Lost among the gaudy, busy streets of Macau, Grace’s life is slowly unravelling. Her marriage to Pete, her Australian husband, is fraying and her dreams of having a family seem hopeless.
Feeling blue? Not for long my friend. Nina Simone is about to lift you up!
I know, I know, another music post, but I couldn’t help myself. This live version of Ain’t got no, I got Life is just spectacular and I cannot listen to it without a) feeling better and b) moving. So if you need either of those things in your life then this song is the medicine for you.
That’s all I have to say today. May you have a joy-filled day, Nina-style. X
Hannah.
I just spotted this new Adriano Zumbo store in the sensational Design Files Daily. HOLY MACARON BATMAN!
Can you see the macarons in the glass boxes above? The label says “In case of emergency, break glass”. Um, I think I might have an emergency. I think my emergency is life-threatening macaron craving from the wrong country and the wrong city (Curse you, Tasman Sea!) For goodness’ sake could someone in Sydney please head straight to The Star, Pyrmont and tell me all about it?! According to Zumbo’s tantalising description of his newest venture the store has a dessert train and an event called Sugar Daddy where all the plates on the train are $4. To be totally honest, I don’t even know what that all means but the suspense is kind of killing me.
And just to make it worse I just spotted the list of the latest macaron (“zumbaron”) flavours for sale: Watermelon and Orange, Salted Butter Caramel, Passionfruit and Tonka Bean, Finger Bun, Annunziata (73% chocolate), Hendricks Gin & Tonic, Popcorn, Blackened Vanilla, Pandan & Coconut.
Oh heck. I’m smitten. And I need this wallpaper…
Hannah.
Life has changed. Again. I am slowly rediscovering a ‘new normal’ – life with a newborn and a toddler – every day full to the brim with nappy changes, early starts well before dawn has split through the dark, relenting to watching a lot of kids television, getting a handle on hormones (my own) and sudden mood changes (mine and my toddler’s!), the delicious-sweet smell of baby skin, cradling soft and tiny hands and feet, an astonishing vanishing of memory recall… (What did I need to get from the supermarket? We already have four loaves of bread, you say?)..
All because of this Little One. Our newest baby girl; Noa.
Noa arrived on Anzac Day, 25th April 2012. She arrived in time for the sunrise, which we watched saturate the sky outside the hospital window. I was so convinced she was going to be a boy I am still in shock she is another delightful daughter. She is sweet and calm and tolerates being roughly kissed and nudged by her big sister. She is gorgeous (I may be biased…)
So that is our news. Life is busy (oh, yes!), blessed and beautiful.
Hannah.
I used to have a love affair with Bjork. She’s just so….Bjork. Her name should almost be an adjective don’t you think? So when this song came my way I had to post it for you. (Despite being told by my friend Erin – “Stop posting music, I’m spending too much on iTunes!” Sorry Erin!)
This song came my way because I was listening to the BBC Dessert Island Discs interview with David Walliams (the “Tall one” from Little Britain). If you have not already listened to BBC Dessert Island Discs then I urge you to; it’s fantastic. Wren and I listen to it over our toast and tea in the morning. The basic premise is – a celebrity selects music tracks to listen to if banished to a dessert island (plus a book, plus a luxury) and explains their music choices whilst discussing their life and background. David Walliams was a fascinating interview because all his music choices reminded me of a particular ex-boyfriend’s “liquorice” music tastes – sweet but dark. He was also much less cheerful than you’d imagine for a comedian and I quite liked that. Just goes to show that it takes all types for all kinds of work and passions.
So, enjoy this song by Bjork; I sure did. Apologies if it makes you spend your pennies on iTunes! This song just grabbed hold of my hand and took me for a little stroll down memory lane…
Hannah.
It’s 4 am where I am. As you can tell, I am not asleep. My back and hips have roused me from my slumber to announce: “Hey, lady, we’re sore!” My stomach joined in with an additional complaint: “I need banana cake!”. Fine then, body parts. I’ve paced the kitchen a few times for the back and hips and eaten two slices of my Mama’s banana loaf and now I am completely and utterly awake. Great. Continue reading
Hannah.
It’s April and I have finally committed to a New Year’s resolution.
What? No, I’m not embarassed by that. Sometimes it takes me till July or beyond to get to this point. I’m thrilled! But, I digress. My New Year’s resolution is utterly self indulgent. It is to maintain a list of good films I watch. I started the list but wasn’t sure if it would last, but I am loving it and will definitely keep it up. It all started because this most recent New Year’s Eve I sat around with family and we talked about great films we’d seen in 2011. I was stumped. I’d seen loads of films but remembered, perhaps, less than five??!
