EasternMax

Saturday in Perth #3

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 11:58:00 +0000

Cottesloe beach.

I've refrained from the usual photo of Indiana Tea Rooms with the Pylon looming large in the background because I want to try to convey how magnificent this beach is without those props.

You probably saw the latest list of the 10 best beaches in the world recently in one of the papers. I cannot for the life of me understand how "they" come up with those lists. The beaches are generally either inaccessible, unswimmable, have beaches made up of stones or all three.

I get that those beaches may be pretty but in my book a beach is good if it has great sand, beautiful clear blue water, no rips/undertow/rocks underfoot and no stingers. Sorry Busselton, the stinger thing keeps you off my list.

The lifesavers in the rubber ducky were looking intently into the water...

Cottesloe beach has it all in spades. And it is a five minute drive from home.

This morning is was simply magnificent. It wasn't feeling like putting on waves so it put on gentle rolling swell.

The sand was warm without being baking hot.

And the general store does a pretty good line in coffee, milkshakes and yogurt cups with passionfruit pulp. I love that they leave out those little metal stools so you can lean against the glass and stare out to sea.

Back in Perth

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 15:50:00 +0000

So, I was doing well with my Appreciate Perth More resolution. Savouring the warm weather, loving the beach, enjoying the laid back pace and that thongs are a more than reasonable footwear option at just about any event. Then I had to go to Sydney for work.

Aaaargh.

I ate real Thai food. Had dinner at Cafe Sydney. Sigh. Went to meetings in buildings with views of the harbour and Walsh Bay. Walked through the cavernous above and below ground shopping complexes in the CBD. Walked amongst the hustle and bustle.

Sydney really can cut it on the international stage.

So it was nice to go to the theatre the day after my return to Perth. We managed to get tickets to the sold out week-long season of The Secret River. This adaptation for stage by Andrew Bovell is mesmerising and if you haven't seen it definitely do so if it comes your way. It's a true modern classic.

We saw it at The Maj (or His Majesty's Theatre) in Perth.

I haven't been to The Maj for years. Managed to take some sneaky shots of the beautiful inside before being asked to put my phone/camera away.

I remember seeing The Rocky Horror Picture Show from up there in the Gods many many years ago.

Not a bad place to be on a Friday night.

Saturday in Perth #2

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 00:02:00 +0000

February in Perth these days is a rush of activity. Fringe Festival, Perth Festival which incorporates a Writers Festival, various film festivals and visiting stuff from all over the place, the Rottnest Swim, the Great Southern Festival, not to mention putting the kids back in school; and by the end of this month, a new group of Freshers will be starting at uni.

I do think we cram a lot in. March and April by comparison are going to be rather bleak. It's not as if we have to cram all this in to get the good weather. People, we have good weather pretty much ALL YEAR.

Anyhow, in the spirit of rushy rushy we tried out the Perth Writers Festival for the first time this year. I love me a writers festival and, usually with partner in crime Fairlie, I love to schlepp off to the Sydney Writers Festival and in years past, the Melbourne Writers Festival.

I'm not sure if its that there are so many other options on at the same time in Perth at the moment (the Rotto Swim left this morning, the Great Southern Festival is on, the weather is still great to go 'down south' etc) but I was disappointed in the lack of 'BUZZ'.

The talks were good but it was very sedate. And very quiet.

Festival goers milled around politely and were definitely of the older, sandalled type. Although to be fair the very interesting HBO talks on the world of television were frequented by a young uni set.

So yes, I was disappointed with the lack of energy. A bit the same when the MWF moved from the CUB Malthouse to Fed Square and lost its atmosphere. I think writers festivals benefit from being a bit cramped. You want to feel you might bump into an author or two - like back in the day at the Malthouse when they'd be drinking at the bar between sessions.

Nevertheless it was lovely to walk around the beautiful University of WA grounds and sit under the dappled light of their magnificent trees.

One of the talks we went to was in Winthrop Hall. I don't think I've been back in here since sitting exams here in the 1980s. In all those years I hadn't realised that the ceiling beams were painted in indigenous art. Clearly I was too busy concentrating on getting a conditional pass in Economics 100.

