Anais Nin on the Meaning of Life & The Dangers of the internet

"The secret of a full life is to live and relate to others as if they might not be there tomorrow, as if you might not be there tomorrow. It eliminates the vice of procrastination, the sin of postponement, failed communications, failed communions. This thought has made me more and more attentive to all encounters. meetings, introductions, which might contain the seed of depth that might be carelessly overlooked. This feeling has become a rarity, and rarer every day now that we have reached a hastier and more superficial rhythm, now that we believe we are in touch with a greater amount of people, more people, more countries. This is the illusion which might cheat us of being in touch deeply with the one breathing next to us. The dangerous time when mechanical voices, radios, telephones, take the place of human intimacies, and the concept of being in touch with millions brings a greater and greater poverty in intimacy and human vision."  Anais Nin May 1946
 - from Brain Pickings

Instead of browsing and reading the on the internet and living in my brain I'd better go and play with Sunny!!!
 Do the real rather than the abstract!!

Rock and Roll and Rain

 

 

We had a wild wet and windy night up here last night.  The river is up and we are flooded in but it is not as high as it was this time.  It is quite nice, we haven't had a flood in ages - the last one was nearly exactly one year ago.  I wonder what the water hole will be like? Hopefully all the slimy bits and weeds will have washed away.

I recently discovered Food Doodles - a food blog with healthy baked yummies.  The other day I made these and this morning  Sunny and I  cooked Wholewheat Oatmeal Choc Chip cookies, when they run out I am going to make Cosmic Cookies.

 

 

A bit of fancy dress to brighten up a dull day and some dancing to Django's 'Django loves rock'n'roll' CD , here are some of today's songs......

 

too much zinc?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Six Word Autobiography

I was just having a bit of a look at Brain Pickings (a most interesting website) when I came across an article  with a collection of illustrated six-word autobiographies written by students.

This is what popped instantly to my mind without any thinking.....

"Garden, cook, love, dance, be merry!"

What would your six words be? 

 (Another of mine might be - swimming in the sunny smiling sea - or  -   a tea in the morning sun   - or     

 I like to listen to music)

I like this one done by a 10 year old ....

   (from here)

Sunny is three....

Sunny is three.  "I'm not a baby, I am a big girl now" as she always likes to say....
A birthday is always a happy/sad time.  Sad that they are growing up but at the same time happy that they are growing up too.  Sad that they will never be that cute funny little baby/toddler again but lovely to see them become who they are...

 

We had a little party on the deck with Granny and Grandfather......

 

 

Can you stick a spoon to your nose?

 
Sunny wanted this butterfly cake - and a pink one.  (I am having to embrace pink which as you might know is possibly  my least favourite colour).   I was pretty impressed with my cake making skills - I usually stick to easy round ones  and leave the tricky ones to Trisso's very clever sisters..... but it turned out pretty well -  it actually does look like the one in the book! 

Then we had another party with Sunny's friends - Bodhi and Oswayo.... and another pink cake -this time a love heart! (They decorated it themselves...one for the cake one for the mouth)

 

Vietnamese Coleslaw

 

This is (one of) my latest favourite foods - Vietnamese style coleslaw (as opposed to coldsore which is what I thought coleslaw was called when I was a kid!).

All picked fresh from the garden - cabbage, carrot, shallots, Vietnamese mint, coriander, mint.
Then mix up the dressing:
* 2 tbsp lime juice
* 1.5 tbsp fish sauce
* 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
* 1 - 2 tbsp brown sugar
* pinch salt
* clove of crushed garlic
* 1 hot chilli (optional)

I have also been wrapping this salad up in rice paper rolls - yum! Unfortunately the cabbages are coming to an end for this season...I wonder what else i could put this dressing on? Cucumbers perhaps....

I have also been picking a bit of beetroot and recently made this yummy Indian pickle (recipe courtesy of an Indian restaurant in London - via Liz and Claire).  

 

 

As you can see I am no food photographer .
(Also unless you like it very hot I would put in only 1 tsp of chilli.)

This is my favourite song for this week....rock n roll... 

I love the passion in his voice....

River Fest too

 

 

 

 

 

The kids have been having a river festival of their own down at the waterhole this week.  With Trisso they have set up a little world - with a harbour, roads, helicopter pads, a garage, bridges etc.
 (Sunny is the fire brigade! )

I believe this is the true business of childhood and it makes me feel good to see them do it. 

 

 

Not much swell today!