Advance Australia Fair

I love this!!!

I love Adam Hills anyway and he has this Anthem thing so right..I've never liked Advance Australia Fair.. (at the risk of deportation for treason or something.) Remember, God Save was our anthem all through my school years. sung daily, so I feel a bit of an affinity and allegiance to it.. which is what singing a National Anthem everyday is designed to do,after all. There are a lot of great anthems in this world.. Love a bit of Marsellaise, a bit of God Defend, a bit of Flower of Scotland or Land of our Fathers , United we shall stand, and even God Forbid a bit of Star Spangling. Girt doesn't cut it and the tune is dreary (and Aussies can't sing it!)


Here is his new improved version!! Enjoy!!

Birthday/Australia Day

Had a terrific birthday, but on review of the pics, it seems to be far more about Australia Day:-).

Had a good convo with Chris on skype, got lots of fbook msgs and phonecalls, cards and prezzies..Megs won the prize for creative, pertinent stylish wrapping!


We had Yum Cha lunch @ Phoenix,..we being me and Baz, Megs and Christopher, Tim and Millie..although there is no photographic evidence of the event, except the dumplings.

After lunch Baz and I spent the afternoon on Lizzie's balcony celebrating both my birthday and Australia Day. It was a fun afternoon perched up there drinking our champers with all the Aussie Day accoutrements, and watching the beach and the world go by.





Thank you for a wonderful day, family and Lizzie:-)


Returned home in time to see the tennis -semifinal b'n Rog and Rafa -- Rafa won.

Tomato bottling party

On Sunday, as I was putting rubbish in the bins, I heard a cheery call from the neighbour's side of the fence.. "We're bottling today..are you coming for lunch??" Am I coming for lunch????? Of COURSE, I'm coming for lunch...Mary is a renowned fabulous and effortless cook. Of course I'm coming for lunch. SO of course, she's up at five, cutting up a million tomatoes, bottling and then turning around and whipping up lunch for the 11..guests and helpers and hangers on (us), she's accumulated during the morning.





We arrived just as they the work was over, and the 44 gallon drum was being filled ready to boil.



We're a multicultural little party..Mary, Greg and Daniella,.. Mary's 2 sisters and husband(Italian),a Maebashi student(Japanese) Mary hosted 15 years ago for a few days, who's remained friends over the years and now lives in Sydney with her Singaporean husband, Mary's Sri Lankan friend Nedra, and us - the token Aussies! So ,we arrived to find Mary and her sisters whippping up food in the kitchen - home baked bread, fried zucchini flower fritters, italian tomato salad, peppers, aubergine,pasta.. the Italians have this food thing SO sorted!! Our contribution was to bring a couple bottles of red and eat the food! Good on us!

This bread is FaB!!!!

Vivienne (in the red top) is the fabulous bread baker, Lucia the chief cutter-upper, and Daniella busy taking iphone shots to send to Adam ( living in Thailand).


Daniella and Sutoku (no idea how to spell)


Pretty soon we're sitting around the tables, lots of food, wine and laughter.. I may have been Bavarian in a previous life..think I'll come back Italian though.. It's so relaxing and friendly and fun and such good food!!







At some time in the afernoon, we adjourned inside out of the heat, and Mary produced bottles of homemade limoncello from the freezer...

View from where I'm sitting


Daniella made cupcakes mmmxoxo


We staggered home -full of food and wine sometime later that night. no dinner for us! And thank you Mary and Greg - must be world's best neighbours!

Happy CNY -2012

Happy Chinese New Year everyone! -- The Year of the Dragon.




Apparently, we shouldn't do any housework today or wash our hair, in case we wash away our prosperity! I'm definitely not!..need all the prosperity I can get!... Have planned a day of lying on the couch reading, and maybe a gentle stroll up to see Andy and visit the coffee shop. Very nice... Am embracing the whole concept wholeheartedly.

The Doctoral Dinner No 2

Well!! Mmmm.. What can I say??? Cafe Sydney was every bit as awesome and fabulous as we expected - a perfectly fitting setting to celebrate the hard work and achievement of the resident Doctor! There are not words enough to describe what a terrific night we had and how much we enjoyed the atmosphere, views and dinner.
There are a million photos.. have tried to pick the best of them to showcase the evening!
First, the graduate.. Dr Megs B.MedSc (Hons I), PhD


Next the night, in all it's awesome gloriousness!!

