Winter Sunday

Finally felt as though I had a day I deserved. Got up and took my time getting ready. Put my newly washed Ebay bargain top on and felt good in it. Went to Southland and did some retail therapy, not much but enough to keep me happy. Then I got home and had lunch (1.45pm) and at about 3.45 I made S come for a bike ride with me down to Centre Road, Bentleigh. Then after S had a pie and melting moment - which kind of offsets the healthy benefits of the bike ride - we then rode about another 4 or 5 kms through a park and then home. He whinged the last 5 minutes of the ride, then whinged because I made him take the bike through the house and out the back (instead of dumping it in my front room), he whinged about being hot then finally stopped after he had a drink. I know he enjoyed it but I am not sure if he knows as yet.

As for me, I love getting on the bike and just enjoying the cold Winter air. It was sunny and cold and the smell of open fireplaces was drifting around. We went past a florist and there were jonquils for sale and I could smell the sweetness of them. People were mowing their lawns and the sound of the mower seems to validate what we do as humans. When we got home I asked S to take a picture of me on the bike that K built for me. The front yard is looking happy now that it the air is moist and the ground cool. Very soon I think I shall finally plant out all of the bare space in the yard and that will almost finish it for Spring. I need to refurbish the vegetable patch and plant some Winter greens. I am so looking forward to planting tomatoes this year. I have planted two apple trees in it but it will not be until next year that I see any results. Nice crisp apples from the garden sound so delicious.

K is at a music job again and S is watching The Simpsons. He watched Terminator 2 and 3 today, sat in his pj's and did not get dressed until I came home from shopping. What a bad mother I am!!!

I am about to tidy my bedroom and make the very messy bed and basically just potter around and get ready for the busy week ahead. This weekend I made such an effort to get my head back into a focused state that I am feeling at peace once more. Sometimes though, we do need to go through a hard patch mentally to be able to see what we have to do to get to a better place. If you didn't, well, how could you grow as a human being? I should ask a bogan that question.

Ciao

LC

The Front Room and Food

This is in my front room. I love this room. Currently I am waiting for a day bed to be made which will replace the little chair sitting there. The lamp shade will be replaced and the stand painted white. The picture sitting on its side is one that my mummy gave me years ago. She bought it because it reminded her of a place where she lived when my sister and I were babies. When I look through the slides I can see the shed she is talking about. I am going to get it reframed as it is kind of lost against the green of our wall. Plus, it must be at least twenty years since it was first framed and it does need to be redone. It is not a painting as such as it is done with pastel. K hates it but I love it as it is simple yet says a lot. The chair is one I bought and had recovered. It is a rocker and I love sitting in it. The small tab

le next to it has been part of my life since I moved out of home 25 or so years ago. You can see the magazines down on bottom of it - the ones I cannot throw out.

Once this room is finished, it is my room to read and reflect in. Also to go and watch the news while S is watching The Simpsons.

Here are some yummy cookies that S helped me bake. Since then I have had to make another batch as they were gobbled up so quickly. I don't eat them except to have a taste. The other picture is some more white bread I made which lasted about a couple of hours. Homemade stuff tastes so much better than store bought.

Ciao

LC

Ebay - Again

I bought clothes last week on Ebay. All second hand of course. I bought two tops, one funky twin set cardigan and one pair of almost new jeans. I spent $82 plus postage. I am so pleased.

I also noticed that a brand new Elle McPherson bra is $12.95 plust $5 postage as opposed to $45 in the store.

Shampoo of the highest quality is so much less than buying it in the shops. Also make up. And, I am about to take a chance on a pair of shoes.

I feel that by buying second hand, I am not contributing to land fill and also other environmental factors that come into place with the production of these items.

Plus, I get more bang for my bucks (I love that expression).

Ciao
LC

Question

Remember years ago when you knew the names of ballet dancers or classical musicians or composers whether or not you were interested in what they were famous for. You may have remembered the odd sportsman but unless you were into sport, you generally did not know.

I remember the name of Margot Fontaine and Rudolph Nuwhatsisname. Horowitz and Helpmann.

What ballet dancers and classical pianists are there now? I know the name of well known sporting people, despite the fact I do not like sport yet I do not know the names of famous people in the classical field. It is as though you have to be involved in that area to know any names now. Unless you are sporty there is no mention. Society is so dumbed down that we do not know what used to be a general knowledge fact of life.

Unfortunately I know the names of too many celebrities who contribute nothing to society and still manage to get an awful lot of money for doing just that.

Ciao
LC

June - Once Again

How hopeless I have been with my blog. In fact, in general, I have been an all round lazy blob the past three or so weeks. It peaked last week with a shitty case of PMT and then I sat down and had a hard long think about my lifestyle.

I realised that I have slacked off on exercise for the first time in two years, slacked off taking all my multi vitamins and other stuff for the first time in ages, had been eating poorly (all bran for dinner etc), sleeping very badly and just allowing myself to be completely undisciplined. I am sure there is other stuff, but those things I mentioned are kind of crucial to me being able to function properly as a human being as they affect my inner workings which then affect my mind.

Today was meant to be my kick start day but I had to most awful start to the morning. Last night S and I went next door to have pizza (me vegan of course) and I also drank a lot of Zero coke which I know I should not. Woke up this morning and could hardly move I was so fatigued. Shuffled around, had breakfast and had to go back to bed for an hour and a half and sleep whilst I waited for my body to recover. So I did not get moving until 12.30 which was a bit disappointing. But I did go for a walk albiet a short one. For some reason I loathe walking during the day in public in my tracksuit. Not that I look like some low brow bogan or anything, I just feel shabby I suppose. Then when I got home I made beef and guiness casserole and then spent some time in the front yard pruning roses and tidying up the garden beds. I felt a bit productive at least.

