Still to come!!!!!!!!!

Sorry to take SO long to post something! My wonderful friend Jon has suggested that I do a Top Ten or Top Five Highlights of my holiday. Think it will be my Top Ten, could possibly be more! 

Im still only half way through sorting out my 1600 pictures I took! Think I've managed to cull it so far to 1500! 

There  were SO many highlights of my trip, this one still making me go WOW! I did that I went there! Im still in awe, the awe mostly set aside for Egypt, my childhood dream. Im really itching to write now though I really want to get the highlights sorted in my mind, choose the pix, then write about them. Im also going to include the dramas, the regrets and what I WILL do next time, such as spend more time at the ancient Egyptian sites and not rush them. 

I want to write about the movies I've seen and the books Im reading & music Im listening to. Im starting a course soon so I'll have to make time for that!

Anyway before I get carried away writing about what Im "gonna" do and before I start writing what I was gonna do later Im going now! 

Any suggestions for things to write about and pix to take are most welcome too  :  )  

The Story of Friendship, Physio and the Decaying Wisdom Tooth : )

Had a truly eventful week! Though my working week was filled with dreariness, saved only by a few lovely colleagues, I had other events to add colour to my week! 

I started my working week, Tuesday this week, by late morning having trouble walking. I was just walking. And had a unnerving twitch & slight cramp in my right leg / hip. Eventually I left work for the day & went to Physio. Twas going to go there about my knees but that was put on hold.   :  (    Thought I had slight discomfort then, oh no, the real discomfort came with physio!!! Pain pain! Though necessary pain  :  )  Well thats alright then :   )  Went back again later that week, but how was I to know that more intense pain was headed my way!!! 

I caught up with the Lovely David & the hard to catch Kevin for dinner at Betty's on Wednesday where Kevin filled us in on his stay in London. Kevin went to Ibiza with friends whilst there. David and I also had many a yarn to spin with a good time had by all. It was lovely yo catch up with the two of them. We've been friends for around 15 years! And it all started thanks to Sharespace a  gay (no not as in a bad or  lame) accommodation sourcing agency where people are (hopefully) matched with compatible flat mates. 15 years later we are certainly compatible!  :  )  Anyway we were served by the quirky, intelligent and observant manager of Betty's, wish I knew his name! He's one of the reasons I go there. Apart from his usual welcomed interludes this day he showed us a CD cover with Betty's on it! How cool! I like Betty's! 'He' even told us about Betty, a real person, who lives somewhere in Bondi Junction. Must get his name next time. 

Friday night very happy to be home though apprehensive about what I'd do on the long weekend I was watching my fave tv series of 30 Rock, LOVE IT LOVE IT! Anyway In was eating crisps. All of a sudden during this I felt something hard like a stone in my mouth & thought there was one in the crisps. I took it out it looked like a stone, a white stone. Then seconds later thought maybe it was a tooth then felt an unfamiliar sensation and a gap 'on' one of my back teeth. It didn't hurt when I brushed and flossed the area but it did when I mouth washed it! 




So I went for emergency dental work the next day, Saturday. Luckily it was a owned by my health care company & I have good cover! I have never had a more traumatic experience at the Dentist! (Except perhaps when I was little) I was still recovering from the ordeal after leaving, I guess it was pain I had to endure! It was a decaying wisdom tooth that had chipp




Don't forget to brush the back teeth as they can get overlooked & dental floss everyday. It may be annoying or awkward but its worth it! (I manage to floss at least every second day, wow thats an interesting fact!!!!) 




After this I met up with the lovely Anne, also a dear friend for probably 15 years as well. I met her up at Hornsby near her home. We went for tea at T2. Its wonderful there, they have a beautiful secluded section there with muted lighting and cosy corners. It was great to catch up with Anne we always have lovely chats when we catch up. I don't have a picture of Anne to show at this stage.   

So here I am again....

So here I am again at Coco Cubano! 


Had coffee and warmed Banana Bread with butter about two hours ago here. Hope the staff don't mind... cause Im here to stay... at least for the 36% energy rating on my laptop anyway!


The real reason for this posting is really to post more pix so here goes.....     


I couldn't decide which ones to put in so I put most of the ones in that I took. So now partake.......

I downloaded the pix first before to get the technicality out of the way. Unfortunately Im running out of power & its bloody chilly! Didn't bring extra clothing cause I've been over this warmer weather where I end up just 'carrying' extra. But now alas its cold! 



Hope you like the pix!


