enchanting · son

A day spent back in time

the mantlepiece

“When was the last time you spent a quiet moment just doing nothing, just sitting and looking at the sea, or watching the wind blowing the tree limbs, or waves rippling on a pond, a flickering candle or children playing in the park?” ~ Ralph Marston.

Monday, 28th January, 2013.

The interesting weather conditions have not let up today, if anything they have worsened. It appears that we are surrounded by a cyclone, high pressure systems, troughs and fronts, if that means anything at all to any of you. It means nothing to me, I just look out the window and see the trees blowing willy-nilly, branches flying off the trees, rain overfilling the bird bath and the birds huddling together in the shelter of our veranda.

"I dropped some!" This young kookaburra came onto the veranda today, out of the wind, and enjoyed a morsel of food.
“I dropped some!” This young kookaburra came onto the veranda today, out of the wind, and enjoyed a morsel of food.

We lost power last night at around 7.30 pm I think. After reading by torch-light for some time I decided to take advantage of the darkness and have an early night.

The power returned at some time overnight, I have no idea when, but it was back this morning. I planned a day of washing, ironing and vacuuming (all the fun stuff!) seeing as the great outdoors was fit for neither man nor beast.

Well, the Gods of the Power Plant had other ideas. By 10.30 am, the power had disappeared yet again.

All day we waited. I filled the washing machine with dirty clothes, all set to press the start button when the power returned.

I waited some more.

All set for a new year at school.
All set for a new year at school.

My son returns to school tomorrow, so we covered his books and put his name on all of his belongings. I’m not sure why I bother putting his name on things, he loses them anyway.

We ate lunch. We made drinks of tea, boiling the water on the gas burners. We hand washed the dishes that had been stacked into the dishwasher. The house remained dark, due to the inclement weather.

My husband went to the supermarket to buy kerosene for the old kerosene lamp. We may be in for another long, dark night.

I read a few pages of a new book I have. Then took a nap.

I never, ever even so much as feel drowsy during the day, but today, I did.

Can you see the dolphin leadlight-look design in this lantern?
Can you see the dolphin leadlight-look design in this lantern?

When I woke up, the night had arrived, still there was no electricity and the candles were alight.

And here is a seahorse.
And here is a seahorse.

Tuesday, 29th January, 2013.

“Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” ~ Buddha.

As you can see by the date, a new day has dawned and this post didn’t reach the point where I could hit the publish button. Thank you WordPress for auto-saving drafts! I had been saving as I wrote, but this morning I discovered that my writing had been saved mid-word, which I didn’t do manually.

This bumble bee looks far happier in my lantern than it would be outdoors right now.
This bumble bee looks far happier in my lantern than it would be outdoors right now.

Our evening meal was cooked last night by candlelight, using the gas burners of our stove top. As we began eating, the power returned.

My son had cheered, after declaring that he had never in his entire life spent such a boring day; with the return of the electricity to the house he could now watch the cricket on television and charge his mobile phone.

I had mixed emotions. Having paced around the house all day, wondering what to do next in our home which had been converted to pre-power days, it had given me the opportunity to contemplate how people back in those day filled their days, as yes, I too had spent the day feeling bored.

Mr. Frog, all aglow in the candlelight.
Mr. Frog, all aglow in the candlelight.

Life would have been so different, back in the days when life had to be planned around the natural light of day. I know I wouldn’t have been bored at all. I would take the lack of electricity for granted and plan my days accordingly.

As it turned out, when the lights came back on in our house and the candle light was no longer necessary, I felt quite sad. My eyes had become accustomed to the gentle light from the flickering flames. I had also enjoyed the silence in our home, hearing only the sounds of my families voices, the piano being played and the heavy breathing of my sleeping dog.

It had been magical, listening to the sounds of my son playing the most beautiful tune on the piano, one which he had taught himself during the school holidays. I had enjoyed the softness of the candlelight and the kerosene lamp.

I discovered that listening to the piano being played by candlelight is simply enchanting.

The gentle golden aura of the kerosene lamp was a welcome change to harsh, electric lighting.
The gentle golden aura of the kerosene lamp was a welcome change to harsh, electric lighting.

The only real gladness I had felt was in knowing that I could return to the computer, to write again, and to see the photos I had taken throughout the day.