Saturday in Perth

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sun, 17 Feb 2013 00:38:00 +0000

We live five minutes drive from some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. White sand, clear water, gentle waves suitable for all ages, fish'n'chips and gelato on hand. The water tends towards Sharky but I figure as long as there are a whole bunch of swimmers that look like seals further out than me then I'm fine.

I don't have a pic of the beach we went to yesterday because we were travelling light and quick. Car keys and towels only but it was brilliant.

It's hard to get the kids to come with us; they've never really been part of the beach culture as we pretty much avoided the beaches in Melbourne and Sydney as being substandard (in Sydney, full of rips, flags always ridiculously close together - although we did love Palmie and jumping off the pier at Balmoral) and only really went to the beach on trips back to WA. We managed to convince one child to come with us and he loved it.

I did manage to photograph our beautiful sky yesterday while waiting for burgers in North Fremantle.

After burgers we went to see the Scattered Light installation by Jim Campbell in Kings Park which is there as part of the Perth Festival.

A series of light bulbs strung in a spidery pattern this installation looks like a wall of light from one angle but has depth and was attracting about 100 picnic-goers last night. Note the bride off to the right.

Kings Park with the new Brookfield Place tower at centre. Tripod needed next time!

Our 12yo commented on how pretty Perth was from Kings Park and it struck us that he had never seen this view at night. Those that were not picnicking in front of scattered light were facing this view.

Fraser Avenue, Kings Park

Next week, the Perth Writers Festival! I've convinced the hubby to come with me to a few things as I think it would be hard to convince my usual writers festival partner to fly over next Sat...

I like travelling in my 40s better. It's funner.

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 13:16:00 +0000

Did you see the article in today's paper about the 10 things backpackers don't know? Must've been reading my mind.

We've just come back from three weeks in Europe. No, we didn't do Prague, Warsaw or Istanbul, nor did we ski in Bulgaria as is all the rage amongst the hip. We did bog standard Europe. One week in Paris, one week in the alps, one week in London. Fabulous. Privileged yes. The standard route, yes. But the best family holiday we've had.

The thing that hit me the most is what we had missed travelling through Europe in the backpacking days where we had no prior bookings anywhere, lugged everything in a backpack and had extraordinarily limited funds.

It was fun but as the article says food is tourism too and eating Big Macs all through Europe because they were affordable and located close to the accommodation we could afford (usually in or near a railway station) is not seeing all a city has to offer.

In those days I didn't eat Gallette du Rois three.days.in.a.row.

And I certainly wouldn't have tried every damn fromage and jambon in Paris.

Eating a crepe was a possibility from a road-side stall but not a FANCY crepe at a bistro.

And citron presse? Are you kidding? Would never have bought anything where you actually sat down unless it was upstairs at Burger King.

And certainly not from a cute local Steak Frites restaurant.

I might've bought ONE macaron but not one in each flavour in the shop.

And I certainly would never have gone to another Macaron shop and bought a rainbow of Macarons in a special display box.

Travelling around in my early 20s was fun but being able to afford a few little luxuries travelling in my 40s was funner.

A Resolution to Appreciate Perth more in 2013

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 12:20:00 +0000

If Perth gave me a report card for 2012 it would say "Didn't try hard enough". Which is true. And some guy from The Huffington Post has made me feel all guilty about it.

Yes Yes Perth has fabbo weather, the best beaches in.the.world and proper fish'n'chips but I've been in mourning for the East Coast and its plethora of fabulous Thai take-aways. I also miss jumping off the pier at Balmoral Beach. I'm fickle, so sue me.

What makes this worse is that I'm a born and bred West Aussie. Multi multi generation West Aussie and all that as well.

A vintage car club displayed their oldy worldy jallopys in Forrest Chase today before re-enacting the first drive from Perth to Armadale. The first drive took 7 hours so hopefully today's was a little quicker given the 38 degree temps.

So I've decided that my New Year's Resolution for 2013 will be To Appreciate Perth More.

If this resolution is as successful as my 2012 Don't Buy Anything Black resolution then I'll be almost successful but fail at the last moment. I had to buy some black shoes for a black tie work function (surely that doesn't count?).

