Revealed

What was my mystery picture? Certainly NOT anything mouldy or gross!

Fairlie and Tanya were indeed correct. It is a coral skeleton.

Those bits that looked like gravel are grains of sand caught up in the holes. We found it on the beach and put it in the front yard rainforest. I went looking for it today, but the leaf litter has buried it and I’m not scratching through it in case there are spiders. The teeny, tiny coral polyps (the animals which live together to make a coral reef) live in those holes. They make a limestone skeleton around themselves which grows as the polyps multiply.

My lies… Sussanah was right. I am not a rule breaker generally. I did find it tricky to think of lies, but luckily I had my son to support me. HE seemed to find it remarkably easy to tell outrageous lies. He thought of the wedding ring on ebay and Transylvannia – but he was thinking Dracula, not Rocky Horror! Hmmm … I do not like Kevin Costner movies, even though a member of my family gave me a DVD for Christmas one year. It wasn’t even intended as a joke. She likes old Kev’ and has trouble seeing past her own interests when buying gifts. I do not watch All Saints, I do not eat tomato, I do not go fishing, I do not enjoy piped music and I do not like building playing card houses or watching High School Musical 1 or 2.

Last night we were lucky enough to witness a full lunar eclipse. I couldn’t take a photo because I would need one of those mega lenses that the paparazzi use ot take photos of Cameron Diaz pulling out a wedgie from 500m away. I did find this photo though. We looked at it through the telescope and marvelled at the natural phenomena of space.

When I was a child living in Melbourne in about 1976 / 77 we saw a complete solar eclipse. We had no idea how fortunate we were to have witnessed it. The significance of event is lost on you when you are ten. You think that these things happen every day. I hope my kids remember last night. It was beautiful.

Four Meme

Vicki recently tagged me to complete the ‘four meme’ which is doing the rounds. I have the feeling that I have done this before (feel free to trawl my archives, aim for May/June I think). I have decided to do it again, but this time I will include some blatant lies, just for my own amusement. I know Vicki won’t mind, because she said that South Park was one of her favourite shows, so she doesn’t mind it when people are wicked! Thanks to my son who helped me to lie so creatively, although I don’t really think that I should be encouraging this behaviour.

4 things you may not know about me:

1. I had a hysterectomy at the age of 35 due to endometriosis – best thing I ever did!
2. I have a tendency to rock myself when I lay down to sleep. I don’t even realise I’m doing it, but my Pete has put up with it every night for more than twenty years.
3. I sold my wedding ring on ebay and used the money to buy a plane ticket to Alaska. I have always wanted to see the snow and see a polar bear in the wild. Amazing!
4. I hate that people cannot use apostrophes appropriately. It is not a difficult rule. Once I drew a cartoon superhero on my daughter’s assignment when I was proof-reading it. I called him ‘apostrophe man’ and gave him a speech bubble about righting the apostrophe wrongs where ever they are found. I didn’t realise that she had to hand her draft copy in to her teacher. Again, I apologise.

4 Jobs I have had:

1. In my uni days I was an ‘inserter’ at the local paper. I went to work at 12 midnight and placed those glossy catalogues one by one into each newspaper. I finished work between 2-4am. This suited me, I was doing a Bachelor of Arts and none of my lectures/tutorials were before midday. Smart lecturers, they knew when to schedule to get the biggest crowd.
2. I worked selling raffle tickets for cars in the middle of shopping centres. I have a thing for piped music and thought it was the best way to maximise my enjoyment.
3. I have a post graduate teaching qualification which makes me a primary school teacher.
4. I am a machine quilter.

4 Movies I could watch over and over:

1. chocolat – beautiful
2. monty python’s holy grail – hilarious
3. flying high – classic
4. anything with Kevin Costner in it – his range is so broad

4 TV Shows I watch:

1. never miss ‘all saints’ – aussie brilliance
2. bold and beautiful – will Brooke and Ridge ever be happy?
3. Saturday morning Rage – for twenty years
4. Boston Legal – William Shatner is hilarious when he parodies himself

4 Hobbies:

1. quilting, although this is  profession too, does it still count as a hobby?
2. building houses from playing cards – requires a steady hand
3. taking photos – but I’m hit and miss
4. driving my kids every where they want to go – I didn’t choose this one, it chose me

