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Don’t let the blue sky fool you! It was a really cold and blustery day but well worth the trip. Augusta (Cape Leeuwin) is the Point where the Southern and Indian Oceans meet!
Lighthouse in Augusta
Augusta – West Australia
Augusta – West Australia
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The pedestrians we find in Cowaramup in South Western Australia are of a different kind 🙂
Today I was looking for a recipe for some savoury snacks and I pulled out an old folder of recipes handed to me by Mrs Marjorie Cronin. We had just bought her house in Belgrave Heights in 1980. I have kept them over the years but rarely looked at them until today. Most of the magazines were printed before World War 2 – in the 1930’s. I really loved the fashions as shown below! A window into a time long gone!
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I have loved watching these palm trees grow over the last six or so years. As well as getting taller each year, there are more and more layers of dense foliage.
I couldn’t resist inviting some little fairies to spend some time in my garden 🙂
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When we are children it seems to take forever waiting to get from one birthday to the next. However, as a parent, our children grow up and become independent before we know what has happened!
Every so often we have a picnic lunch at Meelup Beach near Dunsborough. On Thursday we stopped off at the popular Dunsborough Bakery and bought our lunch . This week we were pleased to find there was hardly anyone at the beach. There were some young bush walkers and a few tradies either working or stopping for a lunch break. It was quite idyllic.
This maggie was very friendly and keen for us to share our lunch with him!
I like to have a nice garden but it is not something that comes naturally to me. Up until recently all I had in my small, rear yard was the big, above ground garden bed, some palms and two jasmine plants.
The garden bed was really too big for the space and because it was so deep I had stopped planting vegetables and my mint, parsley and oregano started to take over. I was able to quickly sell the garden bed on Facebook but then what was I going to do with all that soil?
It is still a work in progress but I felt happy today that I had made some improvements. I now have some cherry tomato plants, some irises, marigolds, snapdragons and repotted herbs. A friend kindly gave me some lovely succulents earlier this week and I decided to use my multi-level trays just for succulents.
Even when I am watching a TV show I always notice the china in the room – often seen in kitchen dressers or shelving. If I go to the shops my eyes are always distracted by beautiful china, I have one rule – I only purchase it if I fall in love with it (and can afford it!). It has to be better than okay – it has to pull at my heartstrings.
Initially I found it hard to find pics that were ‘elemental’ but it wasn’t as difficult as I first thought. Here is my selection for this Weekly Photo Challenge.
Lately I keep catching myself thinking about some unpleasant things from the past (I am sure we all have them). The other day I objectively looked at it and realised that my thoughts were 40 years in the past! I keep reminding myself to look forward and not backwards. Even better if I can spend my time in the present moment.
Last Semester I ran a course for U3A called Retired:Now What? As part of that course we looked at unhelpful thinking styles by looking at and thinking about a resource I found online. Click HERE for a link to the site and for more information.
The point is that I have identified this recent pattern and can be on the alert when these unhelpful thoughts invade my thinking and choose to think differently!
This week’s PHOTO CHALLENGE topic is TEXTURES
Using my mini-microscope it is easy to see texture in more detail.
This is my selection for this week!
Satisfaction equals:
Good coffee and dark chocolate
Fresh seafood
Ice-Cream cake
A warm fire in Winter
And a good book/Kindle to read!
Check out the Weekly Photo Challenge HERE
My selection for this week’s challenge is some photos taken from cookbooks circa 1940’s.
To check out the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE
I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry!
I prepared dinner in my trusty cooker (3 in 1 – pressure, slow cooker and steamer). There was a big pot of chilli con carne. It has handles on the side so, when ready, I went to lift it to another bench to serve it up.
Disaster! I only got as far as the kitchen sink and it wouldn’t go any further because I hadn’t unplugged from the powerpoint. As I tried to regain control it tipped on its side and most of the contents went into the kitchen sink!
There was just enough left in the pot for our meal. The cooker is a casualty as it has a big dent in its side where it collided with the sink!
