Rest

Away! To big sky, giant trees and the sea.

A rest at last. Just me and my travelling companion, back on the road again.  Not far and not for long, just a few hours drive south to Margaret River and only for four days, but after the busy-ness of the last few weeks, it is very welcome.

We reached Margaret River in time for a wholesome lunch at the excellent Urban Bean. So happy to start with some gluten free and vegetarian yumminess.  We checked into our room at the Margaret River Guest House and availed ourselves of an afternoon nap before walking the short 2 minute distance back to the main street.  It was overcast and cold so we had a quick browse around the Jah Roc Gallery before retreating to the warmth of the bookstore for a browse (and purchase!).  Our final task was to scope out restaurants for our evening meal, and booking secured, we returned to the warmth of our room.

Dinner at La Scarpetta was very satisfying.  Ross swears it is the nicest angus steak he has ever had - oven roasted to perfection on a bed of rosemary roast potatoes with gorgonzola and walnut sauce.  My barramundi was pretty nice too although there's not much you can do with cauliflower puree to make it taste anything other than bland.  Even so, it was a good start to our trip.  

Midweek at the beach

What nicer way to break up the week than to detour to Cottesloe Beach after work one afternoon to check out the annual Sculptures by the Sea.

Cottesloe Beach - Sculptures by the Sea

Lots of happy, carefree people enjoying the afternoon sunshine, and taking in the weird and wacky sculptures on the sand. 

Metal spheres...with legs?!

I really liked this one - wild abandon silhouetted against an Indian Ocean sunset

And my favourite piece?  The very whimsical giant pink rabbit... a bit ridiculous to be sure but good fun nonetheless, and very popular.  

What rabbit?

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

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.

Yallingup to Smiths Beach

Another glorious morning in the south west.  There was only a faint red glow on the horizon when we left the house.

Sunrise

We started the day with a short walk (approximately 5km?) along the Cape to Cape track from Yallingup Beach to Smiths Beach.  There's nothing quite like the crunch of yellow sand underfoot, crisp sea air and the slender rays and faint warmth of the rising sun breaking through the cloud.

Smiths Beach at sunrise

Perfect.

Forest therapy

There is something inherently restorative about nature. 

It was therefore our good fortune to escape to the south west of the state for a few days.  How perfectly wonderful to visit the tall karri trees in the Boranup Forest and for just a few moments, feed the soul. 

Food for the soul

Walking back to Wellness

Almost six months after falling over and breaking my face, today was definitely another milestone.  After completely losing my fitness after the fall, it felt fantastic completing the 12km course for the HBF Run for a Reason 2014 with the rest of 'my' Team - my valiant Dad and sister.

At the finish line

We broke no records but each of us overcame our challenges to walk today and we crossed the finish line in a thoroughly respectable time.  The weather even did us a favour and waited until we were on our way home before unleashing the heavy showers.

My smile might not be fully restored but it was definitely cause to celebrate.

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!

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.

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?

Breakfast on the Terrace

Public holiday Monday called for a short stroll down the hill to St Georges Terrace.  The glass towers stood empty today and the pavements were free from the grey march of human misery that so typifies the usual weekday morning at 9am.

Unfortunately not a lot of places open for breakfast either as Ross soon discovered when we reached Brookfield Place.

Ross searches fruitlessly for an open cafe

Saved by The Terrace Hotel!  We found a shady spot under one of the big umbrellas and watched the (rather quiet) world pass by along the Terrace.

Watching the world pass by (or not) along St Georges Terrace

Sadly still no breakfast for me as my diet is still pretty limited but it didn't stop me from vicariously enjoying Ross' Spanish breakfast.  Mmmm, harissa toast with poached eggs, chorizo and beans.  Mmmm.

Spanish breakfast

From 6 to 6

Sunday morning started pretty much the same as last weekend.  At 6am Ross and I walked to Fourth Pagoda - the Marlee Pavilion near Roe Gardens.  The river's surface was like glass again.  Everything was still and anticipating the hot day ahead.

Marlee Pavilion as the sun rises over the Swan River

The retic had just been on so unfortunately the benches were still wet but we stopped nonetheless at one of the little alcoves within the aptly named Place of Reflection and just spent some time savouring the morning.

Alcoves within the Place of Reflection

******

At the other end of the day, we cruised along to South Cottesloe Beach and got there just before 6pm in time to see the sun sinking into the Indian Ocean.

Sunset over the Indian Ocean

South Cottesloe Beach

Not a bad way to spend a Sunday really.

Marlee in the morning

"An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day"

(Henry David Thoreau) 

How true.  There is nothing quite so beautiful as Kings Park in the morning just as the sun is rising, the river's surface is like glass and the birds are having a jolly old time.

