Day 16: Discovered, undiscovered

I only spotted these gargoyle-esque figures on

a building on Flinders Lane for the first time 

on Friday (I think it was Ross House)

While I was getting my hair coloured at the salon today I read an article in Slate called Amazing Animals You Never Knew Existed. 

The photos in the article are from Ross Piper's book Animal Earth: The Amazing Diversity of Living Forms. The pictures are great, but the thing that amazed me most was this: 

Humans have cataloged as many as 1.5 million species of animals, and Piper said there may be as many as 200 million more species still undiscovered. “We know a great deal more about the surfaces of barren moons in space than we do about our own planet..."

As many as 200 million! Not big mammals wandering about the plains and forests obviously, but still... I find that mind blowing. 

I had delicious smashed avocado on toast with feta, bacon and a poached egg for brunch today. Accompanied by far less din than last week's brunch, but we were sitting outside. 

I wore my new boots. They're very comfortable - not even the merest hint of a pinch or rub. 

Day 12: Fabulous fashionistas and booty

I've found something else on YouTube to get excited about - an English documentary called Fabulous Fashionistas, which is about ageing, style and living life. 

It features six women with an average age of 80, each with a distinct sense of style and an interesting, unconventional life. They pay no heed whatsoever to what society expects old ladies to wear or do. One recently bought a pair of Doc Martins. Another says "Beige is the colour of death".  

I first heard about Fabulous Fashionistas a few months ago via a Twitter link to this Guardian article, and then somewhere I found more photos and quotes from the women, which had me completely charmed. I might not have loved their look, but I adored their attitude. The documentary isn't available to view here,  but it's on YouTube. Wooh!

'Dressing your age' is something I think about every now and then, especially since I turned 40. I look younger than I am (people tell me so; I'm not being vain), which allows me to 'dress young', but how long will I able to get away with wearing a denim skirt and Nike high-tops, and wearing my hair in a quiff? I'm getting to the point where I think the answer is FOR AS LONG AS I DAMN WELL WANT! 

The reason I mention this today is because I had a conversation with a friend about how we're at an in-between age fashion-wise, which caused me to revisit the Guardian story. 

Boot booty

The boots I bought on sale on Tuesday arrived today. I like them and they fit perfectly. The forecast for the rest of this week is for cool weather (boo) so I should have a chance to wear them (yay).

Tax booty

I got my tax return too. It's gone straight to my savings account. 

Day 5: Mindfulness through photography

I had a "me too!" moment yesterday when I read an ABC News story about a new book on mindfulness through photography. Capturing Mindfulness is written by Sydney author, illustrator and public speaker Matthew Johnstone, who says buying a camera helped him to overcome years of depression. 

I went out and bought a camera, and in many ways I believe this camera saved my bacon. It was through this camera that I realised the whole concept and idea of being in the moment...Photography at the end of the day is really about stopping, it's really about seeing what's in front of us, it's really about stopping and focusing and it's about capturing that moment.

Me too! Well, in a way...Photography hasn't saved me from depression, but it has had the pleasing side effect of taking photos is that I take more notice of my surroundings. I see more. I actively look for things. My experience of my world is richer and I feel more connected to it. It gets me out of my head and into the world. Writing Gleeful contributes to this too, of course, since I need to take notice of life's little pleasures. 

Matthew Johnstone is also gets excited about being in industrial areas where there are rusty pipes and peeling paint, so we have that photographic obsession in common as well.  

I was meant to have them

I've had my eye on a pair of boots in an online shop and every now and then I check to see if they are on sale. This afternoon they were still at full price, significantly more than I would usually spend on shoes. Then five minutes after I checked, the store tweeted about their 20% off sale (I don't even follow them - it was a promoted tweet). I couldn't resist. Now they are mine. Hopefully we get a little more mild weather so I can wear them before autumn!

I'm 34

I was quite pleased today to learn that my fitness age is younger than my actual age - 34, rather than 41. That was my result when I said I exercise two to three times a week and go "all out", which I do at the gym. When I put in that I exercise at a lower level of intensity nearly every day, as I do when I walk to work, my fitness age is 38. Either way, younger than 41.    

Present, parrots, golden hour

The parcel from a friend that I have been eagerly awaiting finally arrived today. Hurrah! It's a copy of the new Nick Earls book called Word Hunters: The Curious Dictionary. Not only is it the latest work of one of my favourite authors, it's also signed by Nick and the illustrator, Terry Whidborne. As the title suggests, it's a novel about words. Two of my favourite things rolled into one.

