Magical Melbourne morning...

What a great way to start the day. This is the view on my walk to work.

Have a good day everyone, wherever it is you are.

x

Laughing until you pee...

This coming weekend I am catching up with one of my oldest friends. Actually, apart from family, my oldest. I should be clear here - it is neither her nor I who is 'oldest' but our friendship!

What can I say... Lou never fails to bring a smile to my face. 

As kids, she and I used to laugh so hard together we'd wet our pants... when I pushed a bublegum ice-cream into her face in the main street (when I was old enough to know not to), all she could do was laugh... she's also the one who walked down the street in a t-shirt and knickers at the age of about 9, when she had forgotten to put on her shorts before leaving home, and yes, you guessed it, she laughed! We lived hours apart, but her family had a holiday house in my beachside town and from the day she arrived at the beginning of each summer holiday, to the day she left late in January, we were inseparable.

She has a great laugh and is a lifelong friend. We spent long stretches apart when I went traveling, and with busy lives now (she has two gorgeous grown up daughters and a new grandson!!!) it's not always easy to organise much time together, but whenever we do it's like we have not been parted at all. Ah yes, she's one of those friends. The last time I spent the weekend with her and her partner Trev, we went to a local antique/junk shop to have a browse. When I picked up a plastic snoopy and the head came off in my hands, her laughter shook the rafters! Actually we were both hysterical, but I was trying to put his head back on at the time, so I was trying to be discreet!

Lou is also an amazing cook and she has started a project this year to cook a different evening meal every day for twelve entire months! Yes, all 365 days! (less any meals out of course)

As if that wasn't crazy enough, she has also started a blog to chart her year and share with family and friends her daily menu and some recipes... She is also asking for inspiration. So pop on over and take a look. But be warned, it will get your mouth watering! 

Oh I am looking forward to the weekend. I think rack of lamb might be on the menu - a special treat for me! Thankfully I have great taste in friends! And hopefully we both have better bladder control than when we were 6, because there are sure to be a lot of laughs!

xxx

The above photo is of us with my Mum on the beach at Point Lonsdale, sometime in the 70's. I am on the left, Lou's sister Jodie is behind me, that's my groovy Mum in the middle, and Lou's the cutie with the wide grin and zinc creamed nose on the right! Such happy sun-shiny memories.

The magical connections of blogging...

Monday, as you know, I updated my blog for the first time in aaaaages. Since then, I've been so excited to have had a few comments from some ole blogging friends, and it means so much. So thank you. I will be dropping by more often to say hi!

Then on Monday night in the midst of my renewed blogging glow, I had the pleasure of catching up with Luhlahh who was visiting Victoria over her Northern Territory school holidays! What a treat, and fun to catch up on all the news, though it occurred to me later, that I had managed to forget a couple of things. I'll admit to getting a little distracted by talk of her school kids, art and journalling, then books and a display back at the car where she revealed all her extraordinary book buys from her time in the city over the weekend.

WOW! It's so easy to get excited about books full of art, creativity and possibility. No wonder she couldn't resist! Oh it would have been nice to sit around for a few hours, beside an open fire browsing in more detail whilst sharing a mug of hot chocolate, but alas she was on her way back to the coast and all of a sudden the night was over. Safe travels home Lou, it was lovely to see you.

Also, I just want to send out my thoughts to another blogging friend Lesley, who lives in Colorado Springs in Colorado which has been devastated by forest fires over the last few weeks. Hundreds of houses lost and even worse, the tragic loss of lives. Such unbelievable loss, and then, amongst all the sadness there are also stories of hope and she shares one here. It made me smile, and I hope it does you too. Take care Lesley, big love and hugs to you.

xx

The image above is an instagram pic of cookie cutters I have framed in my kitchen. When I created it, shuffling the letters until they fitted together, the word joy was sitting right in the middle!

Romantics Anonymous...

Another movie you really must try and track down.
Quirky. Fun. Touching.
French.
I loved it.

Ch ch ch ch changes...

It's been two entire months now since I last posted, the longest break since I started blogging in Feb 2007. And I've been pondering on this a lot lately. Wondering as to why I seem to have abandoned it so absolutely. Seemingly without a backwards glance.

If you are a regular reader and have stumbled upon this post, I imagine that's what it must look like. But truth is, I have been missing blogging, and certainly missing all my blogging buddies. But I've been struggling... though I'm not really sure why.

Yes, I have been studying, yes, I have been busy, and yes, I have changed jobs, but none of these things has ever stopped me in the past. Often these are the things I have shared here. The very things that have kept me blogging.

And whilst the days and weeks have passed, three things have reminded me recently why my blog means so much to me and it really is time I get my blogging back on track.

Firstly, friends have been asking if I'm ok and what's going on, my parents who are regular readers have both commented (hinted) that I need an update post.

Secondly, I had a friend contact me recently to ask where my blog had gone!!! I thought she meant it had disappeared all together and my stomach lurched. There was genuine relief when it came up on the screen and I saw my one little acorn blog was still there. if it was gone, I really would have been devastated.

And then, over this weekend I got a comment on my latest post (way back on the first of May) from a long time blogging friend just checking in, and flagged the fact I had been MIA for such a long time!!!

Thank you Little Red Hen for hanging on in there, and for your check in!

So. Here I am. I'm back.

Hi.
Remember me?
Busy, yes, new job, yes, still studying, yes. But I am back, because my blog (and yours) is something I'm not about to abandon.

How are you?