Sights of the City. Photos by Emma.

Words

I've been neglecting wishthimble lately. Every time I think about posting, I can't think of any words to write and I think I know why.
Words are my job and now that I'm studying part time...more words are needed for assignments and "discussions".
Words, words, words - I think I might be running out of them. I save my good words for work and what's left over goes towards study and the poor old blog gets all the tired, dusty, bruised words.
Last night I dreamt I blogged the most amazing post: funny, timely, memorable and then like an anchor being pulled from the surface, all the words slowly disappeared and suddenly I was wide awake.
I'm going out today to find more words. The city is buzzing with people and arts and athletes (Commonwealth Games) and the river is full of giant fish and at night lights glow from every high point. Think I'll take a walk.

House of Blythe

I'll be honest. I did feel slightly silly sewing tiny clothes for Blythe...until I found out how much it costs to buy them. In the end I quite enjoyed the detailed work. The patterns are from here: a wonderful website dedicated to Blythe. Not mad on hems, but another clever person suggested using No Fray - HELLO! Loving that stuff. Might try the Party Dress next.

Also got some reading done. Enjoying is not the right word...but I'm totally drawn in by Relative Stranger:A Sister's Story by Mary Loudon.

They Drink Horses, Don't They?

Thought I'd take a picture of lovely old Sherrie so popped my glass of wine on the post...obviously she's a horse with impeccable taste...she almost beat me to it, but I managed to grab the glass back just in time. Can you see how determined she looks! Nothing worse than a drunk horse.

Hola!

Tonight Em and I are having dinner with our mate Tony. About six years ago, Em and I were attempting to walk 750kms from St Jean Pied du Port in France to Santiago in Spain - The Camino. It was (my) crazy idea...and I'm still not sure why I wanted to try and do it, given I was a very unfit (still am) smoker (I quit) who had never camped for than two days and had no experience with long distance trekking. However, there is a part of me that likes to have a go at things and see what happens.

In the end, we walked 250ks in three weeks, but ran out of time. It was an amazing trip, even though there were moments of awful frustration. Em could have easily done the whole thing on foot and was incredibly understanding when I transformed into Patsy from Ab Fab, insisting that just one more cigarette and short black will definitely help me climb the next &*$)@_ mountain. What the? Oh. Did I mention that when things got bad I caught a taxi? I've never lived it down...

Accommodation consisted of basic cabins (refugios) specifically to accommodate pilgrims (walkers). Em and I had trudged into a very small town; tired and footsore. We were sitting outside the refugio having a "why didn't we just go to Disney Land?" moment when this guy wandered up for a chat. We all clicked. He was from Brisbane and within in minutes we'd found a pub and started sharing stories over cold, Spanish beer. Over the following days he slowed his pace considerably to walk with us...which led to drinking too much red wine in Pamplona and having a blast.

We've kept in touch with Tony ever since, though he's been travelling around for ages. Tonight we're having dinner at one of the best Spanish places in town (I think)...Movida. Bring on the Sangria!

Sewing Up A Storm

These two are a bit like Frankenstein...created on the machine while bolts of lightening flashed. Storm blew in very quickly - sky went from light blue to dark navy in minutes. I wasn't sure if it was dangerous to sew during a thunder storm...or is it just the phone?

Well, I survived...part of me was hoping I'd get to yell "THEY'RE ALIVE!!!!".

Hey Sarah...remember the lovely fabric you sent me? Looks good on Ducky.x

A Fly On The Wall: Sylvia Part II

Saw Edge. Mixed feelings. I think Angelica Torn did a great job, vocally and physically embodying Sylvia Plath but the script was a bit hysterical and over the top.

It was very tough on Ted Hughes - a far from perfect individual...but the play was heavy handed in its portrayal of him. They both treated each other badly and yes, Hughes had an affair, but I don't believe he killed Plath. I think she was on that trajectory for a number of years. I guess I was looking for more balance, more poetry.

In the last week of Plath's life, she had a terrible cold so when Angelica came on stage, bleary eyed, puffy and sniffling, I thought wow, she's really getting into this role...turns out she had a bad cold. Oops.

She also had to put up with two very large blow flies circling the stage. Every now and then, one would land on her arm or head. She read her lines flawlessly while waving her arm around or wildly batting at the fly! I was in the front row and it became a bit distracting...

But in the end, I'm glad I saw it. I know when some people hear her name they think, yawn...crazy woman who put her head in the oven...but there's so much more to her as a poet, woman, mother, wife and lover.
There are reasons why history refuses to let her go.

Speaking of Baking

... reminds me of Sylvia Plath, who often baked up a storm for two reasons: to conquer writers' block and to avoid writing.

