Brand sparkly new year... it's 2015!

The new year seems like a good time to reflect on the passage of time and there's no better way than by sampling the glorious natural canvas that is Kings Park.

A year ago I was in pain and despair, living with post-accident uncertainty in a dental purgatory defined by specialists, painkillers, fatigue and a mash diet.  Things have moved on a bit and while I still have a very very long road before I can get my smile back, at least I'm on the right track.  Mash is still front and centre in my diet but at least it's slightly more sophisticated mash these days!

A year ago I also started my 'Saturday Sequence' - a series of photos taken of Kings Park from the same spot every Saturday morning at around the same time.  Not very high tech but in just under 5 minutes it's possible to watch the seasons change from spring (Sept 2013)  through a complete cycle to summer (Dec 2014).  A reminder perhaps that the world keeps turning, the seasons keep changing, and life carries on.

Enjoy!

Flowers before the storm

Perth toppled another weather record yesterday as it plodded through its hottest September day in recorded history (34C).  It therefore felt suitably balmy and serene as I strolled through the Park this morning.

Sunrise over the city

The golden rays were just starting to illuminate the wildflowers.  The droopy heads of the everlastings hadn't even woken up and were only just starting to stir and lazily turn towards the sun.  It was all very magical.

Kings Park wildflowers

Wildflowers in the morning sun

Kangaroo Paw

Hard to believe that the afternoon and morning belonged to the same day.  Barely two hours later, the storm clouds moved in and the temperature dropped back down to 15C.  Gotta love Spring.

Cold front approaching Perth (Bureau of Meteorology image)

Just as well I was able to enjoy some flowers indoors... courtesy of Ross, who does have his moments!

Flowers in captivity

Eating Singapore

The holiday is over, daily routine has reasserted itself and all we have left are photos and splendid memories...

... And some wonderful almond truffle biscuits from the Cookie Museum given to us by Lil.  One final chance to enjoy some authentic Singaporean baked loveliness, reminisce about the holiday that was and dream about the next trip, whenever that might be.

A memento of Singapore

Fishy zen

How wonderful to just sit in front of one of the many aquariums and get lost in the underwater world of fish and coral.  I suspect it was quieter on their side of the glass than on ours due to the continuous hum of humanity but that is where video editing can be so wonderful.

So here it is.  Sit back, relax and enjoy one glorious minute of fishy zen (with thanks to Beethoven for providing the soundtrack).

Not to be outdone, Saint-Saens composed the ever so appropriate Aquarium which is the perfect accompaniment to contemplating the Ocean Gallery.

Meteorological musings

Overcast skies have created some spectacular mornings over the last few days ranging from thick mist to a glorious golden sunrise.

Morning moods

The mist lifts

Tuesday delivered Perth a spectacular storm and our wettest day of the year so far... just over 50mm of rain!  Brilliant while indoors, perhaps less fun while trying to get from one place to another without one's umbrella blowing inside out.  

It didn't work.

The storm just before it hit the city (Bureau of Meteorology radar image 17 June 2014)

Today brought more welcome rain and the following clip which I shall look back on fondly in a few months from now when the landscape is baking hot and parched again.

The lonely raindrop finds some friends

The dry spell broke spectacularly overnight...

Unseasonable heavy rain soaks WA

A powerful cold front reached the WA coastline yesterday, bringing areas of heavy rain across the entire west coast before moving inland and weakening...  [Perth] city gained 47mm by 9am this morning, their heaviest rain since June 2011... It is rare for cold fronts to produce widespread heavy rain to such an extent, particularly at this time of the season, so this will provide gardeners and farmers with a healthy prequel to the wetter winter months. 

Rob Sharpe (Weatherzone) Thursday May 8, 2014

Finally the lonely raindrop found some friends and delivered some much needed relief.

Rain at long last!

Uncertainty

"It's a time of great change, a time of great uncertainty, and we must make uncertainty our friend."

(John Naisbitt, American author)

  

Not sure if I'd go so far as making uncertainty my friend but it's certainly making itself right at home.

I am no closer to eating my longed-for chocolate croissant as I get shuffled from one dental specialist to another.  More appointments next week while my dental 'team' give opinions and mutter among themselves about how best to treat my 'complicated' case, while I pay for the privilege of course.  Sigh.

 

And still the world waits

It is almost a month to the day since MH370 vanished without a trace and its disappearance has horrified and captivated the globe in equal measure. There is still no evidence of the whereabouts of the 239 passengers and crew who are thought to have perished somewhere over the Indian Ocean on 8 March 2014.  Hopefully the sea will give up its secrets soon.

Frederic, Lord Leighton (1892) And the Sea Gave Up the Dead Which Were In It (Tate Britain)

See: Tate Britain for more info on this artwork.

Wales revisited ... as an armchair traveller

It's okay I'm very much in Perth but I discovered iMovie on my computer today and thought I'd pretty up one of the panoramas from our travels last year.

Behold Portmeirion!

Happy memories.

Sculptures and sunshine

Another milestone this morning - my first breakfast out since the end of last year.  Even so it was a pretty laborious process gingerly chewing my way through teaspoon-sized portions of bircher muesli.  Very nice but perhaps the copious shredded coconut and sultanas were a bit ambitious for a first go.  Anyhow I munched my way through it.  Meanwhile Ross had already hoovered up his cooked breakfast and patiently sipped his way through two coffees.  Oh well.

Then it was time for another Perth institution.  After breakfast we made our annual pilgrimage to Cottesloe Beach for Sculpture by the Sea. 