Cactus thingy, Forrest Chase - Perth City

On paper Perth should be heaven. The weather is almost perfect, the beaches are white and the economy is booming. And yet there is something not quite right. It might be great to visit in the summer, enjoy the balmy evenings and watch the brilliant sunsets over the Indian ocean, but there is a closed-in feeling to the place. A skepticism about anything from outside. A local patriotism that is a little unsettling. Made In WA is a big thing. I almost expect West Australian flags to be flown from car windows on Australia day. The State equivalent of Nationalism. And the children here are even more Miraculous* than their Eastern States counterparts.

Unveiled - Bridal Exhibition from the V&A visiting Perth for a couple of months

BUT, in 2013 I resolve to look for the GOOD in Perth.

Like a teacher with a school child I will try to catch Perth doing something Good and create little diversions if I come across something bad or boring.

I may even bore you silly with some of those observations here. Unless rising food prices mean I have to pawn this computer.

*BTW if you ever get the chance to see Matilda the Musical which has an opening song by this name, do so. Fabulous.

Reading with my laptop...or Why it takes so long to read a sentence.

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sat, 21 Jul 2012 14:22:00 +0000

So, I'm reading a book, on Kindle. An historical fiction novel.

Thing is, I read three words, or perhaps a paragraph and I have to pick up my laptop. Just now I settled into a big chair with footstool and cup of tea and read

"The court always spent the long Christmas feast at Whitehall, so John..."

So I googled Whitehall and found that the Palace of Whitehall was, in its time, the largest palace in the world. Larger than Versailles. I then read that it burnt down in a fire in 1669 or some such and that only the Banqueting House still survives.

Of course I checked out its position on Google Maps and its entry in Wikipedia. In Wikipedia there was a very enticing old map of the area so I clicked on that an noticed that one of the yards inside the palace was Scotland Yard.

Intriguing.

Did you know that Scotland Yard was the street on which the main entrance to the Metropolitan Police station was situated. Hence the name.

Scotland Yard, of course, is no longer there. It has outgrown various premises many times and as early as 1890 was renamed New Scotland Yard. But I digress.

Oh, and look at that ... Inigo Jones who designed parts of the Palace of Whitehall also designed the Covent Garden buildings. Where is Covent Garden again in relation to London? Oh, yes over there. Ooh and look at the painting of Inigo Jones. What is it with men in the 1600s and beards? Couldn't find any razors?

Well while I have Google Maps up I wonder if I can locate Princes Gate Mews in Kensington? Stayed there once with the relies back over 20 years ago. Look there it is. I wonder if it has street view? Yes! And look there is the mews flat I stayed in. Fabulous.

So, where was I? Oh yes, back to the Kindle to finish the sentence.

"...was able to leave the royal gardens at Oatlands dormant under a thick frost, and go home to Lambeth..."

I wonder how far Oatlands was from Lambeth...

Swan River, 8am

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sat, 05 May 2012 03:43:00 +0000

This morning was forecast to be heavy rain so it was a lovely surprise to see a stunning morning on the Swan River for the official opening to the Rowing season at Blossom's school.

The girls have been rowing together for a month now and this morning, after a tough session of time trials, they rowed in to an audience of proud parents.

If only all mornings were like this on the river!

Things I Find Fun

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 11:15:00 +0000

This photo is here just for fun. Freshwater Bay, Peppermint Grove.

Inspired by Fairlie and The No. 1 Melbourne Ladies Bookclub I am reading Gretchen Rubin's The Happiness Project. Gretchen's blog was one of the first I started reading five years ago but as I got into more serious endeavours, such as working in an office, I stopped reading. Which is why I am finding her book so important right now. In my earnestness to move back into the corporate world I stopped having fun. Maybe, maybe, I never really was one for fun anyhow.

Any how, I have had cause to think about what I find fun, rather than what I think I should find fun. Here is my list so far. It's been such a long time since I really thought about this that I may need to come back to this from time to time.

Here are my first two.

Maps. I love all sorts of maps. Especially ones that relate to something I'm doing or reading. I am just as happy reading a street directory as I am reading an old map of London. In fact I will often just pull out the street directory and start flipping through it. For fun.

Walking around the streets, just looking. I love to familiarise myself with an area by exploring the streets. What types of houses are built here? Who lives/lived here? What makes this street great or horrible? I love walking as long as the walk has interest. When I go on walks from home I try to take different routes each time. Routine is my enemy; it gets me down.

