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

Place: lounge

Poison: mango and strawberry tea

Favourite things: knitting

Jamie lee Curtis is preaching to me right now! Thanks to TiVo I am able to watch what I want when I want.

She is talking about authenticity and not being conformed by the culture of our day. The way sex sells and how she hates fashion and the way it puts people into boxes.

The layers that culture lay on top of people and moving beyond it.

Representing the truth, finding the gold in people is authenticity. Allowing culture to tell you that you have to be young, pretty, with it to be happy…is not authenticity.

I agree, find the truth for you. Create large, don’t copy. Find your own voice!

Tuesdays with Morrie says it this way ‘the culture we have does not make people feel good about themselves. And you have to be strong enough to say if the culture doesn’t work, don’t buy it!’

Show your authentic self…

A

Place: the dancing goat

Poison: flat white

Favourite things: the world of frustone tshirt I’m wearing…

My journal, my bible, my devotional, another journal and my pencil case, breath in, breathe out.

My earphones, Brooke tunes, wallpaper, a postcard to a bestie, sharpies….breathe in, breathe out!

My worries out on paper, my mind cleared of it’s woes, truth treasure hunted from the word, hope rising in the distance. Breathe in, breathe out.

Contemplation of my broken thoughts, dugustation of inspiration from others, the tease of future potential, the fear of failure, coffee beans grind, schoolkids afternoon baby cino treats. Breathe in, breathe out…

A new cafe

Some time escaped from the pressure and demands.

Breathe in

Breathe out

Perspective gained

Hope found

Potential grasped and unlocked

A

Place: Lounge Room

Poison: Coffee

Favourite Things: Flour coverved hands…

150g butter

115g dark brown suger

175g honey

200g plain flour

1 1/2 teaspoons of Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 Tablespoon finely chopped rosemary leaves

2 eggs beaten

I have started to collect Winnie the pooh vintage books ready for my family. I made this honey cake, with a splash of rosemary. Its outstanding. Try it out on a sunny Saturday afternoon with a chammomile tea.

Grease and line the base of a cake tin. Put the butter, brown sugar and honey in a small saucepan and add 1 tablespoon of water. Heat gently, stiring once or twice, until the butter melts and the sugar dissolves. Leave to cool for 15 mins. Preheat the oven 180C

Sift the flour; Baking powder and cinnamon into a bowl and add rosemary. Add the honey mixture and eggs and beat until smooth.

Pour into the cake tin and bake for 35-40 mins.

Ice with lemon icing and some rosemary flowers.

AMAZING!!!

Place: lounge

Poison: coffee

Favourite things: little pressies in the mail…

A great friend of mine and her very new fiancé (soon to be a great friend) sent me the cutest little package in the mail a pack of card off cuts!

So in my quest to rage a war against consumerism I am on my way tonight to make a heap if cards for mothers day and upcoming birthdays, weddings and the like!

I love home made cards I cannot understand why people spend $7 on a card and wrapping befuddles me.

Cards ahoy.

A

Place: My office

Poison: Flat white

Favourite Things: My sister

I am trying to clear out the last of my stock of book number one so I can get on with book number two which is burgeoning right now. ‘Capture 30 days 2, desperate for change…’ Is eagerly awaiting publication, but financially I need some help.

So I am doing a web special.

All books are $10 each, for orders of 5 or more.

So if you are a gift giver and want some gift stocks in your back room of my book then email info@capture30days and I will get the books to you asap.

5 books for $50 is pretty good considering the recommended retails is $29.95 each.

Much Love and thanks for your support.

AMPS