My Bloggable Day

Inspired by minimalism

Posted on February 15, 2015 by Bec

From Buzzfeed.

I believe I mentioned earlier in the year that I had found a minimalist blog that was ticking all kinds of boxes for me. Well, my admiration for the idea of having ‘just enough’ has snowballed since then.

I find myself looking at piles of stuff I’ve used my hard earned money to buy with utter disdain. A glance across my room reveals at least 10 items I could purge instantly.Yesterday I realised I hadn’t stepped foot in a clothes shop this year. And, whilst I was fortunate to visit the house of some lovely strangers recently, seeing their devotion to multiple disciplines and the mountains (or shed loads) of stuff that came with that devotion left me in a cold sweat.

But it’s not just me. De-cluttering is in vogue. You can barely peruse ~~Buzzfeed~~ high brow websites without stumbling across an article about famous Japanese de-clutterer Marie Kondo. Her idea that anything that doesn’t “spark joy” from within or that isn’t absolutely necessary should be thanked and thrown away is simple, yet apparently revolutionary.

Well I come to you with good news. My desire to not feel as though I’m drowning in my frivolous consumerism is really starting to pay off. Literally. This morning I made $290 from selling jewellery, clothes and accessories at a market.

$290

And I can’t even remember what I sold unless I really think about it. I had mountains of ‘fun’ jewellery that i just loved waving goodbye to. I also have a couple of hundred dollars made from clothing consignment sales yet to be collected from friend’s shop. So i’m feeling richer and lighter all at once.

But that’s just my clothes. I need to purge cosmetics, endless bits of paper and just STUFF that seems to be lurking everywhere.

Here are some great links i’ve found on minimalism recently:

This living with less infographic explains how much time we work to shop and then maintain what we’ve bought. Frightening.

This list explains why duplicates are unnecessary (I only have one set of sheets and one towel- I win!) and why you need to actually purge instead of just re-organising over and over.

And this link details how you should declutter your home.

I’m also taking inspiration from the tiny but perfect apartment in Melbourne I stayed in last year.

Finally, if you want to shock yourself into de-cluttering look up the show Hoarders. It is truly the stuff of nightmares.

Clutter. How do you feel about it?

Posted in Misc | Tagged Decluttering, Minimalism | 9 Comments

We got a pool!

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Bec

She’s 12ft wide, semi inflatable and took about 4 hours to fill, but it was worth it. My housemate Bec’s parents very kindly sent it to us on a truck complete with all the chlorine and fancy stuff to keep the water clean. Given that it’s 44 degrees Celsius in Kalgoorlie today it’s a relief to have somewhere to cool off.

I made my favourite punch while we waited for it to fill on Saturday.

It’s cranberry juice mixed with soda water with mint, lime and frozen berries thrown in.

Our friend Claire came to visit for the weekend, it was excellent. And not just because she brought bagels with her.

On Friday night we caught some local cricket.

And by ‘caught’ I mean we took a picnic and drank ciders while some sports happened nearby.

Bec’s boyfriend Scott was playing and his team won. Scott didn’t get home until 8am the next morning. Impressive!

We went out for breakfast on Saturday. It was terrible, such is the uncertainty of the Kalgoorlie culinary scene. I had overcooked eggs Benedict on rock hard bread, raw spinach and a long black. I don’t understand how it was so much better at the same cafe last time?!

On Saturday night the selfie stick Mum got me for Christmas got a severe working out during girls-only pre drinks at our house. We also treated our neighbours to some high-pitched impromptu 90s karaoke. You’re welcome.

Sunday was a bit of a write-off. The pool helped. Then we watched Easy A, which I can’t believe I’ve never seen before.

On Monday Claire had to go home.

But not before we ate the bagels. So good. I can’t wait to be near good food all the time.

Until then it’s disappointing pub meals and overcooked eggs for me. How was your weekend? What’s the worst meal you’ve eaten at a restaurant recently?

Posted in Misc | Tagged Weekend | 5 Comments

Weekly movie night: drag queen movies

Posted on February 5, 2015 by Bec

I’ve decided a weekly movie night is in order, I want to get around to watching all the classic and well known movies that I should have seen already, or that I saw snippets of as a child and now can’t remember. It all started the other morning when Andrew and I randomly started talking about the Australian classic Priscilla: Queen of the Desert, he and my housemate both incredulous that I hadn’t seen it.