Am really enjoying keeping track of the good ‘uns I’ve seen so far; it makes film watching seem a little bit like a purposeful hobby? A weird sense of achievement considering that all it takes is to select the film, sit down and watch it! Oh, and then write it down, of course. Let’s not forget that bit. Hmm, yes, very taxing….
Ah well. If I can’t scrapbook or be bothered training for a triathlon or making model aeroplanes, then keeping a list of films will just have to do. And, on that note, I just had to share with you the trailer for one of my favourites of 2012, so far: Little White Lies. A gorgeous french film (aren’t they all?), reminiscent of The Big Chill (I love that film!) and starring the beguiling Marion Cotillard. Winning formula really. Add to that I watched it with my sister whilst eating chocolate and it was bound to make the list. Enjoy.
Hannah.
Today is my wedding anniversary. If you have read my book you may have noticed that my husband, Matt, gets a little mention. Okay, a big mention. It’s dedicated to him. Continue reading
Hannah.
In a world where doing things quickly (getting from a to b, labour, producing your art form of choice, communicating etc etc) is so highly regarded it’s nice to see something slow. Reaaaaaal sloooow – 1,000 frames per second. Isn’t it gorgeous? It helps that the music is pretty sensational. That’s Radiohead’s Everything in it’s Right Place, the song title reflecting the whole m.o. of ballet, don’t you think? Everything in it’s Right Place? Bodily precision? Perfect music pairing for the clip!
These days, only a few weeks left to go in the pregnancy, I am moving a lot slower myself. And enjoying it. I am taking naps when my daughter does (sorry, that should read IF, if my daughter takes her nap) and gripping hold of the tail of the New Zealand summer by playing in rock pools and having long picnic lunches. It’s a tough life, but someone has to do it. Life will soon be very busy and time will rush past in a blur. I figure it’s best to celebrate the slow, for now, and soak Life up like good gravy. Don’t you agree?
(Thanks to A Cup of Jo for posting this video. A reminder to relish the beauty of Slow.)
Hannah.
A tip for upheavals, crazy-busy periods and ‘funks’:
As I look ahead into newborn adventure number two I am digging out more than just old onesies and baby carriers. I am starting to recall memories from that murky, misty time just after Wren was born and when my brain turned to mush (by the way, it’s never fully recovered, I am comfortable with that now!) One of the most astonishing things, for me, was the instant and overwhelming inability to get anything at all done in a day. Perhaps I am not the most productive person I know, but surely I wasn’t the least?? Or was I?? It definitely felt like it.
So here, with you, I share the tip that got me out of my funk. I still use it occasionally, when procrastination / lack of motivation get me down. I plan to be using it again very shortly. It’s crazy simple and it makes you feel much better about life.
Here it is: Put only three things on your to-do list.
Yes, that’s three things, for a whole day. Don’t go breaking the rules before you start (surely I can do six?), just try it. Personally, I wrote my list in my diary, often before I went to bed the night before. They were ambitious things like “Do load of laundry” or “Book chiropractor”. Sometimes I got them all done in the morning and felt like a superhero the rest of the day. Sometimes it got close to the wire and they weren’t finished until later at night. Either way I felt purposeful. I enjoyed crossing off my items and slowly, so sloooooowly, I started to feel a little more in control. Don’t get me wrong, I am under no illusion that I actually am in control (gorgeous / ferocious toddler makes sure of that) but the fleeting feeling sure is nice. I found it one way to help get through a transition when I felt very overwhelmed. I am sure it would work well for a change of career time or a moving of countries time as well as a brand new baby time.
So, whatever the cause of your oh-my-goodness-I-am-drowning-not-waving-out-here, if you try it, feel free to comment and let me know how it goes for you. I’m convinced that three is indeed the magic number!
Hannah.
I am trying to keep up with some new music. New to me, I should add. It’s not really working. Life is a bit ‘chockers’ right now, as us kiwis would say (that means “really full up”). But once in a blue moon or two something comes my way that lights up my soul. And here’s one of them: The Head and the Heart. Thought I’d post a live version of their ‘Down in the Valley’, which starts out slow and seductive and ends up jumpy and full of life.
Cool, huh? Make you want to play the violin with retro glasses? Or date a good-lookin’ bass guitarist? Or go on a road trip? Or all three? Oh, okay, maybe that’s just me.
[By the way, thanks to Soule Mama for introducing this behind-the-times Mama to some new tunes. Much appreciated.]
Hannah.