I first read her poems in Year 12 and couldn't get enough. There's something about those adolescent stretches of time that makes you an emotional conductor. I remember feeling so much, all the time. Wasn't always fun, but we've all been there. Over the years I've returned to her poetry/journals/fiction a lot. Now I've got just about every book on or about Sylvia Plath and late husband, Ted Hughes (another remarkable poet). I just find them endlessly interesting.

Today I'm taking myself off to see Edge - a one woman play about Plath starring Angelica Torn at the Athenaeum in town. It's based on the last poem she wrote and the play (written by one of her biographers, Paul Alexander) focuses on the last day of her life.

A sad end to a brilliant life. She was only 30 years old when she died and suddenly she bacame fixed, like a rare butterfly - pinned. She's now more mythology than any real memory. I know she has a reputation for being a bit of a downer...but I think a lot of her poems crackle with life and intensity.

Edge
The woman is perfected
Her dead

Body wears the smile of accomplishment,
The illusion of a Greek necessity

Flows in the scrolls of her toga,
Her bare

Feet seem to be saying:
We have come so far, it is over.

Each dead child coiled, a white serpent,
One at each little

Pitcher of milk, now empty
She has folded

Them back into her body as petals
Of a rose close when the garden

Stiffens and odors bleed
From the sweet, deep throats of the night flower.

The moon has nothing to be sad about,
Staring from her hood of bone.

She is used to this sort of thing.
Her blacks crackle and drag.

-Sylvia Plath

Baking Day - Apple Cakes.

Nothing like doing some baking on a Saturday afternoon. Hmmm. Love the smell of warm apples.

CD GONE. Thanks.

Free Audio Book Friday

The Very Hungry Caterpillar on cd read by Eic Carle is looking for a home. He's got such a rich, lovely voice. I adore the way he says TOOSday. So cute.

1. Be the first to post I WANT THIS CD
2. Email me a postal address to spindle2@tpg.com.au
3. I'll post free to you...UK/US/ASIA/AFRICA/EUROPE etc.

Hope everyone has a delightful weekend. xxx

Love, Love, Love.

Sonnet CXVI
by William Shakespeare

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love,
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove.
Oh, no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests.. and is never shaken.
It is the star to every wandering bark
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love is not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come.
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out.. even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.

Wonderful Lino Cuts

Here are two lino cuts from the wonderfully talented, Littlest Flower. They looked great unframed but I'm really pleased with how they look now. Thanks again, Jackie.

PostCardSwap

I really enjoyed participating in My Little Mochi's Post Card Swap. Here are the lovely cards that arrived from all over the world - near and far. So inventive.

Thank You Dana...

for this amazing swap! Dana did an outstanding job on this crafty basket. I love it. Inside were lots of sewing notions: thread, fabric and even a mini-scrapbook. Dana also sent over some new and vintage craft magazines which are full of great ideas. Thanks again, Dana.

Corners

SOUL MAMMA started Corners Of My Home a few weeks ago. I've really enjoyed taking a peek inside the lives of crafty bloggers. Just as I suspected, their talents extend way beyond needle and thread. Here's a few dusty corners of my own.

I've Gone And Done It.

Nothing can save me now...let me introduce you to Blythe. She arrived this morning...all the way from Japan via the US and finally to Melbourne. Blythe seems to illicit two reactions. One is Oh My God What Is That Freakish Thing?...the other is Oh, She's Beautiful. I think she's strange but lovely. I'll post pics soon. My Blythe ispiration was from here! Check it out: Oh Sew Pretty

Comings and Goings

Living in the country has been wonderful (most of the time), but lately I've been missing a few bright lights. Even with daylight savings, the long distance drive to work and back is starting to wear a little thin, the train trips, too. So discussions have been had about moving back to town - but no sooner do we start talking about moving, when I start getting maudlin about leaving all the things that make living out of town so good.

Blue and Green:
I'm sure the fat wedges of pale blue sky and the smoky greens of the gum trees have a positive influence on me, even if I dont' always notice it.

The Storms:
Some days the sky turns almost inky with storms. They rush in like stampeding cattle and leave the garden strewn with sodden branches and leaves. Sometimes it's as if these storms arrive in order to sweep away dead air, leaving something new its wake.

People:
It's true. I always thought it was a bit of a myth, but people are friendlier in the country. We get called "the girls" by the butcher. He's a sweetie.

The Birds:
Even the Kookaburra's who make me feel paranoid because I really do feel like they're laughing at me! The magpies, the cockies, the tiny wrens, galahs, rosella's and the odd owl.

Friends:
Long lunches on the verandah. Gin and tonic on a hot day, music playing, friends laughing, kids feeding the horse, playing under the hose...the smell of a bbq on a Sunday afternoon. The glow of lamps against the sky.

The Garden:
The seasons seem so distinct in the country. The garden dies off, blooms again, sleeps, wakes up.