It comes as no surprise to me that I love the idea of Geocaching. Geocaching is a worldwide treasure hunt which combines "orienteering-lite" with a scavenger hunt where you come home with the thrill of the find but, usually, no prize. I could seriously get into it but I fear that friends would start to back away slowly...and there's no fun in that.

Five Years

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 05:42:00 +0000

early morning over Mosman Bay, Perth, Western Australia

Today I've been blogging for five years.

In that time I've

finished post-graduate study
started seven blogs, one of them private
stopped writing to four of them
written at first regularly, then intermittently, to three of them
opened two twitter, one fb and one LinkedIn account
been a stay at home mum
been a part-time worker
started working full time
turned 40
spent lots of money on potions for my face that I know won't make a difference
spent some money on clothes that I'll wear for ever
spent more money on clothes that I never wear
lived in three different homes
in three different suburbs
in two different states
one of those houses was for six months while we renovated so maybe it doesn't count
seen my daughter graduate from primary to high school
had my son start at three different schools; all of them excellent
listened to clarinet, piano, trombone and drum practise
ferried kids to soccer, ballet, hockey, swimming, tennis, cricket and karate
renovated a home
moved interstate 6 months later
learnt to crochet
re-ignited old knitting skillz
done loads of cool stuff that will come to mind later and I think "crap, I should have put that on the list".

and

met lots of wonderful people online...and then in real life. Thank you bloggers for being such a wonderful community and for sharing your lives with me.

Blogging is a very important creative outlet for me. I feel am yet to find my own blogging voice and style, I think; but when I do it will probably start here so stay tuned.

I shall not wear black shoes like all the other mothers

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 14:27:00 +0000

If you were to peer into my wardrobe you would be drawn into its inky darkness. Little Black Dresses? Check. Black shoes? Check. I am drawn to black clothes. It is hard not to be. I think I look better in black than most other colours and there is something so beautiful about floaty black chiffon tops.

But enough is enough. Wearing black everyday is dreary so this year I made a New Year's Resolution to not buy any black clothes or accessories.

It is proving quite good for the wallet.

Is it just me or are all the most beautiful clothes made in black? The shops are full of colour this year but it seems so bright and jewel-like. If I am to venture into colour I imagine that venture being somewhat more pastel.

Anyway my resolve has been sorely tested of late. My favourite Mary Jane black work shoes are looking a little tired and my trusty long black cardigan (which looks fabulously corporate when I need it or casual when I don't) has developed holes. The horror.

I tried to convince myself that these were basics, like underwear, and that of course I could replace them with black versions.

But then I remembered the movie Chocolat where Vivien's daughter whines: "Why can't you wear black shoes like all the other mothers?" I don't remember what Vivien's reply was but it was something along the lines of why be like everyone else?

So I decided that my black Mary-Janes were no longer basics. When I stumbled over these red Mary-Janes I decided Red was the new basic, and I feel fabulous wearing them with every corporate outfit I own.

Now to find a sassy long cardigan, that is not black.

Things Perth People Like: Made in WA

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 01:05:00 +0000

Enter a food shop in Perth and you will be confronted with two choices - buy WA, or buy something from somewhere strange and untrustworthy.

In the mid 2000s National Foods faced an angry public when they started marketing the Pura milk brand in WA. West Australians thought they were to be overrun by milk from Eastern States cows. The Parliament discussed what percentage of Eastern States milk was packaged in WA.

If it is Made in WA then you know it. Pre-packaged carrots, almonds, milk, eggs are all clearly branded with the WA symbol so you know which product to pick up. You will pay double for an Avocado here than you do in Sydney but it's ok - it's Made in WA.

This is not a Food Miles thing. Western Australia is an enormous State. It takes as long to fly to Broome as it does to Melbourne. West Australians, however, are proud of their self-sufficiency and any suggestion from the East that they are not is roundly criticised. Hence, our position is that we can support ourselves (with resources, grain, tourism) and we can feed ourselves (wine or olive oil from Margaret River anyone?), and in style. Who needs the rest of Australia?

It is not only food - homewares have realised the marketing potential. Over the weekend I saw an advert for bedding store BedShed with a stamp "Born and Bred in WA". And as a recent returnee from the East I find myself explaining first that I was Born and Bred in WA before temporarily (16 years) decamping to the Eastern States but now have found my way home. Conversations go so much easier after that.

