Words of Wisdom

One's real life is often the life that one does not lead.

Oscar Wilde

Art: "Abundance is Yours" by Karin Turner

Don't Do It

Don't live in some mean little tunnel because of someone else's ignorance. Don't do that to yourself.

Maya Angelou

Art: "free" by 741mimo

Just Do It

Live your life as though there is great joy to be experienced ... an abundance of goodness in each person you come in contact with, and the knowledge that you have enough inner wisdom to answer the mysteries that challenge you.

Meladee McCarty

Art: "Celebration" by Keith Mallett

Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.

Albert Einstein

Photo: "Autumn Fantasy" by jojomercury

Thought For The Day

Be the rainbow in someone else's cloud.

Maya Angelou

Photo: "RAINBOW" by melloncolliebaby

The Waiting Game

It has been two weeks and two days (not counting the weekend, that would make it two weeks and four days) .... no mail yet.

I sent letters to my great aunt, a cousin in South Africa and my uncle looking for information on the family tree and after getting both excited and anxious after just two days I had to make myself wait for two weeks until I raised the subject again.

I have considered that two weeks would be the absolute minimum in getting a reply - and that would only be if they sat down and responded immediately upon receiving my letter - so they may still be coming.

But it is the anticipation of it all lol. Okay if I haven't heard anything in two weeks from today, then I will start pacing lol

Remembering Holly Hobby

Just thinking about childhood and my Holly Hobby curtains come to mind - I can't think of a specific reason why, it is one of those things that just is :-)

I am not sure I am correct, but I think I kept the same curtains from when I moved into Fourth Street in 1979 ish to when I left. Originally my walls (which I chose the color) were a violent, florescent chartreuse color (which I covered with posters from floor to ceiling) but ultimately was repainted to be a rich camel sort of color - at which point I removed most of the posters lol

Funny cos I left home at 17 and I never thought my HH curtains were daggy or out of date. Maybe because I have gone on to be a crafty kinda woman who hankers after moments of nostalgia :-)

Meet Nancy Crow

Yes it is incredibly beautiful -maybe even more so because it is a quilt not a painting. Welcome to the world of Nancy Crow. This acclaimed artist has had a myriad of exhibitions, is a published author and passes on her skills to students from around the world.

A Conceit by Dr Maya Angelou

Give me your hand

Make room for me

to lead and follow

you

beyond this rage of poetry.

Let others have

the privacy of

touching words

and love of loss

of love.

For me

Give me your hand.

Mark Langan Art

Just found this artist when I was visiting Indigo Daisy. Mark Langan makes all of his art from recycled corrugated cardboard. He creates both general art and corporate logos. You can check out his site here it is well worth the click :-)

Remember Real Pen Pals?

I have just been wondering around the blog world and have stumbled across this post at Indie Fixx - it is a call for penpals (and not the email, or Facebook kind but ones that write letters - on paper lol) as a part of The Penpal project.

Now I love my phone, my blog, my email and my FB but the thought of receiving a real letter written by a stranger with a commitment to an ongoing friendship sounds so very exciting.

So I have added my name to the list, sent out a couple of emails to make the first contact and ... well now I wait :-)

Photo: "TFP Letters to you1" by tfprince

Happiness is ....

The main things which seem to me important on their own account, and not merely as a means to other things, are knowledge, art, instinctive happiness, and relations of friendship or affection.

Bertrand Russell

Art: "Tree of Knowledge" by Riei

The Other Side

Another tragedy of the last few weeks is the death of a 12 year old child in Brisbane.

Now I say upfront I cannot imagine the pain that his parents, friends and family are going through and these thought are not meant to diminish those, or belittle them, in any way shape or form.

I have spent many hours wondering about the "perpetrator". What grief must his family been feeling? That there child was capable of this; the realization that so much, if not everything has changed in their world. The stigma of this will be hard to escape.

I ask myself why this child was carrying a knife - was he trying to show off or be cool, was he a bully, or was he living in fear and thought he needed the "protection" the weapon would give? Was this the first time he had carried it, or was it something he had been doing for a while, whatever his motives?

Were others, adults specifically, aware that there was something going on? Were there clues?

