Day 59 - Down the sink

How many things have you lost down the plughole in the sink? I've lost a gold cross and chain as a child. I was too scared to own up, and didn't realise it could have been retrieved.
When I think of how many items of jewellery and other things I've lost in my lifetime... Wouldn't it be amazing to discover a box with all these missing things? I sometimes dream of finding 'treasure' boxes.

Day 58 - Some sort of exoskeleton

I've just come back from a lavish pancake party - savoury pancakes with smoked salmon, caviar and sour cream, followed by more pancakes with berries, but since I didn't have my camera I had to come home and take a photo of some random exoskeleton I had once purchased from Wunderkammer.

Day 57 - IB Awards ceremony

BMW Edge was a lovely venue for the IB Awards Ceremony for the 2008 year 12 cohort. Of all IB candidates worldwide, 0.04% achieved perfect score. My son stands out in this group; you can't miss him. The view kept me entertained during the course of the evening - happy Summer activity on the banks of the Yarra River at Birrarung Marr.

Day 56 - Archway in entrance hallway

Almost a year ago I decided that rather than having a traditional fretwork archway in my entrance hallway, I'd do a Russian one. So I found a Russian guy whose specialty was wood carved icon screens (iconostasis) in churches, and asked him to do one. This was one of his first design sketches. Obviously we couldn't afford this, so he's going to simplify it. I hope it eventuates.

Day 55 - Arcade in Melbourne city

A bad photo of an interesting arcade. Not sure of the name but you can come in from Flinders Lane or Swanston St. It's small, dark, a little dirty, but the leadlight is great. I'm cheating with this photo because I took it on the weekend, but my camera has been taken for the day.

Day 54 - Beauty and the beast

Depending on the angle of vision, the ugly old garage can be seen through the leadlight window. Interesting contrast. When we were building the extension of our house, we planned to install a restored old leadlight window with a floral design, but it was stolen before it went in, and since the window dimensions were already set, I designed a simple alternative, using my trusty Derwent pencils. I had to make it simple to make it a realistic project for the guy we found at Preston Market who sold fish but also did leadlight.

Day 53 - Screen shot

I suppose I need a better camera for this shot through the fly screen of the window overlooking the back verandah.

Day 52 - Old friends

This one is for you, Etoile. An old friend, now living in Tasmania, caught up with me today in Block Arcade. We lunched, and passed the small talk as we always do to the heavy duty stuff. Until our next meeting - who knows, a year, maybe 2? It doesn't matter, we always pick up where we left off. He asked about you and your family, Etoile.

Day 51 - A little icecream for me

I think I'll eat some icecream. Let me see... I might finish off the 4 litre tub.

Day 50 - It's not easy being green

Despite the drought, the extreme temperatures of Summer, the rest of the garden dried out, dropped off or dropped dead, miraculously the vine over the back verandah is still green.

Day 49 - Broken angels

Not fallen, but broken angels on a swing. Balance still works because the missing wings are matching. These come from Russia.

Day 48 - A different kind of duck

Today we were proud parents of our elder son, Sasha (Alexander) who was awarded Dux of the year 12 cohort 2008 with a perfect score. I'm just showing off now.

Day 47 - Indonesian duck

You know you're scraping the bottom of the photo-challenge barrel when you take pictures of random items around the house for no good reason.

Day 46 - Succulent succulents

Yesterday at the Botanical Gardens markets I bought little succulent cuttings for $1.40 each. They're living together in one pot for now until I decide how to organise and propagate them. Cute, aren't they?

Btw, I was told that they don't need special potting mix, just the normal stuff, and that they do need to be watered, and they WILL die in full hot sun. Just in case you thought otherwise.

Day 45 - Outdoor market at Botanical Gardens

The best days are the unexpected good ones. My husband and I decided to go to the Botanical Gardens cafe for breakfast and stumbled across the markets. After a smoky start, the day became clear and sunny. We relaxed and browsed stalls, picking up fresh strawberries and raspberries, succulents and drought-free bushes, whilst eating poffertjes and drinking iced coffee. Bliss.

Day 44 - Red fire sky on the floor

The fires are still going. The sun was red this morning; it felt wrong. Red sunset is way too intense and lights up the floor in the dining room in a surreal way.

Day 43 - Colour my world

Colours make me happy. These remind me of a brand new packet of coloured pencils. Like starting a new school year.

Day 42 - Happy mustard

I have no idea why, but recently I bought this particular brand of mustard (Thomy), and every time I look at it I feel happy. Must be some kind of buried happy memory from my earlier years, like Marcel Proust's cake. Don't you wish you could trace those deja vu moments? Sometimes I can. Like when I smell petunias I'm transported back to walking home from primary school and passing the brightly coloured and slightly gaudy flower gardens in front of the orange brick veneers. Or when I smell diesel fuel I remember living in the small and picturesque German township of Blaubeuren, which had a steady stream of trucks driving through it.

Day 41 - Waiting for the bell

Nothing or not much more boring than sitting in the car, waiting to pick up your son (or daughter). Unless there's an elderly Greek man pushing your car forward twice as he tries to squeeze his car into the unreasonably sized space behind you. And there's nothing as annoying as your own reaction as you let it slide, despite the scrape, because the man looks all innocent and lost in his denial that anything has happened. Well, he has a nice face!

Day 40 - What's for dinner?

I think we're getting distracted here, looking at dessert when we really should be concentrating on the main meal.

Day 39 - Life is fragile

This is an oil painting by my sister, one of the many things I treasure in my home. It's hard to believe that in a day so many people have lost their homes in the fires in Melbourne that have left so many homeless, injured or even dead. Life is sometimes fragile and unpredictable. I just returned from a beautiful wedding and reception - everyone happy, relaxed, rejoicing. Although I enjoyed myself, I couldn't stop thinking about the devastation of the people who had been affected by the fires. Some escaped, grateful to be alive, but having lost everything. That's hard to imagine. Your home is not just a place, it's your identity, your years of work trying to get it right, your memories. This painting would be only one of the things I would hate to lose. My heart goes out to the victims of the fires.

Day 38 - Staying inside

Well, today is definitely going to be an INDOORS day, with an expected top temperature of 44 degrees celcius, apparently a record for Melbourne. Not to mention north-westerly winds. I feel sorry for Mr 15 because he has six hours of violin ahead of him. I hope the building is air-conditioned. Not sure if electricity supplies will suffice with all the people trying to stay cool.

Day 37 - Paper cutout card

I bought this card and others like it at Victoria Markets. I love the detail in this. Another favourite is the Eiffel Tower. The Christmas cards are beautiful too.

Day 36 - Spice up your life

Sorry about the tired old pun. I love these large spice jars. Sometimes I buy large packets of spices at the Asian grocery. It's cheaper that way, especially when I use them frequently. I've got about 8 jars. It's better than all those little packets, opened and spilling out. Oh, I've still got those as well...

Day 35 - need a new fence

It's definitely time to get a new fence. Try to convince the neighbour. Too busy installing outside living area with spa and lap pool. Grrr.

Day 34 - Violin practice

Here's Mr 15 doing his violin practice. He's changed to a new teacher and has to step up his daily practice to at least 2 and preferably 3 hours a day. Not sure how he's going to fit homework in.

Day 33 - Fans?

Walking along Little Bourke Street and looking up an alley, these fans suddenly presented themselves behind a screen. Why were they there? Was this some sort of secret fan convention? A ritual? Not sure...