Conversion

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 08:21:00 +0000

In December 2011 I lugged my Dell PC Tower to my local Apple Temple and had all the files transferred to my new Macbook Pro.

As I carried the PC Tower to the car I slipped, dropped the tower causing significant grazing to my knees. And yet I persisted notwithstanding blood dripping to my ankles. The Apple Force was strong within me.

Sure there are things about Apple that don't make sense. Where is the Backspace key and why does the Delete key delete backwards and not forwards? Do Apple People not need to delete forwards? Where is the page down key? And why are downloads so convoluted?

But overall I am a Born Again Appleer. The Macbook just works, synchs with all my other apple devices and is beautiful to use. I'm happy to use a PC at work but I look forward to my macbook at home.

Steve Jobs wanted to make technology more humanistic. A rational person would argue that X brand and Y brand last longer, have more power and better features yet X or Y brand is not about to become the world's first Trillion Dollar company. A Trillion Dollars tells me that understanding the interaction between the person and the technology (including how to sell it to us) is more important to us than a small difference in power.

Apple doesn't try to be the technical winner; it wins by making me feel good when I use its products.

Things Perth People Like #1: The Thermomix

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 12:52:00 +0000

It took Blossom, oh, five minutes of living in Perth to decide that she couldn't entertain the thought of cooking without a Thermomix.

Perth people LOVE Thermomixes. Kitchens which once proudly displayed a red KitchenAid Mixer now have a Thermomix as pride of place. And at just shy of $2K it is the undisputed trophy kitchen item of the well-heeled in the West.

Australia is the No. 6 country in the world for Thermomix sales - it seems almost all of them on counter-tops in perth's affluent Western Suburbs.

In Sydney Thermomixes are not exactly a household name, although they seem to be catching on in Melbourne - not least because the fabulous Froggie is selling them. But the Thermomix head office is in Perth and they have clearly done a good job of cornering the market amongst the large contingent of cashed-up families of the resources boom (stick to the Melbourne market Froggie, it's saturated here).

So Perth Centric are these little counter hogs that you will know that my Perth conversion is complete if I ever buy one. And believe me the pressure from the 13 yo is quite unbearable ever since her Uncle showed her how to make some sort of green grass hippy smoothie with his.

Until then I will continue to use my stove top, my whisk and my wooden spoon.

Things aren't so much Random, as Hell Bogan.

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 03:26:00 +0000

2012 Sculptures by the Sea, Cottesloe

One of the joys of moving interstate is learning a new language.

It is enough that I have to remember to say "Bathers" instead of "Swimmers"or "togs". The kids no longer take a "kit bag" to school to carry their sports gear; they take a plain old "sports bag". And sports gear is called sports gear, not kit. But perhaps that was peculiar to their schools, rather than a general term.

Language can be quite specific not only to a State but a suburb, or even a school. When I was at high school in Perth many many years ago non-uniform clothes were called "civvies", yet the high school down the road called them "colours". In Sydney "mufti" was the term used at every school my kids went to.

Blossom (13) told me last night that she has been in fits of giggles at school trying to understand what her friends are saying. 'Random' was a catch-all word for just about everything, good, bad or ugly in Sydney; while in Perth her friends put 'Hell' in front of anything to mean the same thing:

Hell No
Hell Yes

and my personal favourite:

Hell Bogan

Hell Bogan it seems is the best approximation for the negative side of 'Random'. As in

"OMG I totes need new clothes, mine are Hell Bogan".

Perthites seem to have somewhat of a thing for bogans given the rise of the CUB (Cashed Up Bogan) in the resources boom.

Add to this 'Ceebs' (Can't Be Bothered [with]) and 'Seedy' (not hungover, just creepy or random) you get a sentence like

"OMG I totes ceebs Science today, Chem is Hell Bogan and our teacher is so seedy"

Perth

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 12:39:00 +0000

2012 Sculptures by the Sea, Cottesloe, WA

After living in the East for 16 years Firegazer, Blossom, PL, two cats, two cars, too many boxes of stuff and I have moved back to Perth. It's a topical place what with Gina squabbling with her children and Eastern States journos squealing about the lack of taxis.