Another Sunday morning and another (mini) milestone.  I got as far as Roe Garden this morning.  The retic had just been on so there were delicious fresh earthy smells coming from the dense shrubs around the Marlee Pavilion.

I passed a spot which gave up the perfect view of the City and ended up retracing my steps to capture it.  Perth definitely put on its best face this morning.

Looking down from Roe Garden

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

Three Pagodas Walk

It has been such a painfully slow recovery in so many ways.  It has now been eight weeks since the accident, the splint is coming off in a few days (relief!) but it's still going to be many months before teeth can be repaired.  So it's still a bit of a waiting game.  Happily I can eat more although dreams of chocolate croissants and granola may just have to remain as dreams for a while yet!

I've really missed my weekend walks and it has been so long since my 'normal' Sunday stroll that my fitness levels have whittled away to zero.  So begins the long hard walk to build up stamina again.  Ross is ever the trooper and has been accompanying me on walks after work and on the weekends - ever so slowly increasing in length.

This morning at 6am we were out in the Park enjoying the first rays of the Sunday sun and a new record.  Maybe not far in terms of distance but it felt like a bit of a milestone.

First Pagoda - peeking out from under the boughs of the Australian Cedar

The walk to Second Pagoda has become our 'usual' weekday walk as I tend to run out of energy by the time we get here.

Second Pagoda

Hooray, made it to Third Pagoda today, down to the bottom of the hill and more importantly, back up it again.   It's a very special place and more than a little mystical in the early morning stillness.  

Third Pagoda - Women's Memorial Garden

And magic is definitely something I could do with at the moment.

Duck!

So here's one of the best moments from my family Christmas celebrations - my sister laughing because my cousin unfortunately (but comically) backed onto the pointy beak of her just assembled garden ornament duck.

Duck!

Good fun, lovely company, wonderful gifts and splendid food.  The latter is what I'm told because sadly I couldn't partake this year but it looked jolly splendid!  More things to add to the list of foods I can't wait to eat when I can chew again.

Merry Christmas all!

Fearsome

"The benefit of makeup is that it conceals all manner of ills..."

So why is it on the one day I don't put any makeup on, I get more visitors than the last week combined?!  My good friend arrived 30 minutes early this morning before I had the chance to get ready so I had to be brave and barefaced.  Thinking I had the rest of the day to myself I wasn't prepared for the impromptu drop-in from some other dear friends who wanted to check I was okay.  That's it, I thought to myself, not expecting anyone else today so there's no point in prettying myself up, but no... one more visit in the late afternoon.  

I'm so grateful for all the care that everyone has shown but I think I will have to observe the Catherine Zeta-Jones principle from now on - makeup is a must even if it's just to go outside and throw out the trash.  

Call it vanity if you will (because that's what it is) but I think my fading bruises, which have turned a rather odd shade of green, make me look particularly frightful right now.  It did get me the sympathy vote though!

Bumps along the trail

"The road is long, with many a winding turn, that leads us to who knows where, who knows where"

From He Ain't Heavy He's My Brother (The Hollies)

The last week has certainly been full of ups and downs.  The relative position of my teeth became the least of my worries today as I consulted an endodontist for the first of what will be a year's worth of treatment.  EGADS!

Another painful hour in the chair but the good news is I haven't damaged anything beyond my four front teeth, severe though that damage may be.  I now have the start of a treatment plan but pretty much need to let nature take its course and allow my bone to heal over the next six weeks and then go from there.   Mmmmm, more baby food.... my blender has become my best friend over the last 10 days and will continue to give me succour until the blasted splint comes off.  Roll on February 6th!!

It's when times are toughest that the kindness of friends is most profound.  More flowers today from a dear friend who is half a world away.  Pretty blooms to lift the spirits and remind me to keep a perspective on things.

Find beauty in the simplest things

Thank you Myth.

A minor setback

It's Day 6 and I wake up feeling more positive.  The last week has been an emotional roller coaster but today feels good.  It's my first day without painkillers and my face swelling has gone down a lot.   I've graduated to rice pudding and very finely mashed oats so I feel like I'm making progress.  Another of our beautiful neighbours sends food to us and lots of it.  Ross has his dinners sorted for the rest of the week at least.  I don't know how we're ever going to thank everyone. 

My life defined by flowers - I feel brighter today!

Bright!

It's a short lived feeling though.  It's a little crushing to go to the dentist at midday and discover that my teeth haven't been set in the best position.  It might mean repositioning + re-splinting yet again = more pain.  The dentist won't do anything until after I've seen the specialist on Monday morning and then we'll go from there.  I leave the surgery feeling pretty gutted.  

******

My beautiful husband goes out to buy me the best possible present right now - an AirFloss!

And yet another fitting quote for the day:

"Yet, through all the gloom, I can see the rays of ravishing light and glory"

John Adams, President of the US between 1797 and 1801