Cottesloe Beach Sculptures - yes that's a giant wine cask in the background

Autumn put on a show to rival the sculptures with an impossibly blue sky, morning air with a touch of chill and a deliciously warm sun.  The beach was buzzing with swimmers and other visitors like us slowly wending our way past the artworks.

Cottesloe colours

Colours and lines

One of my favourites this year as it looks like pure joie de vivre on a podium:

Cottesloe Sculpture by the Sea 2014

The tease

"Australia experienced another angry summer...we had substantial heat records, heatwaves and other extreme weather events"

 (Professor Tim Flannery commenting on the "2013-14 Angry Summer" Report by the Climate Council)

So it wasn't surprising really that our 'chance of a storm' evaporated and after 100+ days without significant earth-quenching rain, all we got this morning was thick cloud, oppressive humidity and a few little rain drops.  At least that's what I think was falling from the sky, it's been so long since I've seen anything remotely resembling precipitation I've forgotten what it looks like.  

Can you SEE the raindrops?!

It was just a rain teaser - a minuscule 0.2mm recorded in the weather bureau's official gauge.  The poor trees would only have had the chance to taste the moisture in the air as the clouds passed over, only the odd lonely rain drop managing to squeeze itself from the cloud's fierce grasp to fall to earth. 

The lonely raindrop

Another day without rain.  Another day spent waiting for this awful hot weather to break.

Deja vu

I'm getting the oddest feeling that I've been here before...

Day 001

Oh wait, that's right.... see 1 July 2013.

*Sigh*

Today

Today in Perth it was Day 95 without rain.

Today the sun fuelled 12 more hours of fiery monotony (36oC) in one of our hottest summers on record.  

Today was also the last day of my six-month work contract.  My colleagues put on a 'farewell' morning tea although I must admit I felt a bit cheeky getting another 'farewell' when I already left 2 years ago.  Everyone was very kind though and I really appreciated the sentiments.  

It was a good six months and it happened at the right time but I also know it's time for a new challenge and you can't keep looking back.  I don't think it took me long to figure this out when I first returned to my old workplace last September but it's only now I can put it into words courtesy of the perfect quote I stumbled across yesterday:

"There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered."

Nelson Mandela (A Long Walk to Freedom)

Long Walk to Freedom indeed.  I am now free.

But now what do I do?

Dinosaurs in a post-Valentine world

It was Valentine's Day yesterday and my beloved did not disappoint.  Once again my kitchen benchtop is graced with glorious flowers in white, yellow and purple hues.

This week a dear friend asked me to be her son's godmother when he gets baptised next month.  I feel very honoured and very excited!  I rushed out and bought him... a dinosaur?  

A dinosaur seeking shade beneath the Valentine's Day flowers

Not really sure what you get a 6-month old baby when they get baptised but the dinosaur just looked especially cute.

Dinosaur mugshot

Morning

There's something magical about the early morning light when the rising sun just touches the tree canopies.  The park is rising from its slumber, the birds start making a racket and emerging from the gloom, a lemon-scented gum gets caught in a shaft of sunlight.

Sunrise

It's the promise of a good day.  Of warmth and dazzling light.  And hope.

Dusk

Kings Park bookended my day perfectly today.  We savoured the morning rays on our walk and at dusk we took in the lilac sky with a slow drive along the avenue lined with lemon-scented gums.

Kings Park at dusk

Mash for grown-ups - episode 4

Cheat’s risotto

(Makes 1 serve)

Leftover steamed rice (cooled)

Handful of fresh basil leaves

2 tbsps baby peas (cooked)

1-2 slices of luncheon meat

¼ cup fresh pasta sauce (I used Latina sundried tomato)

1.   Combine rice, luncheon meat and basil in a food processor until rice looks like it is ‘short grain’ and the basil and meat have been completely diced.

2.     Stir in peas and add pasta sauce.  Mix well.

3.     Microwave on high (900W) for 1-2 minutes.

The piping hot rice is moist and soft.  Serve with some grated cheddar and it has a similar texture to risotto but in only a fraction of the time.  A great way to use up leftover rice!

Mash for grown-ups - episode 3

Teriyaki salmon mash

(Makes 4 serves)

2 x salmon fillets (skin removed)

¼ cup soy sauce

¼ cup mirin

½ tbsp brown sugar

Squirt of lemon juice

Small piece of fresh ginger (grated)

For mash:

1 x sweet potato

3 x medium sized potatoes

Salt, pepper, butter and/or milk to taste

1.     Combine soy, mirin, sugar, lemon juice and grated ginger in a bowl.  Stir to combine and marinate the salmon fillets in the mixture inside the fridge for 15-20 minutes.

2.   Grill the salmon (approx. 6 minutes each side on medium heat or until cooked through).  When turning the fish, spoon over some more of the marinade.  It should caramelise beautifully under the grill.

3.   Boil potatoes until soft and then mash until smooth with salt, pepper, butter and/or milk to taste. 

4.   Now the fun bit!  Blend half a salmon fillet with two generous spoonfuls of the sweet potato mash and serve.

Serving suggestion: I sometimes like to blend in up to half an avocado (or a few tablespoons of cooked peas) and 1 tsp of sour cream. 

Potato and broccoli mash

(Makes 2 serves)

2 x medium sized potatoes

1 x small head of broccoli

Salt and pepper to taste

(To serve: 2-3 tbsp chicken pate and some grated parmesan cheese)

1.   Boil potatoes until soft.  In the same or a different saucepan, boil/steam the broccoli until soft.

2.     Season and mash together the potatoes and broccoli.

3.   To serve, mix the potato and broccoli mash with chicken pate (this should melt from the heat of the mash) and grated parmesan cheese. Enjoy!