This child's life is irrevocably changed - whether he is found guilty or not, he will live with knowing that he was reasonable for the death of another. Was this something he had ever contemplated? Was it even 'real'? Does he, at 12, even really understand?

There is strong community and social support for the family of the child that died. That is as it should be. What support will the perpetrator and his family receive as they try and rebuild their shattered lives, for surely that is what we wish for them too.

Art: "Knife" by dv8-

What Right?

I have long been opposed to capital punishment and don't foresee that position changing any time soon. In essence I don't see any reason, no matter the crime, to justify the death of someone. Although there are others that disagree and the debate will go on, to me the points of debate are quite clear.

The recent case of a Perth mother of two needing a second liver transplant is perhaps more grey than black-and-white. The complicating factor in this is that she has a long history of drug abuse, and has admitted using after the first transplant. She promises that she has reformed her life but she is talking to a skeptical and jaded world.

Now I fully admit that she does have a second option, and one that the State Government is willing to fund, in that she can travel to New Zealand to test her eligibility for a living transplant, an operation not done in Australia. I also know that many do die while they are on the waiting list for a transplant so even being on the list is no guarantee that she will receive a transplant before her time is up.

What interests me about this case is the public perception of "worthiness" or otherwise of this operation, and her "right" to be on the list. There has been a general damning attitude that she had her chance and she doesn't deserve another.  I wonder if we looked at all of the people on the waiting list for transplants whether there would be other "unworthy" recipients that are currently flying under the radar - maybe a sex offender, maybe a criminal, maybe a longterm unemployed person, maybe an older person?

Where does the line drawn between those worthy and unworthy get drawn, and who draws it? In this case I am not talking about people who (say) need to lose weight or give up smoking prior to an operation in order to maximize the opportunity for a successful recovery, I am talking about the public opinion, and public policy, applying moral judgments to people that literally affect their ability to remain living.

I wonder what these same people would think if we were discussing their parent, or child, would their strength of convictions still hold?

Photo: "choice." by shotgunxfabulous

Passion and Purpose

What others think of us would be of little moment did it not, when known, do deeply tinge what we think of ourselves.

Paul Valery

Art: "Mermaid Destiny" by Karin Turner

A World of Smells

In the evenings my house becomes a trap for smells - many of them are of the neighbors cooking their dinners, then there are the regular flowering plants like jasmine. Sometimes Val's incense waft in.

Tonight I have a new one - I have absolutely no idea what it is but the closest I can describe it is gently warming flower nectar. Having said that it is not sweet, or cloying, it is a gentle embrace and it is divine.

Her's hoping it will be back tomorrow :-)

Jobs You Don't See Anymore

I found this list of job for a small English community in 1822 - not many that I find in my community in 2010 :-) Okay we have grocers (although not termed that way) and a chemist ..... I am not sure our druggist are the same as the one of 1822 lol

stone mason
grocer
nail maker
wood turner and chair maker
wheelwright
shoemaker
blacksmith
file manufacturer
maltster & flax dresser
draper
cooper
hat manufacturer
chemist and druggist
basket maker
flour dealer
linen manufacturer
tailor and habit maker
junior fork manufacturer
corn miller
brace, bit, & gimblet manufacturer
thread manufacturer
fork maker and frinders
gentry
pocket knife manufactuer
pen knife manufacturer
corn miller

My Family Story

I want to know about my grandparents and my uncle so I have started a hunt for them. Actually I want to know my family's entire story - why stop two generations back lol :-)

And I have great team members in Graham and Nancy. We are progressively putting our heads together and trying to remember what snippets of information we can, and cross reference that with any leads we come across.

Now I am not putting a timeline on this - especially as the family is UK and South African based - it is going to take more time than driving down the road and popping into the local paper or library. And, I also have a few other projects on my plate too lol.

It is all very exciting - a real life jigsaw puzzle :-)

Tuna and Rice Cake

I made this last weekend. I have included the recipe below but can I suggest that it only be a guide - replace the rice with pasta, change the vegetables to anything you want or have on hand, replace the tuna with chicken or leftover taco mince or extra vegetables, change the spices to whatever suits you. I am thinking it would be great with pasta and roast vegetables, served with a balsamic dressing lol. Serve it hot or cold - or even as a picnic food. Make it in a square plan and include slices in kid's lunchboxes. And it definitely suits the someone on a Lentil Club budget.

