adayinlifetoo blog

we are moving to a lighthouse you and i

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; ">ten things i love about living in sydney...</span><br /></div></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;"> </span></div><div><ol><li>saturday markets. from manly to paddington to fringe bar to glebe to surry hills there's always a bit of trash n treasure up for grabs<br /></li><li>weekend mornings in rushcutters bay. with the weekend papers, a long macchiato and a chocolate brownie, the sun hot on my back and spades of grass between my toes, i loll in the park, watching the water and the boats, the families having picnics and the jogging fitness freaks run by. </li><li>having the privilege to wake up every morning and spend my day doing a job that i love</li><li>all the fabulous bookshops. (especially the ones with cafes. coffee+books=heaven)</li><li>walking home from work over the harbour bridge. a bloody long 7km walk but so worth it to see the city all lit up in pretty fairy lights</li><li>fruit+veg shopping at paddy's markets in chinatown. you get elbowed and shoved but scoring cheap salmon and tangy tangellos makes it all better. the egg+chive dumplings from my favourite chinese restaurant are pretty freaking good too</li><li>working and living in the thick of it. the feeling of being a part of something big</li><li>getting where you want without relying on a car. want to eat icecream in bondi? simple. shop up a storm at ikea all the way out in homebush? easy. markets in glebe or furniture shopping in newtown? no problemo</li><li>living in potts point. restaurants and cafes and coffee bars and pubs on every corner. organic produce markets and quirky delicatessens down every street. supermarkets, video stores, chemists and gyms. yoga classes and bookshops. fountains and fairy lights. the glamour/tackiness of the cross just next door. and all within walking distance. LOVE!</li><li>living by myself. i feel so lucky to have the opportunity to experience this. i have never learnt so much about myself or experienced more highs. the peace, the solitude, the ability to do or listen or watch or wear (!) what i want. it is so nice to have a room of one's own</li></ol><div> </div><div>oh i love making lists, freak that i am. i wanted to post more tonight but i have some writing to do before work in the morning. here are the pics i promised before though... introducing the brilliant <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5204464">mister rob</a> (see previous post):</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240653907491622962" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnRUumSvvAQO9VOacdXiSCwInyqrYA5zK6OFMnwPvEPobw3v-_b_bJFzIkaTgxuMIukQu879LTFY_1oTbpWzlNZryMQxwUGqD4wal9Od_2GaDlDY5TSyFgsqdYGp3AZGbgOWNggjg24-0/s400/rob3.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240653908438124450" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuaUIo1ltXjRwnsk_i1aRU7PtnBfzGHqYiQWuDfBZf2F0ELtrQpIAE_42IE10gFXN-ipGwRUN9EGJJ0-EwNmOeQLKr-jy6HTya0I_ePK78K23A3AYHsB4RaGHggz9_wlkKEJwbvzmRJD8/s400/rob2.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5240653907704828514" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKKu0CGX0XnP0SIDGzJh9KJxq3QNvsBo0WMgZULDAT5TQiJ3wMasdUCUqaDNK9UoIE6bQTKgaXLIEOQer2yTT2Dj3ZMrujELh2KRsSqCbf6T5b2tzDuEWQGAEnk14CaWJ-eRprYFPRUIo/s400/rob1.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">sigh. aren't they just magical? if you head to his <a href="http://rob-ryan.blogspot.com/">blog</a>, you can check out more of his stuff. He's also been working with Random House to design book covers for a couple of authors, the most notable being Louis de Bernieres.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">just before i go, i believe there is enough time to worship in the genius of the one and only Josh Pyke. my beautiful friend <a href="http://sheetsandstitches.blogspot.com/">prue</a> alerted me to the fact that his new single <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">the lighthouse song</span> has just been released, and that his album is due to come out october 4. i've posted his videoclip just below and if you're wondering who did the incredible artwork in the clip, it's all by greedy hen, a lovely design duo who hail from sydney, and whose previous work can be seen in The Panics videoclip <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">don't fight it. </span>one half of the duo is my old housemate katherine, so please make sure you watch a couple of times to appreciate the beauty of her work.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">spread the love... </div><div style="text-align: left;">ness x</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GquroFVb_48&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GquroFVb_48&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

we are moving to a lighthouse you and i

ten things i love about living in sydney... saturday markets. from manly to paddington to fringe bar to glebe to surry hills there's always a bit of trash n treasure up for grabsweekend mornings in rushcutters bay. with the weekend papers, a long macchiato and a chocolate brownie, the sun hot on my …

