For The Child Within...

Last night, like thousands others, we congregated on the side of a hill in singlets and sandals and watched in awe at the magical light display in Queens Park. Nestled alongside parents with their toddlers and elderly couples on lawn-chairs - every one of us with our eyes transfixed on the sky waiting for that first flash and bang. And then...

We oohed and aahed, pointing at each new explosion of colour, and as the last sparkling light fizzled down the crowds cheered and applauded.

For twenty minutes, we were all children again...

and now for 30 seconds you can be a child again too!
 

How did you spend your New Years Eve?

Star Struck

Today involved gushing like a girl in love and employing every good brain cell to refrain from asking for autographs*.

Today, I met Carol Burns.

You may be asking "who?" or (hopefully) feeling envious of me!

If you're an Aussie and watched T.V in the 70's/80's (or like myself, watch it on cable now) you may know of the great Aussie soap opera Prisoner (also known as :Cell Block H in the UK and USA, and Caged Women in Canada), if not, Google it , watch it on You Tube, or better even GO OUT AND RENT IT NOW! It is iconic! Many of Australia's most well known female actors (and a few males) have walked the corridors of Wentworth Prison; Maggie Kirkpatrick (currently performing throughout Oz in Wicked), Judith McGrath (also well known as Von in All Saints), and Colette Man (currently on Neighbours as Sheila Canning) to name just a few.**

So, back to Carol Burns. She is a founding member of the Queensland Theatre Company, played the iconic 'lesbian enforcer' Frankie Doyle in Prisoner, which won her a Logie for Best Lead Actress in a Series, has performed both on stage and in front of the camera in numerous award winning productions, has received several acting nominations and awards, and is currently here, on the Mountain, directing The Female of the Species (written by Joanna Murray-Smith) at the Empire Theatre. Now, in her 60's, she is still performing, regularly with the Queensland Theatre Company, directing, presents acting workshops, throughout Australia, and internationally. 

She is truly inspiring, and one of the most generous performers I have had the pleasure of meeting. 

Today, my day was made!

* Autographs might have pushed us into 'scary groupie' status, but we couldn't pass up a photo op! ;) 
** The series employed over 200 (207, to be exact) actors over its 8 seasons! Oh, to be an aspiring actress back then!

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I have another couple of 'star struck' posts in the works; including, sitting within spitting distance of Geoffrey Rush, and the incredibly queer performance artist 'Stelarc', so check back soon!

Lazy Sunday

We slept in, snuggled under warm covers, every so often, snoozing the alarm.
We ventured out into bright sunshine and soft breezes, teasing of spring to come.

Sam sang, and I reveled in her voice.

 There was a petting zoo, photo booth and freebies galore.

Photos: Sam's phone.

We walked the dog, and enjoyed organic coffee and spelt pizza.

And as the sun set, all five of us crawled into bed, with lasagne and Greys Anatomy.

~ I love lazy Sunday's.

Date Night

Tonight we braved the cold and headed out for an impromptu date night! We enjoyed steaming hot bowls of miso soup, vegetable tempura, unagi nigiri (eel) and my fave, inarizushi (sweet tofu and rice parcels) all washed down with Japanese Lemonade at our local sushi train Hana Japanese Sushi Restaurant. We dropped into our favourite* cafe Firefly for a delicious coffee; their cappuccino's have real chocolate shavings on top! Delicious! Needless to say we were two very full ladies! We then headed home to our cosy bed filled with sleepy animals (I found Tiger napping on my pillow and the cats snuggled together under the blankets *rolls eyes*). A wonderful evening with a wonderful friend!

P.S. If you're ever up 'the mountain' dropping by either of these little gems will be well worth it, and maybe we'll bump into each other!


*Okay, so I work at Firefly, but it was our favourite cafe before it became my workplace. It has some of the best coffee I have ever experienced - I'd even compare it to the coffee's I have had in Melbourne! So I may be a little biased but I don't lie about great coffee!

To Market, To Market

So as I said in my last post, Sam and I went to the farmers market last Sunday and we've spent the week enjoying fresh strawberries and home-made caramel slice ever since. There's something relaxing and rejuvenating about waking early to enjoy breakfast at a local cafe followed by strolling hand-in-hand through the lane ways picking out the perfect punnet of berries or tasting 'sweet n salty' popcorn from vendors, all whilst listening to buskers and enjoying the early morning sunshine. Although I don't usually enjoy the chilly mornings up here on the mountain, I found the crisp breeze refreshing and found new appreciation for the dappled sunlight peeking through the trees and between tents which warmed our cold noses and hands.

I love these small, and somewhat ordinary moments spent with Sam. 

It's becoming increasingly harder to find time to devote completely to each other; between study and work and social events we're often exhausted at the end of the day. Even though it's just Sam and I (and the animals) at home, we often get so set in our everyday activities that we forget to savor the little moments spent together. 

I know I often think that we should be traveling more or going out to dinner more or spending more money on things in order to make our life together more memorable, but I'm slowly discovering that it's the little everyday moments spent together that I remember the most. 

Our little Sunday trip has stuck in my head for more than a week now, and I know it'll be a fond memory for a long time to come - no matter how mundane it may seem. 

* Photos by Sam and myself.