Wild orchids.

I saw two orchids yesterday.

One, the greenhood, a leafy green hood, cute as a button. The other, the bronze-veined shell orchid, is brighter and playful - with bronze lips and veins, and two white upright whiskers.

In my skin - I want to be a seal.

I got dressed up. I wore my red jacket. It was fun.
Gray wore the shiny pink paisley shirt that I bought for him when we lived in Mullumbimby. He looked gorgeous.

They made Ms Polly work for our free ticket - all afternoon we were making rice paper rolls. Then at the hall we were selling tickets at the door, serving coffee and washing up. Though I did like the way glasses of very good white wine (from the vineyard that sponsored the event) would appear, now and then, to cheer up the kitchen and front-of-door minions. And I liked my fellow minions. The films were very mixed - but some were excellent. I particularly liked "Ricocco the Clown", the sulky, silent and faintly sinister clown who did not approve of balloon animals.

Gray is a little frazzled by his deadline but I had a wonderful day today - I took a couple of front-counter volunteers out with me and we went with the National Park Ranger on a four wheel drive trip to see lots of places of interest. Waterfalls, lakes, beaches. Somewhat less exciting were the detailed inspections of picnic shelters, toilets and camping grounds.

From a shore of chunky black basalt, I saw a pod of seals fishing in the emerald and white crashing surf. They looked like athletes - perfectly at home in their sport. So comfortable in their skin, slick and glossy.

Playing guitar at the food co-op.

Gray is working very hard for his boss, the very beautiful and somewhat imperial Naomi, who called him from her hospital bed to ask him to work on a grant application that is due in five days. He couldn't possibly refuse but it's a huge challenge for him - she's the only person who really has all the information so he's having to wing it. Just as well he has a sound academic background in Wankology.

I did Gray's day at the Food Co-op for him, and Troy came in and said he didn't mind if I just played guitar the whole time, so I did. An old lady walked by while I was playing "Love is Pleasing" and she lingered in the doorway and said sweet things when I was done. I can play 129 songs now. That's quite a lot of songs. I don't play all of them well, but some are okay. Troy thinks it gives the place good energy. I liked all the praise I got from Troy and the customers. I am a little bit needy that way.

Tonight the Arts Association is hosting a Comedy Film Festival at the Town Hall. Mannie is making plates and plates of rice-paper rolls and a jar of dipping sauce in return for a free ticket. They make lots of money selling little supper plates, probably as much money as they make selling tickets. I'm also working at the door - and I have a complimentary ticket for Gray so we'll both be going.

I'll get dressed up, wear my red jacket. It will be fun.

My winter coat.

A parcel arrived for me. Thank you Mama.

The parcel included my winter coat - a Melbourne Tram Drivers coat that is bottle green with gold buttons, a Nepalese jacket - cherry-red, with vibrant embroidery and nice flat buttons replacing the bells, that funny old jumper from Venezuala that Dad brought home for Mum that she said was too scratchy, a pretty fabric brooch made for us last birthday by an old friend, Mannie & Thea's striped silk scarf that Gray gave us, the black mary-janes that Leila gave me and my expensive black boots.

It is getting very cold here. I'm glad to have my winter coat.

The Bloggettes

Is it a girl band?

After a hard week of saying goodbye to the Defender of the Universe, it was really lovely to see a whole new life arrive here. Welcome to Earth, little one. And congratulations to Ted and Sumie!

Chopping wood.

I've had very serene afternoon of chopping up wood, in the courtyard at work, for the little wood stove that we use to keep the place the warm. It was really cathartic. I like chopping wood.

Shooting chores.

It's my day off today and the volunteer replacing me today is friendly, calm, reliable and likes me so I'm enjoying my morning without any anxiety about what kind of craziness is occurring at work, without me.

