Grrrrrr

I have a lot to say and I really want to say it. Stomach bugs, busy schedules have been keeping me quiet in the blogosphere. Then just as I think I have a lovely weekend to write, but laptop has given up the ghost. I have no idea what happened to it, but I know what will happen when I take it into the shop.
"Leave it here, we'll look at it in a few days."

Don't they realise I can't live without it?

So apologies for the silence, apparently it's golden but I'm not so sure about that.

My world reflected through the eyes of a three-year-old

Earlier this week, the girls and I took a walk to pick up our car after it was serviced. Lil-lil no longer has a midday kip, but can often fall asleep in the pram/car. To keep her awake I gave her my iPhone and she snapped these photos of our journey.

I was quite impressed and it gave me another perspective of our little walk. It was a strange kind of wonderful to see how the world is reflected through the eyes of my little girl.

This is my entry for the Blog this challenge 33

Soup for the soul

Feeling a little weary today I had a scrummy, fragrant dumpling soup for lunch. I don't know what it is about a good Vietnamese soup that fills my tummy while feeding my soul - it physically and emotionally makes me feel better.

What is you 'soul' food? Is there something that can sate you hunger and make your heart sing?

Image: freedigitalphotos.net

My weekend plans in pictures

I have quite a social, indulgent weekend ahead of me, I hope you have a fun one too.

See you on the other side.

Acca Dacca shook me all night long

I awoke this morning with my ears ringing. Rock induced deafness - the best kind of hearing loss. The cause? The retirement-aged school boy of rock, Angus Young's screeching guitar solo.  Yes, the Skip and I trundled off last night to see the Aussie gods of rock AC/DC. [Sharni, this is where you should close your ears]

I don't know what I expected of the night, but I came away feeling like I had had a true rock experience. Cheesy? Why, yes! Over the top? Of course! Cliched and politically incorrect? No doubt! Did I enjoy it? Every minute!

From the moment the glowing red horns set 50 foot above the stage came alight and the cartoon image of a bedeviled Angus Young stoking a steam engine brought the lads rocketing on to the stage, I knew this was going to be something. Now I'm not usually your stadium rock kinda girl, but AC/DC would have even a the most uptight priss rocking out. It was the kind of gig that had grandpas and their grandsons head banging together, Chardonay sipping ladies next to Jack Daniels guzzling lads.

There was the obligatory pyrotechnics, inflatables and a 17 minute guitar solo with a confetti storm. All in all it was a great big barrel of fun. As the 54-year-old Angus was lifted on his on hydraulic stage at the crescendo of the solo, 70,000 people screaming his name, I couldn't help but wonder if the boy from Burwood was thinking 'Geez, how the hell did I get here?'
It's a long way from wagging classes at Ashfield Boys High.

Rock on!

It's only rock'n'roll but I like it...

Shock, horror. Liam Gallagher attended the BRIT Awards this week and did something outrageous and said something stupid. Gee, what a surprise - but you've got to love him, he makes rock'n'roll, well, rock'n'roll. I think that's the only reason Oasis keep getting invited back to the BRITs is to spice up the night just a little. With Robbie Williams sober and sanitised, The Spice Girls now Spice Women and Amy Wino saying 'yes, yes, yes' to rehab, the award show needs some livening up.

For the past 16 years, the Gallagher brothers have made the rock scene interesting. I remember my 19th birthday clearly, some German friends of a friend gave me a disc called Definitely, Maybe and told me it was the best thing I'll ever hear, and they weren't far wrong. It started my love affair with Britpop - Blur, Pulp, The Stone Roses and, of course, Oasis started to push the alternative grunge rock off my CD player. Most Saturday nights were spent dancing at the Britpop night at Retro in Sydney's CBD. Music felt fresh and alive again.

Part of the fun was that the Gallaghers were always going to say or do something outrageous. Whether it was their war with Blur (who I have to admit I favoured a little more than their northern counterparts), a threatened boxing clash with Robbie Williams or just generally being loutish, loud and obnoxious. They take their sibling bickering to the world stage - who else but a brother could say I'm quitting the band but I'm going to continue making music with everyone else in the band except my brother. Plus, who else would we love to hate?

Sure they're tools, but I like my rock stars to be rock stars. Drunken stumbling, throwing TVs out of hotel windows and generally living life to excess. Nothing can bore me faster than a 'rock star' telling an interviewer about their passion for vegetarianism or how they're going to save the world. I don't want you to save the world, I want my inner hedonist to live vicariously through you.

My dad tells a story about how one morning after partying all night during Trinidad's carnival in the late '70s, he offered a sip of vodka to a man sitting in the gutter. The bedraggled man looked at my and dad and uttered: "You saved my life, man." It was Mick Jagger. Now, I don't know how true that story is, but it's a great one for dinner parties because you believe it might just be true.

Tonight I'm hoping to be thunderstruck as I see AC/DC perform live, I've heard it's an amazing concert. Though I'm sure Bon Scott will be rolling in his grave as his former bandmates are more likely to be sipping chamomile tea backstage than guzzling bourbon. I guess, though, it's a long way to the top if you wanna rock'n'roll.

Grateful for half a glass?

Ok, I'm feeling a little deep today. A little bit mystic. A bit 'what is it all about?'. So, please indulge me for a moment.

This morning I was feeling a little down. A little tired. A little under-appreciated. Not the filled-to-the-brim glass of positivity that I'm trying to be.

Anyway, wallowing in my 'woe is me' moment, I was listening to Conversations with Richard Fidler on the ABC, one of my most favourite radio programs [it's on ABC local radio for those in Oz who want to check it out. Also available on free podcast for those outside Oz]. Each weekday Richard talks to an interesting and intriguing person about their life, today he spoke to someone from Group 61, a not-for-profit group that helps mentally ill people. Richard made the comment: "Life is unfair, but being grateful for what you do have can help stop the negative thoughts about what's going wrong. Being grateful is such a powerful tool."

Something went off in my brain. It's so true. Even though I knew this, it's really good to be reminded of it. Life is unfair. For everyone. There is no level playing field. At some stage in life everyone will suffer hardships, big or small, but by being grateful you can change your whole focus.

Sometimes it feels good to throw yourself into woe. I some times want to have a good wallow about all the bad things that may be happening. The truth is though after this wallowing I don't feel any better, the situation hasn't changed and in all honesty other people generally aren't interested, as harsh as that sounds. Negativity feeds off negativity and things will get worse. Focus on what you do have - and let's face it, for most of us the good things in our life generally greatly outweigh the bad - and the positivity will feed and grow, squashing the bad. Be positive and people will flock to you as well. Being positive is contagious and attractive.

So on the rest of the drive I thought about all the things I'm grateful for. The really simple things that we often take for granted. My healthy gorgeous girls. My full belly. Being able to live without fear. Having a comfortable home. My health. Having people around me who love me.

Then I got a little more specific - a weekend ahead to spend precious time with my husband; a fun night out on Thursday night; a beach holiday coming up; being able to go and have a delicious meal in a good restaurant.

Now, what was I worrying about again?