31Aug2008

little monsters

little monsters

what i should do: vacuum my apartment, finish sewing my new sofa cushions and eat something more nutritious than packet pappadumswhat i want to do: eat some packet pappadums, mock australian idol mercifully, and then dance around my un-vacuumed apartment like a loony to the most fabulous charlotte g…

28Aug2008

do not go gently into this good night

last night i clocked off work a little early to see <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">the edge of lov</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">e </span>at the orpheum theatre in cremorne. i've been waiting for this for awhile and it was just... <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">perfect</span>. perfect!<div><br /><div>i've never been more impressed with keira knightley -- loved her in P&P and bend it like beckham but as for the pirate movies, ugh. she was fucking brilliant in this, with a welsh accent to rival any and the most surprisingly good singing voice, all low and husky. as for miss miller, this is the first i've ever seen her act and i was just blown away. she took on the role of dylan thomas' wife with guts and a beautiful honesty that took me completely aback. both girls brought a lovely naturalness to incredibly difficult roles. </div><div><br /></div><div>the whole thing was just visually stunning as well - kudos to the art directors for creating such a realistic setting -- both the London WWII backdrop and the wales countryside were done so well. i won't give much more away but absolutely recommended. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_nI2FqYiWD0&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_nI2FqYiWD0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />(although notice she does the same breathy 'I love you..." as in atonement? sometimes i get the feeling she's a bit of a one-trick pony...)</div><div><br /></div><div>ness x</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>

do not go gently into this good night

last night i clocked off work a little early to see the edge of love at the orpheum theatre in cremorne. i've been waiting for this for awhile and it was just... perfect. perfect!i've never been more impressed with keira knightley -- loved her in P&P and bend it like beckham but as for the pirate mo…