Its very hustle & bustle here, love the blurring of colour produced by passing traffic, the fading sun & a slow speed(ing) camera. Hustle & bustle... what do you call word parings like this? Don't know why but I don't like "hints, tips & tricks" as a (triad) pairing. My company uses it alot as probably does the rest of the beauty / fashion world etc. What are some other classic (clique') word pairings? (or whatever they're called) .... odds & ends, bits & bobs, spick & span, surely there's more to it than the rhyming feel of these word couplings? 


Please someone help me out here!

And please please get a gmail account so you can leave comments and tell trustworthy friends about it or people you know who will appreciate what I have to say and / or my pix  :   )   ie; not anyone who will just bag it out 

I love the light and shadows in these pictures. Reminds me of my pix of Central Station in NYC   :  )


Before I forget these photo's are made possible cause of Mum, as it was her who gave me a digital camera. I had one before, though cant remember what happened to it. Alot happens forty years down the track......why isn't it up the track?! Yet another mystery! 

Welcome to my Blog : )

First of all thanks youse to Kevin for leaving some comments on my Blog for me  :   )   Secondly and just as importantly thanks to Jon for dedicating pix to me on his Blog, The Bear Essentials! He is in Santorini atm and took pix of dogs and one pushkins (ie; kitten for those not able to translate friend-speak) 

Im currently in Surry Hills Library (again) cause its the most comfortable place to do laptop things in. B4 entering the library I got take away coffee & took some pix of the libraries exterior. 


I LOVE reflections, even my own (I don't mind saying, thats the Virgo in me!) Yes love reflections. Sometimes I think they bring out better definition & colour than the images in our solid reality.

I think people can look better, at times, in their reflection, all glossy & fluid like, negating the finer details of physical flaw & incongruent personalities. You don't get the whole, true picture from a reflection but at least it can be flattering 
 :  )   


Unlike the fable of the dog with a bone who sees its reflection, barks at itself then looses the bone. Sometimes our minds lose focus based on reflection of how we look and who we are based on our reflection. Whether this be from looking at ourselves in the mirror, what people say to us, how they react and respond to us and how we ourselves behave in response to surrounding stimuli. Then there's the thoughts and beliefs this view accumulates which in turn shapes the person we are. 


Back to the story of the dog, I love dogs & I love humour, so Im able to see the funny side of the subjects mishap as well as the meaning. 


What does your reflection say to you?   :   )   

Below is a pic, three doors down, from Hyde Park from a few days ago. It was meant for the last posting but my technology was slow as was power. So here it is today. Gonna look for other pix now and add them. This must be from a week ago actually cause its before the photo's went up for the Art & About exhibit. The ones in the last posting with the red dust storm & the B&W of lady drinking on the rocks at the beach. I loved the heat and sweat felt through that picture via black and white filter. The background looks stormy too. One of those days where its been that incredibly hot the skies have no option but for tumultuous rapture! I love storms and crashing waves! 

If you walk beyond you will come to a fountain. I've focussed on one of the figures. 

It is here that I'll take you back to my place and show what I've done to my desk. The last posting had a pic of my desk as treasure trove, so I've complemented this theme with a something I bought a few years ago in Perth at a market at Freemantle. I believe its a Tibetan prayer for blessing. I have a small collection of papyrus prints,  the main one I want to put under glass on my dining table the others I'd like to frame.

Wasn't sure which one to post here so I put them all in. Makes my desk really interesting. It reminds me where I've been, what matters most to me and where my interests are. 

 Its a reminder that life is filled with mysteries some real and others imagined. Create and use your imagination to take you places. Let your personality shine!

 The library is shutting soon so Im going for coffee at Coco Cubano, anyone want to join me?! 


And please leave comments. You just have to create a gmail account. Its easy, I did it so can you. 

 

So this is whats been happening......

So here I am in downtown Kings Cross (KX) Im at Coco Cabana's, not the nice one with the great open location on Taylor Square but the one with drunks, druggies and working girls, oh and the occasional closing of the street due to gun fire   (  :  


I've got some really nice pix to share today from the last week or so I think. Only have half battery power & sore shoulders from the height of the tables here. Oh Im safe, the police are here waiting for a coffee as a messed up washed out young lady passes by me, her loose strapped mid- heels scuffing along the wooden floorboards. 

Work has been a challenge. I think I need a change! Its an empty, shallow job. Again the holiday has helped me to see things differently. 

