Project 365 Thu 26 Nov 09

CHRISTMAS TAGS
I worked really hard over the weekend on my Christmas tags and managed to make about 4 dozen for the various foodie presents for work colleagues and friends.

These were so easy to make ... a couple of sheets of 12x12 cardstock glued together and cut into rectangles. A few Christmas related punches--star, Santa, hearts and Christmas tree--and the paper left over from Wini's gift glued to the rectangles.


Four of my little pretties ... these babies come into their own every Christmas.

Add a hole punched in the corner of each tag using a standard two hole punch and thread household string through the corner.


A selection of the tags hanging from the my bed head ... the best place I could find to display them.

Now they're sitting on my bedside table crammed into a coffee jar until I use them.


The jar of Christmas tags ... I love how the string cascades out of the jar.

I am sitting here rubbing my hands with excitement and glee at the thought of using them! LOL

Project 365 Wed 25 Nov 09

WHAT'S HOT AND WHAT'S NOT

What's Hot:
The price of international calls. With Wini away we've been making calls galore to stay in contact and it's not breaking the bank. Love that.

Paint. My hands are covered with paint from my recent endeavours ... I thought I'd have a go at "shabby chicing" my wooden tissue box cover and it's looking appropriately distressed. Now to add some blue to my cork board to make a pigeon pair.


This looks better than I thought although I still need to sand back the other sides to reach the same point.

Craft markets. I've been having so much fun staying up to date with all the wonderful markets around Melbourne and working out which ones to go to ... there doesn't seem to be enough days in the weekend to get to all the markets I want to explore.

New train operator. Only a few more days until Connex is banished from our lives and replaced with our new train operator. Could it get any worse? Hope springs eternal. LOL

What's Not:
Melbourne weather. Can this place ever make up its mind? First we've had February's weather in November giving us the warmest November on record, followed by bucketing rain that didn't find its way into the water catchment areas. What we need is rain ... in the water catchment areas!

Insomnia. I'm still finding it hard to get enough sleep but I'm pushing myself to get up earlier and endure the crankiness that comes with it in the hope I'll be so exhausted I'll fall into bed earlier and miracolously emerge with a regular sleeping pattern. (Fingers crossed.)

Difficult complainants. One of my roles at work is to handle the harder or more difficult phone and written complaints. I work with a brilliant bunch of people so this seldom happens but what a pain when it does! The answers are never easy ... and sometimes there isn't an answer at all. And everybody believes their complaint is justified and reasonable!

Project 365 Tue 24 Nov 09

ACCIDENT
While I was away visiting in Ballarat Clarissa had a car accident ... which is a hard thing at any time but even harder when you're phoned mid vintage clothing inspection and you can't see for yourself things are ok.

The upside, of course, is that Clarissa calling me gives me some comfort and I will never tell her not to call me. At least, I know what's going on, and how much more awful to find out after the event.

So this in not a complaint ... just a recognition of how frustrating it is ... I'm miles away, I can't see what's going on and I can't get there any time soon to satisfy myself.

As for the accident ... a minor one in which neither driver was hurt.

As it turns out, Clarissa and the other driver were both backing out in front of the local chemist, neither saw the other and Clarissa backed into the other driver's car.

The upside for Clarissa is that there was minimal damage to her car; nothing more than a scratch really to her bumper bar.


The tiny little scratch on Clarissa's car ... almost unnoticeable.

But the insurance company told her to bring it in anyway and she'll only be charged the excess to clean up the damage she made to the bumper bar the very first time she drove her car!


The mess on the other side of the car ... made the first time she drove it and fortunately only to the bumper bar and not the car.

A good outcome in my book.

Project 365 Mon 23 Nov 09

WINI, WINI, WINI
Just recently I've been struggling for posts ... which is hardly surprising given a year of posting every day and one less child in the house.

Which brings me to the one less child in the house (Wini), and recent posts by her on Facebook.


My new noticeboard seems to have unwittingly become a shrine to Wini ... and she thinks I never give her a thought.

1. Her status has recently changed, and she's now in a relationship.

There's been considerable excitement regarding who ... and not just from me. Is she in a relationship ... or is it a huge hoax to get a little attention? LOL

And she won't share any of the details ... let alone pictures.

Hmmmm?

2. Wini's looking for flights to come home.

When, when, when ... I ask?

For Christmas, May next year ... Christmas next year perhaps?

And given there's a new boy on the horizon, it can't be forever? Can it?

Come on Wini, give your mum a break ...

Project 365 Sat 21 Nov 09

MALAYSIA GARDENS
On top of the hugest day running around shopping and finishing off some Christmas stuff, I met up with a few friends for dinner at Malaysia Gardens.


The sign as you walk up the stairs to the restaurant.

It's an interesting place in Clayton Rd, Clayton ... and the food is authentic ... not like the Italian or Chinese or whatever restaurant that serves what they think the market wants ... Malaysia Gardens serves what's sold in Malaysia ... and the locals flock there.


A beautiful chilli pi-pi. One of my favourites.

It's always so crowded but I love the view of the Clayton train station and Clayton Rd, and the almost Coles cafeteria atmosphere ... it's all about the food and rightly so.


The best oyster omelet I've ever had ... crispy and beautiful.

One of them, Phil, is a huge traveller and foodie and he not only picks the restaurants but I generally let him pick what I should have.


One of the three national dishes ... Nasi Lemak. This one always looks so pretty.

And Malaysia Gardens last night was no different.


Curried chicken ... with lovely flaky, slightly greasy roti.

How beautiful does the food look?


Salt and pepper squid ... I want some more of this right now! LOL

And cheap ... 6 mains between five people and drinks each for under $100.


This one is Char Kway Teoh.

It doesn't get much better.

Project 365 Fri 20 Nov 09

ARCHIVE FRIDAY
Emjie over at Emjie'sTreasures had the best idea today for Fridays ... share old examples of past work, photos, art journal notes etc.

I've loved photography for ever and I have some well loved examples of my photography that go back to the 1970s ... and todays is from summer 1990 when my girls were young.


Wini about four wearing the blue trimmed hat, and Clarissa around two years of age..

We used to go to Collingwood Children's Farm a couple of times a year for birthday parties and a Christmas party ... and this one is from one of the Christmas parties.

I always used to dress the girls in pretty dresses and little white socks and hats when we were going out for good ... and they very rarely got dirty. They were those kind of kids. LOL

How wonderful is it have started scanning all my old photos and actually have some to share?

Project 365 Thu 19 Nov 09

WHAT NEXT?
Recently my local council spent $250,000 (sound it out; a quarter of a million dollars!) ripping up my street and putting in new drains to 'improve' the area. The views to the north east, and south west towards Safeway post show what the street looks like after they've finished.



Nice and tidy, especially towards the south west where the council added additional car parking spaces.

But a total pain in the arse for us because they narrowed the street and took away our car parking ... and now I park on the nature strip because my daughter parks in our off street parking and we don't think it's safe to park our car on the road so close to a roundabout.

So what's happening now ... without a word of warning workmen turn up and ask us to move our car because four car parking spaces are going in at the front of our property.


The view I was presented with as I walked down the street from the train station.

I'm not complaining about the the parking spaces because it's been a bloody nuisance for us since they altered the road about a year or so ago ... but do you think they could ask before they rip up the road in the first place or even before they decided to tear up the nature strip to add parking?


The gaping hole they made today ... and apparently four car parking spaces are going to take a month to create.

It's our money they're spending after all ... or am I just getting a little bolshie?