27Aug2008

here there and everywhere

so as it turned out, saturday was definitely <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">not</span> the best day for an adventure. the weather was gross. windy. rainy. fucking cold basically. buut.. my friend V and i soldiered on, wrapped our necks in scarfs and stuffed our tootsies in boots. <div><br /><div> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.lilifields.com/index.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">lilifields</span></span></a> </span>[oxford street, paddington] was our choice for brunch. a veritable fairy garden, this is the most peaceful place for a spot of scrambled eggs after a busy week at work. handcrafted vases, jewelry and the loveliest cards grace the walls, not to mention the buckets and buckets of beautiful blooms. peonies, sweet peas and hydrangeas waft around you while you're eating and fill the store with the most stunning scent. </div><div><br /></div><div>my mum used to own a florist shop when i was a wee ness, and after school and on holidays my sister and i would spend our days in the back of the shop, watching as our mum stripped blue gum until her hands bled and transformed unassuming stalks into the sweetest bouquets. that strong heady smell of roses and lilies mixed with blue gum always remind me of my mum and that part of my childhood.</div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><div>             <img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238407646851006530" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0toMHPSiWwja8rvkxJEGMFqgGAXGyWOZqb5y3OY5Bta7tmhn9hq5Ue57e30wetXNpoXr3pNK4lPm9VzMdCNW7tuv-foQvggZurcsGnegO6fjIho00j8y03dLsxyBrIjkH0W0Vjqj97kE/s320/lilifield.jpg" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" />               <img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238407651746007058" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjji5WVwS-_NkrOHoFX8iEa8KBBcs7ZCG9iRu7DsWo0ZUrziKdD_s4o_un8ZY5SDTAlPHLU0PaFKJdkQs3y6iDg0r8NuFN-aurQfKa7EwXVAlM-ZxRcDpFWOhsXaNNZChko14WbnhxCGVI/s320/lilifield2.jpg" style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /> </div></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>with bellies full, we meandered down oxford st into the markets at the <a href="http://www.thefringe.com.au/">Fringe Bar </a>[oxford st, paddington]. i love seeing the popular paddington watering hole transform into a vintage wonderland come saturday mornings. soft leather belts, tan bags, feathered fedoras, shiny secondhand shoes (lovingly scrubbed) and local designer jewels are some of the treasures (and trash) up for grabs. i walked away empty handed but with the cutest pair of patent mary-jane heels on my mind. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>the first time i came to sydney was in 2006, for three weeks of work experience at a couple of magazines, and also, i guess, to scope out my future home. i stayed at bondi, and after a long day of coffee-fetching and photocopying and transcribing pseudo-celebrity interviews, i would walk up and down the streets and laneways of the beachside suburb, peeking into tropical-night themed bars and dusty retro shops. despite its cool beach image, i discovered bondi was actually a really fun indie girl in hiding; full of record shops and tucked-away coffee bars and... the best bookshop ever. </div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>introducing... <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">gertrude&alice</span>. (after the infamous literary duo gertrude stein and alice tsolkias of course). Not only was this darling shop jammed full of the best secondhand books, but the cafe served the best salads and chai tea in sydney. steamy and cinnamon-y, i loved to curl up in the worn armchairs with a cup of chai and a copy of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">wild swans</span>. when i moved here for good, i discovered that gertrude&alice had a sister shop in paddington. in the last year, the bondi shop has very sadly shut its doors but the paddington haunt is still going strong (with a name change though, to <span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">ampersand cafe and bookstore</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; ">) </span>with the same greats reads and amazing chai as ever.</div><div><br /></div><div> </div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238420500723186834" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx0N6_Q5iaoZigI5zf0XZSh4qgXSkuzD7leBlZzzVF0Yl0R1iD7NGgYqnWaZJwTPSDortcvc40W72E8IbdkDRX4CYurh_9ScINU8z2iRbCKdNbDdQsKjHsyKDkuD_6vRzd5ceSymseA0k/s320/berkbooks.jpg" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /><div>my other favourite bookshop is <span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><a href="http://www.berkelouw.com.au/about"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">berkelouw books</span></a></span>, just around the corner from <span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">ampersand</span></span>. this too has a great secondhand collection (2 levels worth) and a cafe (which does the best long blacks in sydney). they have a really good new book section, plus lots of gorgeous art and photography books, stationary and lit magazines. i could quite seriously spend a good deal of my weekend perusing these two bookshops. </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div>surry hills was our next stop. this is sydney's design hub, crammed full of all the best homewares haunts, galleries, paper+stationary boutiques and lots of tiny treasure-chest shops with one-of-a-kind finds. <br /></div><div> </div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238436131324412226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikT6X-CRWZeze940p6BTptq_TPaQP6_cRhNkOZVGZ08KnUeAl5O9GJwvspFw5u-CRO_cRIZYLAelK2GHhWpei1C80O25PKl5pGGqWVAR_76RjAH1mSyD4tyY8WTBYkXlnoUboU7f7KizI/s400/icietla2.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238436653234188690" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6vmV6o10nTK2m5GLxABxeWWiX8n0KDB_xx93uLmeFCZugvPevGqD9O0apihMih99Sqx7CBWJ7qdm_awjDYhWsRQrickuEoh4pyYI3Wv58fVpWZxvidOc_IsMM4MfoXV8TKZze2CjDv9M/s400/icietla5.jpg" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><a href="http://www.icietla.com.au/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Ici et la</span></a></span>, [bourke st surry hills] has such a crazy eclectic feel to it. huge steel alphabet letters, vintage teatowels, espadrilles, french-inspired textiles and striped deckchairs... you can almost taste the south of france on the tip of your tongue. sandy beaches and champagne here i come!</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><a href="http://www.cheesoonfitzgerald.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">chee soon and fitzgerald </span></a></span>[crown st surry hills], sandwiched between trendy wine bars and steamy indian restaurants on crown street, is the original surry hills design shop. opened in 1992, the area at the time was still pretty much a slum like nearby redfern. the residents were pretty happy with the local pub and weren't really keen on browsing marimekko fabrics or artimede furnishings. (funny that!) but -- the shop thrived and spurned the opening of hundreds of similar shops on nearby bourke and foveaux and commonwealth streets.</div><div><br /></div><div>I love the <span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 0, 0);">EYOI YOI table lamp by Marc Pascal...</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="color: rgb(234, 131, 11); font-family:Arial;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="color: rgb(234, 131, 11); font-family:Arial;"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="color: rgb(234, 131, 11); font-family:Arial;"> </span></div><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238430635342218562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ1z3H2WKFo8M90vYIuvzge4uEGuvbLFuS6C5hb7S-Ath9U3ovuIfr-L_WheNc5kMkVKwikoihIsMyYVfPxofhk4MPCW9O-OXbR-JnNjxqdq3DkjAsOgIJH81GlVQ81jApe5GGDZxAwsI/s320/csf3.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></div><div> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;">and these funky spanish-style Dibbern ceramics...</div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238434734169057618" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZy_r9b8vEa-aR91gSM3f8Z8qpzIZD3gqFc4Dik21yuI0JZPUKyfkSY6-9vd5FEt6X1dNsAns_5elYPxcOM4oW6ebTAmAXReuXZhtiVaU4htt8kI2kCpTFl5gHesC82zszSDtaR__a5_A/s400/Dibbern_ensemble.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;">and of course, what girl doesn't dream of filling her studio apartment with fabulous marimekko fabrics and ceramics...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238438152250279042" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimkiZgHwQVOcitvVzOU4_9JkO-bkUsHspk-S-2kz8xA7q_QZkVnho3_M1c959lTrcRveB6ZoAdlPwE4jRIIz4y-154e-vDQGiOFTT_9tYY8R2lpP8trOC1oShgmhtbujhusInHeC3GWB0/s400/keittio.jog.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">our last adventure before seeing <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">The Savages </span>at the palace verona cinema on oxford street (fabulous film btw. recommended v.highly) was a well-deserved stop at the <span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><a href="http://www.thebookkitchen.com.au/">book kitchen </a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: normal; "> [devonshire street surry hills]. no sydney adventure would be complete without a pot of english breakfast tea and a chocolate brownie at this quaint cafe/cookbook shop. chocolate-y goodness and food books abound... bliss!</span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5238439241925027218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8wlN6-v0S7B-zwj7j5RbAVZIW99ahNakTmubeCgm8bPWr2FzaNU5zvb82cIt90mTcSDHNJXT_QctS4wwNjwEmuku-ex7WImSvcNAV-KhAu1nCFjIwnlCzEzsJ8IhQeVTloFEzP89H4cs/s400/bookk.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">ness x</div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div style="text-align: left;"> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div></div>

