Bless This Mess

Changing it up

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Fri, 23 May 2014 06:59:00 +0000

It's been a long time between visits and posts.

I want to give an update and perhaps change the direction of my blog (which means possibly deleting previous posts).

This afternoon at 3:30pm, I found myself in Cacao Green with an organic mocha thinking about what my future holds. I'm not smiling as much as I should be for someone that has such an exciting year ahead of her and it scares the shit out of me. Some things are getting me down quite a lot more than they should and I feel like I need to start to focus on the good things in my life. Concentrate on the things that I enjoy.

I love my love. My beautiful Jason proposed to me in July 2013 and we are getting married in November this year. We are in the throws of organising our wedding, which is to take place in Adelaide on a beach, and then the reception at a place overlooking a marina. Just beautiful.

I love my family. My family live in Adelaide, South Australia. My family are amazing. And it's about to officially get bigger with the addition of Jason's family. Family also extends to some of my friends (of which, I have very few, but they are true).

I love my location. We live in the south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria. It takes me just over an hour to get into work on the train (which is not so amazing), but just 10 minutes the other way and you're in the country (which I am yet to discover).

I love my new lifestyle. I have lost 30kg since February 2013 by embracing a complete change in lifestyle. This has brought about a world of discovery of exercise and food. Mmm food. Now this is where my brain went to when pondering my place in this universe this afternoon over my mocha...

A friend of mine said, after seeing the photos of food that I have made and recipes that I have found on Facebook, that I should start a blog. A food blog.

After a terrible day yesterday, I got myself up and motivated (pent up energy, I'm guessing), and got into the kitchen. After making some muesli (aka granola), raw cheesecake, quinoa/vegetable mix for my lunch, and a smoothie bowl for right then and there, I felt so much better.

There seem to be a lot of blogs about, but maybe if I do this, it will give me a better sense of purpose. A bit of food, a bit of love, a bit of this and a bit of that. But all happiness.

So, let's get happy. First cab off the rank, a photo of my tasty, tasty muesli mix I made last night:

Ingredients (use organic if available):

About 1 cup rolled oats

10 x chopped almonds

4 x chopped walnuts

1/4 cup shredded coconut

tbsp. cacao nibs

1/4 cup honey (warmed up)

tbsp. goji berries*

tbsp. dried apricots*

tbsp. sultanas*

*use any dried fruit you like, and as much as you like

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius.

2. Place rolled oats, almonds, walnuts, coconut and cacao nibs into a bowl and mix until combined.

3. To warm up honey, you can place the honey pot in a bowl of hot water, or put into a double-boiler. (Microwave as a last option.) Pour honey onto the oat mix. Stir until combined and oat mix coated in the honey.

4. Pour mixture onto a baking tray lined with baking paper and put into oven for approx. 15 minutes or until golden.

5. Take out mixture and stir. Place back into oven for further 5-10 minutes, until entire mix is golden. Leave to cool (mixture will harden up upon cooling).

6. Once cool, add in dry fruit and mix. Store in airtight container.

It tastes freakin' DELICIOUS!!

Speaking of delicious, I might go make me a smoothie bowl with some of the muesli, peanut butter and sliced strawberries. It's 11:30pm on a Friday night, but what the hey.

Be happy,

Sammy

Success! (kind of)

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 21:22:00 +0000

Jason and I attempted a juice fast. We had planned 15 days, juice only.

We lasted until the night of the second day, where we decided, after constant gagging and Jason actually vomiting with one of the juices, that we would try just one meal a day.

I had my juice in the morning, nearly threw up. Did the same at lunch time. However, at lunch time, I couldn't even finish it. It was so, SO gross that I would rather starve.

Other people tried it, and they said thy didn't mind it. It must be my palette. Just foul. Like dirt.

Jason was okay with the juice he had at work, but after I told him that I was totally out of the game, he said he wouldn't do it without me.

Instead, we have now used this experience as a life lesson and we are using it to significantly change our lifestyle. We are trying a no-processed approach with less meat. So I guess you could say, it actually did work in a way.

3 days of juice is enough for a quick body reboot, so we are taking that opportunity and running with it.

From the looks of things (scales anyway), I have lost a few kilos, so I'm happy to stick with it. Plus, the food we are making is delicious!

Gym again this morning. Have given up on squats for a bit (my knees have been sore), so this morning I climbed onto the leg press machine instead. Much more enjoyable and less painful. Will up the ante tomorrow and press more weight I think.

Just felt the need to give a little update about health-wise. I will be posting pics of the zoo visit with my mum and sister later I think!

A few months in

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 10:07:00 +0000

It has been a while. But who is reading, really?

Anyway. I'm enjoying work and enjoying living with Jason, but that's about the end of the enjoyment for me in Melbourne.

It has been quite a depressing time, but I won't dwell on that here.

This weekend I took to baking. I made 2 loaves of bread (1 white and 1 wholemeal), some pizza scrolls, and some coconut biscuits. Most of which are gone now. But they were all fairly nice!

Coconut biscuits

White bread

Pizza scroll pull-apart

Wholemeal bread

I think I am now going to try and make all of our bread, as opposed to buying it. At least we'll know what goes into them, plus it will work out cheaper. And it keeps my hands busy.

I really enjoyed baking in the kitchen this weekend. I think I'm going to have to find some healthier recipes and bake up a storm next weekend as well.

Speaking of healthier, Jason and I have finally gone and had our gym assessment at our gym. We had just been using our gym for the pool, but after buying new shoes for ourselves in the Boxing Day sales, we booked in an appointment for an assessment for a PT to arrange a fitness program.

