Just because...

Just because I feel like posting this now. No particular reason. I do really like this piece of artwork I created last year - April I think. It is a wooden tile painted black with a gold star sticker in the middle. The lines from the star points to the edges were made with a gold texta. I loved the effect on paper when I was trying to get the texta to work and decided to replicate it on the tile. 
So here it is. A gold star. Just because...

The garden - October update

Endings and beginnings

There seems to be lots of endings and beginnings in the garden this month. The snow peas are at the very end of their life - some peas left but no more flowers. 

The Broccoli too is at the end of its life. I have been able to pick lots of Silverbeet since these photos were taken. 

The tomato seedlings I bought a few weeks ago are growing well. Photos to be posted soon - Alysha took the camera today with the memory card in it and I am keen to get this post published. It is almost a week since I started composing it. 
I have removed the broccoli from garden bed 2 and Brianna has now claimed it as her garden. She has planted radishes, carrots, spring onions and capsicum. So far she is doing very well with remembering to water it. 
I don't have huge plans for the garden over the next couple of months mainly due to lack of time as I am working full time for the first time in many years as well as continuing my parenting journey and making time for me. 

'Cos' of the compost

A little while ago I planted some Cos lettuce seedlings that I bought from Bunnings. It is amazing how much the one I planted in the pot with some compost has grown so much more than the one planted in the garden bed. That compost seems to be good stuff! I did lose two others planted in the pot thanks to a visiting cat. The photos don't clearly show the difference really but here they are anyway.

  in the pot with compost       

 in the garden bed without compost

The explosion of pink

Here is the explosion of pink. The rock roses in the backyard.

A day of play

I was lucky today to attend a day of Professional Development in the form of a 6hr workshop on The Game Factory PLAY IS THE WAY presented by Wilson McCaskill. A few weeks ago I missed out on attending this workshop and was disappointed when I heard it was a great day. I was very pleased to have the opportunity to attend the workshop today and what a fantastic day! I was nervous beforehand having heard that it was a very participatory workshop. It turned out there wasn't anything to worry about and I actually enjoyed the games. Wilson is a very inspiring speaker and really easy to listen to. I am looking forward to putting into action some of what I was learning and thinking about today. The most important messages (I think) were about it being necessary to participate to progress, that learning is uncomfortable and it is important to praise the process more than the outcome. 
I finished off the day with a little more play, snapping this photo of a peacock just wandering around the function centre.

My art in CREATIVE IS A VERB

Here are the photos of my artwork in Patti Digh's new book "CREATIVE IS A VERB" 

page 81

and page 202

Last night I had the chance to have a good read. As I expected it is a fabulous book. I love the two essays which my art accompanies - "Listen to tiny fishies" and "Create Life As If". Another favourite so far is "Stand on your rock". More about that soon!

A surprise in the garden

I have not been well for the last couple of days and haven't ventured far from the bed or the couch. Early this afternoon I went to check on the garden, worried about what I may find given the warmer weather and the fact I haven't given it any water for the last few days.
The radish seedlings have emerged and I also noticed some other seedlings where I planted the radishes, rocket and carrot. They are not radishes, rocket or carrot. I think they might be pumpkin from the (almost ready) compost I added to the soil there.

Arrived today - CREATIVE IS A VERB

Earlier this year I submitted art for possible inclusion in Patti Digh's new book 'CREATIVE IS A VERB' and have been (just a little impatiently) waiting to receive my copy of the book. It arrived this morning!I was so excited to see my art on pages 81 and 202. More about that and photos to follow soon!

1000 new pets!

I bought some worms today and set up the worm farm. This is something I've been planning to do since May and particularly since my parents gave me a worm farm for my birthday. One thousand worms (or thereabouts - they were hiding and difficult to count) are now settled in their new home with plenty of our food scraps to sustain them. Brianna has been naming them: Squirm, Squirmles, Worm, Wormles, Wriggly and there are 995 still to name.

That was a good book!

I have recently finished reading 'Trust' by Kate Veitch.

In 2008, I heard Kate Veitch reading from her newly released novel, 'Listen', at Adelaide Writers' Week. Immediately I wanted to read more and bought myself a copy of the book which I enjoyed immensely.

Earlier this year I was in the Noarlunga library picking up a book from the hold shelves when I saw a copy of 'Trust' waiting to be picked up by someone else. (The hold shelves are a great place to discover good books as you get to see books that may not make it back to the shelves between borrowings.) I didn't know Kate Veitch had written another book and definitely wanted to read it when I discovered that she had. I looked it up on the computer and reserved it, knowing it would be a while as a few people were ahead of me in the reservation line. A couple of weeks ago my turn arrived. It has been a while since I've read a novel. I am constantly reading something but novels haven't formed part of my reading material over the last few months.

It took me about a week (including a few later than usual nights) to read. It seems there has been so much to do these school holidays and finding time to read was a bit of a challenge.

If you enjoy books about family relationships and with great character development, I highly recommend this one! Kept me thinking well after I finished the last page!