Thursday, July 31

We're off!

We're going to Tasmania for a 4-day weekend on a short break.

We're leaving early tomorrow and coming back late Monday. It's going to be absolutely freezing!
I'll be on blog hiatus until we get back.

Monday, July 28

3 Years

D and I have passed the 3 year mark -- we've been together for 3 years now (if you don't count the days when we were "on break" and it was totally D's fault anyway, hehe).

When we first started going out, we took oodles and oodles of pictures. As time has progressed, it seems that our together photos have dwindled down a bit (it may not seem that way with the amount of pictures I've been putting up, but trust me, it has). Whether it's because there are less photo ops as we aren't adventuring as much as we used to or whether the desire for documentation has died down, I don't know. Nevertheless, I'm now back on my paparazzi horse and will endeavor to take as much photos as possible. I might even try Photoshop to make our pictures more interesting. That is, if I ever learn how to use it.

In light of this new purpose, here are some pictures I took yesterday while we were doing one of our favorite things to do on a Sunday afternoon. (As I don't have Photoshop yet or have the skills to use it, the editing was all done in iPhoto.)

Our favorite thing to do on a Sunday afternoon?
Lying in bed, doing absolutely nothing.
Other than snuggling, of course.
Perfection.

Sunday, July 27

The Dark Knight

We're watching the new Batman movie later tonight. I can't wait.

The Dark Knight - trailer #3 - Warner Bros. Pictures

I wanted to watch in Gold Class but it's near impossible to get seats for any decent movie that comes around, unless you want to wait a month for it. Oh well.

Update: Watched it and loved it. For one thing, Katie Holmes isn't in it, so you couldn't go wrong there. Didn't disappoint, which is rare these days. Chris Nolan rocks. Heath was brill. It's a bit long (about 2 1/2 hours or thereabouts) so be prepared.

This Blog's Word Cloud

I went to wordle to get my blog's word cloud and this is what I got.
Interesting.

Saturday, July 26

Highlights from the Wedding Celebration

Stained glass windows in the church, which was fuh-reezing by the way



My pink tights. I'm still not too sure my outfit today worked.


The couple. As it was their day after all, here are their pictures.



We were taking pictures instead of paying attention to the ceremony. Shh!!


K & T -- they do make a lovely couple, don't they?


At the lunch reception. The food was yummy!

A Non-Traditional Wedding Gift

Our friends E & S got married in Malaysia a month ago and today was their Wedding Blessing in Melbourne. As they were an "inter-faith" couple, they had a Hindu wedding and a Catholic blessing.

That bit of info actually has nothing to do with this entry as it's all about our wedding gift for them. This is the first time they are ever living together so they're basically just starting out. They didn't register at any store so it made gift giving a tad more difficult.

I was thinking of what I would like to get if I was in their situation and I thought about all the gadgets in our kitchen that made our domestic life easier. Nothing fancy, just the cheap things that we have found useful over the past couple of years. One such item is our potato press, which, if you've never used one, would never comprehend why there would be a need. But once you've tried it, you'd never go back, as the masher makes the fluffiest, creamiest mashed potatoes this side of town.

So off to Ikea I went to get the press and a few other bits and pieces. Typically, when I got to the store, they were all out of potato presses. Yes, my love-hate relationship with Ikea continues. I didn't let Ikea's stock inconsistency daunt me and so I picked up some thingamajigs and even got a big enough box for it all to fit in.

I wrote (typed & printed, actually) personal notes for each item and tied the notes with ribbon.




I then put them all together and ended up with a lovely, albeit bulky, present.



I like giving personalised presents and this is probably one of my favorite ones to date.

Thursday, July 24

Book Review: What Was Lost

I can't remember why I reserved this book in my library. It's not part of my 1001 list so I'm guessing I must've read a good review on it.

It's a bit difficult to explain the plot of the story (not that it's a David Markson novel or anything) without giving away too much. It begins with the story of a girl who wants to be a detective and has a stuffed monkey in a suit as a sidekick. Cute, huh? But her story is far from cute and we find out that her life is not a happy life, rather a bit lonely.

Then, the story cuts to 20 years later and we find out that she has been missing for all that time. This part of the story revolves around a mall security guard with a sleeping disorder and an uninspired music store manager. Sounds disjointed, right?

And the novel is a bit that, however, the author does tie the stories together nicely. I enjoyed reading it, especially the beginning. But I felt unsatisfied after finishing it.

The ending was a bit non-climaxy, the coming together of all the different characters a bit too pat and there were too many floating pieces within the novel that didn't seem central to the plot.

There was a lot of very good writing in it, don't get me wrong. But I think that the author was trying a bit too hard to be clever. Then again, that's just my two cents worth.