Since then, we've been making a point to go the gym each day. Yesterday was just a relaxing hydrotherapy pool hangout, spa (which was not hot, so it was a good 2 minutes max in the spa), and sauna sesh. We had planned to go today. Jason woke me up when he got home from work and when I got up to get ready, I came out of the bathroom and he was snoring on the couch. We decided to stay home and sleep instead!

Tomorrow morning, back into it! I'm actually really looking forward to getting up early to sweat it out at the gym. Now I just need to watch what I eat very carefully. I know I've slipped up this week, so.. a new week, a new start, right?!

On that note, time to get ready for bed (well, couch, because Jason's not home tonight, and I sleep on the couch when he's not home of a night).

As good as a holiday

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 21 Oct 2012 11:44:00 +0000

Today has been my last day unemployed. I start my new job tomorrow and I am really excited about it.

This will be a quick entry, as it is almost 10:30pm and I need to be well-rested for my big day! I will report back once my first week is over; I suspect the report will have no bad grades. I am truly excited for this opportunity and cannot wait.

On to other things! Our real estate agency (who are as hopeless as our landlord) has advised us that the landlord does not want any dogs inside the property - if we were to get dogs, they would need to remain outside.

Having grown up with dogs living with us inside the house, and the fact that we were looking at adopting a pug or two (we thought they'd be the best match to get along with our bunnies), there is no way that I would be having dogs living outside. No way!! I know that a lot of people do this, but as I said, I grew up with dogs living inside the house and being part of the family, so I could never subscribe to a different way.

In light of this, I decided to make the rabbits a more permanent run-around enclosure. We had them in their hutch and would let them out of a night time. This was going to continue to be the plan if dogs came into the equation, but seeing as we just have our little bunny babies (I don't say "just" very lightly, they are our world), I moved their hutch and created an area in front of the television for them to rule.

They absolutely love it! In fact, last night when I went to bed, I swear I heard Bella trying to rattle the front of the hutch to get back out and relax on the rug.

Jason and I have chatted about it and we'll be leaving them to their own devices in their space at all times. We have ensured that the rabbits can't get into any trouble, like no exposed wires, nowhere that Teddy can sink his teeth into the skirting boards, etc.

What has really surprised me is, when we had the buns out previously, they found a place in the corner of the room and, even though I had put a litter box where they had started to go, were peeing and pooping in that corner all the time. However, with their new space, I have found very little poops (which is a mammoth feat for our little poop machine, Bella), and NO wee accidents!! They are both utilising their designated toilet space in their hutch and their litter box. I am so proud! (If you have me as a friend on Facebook, you would know this already and how crazy I have been about it!!)

They are just so happy now in their new space. It makes me grin really hard.

Here are some piccies:

Our babies' improved digs. I am going to either make or buy some new toys for them this week.

The best picture I've gotten of our little miss, Bella.

Little Buuba (aka Teddy).

Caught them having a quick nuzzle. Aw.

Enjoying the space (with their litter box behind them...)

Okay, that's all from me. I must get to bed!

'til next time.
xx

Employment!

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 13:19:00 +0000

Well, it's happened. Finally. I have a job!

It feels like it has been the longest stint that I have gone without a job, however it probably is on par with when I moved back to Adelaide in 2010. I guess it has just felt a lot longer this time around, because I have had the additional stress of having to rely on someone else (I was not eligible for Government funding while looking for work as my partner earns over the threshold amount). Jason has never made it stressful on me, in fact he has tried to make sure that I wasn't stressed (it didn't work - I'm too much of a stress-head), but as I've said before, I have always been financially independent and having to rely on someone else just added stress to the situation for me.

But now that I have a job, we will be fine and my stress levels will hopefully bottom out as soon as I've finished up my first week at the new job.

I am not sure when I start; it will either be this Monday or the Monday after. I'm really excited about it. It's working in life insurance, which is something I haven't ever done before. Having six years' property insurance behind me, I am sure I will be able to pick up on what the job entails pretty quickly, but there will be some challenges along the way. In saying that, I am really looking forward to rising to the challenges set in front of me.

BUT! The great news about this is (apart from the obvious fact that I have a job), that we will be able to organise a housewarming and welcome all my Melbourne friends into our temporary abode. Plus, I will have more confidence within myself to catch up with friends more often and avoid being such a recluse. I never thought having a job would have such a large impact on my life, but as it turns out, it does, and I've only really thought about it while being over in Melbourne. I honestly don't know people can go without jobs. Obviously, some people aren't able to work, but I'm talking about the bludgers amongst them. The ones that happily sit on their lazy butts all day. I have struggled so much being home all the time; there are only so many times one can twiddle ones thumbs!

Okay, hopefully next blog I will have some pretty pictures to gaze upon!

'til next time.
xx

PS, as per my previous post, we went to the Melbourne Show with Jason's sister, Ashlee and I was going to take along my camera. It looked like a horrid day was ahead of us weather-wise, including spots of rain on the way to the train down our way, so I left my camera at home. Upon arriving at the Showgrounds, the rain had cleared, OF COURSE!! So unfortunately, I don't have any photographs of any ferris wheels or sideshows. Maybe next year.

The avoid

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 02:57:00 +0000

It's been a while since I have updaated this, but thought I would today and share some insights.

Firstly, it's my Dad's birthday today - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DAD!! Wish I could be with him today, I need a Dad (and Mum, and sister, and dogs) hug! But I am sure he will have a fab day. I actually had a dream last night that the surviving members of Pink Floyd (sans Roger Waters) and I were getting drunk and I got them to sign some Pink Floyd stuff of Dad's, then Dad came to where we were and he loved it! Haha!

It's a sad day though, because I was unable to send him anything due to the lack of funds I have in my account. In fact, I haven't bought anything for a number of friends' (or family) birthdays, because I was keeping every cent in the lead-up to Melbourne, and now that I'm here I'm trying so desperately to find a job, but it's just not happening at this point in time. The second I have some money coming in, I am going to make up for it!