It was sent by my friend Gillian, who's a real librarian. Nick and Terry came to her library and she very kindly got them to sign a copy of their new book for me. I'm very spoilt.

I'll have to take a break from the book I'm reading to devour Word Hunters. I'm reading the biography of Samuel Johnson I bought a little while back. I haven't read very much because it's kind of tedious and I'm disappointed to discover Johnson was, in today's parlance, a bit of a wanker.  I want to finish it though, but a break is welcome. 

I wore my new(ish) red shoes to work for the first time today. I got lots of compliments. 

I've been seeing a small flock of grass parrots on the way to work in the mornings. I saw them tonight on the way home and stopped to take a photo. 

I also saw a duck standing on water. 

Oh, all right; it was standing on a rock just below the surface. Thanks to me, the ducks that hang around beside the Yarra near Birrarung Marr must be among the most photographed ducks in Melbourne. I'm the duck paparazzi. The quackerazzi. 

The clouds were pretty as I was walking home in the golden hour. 

Above and beyond, mind over matter, homecoming

I bought two pairs of boots online last week (oops!) and they both arrived today, even though one came from New Zealand and the other from the US. The pair from New Zealand were from a store called Mischief Shoes. As well as my boots (which I love), the package contained a gift of a notebook, and a handwritten card telling me that they had already waterproofed my boots! I was very impressed. That's excellent customer service. 

I'm still going to the gym even though it's been a struggle of mind-over-matter the last few weeks (well, more of a struggle than usual). I've managed a couple of pretty good workouts despite my lack of energy. I'm getting much better at the hardest exercise in my program - three sets of 10 reverse lunges while holding a 14kg aquabag (a big, water-filled sausage).  It's still hard and I really dislike it, but I'll keep at it. 

Did I mention Luke is away? He's a bit over a week into a two-week visiting to England. I'm  quite happy being home alone, but I'm also looking forward to his return on Saturday night. 

Shellacking, footy, shiny, tiny, stripey

I had my nails done again today, but this time I got shellac polish in a deep, subtly iridescent purple. Shellac is a new type of nail varnish that dries very quickly and lasts much longer without chipping. It's weird not having to be careful to avoid smudging or chipping it. Weird, but good. (I guess I can no longer describe myself as a not very girly girl.)

Footy

My (Aussie Rules) football team, North Melbourne, had a convincing and unexpected win over Collingwood, one of the top team in the competition, last night. I think this is the first time I've ever blogged about a football game (apart from the Grand Final). I'm not a particularly enthusiastic fan, but I've followed North Melbourne since I was a kid (despite the rest of my family barracking for Essendon) and it's gratifying to see them doing well after many years of mediocrity.  I think there's some Collingwood fans in my team at work. *digs out North Melbourne scarf*

Shiny

As well as watching the game last night, I shined some of my shoes. (Shone my shoes?) I polished a few pairs of work shoes that were scuffed and dull, as well as my biker boots, and then conditioned them with beeswax "leather balsam" (as it's described on the tub). Not the most exciting way to spend one's Saturday night, but also quite gratifying. Shiny, shiny shoes for me. 

Let there be light

Some of the light fittings in my flat are the screw-in kind and others are bayonet cap style. I never remember which ones are which, and I always forget to check first before going to buy a new globe. Today, in defiance of the order of the universe, I managed to buy the right kind for my kitchen light fitting. 

Tiny 

When I was walking home with my light globe and groceries, I spied a teeny weeny little mushroom in the garden that runs the length of the footbridge over the freeway. I reached for my camera, but I'd left it at home. Dang. Luckily it's close to home, so I went back later and took photos of it. 

I should have put something in the shot to show how small it is. It's less than 2cm tall. Eyes like an eagle, me. 

Spring is ready to...spring. 

 Hydrangea bud

Here's one it prepared earlier

Sripey 

I put my new bed linen on the bed this afternoon. It makes me go a bit cross-eyed, but I like it. The heart cushion usually lives on the couch, but I've moved it to the bed. I love black and white with red accents. 

I think Grover likes it too

Friday night

Seafarers Bridge

I went to DFO at South Wharf after work tonight. I bought some red shoes. When I left, it was raining lightly. I walked up to St Kilda Road to catch the tram home. 

The Polly Woodside was casting a pleasing reflection on the inky water. 

The bare trees along the river are festooned with fairy lights. It's quite magical. 

There was also a painted elephant. 

This is one of 50 elephant sculptures decorated by artists and placed around the city as part of Melbourne Zoo's 150th anniversary celebrations. I've seen several of the others in Birrarung Marr, Federation Square and the mall. I'm a big fan of Melbourne's penchant for whimsical sculpture. 

