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Archive for the ‘Musings’ Category

A Box of Embroidery Cotton

Posted in Musings on June 14, 2016| 37 Comments »

In my teenage years, I read all the Little House on the Prairie books, and I desperately wanted a big box of embroidery cottons in every colour, just like the one Laura had. At the time, I was also an avid cross stitcher.

When I was eighteeen, I mentioned this to my nineteen year old boyfriend. We’d been going out less than a year. He made me this box – held together with thumb tacks, complete with sturdy contact-lined dividers. Then he took me to Grace Bros and we filled it with as many colours of DMC stranded embroidery cotton as we could afford.

Can you see why I married him?

Thirty-two years later, the thumb tacks are finally working their way loose, and the threads have been replenished a few times. I can now buy a fancy plastic storage box with bobbins to wind the cotton onto. And I may well do that.

But this old cardboard box – which speaks of young love and gentle kindness and Pete’s engineering prowess – will be hard to part with. ♥

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Mindfulness, Gratitude and Gentle Times

Posted in Musings on April 26, 2016| 38 Comments »

I’m in a good space at the moment.

The wacko menopausal health issues seem to be in check for now, my men are doing well, and life is gentle.

With both boys now out of school, the rhythm of our household has changed. Our sons are young men now – they manage their own schedules, get themselves to and fro unassisted, and have even taken over their own washing and cleaning.

Big Boy is proving a deft hand in the kitchen; Small Man less so. Our dinner conversations continue to be quirky and interesting, with a constantly changing focus. Every night, as I watch my three men deep in discussion, I give thanks for such a harmonious and loving family. I can’t remember the last time an angry word was exchanged at the dinner table.

This morning, as I started to unstack the dishwasher, I noticed that the sun was rising. So I downed tools and sat outside with my hot drink, basking in the gentle warmth of the autumn light. It was a very soothing way to start the day.

Perhaps it’s a sign of middle age, but lately I’ve been filled with gratitude for the small things, and each day it seems to be something different. This morning, it was the little blue pen I was writing my shopping list with. It was just a 50c biro, but I suddenly felt incredibly fortunate to have a whole drawer of pens to write with. Thirty years ago, my friends Cath and Andrew went around Africa in the back of a converted army truck, carrying pockets full of biros to use as currency – such was the shortage at the time of writing implements in some of the poorer regions.

Often in our first world lives, commodities become so cheap that we cease to value them. I know the faux bone-handled knives in my cutlery drawer aren’t worth much, but I adore them – for their history, and the way they feel in my hand, and the way they spread butter on a piece of toast. I love that we humans use tools, and I’m particularly happy when I find a clever piece of kit that makes my life easier. Like my offset spatula. I’ll stop now before I work my way through the entire utensils drawer.

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Einstein once said…“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”

I haven’t always been good at the latter, but I’ve been practising.

I’ve been watching the sun and marveling at the miracle of light and heat, and listening to my boys and feeling my heart throb at the timbre of their voices. I’m spending time staring at fossils that are hundreds of millions of years old and wondering how it’s possible to be holding a remnant of such ancient life in my hands. I’ve been turning off my devices and engaging in actual conversations with old friends, laughing and crying and sharing hard times as well as happy ones. And I’m trying to focus my attention on the minutiae – on the difference in taste between the peppermint and spearmint that grows in our garden, and the feel of bread dough under my fingers, and the perfect zigzag our resident St Andrews Cross spider weaves into her webs.

Life is good at the moment. Gentle and mindful and wondrous and happy.

Much love to you all. ♥

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A Glorious Weekend

Posted in Food & Friends, Frugal Living, Musings on April 17, 2016| 29 Comments »

Our weekend began with hotdogs and small children.

On Thursday, I received a bulk order of magnificent pasture raised Ajani Pork from Country Meats Direct. This is the first time I’ve bought from Ajani, though I’ve since had a wonderful sms conversation with owner Rose. It’s a joy to find folks who are deeply committed to the welfare of their stock…

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We decided to try the sausages on Friday night. I whipped up a batch of poorly but enthusiastically shaped faux brioche rolls…

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We were joined by Will, young Tom and Not-A-Baby-Anymore Grace. Everyone cheerfully scoffed sausages in rolls smothered with tomato sauce (which, I’m told, counts as a vegetable).

Will was delighted – our Cornish friend has missed his English-style pork bangers…

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Before going to bed that night, I mixed up a four kilo batch of sourdough in my large plastic tub. For those who are interested, the formula was 600g active starter (166% hydration), 500g remilled semolina flour, 1500g bakers flour, 1350g water, 36g fine sea salt…

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The dough was folded twice before I went to bed, and once more when I got up to pee at 2.45am. That’s not an integral part of the process, by the way.

This is what it looked like at 6am on Saturday morning…

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I baked the dough into four loaves and gave away three of them…weekend bread is made for sharing…

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By 9.30am, I was at Eveleigh Markets and overjoyed to have scored a parking spot right outside the front door!