Some things haven't changed (good, bad and ugly) in 16 years:

Magnificent beaches with FREE all-day parking (read that and weep Sydney-siders)
Proper hot weather with low humidity
Fish'n'Chips wrapped in large swathes of butcher's paper, sprayed in vinegar
Sunsets over the beach. If you have no other reason to visit, this is sufficient.
Draconian retail laws that dictate that I must spend quality time with my family on a Sunday.
A complete disregard for all things from the East, except for shoes or coffee from/in Melbourne which seem to be okay.
Perthonalities. When you live so far from anywhere its hard to attract real celebrities so we make up our own.
Telethon. The only state who still holds a 24 hour telethon. Perth didn't get the memo about this one.
Laid back pace. I spent the first two weeks bumping into people in the street I was so out of step with the vibe. You really need to chill when you come here.
Casual dress code. School cocktail party? Shorts, thongs and t-shirt completely fine. Fine dining? Replace thongs with covered shoes. The guy sitting next to you in a suit won't even blink an eye.
Down South. Everyone goes, every holidays. More people, more development but once you are on the beach it's essentially the same.
Nicknames. Everyone is Robbo, Johnno, and Warbo or their variations Robbie, Johnnie and Warby. Even at work. Especially at work. Even in posh offices.
Rotto. Even the holiday destinations have nicknames. Rottnest is still top of the pops. Just more expensive for a basic hut and BYO sheets. Still one of the best holiday places EVA.
Short sleeved business shirts. Not as common as 16 years ago but I drove past an Engineering association's offices at lunch time a couple of weeks back and was confronted by a sea of bearded men wearing short sleeved shirts with pens in the top pockets. I was glad to be spared shorts with long socks.
The North/South divide. Just like Sydney. No one crosses the bridge unless they have to.
Disregard for laws. Bike helmets? optional.
You can park on verges. And in driveways (as long as you don't park on the footpath).

But some things have changed:

Traffic. OMG. I was looking forward to the lack of traffic in Perth. But no - the population has boomed but the infrastructure has stayed the same. Perth really could do with a tunnel or three.
Sharks. We had sharks back in the day, we just didn't go on about them - except to our Eastern States friends to show how tough we are. Now sharks are the in thing. Our media just love it when they eat one of our own. Or preferably a visitor from Sydney.
Bali. Bali is now a northern suburb of Perth in habited by CUBs (Cashed Up Bogans) on the swing shift from their FIFO (fly in fly out) jobs in the resources industry.
Rotto. Rottnest Island is still a favourite destination but you have to win a ballot to get a place to stay in peak times and it's cheaper to go to Bali.
Tattoos. I feel like one of the few people in Perth without a full or half-sleeve tattoo. You get them on the cheap in Bali.
Medical tourism. Want a boob job? Go to Thailand. Why not go with the girls for a fun week away and have the whole body done over?
Taxis. Forget it. There aren't enough. Ever. The Taxi board has just been granted 300 more licences but with the resources boom sucking up labour they're not sure how to get people to drive the taxis. Luckily the bike paths are fabulous here.
Airport. Don't catch an early morning flight. With FIFO all the rage here the airport is overcrowded every morning with the Hi-Vis shirt brigade.
Cost of everything. This is not a cheap place to live. The cost of labour has driven up the cost of food, eating out, household services and rent. If you work in resources you'll earn the salary to match but it's a two-speed economy. It's really best to entertain at home.
Ties. Only worn by lawyers and sports coaches/administrators. Finally, we've worked out it's too bloody hot for them.

It's easy to pick on Perth, and many people do. This is not advisable. Perth people get very touchy about their city and you don't want to mess with a CUB who's tired after working 21x12 hour shifts in a row.

The thing is not to compare Perth to Sydney or Melbourne but to accept Perth for itself. If you accept Perth without making comparisons it is a sea-change paradise. If you stop comparing you will notice all the things that the East doesn't have. Like lack of stress, casual dress code, fab weather and gold rush feel. So, I've resolved to get with the Vibe of the place, get myself a nickname, invite people over for a BBQ and enjoy getting home from work in the daylight with enough time to ride to the beach to dodge the sharks.

So come visit, but if you're from Over East keep it quiet. I don't want to be accused of harbouring undesirables

Old Stairs, New Stairs

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 10:56:00 +0000

The old stairs are finally gone. Apparently it was a close thing - the builders claim they just about crumbled in their hands.

