How awesome is this vase?  Prairie House is made by artist Dora Humniski as part of the artist collective called Loyal Loot.

I just love the simple lines and the imaginative play on proportions and landscapes.  I’d love this vase just so I could keep changing the item it held and pretend I lived in that house for a little while.

Image source: Loyal Loot

I am in some serious travel lust right now.  I happened to wonder on to From The Right Bank where I was shown the most amazing images of homes and interiors.  I was happily ohhing and ahhing when my breath was taken away by Hotel Endsleigh.

I’m not going to show you all the amazing images of this Hotel that are available because I want you to go to their website and see for yourself, but let me just say this:

• The interiors have been lovingly restored and furnished in Victorian Era stylings.
• The wallpapers alone are worth visiting for.
• It’s lavish and sumptuous and all things wonderful.
• The grounds are magnificent and the natural beauty breath taking.

I want to go there and stroll the grounds in my Victorian Era dress and parasol.  It’s just too charming for words!  Oh the life I would live here…

Don’t you just wish you could go and sit outside looking at this marvelous view while eating and drinking on some wonderfully crafted menu?  I’m drooling just thinking about it!

I told my Dad I had won a job back with the Australian Public Service and this was the email he sent me:

New element discovered at ANU to be included on the Periodic Table:

The Nuclear Physics Department of the Australian National University* has discovered the heaviest element yet known to science. The new element, Governmentium (Gv), has one neutron, 25 assistant neutrons, 88 deputy neutrons, and 198 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 312.

These 312 particles are held together by forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. Since Governmentium has no electrons, it is inert; however, it can be detected, because it impedes every reaction with which it comes into contact. A tiny amount of Governmentium can cause a reaction that would normally take less than a second, to take from 4 days to 4 years to complete.

Governmentium has a normal half-life of 2 – 6 years. It does not decay, but instead undergoes a reorganization in which a portion of the assistant neutrons and deputy neutrons exchange places. In fact, Governmentium’s mass will actually increase over time, since each re-organization will cause more morons to become neutrons, forming isodopes. This characteristic of moron promotion leads some scientists to believe that Governmentium is formed whenever morons reach a critical concentration.

This hypothetical quantity is referred to as critical morass.

When catalyzed with money, Governmentium becomes Administratium, an element that radiates just as much energy as Governmentium since it has half as many peons but twice as many morons

* They haven’t really, it’s just that this is the University located in Canberra.  Canberra is the capital of Australia and thus where all the politicians and governmental departments are located.

1. yellow van, #410 in explore !, 2. Walk In My Yellow Shoes, 3. inconspicuous yellow umbrella, 4. Yellow Bike, 5. Happy Yellow Sunshine Rainbow Baby Tighter Crop, 6. yellow Y and blue sky, 7. it was all yellow, 8. Parking on double yellow lines, 9. Photo Course 01.03.10

I’m in a yellow kind of mood today.  Not sure why, yellow isn’t one of my favourite colours either so it’s doubly surprising.

The last week has been interesting.  HUBBY is still job hunting while I’ve been patiently awaiting a call from my new employer letting me know when I’ll be able to start.  While I’m enjoying the time at home with HUBBY I’m starting to get a little anxious about when we’ll both be back at work.  There’s a few things we’d like to do this year that rely on both of us working.  (Like eating regularly!)  But it’s in GOD’s hands so I guess I’d best just chill and enjoy the time I have at home.

On Saturday night we caught up with HUBBY’s Dad and his partner.  It was a great night.  I forget just how much I enjoy their company until we’re all together again and then I spend the next week or two wishing we all lived closer together.  His Dad was traveling with friends of theirs from Melbourne, A and P.  A and I had a great natter about the marvelous-ness that is Etsy.  We had an awesomely delicious meal at La Rustica in Kingston; it was just a shame that the service was appalling.  We waited over an hour to get our meals and the wait staff were not the friendliest wait staff.  One of the waitresses was wearing a rather lovely set of gold bangles that had little medallions hanging from them.  Only one problem, every time she served food she dragged the bangles through the dish.  Yummy!

