Day 352 - Still disjointed

Still feeling disjointed, running errands here, there and everywhere. Following the Christmas break routine. My poor little dog was transformed from a fat furball to a scrawny, fragile-looking animal with bones.

No photo was taken today, although I considered revealing my Christmas wrap mess which is taking over a table in the kitchen (maybe I need a gift-wrapping room like Niles), but I might do that tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I asked Mr 19 to take a photo for me during a night walk along The Boulevarde (la di da), Ivanhoe, an annual Christmas lights display.

Sorry for the late post.

Day 314 - Thankful for shade

We're so thankful for the thick vine which provide shade for our back room. We pretty much live in this room. The last few days have been in the 30s and there's more to come, so I'm happy to have few western-facing windows, good insulation, verandah in the front, and this lush vine. Meanwhile, I don't really know what to do with the fast-growing vine branches - thread them back up the top or leave them in the natural Tarzan fashion.

My dog doesn't seem to mind the heat as much as we do.

Day 305 - Can't believe it's day 305

And what have I done on day 305? Kitchen duty first, so early start, joining an interesting group of women (yes, no men in Russian kitchens - at least here). I love the sticky dough enveloping the filling and forming a seamless parcel. I also enjoy the conversation with women who have arrived relatively recently from Russia, and who have a slightly different way of looking at things than I have. And the little tidbits, eg. which herb is the best for your health (apparently dill), and how sorrel should be eaten in moderation because it may increase your chances of suffering from arthritis. And generally, the warmth and passion expressed when speaking of these things.

Meanwhile, I didn't bring my camera, but I've already taken several photos of piroshki. Later that day, I took too many photos of Mr 16 with dog, mainly because he was either moving and creating a massive blur or his eyes were half shut. Here are some anyway. The one above shows Mr 16 and his dog watching TV.

And lastly, I made pavlova for Tuesday, so here are a few more photos.


Earlier in the afternoon, I took yet another shot of the vine, growing very nicely thankyou very much.

Day 301 - Dog in a bucket

What you can do when you're bored. Put the dog in a bucket. If you think she looks less than pleased, you're right. She wasn't impressed.

Meanwhile, food preparation can also be a diversion. You can even create art during the process. Here's one I prepared earlier. In case you can't guess, it's marinade.

Day 72 - Reluctant pooch

My dog is camera-shy. I think she's been traumatised by the flash on one occasion, and now, delicate creature that she is, she turns away, but not only that, she slinks down low, and refuses to look my way when I want to photograph her. This shot was the best of a series of blurred black and white rejects. I had to threaten her in order to take this shot. She's a MalteseXShihtsu.

Day 21 - My camera-shy doggy

For some reason my dog, Tochka - a Maltese X Shihtzu - is afraid of the camera. It may be the flash. It's so funny to see her slink away from the camera, very low to the ground. Sometimes she jumps onto me and climbs onto my neck. Btw, Tochka is a Russian word which can be translated as 'spot', 'dot' or 'full stop'. I think she's more of a semi-colon.