I’m quite sure those people who lived back in the days before power would have rather enjoyed the internet too. 🙂

Australia · friends · happiness · new · old house · photography

As “life” interrupts my dreams, of old loves and new….

fixer upper

“Cherish your visions and your dreams, as they are the children of your soul; the blueprints of your ultimate achievements.” ~ Napoleon Hill

Really and truly, I must have rocks in my head to think I can consistently blog, on a regular basis, when I have so many unexpected interruption out in the “real world”!

ripples

At times, I do wonder which world is actually my “real world”, after I return to my blog, begin again to visit the blogs of my friends, and feel the warm and inviting sense of friendship and belonging which exists here in the Blogosphere. Do you feel it too, the friendship and caring that exists between the thousands of miles that span the world, when we visit with friends we have yet to meet? It’s the feeling of meeting up again with old friends, friends who mean the world to you, friends who you could not imagine life without, now that you have met.

old boats

For the last few weeks I have been mostly working, although I have managed to fit in some very enjoyable days, hours and moments. Photos have been taken, time has been spent with “offline” friends, I’ve even managed to fit in a weeks holiday….

About three hours drive north of here, at Noosa in Queensland, there is a resort that my family and I have visited for over fifteen years now. I call it my “home away from home” and we have managed a short break there recently. I love spending time in and around Noosa and thought I had explored every single corner of the area, until this visit.

hidden

I fell totally and absolutely in love with a secluded little corner of land, just a few minutes drive from Noosa, which I had never visited before. I didn’t even know this place existed! It is a remote little corner, tucked out-of-the-way of the main roads, with a huge lake and just a few streets lined with cosy little homes. That’s it. No shops. No clubs. No schools. Nothing. Just the lake, with an atmosphere of joy and love and happiness. And promises of  time spent strolling along the water, feeling the gentle breeze dancing across your skin and listening to the water calmly rippling over your feet as you stand beside the shore….

….or sitting beside the shore of the lake in a tiny, fold-up chair, just passing the time of day reading, or drifting along in the water in a little boat, which you find hidden away in among the trees.

park

Such a beautiful dream, which may one day become a reality.

As I dream of my new-found love, Christmas is approaching, there are puddings to prepare, mince pies to bake and Christmas cakes to ice. Yes, the “real world” is calling me again and I must answer her call….

Australia · autumn · gratitude · spiritual

Over the Border ~ Magic at Point Danger.

“If the sight of the blue skies fills you with joy, if a blade of grass springing up in the fields has the power to move you, if the simple things in nature have a message you understand, Rejoice, for your soul is alive.” ~ Eleanora Duse.

Every single aspect of the Point Danger Lookout had the power to move me this week, and indeed, I did rejoice!

A beautiful sight.

And I believe that I was not the only one affected. There were people everywhere, walking, taking photos, or simply sitting and passing the time of day. No one seemed to be in any hurry to leave.

The morning sunlight, glistening across the ocean.

There was magic in the air; filling the blue skies, the crashing waves, and the green grass.

The highrise buildings of Surfer’s Paradise showed up clearly along the horizon.

Surfer's Paradise in the distance.

In the next photo, you can see that even a seagull was flying high! You may have to click on the photo to enlarge it though, to see him soaring across the sky in front of the rays from the sun.

Flying high.

Whichever way I turned I could see, and feel, the gentle energy in the air. Was it the sun? The ocean? The sounds of the waves?

Who cares! It was there to enjoy, and enjoy I did.The car park was full, yet there was hardly any traffic sounds. The “Sounds of Nature” dominated every sense I have.

A full car park, trees and buildings framed by the blue sky.

I took this last photo through my car window, as I was about to leave. I had noticed a couple who had stopped to admire the ocean, and a magpie who had momentarily stopped walking along the grass. As I started up my car, the couple headed in one direction, the magpie in the other.

We were all on our way...

We were all headed off, on our way to who knows where, each having shared just a little touch of magic.

Australia · challenges · Changes · daughter · freedom · gardening · Tweed Valley · vision

So Many Projects ~ Where to Begin? (Please be warned, this post is much longer than those I usually write. You may want to get yourself a cuppa first!)