425 g tuna, drained
3 C cooked rice
1 C peas
1 C corn
2 T chopped parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
4 eggs, gently whisked
2 T cream
1 C shredded cheese

Combine the first six ingredients in bowl. Turn into a greased springform pan and press down gently. Combine the eggs and cream and pour over the rice mix. Top with cheese. Bake at 180 C for about 50 minutes or until firm. Cut into wedges and serve with salad leaves.

Kewl Kids Sunday - Riddle Me This, Riddle Me That

Okay I have been away, have had lots of thinking time and am trying so hard to stump the Kewl Kids so today I am going to try riddles. There are 5 in the challenge - I am hoping I can stump you on at least one!

1 What English words keeps it's pronunciation even if you take away four of its five letters?

2 A basket contains 5 apples, how do you divide them among 5 kids so each kids gets an apple and one apple stays in the basket?

3 What is so unusual about: "Gatsby was walking back from a visit down in Branton Hill's manufacturing district on a Saturday night. A busy day's traffic had had its noisy run; and with not many folks in sight, His Honor got along without having to stop to grasp a hand, or talk; for a mayor out of City Hall is a shining mark for any politician. And so, coming to Broadway, a booming bass drum and sounds of singing, told of a small Salvation Army unit carrying on amidst Broadway's night shopping crowds. Gatsby, walking towards that group, saw a young girl, back toward him, just finishing a long, soulful oration ... "  The above passage is taken from the book "Gatsby" written by Ernest Vincent Wright in the late 1930's

4 A word I know, six letters it contains, take away one and twelve remains. What am I?

5 The following number is the only one of its kind: 8,549,176,320. Can you figure out what is so special about it?

Please tell me you get stumped (at least a little bit) or else I will have to bring out the very big guns lol

"This Land Is Mine, This Land Is Me"

With thanks to Paul Kelly for the words for something that I didn't know existed, let alone express.

I started singing his song unbidden as the plane came from the ocean over somewhere near Esperance (my guess) - I didn't even know I knew it. I felt my heart leap as I saw the flat expanse roll out before me. My eyes teared as the golds and browns dominated the horizon. It got more and more real as I traveled around once I landed. I stood on the farm and inhaled the smell that is home. I cannot deny it - I am West Australian.

I knew I missed the smell of the land when I moved over here and while I am more than happy living in the land of green and rain and mountains and have no plans to ever again live in "the flat brown desert", I do acknowledge it is so a part of me. And I didn't realize it until I went back there.

The Best ...

Inspired by Robert Fulgham's quest for "the perfect chicken fried steak from a diner" I spent some time years ago searching for "the perfect sausage roll from a service station". Now Mrs Mac's contribution looks inedible and tastes even worse so she, and all of the commercial brands were soon dismissed - I probably should have had danger money just for trying them!

After literally thousands of kilometres of travel and a lot of so-so sausage rolls I came across an absolute winner - sold by the BP in Williams it was a homemade creation that included delightlfuly flaky pastry wrapping a mixture featuring meat meat and more meat (missing in so many others lol) as well as onions, spices and a few ingredients I will keep secret in case I spoil their market. It was a bonus a year or so later when I could buy them at the roadhouse in Beaufort River.

Now I am not pretending in any way these are a health food, but when one is on holidays calories don't count do they? I got this baby from the Arthur River Roadhouse while waiting for my bus back to Perth.I seriously contemplated having two - I mean who knows when I will get another one but images of Monty Python's restaurant skit (you know the one) put a stop to that.

New Photos

I have been going through the ol' holiday snaps and some of them have turned out rather well. I have loaded them onto Pool. You can check them out if you are so inclined :-)

This one was taken at 'RobertJayne' Brother Graham and SIL Nancy's farm and is one if my favorites :-)

Passion and Purpose

For me, words are a form of action, capable of influencing change.

Ingrid Bengis

Words of Wisdom

Examine what is said, not him who speaks.