Anyway, I will carry on! I have applied for a countless number of jobs this morning after hearing I was "too polished" for one job (what does that even mean?). Let's hope that I can get something, because I can't take this much longer.

I have avoided being in touch with my friends over in Melbourne, and for that I sincerely apologise, but I just feel embarrassed about my situation. I know that I shouldn't, and I know that I shouldn't worry as much as I do, but it's just the way that I am. I don't want to have my friends ask me what I've been up to and for me to have to have a sinking feeling in my stomach and tell them "not much, just looking for work" and feeling like a failure.

I know my friends won't see me this way, but I see me this way. I am sorry that I've been reclusive, but please don't think I care any less or have forgotten about you.

I am grateful that my wonderful boyfriend has a well-paying job and we are able to keep a roof over our heads and food in our bellies, I just like to contribute, particularly financially.

But anyway, enough of the boring "I'm sad" stuff!! Jason's sister is over from Adelaide, and we will be heading to the Melbourne Show tomorrow. I will be taking my camera with me and have decided to only take my 50mm lens, so it should be interesting to see how I go with my little lens out and about!

With fingers and toes crossed, 'til next time.

xx

A long minute

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Fri, 07 Sep 2012 06:52:00 +0000

Jason accompanied me into town yesterday for another interview with a temping agency. On the way in to town, when our train got to Richmond station, we heard an announcement over the PA advising that passengers that wish to board a train to go direct to Flinders Street Station can board a train that is due at a certain platform in one minute, "but it looks as though it's going to be a very long minute, so don't worry, you will make it"! It was one of the best announcements I've heard! I also didn't realise it, but it also works as a parrallel for what is happening with me at the moment as well.

I'm looking for jobs every day and it seems like it's just taking forever and a day to find something, or rather, have someone find me. Although I have had quite a few interviews (for someone that only just got into Melbourne a few days ago) and have applied for quite a few jobs, and have a recruitment night to go along to for a Real Estate Agency next week, it just seems like things aren't happening as quickly as I would like.

We won't be stuck for money or anything, so I know I don't need to rush into a job; but I want to rush into one. Granted, staying at home and getting the place organised and being a good little housewife is great, but I want to be able to contribute financially as well. I've always been an independent person, so I guess this is where my want/need to work ASAP comes into play. I'm sure I'll be okay. "...don't worry, you will make it".

When we went into the city yesterday (Thursday), I decided to take Jason to a cafe that I used to always have lunch at when I worked in Southbank. It was still as nice as I remember. Then we went into the office where I used to work, so I could say hello to a few people that I've missed there. It was great to see my old work friends again. It was not so great to see one of the guys that made my life a living Hell, but nevertheless, the good outweighed the bad!

On the way back from the station, I told Jason we needed to get a photo, just because! So, here it is:

Jason and I next to the Yarra, across from Southbank.

Neither of us have been getting a really good nights' sleep lately. This was evident on our train trip home:

Jason doesn't know I took sleeping photos! But it was just too cute to miss.

Now! The cardboard box congregation has been tackled and relocated! The area next to the television is now clear. See below.

Ooo, shiny floor!

Aaaand now it's HERE:

Ooo, invisible floor!

Trust me, the corner next to the television looked NOTHING like that before! It's really, really neat in comparison.

I'm still not showing you the rest of the house yet; it's still in explosion-aftermath condition. We're getting there! It's starting to look (and feel) more and more like a home every day.

Must go now; more housewifey duties to carry on with.

xx

We're home

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 08:39:00 +0000

We left Adelaide on Saturday and arrived at about 2:30am Sunday morning. Both Jason and I needed to take caffiene tablets and had two double shots of energy drink on the way over as well, to stop ourselves from falling asleep at the wheel.

The following morning, I woke up feeling completely awful, like I had a hangover mixed with food poisoning. It was terrible. I will never, ever do that again! Caffiene tablets are BANNED in our household now.

Speaking of our household, it looks like a bomb has hit it. I got through most of the kitchen last night; it still needs a vacuum and mop (as does the rest of the house), but most of our kitchen stuff has found its way into cupboards and onto shelves. As for the rest of the house, it's an obstacle course, and the corner near the television has become a meeting place for all of the empty boxes.

Jason is at work tonight, as he was last night. His rotating shifts are taking him a little while to get used to, but I think it will take some time for me to get used to it as well, particularly night shift. I feel a little lost at home alone. Once the house is all sorted, I'm sure I'll be able to have company around while he's at work, or go visiting friends. At the moment though, I am still catching up on sleep and organising the house.

The house is good. It has its flaws. A lot of flaws. But it's home. The good news is, most of the maintenance (including the hanging exposed wire in the laundry) was completed by the time I got to the house and the lawns were mowed while Jason was in Adelaide on moving weekend. This meant I didn't need to worry about fighting the real estate agency about getting everything done.

Instead, I am just worrying about employment. I have met with two job agencies about temping and permanent work, and have been keeping an eye out on Seek and applying for jobs as I see relevant ones pop up. I applied for two jobs today that sounded perfect, so am hoping something comes from them.

I will post pictures of the house once it's all sorted out. Until then, you'll just have to imagine the cardboard box congregation.

xo

The countdown is on

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 12:24:00 +0000

Okay, I lie. The countdown has been on for a while.

I get to see my Jason on Friday! That's only 4 sleeps away!

It's been so tough without him. I can't sleep properly, no matter how tired I am. Last night I woke up almost every hour; I think I'm only still going because I downed a couple of Red Bulls before dinner.

We Skype each night that he isn't working night shift; it's nice to be able to see him, but it also makes me want to have him in front of me so that I can reach out and actually touch him.

