A meeting of minds

I was standing in the queue at Woolworths trying surreptitiously check out the awesome 50's hairstyle of the checkout chick when I accidentally caught her eye.  It was a tad awkward, there is nothing like someone realising you've been looking at them.

Of course as luck would have it, I ended up at her counter, so I decided to break the ice by declaring that her hair was really cool.  "Really" she said "because I've been thinking how excellent your dress is".  There it was, we had both been checking out each other's retro styles!

As she scanned my groceries we had an excellent chat about mod-vintage style, where to get a decent petticoat (ebay is your friend) and other clothing / fashion topics.  It was a surprising momentary meeting of the minds and reminded me of a decision I made ages ago to comment if I think someone is looking good.  There is nothing like a compliment to lighten your day.

The family jewels

I've been lucky enough to inherit quite a bit of jewelery. While some of it is worth something it is maily special because of sentimental value, in memories of my grandmothers wearing it.

But there are a few pieces that I don't remember them ever wearing which I still treasure as something that ties me to my family. Today I wore two of those things. The first is some antique pearl earrings. I don't ever remember my grandmother wearing them but I know that they belonged to her mother. I'm the 4th generation for those earrings, what changing times they must have seen.

The other is a "pearl" necklace, 4 strands graduating from white to dark grey. Occasionally I get comments about my south sea pearls - I wish! They do look great but are definitely fake, in fact my Mum had them in the charity box before I rescued them. But with the earrings and the right outfit I look pretty swish if I do say so myself.

I love the jewelery I've received as gifts or bought over the years but I must say when I get out one of the old pieces, they are just that bit extra special.

Corellas

This morning as I drove into work I went past a massive group of corellas. I don't remember seeing them before in Canberra, so seeing such a large flock was a lovely surprise (well lovely for me, the church whose conifers they were destroying might think differently.)

Corellas look a bit like a small cockatoo minus the yellow crest and they are equally as willful and mischievous.  This morning's flock were busily destroying a stand of conifers to get at the seeds, but in doing so were so cute.  They were hanging from trees, squabbling with each other, performing aerial gymnastics.  There was one really sweet one with a massive branch, running along the footpath, shooing all the other birds out of its way.  It honestly looked like it was running late for an appointment.

I love how birds, particularly parrots with their stumpy little legs, look when they run.  Waddling side to side, almost hoping, they look so clumsy, I always think to myself, you have wings, fly!  What a fun way to start the morning.

Generosity in all shapes and sizes

As I walked into the city today to meet my fabulous mother and sister for a spot of shopping, I saw a young girl busking, but I was in a hurry to meet them so I didn't pay much attention to her.

However as I walked back to work I really noticed her.  She was young, maybe 10, playing the guitar and singing just beautifully.  As I went by she was playing the Leonard Cohen song "Hallelujah".  She was fantastic, her playing was great and her voice lovely.

But the thing that really made her special was the sign she had propped up in front which read "Hi, I'm Lucy.  All proceeds will go to the flood appeal".  She had obviously painted the sign herself and her guitar case was brimming full of coins and plenty of notes.  I would guess she had made several hundred dollars for the flood appeal.

I am so proud of this country of ours and the many ways that people have helped with the disasters unfolding around us.  From the stories of the thousands of volunteers turning up to help clean in Brisbane, to the businesses and community groups fundraising, to individual efforts like Lucy's where she gave up a day of her school holidays and her busking income, Australians have been overwhelming in their generosity.

But I do have an extra space in my heart for kids like Lucy.  It isn't easy helping a cause as a kid, lets face it you don't really have access to many resources beyond your own ingenuity.  So seeing a kid work out a way to do their bit is just that extra bit meaningful and reminds us that we can all contribute to making this world a better place.

This is a fantastic country and as distressing as events have been recently, it has also gone to show just how strong, resilient and community minded we really are.  Well done everyone!

Fruit Salad

Yesterday I went to the markets at the end of the day. They are only open Thursday - Sunday so on a Sunday afternoon they sell off everything at bargain prices. Everyone of course knows this and they can be absolutely packed, but I managed to get a massive basket full of lovely fresh produce for just $20.

Included in my basket were nectarines, peaches, plumcots, a rockmelon, passionfruit and strawberries which this afternoon I have been enjoying as a very summary fruit salad. All the fruit was just bursting with flavour. It is just a joy to eat and I could feel my body soaking up all the vitamins and minerals.

It truly was a delicious afternoon tea.

Let the good times roll

This time last year I was at a very confused stage of my life. Relationships and work were both at up in the air, I felt unsettled, not comfortable, ill at ease with life.

I reflected on this today when I was thinking about just how very happy I am. I'm surrounded by brilliant people, in a great job, with a year ahead of me that already holds the promise of wonderful times to come.

It can be very easy to be aware of the difficult stuff but not pay the same attention when things are good. Right now things are fantastic and I'm super happy!

Being a kid again

I went to Questacon today. It was hugely fun, running around, trying the experiments, being a kid again.

I really do give the Questacon people a huge amount of credit for the fantastic work they put into the exhibits. They make the science so interesting and engaging, even as an adult you get caught right up in the fun of it all.

There were families galore and on occasion we had to jostle the kids for position (only kidding) but it was wonderful to see everyone getting into the science like that.

What a fun day out.