Guess my mind was off with the fairies and I wasn’t focused on what I was doing. Lesson learned … when cooking dinner, just cook dinner!
Getting started was the hardest bit. Always worried I might mess it up 🙂
With the many changes to how we listen to music today I have been finding that even though there are so many options, I am actually listening to less music. We decided that having easier access to the multitude of CD’s we own would increase the likelihood of listening to music more often.
After searching the internet we found a CD cabinet that seemed promising. It arrived in two flat-packs and I volunteered to put it together. I was feeling confident after doing two bedside tables earlier this year.
In the end I was surprised to see how much space we have left over. The CD’s are now sorted into their different genres. No excuses now for not listening to music!
Here are a few shots of the progression of the project:
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This is my coin and note collection of (mostly) Australian currency – some of which are no longer in circulation.
For information about the Weekly Challenge click HERE
Here is my selection for this Week’s Challenge!
We had a few days break in Perth last week. My husband likes to take his own pillow when we travel. We are in the habit of checking and double-checking whenever we are packing up to leave to make sure we leave nothing behind.
I felt quite smug when I noticed he had overlooked his favourite pillow and I rescued it. We put our bags and the pillow in the car prior to checking out. One of the hotel staff observed us as we packed the car. I thought to myself “I hope he doesn’t think I am stealing this pillow.”
It was only when we arrived home and unpacked that I realised we had an extra pillow that in fact belonged to the hotel. What to do now? Well we rang them and explained and they were going to call back but we haven’t heard from them again!
I had laser eye surgery yesterday.
My eyesight had deteriorated quite a lot recently and was making it hard for me to read – especially on my computer. Initially I was to wait until October to get in to see an eye specialist. Fortunately there was a cancellation and I had an appointment yesterday with a visiting (to the region) specialist.
I was diagnosed with glaucoma and cataracts in my early fifties. I was not impressed. These things only happy to OLD people! The cataracts were removed and my eyesight was near perfect afterwards meaning I didn’t need to wear my glasses after many years of being very short sighted.
Anyway, the long and short of it is that I can see much better today and I greatly appreciate the science that produced the technology to correct my vision without having to even touch my eyes!
The wisteria caught my eye during a weekend away and reminded me of my childhood home.The photo of my three sons reminds me that childhood passed so quickly; the seasons come and go and the road-trains pass through the State 24 hours a day. Postcards embody the life of a traveller passing through different places.
For more information about the Weekly Challenge click HERE
I took a different interpretation of this week’s topic – a focus on Indigenous Australia.
Check out the Weekly Photo Challenge HERE
Brooking Springs Station
By Robert Louis Stevenson
The morning star paled slowly,
The cross hung low to the sea,
And down the shadowy reaches
The tide came swirling free.
The luscious purple vapour
Rose from the river’s breast,
The kingfisher came darting
Out of his crannied nest.
The bulrushes and reed beds
Put off their sallow grey,
And burnt with cloudy crimson
At the “Dawning of the Day.”
Some flowers look a little bit too ordered (perfect) and I have to touch them to see if they are real or not. These ones are real :).
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I tidied up my office over the weekend. I came across some old music cassettes from the 1980’s. I also remembered my cassette player was on top of my bookcase. Before I knew it I was listening to Anne Murray singing You Needed Me. It took me back to some tough times down memory lane as only music can do.
The cassettes and recorder are rare items today. We have a large CD collection that we hardly ever use. I have taken to asking random people “How do you listen to music these days?” We have various USB’s with songs on them and we occasionally use them at home and in the car.
I feel I am not keeping up with the technology. I would love to get your feedback on what other 21st Century options are available. Help please!!!
For more information about the Photo Challenge click HERE
We have some feathered friends (Magpies) that are regular visitors. We don’t need to worry about them when we go away as they are self-sufficient!
ev·a·nes·cent [evəˈnes(ə)nt]
adjective
I have interpreted this week’s photo challenge with images that seem to capture a momentary glimpse of something beautiful – mainly due to the light at that moment.
