Sunday, April 03, 2011

I wanna play too















River has been participating in Sunday Selections. What you're supposed to do is sift through your photos and post up ones that haven't yet been published. So if you want to play too, link back to Kim at Frogpondsrock, add a comment on her blog and join in.

It's probably the ideal thing for me right now because I'm struggling to find time and energy to write anything for 'fun' that isn't related to my paid work. Three part-time jobs is clearly adding up to a bit more than one full-time role and whilst I love all three, the desire to sit down at night in front of the computer in the study and think of something to post is becoming as hard as my desire to ....


well ......


.... eat chocolate and write about it. Or, to be more specific - carefully arrange and photograph chocolate from various angles, take note of the ingredients, website and company history, taste and make notes, download photos, write up an article and post it. It was great to get 56,000 visits last month but the hoped-for advertising revenue stream hasn't eventuated.


Yep, I said it. The GoneChocco blog is starting to feel like a chore instead of the fun it was meant to be. My thighs are starting to feel like flabby flotation devices instead of the firm flanks they were meant to be and my cholesterol level is too frightening for me to face up to Dr Checks again for a follow up test.


As I think about the life of GoneChocco post-Easter, here are some photos that I've taken this year and not used.















Mum and Dad went up to Darwin a couple of months ago to experience tropical storms, hideous humidity and generally reacquaint themselves with the literary genius that is the NT News. Mum made sure that she read her copy word-for-word every day.















Dad was at my brother Rob's house and was goofing off with his neck massage thingy. I think he looks like a cross between a sensibly-dressed ET and Wall-E.















A couple of weeks ago LC won the Individual Staff Excellence Award at the Bureau of Meteorology for his work on a project that has been adopted internationally. It was brilliant to see him being made a (deserved) fuss of, even if he hated it and got more attention from his workmates for wearing a suit and tie than for his brilliant speech. I rather enjoyed being the proud spouse.
















This was taken via zoom off the Lorne Pier as we watched several massive sting rays swim underneath us. This optimistic pet owner was trying to convince his boxer to join him in the water. No amount of 'come on boy, come on' was working; not even having a tennis ball rolled about ten centimetres from his nose.
















The John Wesley statue in Lonsdale Street, Melbourne CBD. Sapphire and I scurry past him every fortnight on our way back from the cruelly-early 7.45am fortnightly appointment for her allergy injection. His prematurely greying hair is mostly attributed to pigeon poop than age.
















Ah Milly. Beautiful smile, but ears set to 'coming in to land' pose as she hears Sapphire singing in the background.

















Seven year old A was not happy with me one day and ran off to her room in protest. I tried to push the door open to talk to her and apparently 'slamed' her leg - on purpose, it was accused. I then decided to leave her in there on her own to cool off, and the solitude clearly wasn't what she was after. A few minutes of slamming the door eventuated in the above note. Thankfully our altercation was cleared up soon afterwards.
















Royal Exhibition building, yesterday. Sapphire was dying to attend the Royal Melbourne Flower and Garden show. It was her week 'off' from tennis and LC gladly stayed home as we enjoyed a few girlie hours together - mostly dodging the zimmer frames and prams.















Hand-sewn felt vegetables! "There'd be a
lot of kids that would only like vegetables in this form - inedible and stuffed," observed Sapphire.
















Several pretty dazzling outdoor displays with crowds mostly around the ones featured on the 'Better Homes and Gardens' TV show the night before. "Come here love, this is the one you liked on the telly last night," said one old duck, her 40-a-day-for-forty-years voice cutting through the crowd like catapulted gravel.

'Ned' appealed to me. Maybe one day a craft project of my own..... Hopefully a great deal more successful than my attempt to make three flying fish for the back of the toilet door in paper mache.

















Loads of reds and oranges and I jostled with many other eager SLR squatters to snap this one.



Same goes for the obligatory tulip shot.

















Surrounded by hundreds upon hundreds of slow-moving seventy-somethings, wheelchairs and young couples with papooses, Sapphire said, "I'm guessing we won't be seeing the divvy van arrive any time soon." She makes me laugh so hard and it's such an honour when her hand reaches over for mine.

23 comments:

shae said...

the ET/wall-e photo made me spit out my coffee lol!

Elephant's Child said...

Oh wow. Love them all lots. Thank you megaheaps.

River said...

I'm so glad you've joined in!
Those felt vegetables look so real, I was trying to work out what the green and white ones were.
I thought the "Ned" mosaic was Milly, made by you. It's really nice; and isn't Sapphire looking very lovely.

River said...

P.S. thanks for the link back

Pandora Behr said...

How good does LC look in a suit?! Great that he's being recognised for his wonderful work - you have a right to be proud. Some great shots there.