One of our babies, Mirabella saying 'hello' to her Daddy.

In the meantime, Mum and Fred have come home from their massive holiday, so I have some company at the house now. Plus, I get the extra special treat of Mum's cooking until I leave!

Mum brought us back some really nice things from overseas. I'm currently waiting on a ring to be resized, some perfume to arrive, a beaded bracelet, and a couple of t-shirts. I got very, very spoilt for someone who demanded they receive no gifts! Jason is also going to get spoilt, but he doesn't know it just yet, so I'm not going to tell.

The rest of my week is going to be taken up with packing, packing, packing and more packing. The packing will only take so long because I'm trying to be brutal and get rid of some of the stuff I've accumulated over the couple of years I've been back in Adelaide. Hopefully I'll have it all done by Thursday morning, but all depends how much I get done tomorrow and Wednesday morning.

Wednesday afternoon, the rabbits and I are taking a trip to SA Rabbit Rescue & Adoptions, where Jason and I adopted Mirabella from, so that Sally (owner of SARR) can give them a cuddle goodbye (and a vaccination jab - shhhh, don't tell them).

Thursday, I do some last minute packing/tidying and then have a restless night waiting for Jason to arrive home on Friday morning. I am so excited!!

This was a very, very boring blog entry, but I thought I'd keep it updated with where we're at for the move.

x

Reinvention

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 13:37:00 +0000

I'm watching Julie & Julia, and am yet again inspired. But this time I think I have some sort of path in which I want this blog to be.

It will be a look into our new chapter in Melbourne.

I think I want to do this so that both mine and Jason's family can keep updated with what we are getting up to in Melbourne. It can also be so that I can look back at what we've accomplished - which I am confident will be quite a bit.

Yes, I know I just used an actual name instead of an initial, but I think the unwelcome set of prying eyes won't be able to touch us, living 770 kilometers away from said eyes and all.

So just in case you didn't get the connection: Jason is JR. Jason my partner in crime and in life and in love.

The moving process officially began a couple of weeks ago, but I'll start the blogging about Melbourne after I finish my final day at work on Wednesday and you can come along for the ride.

x

Long time, no see!

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sat, 18 Aug 2012 10:38:00 +0000

Sometimes I am just so rubbish at sticking to something, even though I was/am really keen to continue sharing my world with the internet.

To give you a quick update:

JR and I are still going very strong and I am still as happy as ever. We had our one year anniversary in the second weekend of July and went away to a lovely little B&B in Murray Bridge - Toora Views. Highly recommend it! It was just perfect.

We are now in the process of moving to Melbourne; JR is already over there, while I remain in Adelaide seeing out my contract at work and housesitting for my mum and her partner.

A couple of weeks ago now, JR and I went over to Melbourne so that he could start his job over there; I went along so we could look for somewhere to live. Believe it or not, the first house we looked at, and the only house we applied for, we got! So JR moved in there that weekend.

There are some flaws with it, but I am fairly confident that the Real Estate Agency will get everything sorted (if they don't do it on their own, I will give them some motivation to do so - well, more than I already have anyway!). Apart from these flaws, we were very happy with the place. 3 bedroom, fully refurbished (some shortcuts were taken, I can tell - but nice enough), enormous kitchen. We'll be happy there for at least 12 months, and then we'll reevaluate our situation.

I have booked for some of our stuff to go via backload, and the rest we are taking over in our cars, on the 1st of September, so I will be staying in Adelaide until then.

The decision to stay was not an easy one, considering my JR was going to be in Melbourne and we would not see each other for 3 weeks. I made the decision to stay because I still have some work to see out, and I am housesitting for my mum and her partner (who are on the trip of an absolute lifetime at the moment).

I am missing JR terribly. 'Absence makes the heart grow fonder,' could not be more true. When I talk to him on Skype, I want to just reach into the screen and touch him. I am counting down the days until I can give him a hug.

I am finishing up work on Wednesday. I am going to miss it. The people are nice there and we have a lot of laughs. We are having drinks on the Thursday night and I am dearly looking forward to having a quiet drink with the people that have made the last 6 months of working so enjoyable.

I decided to send around a message to a fair few other people in Adelaide that I wouldn't mind seeing again and saying goodbye to - 23 of them, in fact. Only 3 have responded. Disheartening, but also helps me to understand again why I adored it so much in Melbourne last time.

What else is there to tell? Oh! Our rabbits weren't getting along for such a long time. We put them into Bunny Bootcamp for a few days, they came back to us and then started to fight again. A few weeks ago, I put them back into Bunny Bootcamp for an entire week and they are now inseparable! It's so nice to be able to have the bun-buns out and running around and not having to sit in between them to make sure they don't charge at each other! (If you're in South Australia and have the same problem as we did, or even if you have any rabbit questions, look up SA Rabbit Rescue & Adoptions - Sally does amazing work and sorted out our buns for us and is a font of knowledge.)

Okay, now that we're caught up on the important bits that have happened since the last time I checked in, how's about an update on the NOW??!

I am currently watching the Olympic Closing Ceremony. I recorded it and have only now found time to sit down and watch it. I quite enjoyed all of the music. It's now getting to the boring bits, so I might just switch over to How To Train Your Dragon, which I taped a while ago and haven't watched yet either.

The bunnies are out and running and binkying around the place - still unsure of their new strawberry house (see below), but I'm sure they'll work out that it's nice and cosy sooner or later.

I haven't had my camera out for a little while, as I've just been super busy. But I will get back into when I'm in Melbourne, I think! Maybe even before I go, but no promises!

Until next time,

xx

Photo A Day April: Mail

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 08:17:00 +0000

Day 3: Mail

This is part of our cute mail box.