4 Places I have lived

1. Transylvannia – with Tim Curry of course
2. three different houses in Townsville – they count

4 Favorite Foods

1. sushi
2. anything made with duck, but not the leg – a bit too fatty for me
3. tomato, beetroot and sauce sandwiches
4. turkey and cranberry sandwich

4 Places I would rather be

1. in my own mega-studio with all the things I imagine
2. fishing – just love the smell of fish and that rhythmic ocean
3. at a Ben Kweller concert
4. struggling to think of one more- I am supposed to be grocery shopping now, so I guess I’ve already decided that here is a better place to be

4 Websites I visit daily:

1. bloglines to see all of you
2. weather.com.au  – I’m a little obsessed with knowing the temperature and rainfall totals
3. high school musical 2 on youtube
4. itunes store

4 people I tag to play this:

1. I tag everyone who reads this – HA, but you have to fill it with lies that I will try to find.

 So, do you see any of my lies? Try to find them. I’m not a very good liar, but you might not be a very good lie detector!

In the style of Aunty Evil I shall leave you with a mystery photo. What could this be?

Enjoy.

Creativity

We live in a very creative household. Someone is always drawing, cutting, sewing, making or doing. Each of us works very differently. (Thankfully my husband is creative and neat, or this house would be a disaster!)

My son has really started to develop his own style. He carries a sketch book and a 2B pencil with him most places we go, His drawings are realistic representations and instantly recognisable. He is very good at faces, but is kind enough to only draw my profile with one chin. He wants to continue to study art at high school next year. His teacher has invited him to stay after school one day a week for extra study and he is very keen to do so.

He spent some of his birthday money to buy plasticene. He want to use it to make animations. He has made a couple of animations using magnetix. He took several hundred photos with my camera making a small move each time, then downloaded them into a movie.

He is trying out this character with his plasticene:

and playing around with the macro settings on the camera. Next he needs to write a script and build a set.

My daughter has made a quilt – no pattern, she just worked it out. Don’t think for one moment that I helped her. She hates to take instruction from me. I just back off, it avoids conflict. She’ll work it out by trial and error and will learn more that way than I could teach her.

I am pretty happy with this client quilt that I have just finished. I used a lightly variegated thread across hand-dyed fabrics and the effect is quite lovely.

RIGHT, onto the next project!

It’s a Party if there’s Cake

Last week was my niece’s birthday. My sister arranged a party in the park – playground equipment, soccer, cricket, a cake, a few lollies…then go home exhausted. Of course it rained for the entire afternoon. Plans had to be changed and we all went to her house… to make mess… for her to clean up later.

I do so love my nieces and nephews. I love having little people in my life. They make each day worthwhile with their silly chatter and funny songs. They have a unique view of the world.

Here are our beautiful little people:

This little one is NEVER silent. She has opinions about everything and cannot be swayed. She will tell you what she thinks, whether you want to hear it or not. She eats all day yet weighs no more than a bird. She makes up her own songs, her favourite being “lucky, lucky, happy, lucky”. That is, indeed, evidence of a charmed life!

Her brother just lost his first tooth. He is desperate to wiggle a few more loose. He is so anxious to please that he gets jumpy in his own skin. He has finally discovered that he can read alone and is frequently lost in a story world. He wants to be seen as tough, but wears his heart on his sleeve and can be quite fragile. He loves a good drama, especially if he is the central character.

Our newest family member has been in our lives for less than a year, but made his presence known immediately. He is constantly busy. He loves a job to do. He loves a basket full of folding, anything with wheels, blocks and food. He took a bowl of chips around the party and handed them out one by one to everyone there. He put a bucket on his head, then yelled for ‘help’, but managed to get it off himself. He sat very still with this lollipop, but needed a wipe down afterwards.

His sister, the birthday girl. She has a stubborn streak only matched by her mother’s. She will always do the right thing, she will never break a rule. She gets desperately upset at the thought that she won’t be able to do it right, the very first time. She has a wicked belly laugh that doesn’t sound like it belongs to little girl. She spends too much time with our boys, so is not above purile humour. She is a very good friend to lots of people.

The rained out party lasted just over an hour. We ate cake and sang the birthday song – that’s all you need really!

Eureka!

After several days of work, some tearing of hair and more than a few curse words I think I have our website up and running.

http://peekaboo-blankies.com/index.php

 

What do you think?