For more info on the photo challenge click HERE.
Many pubs in Australia have heritage value. They may not be on an official register but they are an important part of our history. I have included the Busselton Jetty among this disparate collection as it is one of the main heritage sites in South West Australia.
For more information about the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE.
Here we have a colourful reflection with the sun shining on our cups of peppermint tea.
There are some objects reflecting my past.
I like to reflect on some of my books from time to time.
Finally we have replica tea-set like I had when I was a little girl.
For more about the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE
It has taken me a seven years to get here. It has become part of my day-to-day life. I don’t write all that often now but love to read other bloggers’ adventures and do the Photo Challenge most weeks.
On 8 May I will be leading (as a volunteer) a University of the Third Age class of eight people (seniors) in Blogging for Beginners. I hope to be able to share in eight hours (two hours a week for four weeks) what I have found out over the past seven years.
I have done my homework on the technical side but the actual writing side of things is not so straightforward. I have meandered over a wide range of topics over that time. I guess my blog is really about my life, thoughts, ideas etc. I have got more into including photos in the past year or so. I love doing that but wonder if I am a bit lazy with the writing!
I would really value any ideas or tips you have for new bloggers that I can pass on to those in my group. Thanks in anticipation 🙂
Well I completed one of the two bedside tables today! I wouldn’t say it was easy though. Lots of little challenges that caused me to sit and stare at the instructions for minutes at a time!
It was good to do something with my hands and to do something that needed attention to detail. I am usually a “big picture” person and like others to look after the detail so this project was good for me for that reason. Only one more to go! It is not perfect but I would give myself about 7 out of 10 :)!
We stayed at this beachside cottage some time ago. It was possible to secure the front and back doors but they didn’t tell us that the only loo was outside and not secure!
For more information about the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE
Being keen for a bargain, I did some online shopping and ordered two bedside tables – to be assembled by me! I have never done anything more than Lego in the past (and I wasn’t too flash at that) so this is a real learning experience. I am tackling one cupboard at a time – naturally! It took a good part of this afternoon to get two drawers assembled.
Stay tuned for the finished product! 🙂
I have chosen some different fabrics from my wardrobe. These photos were taken with my Supereyes microscope. It really shows how some fabrics are more dense than others.
For more information about the Photo Challenge click HERE
My son Joel bought me a microscope a few years ago. I indicated I would like one as I had one as a child and found it fascinating. It gave me an interest in science and what things are made of.
Called SuperEyes, it can be purchased on Amazon or Ebay and ranges between around $10A to around $200A. It plugs into my computer via a USB.
It is easy to use although the (free) software is a bit temperamental – just need to be patient and persevere with it :). The results are worth it.The item on the base of the microscope (a succulent from my garden) is photographed and saved to my computer.
I set up another blog called It’s a Small World . You may like to check it out!
There is SO MUCH green in our world! I have included some photos taken with my SuperEyes microscope. These include kiwi fruit, silverbeet, parsley, broccoli and thyme (in flower).The final one is a frog in my vegetable garden. 🙂
For more information about the Photo Challenge click HERE
For more information about the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE
The photos below include an open-cut mine in Gwalia, West Australia, the Bristol Suspension Bridge in Bristol UK, Mt Whaleback in Newman, Western Australia and my son during his trek along the Appalachian Trail in the US. I didn’t take the US photo or the Mt Whaleback one!
I wish for a good outcome (one that benefits most people) for this Saturday’s State Election in Western Australia.
The photo below is one I took of a group of State and Federal politicians when I worked for the North West Telegraph in the Pilbara in the 1990’s. Can any West Aussies remember these faces? I think they are all retired now :).
For more information about the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE
I recently resigned from my part-time job as a Real Estate Writer with our local community newspaper. Each week I would visit three properties and write an article on each one. I also edited about a dozen small articles written by the real estate sales reps.
