September Reading

Heading off again tomorrow, so I'll get straight into it.

How to Stop Time. It took me two thirds of the book to get into it - I found him a little annoying and the name dropping really irritating but the last third once the action heats up, engaging and interesting. I think if you like his other books, then you'll enjoy it. 

This is a junk crime - def a holiday read. I liked the cultural difference. Indonesian Chinese family star. There are some very funny bits but overall, I wasn't in love with it. Entertaining enough, but not really recommending it.

Ghost Ship This is a collection of beautiful poems, very poignant at times, amusing at others. One very heartbreaking I was at a loss for words. It got me thinking a lot about memory, and how we work it, touching it like a familiar fabric for comfort, even when it hurts. Lovely imagery that sticks in my mind well after reading. The description on the back jacket got me thinking...

Travelling Light I am slowly working my way through all of her adult works as they translate into English. This collection of short stories was written in the 80's, I think, though most seem timeless except a couple, in particular, Correspondence. Some travel out of Finland, for the first time if I recall correctly. One of the things I like about short stories is it's interesting to see what hooks people. My husband had read the book before me and he talked of one story in particular that he really liked. I was genuinely surprised he liked it so much as it didn't appeal to me as much as a couple of the others. But I guess that's why we discuss books...we all bring a different insight to them. Lovely collection on travel (& how we think about it) and I enjoyed it on my travels.

Linking with #MonthlyBookWorms (I can't seem to add the badge. Sorry - Not sure what's going on)

Away

I'm off on adventures - 3 countries in as many weeks, plus up the coast. Lots to see on my Insta. A family trip, a solo trip and a trip with a stanger (a friend's friend).

#Allseasons and #FavouriteFotos linkys will return at some point after the 18th October.

I'll shut off comments before I go.

Apologies for my poor commenting efforts over the last few weeks. Life just got a little overwhelming. Hopefully when I return I'm back to my usual form.

Stay safe, have nice school holidays and see you in a bit.

Tall Ship

This is the tall ship that we did the shooting on. Now every time I see it, I smile. I even went to wave when I saw the crew member we remembered while they were docked and we went past on the silent disco. Very funny as I realised they'd have no idea who we were....

Funny how your experience can change the relevance of an item....walked past it a million times barely registering it. Now it's immediately joy inducing.

So not the best photos taken on my useless phone, but they do make me smile!

A bit of housekeeping: I am shutting the blog until mid October - around the 18th. I'll be on Instagram travelling all over the place, so keep an eye on there. So this is the last #FavouriteFotos for a month.

Linking with #KeithsRamblings #WWOT #GMALinky #SundayBest #WaterThursday #WordlessWednesday

Stanmore Music Festival

Richard Gill AO was a much loved Australian composer, and later TV personality. He was also a great educator and advocate for music education for children. 

The lives he touched through his work were many, and when he was dying, musicians came to play in an improptu orchestra outside his window.

In his memory, there is a grass roots festival every year. The Stanmore Music Festival is on the 16th November this year, and there is a fundraiser on the 18th of October at the Salisbury Hotel. It's a free annual festival in the streets and public spaces (and schoolyard). What a wonderful legacy to leave behind!

 

Housekeeping: This is the last #Allseasons until after 18th Oct. I will be away and am shutting the blog until then as I'm just not keeping up with the comments. Apologies to all I've neglected of late. Hopefully on my return things clam down and I'm back in control of my time. Insta will be showing my adventures. I will do Sundays #FavouriteFotos then shut the blog.

Linking with #GMAsLinky #MCoW #WWOAT #MuralMondays #WordlessWednesday

<!

Little Loves - August

Linking with #FloralFridayFoto

It's been a busy month with lots of fun things..so straight into it....

Read That for the first time ever more than half the world's population is voting in an election this year, and the three biggest democracies are fighting the grips of Autocracy. Makes you realise how fragile the stability of this world we know is (I'll be honest, that was at a talk, not a book but I can't stop thinking about it so I'm sharing it anyway). Book reviews are here. I did read this at Fodi and I love the saying. It's the perfect way to think about when you stumble or things don't go to plan.

Heard Was in an uber wondering why anyone would listen to the radio when it's so terrible and then this song came on, which I hadn't heard before. Loved it so that made it worthwhile.

Watched Been to a lot of plays and bands lately. Great time (see Insta for details). Got a comedian lined up so feeling very lucky. On TV enjoying Kaos and Bad Monkey. 

Made the decision to fly to Japan via Korea as it saves us $5k. So no brainer really...now to book the hotels and tickets to things. But an almost whole family holiday. One last time! Yay!

Wore Went to Ministry but decided to go back to my Converse instead of the more expensive shoes i purchased with better support specifically for dancing. No idea why...good night but left early...opps. getting old!

And lastly... Currently loving this song, even though apparently everyone hates it.

Linking with #HappyNow and #HappyTuesday as these all made me very happy! #Anythinggoes  #TrafficJamReboot  #LittleLoves #MondayMusicMovesMe  (for the White Bay Power Station in it's new form as party venue!)