Kim (frogpondsrock) said...

Thanks for joining in Kath, I enjoyed the post as much as I enjoyed the photos. :)

Watershedd said...

Felt vegies look great. Congrats on LC's award too. so nice when those close to us get the recognition they deserve.

Anonymous said...

My partner R, Sister and Little Jo went to the garden show yesterday too and had a great time.

Anonymous said...

Great selection of photos and I love the stories. I remember getting notes very similar from my daughter.

Kath Lockett said...

Shae, that's my father for you!

EC - no worries. Took me bloody AGES to load them and the gaps are awful but blogger has been really misbehaving. Even Love Chunks couldn't work it out.

River, maybe they're leeks?

Pandora - it's his only suit and one he bought himself - I think it's a bit too light and he might need a darker one now.

Kim, it was a pleasure and a way to put up a post despite suffering from bloggers' block.

Thanks Watershedd. It does amuse me that if LC had been in private industry he'd probably have got a cash bonus or a couple of overseas flights somewhere, but being Aussie govt, he got a plaque!

Andrew, we probably walked past them getting their faces painted by the friendly fairies at the edge of the pond....?

Welcome, learncreatedo - Sapphire's notes a few years back were often a list of instructions. "No squirting the dog with the water sprays. Only kids. When it's hot."

Baino said...

Great pictorial post. I was going to have a bash myself but just selecting the photos was taking forever. Maybe next week. One thing that strikes me about Melbourne are the little pieces of hidden art. Well not so hidden but largely ignored by the bustling crowds. I must pay more attention next time I'm there. Kath out of curiosity, where are you getting these writing jobs? Can you email me?

Jayne said...

I was considering taking the Aspie feral child but his footy match got in the way.
Love the Wall-E pic and congrats to LC :)

WV =flateri...Something the old ducks would get from going home in the back of a divvy van.

Cherie said...

Great post, sharing so much of your life shows your abundant proudness Hope you have a wonderful week. :)

Hannah said...

Thank you for sharing these photos, Kath! (And your thoughts.) Love the dog mosaic, and I hope that my mum is as happy when I take her hand or tell her I love her spontaneously (I might do that too often for it to really have an impact, actually.)

Funnily enough, I've really been lacking in motivation to do the chocolate reviews on my blog, too. I'm determined to get one up tonight, though, because it's been over a week...

Gaby said...

Oh, I'm loving these varied images and the stories behind them, love the note about not be available, thanks for a glimpse into your world :)

Kath Lockett said...

Baino - sorry that my emails have been about as useful as a brain in Tony Abbott's skull...

Jayne I love your definiton of 'flateri'. Word def below is 'funtesub' - when the thrill of being daring runs out and you realise that you're in big trouble

Kath Lockett said...

My 'abundant proudness', Cherie? A braggart put in much nicer terms? :)

Hannah but you're at least posting every single day - I do three chocolate reviews a week and am starting to run out of steam. Not chocolate (the styles, new bars, flavours and shapes are endless) but energy...a little.

Thanks Gaby - and welcome!

Vanessa said...

Sapphire looks so grown up. I have always wanted to attend the Melb Flower show.
Lovely photo of you and LC and congrats to him for his achievement.

Romana said...

Sapphire is an absolute gem Kath (no pun intended at all). That pic of your dad is classic - anyonw for cheap fancy-dress costume? Congrats to LC, I often think of some fo the comments you have shared re. his views on climate change etc, as I watch the news and shake my head in wonder/disbelief about what some people still believe. And as for you Kath Lockett - Gone Chocco is fabulous, but as a reader I would be horrified to think that you eithe hate producing the reviews, or are increasingly putting your health at risk just to bring it to us. "Take care of you." (yeah, bad Pretty Woman qoute, just because it was on telly this week).
Romana

Helen said...

Sensible boxer!
Beautiful Milly!
Funny Sapphire!

Helen Balcony said...

Oh and awesome Dad!

Unknown said...

Just dropping by on no rules blog hop. I love all your photos especially the dog mosaic. Some highly original stuff.

Kath Lockett said...

Thanks Vanessa - shows how fast my little girl is growing up, doesn't it? No Justin Beiber concert tickets for her, thankfully; just a day at the Flower and Garden show!

Romana I guess I am going to have to have a serious think about the future of GoneChocco pretty soon. That's unless I can get my running back on track (pun intended again) after a 3-month lay-off with a busted achilles. I'm not liking how fat I look and feel.

Thank you Helen Balcony. I'm glad you didn't add 'Weird spaces between photos!' because blogger just wasn't behaving on Sunday!

Hi Jewel! (waves from cyberspace)- welcome!