30 in 2012.

Lately, I have been looking for work and at the same time occupying some notional territory of the housewife/homemaker and enjoying it.  The only downside I am finding to staying at home is that I feel that I am not "holding up my side" where income is concerned.

Being interested in vintage means that I am probably more exposed to the traditional role of the homemaker than other people in my position and I like the thought of creating a home, like my Grandmother did for her family, and knowing that it will be appreciated and remembered with a smile. 

I am sure that there are a lot of people in my situation at the moment: looking for work, eager to do anything (waitress, reception work, bar work), not just what I spent six years at university studying for.  I am getting slightly fed up with cover letters and CV and finding documents etc, so I thought that I would write a list of 30 things that I would like to achieve by the end of the year (my list was made after reading this one here).  By focusing on improving myself and being thankful for what I do have will send out some good energy into the universe!

Line through = done
Highlighted = in process of
Highlighted Purple = trying for the second time.

1. Do Yoga every morning for a week.
2. Write a letter to myself to open in 10 years
3. Don't complain about anything for a whole day
4. Go one week without TV
5. Create a fortnightly menu from food in the pantry/fridge - no shopping
6. Do some exercise with my husband - once a month.
7. Watch all 6 Star Wars in order in 24 hours
8. Do 10 nice things for people without telling them
9. Create a proper vegetable garden
10. Pray every day
11. Stop answering/calling when I am driving
12. Learn to use the lawnmower
13. Cook my husband all his favourite meals for a week
14. Do a 3 day detox
15. Write my half-sister and half-brother a letter once a month
16. Begin to learn shorthand
17. Begin to study Italian again
18. Play my clarinet once a week
19. Be able to play Christmas Carols on my guitar by the end of the year
20. Be able to run for 15 minutes without stopping
21. SMS all my friends once a month telling them how lovely they are
22. Schedule a catch-up day once a month to see friends and family living far away
23. Sail on a long voyage (overnight at least)
24. Have all the mending done by the end of the year
25. Make my dress for the 50s Fair this year
26. Visit Rose Seidler House on a Sunday
27. Go to high tea with all the women in my family.
28. Take a picnic to the botanic gardens.
29. Be debt free
30. Not buy any handbags or magazines.

Favourite things to do on a Rainy Day

Today it is seriously raining here. So much so that I have declined going to a family birthday in Sydney because I do not feel comfortable driving in rain this heavy. So I thought I would share my favourite things to do on a rainy day with you.

Watch Old Movies:

I have also included some pictures of Cyd Charisse from Singing in the Rain. Can you imagine having legs like that? And also of the brother Ephraim in Seven Brides. He looks a lot like my husband!

My all time favourites are:

Oklahoma
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Singing in the Rain
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Walk along the beach

I love it when there is the taste of salt in the air, a huge surf and it is windy and cold. Nothing is more refreshing or soul resorting that walking along on your own and then coming home and having a cup of tea in a lovely vintage cup.

Reading



These are some pictures of my library at home as it is today. Most of the books o the tall bookshelf are to do with music and all the books on the low bookshelf are cookbooks as are many on the floor.

At the moment I am re-reading the Patrick O'Brien naval series (there are 20 books and a unfinished manuscript) for the 6th time and then my lovely friend has lent me My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares so that will be next.

But I also enjoy reading particular cookbooks when it rains. Namely, Nigel Slater Tender I, Nigella Lawson's How to Eat.

I also like Bombshell Manuel of Style by Laren Stover, Ann Veronica H. G Wells, Memoirs of a Geisha Arthur Golden, A Foreign Affair by Valarie Barnes and My Life in France by Julia Child.

Playing computer games

I know that this is not a very vintage thing to do but I got into computer games when I was trying not to spend any money and didn't have a job. They fill out the day amazingly. I like strategy games where you have to build up a city or something like that. I remember at school learning how to play Sim City and the ones I play now are similar in style, They are Ceaser, Napolean Total War, Clepoatra and Pharoah. I also play some games on Facebook but I do not like how you have to ask your frineds who also play to send you materials to finish quests etc. as I am a bit embarrased at my childish gaming tendency!

Budgeting, List making, Menu writing

I know that this also sound odd but nothing gives me greater satisfaction that working out a budget and playing with figures. I think that there must be some part of my brain that loves reasoning. I always write out to-do lists, menus, shopping lists and I am always using them. I also like to do all these things by hand. I have notebooks full of lists and names of things I want to read, listen to, try cooking, research.

The top image is from Lushlee a blog that I stumbled across while looking for beautiful notebooks. The bottom image is a tutorial to create a vintage style notebook.