Arab proverb

Art: "Let Me Dream" by Carole Felmy

Licence Plates

WA has a great way of issuing licence plates - aside from the generic state plates, each shire can also issue their own plates - so as you drive down the highway (or sit in a cafe in Bellingen) you can tell whether soemone is from Collie or Karratha or whatever. Now I personally have a wave at everyone policy (or more to the point, list the pointer finger in a friendly gesture) but it is always handy to know if they are m ore likely to be someone you actually know.

This is just a very random sample taken on my travels.

A quick explanation: the black and white plates were the first ones issued (GN 1910 - from Greenough), followed by the yellow and black range (9HT 794 - a generic plate) when they ran out of numbers. The first personalised plates were the blue and black (JAC 999) and soon after the Eagles plates (logo 029).

The blue and white range are the latest (1AYK 695 - a generic plate) and expected to last for the foreseeable future. They are also available for towns and shires (W 19 for Wagin), (PL - 561 for Plantagenet), (AL 22132 for Albany) or (JP 936 for Jerramungup). A full list of all the shire plates can be found here.

Just thought you would like to know :-)

The World Isn't Flat

Taken from the airplane on the way to Perth.

Pardon?

What you do speaks so loud I cannot hear your words.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Art: "Offer Your Best" by Karin Turner

Live, Laugh, Love

Of all afflictions, the worst is self-contempt.

Berthold Auerbach

Art: "Edge of Paradise" by LaShun Beal

Ouch!

I have an insect bite on my bum. I noticed it last night - I specifically noticed the little "hard" tag. My mind kinda went to a tick - or more specifically the head of a tick - but I ignored it.

It started to throb at 4 this morning. I got up and put some ti-tree oil on a bandaid and applied it in the said position. Ti-tree is a great antiseptic so worth a try.

At 11 this morning it wasn't only throbbing but the actual site was stinging really strongly and a welt had risen up next to it.

Thinking of my upcoming travel and not wanting a butt infected with a tick head I headed to the hospital.

One nurse looked at it. Not really sure. Another was called it. The hard tag they decided, was not a tick's head but a little piece of skin. It isn't a tick. No idea what it is - apparently the site is the site two 50 cent pieces now - but it isn't a tick. The nurse applied Soov and I was back home within 40 minutes.

So good it is all okay but oh so very embarrassing :-)

Photo: "Sprinkle Bum" by auxcentral

Days of John

We are coming up for the anniversary of his death again - and it will coincide exactly with me going back to WA. Not the best timing and lots of buttons have been pushed as a result.

And a new awareness - I hate what alcohol does to people.

I don't want to be around drunks. I don't want the burden alcoholics bring to their friends and family. I don't want to make excuses for them anymore. I don't want to make excuses to myself anymore. I don't want to watch the destruction that happens to them, their bodies, their relationships. I don't want to have another conversation with someone slurring their words but pretending to be sober and thinking no one notices.  I have done my time. I am not doing it again.

I am not into prohibition - I am sure I will be having a drink or two again. I am talking about heavy drinking or binge drinking or drinking to avoid life and all that it entails.

It is interesting to watch myself and this grief/memory cycle. I haven't focussed on the alcohol before. Maybe because I am now a long way away from working in rehabs. Maybe because of all the political talk of alco-pops in 2009. Maybe I have just woken up.

Having said all that my heart still aches for him and I so wish that he was here.

I'll Wilt!

The forecast for Perth this week:

Tuesday    Sunny.  Min 12     Max 30
Wednesday  Sunny.  Min 15     Max 35
Thursday   Sunny.  Min 19     Max 36
Friday     Sunny.  Min 19     Max 35
Saturday   Very hot. Sunny.   Min 19     Max 39
Sunday     Very hot. Sunny.   Min 21     Max 42

Aaaarrrghhh! Okay so I will actually only be in Perth for Wednesday and start heading south on Thursday but you have got to be kidding!!!!

Photo: "Three Years" by orbatid

Time for a Change

Ever since I got angry some weeks ago (and now because it is 'that time of the year') I have been in something of a rut. I have become especially aware of that over the past few days so I have kicked my own butt and it is time for a change, time for movement. Okay so I am about to go away so some practical things (like setting aside specific time for writing) will have to wait until I get home but there so attitudinal things I can put in place right now.

