aussie slang.

i'm trying to post more. onegirl inspired me. today i want to talk aussie slang. my friend jenny form ireland was delighted by some of the more imaginative sayings that we have come to call our own here in aus. similarly she offered up some interesting irish sayings that had us rolling around the floor with laughter. I thought it would be fun to share them with you all and perhaps, if you're feeling in the mood, you might want to add to the list.

Ok, aussie slang:

budgie smugglers - tight mens speedo swimming togs that make it look like you're trying to smuggle budgies around a public swimming pool. Not a good look!

brown-eyed mullet - sounds like a rather harmless 80s hairstyle doesn't it? Think again. It's actually slang for a turd floating in the ocean when you're swimming.

mad as a cut snake - this means your very, very angry. The kind of angry where you could lash out and bite someone at any moment. Where this comes from I will never know. I mean if a snakes been cut in half then he aint goin' no where is he?

irish slang:

sweating chunks - when one is sweating profusely to the point where they know everyone has noticed. the sewat in question is no longer coming out in droplets but rather massive chunks. noice!

batter ya - when you smack and hit someone within an inch of their life. It is not, as some might assume, when you hit someone with a mallet and dunk them in batter for frying.

eejit/sap - someone with little or no hope of every amounting to anything. Say to kids often enough and you got yourself a flatmate for life!

And now for your amusement here is a wall painting we found in sleepy Hobart. I made Ben stop the car so that I could take a photo as proof. As I laughed and pointed out the window near delirious with glee, I failed to notice the man pushing the guy in the wheelchair who had walked into the direction of my pointing finger. Needless to say I was mortified to be given a greasy and jabbed ben in the side to 'put the peddle to the metal' so we could get the frig outta there alive.

weekend finds...

even though we are halfway through the week i thought i woudl tell you about my weekend. it was lovely. so quiet and slow. i got to read. can you believe it? i found time to finish my book!?! it was bliss.

another reason it was particulary lovely was that on saturday ben and i celebrated 2 years together. its seems like only yesterday he walked into that ad agency and smiled his infectious smile at me. i knew there and then that he was someone i had to get to know better. he tells me (two years down the track mind you!) that when he saw me he knew i was the one too. *sigh*

Look at us now, all engaged and with dog! who would have thought. who would have dreamed! I am exceptionally happy!

sooooo...saturday was 2 years since our first date. o that first date we went to the melbourne fringe festival. *how apt* however after a few wines we decided not to go into the show but rather stayed in the foyer drinking wine and talking and even having a little waltz to no music. I love that memory :)

this weekend there was less alochol and certainly less nerves. we went down to the beach house and just took it easy. on sunday we visited the rosebud market right on the foreshore. there was plenty of junk to rifle through and even some little treasures. here are some things I have found recently that i simply love!



got this great mug on a hunt with onegirl. she will be selling her fantastic finds in her esty shop soon to be opened. keep your eyes peeled!



got three of these. they will make good pie dishes and be fab for reheating :)



my oh my how miss maggie is growing up. check out those ears! here she is in one of her quiet moments, lapping up the suns rays on our beach house balcony. *we love it there*

FYI - i am currently in the middle of my second baby blanket. squares have been cut and ironed and we are now moving on to the sewing. i will keep you posted on my progress. that's all i got. be back soon.

Jesus Camp.

OK. I'm gonna be real careful here. its always the way when you're dealing with religion. tread carefully. speak generically. don't avert your eyes.

on Friday night, after a rousing recommendation, Ben and i watched 'Jesus camp'. anyone seen it? it's a documentary about a camp in America for evangelists. (I'm tipping it's probably the hard core born agains) Anyway, what occurs on these camps is nothing short of mind-boggling.

young kids, perhaps only eight or nine, take part in the summoning of the spirits. during this time, the preacher (there is one woman who does most of it, but apparently anyone with a mic can get up there too) talks to the kids about their journey with the 'holy savior Jesus Christ'. they are questioned about their belief in him, their dedication to him. 'are you one of those kids who goes to school and pretends you are like everyone else? pretends you don't believe in god? you're a phony. a hypocrite. put your hands up'.

on cue the kids begin to raise their hands. well hello! duh! as if any child out there doesn't want to just fit in. i know i was oust for having a funny accent. if i told them i was catholic i might never have made it! as their little faces turned up towards 'our heavenly father' the tears ran down the cracks of their little eyes. these children were crying because they felt they had done something wrong. something evil. that they had publicly embarrassed themselves. the ironic thing is, they were doing all this in front of other kids. kids they probably wanted to be like. when one started crying, they all started crying. when one fell to his knees, they all fell to their knees. when one started speaking in tongues, they all started speaking in tongues. you get my point.

i suppose i am writing about this because i am a little confused on a number of subjects.

one: how many of these camps are out there?

two: has anyone else seen this doco and if so what are you thoughts?