The Clouds:
Like looking at a giant map of Iceland. I never really noticed clouds before - now I can spend ages looking at them glide.

The Stars:
Amazing and terrifying - prompting lots of existential questions that I have no answers for.

Whip It Up

New craft blog launching tomorrow - see Whip Up - organised by Red Current. Looks exciting. Weekly columns and news about the outer-reaches of the crafting world by a range of people including: Loobylu, Molly Chicken, Bird In The Hand, Craftapalooza and more.

Cookie Monster

Clever Craftapalooza has started a Cookie flickr group. Here's a few of mine. I've got about 20 but find them hard to resist. Such simple lines but my imagination is always quick to fill in the blanks. However, that Dragonfly is a kicker...I don't think I've ever successfully lifted it off the baking tray without ripping its wings off. Cooking can be cruel!

Post Card Swap

Finished my cards for the Post Card Swap organised by My Little Mochi. So much fun. I really had a great time cutting, sticking and sewing. I kept it pretty simple but each card is different - but all black, red and white. To print the picture of the dog I photocopied an image from an old book, then cut it out, held it face down on the card and rubbed turpentine on it - peeled the paper back you the image appears on the card. I probably got high doing it! Next time I'm going to wait until it's not 41 degrees in the shade. Thanks again for organising it Myra.

Storm Friday

The train was so slow thing morning, stopping for 20 minutes between platforms. Everyone look so tired, but because it's a country train, we get lovely comfy seats, so everyone just took a nap.

Such a clear and sunny morning, you could see cloud shadows flickering over the paddocks, which have turned from green to sandy yellow.

Since I got my ipod, I haven't been reading on the train, but think I'll start again next week. My reading tends to be governed by the seasons so every summer I usually re-read books like To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I never get tired of that book. In winter it's Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte and who can resist Jane Eyre by Charlotte, or "the whey faced prig" as her brother called her - on a rainy day?

This year I'd like to read a few books that I've always meant to read but never have: this and Voss by Patrick White...and The Turning by Tim Winton.

Anyone else have a book or two they've always wanted to read but haven't?

Apparently a storm is on the way. I love Storm Friday. Have a good weekend.

My Sister's Garden

On Sunday Em and I caught up with two of my sisters, their lovely husbands and four of my nieces and nephews. Beautiful weather, wonderful lunch and cute little Pixie belongs to my niece.

Three Little Girls - All In A Row

Here are the latest three: all the same pattern, but with each one, I tried not to repeat the same mistakes. I'm afraid dolly No. 3 could do with a neckbrace - knitted, of course - but they were fun to make.

Here Goes

I've been tagged by the lovely Connie at MumboJumbo, so here are my answers.

Four Jobs I've Had In My Life:
Receptionist at an Ear, Nose and Throat Clinic
Avon Lady (I was hopeless).
Editorial Assistant, newspaper.
Journalist

Four Places I've Lived.
Broadmeadows (Melb)
Kensington, Kensington,
Broadford

Four TV Shows I Love
Buffy (sob)
Survivor (usually)
Medium
Cutting Edge

Four Places I've Been On Vacation
Vietnam
China
Paris
New York

Four Websites I visit daily
Salon
The Age
Amazon
Readings

Four Fav Foods
A great curry in winter.
Grilled prawns in summer.
Bombay Gin and Tonic (liquid food).
Poached eggs on toast.


Four Places I'd Rather Be Right Now
Tokyo
Finland
Belgium
New Zealand

Thanks Connie!

Psyched About The Post Card Swap!

More confidence than cake.

Finally some craft! These are some of the things I made on my week off. Not entirely happy with them but the patterns are wonderful. I get so excited when I make things that I tend to speed everything up. I really need to just slow it down and take my time. I think I like the doll the best. What a difference a sewing machine makes? All of them are from this fantastic book first spotted over at MOLLY CHICKEN





My little bubble burst. Yes. I knew it would happen. I got a tad over confident with my recent driving skills and made a doozie of a mistake. Boring details but essentially, I slowed down when I should have sped up and ended up having to veer off the road and breath heavily into a brown paper bag. The two cars behind me were not impressed and HONKED and HONKED as they drove past. I didn't dare make eye contact, but I have a feeling veins would have been throbbing and fists raised. Emma took over controls, but I did drive later on in the day - when I was feeling less feeble and miserable!


The latest Martha Stewart Living has a Year of Cakes - one spectacular cake each month. It made me realised that I've never, ever actually made a cake from scratch. Muffins, biscuits, slices, scones, bread etc but never a cake. So that's what I plan to do this year - bake a fab cake from scratch. As a kid I remember being in awe of Maryanne (on Gilligan's Island) when she managed to produce an amazing coconut cream pie...why does reality always have to ruin things?