We spent Sunday the way we’d spent most of the week.  Lazying about the house amusing ourselves with various media outlets.  It was a cloudy day that threatened rain and failed to deliver.  But it was clearly the first real day of Autumn, which is grand as it means Summer is over and Winter is just around the corner.  I love this time of year almost as much as I love Spring. I love seeing the colours change around the place and the ability to wear scarves.  I just love scarves.  In fact I’m going to have to make it a priority to learn how to make one this winter.

On Monday I went to a photography course with M called Love Your Camera.   (The rubber duck image above is one I took as part of the course.) It was great to catch up with M who is positively glowing in her pregnant state.  We spent the day having a good natter and a laugh.  The course was enjoyable and the facilitator really lovely.  I spent half the day wishing we could have a photo session with her because she was so captivating.  The course was a great rehash of a lot of the fundamentals that I had been taught at university.  The course is geared towards taking photos of your kids it’s still good practical advice for anyone wanting to just take a better photo and understand their camera. The facilitator is clearly really good at what she does and has a wealth of information to share about the business, tools of the trade and how to interact with your subjects.

Despite being enjoyable it just felt like it was missing something.  I really felt the lack of a handbook as I’m a note taker that likes to make notes on the slides as I see them.   I also thought it was hard to see what we were all doing when you just relied on the digital display on our cameras.  It would have been great to do some practical work in the morning, have the facilitator load the images over lunch and then talk about what we’d all been doing, with a follow up in the afternoon to correct what we’d done in the morning.  Or even set a homework task and have people take photos prior to the class and go through those and then show the improvement at the end of the day.  Besides being really helpful people always get a kick out of showing off their talents and subjects.  (Or is that just me?)

At the end of the day did I feel like I got my $225 worth.  Unfortunately not.  Due to the size of the class it was hard to get one-on-one time with the facilitator and because we couldn’t see the difference in our images over the day it really made it hard to adjust your style and settings to see some improvement and take advantage of having the expert with you.

Would I recommend the course?  Probably, but only to those that had children or were looking to start a family portraits business and we’re looking at a really basic introduction in to what to do.

Would I book Angie to take photo’s of me and my family?  Hell yeah!  She was wonderful and clearly talented.  My brother’s 30th Birthday is coming up and she’ll be in Brisbane around that time.  I’m seriously considering flying up there and getting her to take the family portraits my mother has always wanted of us.  I will definitely be keeping her in mind when my Sister-In-Law has her baby later this year.  It would be a wonderful gift to give new parents.

♣♣♣♣♣

If you want to see other people’s Flickr Faves head on over to ArtMind. While you’re there check out the latest, and way cutest, offering from ArtMind: Bunny Art

Image source: ArtMind

Image source: Lovely Mariquita

How gorgeous are these felt animal brooches from Lovely Mariquita?  I want them all!  These so many variations and styles to choose from, this is a mere handful of all the ones I would love to give a home to.

I think it’s the cartoon style eyes that really make them special.  They remind me of a teddy bear I had growing up.  If I only had to pick one item I think it would have to be a deer… although the raccoon is cute.. and so’s the little squirrel… and the birds… Oh don’t make me pick just one!

For those of you living under the rock Alice in Wonderland opens in cinemas this week and I cannot wait! It’s been awhile since I got excited about a movie coming out and I’ve been waiting for this one for months.

And it seems I’m not the only one.  All over the internet there are homages to Alice in Wonderland popping up from Etsy to Cakes to blogs.  One of my favourite blogs, Confessions of a Net Addict, has put a wonderful spin on the topic.

Turning her wonderful style and talent to the task, Miss Addict has developed looks inspired by each of the characters.

These collections are funky and cool and all the great things in life.  The colours are bright and vibrant and totally reflective of the traditional look and feel of Alice in Wonderland only with a modern stylish twist.

I love them all and would kill to be able to wear a third of the things listed.  (Not to mention afford them!)

If you, like me, are lusting after all things Alice in Wonderland at the moment do yourself a favour and head over to Confessions of a Net Addict!

Thanks to Miss Addict for permission to use her wonderful collection.

