and forced the redesign of experiments to her satisfaction". Bwahahaha fear my beady eyes of doooom!

I got books that i've been wanting to read, and best of all, a pirate duck! Rubber ducks are good luck tokens in our lab (if you want something to work, it's not science! It's how many rubber ducks you put around the experiment!) and this one is just wonderful : D

I start at the Mater Medical Research Instititute next week (April Fools Day to be precise) and begin the process of getting to know a new area of biology, research methods, not to mention new people. Good and bad really. It's time for a change, but I don't know if i'm ever going to have it as good as i've had it here again.

Busy Weekend

Mon, 04 Feb 2008 02:22:46 GMT

It's strange when you get to Monday, and realise that only 2 days have passed, despite you're brain telling you it's been at least 3 days of busy activity.

Saw Dad for approximately 3 hours during Thursday and Saturday, dropped him off at the airport Saturday morning. I'm looking forward to a visit one day where the purpose of travel was to just hang out, and not deal with various dramas up here and leave the second they're sorted. Ah well.

Did our usual Green Flea Market run at 6am Saturday, with a twist; We have J&A's car again while they off trekking Laos, and so I drove for the first time in a year. 'tis a strange system where you can not drive at all on your Ps and switch over to a full license with the flourish of your pen.
I didn't stall, cause accidents or get into an accident, much to the surprise of both T and I.

I lost my soul and Saturday afternoon to Bunnings. Truely that place is a version of Hell. I love poking around the Second-hand shop near us, and getting old scraps of tin, timber, PVC or whatever we need to build stuff around the house and garden. It's the same joy I get from wandering around the Green Flea instead of going to Woolies - a sense of community, and always interesting things that you didn't know you needed until you saw them. But a number of lovely people gave us vouchers as wedding gifts, and so to Bunnings we went. We now own an angle grinder and sander, which are still pride of place in the lounge room (too precious to be stored under the house just yet...), and a large assortment of stuff for the garden and chook shed.

Sunday was decreed backyard day. T began to build the chook-shed, revelling in the use of powertools. I attacked the veggie patch, planting our basil, broccoli, capiscum, tomato and chilli seedlings, and putting in carrot, beetroot, corn, and borlotti bean seeds. Also planted out more thyme, and repotted our overly successful Thai Basil ready to be brought to work and given away. I am now quite sore from all the digging, squatting and stooping from yesterday, but it's been so much fun harvesting and cooking our veggies - definitely worth the hard work.

a blue day...

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 04:34:01 GMT

Take me home...
Take me home and leave me there
Think I'm gonna cry, don't know why
Think I'll sing myself a lullaby.
Feel free to listen
Feel free to stare

Cradle and All, Ani Di Franco