three: is it just me or is religion meant to be about faith. about having a higher power to turn to, to ask direction from and in whom you can seek solace. this higher power does not judge. ever. it treats children as they ought to be treated - as the purest of us all. their souls are young and eager. they will have many lessons to learn, some harder than others. they are sensitive and as such it is our job to protect them.

with that said i will leave you with a disturbing scene from the movie that plays over and over in my mind...

an adult hands a child a plastic 8 week old foetus and tells them that's it wrong to commit murder and then covers her mouths with tape labeled 'LIFE' and insists she summon the holy spirit.

what. is. this. world. coming. too.

many thanks

firstly i want to thank all those people who took the time to join in the great debate. hearing your individual stories has helped quite a bit. i suppose just knowing that each and every woman has to take a moment to think and rethink is comfort enough. i have no set decision as yet, time will bring that. *yeah* you're all fabulous!

moving right along. i was bursting with excitement today when the mail man knocked on our big glass wall. he was bringing my material - ordered with love on z&s fabrics. After attempting my first patch work quilt i caught a fever. it hasn't left yet. and frankly, i don't want it to. i would love to be sick with this amount of dedication and joy forever!

my mission was to find to key fabrics i can use to create a multitude of different designs. i have babies coming out of my ears at the moment. my sister. my friend. potentially my work mate. so a few baby blankets would not go astray. here are the fabrics i found, some of which only cost $3.49 US each :)



*bundles of love*



*love these*



*fun, fun, fun*

the great debate.

i want to put something up for debate if i may. as plenty of you know, i recently got engaged to the lovely ben brocklesby. a happy time, yes? why of course. no doubt about it. however something had clouded my mind in the last 24 hours and i need some help figuring it out.

i was struck by the prospect of not changing my name.

now i will start by saying this: when ben asked me to be his wife my instincts said 'change it'. when i thought about it more i came to the belief that, for me, changing my name would be a public solidification of the life i want to live with ben and the feelings i have for him. i never thought about keeping my name. not even once. not until last night.

bens mum told me changing her name was something she regrets with vigour. she loves her husband and would marry him again and again, but losing her maiden name is something she would definitely reconsider. she believes that in changing her name she lost her identity. that a part of her went and she didn't quite feel like the new name she had married into.

i tend to think that your identity is defined by more than just your surname. am i wrong? what does the consensus say? am i backward in my belief that you can marry someone, take their name and still be successful in life, in business and in your personal development?

*sigh* opinions, personal experience and insight greatly sought.

wedding bliss...

On Friday just gone, my best friend Melissa married the man of her dreams. it was the loveliest wedding, complete with good music, good food, an abundance of champagne and of course the best company this side of Phuket.

I thought Mel would be more nervous that she was. It absolutely bucketed down with rain and she didnt bat an eyelid. She remained the calm, collected bride she has always been. it was only in the last moments as we fixed her veil and she looked down at her wedding dress, finally on her for the big day, that her voice began to quiver.

me? chief bridesmaid? well i actually got nervous long before mel did. i was worried about having to carry baby emily down the aisle and hoist my dress up at the same time. i was worried about the speech i would have to make and whether i could do it with a belly full of champagne. mostly though, i was worried that my best friend wouldnt have the most wonderful day of her life.

it seems i really had nothing to worry about. mel was amazing - as usual. steve was everything and more. and the day was one of the most special weddings i have ever been too. when my best friend walked down that aisle, her eyes solidly fixed on her future husband i welled up. i was simply over come with pride. that i should know too people so lovely was beyond comprehension. *sigh* Mel, you did wonderfully. I hope you dont mind if i share this photo of you. my favourite. before all the makeup. just pure, clean, beautiful mel.

out of the loop and into the craft.

i will start by apologising for my absence of late. getting engaged has meant many a celebration, followed by surly hangovers, followed by lapse in energy to work, followed by an increased work load, and ending in sheer exhausion.

But i'm back. and that's all that matters!

i managed to feel somewhat inspired by my friend lisa who came over for dinner with her hubbie Joe and their beautiful kids. she explained how she was 'hand-sewing' a quilt after the kiddies went to bed at night. 'by gawd' i thought, 'that's dedication!'.

my wonderfully old sewing machine and sparkling new overlocker has been sitting in the corner of the living room for the past few weeks sharing negative comments about me and my inability to find time for them. i promised myself, and them, that i would give this patch work thing a try and with the use of my sewing machine, i should have a some-what speeder time than Lisa.

and so, using some fabrics sought lovingly on z&s i worked together a baby blanket with matching tote bag. The main fabric on the tote i am going to have to replace. it was an op-shop find and it's starting to fray. but the actual look and completion of this project is really what i wanted to share.

ta da! my baby blanket.



that lovely material. oh so pastelly and soft...



and of course, the tote.



if you have a friend you love ever so dearly. or a sister, or a brother or a mother. someone who is welcoming a new addition to their's and your life, why not give them one of these? I would be happy to make more on request with the same dedication and love, for just a small, material-buying price!