here there and everywhere

so as it turned out, saturday was definitely not the best day for an adventure. the weather was gross. windy. rainy. fucking cold basically. buut.. my friend V and i soldiered on, wrapped our necks in scarfs and stuffed our tootsies in boots. lilifields [oxford street, paddington] was our choice fo…

25Aug2008

down the rabbit hole

oh frock i have the worst hiccups tonight. just got home from doing headstands at yoga -- perhaps that's why... :)<div><br /></div><div>have had a particularly busy bee week so am resting my head on this chilly winter night. had a chat to my mama and baby sis tonight --  i love catching up on all the adelaide goss. such a small city that everyone knows each other's business intricately! i really reaally want to get back there for a visit before chrissy but i'm desperately saving every penny for my europe 09 trip so there's a chance that i won't. i'll have to keep my eyes peeled for cheap flights (or secret assignments...) intrigue!</div><div><br /></div><div>i am heading off on an alice-in-wonderland adventure tomorrow. i'm taking my friend V from work on the special ness walking tour of surry hills + paddington (she is a sydney-ite of over 22 years who hasn't been to surry hills yet. the horror!) eggs and toast and coffee and markets and movies and books oh my! I am bringing my camera so i promise to take lots of pics to show you all. </div><div><br /></div><div>right. must be off to do terribly exciting things like eat dinner and wash the dishes. the wind is howling outside and i might just snuggle up and watch <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">enduring love </span>on dvd (how i love thee Ian McEwan).</div><div><br /></div><div>oh and my friend A from work got me onto this fab band today: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">n</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">ouvelle vague</span>. has anyone heard of them? god i love this videoclip so much that i want to marry it and have little french hat-wearing dancing babies...</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ekQZPozjCX8&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ekQZPozjCX8&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-style: italic; ">dance with m</span>e :: nouvelle vague<br /></div>

down the rabbit hole

oh frock i have the worst hiccups tonight. just got home from doing headstands at yoga -- perhaps that's why... :)have had a particularly busy bee week so am resting my head on this chilly winter night. had a chat to my mama and baby sis tonight -- i love catching up on all the adelaide goss. such …

