Loving this week…
being tucked up inside
when summery storms end
a hot day with thundery down pours
Inspiring visits from a wonderful midwife
Sneaky sleepy naps with Little Monkey
Date night out with Mr Chocolate,
nearly getting to here, but getting in here instead. I love this place.
Remembering how beautiful the city is when I’m usually tucked up in bed.
Long chats around the kitchen table.
Soothing massaging hands, that lull you to sleepiness…bliss.
******
What have you loved this week?
He’s growing up…
discovering new exciting things
independence and pride
and a smile that is infectious
The blueberry is growing…
every where
up down and all around
a spurt of warm weather is making for a very happy potted blueberry bush
I’m growing out…
ten tiny fingers and ten tiny toes
slowly getting nurtured in a warm womb
radiating love out and radiating love in,
a whole beautiful bundle of it.
********
* Thank you to everyone who took the time to comment on my reconnecting with nature, city style post. Every comment was truly appreciated, thank you for taking that time. Some reminded me of things, some inspired me and some just prompted me to do more.
Dear Jasmine,
You smell so wonderful. I know spring is just around the corner, when I’m walking down the street and a heady waft of sweet smelling jasmine tickles my nose…
Dear Irish backpacker,
At what point did you think it was a good idea to smash our security door in? I wonder if you had maybe 5 less beers than your allocated 20, perhaps you might have realised you indeed didn’t live in this building, and that’s why your key wasn’t working.
Dear Roly Poly,
You seemed like a good idea at the time. The mental challenge had been made. It had been 18 years since I last did a roly poly…it could be another 18 years before I try doing it again. My CWA cookbook I thought would be the one to follow, perhaps what I really needed was a CWA member standing next to me and guiding me. Lucky for me The Monkeys don’t notice cracks… or weren’t close enough to hear the muttered @#$%* on rolling the thing. Despite all that… you indeed tasted delicious, and I suspect it was because there was half a jar of vanilla plum jam tucked away within your spongey folds.
Dear Little Monkey,
You nearly made it six months in between Emergency Dept visits. Nothing quite like suspicious spots, a temperature and the hovering word meningococcal to ease you into the weekend. (Turns out it was viral related petechiae.)
Dear Dark Chocolate,
I didn’t think I wanted much of you….turns out I was wrong.
Dear Newspaper,
Today, I hear you whispering to me, quietly nudging me to the sunny spot with a big pillow.
Yes, I think that will do just fine…
********
Anyone else have any letters from their week?
A group of friends
A table of food
And a whole lot of lovely conversation
********
What’s on the menu?
Plain sourdough
Quinoa Sourdough
Butter made from cream- from this local dairy
Caramelised Onion Tart with Labne
Apple Cabbage Pecan Salad
Baked Ricotta
*********
* Slow Sunday was originally me hiring a commercial kitchen for the day, to cook locally produced foods, for a seasonal menu. One long table, ten people, and the promise of real food, slow food, unhurried conversation and chance to show what beautiful food is available to us here in sunny Sydney. Alas, not to be… this time. The kitchen changed hands and 3 weeks before, they cancelled the booking. Disappointing, as it had taken me a little while to summon the courage up to book it. However, lunch with a few friends on a much smaller scale menu was decidedly lovely…and perfect for a slow Sunday.
Not particularly assured when seeing a small slug casually amble out of the kitchen sink after washing spinach for dinner and then using it all in the cooking… Did you have a friend oh slug, did you?…did you?
Reassured to find there wasn’t a whole lot of guilt at all about opening up a friends packet of marzipan chocolate she had given me, propping it up on my chest, while laying down to read awhile, before the afternoon rush… Was rather lovely actually.
Feeling far from assured when listening to someone make comments to you that feel less than polite, to smile awkwardly, walk away and wonder how people can be so rude and thoughtless…
Reassured, when Little Monkey rides his much anticipated first horse and then falls off after it bolts when a kid behind it waves a huge stick, has one minute of a cuddle and then gets back on…. Heart. In. Mouth. (Double. Hip. Spica. Cast!)
Not at all assured the first time I cut into a blood orange when I was a teenager. There was obviously something really wrong with it… Thank I goodness I learnt the ways of the blood orange…Happy blood orange season.
Reassured to find that the Goat Curry I had made was a really big pot full and would feed us for several days, and it was delicious…now, if only The Monkeys thought so.
*******
What have you been reassured by lately?
In a large pot add
a good slurp of vegetable oil and your spices
2 tsp turmeric
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp coriander
2 tsp brown mustard seeds
1 tsp cardamom
1 large knob of fresh diced ginger
1 large diced onion
Fry until fragrant for a few minutes and then add your goat meat, (I used 2 shanks, as I didn’t want it particularly meaty). Fry until meat is well coated.
Then add 800mls canned tomatoes, and rinse then can out with another 400mls of water. Then add a large diced eggplant, ( or other vegetables). A small handful of kaffir lime leaves. Cover and simmer for about an hour.