Holiday Slump

At the moment I am on school hoidays but not for much longer.

Due to my Beau being away with college still I have no one to go away with as everyone else who I would like to go away with (and those that could out up with me) are working.

I feel like I haven't really done anything at all these hols -  although I know I have.  I haven't just been doing "nothing".  So in the interest of making myself feel like they were worthwhile, here is a list of things  have done:

• Booked a wedding venue (more on this later)
• Spring cleaned the kitchen - although you can't tell anymore
• Spent a day driving around an area I may be moving to at the end of the year (depending on the placement that we get) to decide where we might like to buy our first home together (and the first house I will have ever lived in).
• Done my tax return for last year
• Eaten about a million pieces of nougat.
• Cooked some lovely food
•  Done a few days of thrift shopping with my Mum and Grandparents
• Designed a wedding website
• Gotten my car fixed (someone crashed into my while it was parked - in a car park -  and didn't leave a note).
• Done some Christmas shopping and made some present idea lists.
• Caught up with a few friends I haven't seen in ages.
• Had my hair "done"

To make this post a bit more interesting I thought I would do a list of all of things that I am in love with at the moment:

• Nougat as previously mentioned.  My favourite is Massam's honey and almond.

• Sleeping-in while everyone else is getting up.   I love my Tempur mattress.  My bedroom feels very calming in the morning.  This isn't my bed but kind of has the same colours and head board.

• The ocean temperature - it's about 20 which is the same as out.  I know because my brother made me go for a swim.

• Champagne - I'm averaging a bottle every two days!

• CD player in my hire car - my normal car doesn't have one - I can listen to jazz all day!

Weekend Plans

Good morning,

This weekend is shaping up to be super busy. It's my first weekend back at work (though so many kids are sick at the moment).

The things I have to do are:

• Put away sooooo much washing
• Vacuum
  
• Dust
• Water my plants
• Buy a birthday present for a 5-year-olds party tomorrow
• Begin my last university subject (yeah)
• Put away all the new vintage knitting pattern I bought over the last two weeks (I can't knit but it's my new addiction)
• Begin a spring cleaning plan.
• Clean out and re-pack the garage with my brother.  This is going to be a huge job as at the moment we can't even get in!
• Write the Band Bugle
• Post about my 50s far outfit.

The lovely blog 50s Gal has got me inspired to clean, clean, clean!!!

Another New Day

After a weekend of hideously bad eating, today I have started the Dr Gillan Ultimate Health PLan.  It goes for 28 days.  Hopefully I can stick with it for that long.  So I am going to post ll about it so I feel more accountable.

The first thing to do is to list my goals:

• I want to get rid of the dark circles under my eyes.
• I want my skin to glow
• I want to stop wasting so much food
• I want to be able to fall asleep and wake up more easily
• I want to reduce my cellulite
• I want better circulation.

So today I started.  I haven't followed everything exactly.  I did have some coffee (a small plunger worth!) and I didn't have the proper breakfast as I didn't have all the ingredients yet.  The food today was nice and tasted yummy and didn't take long to make at all.  I couldn't eat the specified 100g of oats for breakfast and I was hungry later.  I also didn't eat the afternoon tea because I couldn't be bothered even though I was hungry. 

So my goal for tomorrow is no coffee and eat everything specified - although some of the stuff is out of season so I am going to substitute - and I'm going to Mum's for tea.

Tomorrow the menu is:

B - Water

- Dandelion Tea

- Berry Smoothie

MT -Bowl of grapes

L - Miso Soup

- Avocado and PIne Nut Salad

AT - Crudities with Hummus and Dill

D - Mums (but listed is poached Monkfish with Tarragon and Spinach and Tomato Salad)

Holidays

I am now officially on holidays!  This feels like it has been the longest term ever (11 weeks) especially as I had my practicum in the middle of it, Eisteddfod and the Beau is away.

This weekend, my brother is on a surfing trip up North so I have the apartment to myself for the whole weekend.  I also do not have to do anything tomorrow apart from a reading a Church  but that finishes at 9.30 am.

Here is a list of all the things I want to get done these holidays:

• Paint some part of our apartment - except no one likes the colours I do
• See Harry Potter  and the Half-Blood Prince
• Pass me DET interview with flying colours
• Spend some time with my Beau
• Get my tax-return done
• Get all my AMEB notes for students done (I have 13 doing exams - my most ever)
• Finish my reading for university next semester - one subject to go!!!!
• Have my 50s Fair outfit planned
• Spend some time driving wherever I like and looking at Op Shops
• Document through photographs different vintage-inspired outfits I can put together.
• Do all the mending in my mending basket
• Finally complete the curtains for my little brother and sisters playhouse (we're into the second year).
• Have decided on somewhere to have our wedding
• Try a different cocktail every day from my Hollywood Cocktail book.
• Document everything and post about it.