22Aug2008

book nerds rejoice

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">like i said, i love lists...</span><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">these darlings have been patiently waiting on the bookshelf of ness for months now. i am particularly eager to read </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Addition</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">; my mum bought this to sydney with her on her last visit - she met author Toni Jordan at the Adelaide Writers Week and said she was wonderful (if not a little eccentric).</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Suite Francaise</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Irene Nemirovsky</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Running With Scissors</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Augusten Burroughs</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Double Fault </span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Lionel Shriver</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Paula </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Isabel</span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Allende</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Red Shoes </span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Carmel Bird</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Margot Fonteyn Biograph</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">y Meredith Daneman</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Happiness</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Will Ferguson</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Man and Boy</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Tony Parsons</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">A Changed Man</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Francine Prose</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Addition</span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Toni Jordan</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 36pt; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></p></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">and these are the brand new beauties i am desperately craving...</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Private Lives of Pippa Lee</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Rebecca Miller</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">One Foot Wrong </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sofie Laguna</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">When You Are Engulfed in Flames </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">David Sedaris</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Poppyland </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Raffaella Barker</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Behaviour of Moth</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">s Poppy Adams</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I Dream of Magda</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Stefan Laszczuk</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Mary Ann Shaffer</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Don’t Get Too Comfortable </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">David Rakoff</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Children of Freedom</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Marc Levy</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">A Child’s Book of True Crime </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Chloe Hooper</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Just lately i have finished a couple of books that i feel the need to share. Helen Garner's</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Joe Cinque's Consolatio</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">n has been sitting on my shelf for awhile but it somehow drew me in to its pages last week and i devoured it in a matter of days. funny how a book can do that. i love miss garner for her stunning story-telling skills and journalistic integrity. she brings to light another side of the idea of duty-of-care that i've never thought of before. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">how deeply involved with someone do you have to be before you are considered an "accessory" in any wrong-doings they commit? Obviously, if you walk past someone in the street who is suffering from a drug overdose and you do nothing, you can't be pinned for manslaughter. But if you happen to help that person, perhaps give them a pain-killer which raises their blood pressure or thins their blood and they die, are you partly responsible for their death? It is such an intricately fascinating topic. I could debate it for days (high school debate geek coming out...)</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">i also loved Geraldine Brooks'</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">newie, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The People of The Book</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. I religiously watch 'First Tuesday Book Club' each month and so when they reviewed this one and the overall consensus was a resounding THIS IS TRIPE, i backed off. But  -- my mum read it and loved it and i trust her book judgement a thousand times more than Marieke 'I wear a ratty flower in my hair so i look bohemian and cool' Hardy and Jennifer 'I LOVED this! (squeel)' Byrne. (I have nothing bad to say about Jason Steger, the third member of the reviewing team and that's because i have a slightly creepy crush on him. And yes, i know he's old. whatev)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Back to the book. I know Geraldine has this tendency to ramble on and use slightly too many stereotypes in her prose (how many times the main character had to say 'tinnie' and 'g'day' and 'shit -a-brick' before we finally realised she was an Aussie I'll never know). But all in all, i thought it was a great read, i ended up sitting there with my laptop on so i could google all the things she talked about that i knew little of (ie. the Sarajevo War). And my god can she write historical fiction well. am tres` jealous.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">tis' bedtime now for ness. if only my neighbour would stop watching reruns of Will and Grace on repeat and then we'd all be happy. oh yes...</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">ness x</span></div></div></div></div>

book nerds rejoice

like i said, i love lists...these darlings have been patiently waiting on the bookshelf of ness for months now. i am particularly eager to read Addition; my mum bought this to sydney with her on her last visit - she met author Toni Jordan at the Adelaide Writers Week and said she was wonderful (if n…