Only Monday and already I'm feeling inspired thanks to Loobylu's post about The Artist's Way. I'm going to dig it out again and have another look at it. Might help me get started on writing more poetry. Speaking of which:

The White Bats

Where are the white bats?
My life frightened me again tonight.

Does your shadow love you best?
Shadows tell me so many true stories.

What does a wish look like?
Mixing twilight with the perfume of living things.

Have you ever had an illicit day?
The night is subdivided by our screams.

What is the poet carrying?
Wine and vinegar.

What do I think I'm salvaging from reality?
I say to my roof, please let some rain in.

What is the name of this?
The shape of the storm over my soul.

from beautiful, unfinished by MTC Cronin.

Left, Left, Left Right Left.

On Christmas day I had a chance to catch up with some of my lovely nieces and nephews. Elizabeth (12) was showing me a book she'd made in class celebrating her six years of primary school...because this year she'll start her first year of High School.

It was a lovely collection of school-work and photographs and stuck on one page was a gold and gleaming School Captain badge.

I was in awe.

Even at my advanced age (late 30s) I felt suddenly so proud and envious! It was crazy...I couldn't take my eyes off it! The closest I ever got to any kind of school excellence were two of the most (be honest) lame areas ever. One was a Blue Ribbon...in (ahem)... marching and the other was being made (ahem,ahem)...Plant Monitor - and even then, the plants died.

Still...as fate would have it, this Plant Monitor ended up with a former School Sports Captain. Who knew?

Speaking of my daggy past (!). The other night at dinner some friends and I started talking about bad 80s fashion. We started swapping our Worst Ever 80s Fashion Faux pas. Believe it or not, I won hands down with an outfit I wore one day TO WORK:

Purple shirt (collar up with should pads) with a lovely green, knee length skirt with a woollen vest complete with 3-D sheep and hill applique with patent leather pointy shoes.

Now where did I put those shoe bows?

BrmmBrmm

Yesterday I had a double driving lesson on my first highway! I always imagined that there would be a huge difference between driving at 40k and 110k...but I was really surprised at how easy it was to speed. I can't say I enjoyed it, but I wasn't totally freaked either, so that's a good thing. I did have a bit of a Duel moment as a massive semi trailer rushed up behind me, but then it just sped past. My instructor is so lovely and calm, which really helps. I also got a chance to tackle a round-about and felt like a kid trapped in a revolving door. I get some kind of devilish pleasure from watching pedestrians change their mind about stepping off the curb. They take one step, notice the big LEARNER sign and quickly retreat. Haaaa.

The rest of the day was spent playing Tomb Raider (what am I? Sixteen?) and sewing a doll. This year seems to be all about learning to drive something: car, sewing machine. I'm not big on resolutions but this year I do have a few things I want to start building into my life:

1. make better food choices - "gosh, I feel like a nice piece of tofu..."
2. drive - "brake, brake, BRAKE"
3. be a little less sarcastic - "as if"
4. sew straight and smoothly and avoid "crazy stitching".
5. read more poetry, write more poetry.
6. talk less about myself - "back to me".
7. send birthday cards/gifts on time - "sorry I'm late"
8. use what I have
9. read my tarot cards more often
10. stop referring to my outstanding, fantastic partner of 13 years as "bear two". Her name is Emma.

Dear TiffKnit

Dear TiffKnit...you won the book so please email me an address to spindle2@tpg.com.au and I'll post it asap. Thanks.

2006: A Blog Odyessey

Well Christmas has come and gone. I'd like to think I was "there" for most of it but I admit, the actual day is so crazy, I can get a little light headed. We drove from here to lunch with Bear Two's wonderful family on the coast - about 135ks away...then doubled back to have dinner with my family...then drove back here - got home around midnight. Both our families go all out! It was great to see everyone over hills of ham and pudding...lots of laughs.

Boxing Day will forever be known as THE DAY MY NEW IPOD DROVE ME MAD!!! How could such a tiny object create such rage? Won't go into all the dull techy details but I managed (with the help of some poor guy called Garry on the phone from Melbourne) to work it out and now, of course, I love it. Thanks Bear2!!!

The rest of our holiday has been about taking it easy. Today we went to Bendigo to see the Cecil Beaton portrait exhib. Loved it - all those creamy textures - so theatrical and rich.

The heat has been crazy. Yesterday was 42 and the nights have been a bit hellish. Today the cool change arrived, helping contain a massive fire near Stawell. Being a city girl, bushfires have never seriously been on my radar but they are up here. It was so hot yesterday that even the birds stopped singing...and when the breeze did pick up (that Northerly burst) the leaves didn't move so much as rasp. But now the rain is here and every door and window is open. Bliss.

I hope everyone had a wonderful New Year. We had dinner at a local winery among the vines.

x