Source: WWdN In Exile

I couldn’t pass up sharing this geeky goodness.  If you’re not familiar with Think Geek you need to be.  They sell only the geekiest of geeky cool and it’s all wonderful, so go check it out.

This all started back in 2007 when Alivicwil and I set out to read 50 books in a year. I ended up reading 54 in total.  So in 2008 I decided I would try and read 60 books.  I didn’t make it.  I again set the challenge in 2009 and once again I didn’t reach the magical number.

I love the challenge (and I love reading) so I’m determined to get to 60.  Hopefully 2010 will be the year.

Goal: In 2010 I will read 60 books throughout the year.

Here’s the list so far:

1. New Moon, Stephanie Meyer – January 2 2010
2. Eclipse, Stephanie Meyer – January 2 2010
3. Breaking Dawn, Stephanie Meyer – January 5 2010
4. Taronga, Victor Keller – January 11 2010
5. The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupery – January 13 2010
6. The Beach House, Jane Green – January 18 2010
7. What She Wants, Cathy Kelly – January 30 2010
8. Bending the Rules, Susan Andersen – February 26 2010
9. Skintight, Susan Andersen – February 28 2010
10. How to Lose an Extraterrestrial in Ten Days, Susan Grant – March 4 2010 10 completed – 50 to go
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59. yet to be read…59 completed – 1 to go
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• that’s 60 folks!

Number of books read in a month:

7 x January

2 x February

? x March

? x April

? x May

? x June

? x July

? x August

? x September

? x October

? x November

? x December

Wonder where I find these literary masterpieces? Wonder no more…. clicky

Image source: Gnomeangel, In Game – World of Warcraft

Who said nothing brilliant ever came from playing World of Warcraft?  Tonight my fellow Guildies helped me out with a domestic crisis; what to have for dinner!

I was talking (i.e. whinging) in Guild Chat that I didn’t know what we were going to do about dinner; “The cupboard is bare and I don’t want to head to Woolworths.”

A few minutes later Cromonztro tells me he’s sent me a recipe in game.  I thought he meant a WoW recipe.  No, he meant an actual recipe.

Turns out we had everything, with a few minor tweaks, that I needed to make what I called “Cromonztro’s Dalaran Delight” but is actually known as “Impossible Pie”.  It’s like a quiche without the carb and calorie loaded pastry.

When I’d gotten it ready to go in the oven I sent my Guildies a little preview.

It came out of the oven golden and perfect.  HUBBY was so impressed that I’d managed to whip up dinner without him knowing, or without having to send him into Woolworths.  It tastes awesome and it’s so filling, even if you’re not missing 80% of you stomach.

For those of you that want to try it out at home here’s the details:

Ingredients

6 x Eggs

1 Cup Milk

1/2 Cup Flour – sifted

1/2 Cup Grated Cheese

Handful of Bacon Bits or Cooked Chicken (I used diced ham as we had no bacon or chicken)

1/2 Diced Onion (We didn’t have an onion so I just skipped this bit)

1 Sliced Tomato (We only had about 10 grape tomatoes so I just halved them and used that instead)

Directions

Combine Eggs, Milk and Flour and mix well.

Add cheese and mix well.

Add bacon/chicken/ham and onion and mix well.

Pour into a well greased tin. (I used a slice tin and just doused it in cooking spray)

Place tomato slices on top.  Be careful not to let them sink too far, they should “float” just don’t jiggle the pan too much.

Bake for 40 minutes in a 180 degree Celsius oven.  (I baked at 160 in a fan forced oven.)

Can be eaten hot or cold and served with green salad.

Serves 6. (Or 4 hungry people!)

Thanks to Rainie and Cro for the awesome dinner!

(Sorry for the quality of the dinner images, they were all taken on my iPhone.)

I just love this installation piece by Pete Dungey.  It’s a brilliant, and colourful, way to highlight the problems with road conditions.  I just love the look of the mini garden.  The website gives the following explanation about the project:

An ongoing series of public installations highlighting the problem of surface imperfections on Britain’s roads.

‘If we planted one of those in every hole, it would be like a forest in the road’

It would be a crying shame if someone was to run over the top of one of these mini gardens.

Image source: Pete Dungey

Found via A Cup of Joe.