Shades of Pink

It's not often I do a load of laundry.  Hubby is the washer-man in our household.  Every now and then I do gather up a load of whites or delicates, or in this case, pinks.  I realised, only today, how many of my tops are pink, when I had hung everything on the line.  I had one delicate top, so threw in a handful of coloureds to make the load slightly worthwhile.  You can see one apricot-coloured shirt behind the front line.  Otherwise, they're all shades of pink, from light to very dark burgundy.

Despite what this looks like, I do own other colours.  Like a green and blue.  But mostly pink.

What's your favourited clothing colour?  Is it deliberate or purely accidental?

Dear Facebook....

Dear Facebook

It seems to me we are at an impasse.  One that neither of us seems willing to negotiate our way through.  I am a fierce abstainer.  I know your aim is to connect people, and that makes me look like a snob.  But actually, I've watched family members and friends who are so attached to you, they forget to live their real, actual lives.  And they lose hours and hours of time scrolling through I-don't-know-what-garbage that other people have liked.  I don't have people in far away places with whom I need to keep in touch.  All my people are close by - a text or an email away at most.  I also don't feel the need to post events in my life for the game of seeing how many people "like" what I'm doing.  Or maybe that's just my competitive in-law family.  But I don't think it's just them.

The problem here, dear Facebook, is that you are very bossy.  You demand that I sign up.  Every time I want to read what one of my four favourite personalities have written you pop up a little screen, through which I can see nothing, that says I need to sign up to see more.  I don't want to see more.  I just want to see today's post without clicking those stupid screens away multiple times.  It's not my fault people have moved away from friendly blogs that accept anyone who wants to read them.  I have no intention of commenting or liking or whatever else people do with posts they like.  I just want to read and move on with my day.  That's it.  It takes me about 5 minutes.  Or it would, if you would stop making me click those annoying screens, and then clicking that I want to "see all" posts rather than a summary of different media that person has posted.  Quite frankly, I am starting to resent the fact that you insist that I sign up.

I have a proposition for you.  If you could remove those pop-up screens that remind me I am not signed up, and just let me read those four people's pages, we could probably live quite harmoniously.  I won't demand anything from you, and I would love it if you didn't demand anything from me.

Fun - 20yo Style

Miss Sunshine's car is off the road for a couple of days, thanks to a cracked windscreen.  This morning I drove her, just like old times, to one of her friend's homes for some good old fashioned girlfriend time.

And what do 20yo young women do when they get together?  Make gingerbread houses, of course.  It matters not that the season for such things is now passed.  You wouldn't want to let that get in the way of a good thing!

I love that these three girls, who spent most of their Primary years and all of their Secondary with each other, and that they still value their friendship.  They spend the whole day making gingerbread and then creating cute little cottages - one each to share with their families.  Miss Sunshine's is now missing half a roof.  The most delicious roof you ever did taste!

Of course life with a 20yo is never smooth sailing, especially if said child is one that needs to be the boss of her own space.  I believe "tanty" adequately explains the whining little hissy fit that happened as we left the house.  Something about sap and having just washed her car.  If only life was so perfect that sap never happened!

Welcome to 2017

Gardens at Entally House (near Launceston)

Happy New Year everyone!

My 2017 has begun slowly and quietly.  You know that saying "begin as you intend to continue"?  I'd be quite content for a slow and quiet year.  Of course, that's highly unlikely, but maybe just being aware of making slow, quiet choices is a good way to begin.

We have ended up being home for the summer holidays this year, for perhaps the first time ever.  In a couple of days the girls are off to housesit for friends who are in Austria for a few weeks.  Mr Busy, Dh and I may spend a few days with my parents, near Ballarat.  Otherwise, it's just reading, and napping, and movie-watching, and planning a kitchen overhaul, and trying very hard to avoid watching cricket.  Given Dh's adoration for the game, this leaves me with lots of YouTube watching, or watching catch-up TV online.  Thank you unlimited internet!  I think the slothful life needs to come to an end, so I'm beginning to think about bite-sized tasks that need to be dealt with before I head back to work in a few weeks.