Real estate writing has a bad reputation however it isn’t that difficult to write up an honest description of a property with a focus on its positive attributes. Below I will include a copy of a PDF document of words I put together for reference when I was stuck.
Here are few random thoughts from my nearly three years doing the job
Here is my handy Real Estate Words List
There is so much pressure for us to get involved in stuff. I find it all the time. I think it is about time I accepted that I like my life the way it is!
I am surrounded by people who are always off on holidays. Normal conversation involves talking about where you have been and where you are going next. I feel a bit inadequate not being able to contribute.
I am not into sport either – or the theatre. I am happy to stay home and watch some good programs on Netflix, read good novels and the like.
Perhaps it is in part due to be an introvert. I can spend hours researching obscure topics of interest.
So I think in future I will remind myself it is okay to have a small life – as long as I am happy with it the way it is. No problem with other people having busy lives if that is what makes them happy!
As I look back over my life there are probably a dozen incidents or more that were a significant blow to my equilibrium. The sort that makes everything else seem petty and unimportant.
I am sure that we all experience these things from time to time. My first experience I remember was when my school friend’s father died. He worked at our school and was very popular with all the kids. It was my first encounter with death and the aftermath.
I have since experienced marriage break-ups, sickness and deaths in the family, tragedies such as a five-year old neighbour’s child drowning, losing my brother and sister-in-law too soon …
I am not unique – similar things are happening every day to people around us. When I am in my ‘happy space’ I may not even be aware of others’ suffering.
I don’t know what I am trying to say today – just that life can be tough at times – we need to love and care for each other.
Many years ago (too many to mention) we lived in a remote Indigenous community called Numbulwar in the Northern Territory of Australia. The main means of transport were by sea or air with only a few brave ones taking a four-wheel drive vehicle into the remote sandy tracks into the bush.
For more information about the Photo Challenge click here
A few suggestions for A Good Match for this week’s challenge 🙂 Click HERE for more information.
My Uncle Roy had a life-long interest in steam engines. He is photographed here in his early 90’s getting this particular steam engine running. He belonged to a group called the Border FlyWheelers in Barham, NSW and he was by far the oldest member. However, he was the ONLY member that had his “boiler ticket” that allowed him alone to operate the machinery. I don’t know how they manage since he passed away in 2010. An inspiration and mentor to me in many ways.
For more information about the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE
For more information about the photo challenge click HERE
Check out the link to Wikipedia about the Melbourne Central Shopping Centre
“Contained underneath the shopping centre’s massive glass cone sits the Coop’s Shot Tower which was built on the site in 1888. After last being used in 1961, the tower was retained to become a focal-point of the centre, R.M. Williams and the Shot Tower Museum now take up the inside of it.”
For more info about the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE
shot tower in Melbourne Central Shopping Centre
I have selected a few photos that say “graceful” to me. If you would like to see more about the Photo Challenge click HERE
This photo of me was taken last year at Mama’s Buoi Vietnamese Restaurant behind the GPO in Melbourne. The food was great but it was the ambience that attracted us to dine there more than once.
For more information about the Weekly Photo Challenge click HERE
When I saw the topic for the Daily Post today I immediately thought of this song that I love. Have a listen and it might just bring some sunshine into your day 🙂 (it did to mine).
When I was a young girl my Uncle bought me a microscope so that I could see the cells in leaves. I have been fascinated with the micro-structure of things ever since!
I watched an amazing film today at the CinefestOz Festival in Busselton. Please check out the link to learn more about the Festival that finished today.
The movie, The Song Keepers, was recently shown at the Melbourne International Film Festival.
From the website:
I found it very moving and had lots of laughs as well. I have lived and worked in Aboriginal communities in remote parts of Australia and these women in the movie reminded me of those I knew. Just as the Hermannsburg Mission is part of their story I realised that my time spent in these communities are part of MY story and I feel much enriched by the experience.
The Trailer for the movie is below.