Now we have beautiful new stairs with a gate that opens easily, stunning lighting and a post box that fits loads of stuff.

First World Problem - I drowned my iPhone

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 21:25:00 +0000

First world problems have been getting a bit of airplay with that excellent First World Problem rap that has gone a little viral.

Before I showed my newly teenagered Blossom the You Tube video I stopped to explain what a developing world problem would be first. She thought the vid was hilarious. Before I could show my eleven year old the video I heard my mobile phone ringing.

It was the eleven year old calling me from the landline in the upstairs study to say that he was hungry and could I please bring him up some lunch.

Aaaaaaaaargh.

No.

Mind you this system was in place long before mobile phones. I've just watched the most excellent new series of Upstairs Downstairs and they have little buttons in every room which ring a bell in the basement kitchen calling the downstairs staff to attention. To my son I am simply the downstairs staff.

My son's first world problem was that he was hungry, yet busy playing computer games...a dilemma.

My first world problem was that a couple of months ago I drowned my iPhone. Quel Horreur! One day during a typical Sydney torrential downpour when the water pours from the sky as if from a giant bucket my iPhone slipped out of my handbag and into the river that was flowing past my parked car.

The thing is, I didn't realise this for a couple of hours.

Once I realised I went back to look for it. I didn't for one minute think it had survived but the thought that my phone with all its contacts and whatnot was out in the wild was all too much.

I found it wedged up against a car wheel seven cars down the road in a bunch of leaves. Despite efforts to dry it out it was completely drowned. I still had 8 months left on my phone and data plan.

My pennance, and to set an example for my kids as to what would happen if they droppedbrokedrowned their phone, was to buy this phone. The cheapest I could find.

Now I hate to appear ungrateful but I'm going to be.

This phone is CRAP.

Oh it looks deceptively benign, but it is truly evil. The buttons are hard to press and quite frankly once you've had a QWERTY keyboard forget going back. Texting was a nightmare. To top it all off it didn't tell you when there was a voicemail message, didn't receive emails and couldn't bluetooth to my car.

See what I mean by first world problems.

I truly perceived that this phone dragged my life to the dark ages. I mean I've seen homeless men on the street in Sydney with iPhones.

So I was SO relieved today to be gifted an old iPhone in a corporate phone re-shuffle. I feel whole again.

The cheap Nokia will be kept in our house as a reminder of what happens to those who don't care for their stuff.

A Typo to be sure

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 23:14:00 +0000

One of Blossom's favourite stores is Typo - a stationery store. The Greenwood Plaza directory in North Sydney, however, has taken the typo concept seriously and has it listed as a stationary store.

Stationary
Typo

Store Contact Details
Phone: 02 8904 9022
Typo Website
Inspired by the hype of the stationery industry, Typo is a one stop concept store with irresistible product to fill your space with confidence. Taking trends from the fashion industry and applying them to notebooks, decal wall art, printed gift wrap and other speciality, items Typo offers product with attitude and is fast and affordable.

If you love fashion and love stationary, Typo will be your new best friend

Well I guess Greenwood Plaza could mount a reasonable argument that the store is, in fact, stationary.

Spot my car

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 00:19:00 +0000

Parking for my son's swimming carnival earlier this year something about this photo struck me. Do you see what it is? My little Golf definitely was the odd one out (can you find it?).

One clearly needs a 4WD to negotiate school ovals... I must have missed the memo.

Never ever cut through a Telstra lead-in line

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 23:44:00 +0000

Our fencing contractor did this last week and he is $3000 poorer. I don't think insurance companies pay out claims for those that don't dial before they dig.

A lead-in line isn't the phone line. Well it is but it is Telstra's infrastructure carrying phone lines for more than one house. In this case our lead-in line carried 10 phone lines. It was buried under our fence line in a galvanised metal pipe. Our fencing contractor chainsawed through said metal pipe...

What ensued was a debacle of ridiculous proportions over a week and a half to get a permanent fix. Interestingly the actual Telstra employees who worked on the issue were excellent. The contractors to Telstra, however, were abominable.

If you want the full story, read on.

If not just remember - always Dial before you Dig. Always.