21Aug2008

new soul

<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px; "><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">as much as I love magazines, nothing quite compares to the journey that you take when you read a book. In my twenty-two years, I've sailed a raft with Huck and Jim, hunted the white whale aboard the Pequod, rode a rickshaw into a tiny Chinese village with Amy Tan and fought the Civil War with Scarlett O'Hara. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px; "><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">My books (all 400 or so of them) have travelled with me through 14 houses, from adelaide to sydney and hopefully in the near future to new york. it's hard for me to throw out magazines but completely unbearable for me to part with my books. every one of them not only tells a story through the author's words but through it's own history; where it came from, who owned it before me and who will own it after. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">when i was packing up my adelaide life, my dad asked (told) me to cull my collection. i v.reluctantly picked out 12 novels (albeit all really bad ones given to me in my past life as a book reviewer) and left the box with my dad the day i boarded my plane. turns out history repeats itself; my mother saved my rejected hardbacks and found a place for them on her bookshelf. after all, no matter how bad the writing this (please, PLEASE never read a book called </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">knitting</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">, okay? you'll thank me) there's no reason to let them go unloved.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px; "><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">that</span><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">'s why i'm currently loving interior designer Samantha Parson's vision. Her dream? To rescue the world's unloved hardbacks and turn them into works of art. Her avant-garde tables (book block tables) and screens (bookscreens) are created by recycling and folding the discarded pages from old atlases, cookbooks and children's picture books. They’re part of her handcrafted product range, Family of Sam, which can be found at </span><a href="http://www.studiosam.com.au/" target="_blank" style="line-height: 1.22em; text-decoration: underline; font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">www.studiosam.com.au</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">. LOVE! how genius is this?</span></span><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); line-height: normal; "><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5236394438302900754" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPviazt2uK3OBDFOXPciKnR0rapyiG0dkNOKiwov5N6PyW8pDdva-16uo_5qefYYJX-ysMfToV38NWzdSrzJxYua9kbdp01dDAp6iEFzWgHmi4CcHc4PmoTSWoYs7c6GTTbD19ekbCNLk/s320/booktable.jpg" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; " /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5236394433045865346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_7BJKR7-Kr_vl0jUn-slaRqh1xtR_ybeuxm6sjQVh9Op2fvgzn5hyphenhyphenE1k4N-J5V9qIZYaGC0mZbBE7ZQfp8I85rvo6ApSOBLhp9gc1_uoNgxRT4yZfeiiamRrU-Ny45ZC-85DV_uxl9K4/s320/bookscreen.jpg" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px; "><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">Melbourne couple Ben Mason and Natalie Crupi have also jumped on the book bandwagon with their online store Rebound Books. By day they rescue dusty hardbacks from charity op shops, and at night they fill them with recycled denim paper and bind them with sturdy wire, creating a blank journal for travel dreams, shopping notes and sketches. My personal favourite are the old Enid Blyton covers. Go to </span><a href="http://www.reboundbooks.net/" target="_blank" style="line-height: 1.22em; text-decoration: underline; font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">www.reboundbooks.net</span></span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"> for more details.</span></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5236394442413732162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEighEIB_x98GJjmSfOwEslt9VukHhRWtW15O4yYKjo9N7lG0PCJg6Sp2IEB4Y-8Z7nuX9ipk0SyPsbmxsqTMBuDvuroBoEPq_Yd11Y7GcT4xLvJ_mTvwZwjh67lzc8Uz4oTirCpTmgrgkA/s320/book1.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px; "><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">                                     </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">speaking of fabulous design, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">on saturday i went to </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold; "><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">sydney design</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"> at the powerhouse museum with my friend C (aka The Wife). we moved to sydney together this time last year so we thought we'd celebrate our first anniversary together and do dumplings/design...</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">i went mainly for the modern times exhibition, which was just so well done. they had architecture, music, fashion, art etc through the ages, from 1917 to the 70's. if you get a chance to go along -- do! it's on until Aug 24th. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">it's time for a tired ness to rest her head, so i'll just leave you a pretty song to end the evening on...</span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-YUxbDEPFiM&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-YUxbDEPFiM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /></div>

new soul

as much as I love magazines, nothing quite compares to the journey that you take when you read a book. In my twenty-two years, I've sailed a raft with Huck and Jim, hunted the white whale aboard the Pequod, rode a rickshaw into a tiny Chinese village with Amy Tan and fought the Civil War with Scarle…

