Monday, July 29, 2013

Trifecta of awesomeness

Anyone who knows me is familiar with my obsession with everything Beyonce and Jay Z - I have so much respect for a couple who are as high profile as they are and yet manage to keep out of the spotlight.  You never see them screaming down the paparazzi or monetising announcements about little Blue Ivy (although this was pretty hysterical).  And do I even need to talk about Beyonce's Halftime performance at the Superbowl?  Fierce.

And then there is JT, whose songs have seen me from my early teens (Bye Bye Bye anyone?) through to adulthood (Mirrors still gets me dancing).  So thrilled I've had the opportunity to see this trifecta of awesomeness this month.
This was around the point that Beyonce flew on a harness from one end of the arena to the other.  She makes me want to buy a glitter bodysuit.
How someone can sound so good while also busting out some serious dance moves is a mystery to me - JT and Jay-Z tore the house down!
Incredible performers, if you're in Sydney for their upcoming tours - go!

Monday, July 22, 2013

Oh hello

I'm not sure if I've written about this before - but early on in my moving here, I had a conversation with a (also new expat) friend about how being new to a city allows you this unique opportunity to consciously fill your weekends, in a way that you might not have experienced in a long time (or ever!).  When you've lived in a city for as long as I'd been in Sydney, your days get quickly filled up with errands and various people to see, while your list of aspirational projects or trips gets longer.

Over the months here my weekends have definitely filled up again, but I'm glad to say I've gotten more of my 'really want to but not urgent' activities done - one being that I've finally willed a Pinterest discovery to exist outside of the internet.
Template at the full instructional post here, these fair hands which have mastered the diagonal pulling and wrapping of fabric are those of my crafting buddy.
This is around the point when I began to feel victorious and that it was perhaps going to look like the picture after all.
Close up of the finished product, now hanging proudly on my wall, above my terrarium collection.  Why yes, please do feature me in your article 'Girls who pretend they hate hipsters but really are partly one'.
Yeah, that's right - give me the chance to consciously fill my spare time and I will give you hours at a craft store getting distracted with Hello Kitty stickers, and a decorative speech bubble.  And it feels great.

Next on the list: making my own sourdough.

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

New music discovery

New for me, anyway.
What's not to like about a band that has a recurring neon heart in all their video clips?

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Nesting, Part 4

More from around the home and hood lately:
Happiness = walking home in the sun with a full bag of groceries from Whole Foods, including flowers for the week.  Note the return of the flip flops (can't say thongs over here), overthrowing my worn out TOMS.
Seen on a church's window on Polk St, the weekend after the DOMA ruling.
Further to this, took myself out for a solo brunch date at Jane on Fillmore, now my new favourite local spot when I want some house made carbs.  Just have to be prepared to see the entire population of Google there.
Walking back from downtown I stepped into this store to buy a spray bottle to water my terrarium (as you do), going deeper into this store I discovered that this guy sold everything from Persian lapis necklaces to handsaws.  Friendliest storekeeper ever, his cash register is "way older than you lady".
More and more I feel like this.

Monday, July 8, 2013

If you were born a woman -

- how would you be different?

I remember watching parts of Tootsie with my mama years ago, when they would play it as the Saturday night movie TV (remember when that's how you'd watch movies?).  This is a really moving snippet of an interview with Dustin Hoffman, and how playing Dorothy Michaels was "never a comedy" for him:

"There's too many interesting women I have not had the experience to know in this life because I have been brainwashed."