• Clear out dining room.  We don't use the dining room for dining.  Ever.  So it has become Dh's "Chinese Laundry" and general dumping area.  I can't stand it!  That'll be the makings of a before and after post, I think.
• Deal with Yr12 Artworks.  With two girls having done Yr12 Studio Arts, we have some bulky items that have been languishing, inconveniently, about the place.  These. Must. Go!  I'm going to be setting a time line, after which they cannot reasonably expect these pieces to continue their space-clogging ways.
• Term Planning.  What can I say, I have some work that needs to get done before I arrive back at school for  what we call "Work Break" - that time between teachers going back to school and when the kids start back.
• Friend catch up's.  I need to schedule in some time with a few friends.
• Freezer Stock Up.  This will need to be closer to going back to school - a trip to Costco and some pre-cooking preparation will go a long way to keeping us fed with less stress at dinner time.
• Kitchen Preparation.  I need to look into kitchen sinks, tap ware and tile for the backsplash.  I have a design consultant coming in this week, so I'll likely need to add to that list.  Having said that, I already know what style of doors, door handles and bench top I want.

That'll do me!  I need to make sure I have space to continue my slow and quiet beginning to the year.

What are your short-term goals for the summer (or winter, if that's what you've got going where you are)?

New (to me) Kitchen Toy

I have drooled over microplane graters and baulked at the cost for many, many...many years.  Since Dh was struggling for something buy me for Christmas I suggested this.  And because I had him in House before Christmas, I even pointed them out, and the difference between the two prices.

Unlike me, Dh bought the more expensive one (the one I liked better, and wouldn't have bought for myself), and I used it yesterday afternoon when I was making lemon curd with those pesky four egg yolks left from making pavlova.

The microplane grater?  A true revelation!  It is so smooth and easy to use, compared to every zester I have ever had (the very cheap versions of a zester!).  I find myself trying to come up with ways to zest something, or mince garlic or ginger.  It's like the difference between driving a vintage VW Bug and driving a Rolls Royce.  Not that I've ever driven either, but I imagine the Bug is rough and clunky and the Rolls Royce would be smooth and delightful.  This is now my zesting experience.  Smooth and delightful.

Now...to get my Kitchen Aide mixer repaired.  The on/off/speed knob is stuck on 1 and can't be turned off, except at the wall switch.

New Kitchen Questions

We are in the very beginning stages of planning for a new kitchen.  This one is so dark it, sucks all the light out of the room (and it's a very light room!), and it needs quite a bit of work....or replacement.  Since the oven is doing weird stuff, like turning itself on an off at random times, and the door doesn't close, it's time to replace it.  So...we're looking to gut the kitchen and start over.  At this point the microwave, dishwasher and fridge are the only things we plan to keep.

There are some things I know I definitely want in a new kitchen:

• white vinyl wrap cabinets, instead of dark wood
• drawers instead of cupboards as much as possible
• stone bench top (light coloured)
• sink going the opposite direction
• 90cm gas cooktop (the 60cm I have is too small for the pots I use all the time)
• microwave mounted WAY lower than it's current position (the bottom is my head height - so dumb)
• pyrolytic, self-cleaning oven

Question of the day:  under bench oven, or wall oven?
I am totally uncertain about the oven.  I thought I wanted a larger, under-bench oven.  It would give me a little more bench space, and the kitchen layout would be more flexible.  But when we were looking at appliances the other day the sales girl made a very valid point:  under-bench ovens are harder to get heavy things in and out.  My SIL has recently moved house and gone from wall to under-bench, and she agreed.  Now I'm really not sure what to do.


I need some good advice.  If you have your choice what would you have...and why?

Best Post-Indulgence Breakfast

Same smoothie, different mug.  Still my favourite:  banana, raspberries (frozen), cinnamon. I prefer almond milk for this (and only this!), but since all we had was regular jersey milk that's what I used.