I have a SheOak session tonight at Lilly's house and nothing to do this afternoon. I've spent most of the morning in bed reading a novel, "Transit of Venus". It's by Shirley Hazzard, an Australian writer. It's really pretty good and nothing like the kind of book that the title might suggest to those who tend to judge a book by it's title, like um *guilty look* me - I admit I was relieved when the astrological bit proved to be such a small conceit, hmmm, time for a full stop, surely, okay then, here, have three... And I've grumbled about washing (which I really ought to go and hang out), had coffee with Gray and look, it's almost noon.
Oops, scratch the "almost".
(insert whocka board sound FX)
Back again, and the kettle has just boiled and I'm about to drink a Laspang Souchong tea and...
(more of the whocka board sound FX)
here I am again, drinking tea. I've been shooting chores today. Laundry, a trip to the village tip to fossick for computer junk and to recycle an embarrassment of wine bottles, more laundry, some landlord wrangling regarding a dodgy electrical switch, and a couple of work related phone calls.
It's beautiful here - cold and sunny.

Want to see pictures of the beautiful kitty?
And our (also beautiful) ex-husband?
Email me and I'll send you a link, once I have checked that it's okay to do that. Or, I might post it here, if that's okay. I'm not sure exactly who it has to be okay with, possibly with some Polly people as well as some other people lucky enough to have a whole body all of their own. My people will talk to some other people, and we'll get back to you. For proof that I do in fact know how to use the link function on Blogspot, pop over to My Cardigan Smells of Dog. Or, you could just scroll down a bit.

Who will defend the universe now?

My neighbour Max and I agree.

It's a gorgeous Saturday, cold and sunny.

I love cold weather. Cheerful in his tracksuits and pink beenie, my neighbour Max and I agree, as he stands in the garden in the light drizzle; "It's beautiful weather. It just couldn't be better." Says Max. And me.

There's a meeting on right now at the Bugsplat Food Co-op, but I'm wagging it... coz... I'm feeling so cosy. I don't want to go and sit on bad chairs in a circle on cold concrete and listen to the usual ego trips banging on and pity the people who actually run the place. Besides all that, I tend to end up with jobs when I go to these meetings and I have too much to do already. Next week is stocktake and we're getting ready for the end of financial year. There are many acccounts to mess up and people to confuse. I'm a very busy girl.
I can't be doing that stuff for free.

There are five white ducks in the back lane. I like them. Max likes to complain about them. There are lemons falling over the fence into the abandoned garden across the lane. It's almost the end of apple season.

My cardigan smells of dog.

My cardigan is beautiful. It's a lovely colour - the colour of cocoa powder. It's fluffy and has pockets (I like) and a nice collar. The only problem with my cardigan is that it smells of dog. I don't know why it smells of dog. My dog lives in Queensland with my mother. I have just washed it! It still smells of dog.

So, does this stop me wearing it?

*hangs head*

At least it doesn't smell of Bangkok Street Dogs.

FRwerozen fiwotngers.

Mtwethothy Fiwotngers arewwwwww FRwerozen.
IT:ewis haraewd to tyowpe with FRwerozen fiwotngers.

It could be something like Stockholm Syndrone.

Some of us seem to have a crush on our dental technician.

Baby's First Board Meeting.

That little dungeon scamp Trouble has her first board meeting tonight. She's just finished writing her Manager's Report.
:~)
(I helped her with some of it.)

Our new hobby.

Our new hobby, dentistry, is expensive and painful.

SheOak practice was good. Lilly and I (u.i.l) have a fabulous tango counterpoint going. I have dance this afternoon, in a chilly wood-floored hall. The season of Mawkur has arrived with darkness, woodsmoke and rain. We have fireplace with a door of glass. The screensaver is very nice. Swirly orange and blue.

Seasons of the South-west.

Beruc (December & January)
~ freshwater fishing and collecting shellfish
Meertilluc (February and March)
~ meetings and ceremonies, gathering fruits and seeds
Pourner (April and May)
~ fire-stick farming and hunting
Mawkur (June & July)
~ cooking food, living in shelters
Meerningal (August & September)
~ catching birds and mammals, travelling with chattels
Maungernan (October & November)
~ gathering root tubers, toolmaking and quarrying

Polly gets crackers.

I have eleven students in my bellydance class and our first class, on Sunday, went really well.

This guy, Bob, who can't read or write, and gets me to write his letters for him, gave me a thank you gift of block of chocolate (Cadbury's Fruit and Nut)yesterday. He's a short-wave radio enthusiast. He writes to the English Language Broadcast departments of stations all over the world and sends them postcards. They send him postcards back. They write exquisitely polite letters to each other. It moves me, such delicate solicitude between strangers.

I got my first paycheck today.