The weather has at last turned to summer. The front and back doors are both open, and a fan circulates the air inside my flat. My flat is warm after a few consecutive days of heat and I am enjoying the balmy evening. It is Friday night and the week-end stretches ahead. Three full days... Monday is a public holiday. Australia Day. And so it seems a perfect opportunity to share a list I was emailed some time ago, about being 'straylian'. (That's 'Australian' for anyone who needs an interpretation!)
You know you're Australian if.....
1. You know the meaning of the word 'girt'.
2. You believe that stubbies can be either drunk or worn.
3. You think it's normal to have a Prime Minister called Kevin.
4. You waddle when you walk due to the 53 expired petrol discount vouchers stuffed in your wallet or purse.
5. You've made a bong out of your garden hose rather than use it for something illegal such as watering the garden.
6. You believe it is appropriate to put a rubber in your son's pencil case when he first attends school.
7. When you hear that an American 'roots for his team' you wonder how often and with whom.
8. You understand that the phrase 'a group of women wearing black thongs' refers to footwear and may be less alluring than it sounds.
9. You pronounce Melbourne as 'Mel-bin'.
10. You pronounce Penrith as 'Pen-riff'.
11. You believe the 'L' in the word 'Australia' is optional.
12. You can translate: 'Dazza and Shazza played Acca Dacca on the way to Maccas.'
13. You believe it makes perfect sense for a nation to decorate its highways with large fibreglass bananas, prawns and sheep.
14. You call your best friend 'a total bastard' but someone you really, truly despise is just 'a bit of a bastard'.
15. You think 'Woolloomooloo' is a perfectly reasonable name for a place.
16. You're secretly proud of our killer wildlife.
17. You believe it makes sense for a country to have a $1 coin that's twice as big as its $2 coin.
18. You understand that 'Wagga Wagga' can be abbreviated to 'Wagga' but 'Woy Woy' can't be called 'Woy'.
19. You believe that cooked-down axlegrease makes a good breakfast spread.
20. You believe all famous Kiwis are actually Australian, until they stuff up, at which point they again become Kiwis.
21. You know, whatever the tourist books say, that no one says 'cobber'.
22. You know that certain words must, by law, be shouted out during any rendition of the Angels' song Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again.
23. You believe, as an article of faith, that the confectionary known as the Wagon Wheel has become smaller with every passing year.
24. You still don't get why the 'Labor' in 'Australian Labor Party' is not spelt with a 'u'.
25. You wear ugh boots outside the house.
26. You believe, as an article of faith, that every important discovery in the world was made by an Australian but then sold off to the Yanks for a pittance.
27. You believe that the more you shorten someone's name the more you like them.
28. Whatever your linguistic skills, you find yourself able to order takeaway fluently in every Asian language.
29. You understand that 'excuse me' can sound rude, while 'scuse me' is always polite.
30. You know what it's like to swallow a fly, on occasion via your nose.
31. You understand that 'you' has a plural and that it's 'youse'.
32. You know it's not summer until the steering wheel is too hot to handle.
33. Your biggest family argument over the summer concerned the rules for beach cricket.
34. You shake your head in horror when companies try to market what they call 'Anzac cookies'.
35. You still think of Kylie as 'that girl off Neighbors'.
36. When returning home from overseas, you expect to be brutally strip-searched by Customs - just in case you're trying to sneak in fruit.
37. You believe the phrase 'smart casual' refers to a pair of black tracky-daks, suitably laundered.
38. You understand that all train timetables are works of fiction.
39. When working on a bar, you understand male customers will feel the need to offer an excuse whenever they order low-alcohol beer.
40. You get choked up with emotion by the first verse of the national anthem and then have trouble remembering the second.
41. You find yourself ignorant of nearly all the facts deemed essential in the government's new test for migrants.
42. You will immediately forward this list to other Australians, here and overseas, realising that only they will understand
For months now, I have been talking about taking a holiday. An escape of some sort. I know I have spoken about it before. But I am still here, and my annual leave has barely been touched. 
Did you see the moon this morning?
Whatever you can do, 
1. Window Seat, 2. Beautiful bedding, 3. Frangipani 4, 4. Jump, 5. Sunny smile, 6. Scrabble Dreaming, 7. Full bowl of maltesers, 8. Deserted Beach, 9. Beautiful Shells
I have been thinking a lot lately about what it is that makes us truly happy... It is so so easy to get buried under the daily battles and forget the simple pleasures that bring us joy... the love we have for our family and friends, the tune of a favourite song, the beauty that surrounds us daily, the sounds, the visions and the smells that colour our world.
Today is the anniversary of the birth of Dame Barbara Cartland. Happy Birthday Babs!
Of all the things I miss about London, I miss my friends the most.
from left, Robert, Al, Lucia, Monica and Felipe.
This is my desk at home. It is the place where I do much of my creative work when I'm not at school. There are a few creations in view - a couple complete and many more ready to begin. Each item in the pigeon holes is intended to inspire. From calligraphy inks to juggling balls, mind puzzles to beads and japanese brushes... It's quite a mix. Of course there is jar full of pens and brushes and a number of books, blank paper and photos on my desk close at hand.
1. SignLifeAway, 2. Instruction, 3. Bright, 4. View