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I came home with an assortment of treasures, including a magnificent pasture raised Burrawong Gaian chook, watercress and olives from the Darling Mills stand, and a mixed bag from the lovely lads at Margin Mushrooms…

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At lunch time, our friends Kevin and Carol popped by to pick up a loaf of sourdough. They hadn’t eaten, so we all sat down to leftover japchae noodles. Spending time with old friends is a weekend bonus!

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That night, Pete turned the chicken, mushrooms and a few of the olives into this sublime, non-traditional coq au vin. A third of a bottle of Ashton Hills 2000 pinot went in (winemaker Stephen George is a genius – what other Aussie pinot is even drinkable let alone sensational at sixteen years old?)…

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On Saturday evening, I made another four kilo batch of sourdough. All mixed by hand. Scrunching everything together in the large tub is incredibly therapeutic…

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The dough which greeted me this morning (Sunday) was even bouncier than the previous one…

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I shaped up and baked four more loaves, experimenting with decorative slashing along the way. The two long loaves went to neighbours…

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I met my beloved mum for coffee after lunch and passed one of the round loaves to her. She’s not a fan of sourdough and I’m working hard to convert her! I took this video to show her why Pete is convinced that our bread is better than the supermarket varieties.

If you squish a slice of white sandwich bread, it compresses to paper thin. Whereas our sourdough will bounce back…(the jungle drums in the background are coming from the dishwasher)…

. . . . .

I was sitting in the kitchen today, marveling at the fact that after nine years, I’m still experimenting with sourdough and enjoying it so much. Linda wrote a bit about this today, and I couldn’t agree with her more – baking bread has never felt like a chore to me. Even when life is hectic, there always seems to be time for sourdough. In fact, at those times, the bread making seems more important than ever, because it brings a sense of rhythm and routine – a panacea for the angst that comes with crazy busy-ness…

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 I hope you’ve all had as much fun this weekend as we have!

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A Rich Life

Posted in Food & Friends, Musings on March 20, 2016| 40 Comments »

We don’t live extravagant lives.

We haven’t been overseas in over a decade, our “new” car is now nine years old, and even at 51, I still put money away each month to meet our quarterly rates and utilities.

But our lives are rich – filled with glorious moments in time, wonderful friends and family, and so much love and joy that sometimes it feels like my heart will burst.

. . . . .

A Creative Life…

It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but for me, the process of creating something new feeds my soul. Be it a loaf of sourdough, or a crystal bracelet, or a hand-sewn garment – the act of transforming component parts into a new whole is one of the most satisfying things I can do. Last week, Mum asked me to make crystal angels for her friends at church, and it was like she’d given me a gift…

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. . . . .

A Collector’s Life…

I’ve always been a collector.

It’s hard to predict what will grab my fancy, but when something does, it will absorb my brain and lead to hours of research and study. Over the years I’ve learnt to keep my collecting habits to a manageable level – my rocks and fossils, for example, never exceed a predetermined price ceiling. This actually makes the whole process a lot more fun – there is a challenge in finding treasures for a reasonable price!

This little uncut opal set me back just $20. I absolutely adore it – to me, it looks like a river running between a sheer cliff face and a sandy bank…

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. . . . .

A Companionable Life… 

We have some of the best friends in the whole world. And the most wonderful neighbours ever. If my life was a computer game, they would be my powerups! And whilst I’ve made fabulous friendships online, there is something extra special about spending time with people whom I’ve known since I was a teenager, breathing the same air together, and laughing too loudly in public places. I never, ever take it for granted, because I know what an enormous gift it is.

A rare selfie that I was happy with, taken just moments before heading out to dinner with Kevin and Carol. Wearing my new ammonite pendant! Did I look excited? Because I really was…

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. . . . .

A Foodie’s Life…

You know, there’s probably a dozen times a week when I wish I was thinner. But that’s hard to do, because the food we get to eat is incredibly delicious and often great fun to make. For my birthday, Mum took us out for my favourite Chinese dish – mud crab in XO sauce with vermicelli noodles…

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A few days before that, she’d arrived with raw marinara (seafood) mix, which we cooked into a risotto with chorizo, capsicum and onion…

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And I baked a giant chocolate slab cake in my new sheet pan – Small Man is in the photo for size reference. I texted the neighbours and said “In the US, sheet cakes are traditionally shared with your community, so if any of you would like a piece, please pop over with a plate!” And they did!

There was so much cake that it also fed my boys, Monkey Girl, my cousins Dilys and Brian, and Mum’s church congregation…

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. . . . .

A Family Life…

Pete, Big Boy, Small Man. My mum, my sister’s family, my cousins. Pete’s siblings and relatives. Our immediate family is incredibly close and our extended family is surprisingly harmonious. It’s a great blessing!

I know I sound like a broken record, but it’s hard to describe how much joy our sons give us. They’re gentle and beautiful and loving, and they continue to be a daily part of our lives, bringing constant laughter with their teasing and banter.

They’re hopeless at remembering my birthday, which I find hilarious. But as Pete pointed out, they treat me as if every day is my birthday. Big Boy took me out for a coffee yesterday and frankly, it was the best gift I could have asked for…

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. . . . .

