Place: the airport

Poison: diet coke

Favourite things: new angel perfume

I have spent the last few days with someone delightful and the best part about it has been the little things.

In life it’s not the big moments that define you, but the day to day moments. The capacity to sit in silence without any level of discomfort of having to speak because there is silence. The delight at watching a television program that is simply lovely.

Hand cream that smells like an orchard, the crunch of an apple that is fresh as.

Life is decorated by the little things and so often we don’t even recognize that they surround us.

Celebrate life with the ones you love enjoying the little things. Although I’m on my way to a family holiday which is a big thing, the delight of the daily, is mostly why there is a smile on my lips.

A

Place: My Desk

Poison: remnants of home made lasagna

Favourite Things: A suitcase half packed.

I took my lovely friend Brooke down to family night tonight and I am not sure whether it was the storm brewing or the fact that the family are going to Bali tomorrow but it was utter, but glorious chaos.

There were children, two in fact who were so excited that they pee’d their pants in the lounge room, jen had a mishap and ended up in hospital, I left my purse behind, a pregancy was announced, my mum was getting her hair dyed and it was a cacophony of inspiration.

My family is so wild, but so loving. As I reflected on the chaotic symphony of normalcy with my friend on the way home, I realised why I love it so much and why I am so inspired by it all, because it is authentic. Its real, no one is pretending to be anything that they are. When the kids pee their pants because they are so excited about the craziness, they just get delivered to the bathroom and loved with big loves.

When Jen went to hospital everyone was so concerned, but the night just swirled on with delight and lots of dancing.

Having the capacity to find creativity in the midst of chaos, is breathtaking. All you need to do is slow down reflect and then jump on the bandwagon.

Thanks Brooke, for being a part of the chaos.

Family night is an institution that you have now been formally and chaotically introduced too.

A

Place: My Office

Poison: Champagne

Favourite Things: long baths on winters day

Miss Elly came and dragged me away from a blue patch in the midst of a little drama. She took me to a happy place, my local farmers market in search of a flat white, a almond croisant and just some general love.

As we sat on a stone chatting with latte’s in hand, croisants crumbling and dogs barking, we talked about hopes and dreams. Miss Elly is an amazing clothing designer for kids and she talked to me about her hopes and dreams and new business ideas.

She told me about etsy.com, a website where people show their home made goods and make a business out of it.

I love supporting small business and cant wait for the day I can support Miss Elly in hers.

Check out etsy.com, from all around the world and its so inspiring.

Place: Lounge

Poison: T2 Sleep Tight tea

Favourite Things: My sister and the promise of bali in less than 20 days

Check out this blog.

http://www.dandylonglegs.blogspot.com/

Way cute

A

Place: Lounge room

Poison: T2 sleep tight tea

Favourite Things: Slippers

It has been the most crazy of weeks. Last week I found out someone I am really close is sick and my whole world has been in quite a spin.

Tonight I am sitting here, trying to distract myself, as he is having brain surgery tomorrow morning and perpective has been gained so quickly.

Life is way to short to sweat the small stuff. How often do we spend time mulling over the mundane?

I will be starting a new section which I am thinking I might continue into my next book.

Life is precious so…

dance

forget the opinions of the mockers

close your eyes and just move

savour the moment

breathe deeply

move soulfully

enjoy the rythmn

Life is precious so gain perspective

A

Place: My Office

Poison: Poached eggs on toast

Favourite Things: Vanilla Candles

‘The world is in transition economically, politically, environmentally and the changes that are radically transforming how we communicate, what we value, and how we live affect us all.’

I read this on the American Craft Councils website and I stood up and applauded!

I am so excited that we are forced to look at our consumerism and our materialism and are having to take a big deep breath and say, what the hell are we living for…

I am not excited for those, including my closest of friends who are loosing their jobs at this time, but I am so challenged and expectant about the way it is forcing our culture to change its ways.

A life of reinvention, rather than mass production. A life of local produce versus planes flying in water from the alps of france and charging $15 a bottle and costing the environment so much more than our egos. A life of family focus rather than work obsession. Now thats a culture and a life that I will lean into.

Fling your arms wide open and breath in the air that is supposed to be fresh and clean. Switch of your computers, televisions, TIVO (yes talking to myself here) and walk with your loved ones, swinging your arms as you clutch each others hands knowing that perfection is a lie sold to us from Hollywood.

Close your eyes and imagine a stream of creativity that is unstoppable and unquenachable as we start to create our own lives rather than the reality television obsession that is forced upon us by the masses.

Stand up in your uniqueness.

Stand strong for the next generation.

Change the world.

We are the only ones who ever could.

A

Place: My new desk at home

Poison: Rose tea in a big old teapot

Favourite Things: LOOOOOOONNNNNGGGG weekends.

I walked into my new favourite cafe today and paid of an outstanding bar tab (yes they let me make a tab, because of no card facilities) and I grabbed a takeaway coffee and just then I saw it, hiding beneath the crumpled daily paper, admist poached egg encrusted plates. The newish ‘Frankie’ magazine and I remembered my subscription had run out. I hadnt read this issue yet and my takeaway became a dine in and I plowed through its delicious pages of inspiration.

I found website after website that I tagged, in my phone, with the promise for going on an inspiration hunt as soon as I got to my laptop.

And that I did.

So over the next few days I will do some odes to the pages I found and hopefully you too might be inspired.

Adious!

http://myloveforyou.typepad.com/

check it out.

A

Place: My Office

Poison: Water

Favourite Things: Kym rolle has shifted to town.

One of my capture readers wrote a poem and sent it in via email and I wanted to share it with you all.

Interpretation is yours alone.

Place: My new desk and office

Poison: a vanilla candle

Favourite Things: The quad association op shop

Last week in a moment of desperation I trawelled local op shops in search of some inspiration. Behind a pile of dust, underneath a warehouse roof that was falling down, in the corner of a junk filled space, a moment of inspiration was uncovered. A new relationship started between me and a new writing desk.

I scoured the internet looking for a website to inform me of anything from its history, but no avail. It is old and scratched. It has a leather top with coffee mug stains and gold leaf patterning on the corners and I am in love.

I set it up yesterday with my besties who picked it up with a huge budget truck for me, and now it sits and waits setting the table for inspiration.

To sit at a table with purpose and atmosphere, set looking out my window over the laneway that our house is set in, produces the much needed encouragement to write, to sit, to think, to draw, to breathe in, to design, to unveil future prospects.

Sometimes all it takes is a rearrangement of furniture, a trip to an op shop to find something unloved by someone, but a treasure to the explorer, to unlock a fresh new stream of inspiration and creativity.

Set the table for inspiration today.

It’s awaiting discovery.

A

Place: loungeroom

Poison: peach tea

Favourite things: bonnie

Tonight popcorn flew, a pizza spun, chocolate melted, coke zero bubbled and chickfest brewed.

And man was it overdue.

My flatemate got a text message warning that oestrogen was ruling the roost and the kleenex was in great supply.

We watched Marley and me and the sisterhood of the travelling pants 2.

How delightful, how cliché, how satisfying…

Time to celebrate all things feminine is so homey in a time of stretching.

Find your ugg boots, fire up the microwave pop corn, rent that chick DVD and kick back.

A