A long weekend is just a day and a half of madness away...

Believe me, it's been madness here, and I am looking forward to a long weekend.

Not long now and I'll be enjoying...

A walk along the beach...

Good company and coffee...

And a peaceful view...

THIS is what keeps me going.

Once in a blue moon...

Did you see the moon this morning?
You had to be up pretty early.
It was magnificent.
But, in case you missed it, tonight is a blue moon (the second full moon in the calendar month).

Go outside and look up.
You don't want to miss it.
Afterall, a blue moon only occurs... well, once in a blue moon!

Mueck Magic...

When I first saw a picture of Ron Mueck's sculpture of 'two women' in a magazine, I'll admit, they gave me the creeps. They were just a little too real, a little too lifelike for me, and maybe even a little too ugly! I know, you would think that lifelike is the intention (and surely it is), but the expressions of the two old women was plotting, if not nasty, and I just didn't like them.

A couple of years later, and yesterday I find myself eyeball to eyeball with the same old women, but find their stature rather less intimidating. They are less than 3 feet tall. And up close and personal (though I still feel they are up to no good), the detail and their lifelike features are too incredible not to be impressed.

You could get up close and look at the tiniest of details and wonder at the creation and observation of the artist. The temptation to touch was hard to resist, as it was sometimes difficult to believe these sculptures weren't more than just resin and hair. Mueck did not attempt to hide the realities of life. There were wrinkles and blemishes and hair in noses, and expressions that told of the strains and pressures of life. He chose to get straight to the point and capture people, spots and all. Sometimes in such vulnerable poses or situations that I couldn't bare to look for more than a moment.

You could take photos (though not with a flash) and I was happy to have captured the one of 'wild man' with the gallery security in the edge of the pic, just to show the scale.

If you can, go and see this exhibition. It is on at the NGV until the 18th of April and is worth a visit. And while you're there, watch how other visitors interact with the sculptures, they are almost as fascinating as the sculptures themselves.

From Paris with love...

Last weekend I flew to Canberra. The NGA (National Gallery of Australia) has been hosting the "Masterpieces from Paris" exhibit and it is finishing up in April. This is the first time these paintings have travelled outside of France and the opportunity to see them, was too good to miss.

My Mum and Dad were also keen to visit and so they drove up, and I met them there. We were not alone in wanting to see the masterpieces in 'the flesh'. Gough Whitlam (former Australian Prime Minister) was there, being wheeled around in a wheelchair with a personal guide. And hundreds of others too.

The crowds at the exhibition were RIDICULOUS! Who would think all these people would be interested in looking at art! The queue was more than a few hundred metres long and there was a waiting time of 2 plus hours.

It was suggested (and we agreed) to pay for NGA membership (reciprocal rights with NGV) which meant we could 'jump the queue'. It was not an exclusive offer just for us (though many decided to stay in the queue) though it meant that after a half hour process, we were in. None of us were keen to spend 2 hours standing in a queue and it was well worth the additional $20 it cost to join.

The exhibition was stunning. The paintings I had only ever known from art and history books and art classes, were displayed before us, and again I was reminded that art in real life is so much more beautiful (of course) than in the pages of a book. Being able to see these works of art, get up close and see the brush strokes, see the texture and layers of paint, was a treat.

Canberra was buzzing and the weather was beautiful. As the Capital of Australia and it's political home, Canberra is often more known for it's politics, legal fireworks and porn (though maybe not in that order) than for it's art. Hopefully I will be back in the future to see more of the art and it's reputation changes a little!

And to top it all off, there was a magnificent fireworks display on Saturday night which was a perfect send off after a great weekend.

Waiting for the call that didn't come?

Sorry guys. There will be no call from Barbados in the near future at least...

I know, you must be as disappointed as I am!

Stay tuned, there is another big draw coming up on Saturday!
And I have the winning ticket...
I am sure of it!

Will you accept a collect call from Barbados?

Tonight there is a $20,000.000 lottery draw.
And I have the winning ticket.
I am sure of it.
And next week, you may well be getting a call...
From here ...
though of course, I won't have to call collect now will I?

Wish me luck!

(The pic is not actually Barbados, as I haven't been there yet, it's another photo from my travels, this time from Egypt.)

Love Letters...

Because I love all things type
& because I happened to be in Ikea early on Saturday
& because they didn't have what I was after
& because I then had a few unspent dollars
& because I just couldn't resist...
This is my latest Studio purchase.

Love it!

Remembering Renee

My friend Renee died today.

In 2008 when I was grieving the loss of my brother, I was contacted by Renee via my blog and she became a friend from the very beginning. She had stage 4 inflammatory breast cancer and her blog Circling My Head told her story. With almost daily posts, she spoke of her family, her loves, her despair, her joys and her laughter. She shared openly about her condition and her life as she dealt with it's daily challenges.

She offered me hope, understanding and insight, and she offered me her love with an open heart. Although we have never met 'in the flesh' she has been an incredible friend and I will miss her as part of my life. I share the heartbreak of her family and friends. Family and friends who adore her and fellow bloggers who she has also touched.

She reached out to so many people via her posts and replied to every comment that was left on her blog. And there were many many comments. In her battle she has changed many people's lives by welcoming them into hers. We shared long emails and exchanged cards in the post (as I know she did with many others). I don't know where she found the energy, but she was always full of surprises.

During the time I have known her, Renee has had more than her share of grief. She has lost friends from her support group, her father, her nephew died of cancer, and just over a month ago, her dear mother also died from cancer. One of her sisters is also facing a similar battle. Sadly Renee has now lost her battle too. Though she will not be forgotten.

I am so so sad she is gone, though I am relieved the pain she suffered in her final weeks is now over.
Thank you Renee for everything.
Thank you for your light and joy.
All my love to you.
Cinta
xxx

The following words are from Renee's blog, that she posted in January of 2009.

"I must comfort myself with what I have always comforted myself with ‘words.’ Thank you Francis Bacon for these:

Begin
doing what
you want to do now.
We are not living in eternity.
We have only this moment, sparkling
like a star in our hand –
and melting like a
snowflake.

I remind myself that partly cloudy is partly sunny and that here on this earth right now I have been given the opportunity to live with angels. This life here and now is good and the people I am able to share my life with are good. I have to believe that this time here will not be all there is because my soul will never be full of them. My soul will yearn for them always."
Renee
Jan 26th, 2009.

*The picture above is by the beautiful friend of Renee and artist Julie-Ann Bowden of Heavenleigh Art.

And you reckon you had a bad day...

Meet fluffy.
He is a favourite toy of the daughter of my friend K at work.

A few weeks ago, having heard another friend at work was having a bad day, Fluffy was given to her for the day, with the aim to make her day a little brighter. She loves penguins, and Fluffy was greeted with open arms and held close or sat on her desk for much of the day. Fluffy worked a charm and by the end of the day, our workmate was feeling significantly better. Fluffy was returned to K so that her daughter and Fluffy could be reunited for the drive home from child care, with little K none the wiser.

Later as they sat in the back of the car heading home, little K looked at Fluffy with concern and asked: "Why you so sad Fluffy?"

Seriously. She totally seemed to pick up on it.
Poor Fluffy must have had one hell of a day!

Sunshine on a rainy day...

makes my soul,
makes my soul,
trip
trip
trip away...

A perfect view with perfect comapny...

I am meeting a friend here for lunch today. The Dunes in Ocean Grove.

A perfect view with perfect comapny.

All the windows of my heart...

“All the windows of my heart I open to the day.”
JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER

*Photo taken by me during my travels across Africa in 1989. Sorry about the quality, this is a photo of a photo and the reproduction is pretty poor.