Photo A Day April: Colour

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 08:26:00 +0000

Day 2: Colour

I took this photo out in the front yard. A brief burst of purple in a garden bed dwindling in colour with the change of seasons.

Photo A Day April: Your Reflection

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 07:13:00 +0000

JR showed me a post he had seen on Facebook about Photo A Day April:

I don't think I have the stamina for the 365/366 Project, so thought I'd try my hand at this. Plus, it gives me some inspiration of what to take photos of for each day.

Today, it starts... Obviously, with it being the first of April and all. I'm going to try so hard to achieve this.

I'll upload photos and update my blog each day with a new photo. I'll also pop the photos up on Facebook. I would put them onto Instagram (@sammylee123), but I don't know if I can be bothered transferring the photos back and forth. So you'll just have to watch this space instead!!

Here is my "Your Reflection" photo:

Bagpipes at the ready

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 06:10:00 +0000

Yesterday, JR and I went to a park for a "Fun Day". It was to raise money for my mum's partner, FS (and her) to go overseas for FS to play at an amputee golf tournament in Scotland. They'll be heading overseas in August, I believe.

Not too many people there, but the people that were there seemed to be enjoying themselves and happy to help out. I wished I'd had known about it earlier than Friday night (thanks Mum!!), so that I could have tried to drum up some supporters for the day. Nevertheless, here 'twas:

Hula hooping was particularly hilarious with some participants (exhibit A).

Exhibit B. In the next millisecond, one of these hoops will go flying.

The Council had approved for a cricket match to go on at the same time as everything was set up for the fundraiser, so JR took an interest in that for a little bit. (PS, peek-a-boo!)

They had set up barbeque lunch. $4 lunch - can't complain!

Hard at work.

Rock 'n Roll Club members.

Ladies attempting some kind of Nutbush/rock'n'roll mash up.

FS & Mum

And again. But this time, FS is trying to look into the distance - perhaps he was aware his photo was being taken this time?

Raffle table.

President of "Stumpys" - the club that FS is a part of.

That little thing that Mum has in her arm is an amplifier. It worked, but wasn't loud. Plus, Mum spent most of FS's final speech trying to untangle the cord!

Nup - still no luck!

For more info about Stumpy's, or to donate to help out FS, contact diana33@adam.com.au

(CLICK HERE for an article in the Messenger about FS and his upcoming trip, and about Stumpy's)

xx

The magic of sound and physics

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 07:16:00 +0000

Been off the Blogger for a little while now. Have also left my poor camera dormant for a little bit as well, up until this weekend.

It's mainly because I've been preoccupied with work. Yes, I finally landed a job. A 6 month contract doing admin work for a bank. It's such a great job with some great people and I will be very sad when I have to leave (when JR and I go to Melbourne later on).

Moving right along though! JR decided to take me on a mystery drive yesterday to get me out of the house (long story). He wouldn't tell me where we were going, but I figured it out when we were about 10 minutes away (mainly because of the signs that were around the place!!).

I had told JR that I'd never been to the Barossa (wine country), and I'd never been to see the Whispering Wall. So that's where he took me.

Basically, it's a concrete retaining wall for the Barossa Reservoir. The shape of the dam wall (not the damN wall!), gives it very interesting acoustic properties. You are able to hear the whisper (literally - we tried it) of a person standing on the complete other side of the dam wall.

So, from here I could hear JR whispering from 140m away, as clear as if he was standing right next to me.
Can you see him?

There he is! Kind of unbelievable.
(It's like playing Where's Wally?!)

I highly recommend you pop over and experience it for yourself if you can! (I'm playing the part of an SA Tourism employee very well, don't you think?)

Some more photos:

We then went to Semaphore and had a bit of a walk down there and kindled up some childhood memories from when Dad lived on that side of town and we use to frequent the Semaphore waterslide.

JR then took me to the movies to see The Vow. It was okay. But I'm glad JR only spent $8.00 to see it, let's put it that way!

xx

Meet our Mirabella

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 10:49:00 +0000

JR wanted to get a bunny. After discussing briefly (because, how could I say no to another bundle of long-eared awesome?), we decided to take Teddy along to SA Rabbit Rescue and Adoptions (I hope that link works - if not, just Google it), to see if he would get along with other rabbits, and if so, to se if we could bring him home a mate.

I called Sally at SA Rabbit Rescue and Adoptions, who does an amazing job I might add, and arranged to go up there last Sunday to meet a 2 year old Netherland Dwarf cross to see if Teddy and her got along.

We got to Sally's house, got introduced to her adorable house bunnies and let Teddy socialise. He did so well! Discovered he loved Craisins as well.

Sally then introduced us to the Netherland Dwarf cross, who hung around for a bit then made a beeline directly into my carrier that I use for Teddy (and now for both). I said to Sally that it's a sign that she has to come home with us.

Sally got her out of the carrier a while later and said that she wasn't 100% sure, but she thinks a naughty lop she was taking care of had jumped over the gate of her pen and did the dirty with her, and she might be pregnant, but it could also be that she's just got a bit of a chubby gut. Sally had a proper feel and confirmed her suspicions... She's pregnant! Sally seems to think that she could pop out about 4 kits within two weeks of us taking her home (so we're assuming she's going to have her kits this week). However, due to the relocation, she could self-abort, but we're hoping that's not the case.

Sally explained to us the situation behind our new baby's surrender. She was owned by an older lady who passed away. In this lady's Will, she had enough money put aside for her daughter to ensure that the bunnies she had were taken care of. Apparently the daughter went to Sally and surrendered one of the buns (I can't remember what she said happened with the other), and there was a bit of legal bits and pieces with regards to the daughter still receiving the money even after the surrender (she's not anymore), but no money being given to the caregiver(s) of the surrendered bun(s), which is unfortunate. I don't mean that for our sakes, but for Sally's. She does such an incredible job and it would have been great if she could have received some help. But nevertheless, I'm not 100% on the details so I'll just stop now.