Then add 400mls of coconut milk, season to taste and simmer for a further hour or so. Or until meat comes away from the bone, (or if using regular diced meat, until it becomes soft and tender.)
Serve with basmati rice and a dollop of natural yogurt.
Loving right now
Spring like days, with the warmth of the sun on your back
Stillness
Lying still, body and mind
Blood orange season starting
Long talks with distant friends
Comfortable chats with close by friends
The anticipation of a new album
Hearing Monkey Boy quietly read a story to Little Monkey. Slowly sounding out the tricky words
Being able to walk to a blue ocean,
and breathing her in
********
What are you loving right now?
Weekend filled with touching base with family
Stories told, old photos softly touched. My grandparents history captured in a black and white rectangle.
My history.
Walking around streets that used to be my streets, somethings have changed. Somethings have not.
My old park stands still so much the same.
The Monkeys run, climb, explore gnarly trees, dangle legs on old cannons, and swing on swings that are so very much shorter.
No secret broken palings to slip through unnoticed into the special garden, only to be chased out again by the gardener. Instead open for everyone to explore.
Roses still there to ride bikes between. Thorns still there to break off, lick, and stick on your nose like a rhinoceros.
Bubbler still there to cool an afternoon of excited playing.
Grass still there to picnic on, kick balls, fly kites and
run until you are so very dizzy.
It’s been cold here the last few days. Not Hobart cold, not Melbourne cold, not Dusseldorf cold and not Lapland cold… but Sydney cold. Cold enough for people to walk a bit quicker. For the Monkeys to make hot breath drawings and cold enough for me to want to keep frantically crocheting something warming and useful.
It took me 32 years to work out that if it’s cold, I should dress warmly. Crazy huh? (not just by wearing jeans that are long enough.)
Why had it taken so long for me to work out and why did it take an ayurvedic consultant to point that one out to me?
I have no idea. But, I’m happy to report that since that fateful day, I have tried to dress appropriately and not looked back.
Winter now sees looped scarves, warm thick socks and sensible layers. Not that I was ever one to zip about in mini skirts and high heels in the middle of winter. I did though, regularly wear just one up from summer clothing, and wondered why I didn’t like the cold so much. The cold is only miserable, if you are cold. Once again, crazy isn’t it?
Dressing appropriately in a cold environment lets you in on a whole different world. For one, I can now actually see the world, rather than hunched over, staring at my feet, trying to generate some warm thoughts down to my frozen toes.
Thankfully I’d already cottoned on to the the fact that if you dressed appropriately in rainy weather, that also was enjoyable…and that only took me 25 years to work that one out.
Lots of energy within, but I’m having trouble knowing where to direct it. So many things to do, so many things I want to do… and I want to do them all.
A few things I’m loving at the moment…
creating with The Monkeys, using buttons and felt
my new old couch… or is it my old new couch?
making simple honey biscuits
hearing Little Monkey describe something as… wuvley
a new favourite cafe, that serve with vintage saucers and proper teapots
5.30am cups of chai. A magical time of day. It feels like bonus time, extra time. The Monkeys are (hopefully) still asleep and Mr Chocolate is long gone to work. Just me and the moment of a new dawning day…
*****
What are you loving at the moment?
Tired tears and tantrums, not just The Monkeys.
Have to turn this week around…. turn it upside down.
Find the giggles, the chuckles, the smiles again.
Find that bubble of inspiration…
*****
Buy green stripy tomatoes from farmers markets.
Make a mermaid bread.
Hear Little Monkey run up the hall way…he ran.
Find op-shop sunglasses that scream Eurovision.
Watch planets align themselves at 5am skies.
Crochet in park while The Monkeys deal with swashbuckling pirates, crocodiles and marooned mamas on islands of balls of wool.
…week happily turned upside down.
What an odd week it’s been.
Full of twists and turns.
A week now ending with a shudder and a shake.
Like a clapped out old kombie, driving into park for the last time.
This week, Little Monkey has his legs back. The cast came off early. Which was a bit of a lovely surprise. Xrays showed he was healing well, and after 4 weeks in a double hip spica and nearly a week in traction, he was free. Free. He’s going to have jelly legs for a while and will probably take as long as he was off those legs to get back on them, but… he has legs again.
Goodbye Captain Redlegs, hello Captain….Skinny Whitelegs?
Then he got sick the day after the cast came off.
Happiness and love was sent to me in an envelope.
I lost my house keys.
Someone found my house keys in a shop and I got them back.
Went to a friends wonderful art exhibition opening.
Lost my wallet on the street.
Got my wallet back due to two kind strangers finding and returning it home.
Good news from a friend.
Bad news from another friend.
I made a fish bread.*
…and it was delicious.
What’s been happening in your week?
* Using the ever versatile olive oil yeasted dough. To get the scaly look, just use scissors. Now how easy is that.
cityhippyfarmgirl 