At least it was an easy read and I enjoyed it more than I did Drop City.

Next on the list is David Mitchell's Cloud Atlas which seems interesting. Hopefully, it lives up to the hype.

Wednesday, July 23

While we're in June...

Just finished editing my iMovie project of pictures from the get-together at the boys' house for Jim and Tuan's birthdays last month.

The music is by The Dandy Warhols (Bohemian Like You).

Tuesday, July 22

Scienceworks and Other Things

As our museum membership was running out, D and I decided to avail of our free entry privilege to Scienceworks last month.

It was great! Very kid-oriented but still fun.

Here are the highlights:

A salt and pepper collection (shot specially for my sis)


D clowning around


I look really excited


Giant washing machine!


Giant faucet! And it's dripping Ds!


D trying to scale the walls -- operative word, trying


D looking suspicious as he tries to break in


Shot of the bridge outside Scienceworks


Token couple shot


Wanted!



Great big clock!


Outside Scienceworks



A couple of weeks later, we went back to visit the Lightning Room and the Planetarium. There was a new exhibit that just opened as well.







Waiting for the show to start




The planetarium was pretty cool and the feature we caught was narrated by Harrison Ford.

I reckon it's a good (and cheap) way to spend a rainy Saturday afternoon. Just be prepared for the oodles of kids.

Cost: $6/adult, +$5 if you want to see The Lightning Room or a Planetarium show
More details here.

Sunday, July 20

Anything

D says I blog about anything and everything and as much as I'm loathe to prove him right, here I am posting an entry about what I'm currently snacking on.


Just because it's there. And because it's very yummy. Seriously, how can you go wrong with brie, red pepper dip and some crackers?

Excuse me while I go and devour my food. You want some? I'm happy to share.

Backlog

I've got a serious case of book backlog. I've just gotten three new books from the library and I"m still trying to get through the last batch.


I'm struggling through Drop City at the moment. I'm not too sure I'm even inclined to finish it. It's a bit all over the place and I keep waiting for it to converge somehow but I'm more than halfway and I still can't see what this book is about. The characters are unlikeable and who wants that? I've even browsed through the ending and this is a no-no for me and is usually an indication that I can't be bothered with the book.

I'll read What Was Lost next as it's a 14-day book and can't be renewed. Maybe the time constraint will see me getting through this book quicker.

I need a weekend of just reading. Maybe a whole week...

Tuesday, July 15

Score!

Went to DFO (Direct Factory Outlet) last Sunday and boy, did I score.


I spent less than $65 for 4 pairs of shoes (I have the brown in black as well) and a fancy dress (I have 2 weddings and a christening to attend in the next couple of months). How good is that?

The shoes were from Novo and Steve Madden. The dress was a sample dress (I'm back to my old size!) from Ojay and they had a Samples Sale (50% off on sample prices!).

Shopping should always be this good. Oh yeah, it usually is...

Monday, July 14

Nope, not today

I didn't start my fitness routine today. I'm slack, I know.

Maybe tomorrow?

Then again, maybe not.

Sunday, July 13

On Getting Fit

I'm trying to get myself motivated enough to start exercising. This morning, I pulled out all the DVDs, books and equipment I bought a couple of weeks back in my bid to get motivated.

Kick ass pilates mat, 1kg weights, exercise ball and accompanying book and DVD,
Pilates book with DVD
(Yes, I went all out. What can I say? Rebel Sport had a sale. They did! No, really.)

I'm going to try and set aside 15-30 minutes every week day. I think I'll start with the pilates as it's designed with 15 minute exercises. And it's not as scary as the ball exercises.

This is the screen shot of the Pilates Workout DVD
(disregard the mess around the TV)


I still have to figure out how to make space in the lounge room so that I can easily do my workout. And how I'm going to get up earlier than 7.30am in the middle of winter. Give me a break, it's still dark out at that time!

My goal this week is to actually start the routine. Let's see how I go.

Saturday, July 12

A Daylesford Weekend

Since our friends Tyrima hadn't been to Daylesford, like, ever, we decided to do a couples weekend away last month. We booked a cottage for the weekend and away we went.

Some photo highlights:

Friday night: T & D at the cottage, drinking beer and having a moment

Sat morning: K, impatient to get on with Daylesford-ing, hurrying the boys along

The boys, pretending to be a gay couple, outside The Convent Gallery

Honey, you want to give that poor girl a hug?

T enjoying manhandling the sculpture just a little too much

Lighting candles in the chapel inside the convent
Man with Dolphin (I really like this sculpture)
For some reason, it reminds me of D...

D eating fish
K, really excited to go into the Chocolate Mill
Group shot Up high on a viewing platform (lots of steps!)

Token artsy shots




It was a good weekend away.