I walked past the revamped Hamer Hall for the first time since it reopened a few weeks ago. It used to have its back turned to the river, but now it opens out on to the Yarra. That dark, dismal underpass thing is history. It looks great. 

 Looking towards Princes Bridge

 Back in the other direction

The St Kilda Road frontage

I love the reflections made by rain. 

I was really glad to get home, especially as I wasn't paying attention, missed my tram stop and had to walk much further than I would have liked on my already sore feet. I don't know how I managed not to notice that we'd turned the corner into Park Street. 

Two weeks in, autumn light, flamboyant shoes

Taken on my walk home tonight

Two weeks into my new job and I'm still enjoying it. So far I'm finding the learning curve much less steep than when I started my previous job. I often had moments of self-doubt for the first six months inthat job and seriously worried I wasn't cut out for it. I might not have enjoyed it at the time, but it was good for me. I guess a lot of things in life are like that (you might recall one of my 39 Secrets of Adulthood is 'Sometimes things that suck can still be kind of awesome'. Yup.) 

I had drinks last night with two friends from my old firm last night. That job was good for me in more ways than one.  

Indian summer

We've been having a very mild autumn in Melbourne with sunny days and mid-20s temperatures. It was raining this morning, but it turned into a sunshiney day which then gave way to  quite a balmy evening. There's something special about the light in autumn. In the late afternoons at work I've been enjoying the view from my window of the city bathed in soft, yellow light. As well as the State Library, from my 21st floo windows I can see the tops of St Pauls Cathedral, the Manchester Unity Building, the Century Building, and the MCG and AAMI Park in the distance. I also have a pretty good view of the construction site between Myer and Melbourne Central - they've demolished almost everything that was on the site, except for a  section of façade that's several storeys tall. 

Pressies

I arrived home a couple of nights ago to a parcel I'd ordered online last week. Nothing scholarly  like books - just a pair of rather flamboyant shoes. And they fit. Yay!  The shoes are further evidence that my obsession with black and white stripes is getting out of control...

I've had a few other online purchases arrive lately too. It's good being absent-minded because I order stuff and then forget about it. 

Tonight I arrived home to a parcel from my mum containing a bunch of those crocheted, padded coathangers that she made for me. They're daggy and nanna-ish, but they're so good for hanging knits and other garments prone to getting out of shape on wire hangers.

I haven't spent all my time online shopping though - I found  this great photography blog via Digital Photography School last week. If you're into photos of urban decay like me, you'll love it. He takes some fantastic black and white photos too. 

I've also become addicted to Pinterest. The girl who sent me the invite to join did warn me...

Other gleeful highlights since my last blog: 

* Luke and I are going to see the Black Keys in October. We've been waiting for them to announce another tour after the last one was cancelled. It's such a long time to wait!  Wah! 

* I have been eagerly anticipating the release of Jack White's new solo album, Blunderbuss. I bought it today and I'm listening to it now. I like it. Jack is doing a show in Melbourne in July too.   Must. Get. Tickets. 

I bought Blunderbuss at Basement Discs in a basement below Block Place, one of Melbourne's bustling laneways. It cost more than buying it online or at JB Hi-Fi, but I felt good about supporting an independent record store. (Coincidentally, tomorrow is Independent Record Store Day. I won't be visiting an indie music store though - I'm going to a market at the Royal Exhibition Building, one of my favourite Melbourne buildings.)

Old friend, more flowers, and origami

I spent the morning in the city with an old friend whom I haven't seen in ages (despite us both always saying as we part ways that "we should do this more often"). We didn't have any particular destination but we ended up visiting the magnificent La Trobe Reading Room at the State Library.

While we were there I made sure, as I always do, to visit the Midget Library, the smallest exhibit in the Mirror of the World Exhibition, and Audubon's Birds of America, which is a massive book, and also quite rare (there's only 120 known copies in the world).

Then we wandered to the Docklands in the glorious autumn sunshine and then back into the city for lunch before going our separate ways. 

At the end of Waterfront City there's a 

high wall, and this is what's on the other side

 - where Docklands meets the old docks 

Afterwards my friend sent me a text message thanking me for a lovely morning and saying I had lifted her spirits and made a crap week feel a whole lot better. That gave me a warm inner glow.

I bought my first pair of Doc Martins boots today. Metallic purple ones. They're pretty cool. One day I will grow up...Maybe! After I got them home I noted the writing on the tab on the back of the boot. 'With bouncing soles'...or is it 'With soles bouncing'? I kinda like the latter.