Tomorrow, not sure but I do think a trip to Southland is in order as I must get S a new book to read. He reads one each week and I have to confess it is a bit pricey getting a new one every Sunday, but reading is such a nice thing to do and owning books is so satisfying.

K has gone to a party tonight and rode his pushbike there, in the dark. I made him carry some sort of identification with him in case he gets squashed by a car.

So now what. Well, I am just refocusing on what I need to do. Get back into my routine and be a good girl in the health department.

Have just realised what a boring post this one was.

Oh well, boring is as boring does.

And if you got to the end of it waiting for something to happen, that was dumb.

Cya

LC

Baking

Here are some bagels I baked a week or so ago.

They were yummy. So today I have baked some white bread. They do give me a bit of grief but it does not stop me eating them.

Ciao

LC

Windows - Two Weeks Ago

The windows in my bedroom look out to the Silver Birch trees that are planted in a garden bed along the driveway. When I wake up I lie in bed for a while and stare out at the sky and contemplate the day ahead. In the 16 years or so that I have lived in this house, the windows have been cleaned twice that I know of. And that was a ling time ago as there is crayon scribble on the window that S put there over six years ago.

A layer of dust coats the window making them as hazy as a soft sigh and now and then, in a fit of cleaning conscience, I will brush a cloth across the surface to make them appear slightly cleaner. Really, such an action is a waste of time as the outside of the window is where the true grime is. Having water restrictions gives me justification in not making any attempt to clean them whatsoever.

Today I am sitting at the desk that is placed under the window. Outside the sky is the most delightful blue and the sun is shining and had I not stepped out previously I would have believed it to be Summer and not chilly Winter. All the Silver Birch have shed their leaves and the silvery trunks and drooping branches will be naked for the next few months. I can see weeds in the garden bed and think that, very soon, I shall tackle a big day in the garden.

The sound of someone mowing the lawn drifts in on a slight breeze that whispers through the partly open casement window. There is a television on in my lounge room and I half listen to it whilst trying to drag words and thoughts from my head and place them on paper in a slightly cohesive manner.

Looking at these windows in front of memakes me think of the window in the kitchen. Now they are something worthy of comment.

The kitchen window is in front of the sink and faces the blind side of the house. The vista consists of a side fence and a neighbours window. I know she does ironing in that room as occassionally I have seen through the mock organza curtains when the light is on. That was confirmed when I have visited her and her husband.

Back to the spectactular kitchen window. The design is made up of crossbars and I swear that in every available corner of this window is a cobweb in which resides and fiesty, small black spider. Most of the webs are on the outside, which is fine with me. The couple that are on the inside are filled with the carcasses of flies and amongst that fly graveyard sits a bitey little arachnid.

In one particular corner of the window, outside, bottom right hand corner, sits the most creepy web wonder. A couple of years ago S put a potted round cactus on the outside of the windowsill and pushed it into the corner. Since then, a spider has connected the cactus, the window sill, the glass pane and part of the house all together with a web. Snowball, the name bestowed on the cactus, is covered all over with grey and whispy, sticky web.

For a while we could not bring ourself to clean the webs from the kitchen window. It seemed to mean spirited to destroy to small world of insect purley to have a brighter view of the blind side of our house. It is a world within and world and I do get pleasure with watching the web creep every so slowly across the pane of glass.

Unfortuately though, the window ended up looking like a set from Great Expectations - Mrs Haversham's wedding cake - and I entire kitchen, no matter how tidy, looked grubby with the webbed window. And, to make matters worse, the spider population increased on the inside which was totally unacceptable to me, life or no life!

K has now completely cleaned with window, inside and out. So shiny and sparkly. Sorry spider.

Ciao

LC

Things worth Mentioning

Sunny days feel better than rainy days.

My dog loves me with all his doggy heart.

My son would never wash if I did not make him.

Nor would he cut fingernails, toenails, brush teeth, get off the computer, stop watching television etc etc.

I will always have fat days no matter how slim I am.

Sussan's cheap $60 jeans look better on me that Sass & Bide $300 jeans.

I have trouble throwing out trashy magazines.

I have very lazy moments at work (this being one of them).

I have an aversion to housework.

I would rather work an extra four hours a week than do four hours of housework.

Despite the fact I hate housework I still do it to set a good example to S.

When I do get stuck into housework the place looks amazing.

Within two hours of doing housework the place looks untidy which justifies my leaving it for longer than most people would since it is going to look messy very quickly anyway.

I buy Pledge Grab It dusters and other dusting products after I saw the advert on television.

Happiness has all shapes and forms but I always feel it one way or another.

Men are more honest than women and definitely nicer to work with.

Despite all I say, I really do not mind getting older.

Whilst I do not mind getting older, it kind of annoys me that it means I have less time on this earth than I had twenty years ago.

Youth really, really is wasted on the young.

Although my diet is healthy which means I am healthy and although I exercise and add more to my well being, nothing will ever be as good as sitting on the couch watching a dvd and eating pizza - at least twice a week.

Having said the above, just the pleasurable fact that, due to my healthy lifestyle, I was able to purchase a size 8 dress yesterday completely outweighs any pleasure derived from being a takeway munching coulch blob.

Which confirms that saying - nothing tastes as good as wearing size 10 jeans.

I am still scared of going the the Dentist but never let on to S.

I have a judgement factor about women who put their children in full time child care when they financially do not need to which is wrong of me, but I just do.

I hate slippers and dressing gowns and therefore no-one in our house is allowed to have either of those items. If you get out of bed, get dressed or just schlep around in pj's. Don't make a statement by actually wearing more bed clothing - it always has a smell about it.

I have been so bad at updating my Blog.

I suppose all of the above is not particularly interesting but I liked writing it down and it is all true to me.

Ciao

LC