I remember when I was younger I would always keep a journal and a mood board with pictures that inspired me or wrappers/postcards/coasters etc from things I did that I wanted to remember.  When I started at uni, studying music composition and got my first apartment, my creativity was channelled into decorating and composing music.  It is only now (3 years after finishing uni) that I a feeling the need to keep track of inspiring things and ideas.  

I know my blog is a bit all over the shop about what it s about - but I guess that is what life is like at the moment.  I have school, personal life, wedding plans, vintage interests, dreams about the future and they don't quite all seem to mesh yet.  I know that I do try to keep most of them apart (for example teaching and my personal life) but it would be nice to feel like I can be myself all the time at work.

Weekend

I am hoping that this weekend will be filled with:

• Catching up with friends
• Watching old movies
• Reading cookbooks
• Vintage Shopping
• Baking
• Pin curling my hair
• Reading lots of vintagey blogs
• Learn how to charge the new camera so I can take some more photos for my blog
• and no study - because I'm now on university holidays!!!!!

I cannot believe how fast my practicum went.  I thought that it would be boring being at the same school every days for 4 weeks, but instead I had a great time and didn't even run out of outfits (one of the other male teachers remarked he had never seen me wear the same thing twice).

I enjoyed it a lot but am glad it's over as I have felt bad about the amount of time I have spent away from my paid work (conducting) and am hoping they still remember me.  I have left them with very close friends though - so they should be playing better than ever before.

Sunday

There are so many things that I would like to do today that have been inspired by all the lovely and amazingblogs I have been reading latley. 

Here is a list:

• Sleep- in
• Have brunch at someone's place
• Go Vintage shopping
• Go to the Macro 70% closing down sale.
• Really focus on styling one room at a time using antiques and vintage pieces.
• See my Marmee and go to the French Patisserie in the Rocks with her to get macaroons.
• Have the Beau home.
• Watch all of Mad Men Season 1 again.
• Go for a walk to Long Reef Headland
• Set my hair.

And now for the boring reality:

• Going to a six year old birthday which has a princess theme.
• Going and buying a coffee plunger to replace the one I broke while on practicum.
• Study for an exam I have on Thursday (argh!)
• Setting school work for the week for my new classes.
• Vacuuming.
• Doing 10 000 loads of washing.

To make this very boring list seem more interesting I will post stacks of pictures that have been lurking on the camera

   

Assignments

Why is it always the way - when I have something to write about I can't because of how muh other stuff is going on?

Well to get it out off my head - I'm going to note down what I would like to write about:

• Easter Show Jam entry
• Mad Men 
• My Birthday
• The Beau leaving for 6 months of study
• Finance
• Maggie Beer and Simon Bryant  - "the Cook and the Chef"
• Farmer's Market
• Walk the Line
• Cleaning/Organizing/Procrastinating

There - almost done!

Mercury Rising

I cannot believe how hot it is!

However I am coping a little better now I have been for a swim and had a Champagne!

Alas, I have no photos to post from my holiday at Jindabyne because the beau decided to go and take the camera to Big Day Out and lost it!  He had fun though.

Over the next few days I'm hoping to get ready for back to school and actually be excited about about going back to work.  Like I was when I was little and just dying to get back to school and have homework to do.  No surprise I am a teacher!

The things I want to do before I go back to work are:

• Send out engagement party invites
• Have all my uni materials ready to go 
• Have my timetable sorted out and have confirmed all lessons for week 2 of term.
• Have the apartment perfect so I don't have to feel guilty about that.
• I wanted to have the ironing done but that will never happen in this heat!
  

In the next few days I will take some photos of everything that's happen so my posts look a little more interesting!

Plans for a rainy Saturday

1.  Plan something romantic for dinner

2.  Clean up the mess that has accumulated around the apartment since my brother has moved in with me.

3.  Create a list of point to discuss with my brother about what is and what is not acceptable.

4.  Teach

5.  Go to the gym and do something

6.  Do some paperwork in preparation for work this week.

7.  Write out menu for the week (including Thursday night birthday dinner)

8.  Write a list of what will be needed next weekend as I'm going to the Hunter Valley for a birthday weekend (the boy is 30).

9.  Try Super Kawaii Mama's hair rolling technique!

Looking at it this list might take me the whole weekend.

If I am being super good I will add: learn how to make blog look more individual!