A Sydneysider’s Life…

Every city has wonderful points and for Sydney, the view of the Harbour is surely one of best. Even on murky overcast days, it’s a stunning vista. I took this photo from Circular Quay train station – one of the prettiest public transport stops in the world…

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The Opera House sits in the middle of the Harbour like a white crown…

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The 20th Biennale of Sydney has started (18th March – 5th June 2016) and I popped into the MCA on the first day to view the new exhibits. It’s bonkers that all this amazing art can be viewed for free!

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The piece below is The Four Seasons by Israeli artist Noa Eshkol. I spoke to the young MCA attendant manning the exhibition, and he told me this fascinating backstory.

Noa was a former dancer who refused to call her work “art”. When a member of her troop was conscripted during WWII, she disbanded her team and began creating these sewn pieces from donated scrap fabric. Each piece was kept in the shape it came in, as Noa refused to use scissors, and was carefully positioned on a large backing sheet before being stitched in place by hand. If you’re a sewer, you might recognise the pattern pieces (l think you’d like this, Kim!)…

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Finally, a short video of this simply constructed but highly effective artwork, made from mylar (the stuff they use in emergency blankets and wine casks). The movement and sound is produced by a standing fan, which turns on and off intermittently…

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Wishing you all a rich, full, joyous week! ♥

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Birthday Pendants

Posted in Cool Things, Food & Friends, Musings on March 15, 2016| 59 Comments »

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It’s hard to believe that it’s been a year since the Festival of Fifty!

So much has happened in the intervening 12 months and if I’m honest, I’d have to say it hasn’t been the easiest year of my life. But that’s what living is about, right? It’s hard to appreciate how gloriously good life is most of the time, if there aren’t a few bumpy bits along the way.

One of the highlights over the past year has been my growing fossil collection, as I steadily raid (as time and cashflow permit) the amazing vaults of my mate Tom at the Living Fossil Gallery. I recently purchased a small selection of 110 million year old ammonite halves. They’re relatively inexpensive, with each pair costing between $20 – $30 depending on size…

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Last year I also discovered a passion for steampunk jewellery! It’s funny how our tastes evolve and change with age. I was surprised by how instantaneous the attraction was – I was casually strolling past the Time Flies Designs stall at Paddington Markets and came to a dead halt, leaving half an hour later with this exquisite pendant for Pete’s birthday. It’s meticulously crafted from two upcycled 1886 pocket watches…

. . . . .

A few weeks ago, I had the brilliant idea (even if I do say so myself) of adding steampunk elements to my ammonites. To me, the swirl and shape of the fossils offered a perfect compliment to the curvy watch mechanisms of old.

I chose three ammonite halves and commissioned Juan and Olivia of Times Flies Designs to create bespoke pendants for me. They’d never made anything like this before, so it was quite a challenge for them, both in terms of design and execution. I asked for three different looks, but was happy to leave the actual layout to them. Unlike other designers, Juan doesn’t just glue his parts on with epoxy resin – each piece is carefully drilled and screwed into place.

And oh, how they excelled themselves! When I picked the pendants up last weekend, I nearly wept with joy at how gorgeous they were. Pete decided to make them his birthday gift to me, and I haven’t been able to stop staring at them. Wherever possible, Juan will add movement to his creations, so each of my three pieces have cogs that turn and wheels that spin.

This Madagascan Lytoceras ammonite (formed during the Cretaceous period) is enhanced with parts from a 1904 Elgin pocket watch. The wee flower wheel at the base spins, and the needle moves from left to right, shifting the attached gears accordingly. It tickles my fancy that the 110 million year old fossil has a 110 year old watch part attached to it…

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It’s hard to capture in a photo, but the stones have a polished reflective shine to them (you can see a glimpse of it in the first pic)…

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This particular ammonite is also partially translucent…

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. . . . .

Another Lytoceras, this one assembled under Olivia’s careful designer’s eye. The large silver piece holds in place a spinning brass balance wheel at the centre of the stone…

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Big Boy and Pete love this one – the great affinity between the natural colour and shape of the fossil and Olivia’s design appeals to their engineering sensibilities…

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Finally, possibly my favourite piece (although it’s very hard to choose), this Cleoniceras ammonite is a perfect match for the curvaceous vintage Longines mechanism that Juan chose. The large gear spins, as does the Elgin balance wheel in the centre. Each pendant hangs on a long stainless steel chain…

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All the engravings are original to the pocket watches and refer to technical specifications such as the number of jewels used and lines of movement. So different to modern day watches which are basically just a small computer and a battery!

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. . . . .

As you can probably tell, I’m more than a little excited about these! It’s the first time in my life that I’ve ever commissioned jewellery (we even bought off the shelf engagement and wedding rings). Bring on 51, I’m ready!

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A big thank you to our friends Juan and Olivia of Times Flies Designs (Paddington Markets) who went way beyond what I expected to create these masterpieces! And to Tom of The Living Fossil Gallery (Mosman and the Rocks Markets) for always having the most brilliant treasures available at such reasonable prices! x

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