Black Velvet

My mind is a-mush with so many ideas scuttling around in it! My husband has often told me that I have “more ideas than a dog has fleas”, said in a tone that suggests this isn’t at all a good thing, although I beg to differ!

Isn’t it indeed a good trait to have, one in which one is never bored, hopefully never dull and revving at the heels, ready to rush off and begin The Next Project? Isn’t this the very trait said to keep one young and active?

I rest my case.

To help my mind in remembering all the projects I wish to begin or complete, I think I would be well advised to write a to-do list, one which will have me organised, accountable and will aid me in not forgetting one single important aspect on my list.

To begin my to-do list, (which I intend writing here, to remain accountable,) the first item on my list is to add pages to this website. You all want to know about my other blogs, don’t you?

It wasn’t long after I began this site that I came to the realisation that one blog is just not enough! With so many ideas of different subject matter, ranging from one end of the spectrum to the other, then back again, I decided to start first one new blog, followed about a year ago by another.

One of these blogs “Memoirs of my Life” is where I record the ramblings and reminiscences of my life. Some are old memories, or stories related by family members who are no longer with us. Other stories I have written are here-and-now stories, written when something significant has happened and I don’t want to forget the moment.

It wasn’t an easy road for me to follow, when I began my “Memoirs” blog. I felt concerned that someone who knows me may read something I have said and feel offended in some way. If you pay a visit to “Memoirs” you will notice that I write here incognito, by the name of “Annie Potts”.

Well, it is time for Annie Potts to confess to her writings and take responsibility for her words! In all honesty, I really don’t know what I was worried about, as I would never in a million years write anything with the direct intention of hurting  someone! My feelings now have progresses to the point where, if someone is upset by something I’ve said, then so be it! That is for them to deal with, not me! Although, whilst I may be sounding defensive at this point, again, why? I have nothing to be defensive about!! (What was I thinking???)

Moving on, as “Home Life Online” is now in danger of making a strong imitation of the sometime ramblings of “Memoirs”, I’ll mention my other blog, “A Sense of Spirit”, which began its life just over a year ago. Again, I felt reluctant to write the words that my heart asked me to, but again, I have made a strong recovery and have written more frequent posts at “A Sense of Spirit” of late.

(Here I will digress with a question ~ does anyone else feel the need to make apologies for their beliefs, or is it just me? I seem to have made a habit of starting blogs, but not wanting anyone to read what I’ve written! Figure that one out!!!)

The building of another website is on the cards also, a website which I have been itching to build for years! It involves one of my life-long interests, that being genealogy. I spoke to a not-so-distant cousin in England about my idea for a family history website some years ago, his reply being that it was a rather ambitious idea and he couldn’t see how it could be done!

Trouble is, I couldn’t work out how to put my ideas into a readable format either!! It wasn’t until I came across the “Rodgers Family History” site that I began to believe that it is possible! Barbara has obviously put hours and hours of time and effort into the site, the results being absolutely fantastic! I have content galore to add to my new site and have been checking and re-checking details which will be added to this new website, before I begin.

As I am in grave danger of writing a to-do book, and not a list, let the list begin!