For a start there will be a birthday celebration - I don't know what form it will take but there will be singing and dancing everyday for at least a week - and I might even invite others to join me lol.

I have a couple of phone numbers for potential agents - no point calling them tomorrow (the first day of availability after the Christmas break) but I certainly can as soon as I get back. I have been fearing rejection (on so many levels) but I adopting the Colonel Sanders approach and diving in.

I have made my specialist appointments (well two out of the three - the third will be back form holidays tomorrow) so I am moving forward in that regard.

I have been putting off doing a couple of things and they will be done before 5 pm tomorrow so I can leave without worrying about it all.

And all in all I am pulling up my socks and beginning to take that one step forward on this journey that is my life.

Photo: Change your mind" by lohey

Tree of Life

The great French Marshall Lyautey once asked his gardener to plant a tree. The gardener objected, that the tree was slow growing and would not reach maturity for 100 years. The Marshall replied, "In that case, there is no time to lose; plant it this afternoon!"

John F Kennedy

Art: "Tree of Life" by Gustav Klimt

Free to Be Me

Whatever you are by nature, keep to it; never desert your line of talent. Be what nature intended you for and you will succeed.

Sydney Smith

Photo: Dandelions" by Henryk T Kaiser

Birthday Thoughts

I know it is months away - no matter whether I celebrate it as a re-birthday in March/April or my actual birthday in August - but I have been contemplating what to do for my birthday this year. It will be the big 4-0 and I haven't really done anything since I turned 30 so it might be time.

Now when I turned 30 I had three parties in one day (a brunch, lunch and dinner) as well as mini-parties on the days either side. Pretty much everyone who could be at one of them was. I felt loved and appreciated and alive.

And that is my potential problem with this one - high expectations. I know that no matter what I plan I risk dashed expectations and a crappy feeling. Which makes me think I should just play safe and just ignore it. But then I don't want to be that person lol.

Okay, so on a practical level, I was still thinking about cooking and hosting a dinner party at my place but Miss K who has a similar birthday at a similar time has suggested just going out for dinner - everyone pay their own way so no big expense, and no mess to clean up afterwards. There is a lot of merit to that plan. If I had a real income by then I could go to the States but I am not sure that that is necessarily practical. I was thinking about a coffee and cake feast (not as posh as the ever-trendy high tea, more like a CWA meeting lol).

Hmm, lots of time to come up with something - and no obligation anyway lol

Photo: The birthday cupcake" by voodo 

Darwin 2009

Yes the Awards that no-one wants to win have been announced for 2009. While the winners (and I use that term loosely) were involved in an ATM hold up, I personally lean towards the incident in Sparkleberry Lane.

Full details, and wincing belly-laughs, can be found here.

Passion and Purpose

When you're kind to someone in trouble, you hope they'll remember and be kind to someone else. And it'll become like a wildfire.

Woopi Goldberg

Art: "Passionate Flamenco" by Leonid Afremov

New Year Words

I have been looking for a way to sum up my hopes for the year to come but gave up when I found this from Cherie at Butterfly Dreamer. She has said everything I wanted to. When you get a minute, click on over to check out her great photos and posts :-)

I think 2010 should be a leap of faith. A leap into unexplored new experiences. A year of more.

More laughter , more tasting the sweetness of life. Letting go of fear, letting go of old things , people and situations that do not serve us any longer. I look forward this year to new experiences, making new friends , new places to travel to. I sat last night at midnight in the freezing night air and stared up at that gorgeous full moon that was shining so brightly it lit the sky. It filled me with hope for some reason. I kept smiling up at it.

I have a very good feeling about this coming year. I am pursuing my dream of photography and writing more of my book. I have much to look forward to.

My wish for you in this brand new year, is that you pursue your dreams, and you don't let anyone influence you that they are not worth it. That you find your own happiness and laughter. Lots more laughter lovies.

 Photo: "Leap" by 7th-Heaven-Creative

Some People

I rang to book my train ticket on Friday and I am sure that if the woman in the call centre had a manual and was judged on on 'How to make things hard for your customer' she would have won the Employee of the Month.