Remembrance

This quilt

is on its way to Sheye. It is a small token for her as she pauses to remember the day that should have been Ava’s fourth birthday.

I have been just an observer of this tragedy, but it has touched me as it touches everyone who hears of it. I cannot even allow myself to imagine myself in Sheye’s shoes. She has written with such openness, honesty and rawness of the experience of losing her daughter at such a young age. Her words are, at once, filled with pain and filled with beauty.

I am not so naive as to think this quilt can offer her comfort or hope, but I hope that it offers tangible evidence that many others are feeling the loss of Ava and that silent support is what we offer.

Post 128, in which I Rock and Schmooze

Well, clearly the award season is upon us again. I have frocked up in my very best designer labels to make my thank you speeches.

 The ever charming Fairlie has nominated me as a Rockin Girl Blogger. I can indeed confirm that I am a girl and list one reason why I rock.

Last night we attended a tupperware party. My neighbour invited all the people in the street as a ‘get to know you’. I generally do not much care for tupperware. It makes me feel inadequate when the presenter suggests that I cook several meals at a time, then freeze and re-heat. Or that I put biscuits into containers when I open that packet, rather than just consuming them before they even have the chance to become stale. I took my daughter to the party too. She likes to cook and I wanted to buy a non-electric food processor, so she came to have a look. The presenter asked her age.

“Almost seventeen, ” she responded.

“A good age to start your glory box, love. You’ll find yourself with an organised pantry once you’re married if you start to buy some pieces now.”

To her credit, my daughter just smiled and nodded. Then as we walked home she looked at me and asked, “What the hell is a glory box?”

SEE, I do rock. I have raised a child for almost seventeen years without allowing her to be exposed to the patriachal notion of the girl needing to provide a dowry/glory box to furnish the home. She has ambitions, she has stuff she wants to do. She is seventeen and ready to take on the world. She is going to France and to university. Why should she be worried about an organised pantry!!

The generous Maureen has nominated me for a Schmooze award. There is obviously a cross-cultural miscommunication here, because I thought schmoozing was bad. I thought it meant ingratiating yourself to others..sucking up in order to manipulate. Apparently it is a good thing in the blogging world though. Basically I am spreading the love, not just being nice so that I’ll be popular. WHEW!

Thus I am a schmoozing rock chick! I’m the girl who tells you how pretty you are, just so that I can score the invitation to your party. Then I’ll drink your beer and leave with your boyfriend when the beer runs out! Because that is what a schmoozing rocker would do. I am the Courtney Love of the blog world.

I am supposed to nominate others, but I’m very worried that perhaps you’re all schmoozing rockers. Tell me again how pretty I am…but hands off my beer!

Career Change?

Yesterday, according to my blog stats, someone found my blog by doing an internet search for house painter townsville.

Sorry to disappoint. Although my Pete has finally finished painting our house (except for the verandah floor), he really doesn’t want to paint your house. He even cleaned the high window, the first clean in ten years! Usually I just let the rain wash it.

Somebody else found my blog by searching for painty pants. Once the verandah is painted they will be thrown away, so don’t look for them any more! Very bizarre!

Online (almost)

Today Flo and I worked towards starting a website for our baby quilts.

We are calling ourselves Peekaboo Blankies, but when we went to register a domain name look what happened:

http://www.peekabooblankies.com

Do you see it? Right in the middle of the name? peekabooblankies. It is just not right! It was pointed out to me that this may increase the traffic to our site, but it is probably not the traffic we are seeking. Flo suggests that we may act as a conscience to those who stumble upon us accidentally. Perhaps with a flashing button which reads ‘What would your mother think?’ My brother in law says that given what is available on the internet we would fall at the lower end of the perversion scale. But we just couldn’t do it.

We did find a solution – watch this space. Hopefully we will launch this week. Clean and with a G rating.

Education

Last weekend I borrowed a Monkey DVD for my son to watch. I felt that I had been a neglectful parent because he had never seen it. He loved it. He laughed and was transfixed by those mouths which move rapidly, but in no relation to the words being said. When the three episodes had finished he had no idea what had gone on, but was desperate to see the next DVD.

A few years ago I bought him a DVD of The Goodies and he has always found Monty Python absolutely riotous.

His education is proceeding nicely!

Edited to add: go and see my sister’s blog. My daughter is guest posting today on her weekly “come the revolution” spot.