create & live

i’ve had a busy – but productive – weekend. went to the eveleigh farmers’ market yesterday morning and picked up a few things. highlights: lamb & garlic sausages, mango & chilli relish, chicken, spinach & cashew nut ravioli, amazingly fresh watermelon, home made marshmallows {that i am now addicted to and plan on making my own soon} and a beautiful bunch of flowers. sadly it was close to 40 degrees {celsius, that is} and far too hot to be doing anything that involves the outdoors. or moving. i desperately wanted to try some homemade ice cream sandwiches but, alas, the only flavour they had left was chocolate. maybe next time.

today i had a big clean up. finally threw out the bag of shoes that has been sitting at the back of my wardrobe for the last 5 years. i’ve moved house 4 times since i started that bag, and that bag of shoes – those shoes that one day i’m going to take to be re-heeled and then love them forever – always came with me. not anymore. they’re gone. i got rid of handbags, scarves, jewellery {all donated to vinnies, of course} and it feels good. almost cathartic, even.

i’ve also been busy. my sister & i will have a stall at the hills districts’ australia day celebrations this tuesday. if you’re in the area, be sure to come on by and have a look! we’ll also be selling some of our mum’s handbags. i’ve been working on a few new products for the stall, and my favourites are these create & live signs. i’ll have these {plus a few more} on sale as well as all of my cards and paper goods.

i hope your weekend was as fulfilling as mine! it is a shame about monday, though.

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#teamconan

i’ve been watching conan since thecomedychannel started airing late night some time in the late ’90s. i’m genuinely very, very sad that his run on nbc has come to an end, but the most disappointing thing about today isn’t just that it’s conan’s last episode of the tonight show – it’s that this whole entire fiasco is coming to an end. late night tv has never been this good.

if you haven’t been following, i highly recommend you check out the recaps on tv.gawker. they’re amazing.

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honesty.

internet, i have a confession.

i ate some chocolate.

in my defense, it was actually a chocolate flavoured sponge cake, and it was a tiny tiny piece, and i was at a small gathering for my partner’s grandmother’s 80th birthday where i literally could not refuse it. and, i don’t particularly like sponge cake, so i didn’t really enjoy it.

am i forgiven?

in any case, i’m not actually counting it because it was an unavoidable “special occasion”, but i just felt i should be honest. so i’m now nearly two-thirds through No Chocolate January. woohoo!

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TOMORROW.

this will be me.

well, not playing the song or anything, but i will be there squeeing my little heart out. the decemberists! first time in australia! so excited!

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92 hours.

92 hours without chocolate, and i haven’t killed anyone yet.

Chocolate

the hardest moment – so far – was at 3pm today, my first day back at work. what is it about 3pm on a weekday that makes me people go crazy?

aaack

as the great liz lemon once said: chocolate! chocolate! chocolate! aaack!

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tonight.

tonight – my last free evening before returning to work tomorrow – will be spent with andrew bird. at the sydney opera house. i am so, so excited. i can’t think of a more magical venue for him to play.

i first saw him live in 2007, at NIDA for spunk’s 10th anniversary show, and also at the basement, where i snapped this photo of him:

then again in 2008, where he played at the famous spiegeltent during sydney festival, and did another show at the vanguard in newtown a few days later.

and now, in 2010, at the sydney opera house. i’ve heard he’s broken his foot and will be on crutches for the whole show. awwww.

oh, be still my heart.

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and i don’t feel any different.

how was your new year’s eve? i always find it to be a bit anti-climactic. it’s usually a fun night, but the effort of trying to get home always ruins the evening for me. so this year (last year?) we kept it simple. we just made up a picnic and took it to the park down our street, which has distant harbour views.

nyepicnic
nyeview

with a new year comes new beginnings. even if you try and avoid it, you always end up cleaning and organising and planning for the year ahead.

so this is the new year
and I have no resolutions
for self assigned penance
for problems with easy solutions
– the new year

last year, my resolutions were simple:
- see at least one new movie every month
- make at least one new recipe every fortnight
- do at least one load of washing every week

i completed the first one with ease, the second one lasted about two months, and the third one didn’t even make two weeks. this year, i’m trying a different approach. i guess i don’t want resolutions as such, i just want focus. so my things to focus on in 2010 are:
- fashion. i have no problem with the way i dress, i quite like it in fact, but i always err on the side of caution. in 2010 i want to choose adventurous over safe. make some bolder choices, instead of just secretly wishing i did. i’ve started following some fashion blogs to get inspiration – so if you can recommend any, please let me know!
- nutrition. in order to fit into those bold fashion choices, i need to make better food decisions, so i’m having a monthly focus. january’s is chocolate – i’ve survived 21 hours of no chocolate so far, and it seems to be going ok. i hope the remaining 792 hours are just as easy. a heads-up that’s february’s will be ice cream. prepare to feel my wrath.
- entertainment. i’m keeping the movie one again – we had a lot of fun planning our monthly movie outings last year, and usually combined it with dinner out at a new restaurant. so that one makes the cut again. i’d also like to see a few more gigs than i did last year. i have 5 or 6 on the list for january, but nothing really planned for after that. i guess i just want to make an effort, and see some new things that i know i’ll enjoy.

and also, i’d like to blog more… hehe. happy new year!

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a day of reflection

my most listened to artists from 2009:

Picture 3

i started tracking my music in 2004, and this was the first time that spoon didn’t top the end of year list. my apologies, spoon. we’ll try harder in 2010. i am, however, greatly amused that a novelty rap act is my 3rd-highest. ah, here’s to maturity, eh?

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upcoming adventures.

in exactly 12 days, i will be on a plane that is just about to land in tokyo. tokyo!!

i’ve had a love affair with japan for as long as i can remember, probably dating back to the exchange student who lived with us for a year when i was about five years old. this is me in the kimono she gave me, which still hangs in my wardrobe today.

Photobucket

we’re going for three weeks, and the itinerary is: tokyo > osaka > fukuoka > hiroshima > kyoto > takayama > nagano > tokyo.

i’m looking forward to kyoto most of all, but it’s a shame we won’t be there in march to see the cherry blossoms. we’ll be seeing a sumo tournament in fukuoka, a monkey park in nagano, and the ghibli museum in tokyo, and… so many other things. i’m so excited!

i’ve been passing the days by listening to this song over and over. it has nothing to do with japan, i just love it.

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things i love

felicia day, the guild, and jed whedon. all together!

you need to watch the guild.

my dad

hey, dad! father\'s day card

father’s day is 6 september in australia and new zealand (and maybe a few other countries as well). i have a couple of father’s day cards for sale in my etsy store.

 

spoon

which is why i’ve re-branded my etsy store, to smallstakes.etsy.com. the name comes from one of my favourite spoon songs, small stakes.

 

 

sunshine

which is rather convenient, because spring is most definitely on its way.

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