damn it's hot!

and to think not so long ago i was complaining summer hadn't arrived... that'll teach me.

anyway, it's julie's birthday....woohoo!!

sunday cycling

it was amazingly hot this afternoon, but the frocked ladies gathered to ride their beautiful bicycles from fitzroy to brunswick for some pimms and croquet.











i met some lovely ladies and hope to see them again on the bike trails around melbourne.

photos were sourced mostly from jonathan white, though i borrowed one from jen makin as well.

evening walk

if i went out a little earlier the light would last just that little bit longer.

a morning cycle

love this poet

listen; there's a hell of a good universe next door: let's go!
- ee cummings -

sunglasses at night

or another 3d film. tangled was a fantastic adventure. i now have 4 sets of 3d glasses though. when 3d eventually hits television full time, i'm all set for a party. ;)

taking a walk down a path

time to find another road methinks.

happy australia day.

just thinking...

the best kind of hugs are those that you give yourself entirely over to. you know the kind, the ones kids give (big or little kids). the ones when there's not just that lean in and pat, and there's not that pretence of a kiss on the cheek. they're there for the hug. arms stretched all round you as far as they'll go, breathe in and then a ginormous squeeze. it doesn't have to be a bone breaking clamp of a hug but you are both there in that embrace for however long. it's you and that other and the moment. those hugs are the best.

what a yolk!

i knew the shot glasses would get used some day.

so bad

but not really. i enjoyed robogeisha. caught up with my crew for another round of so bad it's good movie night. i love those guys. and movies of all kind.

suit up!

walked into town and here are some sights along the way.







darkness came with the night and the stars were out as i found myself at a glorious party. a soire for jill's birthday. we were instructed to wear a suit of brown, black, grey or white so jill could shine. and she did in a glorious purple dress. cocktails and lycra, a magic show and dancing. a fabulous party. i didn't take any photos so i hope to snaffle some in the future when they get put up on facebook.

me & miller street

one year anniversary today.

so i took myself out for dinner and dancing (well, me and a few friends).

who's birthday is it??

well it's marija's. yyyyahhhhh.... but i get home from work and there's three packages for me. one i knew about, one i'd forgotten about and the other a complete surprise. so thanks to julie and vince for my retro xmas trinket & wookie christmas dvd (yah), thank to me for buying a cookie press (i'm sure you'll see the results at some stage) and then many thanks to mum for my bali treats. care packages rock!!

and again, since it's marija's birthday - yyyyahhhhh! happy birthday girlie.

gail's in town

so to celebrate a bunch of us met at the meccah bar on docklands. so good to see that girl again. and the food was pretty fantastic as well.

a friday night on the couch

video zone in carlton ROCKS. has the best selection i've seen around town. of course it can't compare to planet video, but still pretty good. ;)

a northcote play date with friends

first of all it was jumping puddles between the car and other places. i had arrived early to northcote, hoping to secure tickets before the rush but no, i was denied and was then forced to spend time in a bookstore. i know. it was a scary place to be. and i was made to buy not one, but two books before i was allowed to leave. it was hell.

then into a world of strangeness and disco beans





yes, this was the restaurant i met jenn, chris and jamie at. a japanese cafe/gallery/bar/slash. just this side of kooky with great tasting food and milk crates to sit on. check it out if you can, dare.

the northcote social club was next for vulgargrad and orkestra del sol. what a lot of jumping fun. the orkestra are up in sydney for the arts festival - see them if you can. brilliant entertainment. hell, there was even a sousaphone (that big tuba-like thing) and a bike horn. i wouldn't lie to you.



oh and a guest singer, mikaelangelo who kinda creeped me out initially but then belted out delilah, so all was forgiven. mostly.

***
hbn

two more dresses to fill the wardrobe

look what i made, mum. ;) and i like both of these but my favourite is the brown one. it has a boned bodice even. the dress in the white is a light seersucker, nice and cool but not the right fabric for this style of dress. but i LOVE the pockets. this will remain a lazy house dress.

so all told these holidays i've sewn myself three skirts, two dresses and one top. go me. imagine what lovely would behold if i had another two weeks off...?

day two, three and four.... of roadtrip

day 2: breakfast at the banjo before taking a walk along lake jindabyne.



the seat below is part of a local government initiative called "park your arts". gotta love it.


then to quote willy nelson we were "on the road again..." driving through Berridale, Middlingbank, Adaminaby, Yarrangobilly, Talbingo, Blowering, lunch at Tumut, Gocup and Minjary before we hit the blandness that is the Hume Hwy and onto Canberra. (as i re-read that last sentence it reads as though we had a progressive lunch across three towns - but no, just one. but that does give me ideas...dangerous ideas of gluttony).

















as you can see i was enamoured with the sky this day.

the nation's capital once more. ;) caught up with catherine for afternoon tea in Kingston.




the road calleth once more. it was straight through to sydney.



we got into the city late which was a good thing since i had to navigate through the sydney cbd. collapsed into bed. zzz....

day 3 has been named through sydney i go a-wandering. caught the bus down to the beach, intending on walking from coogee to bondi but was given the wrong bus to board and only walked half the distance from bronte. totally missing the reason for the walk, the cool cemetery that looks as though it might fall off the edge of the world. the walk was pretty glorious anyway as you can see.















a train ride to newtown to wander along king street and retrospect'd. love that store and somehow held myself back from buying oodles. next time! had lunch at a great mexican take-away place - can't remember the name (dammit). we need one in melbourne.

then it was back into the city to walk through the queen victoria building. pretty fab.







as you can see there are no pics of the evening but it held a wonderful meal in chinatown then watching toy story 3 (again) from the comfort of bed. doesn't get much better than that people. ;)

the morning of day 4 came a little later than expected. yes, there was a bit of lazing. i was on holiday. gotta love those and i do. when i eventually got out into the real world i made my way to the museum of contemporary art near circular quay.







annie leibovitz exhibition at moca - fascinating story-telling photos, really enjoyed walking through the gallery. quite a few people about but not as crushing as a few exhibitions i've been to in melb - yes, we're serious about our art and culture in melbourne. ha!


then it was just about seeing the sights. there's a lot out there to be seen.










it started to rain as the plane was leaving the terminal. didn't bother me at all. what a glorious few days seeing a wonderful country with friends.



bring on the next roadtrip i say. :)