19Aug2008

small fish, big pond

tonight while walking home over the harbour bridge, i fell in love with sydney all over again. this happens quite often -- while storming through Chinatown in search of those perfect egg+chive dumplings or sitting in Rushcutters Bay park on a saturday afternoon with the weekend papers and a chocolate brownie but most often, (and i hate to admit sounding like a gushy tourist) while looking at the harbour. the water and the bridge and those white awnings stretching out into the sky always makes me feel a part of something big. <div><br /><div> </div><div>it's the same feeling i get every morning while being jammed into a strange man's armpit and being pushed over at Town Hall station, that feeling of being swept away with the rest of society. i love being up with everybody else at the crack of dawn, yawning into our coffees as the train lurches along; and at night, while we all stand bleary eyed and drained as the train taking us home is delayed over and over again. its strange thing to love but there you go...</div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div>my listening choice for tonight's walk home was the gorgeous Imogen Heap -- if you haven't heard of her i demand you do so, now! she has a certain sound that is so hard to pinpoint but is simple+pure all at the same time. </div><div>download: speeding cars, hide+seek, headlock, goodnight+go and just for now. </div><div><br /></div><div>listen my pretties...</div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div><br /><object height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/eKZsZkH_MJc&hl=en&fs=1"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/eKZsZkH_MJc&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div></div>

small fish, big pond

14Aug2008

circus love

<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKpK_V4eErhh1LB1s7FGFdCFPuMn7gpmTKzC8ECzMdXPhH_vxH0jERdRoxDg-CHUmV1gGQGv70Kk4J1pbsXg9tdK7uyW0OE5uroEyvJExBUZXJ4fqNSGgXbATnz34nREe15-peaHIpy8Q/s1600-h/circus3.jpg"></a><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">confession #2</span> when i was little, i loved reading enid blyton books. why, i'm not too sure -- looking back at them makes me question my eight year old judgement a little. it was always the girls who had to clean and make the sandwiches while the boys got to go off and have adventures which seems totally unfair to me now. in my eight year old mind i think it was the idea of finding a tree in your backyard which had magical characters living in it with names like moon face and saucepan man. a tree which had revolving worlds at the top of it, like 'get-what-you-want' land, and 'topsy-turvy land'.<br /></div><div><br /><div>in one of her stories, a little boy is playing in his yard when the circus rides by. he stops them and asks his parents if he can join... they look at each other and say, why not? Let us just finish the dishes and put out the rubbish and we'll come too! So the boy waits on his front steps, chatting to the tightrope walker and the clowns while his parents finish their chores and lock the front door, then they all hop on the backs of elephants and go riding off in the sunset together. </div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div>my inspiration for today's musing comes from the lovely <a href="http://madeleinestamer.typepad.com/">Madeleine Stamer</a>, a Melbourne artist who designs under the label <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">little circus design</span>. i love her prints for their deep intensity - she has an uncanny ability to express beautifully honest emotions through a simple drawing. it's how i image the circus to look if someone sat down and captured its soul.</div><div> </div><div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233986468883304674" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW6Wu0kgqJ0TLgyCUlN04Lb87haXru1-5TuE6RZ63PtLCiW-bagjqCc7-Vh_wgKsaZ_iJ6mnEni0ofC3UJD456NJLvItEyGbgRfOOv1cC4-wEtH4cHQiFuZAmaxPlGz9Y0xqPbXtok0Sg/s320/circus2.jpg" style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233986468122194162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Idg3FVv5lmVN_LfDtjnUlOXqI7b-NYbBFMxGlEvqmCyoQShbLlApcegn4wdarj6xNnmfgxOJZ-IdwBGuvhkFOI3SDGxtVo7eR01CUYooIWNkBlPjjHK6b2H-Us6NDBj7k30YSLLxj20/s320/circus1.jpg" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; " /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="I*heart*you" height="600" src="http://madeleinestamer.typepad.com/photos/limited_edition_prints/i_heart_you.jpg" width="469" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div> </div><div> </div></div>

circus love

confession #2 when i was little, i loved reading enid blyton books. why, i'm not too sure -- looking back at them makes me question my eight year old judgement a little. it was always the girls who had to clean and make the sandwiches while the boys got to go off and have adventures which seems tota…

13Aug2008

cakes and biscuits and scones oh my!