  • All of the afore-mentioned, including updating my “Blogroll”, which can be seen to the right of this column. Oh, and remembering to update my “Quotes to Live By”, also in the right side column, just above the Blogroll, at least once a month. (Perhaps I should consider changing the title to “Quote of the Month” or even “(March, April, etc.) Quote of the Month”, which would force me to remember to do it!
  • Continue with my regular monthly contributions to the wonderful online magazine the “Calm Space”. Each month, when my article is added to the “Freedom Space”, I will add a post here also, so you won’t miss a single story!
  • Weed the garden. Yes, I know…boring! But really, you should see the weeds that have grown in the recent rain! I love taking photos around the garden to post here, and no one wants to see a photograph of the seasonal weed-growth, do they?
  • Start taking my beautiful rottie for regular walks. It’s early autumn here now, so the weather will cool down, making early morning or late afternoon walks a very pleasant pastime. Tess has turned nine and is in danger of becoming rather portly, if we don’t begin a regular exercise routine. Rottweilers should not put on weight, it’s bad for their joints, and we all love Tess way too much not to take the best of care of our Black Velvet girl. Regular walks with Tess will also prevent me from becoming portly, not to mention the new photo opportunities it will present to me! By the way, that’s Tess in the photo at the top of this page. She’s such a beauty!
  • Last week I took up an old project, one which I began about fourteen years ago and I never did finish. My daughter, then just beginning school and in kindergarten, asked me to make a quilt for her bed, one of her own design, including an appliqué of her name.  She finished school over a year ago, but I never did finish the quilt! We now have a drawn up design and the fabric for me to begin the quilt. I will “blog as I quilt”, keeping an online record of my progress.
  • Start my range of “Made in Australia” garments, yet another idea I have toyed with for some time now. When I’m out working, I sew. Yes, sew. That is my business, which I began from home, just after my first child was born, nearly twenty-seven years ago. My business has grown and shrunk over the years, depending on my families demands of my time at their various ages, now being at a manageable level (both business and family!), which suits me. I make school uniforms for a few of our local schools and as the demand for school uniforms is seasonal (eg mostly required at the beginning of each new school year), I go through some very quiet times, but at other times can hardly find time to lift my head up from my sewing machine!
  • Start up a new, online business. This is a very new idea and is more accurately described as an extension to my current business. No – not uniforms, but yes – it involves sewing. (I’ll keep that one just a bit under wraps for the moment!) Here is a photo, a tiny clue, to my new idea…

    I woke her up to take this photo. By her expression, you can see she was not impressed!
  • Sort out all of my parents old photographs and replace, in chronological order,  in a brand new photo album, with detailed notes beside each photo. I will also have to scan and reprint some of the photos, as some have managed to adhere themselves to the album pages! With my interest in history, both family and otherwise, it is necessary for me to preserve the memories of my family, both online and within the pages of books. Every family needs a family historian, right? In my family, although the interest exists among others, there is no one fighting me to take over the task of history-keeper. (And I wouldn’t have it any other way!)
  • Spend some unrushed, quality time at each of our local Tweed Valley towns, taking photos, then returning home armed with all I need to write a blog post, to educate anyone who cares to learn, about our very pretty area, here in northern New South Wales, Australia.

This to-do list is long enough, for starters, at least! As I complete the task on my list, I will link back to the points made here today. There’s no danger of lost notes with this list…it’s all online!

If you have read all the way through to this point, I thank you for your patience!

Australia · Changes · gratitude · happiness · summer · Tweed Valley · vision

Sunrise Through the Misty Morning

6.30 am

 “In the morning, everything is new.
The day’s blank slate lies before me,
ready for my writing.
May it be words of beauty I write.
May it be deeds of grace I do.
May it be thoughts of joy I think….
As I go through the day,
keep my eyes open wide.
May I not miss beauty.
May I not miss joy.
May I not miss wonder.
Keep me awake and aware of the world.
It is my privilege to perform my morning prayers.
It is my honor to do what should be done.
As I rise with the morning, fog lifting slowly for my mind,
I pray not to forget these truths”.  ~  Ceisiwr Serith

Usually at this time of year the heat of the day is so intense that working, or any chore carried out, even one as simple as walking to the kitchen for a glass of water can be a major task. Beads of sweat drip down the centre of our backs, forming into tiny streams of water which feel for all the world as if a spider is running along our skin.

Night time brings hardly any relief to the heat of the day. Temperatures may drop by a few degrees, but the humidity remains. Sleeping becomes a problem. Our diet usually consists of meat cooked outdoors on the bar-b-que and dishes of tossed salad. And water. Glass after glass of precious, hydrating liquid.

Psychological relief from the rising temperatures can usually be found by imagining time spent in the snow of the northern hemisphere as I lap up image after image of snow-covered roads, trees and buildings. It helps, temporarily.

This summer has been a different story though. Snow photos from friends and family in the northern reaches of the world are few. Feelings of spiders running down my back are even fewer.

Usually, as the days begin to cool by late March or early April, pockets of mist can settle into the valley below us, forming oceans of mist. These “oceans” can appear at any time throughout the cooler weather, depending on how far the temperatures rise during the day.

This year, here it is, early February, and the misty mornings have already begun. What a delight to behold! The misty mornings are eerie, quiet and magical. And good for the soul.

7.30 am

 “When in the fresh mornings I go into my garden before anyone is awake, I go for the time being into perfect happiness.”~ Cecilia Thaxter