Hands Up if You've Eaten a Mulberry

Firstly, I need to make a few housekeeping announcements.

You may have noticed a noticeable lack of WWWs lately (for those who are not in the lingo WWW stands for Wonderful Word of the Week.  (It may also stand for something else v. well known, but I choose to ignore that.)

That was intentional (i.e. I have not forgotten that I was planning on expanding my vocab on a weekly basis), but I decided to take a little break because my vocab has been challenged without my own doing.  It's called studying too many university course texts and readings.  The definition of a university course reading is as follows:

A document of around 22 pages written by an academic who is trying to convince you of his or her own opinion or theory.  Is always peer-reviewed and contains words which have probably been invented by the author themselves while formulating their theories on which they are now trying to convince you.  Very hard to understand and must always be read multiple times, and with the knowledge that you are never going to fully comprehend what was written.  It's a given.

You can't even use a normal dictionary as an aid while reading one of the above.  No, you need a specifically academic dictionary related to your discipline:  the theology dictionary, a philosophy dictionary, or in my case, a dictionary of sociology.

What I'm trying to say is that I just don't have it in me to attempt a WWW for a little while.

I'm sticking with the simple things in life...

Blog Award

This morning I woke up to a lovely surprise.

If I knew anything about science I would say it is scientifically proven that waking up to a lovely surprise means your whole day will behave properly and be nice.

Lovely surprise: 

I was so surprised (in a lovely way) that I was inspired to put all the text of this blog in the centre.  I don't think I've really ever done that before.

This was awarded to me by one of my favourite fellow bloggers who has one of my favourite types of blogs: a photography blog.  She's a genius behind the lens (and she has a very large camera too).  

So thank you E.!

The One Lovely Blog Award is special because it comes with small print ;)

Tell seven things about yourself that everyone presumably doesn't know.  And then award other bloggers.

Seven Things About The Mouse That You Presumably Don't Know

Her Pinkness

Yesterday the Queen came to Melbourne for four and a bit hours (though I heard she began to run late when she stayed overtime in Fed Square).

I call it a real historic event.  I know it was an historic event because my family only ever watches the news on tv when something historic happens (this includes Black Saturday, tornado in NZ, and the Australian Open finals).

In Melbourne, the Queen walked on red carpet, she accepted five carloads of flowers from little children, she saw the tops of everyone's heads as they curtsied/bowed, she sat on an uncomfortable seat in a royal tram, she saw the meerkats at the Royal Children's Hospital (and the children too), and she stood on a pedestal in Government House while everyone looked at her.

And the sun shone the whole time.  That means Melbourne didn't let her down (breaths a big sigh of relief).

Photo from Heraldsun.com.au

Let's talk about the Queen.  I love the Queen!

In leave of my absence...

I actually have no idea what the above means, but it sounds pretty good seeing as I haven't posted for almost a week.  

Each day during that week has been topsy turvy and entirely without schedule (that's my excuse).

Right now I'm getting used to my shiny new laptop and coming to terms with the fact that having your own computer means you can use it whenever you want to.  Oh, the luxury.  I'm being dramatic because I practically used our other computer whenever I wanted to.  

In all the transferring of files from old computer to new, I've been paranoid about somehow accidentally deleting every single photo (as I have in the past), so I've got copies of the same photos stored everywhere imaginable.  They'll probably still be turning up in random inexplicable areas of the hardrive in ten years - areas which I am sure I never use but contain lots of files with gibberish names.  I can't delete any of those can I?  Or my computer won't turn on or something.  I'm not a techy mouse, people.  Not a techy mouse at all. 

Here are some of my favourite photos to tide you over while I get back to work...

And can I just say, if Google Chrome gives me another little red line under my words which are spelt in the AUSTRALIAN WAY.  I am going to SCREAM.  Can you believe it's even put a little red line under the word 'spelt'.  In another few years my spelling confidence is going to be shot.

Photographic evidence of turning 20.  I ordered everyone else to light it up so I could take some shots.

I love electricity & ciambotta

{Written yesterday evening, October 14th}


I'm very tempted to give a nice long spiel about Things Which We Take For Granted, inspired by my recent experience of a First World Problem (as opposed to Third World problems - which are big).

But that would be really boring and probably very uninspiring.  I'm a great believer in the philosophy that you can only really learn something properly until you've experienced it yourself.  For example, your father may tell you that the barbecue is hot, so don't you dare touch it.  But then you touch it anyway because surely there are different opinions on what 'hot' can mean.  'Hot' is what temperature exactly?  'Hot' as in we need to jump in the pool?  'Hot' as in you feel the heat radiating onto your face?  'Hot' as in adults like to drink their tea hot (I hate tea)?

More like 'hot' you'll burn your finger, and so my little brother did.  Touch the barbecue, I mean.  And burn his finger too.  At least we think he did because he tore off down the garden as soon as it happened and disappeared in the bushes for a while.

This morning I was on the internet at 7:30am because we'd received a little slip of paper in the mail telling us that the power would go off from 8:30am to some late hour.  Without thinking about it too heavily, it registered in my mind that no power equals no internet.  That's okay, I don't really need 24/7 internet access as long as I check everything in the morning...

French Island: Part 1

Phillip Island is fast becoming one of my family's favourite holiday destinations.

We've tracked all over Victoria: from the Grampians to Echuca, Bendigo to Inverloch, Warrnambool to Albury/Wodonga... and all the way from Portland to Lake's Entrance.
It also seems to be an  A----------  family trademark to never go to the same place more than once.  I'm still not sure how that really works...I think it has something to do with the fact that we go to a place, do everything there within the week and decide never to go back (at least not while there is still unexplored ground in the state of Victoria).
I realise that may be a little strange for those of you who are regulars at certain holiday destinations.  That's normal, right?

But we've been to Phillip Island three times now - I think that makes it a regular spot.

Look, I worked out how to put a nifty little map on my blog!  How spiffy.




View Larger Map

Back to Phillip Island.

There's something special about an island.  I can't quite put my finger on what it actually is, but it probably has something to do with the fact that when your on an island, you're no longer on the mainland.

Plus you are completely surrounded by water.  Boats suddenly become necessary.  Whichever way you walk, you'll hit a beach.  And the beach is a good place.

Is Australia an island?  Should I google that?  I'd rather live in denial and say that it is, even though it probably technically isn't.  But moving right along...

WWW: Commiserate

This is a very belated post which was held up by one week of organised chaos which ran from last Monday to this Saturday.  Yes, the Children's Institute is an oxymoron like that. 
Rewinding the clock...let us imagine that we are back at last Tuesday (when I actually started to write this post). 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

"AFTER a near-perfect home and away, Collingwood has been unable to win on the day that it mattered, losing the Grand Final to Geelong by 38 points at the MCG."
From CollingwoodFC.com



Wonderful Word of the Week had to be directly related to all the messages of condolence I have received since Saturday.
 
I was expecially impressed by the fact that one caring friend bothered to email all the way from the Solomon Islands, just to make sure I hadn't sunk into depression.

"My" team lost.  Oh well.  Has anyone noticed the amazing Melbourne weather this week?  Are there any good movies coming out these school holidays? 

Ok, now seriously, a follow up on last week's prediction for Saturday:

I did yell.

I did not attempt to study at half time.

Adventures in Omelette: Italiano

If all my other adventures in omelette haven't been true experiments (and they are - trust me), then this one takes the cake.

What if I took one of my favourite cultural combinations of ingredients, and decided to pretend my next omelette was a pizza.  

That sounds bad.