<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4v0JMeaF8G-BCT3qsYjuMQzoxRELYZ2h7gjpv2ku-uGi2UPa_YQnkJk4wQSYj-d2U8gFbgmosBmqsR0l-PEdCuuJUV8tvVgnyTFdOHj8SfVIOWIhmUCO8f2GItDYaFq6xCnDmYBWCh1c/s1600-h/MB.jpg"></a>last week while looking for an 'expert' to appear in the article i was writing, i had the privilege of chatting to the lovely <a href="http://www.penguin.com.au/lookinside/spotlight.cfm?SBN=9781920989538&AuthId=0000002577&Page=Profile">Belinda Jeffery</a>. Belinda is one of those quiet achievers in the culinary world and thank god for that! i really have had enough of Jamie and Nigella swatting around talking about twinings tea or whatever their publicist has convinced them to represent. <div>anyway. although she's worked in restaurants and on tv etc, Belinda is a baker at heart and her new book (Mix and Bake) is full of sweet and simple recipes -- orange and almond cake, lemonade scones, gooey chocolate brownies. delish! it makes me want to slap on an apron and stick my hands into a mixing bowl.</div><div><br /><div>although i was supposed to be talking to her about ovens, we got into a conversation about baking and food and childhood. so much of what she cooks and writes about has been influenced by her childhood, the places she grew up in and, of course, her mother. </div><div><br /></div><div>as a tiny ness, i can remember my mum in the kitchen, shouting at us to get out but always letting us sneak back in for a lick of the beaters. her speciality, and always requested by my friends, was her mars bar slice. it really is as simple as melting butter + mars bars together, adding some rice bubbles and slathering chocolate on top (yes, it is as good as it sounds!) but no matter how many times i try and replicate that recipe in my own kitchen, it just doesn't taste right. the same goes for her deliciously moist chocolate and apple cake, her tangy salmon dip and those banana and chocolate muffins she would serve warm with lashings of butter. </div><div><br /></div><div>It made me wonder whether it's just the taste we crave or that insatiable desire to recapture a certain time and place. maybe it's also the need to recreate a moment in time when everything was 'just as'. perhaps on the weekend i shall set about creating some recipes that will always remind me of being terribly poor and living in a tiny studio apartment in sydney :)</div><div> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5233603770415634034" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4v0JMeaF8G-BCT3qsYjuMQzoxRELYZ2h7gjpv2ku-uGi2UPa_YQnkJk4wQSYj-d2U8gFbgmosBmqsR0l-PEdCuuJUV8tvVgnyTFdOHj8SfVIOWIhmUCO8f2GItDYaFq6xCnDmYBWCh1c/s200/MB.jpg" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; " /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div></div>

cakes and biscuits and scones oh my!

last week while looking for an 'expert' to appear in the article i was writing, i had the privilege of chatting to the lovely Belinda Jeffery. Belinda is one of those quiet achievers in the culinary world and thank god for that! i really have had enough of Jamie and Nigella swatting around talking a…

12Aug2008

a little bit giddy

<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">confession #1 </span> i love making lists. lists of books to read, films to watch, fruits in season, useful french words to learn, before-i-hit-30 lists. a blog has been on my list for awhile, but lately i've just let the page sit here, resigned to just being a (slightly creepy) blog-stalker. </div><div><br /></div>now the plunge has been taken, who knows what might happen on this blank screen of mine? hopefully it will give me a little bit of breathing room, let me write about the things that i LOVE ... words and music, heart-wrenchingly sad french films, the $10 find, the one-legged bird...<div><br /></div><div>as for who might stumble across it... everyone is welcome, friend or foe. i hope that it can be cause for inspiration, open up new views and bring a spotlight upon beautiful writers + artists.</div><div> </div><div>ness x<br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);  font-size:13px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span"  style="font-size:small;">[“And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” - Sylvia Plat</span></span>h]</span></div>

a little bit giddy

confession #1 i love making lists. lists of books to read, films to watch, fruits in season, useful french words to learn, before-i-hit-30 lists. a blog has been on my list for awhile, but lately i've just let the page sit here, resigned to just being a (slightly creepy) blog-stalker. now the plung…

11Aug2008