As I do I've been spending a few lunch times in Hyde Park where there is a Photo Exhibition on, actually all around the city. The pix that accompany this posting are my highlights. Two photographs stood out for me. They've also dressed up the statues around the area. Im not sure though whether this could offend some people especially royalists or anyone with a family connection to the statues subjects. Thats what I think. The lovely Rakhi at work thinks that too   (  :   

So a few days ago I went out for dinner with the lovely David & Paul to that Vietnamese restaurant on Bourke Street behind Taylor Square. It was lovely of course cause they are lovely. They've been together for quite some time now (years?) & every time I see them together its like they've recently met. Its Beautiful with a capital B  :   )   Great company too. Thanks guys!    


Last weekend I caught up with my brother Alex and his girlfriend Penny, a nice paring there too! So much love in the air! We spent an hour or so looking for a car park in the city for a BIG ute! Finally we found one & eventually went to the Vietnamese place I mentioned above. Im a creature of habit and a good inexpensive dinner. Betty's is my other fave for those of you who don't know. I DO need some NEW places though! Any suggestions?  

A week has past by........ Philosophy with Metal Dog

A week has past by since I arrived back in Sydney. 

At first I was hesitant to return & humoured by the size of Sydney and the world I'd left behind. Though not completely settled Im getting there.

As I wrote there is a big world outside the context of our own immediate worlds. (Or words to that effect) Its easy to  lose sight of reality, more so for others like myself at times, when we only see what's directly in front of us, what has past and what we perceive in the future. Are we perceiving everything that's happening right now based on what happened in the past. Sometimes this is a good thing though the life ahead is not always a reflection of the past, only if we perceive it as our reality. However most of what we know and how we interpret, respond & react to it is based on past experience. Our minds get fixed, sometimes with blinkers or blindfolded, on what our focus is, not seeing other experiences, points of view, angles, expressions and possibilities.  




This is the way I've seen life so far from experience and from what I've read. Going away for a month has enabled me to confirm this clearer than I would had I not gone away. I have Dad to thank for the opportunity to go away and to a lesser extent a five year relationship breakup. Thanks Dad. Thanks Sam & I. The other influence was of course my turning forty though I've already been through this before. 

Thats all. And thanks to some prompts from my good friend Jon I can now rearrange pix to make my Blog increasingly beautiful & palatable.  

BACK TO REALITY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So here I am in the environmentally friendly Surry Hills Library. Its three days now since I returned to Sydney. I hated arriving back. Getting out of the airport was swift. Using my ePassport I sauntered past the throngs of weary jet lagged travelers to a queue where there was none. I was first in line as there was no line. Swiped my passport, had my face scanned by computer for identification & then made my way to baggage claim. As I approached the conveyer belt my bag was there in less than a minute! I proceeded to the larger than life queue for customs & luggage scan / checks. Was there for about a minute, a customs lady approached me mentioned that I was carrying papyrus, the tube containing it was open, asked me a few questions such as "are you carrying beef jerky?" ....yes this is true! We bantered for a few seconds, she stamped my papers & directed me to an exit door where there was NO queue, yet again! The whole exit process took four or five minutes tops!

Outside I was greeted, not personally, by hundreds of people waiting for loved ones & taxi pick ups. It was suffocating actually.  Part of me, jet lagged, was imagining family & friends there to greet me enthusiastically.... then I woke up, no not really but I did imagine it for a nano second, thinking 'no, I would cry & I don't want that'. Then I felt alone, then I wished I had a happy bouncing puppy waiting for me at home. Alas that was also not realistic nor meant to be. The way it happened though was the way it happened however and I think that gave me time to convey the reality forming around me. 

So today I am still adjusting to life back home. Work tomorrow.... next thought please! I did think 'how small Sydney is' after all the places I've been to. And how multicultural it isn't compared with the U.S. I miss the U.S and I miss the television there! Especially the channel TNT with all the police / investigator shows, and The View with Whoopi Goldberg & Barbra Walters & two others I cant think of now. (one of them, a comedian, has her own talk show & had Cyndi Lauper, Melissa Ethridge, Pat Benetar & etc all on the one show! Another day she interviewed Belinda Carlyle (spel?) And America's got Talent! ACTUAL TALENT! Well not all some was painful! Anyway everyone please U Tube (or better) Prince Poppycock!!! You read correctly, he is AMAZING! Sharon Ozborne was saying on the show he is the male Lady Gaga. He does Opera, but the way he does it is astounding! He is High Camp and an AMAZING talent! Puts Mardi Gras to shame! Please go look him up! 


Im gonna go now. Have actually taken some last pix of San Fran yet to down load & pix of my trip home from the airport. These will be more for my friends who haven't seen my neighborhood & for Leandro. 


By for now! Please people leave comments for me!