Sally wasn't 100% on the baby's name, so JR and I had to talk it out in the car, while Teddy and his new mate were bonding. We decided on Mirabella, meaning 'of incredible beauty.'

It's been a week since we've had Mirabella now and she's just getting used to us I think. But she could just be really skiddish due to her pregnancy. Apparently female rabbits' personalities change a lot during pregnancy.

Having said that though, after the first few nights of Mirabella thumping at Teddy, they've settled down now and they regularly sleep together and I think Teddy is absolutely in love with Mirabella. He follows her around everywhere! He has tried to hump her a few times (more than a few), but he's so much smaller than her and just doesn't get how it works properly I don't think, haha! I don't know what he's going to do without her for the first week or two after her pregnancy (we have to separate them while the kits still have their eyes closed).

I took some photos of Mirabella and Teddy yesterday, as I wanted some photos of Bella before she had her babies (of course I'll take some of the kits growing up with her when it happens). I wanted to try and get some of Teddy and Bella together but they only relaxed under the hutch together where it was too dark to get photos. When they were both out from under the hutch, they were too busy sniffing about to worry about each other!

I also wanted to make sure I got some photos ASAP for Sally at SA Rabbit Rescue and Adoptions. I hope these photos can bring a smile to her face! Get well, Sally. You're in our thoughts every day. xx

Crafternoon, part III (and final)

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 06:43:00 +0000

This is the last thing I did on that Crafternoon a few weeks back, and I love the idea so much that in the very near future I'm going to make some for myself.

I made some miniature polaroid magnets! You can see how to do it HERE.

I don't have Photoshop, so I used a polaroid frame within my post-processing software (I just use PhotoScape).

I also just used a silver texta around the edge, instead of an opaque marker.

And one other main difference - I used a few thin pieces of card and stuck them together to make the magnets thicker instead of a thick piece of card (as used in the linked blog).

This is what I came out with:

The engaged couple that I gifted these to (obviously they're the ones in all the photos) seemed to really like them; I'm so glad!

More blogs soon, but perhaps less of the crafting ones, as I've landed myself a job starting on 6th Feb! But I have really enjoyed making stuff, so I might have to just make an effort to make something once a month (or even just get baking a bit). I'll post anything that I do (if it comes about..!!!)

xx

Bunny love

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 09:40:00 +0000

In my initial post on Blogger, I said that I would perhaps share with you the story of my little bunny boy! So here 'tis!!

I decided mid-2010 that I wanted an animal companion, but it needed to be something small (not a dog or cat, as I would be moving back to Melbourne, and the likelihood of a rental property letting me keep a rabbit over a dog is a lot better.

So I went about searching for a little furry friend online and found a local couple that had Netherland Dwarf rabbits for sale. My sister and I went and met the couple and the daddy, and of course, the last of the litter.

The mummy was having a rest, so we didn't get to meet her for very long, but the daddy was a lively one! Very cute!

A little bunny was handed to my sister, and we both instantly fell in love. I could not leave this place without the little guy! He had a little diamond on his back in a different shade of fur (it still shows sometimes when he's losing a coat), and he was so precious.

On the way home, we went through many names, until I said, "How about Theodore", to which MH replied, "No, he's not a Theodore.. TEDDY!". And that's how my little Theodore (Teddy for short) came to be!

Everything was going so well with him, until February 2011. I noticed one morning that his head was tilted to the side and his eyes were slightly closed. I panicked. I called the veterinary clinic and they told me to bring him in.

Long story short, it was an abscess. A horrible thing. He had to go in for surgery. They told me that if the abscess had embedded under Teddy's eye (near/on the molars) that his eye may need to be removed.

Thankfully, the abscess had not progressed to under his eye and Teddy had the abscess cut out of his cheek. The wound was left open so that I could treat it with antibiotics. It was not a very pretty site, so I'll keep the gory pictures to myself (unless anyone asks for it!!).

Quite a few months later, I noticed that his eye (same side as the abscess) was out a fraction of a mm out compared to his other eye, so I took him to the vet. The vet said that only I could have picked it up, because he looked quite normal to the untrained eye, and even he had to look super hard to see the difference.

They did x-rays and it looked like the abscess was starting to form again, but this time it was near the tooth. I go straight into worst-case-scenario mode, because in reality, it would not be fair to Teddy to put him through surgery again and having him lose his eye. He wouldn't be living a full and happy life. So I was gearing up to say goodbye to my precious boy.

The vet that I saw told me to hang tight and he would contact a lagamorph expert to get some information about treatment not involving surgery.

After a few ideas being thrown back and forth, they decided it would be best to put Teddy on a course of antibiotics, which I needed to inject every day for a month. I became an absolute expert in antibiotic injections. The first couple of times I did it, I was a wreck. I hated doing it, but by the time the 30 days were through, I did it without a flinch (and same with Teddy).

After the month was over, I took him back for further testing to see how the antibiotics went. They cleared it up. Absolutely unbelievable. He's my little miracle bunny.

(It's at this point, I'd like to convey my upmost respect for, and thanks to the veterinarians and vet nurses at the clinic Teddy goes to, Southcoast Animal Hospital. They are amazing and lovely. And they all want to take Teddy home with them! hah)

Since then, he has only been back to the vet twice. Once for his most recent calicivirus injection, and once (this morning) to have a check up on a possible skin condition (turns out it's from acid burn from his urine, which I've been trying to treat for a little while, but all is well! Just gotta keep doing what I've been doing).