We started in the bar with cocktails and nibbles.


then progressed to our table, which was outside on the balcony. Hmmm How many times have I seen the Sydney Harbour Bridge???? a few..but the view as you walk past the kitchen towards the balcony and that bridge is suspended there large in the window, is just jaw droppingly spectacular!. O yes , our table is right on the edge..our views uninterrupted by other patrons' heads and we are in heaven!!! Yes.!! This is what we're talking about,baby!!









We ordered up big.. and revelled in every minute and mouthful of it! We had the lot..appetizers, cocktails, entrees, mains, bottles of wine, (an aptly named Pinot Noir, The Roaring Meg, from Mt Difficulty)! dessert wine.. We signed the cheque with gay abandon. The food was fab.. I had the scallops for entree and the pork belly for mains. I think there was quite a selection from the menu ordered around the table..all of it reportedly good!





The family shot!.. Time to go home and at this stage we are trying to prolong the event as long as possible ..lots of posie shots taken in front of the bridge!!













Congratulations Megs.. We are so proud of you! xoxo

Doctoral Dinner

We are celebrating the doctorate tonight with dinner @ Cafe Sydney. We're all excited. I have been scrutinising the menu and wine list in anticipation. I am wavering towards the magnum of Henschke Hill of Grace @ $1889/bottle:-) ...hahaha .. I think not!

Update tomorrow. and Also some pics from Aunty jenny's farewell dinner.


bientot,
xoxox

p.s. I am wearing a frock!!!

Things to Worry about

Thursday, 19 January 2012
Things to worry about


This is from the twitter feed of Shaun Usher... author of the blog Letters of Note.
He compiles a blog of interesting letters from the famous and non-famous.
Since some of us in this family are known worriers, I thought this lovely letter of F. Scott Fitzgerald's to his small daughter, might be interesting!

In 1933, renowned author F. Scott Fitzgerald ended a letter to his 11-year-old daughter, Scottie, with a list of things to worry about, not worry about, and simply think about. It read as follows.

(Source: F. Scott Fitzgerald: A Life in Letters; Image: F. Scott Fitzgerald with his daughter, Scottie, in 1924.)

Things to worry about:

Worry about courage
Worry about cleanliness
Worry about efficiency
Worry about horsemanship

Things not to worry about:

Don’t worry about popular opinion
Don’t worry about dolls
Don’t worry about the past
Don’t worry about the future
Don’t worry about growing up
Don’t worry about anybody getting ahead of you
Don’t worry about triumph
Don’t worry about failure unless it comes through your own fault
Don’t worry about mosquitoes
Don’t worry about flies
Don’t worry about insects in general
Don’t worry about parents
Don’t worry about boys
Don’t worry about disappointments
Don’t worry about pleasures
Don’t worry about satisfactions

Things to think about:

What am I really aiming at?
How good am I really in comparison to my contemporaries in regard to:

(a) Scholarship
(b) Do I really understand about people and am I able to get along with them?
(c) Am I trying to make my body a useful instrument or am I neglecting it?

With dearest love,

Daddy...



I think it's quite quite lovely!!. What a wonderful letter to receive at the age of 11. I suspect his daughter was afraid of insects.. and perhaps she loved horseriding?/ Here is the the link to the original. http://www.listsofnote.com/2012/01/things-to-worry-about.html

I don't think I ever received a letter of wisdom from my father, and I suspect I didn't ever send one to my children either.(for which I apologise..I hope you are not all scarred and bitter and twisted over this omission on my part). My father did give me, at the age of 21 a copy of a little humorous satirical book of rhyme/poetry entitled "Cautionary Tales for Children". There had been a copy at home for as long as I remember, which I had loved growing up. The cautionary tales were little fables about the dire consequences which would ensue if a child were naughty.... such as "Matilda who told lies and was burned to death." I was never sure though, when he presented me with my own copy at the age of 21, whether he was giving it to me because he knew I loved it, or if it was his gentle way of saying I had been less than good!! Probably both I suspect!

Sardina

Am very excited to get back the first roll of film!!..Considering I was having issues with the flash and quite unsure of what to expect, I'm very happy with my first attempts. The major asset of this camera, is that noone seems to take it seriously, even though I was quite close to my lovely subjects, so the shots look happy and candid! Here the the best of them!:-)


Although for this shot, I've completely messed up the focus, I love it..I think Millie looks like a n angel:-)


And here are the three musketeers on Christmas Day



and finally, at the beach!


So a new film loaded and new shots to come! I can't wait to try a b/w film in there too!:-)