Unexpected smiles - State Library of NSW

While on the Fodi tour (discussed here & here), there were a few surprises for me that made me smile!

Firstly, before the tour started I walked past the children's play area to discover all the Wild Things were waiting to be read to....

The compass is on the floors of the stacks as you are several levels underground with no windows and apparently it can get disorientating for those who spend all day down there....

The footstools are used not just as a step ladder but to stop you getting crushed in the automatic shelving if somehow someone doesn't see you in there befre closing them to open another. BUT someone hadn't left the footstool there and that made me chuckle...

You would have all worked out how much I love the Harbour Bridge. My grandfather was there that day. What people don't know, while De Groot cut the first ribbon with his sword unofficially - they just tied it back together and cut it again officially (funny how that bit never got told to me in the story! Just the scandal of the man on the horse in protest). However, there was a ribbon both ends to be cut. This is part of the southern end ribbon that was cut as per protocol. Seeing this delighted me no end.

So while not striking photography, these are my #FavouriteFotos for this week...

Linking with #TravelTuesday  #WWOT #WWOAT & #AwwMondays for the Wild Things.

August Reading

Did a little better with reading than the last few months. Currently 3/4 through this book club book, To the Sea, with 100 pages to go. I have to say I'm enjoying it, though this week have had little time to read. It starts out as a fairly traditional crime novel set in rural Tasmania, told from different characters points of view - the policeman, the family members. It shifts into mythical legend in one of the stories, and as I'm not at the end, I can't say if it's magical realism or not. It is interesting thoough, and an easy & enjoyable read.

I listened to Cunk on Everything. It's so funny. I can't tell you how many times I laughed out loud. It's silly and not a story, so great for dropping in and out of in between other books. Listen to it for her voice reading it, as the delivery is half the humour. She's so clever. Loved it.

I enjoyed the second in the Snowpiercer series more than the first. I need to track down the next one...It worked the characters better, I thought so you were more engaged and the corrupted power was discovered from the characters point of view so you felt it more.

I enjoyed this Tales from the cafe after a break from the other two. So my advice, don't read them back to back. I've worked out they are written in themes. and this one is on loss. It has this wonderful idea that because our loved person loved us, and lived their life trying to make us happy, then in their honour, we should try to be happy when they are gone. There is a really wonderful quote that sums up the idea that weaves through the stories "If I had led a sad life as a result of my sister's death, then it would have been her death that caused it...I swore to myself that I would make sure that I was happy. My joy would be the legacy of my sister's life." It really got me thinking about how we've sort of twisted up the way we grieve and got it wrong. One of the stories is about a mother's death, and how she'd spent her whole life loving her child and doing things for his happiness, so she wouldn't want her death to change that. And I thought about my kids and I'd hate for them to be pained at my loss, when I'd really had so much fulfilment just from having shared their lives for so long. One trigger warning, there is a story on the loss of an infant child. It's not distressing but I imagine if you've experienced that it might be.

I really enjoyed this book! While I would call it a holiday read, it's not junk and it really got me thinking.A month before their marriage, the fiance ends up on a twitter list of violent men and sex abusers. There are all degrees of 'crimes' on the list. He denies it all. The story is told in alternate points of view between the couple. She is a feminst journalist who has accused other women of being enablers when in the same situation and now she is wondering what to do. I spent a lot of time thinking aobut if I'd do the same as her at times or what I'd do. Really interesting book.

My husband came back from New York with two books that a friend of ours wrote. Ghost Ship is a collection of poems and I can't wait to start the stories.

I don't really understand what this means but I liked it all the same. And I've no idea what the devil Elvis is about....

Linking with #ShareYourShelf #WowonWednesday #TalkaboutitTuesday #Wwwhimsy  #MonthlyBookworms #StackingtheShelves #SundaySalon #SundayPost

 

Festival of Dangerous Ideas

 

Last weekend was the Festival of Dangerous Ideas (FODI) and I spent the weekend at Carriageworks with freinds coming and going to meet me in talks on all different subjects from race, politics, women's healh, masculinity, war and social media and depression. There was even one on dangerous ideas themselves.

(I didn't agree with every speaker but even seeing a very slick manipulation of the argument was an interesting experience, and how easy it is to be tricked with 'data')

I really love FODI. It's always interesting and makes me think. There is always something that surprises me about me. Last time there was the tattoos - I had to talk to everyone that was trying to get one and everyone that got one - I needed to see what they got and how they felt about it. People were amzingly open to talling strangers why they wanted one. (You went into a lottery every hour and if you were picked, then you had a quick few minutes chatting to the famous LA tattoo artist and then stuck your arm in ahole in the wall while he did a tattoo of his choosing).As a clean skin myself, I was amazed at how into this idea I was, for other people and how it connected the audience. We literally cheered for a guy who'd been trying to get one all weekend when he was finally picked.

This FODI they extended out to the stacks of the State Library of NSW. Ir was great to see history of dangerous ideas in real life.

I've spent the days after the festival thinking about the ideas and talking about what as disussed with friends.

Now I just have to wait until next year!

Linking with #WWWhimsy  #TheRandom #SundayBest #KeithsRamblings