This bunny has cost me so much money (over about $1,300 on vet bills alone now), but the little bundle of joy is so worth it. He's a tiny bunny with a massive personality that puts a great big smile on my face.

Teddy jumps up on me, licks me (and others) all the time, purrs when you rub his cheeks, sits up near my neck when we're in the car (he actually likes car rides.. but only on the way back from the vet!)... I'll tell you what, I never thought I'd love a bun bun so much, or expect them to be so intelligent and full of personality and love, but my little Teddy Bear has opened my eyes so much. I love my lagamorph.

Here's some photos of the Buuba that I took yesterday:

This one is begging for a funny caption!

You can't even tell that an abscess was on his face and a massive chunk of his cheek was removed.

Ooh, I also forgot to mention that I entered a picture (that I shared in this previous post) in a competition with the Messenger (local newspapers around metropolitan Adelaide), and although he didn't win, he did get himself in the paper! Check it out:

My little man's a star!!

So that's my little baby up to now! Can't imagine life without him. :)

xx

Scarves in Summer?

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 07:34:00 +0000

Today in Adelaide, it got up to 37 degrees celsius. Obviously, the middle of Summer, especially today, is a great time to create scarves!

Again, I've been trying to keep my hands busy while I'm not working. I came across some t-shirt scarves and decided that today would be the day that I would finally give it a crack.

Here's a fairly rubbish photo of all the scarves I created (utilising the dreaded iPhone flash)

Okay, so, the scarves are:

1. Spaghetti/rope scarf - the first photograph is the full length of the scarf, the second is it wrapped twice around, making it more of a neck scarf.

2. Fringe scarf

3. Finally, a braided scarf.

They most certainly won't come in handy at the moment, but when JR and I move back to Melbourne, I'm sure I'll need these... Possibly even in Summer (good ol' Melbourne!)

"Nothing beats a day at the Bay"

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 10:04:00 +0000

Last night, JR and I were discussing what we were going to do today. We decided that we'd get on the tram at the Entertainment Centre of the line and go right through to Glenelg.

We parked the car and walked to the Ent Cent tram stop.

Modelling skillz.

Then we got on the tram, which started out really empty... Then it got not-so empty once we landed in town! Pfft! How dare the general public make our tram ride so squishy! Hah

Then I got snap-happy at JR. And he reciprocated with some amazing modelling. Boy really does have skills! Hah!

Once we got to Glenelg, we stopped in at Souvlaki Bros for a yiros/souvlaki/kebab (depending on where you're from) and went and sat down on the grass near the beach, under a palm tree. We watched the seagulls being cheeky and scabby while we ate our lunch (including the last bits of lamb with our fingers), and felt the sea breeze on our faces. We were only there for a short time, but it was just so lovely.

* *

So yes, another wonderful day out with my wonderful partner.

* - pictures from iPhone

xx

Crafternoon, part II

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 09:34:00 +0000

Remember how I said that I'd give you a run-down of another one of my creations from this week just gone? Well, I gave one of my gifts away yesterday, so I can now share!

Now this idea, I didn't get from anywhere on the internet; it has come straight from the brain of me!

I decided to make, what I'm calling, an "Inspiration Shaker" - it's not a very creative name, once you see what it actually is!

1) Start with finding some inspirational quotations for women on the internet. I came across a few sites, just by Googling "inspirational quotes for women."

2) Format the quotes in Microsoft Word; I just formatted as so:

Quotes -
Font: AR BLANCA, 10 pt, Font colour: Dark Red, Left
Line spacing: single, Space
After: 0 pt, Don't add space between paragraphs of the same style, Style: Quick Style
Based on: Normal

Quoted by -
Font: 10 pt, Font colour: Dark Red, Right
Line spacing: single, Space
After: 0 pt, Don't add space between paragraphs of the same style, Style: Quick Style
Based on: Normal

3) Highlight the lot and put into three (3) columns.

4) Print!

(FYI: with the label, I used the same details, but just increased the font size and made spacing different - you will see).

5) Take to the quotes with a ruler and craft Stanley knife and cut them up, leaving a little room around them.

6) Put the quotes onto some pretty wrapping paper with some double-sided tape, left a bit of space (about half a cm), and cut around that.

The photo directly above shows the label for the front of the shaker (see what I mean with the different font size and spacing? It is, of course, completely up to the individual as to how it can be done!)

7) With the label, do the same thing as with the quotes, but this time, leave about 1cm of space with the wrapping paper around the quote (I also put a thin line of silver texta/marker around the edge of the white paper). Due to the shape of the container (I chose a pink cocktail shaker), I needed to curve the top of the wrapping paper so that the label stuck on straight (it wasn't a fool-proof plan, but it still worked out okay).

8) Put label onto cocktail shaker with double-sided tape.

9) Put the quotes into cocktail shaker.

10) Tie a bit of ribbon around the top to finish off.

Crafternoon, part I

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 07:45:00 +0000

I've been reading up on DIY/Crafting a bit while I've been at home. Specifically on Pinterest and other blogs.

I came across the blog entry DIY Clothespin Magnets on "One Good Thing" by Jillee and took to it this afternoon, along with a couple of other projects (which I can't post about yet, as they're gifts - I'll post about them once the pressies have been given).

I made an alternative, even easier version, if such a thing exists.

I just went to the local Cheap As Chips store (a cheap shop chain, full of all sorts of stuff.. for, well, cheap), and loaded up on some wooden pegs ($1.50 for 48), some ribbon ($2.00), magnetic tape ($2.00). I also went to a newsagency for some double-sided tape ($3.95). Keeping in mind that I am using the double-sided tape and magnetic tape for other projects, it's SUPER cheap and SUPER easy.

All I did was take the ribbon and measure out the length of the pegs I was using and cut as many strips as I wanted. Due to the width of the ribbon I had bought, I cut the ribbon down the middle, which was perfect for the width of the pegs.