Full debacle:

Thursday June 16 I report that our phone lines are dead.
Friday June 17 3.30pm - Telstra contractor arrives to fix the phone line. There are 10 lines that need repairing but he only fixes one of them because that's all his order sheet said to fix - despite the other nine lines, which came out of the same cabling flailing about in the breeze. He explains that the other neighbours would have to call for him to fix the other lines, at a cost of $105 call out per line. I tell him that the job was to fix all the lines and he wasn't going home until it was done. This would have taken a total of 10minutes to do. He then grabs his stuff and walks (very quickly) to his van. In a movie-like sequence I run after him but he runs to his van and speeds off, leaving all the other lines dead.
Friday June 17, evening - I talk to a genuine Telstra employee who cannot believe that this has happened. We arrange for a genuine Telstra technician to rectify.
Saturday June 18, 2pm - Telstra Joe turns up, fixes all phone lines, is courteous and has a cup of tea and swaps italian recipes with my neighbour Linda and I. Explains that we need to call Silcar (a Telstra contractor) to replace the lead-in line. This will be charged to our fencing contractor.
Friday June 24 - Silcar sends a sub-contractor to replace the lead-in line. The line they assumed was the lead-in line was actually our neighbour's Foxtel cable leaving them without phones, Foxtel and internet all in one swoop. After some not so gentle conversation they deign to fix this problem before heading off to the pub. They need to return on Monday to finish the job.
Saturday June 25 - Another sub-contractor turns up on our property to fix the lead-in line. I explain that we've already had someone over to start the job. They produce official paperwork saying it's their job. I get the two contractors to talk together and to Silcar - turns out that Silcar have double-booked our job to two sub-contractors. If I wasn't at home at the time we would've been charged twice for the work and had a fight on our hands.
Monday June 27 - the first Silcar contractor comes back to finish the job.

None of these sub-contractors had services maps of our property and didn't seem to understand the issues. None of them could relate to the services issues in an old suburb viz the easy to maintain new suburbs on the outskirts of the city.

Aaaargh. All of this happened in the last week of term with seemingly a gazillion school events and while my husband was away overseas. I hate first world problems.

The Rabbit-proof fence had nothing on this one

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 23:57:00 +0000

We've got a new border fence to two sides to our property.

It's a huge mother of a fence. And it's built of hardwood.

But the neighbours insisted they wanted it to be big.

New Stairs on the way

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 00:25:00 +0000

Our new stairs from the street have started. Visitors either need to abseil in, or come via our other street entrance.

Stay tuned for the finished product.

36 Hours in Beijing

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Sat, 21 May 2011 00:11:00 +0000

I spent 36 hours in Beijing for work. Sixteen hour flight there (via Singapore) and 16 hour flight back, one night on the ground.

I saw a lot of freeways.

I saw a lot of the inside of taxis (Volkswagen Passats, very cheap).

But I managed to steal two hours to take a taxi downtown to see the Forbidden City.

It's a fab place to visit. Cost AUD12 to get in and it was really the only place I saw mobs of people.

For a HUGE population I was struck by two things in Beijing - the complete lack of people walking around the centre of town, and the lack of bikes. Cars can only drive on the road every second day (it goes by number place odds and evens).

Had to have Beijing Duck in Beijing. We were directed by the concierge to a great place called Hua's Courtyard Restaurant. I definitely recommend a visit. The Beijing Duck was excellent.

Restaurant strip in downtown Beijing.

While I was at the office we had the May birthdays celebration. The Black Forrest cakes came in these amazing boxes. I wanted the boxes more than the cakes.

On the last evening before my flight out we went to the Beijing Workers Stadium to this beautiful restaurant. Sorry can't recall the name but it's on the outskirts of the stadium. This is a photo of the inside.

A super quick whirlwind of a visit, but fun nevertheless. Must return to have a proper look one day.

Before and After: the ensuite

noreply@blogger.com (M) — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 20:20:00 +0000

Before: this bathroom was not an ensuite and was probably the original bathroom to the house, renovated last in the 1950s or 1960s. The RHS wall backed onto a wardrobe in our daughter's room.

After: We knocked through to the wardrobe and increased the size of the room by 50cm. The door you can see to the right is the original wardrobe door. It is now an ensuite with a second door to the hallway.

After #2: view of the ensuite from the bedroom. Above the tiles the walls are wallpapered in a vinyl waterproof fabric with a basketweave texture.