I ended up at the Coff's station this afternoon as a 'here's hoping'. The sign on the door clearly said they were closed but there was people inside and being a bit desperate I stuck my head around and asked if they had an agent in my home town - the call centre woman had given me a big bum steer.

A gentleman asked a woman next to him, she didn't seem sure and apologized that she had shut her computer down. Perfectly understandable as they were finished for the day. I prepared to leave but he beckoned me to an empty counter. Within three or four minutes he had my ticket issued, he picked up on my passing comment about a back problem and has placed me in what he recommends are the best seats to minimize any difficulty I might experience - he made sure I had that seat doing to Sydney as well as on my return trip.

If I had've stood there with a gun to his head, or in tears and on my knees begging for pity, this gentleman could not have been more helpful .... and all of this when the office was clearly closed and I was only asking for help in my local area.

The time of REAL customer service has not yet passed my friends, and I know a man who is making a career out of it.

Some Days

Some days you can sit back and know that something has changed - the course you were on has taken on a different dimension. Okay, so sometimes that is for the better, and sometimes for the worse. Today was one of them for me.

I spent the day with Miss K and her family and other friends. From afar it may not have looked like much - I arrived early and played battleship (lost one game, won one) and chess (lost one, won two), we had a great bbq (thanks Mr T for the cooking and Miss K for the rest), we chatted, the weather was so-so but on the verandah it didn't matter. I even took a couple of photos of real people .... but I respect that there was angst so they won't appear here (Miss K's frangipani had no such problem though lol). Four, five hours passed before I gave in to the need to finish my assignment and headed home.

And in amongst all of that something positive and big happened - I don't know quite what it was but I do know that in time to come I will look back and know that whatever it is all started today on Miss K's verandah.

Yes, some days ... you just gotta dance :-)

A Matter of Perspective

To see the earth as it truly is, small and blue and beautiful in that eternal silence where it floats, is to see ourselves as riders on the earth together, brothers on that bright loveliness in the eternal cold.

Archibald MacLeish

Photo from USA George

Tasting Good

It is nice to know I have a purpose in life - I am the food for a generation of mosquitoes - I have over 200 bites on me as we speak - and they are just the ones I can see - I am sure there are more on my back.

Fortunately they are not itchy like they usually are (could they be a different species maybe) because I would be swathed in calamine lotion otherwise lol

Yes I worked out a couple of nights ago that if I sleep with the fan on it does minimize the attacks somewhat (and I know that is a relative comment lol).

Radio Days

I spend most of my days listening to the radio - and most of my nights listening to podcasts of radio that I have missed, want to hear again, or is from overseas stations.

I trawl the ABC, BBC, CBC and NPR for bits that will interest me. Now all of these are public broadcasters and I am not sure if commercial radio has something similar - I haven't listened to commercial radio for over 10 years now.

Anyway, not only do I get to listen to incredible programming on books, science, social affairs, ethics and the like, I get to take full advantage of 21st century technology - linking in with the relevant websites I can comment on stories, debate or discuss things with fellow listeners, click on follow up information, contribute content and look at photos.

All of the programming can stand on its own merits and as such doesn't need the integration that the web brings. Nonetheless, the extra layers add a depth to the information and the listening experience that just can't be beat.

Totally over-run any need for television that I might have had lol

Photo: "on the radio" by irrr

Flowers on the Ground

Mango Chutney

1 T oil
1 small onion, finely diced
1 ripe mango, diced
2 T vinegar
2 T sugar
1 - 2 chillis, chopped
Pinch cinnamon
Pinch cardamom seeds
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat oil in small saucepan. Saute onion. Add mango. Add vinegar, sugar and spices. Add chilli. Keep at a low simmer until the liquid has cooked off and the chutney is well blended. Season to taste.

I served this with some lentil croquettes, and pumpkin and chicken patties (still working on those recipes - I will post them when they are a bit more refined) with a side salad.

Note: you could also add a pinch coriander powder to the mix. I am a hot kinda girl so I left the membrane and seeds with the chillis - obviously you can take them out.

Happy New Year

Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while care will drop awar from you like the leaves of Autumn.

John Muir

Art: "Angel Wings" by Laverne Ross