Then I did the exact same thing with the double-sided tape (cut the length of tape, then cut down the width of the tape).

Stick the tape on the peg, then the ribbon over the tape.

Add on the magnetic strip on the back and voila!! Peg magnets!

NB: The magnetic strip that I bought isn't very strong, so you wouldn't be able to use it for more than a couple of bills on the fridge, but you could always use two or more pegs for a lot of pages. They should be strong enough for photographs and other bits and pieces though. I'm sure you'd be able to find stronger magnetic strips somewhere though, perhaps at Spotlight or Lincraft.

More soon!

xx

Time flies, then slows down

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 05:22:00 +0000

Although time may not be flying for this currently unemployed bum, 2011 certainly did seem to fly by. Especially the last six months.

Yesterday, JR and I celebrated our six month anniversary. And what a great and happy six months it has been. I never thought I could or would ever be this happy, or this much in love. I know that all this lovey dovey stuff is a bit sickening - I used to hate reading stuff like it. But I guess you can always skim over it, pull a face and move on, right? hehe.

JR makes me laugh so much sometimes. Exhibit A: Vogue...

On to other matters of the heart. Two days ago it was Serbian (and other) Orthodox Christmas. We always leave our decorations up until at least the 7th of January, as Mum is half Serb (other half is Italian). MH took them down today. So, for anyone reading my blog that is Serbian - Срећан Божић (Srećan Božić). For any other Orthodox celebrating on 7th Jan - Merry Christmas!

As I said earlier, I'm still unemployed, but am still on the constant look out. I have been put forward for a couple of jobs now, which is really good considering I was told that the start of January was really slow (granted, the jobs I've been put forward for don't start until end of January/early February, but that's okay). It's encouraging.

I have a phone appointment with the dreaded Centrelink next week. I'm hoping I will be able to tell them that I won't need to worry about it because I'll have a job lined up. But if not, it's there. It will (hopefully) be enough to pay the bills.

Home life is SUPER fun right now (sarcasm intended). I've pretty much trapped myself inside the house to try to avoid spending money unnecessarily. However, in saying that, I took JR out for lunch and a movie (Happy Feet Two - SO CUTE! I definitely recommend it) for our six months yesterday. It was a nice day out. Going to have to find some other ways of spending my free time that's going to be just that - free. If there's anyone reading - please leave me some comments with suggestions!

xx

The grey area

noreply@blogger.com (sammylee) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 04:50:00 +0000

I'm currently in the process of trying to find some temping work to get me through until JR and I move to Melbourne in the middle of this year. It's killing me just being at home all day! I've never spent much time unemployed, so I am relatively hopeful that something will rear its head, however I've never done any temping work before, so it's a new game for me.

The only times I've been unemployed with nowhere to go is when I moved to Melbourne in 2008, and then when I came back home in 2010. Each time, I was only unemployed for a month or less. But as I said before, this is a different game plan with temping, as opposed to applying for full-time permanent employment.

I have been very well received at the employment agencies that I have approached and have been put forward for two jobs already. The first, I didn't get as the company went for someone already trained in the system the company uses (meaning less training time for the temp), and I am currently awaiting a response about the second (which I only heard about today).

I have managed to use my time relatively productively (although today is a bit of an exception). Yesterday, I cleaned out my chest of drawers and threw away two and a half garbage bags of old clothes, and put a garbage bag worth of band t-shirts away in the shed. My chest of drawers is still choccas! I don't know how I managed to jam it all in there!

I moved a few things from the drawers in my wardrobe so that JR has somewhere to put his clothing, instead of having them in a tub on top of the wardrobe. I was supposed to move his stuff today, but I've been slack today (compared to yesterday anyway).

I also cleaned up my photos on my external harddrive. I moved them into folders according to year and month. It took me six hours to get it all sorted, but it's done now. Quite proud of myself, plus I found some absolute gems in amongst some of the photos I was yet to go through from my time in Melbourne.

At BLVD in Feb 2010. L-R: EH, me, MB

L-R: Myself, KB and MB.
2010: Cocktail party at mine and MB's place.

KB and SH.
I have no idea what they're doing either, but it's still hilarious!

I could keep going for ages, but these three pictures almost define what my life was like in Melbourne (minus a few key people). It was full of friends, laughs, drinks, and super funny times. Oh, I can't wait to go back.

Until then, I have to just continue to search for somewhere to work for a few months and try not to procrastinate too much, like I feel like I've done today.

Instead of dusting my ceiling fan, I went outside earlier to take a few photos. A couple of Floyd, and this one:

I processed the photo to black and white and I like it a lot better than it was in colour. Probably because a lot of photos (if not, a majority) look better in black and white. Still not sure why I like it, especially considering you can see the spider webs (I hate spiders.. with a passion).

Apart from not dusting my ceiling fan and other domestic duties, I did actually get some productive job hunting done, so I guess today wasn't a total loss after all. I just feel like I haven't done anything (I'm still in the clothes I wore to bed, and it's 3:12pm - that might have something to do with my feeling of laziness?).

I have managed to watch a lot of Dexter S5. Oh, how I love Dexter. I have had S5 sitting in my room for months, but have only just managed to get around to watching it. While I'm home, I might actually get a chance to finally read the newest Dexter book as well (the books are amazing, if you haven't read them I suggest you make an effort to). I've read the first couple of chapters a while back, but have put it down and haven't had a chance to pick it back up again. That will get done shortly... along with everything else!

So I guess being at home isn't such a bad thing - I'm finally starting to get some things done that I've been meaning to do. Cross fingers I won't have too much more "free time" on my hands though!

I'll just have to mull away in this grey area of my life and slug at it until something comes my way.

xx