I vaguely remember scenes from the movie as a child and being utterly terrified of Hugo Weaving’s face in drag. Let’s face it, he’s not the most attractive man, let alone a woman. I also remember snippets of the scene when men try to attack Guy Pierce’s character and getting too scared to go on (clearly I was an easily frightened child).

We had the soundtrack to Priscilla at home though and I loved it and knew every word to every song. But I think the main reason I never got into Priscilla was that my sister had taped To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything Julie Newmar onto VHS and we were completely obsessed with it.

Too Wong Foo is pretty much the American version of Priscilla. They were made at almost exactly the same time and both centre around a handful of drag queens going on a road trip and encountering some hatred from the inland rednecks/bogans.

The major difference being, the men in Too Wong Foo are always in drag and, bizarrely, most people seem to think they are women. Obviously the humour is very different as well. Unfortunately mid-nineties Australian humour grates on me something awful, so Priscilla lost a few points with me there. Also, Too Wong Foo has a bit of an all-star cast; Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes and Robin Williams makes a cameo.

Upon re-watching Too Wong Foo as an adult the other night, I picked up on so many more jokes than when I was a kid, as is often the way. I was also delighted to see the nightclub in which the ‘Drag Queen of the Year’ awards are held in the opening scenes is none other than Webster Hall. A venue that I spent more than one night dancing up a storm at on my 2010 trip to NYC.

While I did enjoy Priscilla and would love to see the stage version, Too Wong Foo will always have my heart. We go back to the days when my sister and I would watch it on the red couches at home, both trying to convince each other it wasn’t our turn to get up fast forward through the ads…

Have you seen either movie? Which do you think is best? Also, which classics should I watch? A few more on my list are: The Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction and The Godfather.

(image) (image)

Posted in Misc | Tagged Movies | 5 Comments

My new favourite tea

Posted on February 3, 2015 by Bec

Well my three week sabbatical to Esperance has sadly come to an end. I’ve left the white sandy beaches for the red dirt of Kalgoorlie. Having a beach nearby just naturally gives you something to do all weekend. On Sunday I was back home with literally nothing to do. Except for reading and scrolling through social media and drinking tea (oh and we went on a random 13km walk… which killed two hours!).

Speaking of tea. I have a new favourite. I picked it up on a whim and it tastes like hot water infused with lollies.

When you pour the hot water in it immediately goes this dirty grey colour and then morphs into bright pink, which is reason enough to buy some. It also tastes great.

Be careful when making your hot drinks. Yesterday my poor housemate burnt her arm on the steam from the kettle and spent a rather painful two hours at Emergency. At least they gave her laughing gas, which definitely lives up to its name. I have about 5 videos of her giggling away on a hospital bed. Not your average Monday.

Well that’s about it from me. How are you faring?

Posted in Misc | Tagged Tea | 4 Comments

Lunch at Yirri Grove, Esperance

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Bec

Living in regional Australia often means returning to the same places to eat and drink over and over again. Unless you live in the Yarra Valley or Margaret River, in which case I commend you on your excellent life choices. I’m jealous.

Anyway, in Esperance it’s especially exciting to have somewhere new to go when the clouds have forced you off the beach and you find yourself with an afternoon to fill.

This was the case on Saturday when we went to Yirri Grove for a late lunch. Yirri Grove is a local olive and olive oil producer that has just opened its doors for lunch. It is located short drive outside the town (we followed a mud map on their Facebook page) and along the way you will pass idyllic, albeit a little dry, farmland.

Owner Anne warmly greeted us and we started by ordering a tasting plate so we could see just how good the olives are.

The tasting plate. There is dukkah and relish hiding under the lettuce.

They were delicious. But I’m biased, I love olives! Especially ones infused with delicious add-ons like chilli and lemon.

The chicken

Onto lunch, Emily ordered the chicken.

My pizza

I had the salmon pizza, which was amazing!

Bec and Scott had the Angus beef. I had mild food envy.

Look at those smug faces with their Angus beef 😉

We also purchased some takeaway iteams to enjoy later.

Some dukkah.

And the connoisseur olives, which I think are the best.

I plan on returning in a few weeks when we will bring visitors to Esperance. Next time I won’t make the mistake of ordering the smallest item on the menu! I had a brain fail and didn’t notice it was half the price of everything else and hence, would be smaller.

Seriously delicious. Make sure you pop in if you’re in the area.

Posted in Food, Travel | 8 Comments

Sunset fish and chips

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Bec

Apologies for the brief absence! The only excuse I can think of is that I’ve been outdoors for the last three days, which I think is a pretty watertight excuse right?! I’m still down in Esperance, where the weather is remarkably good and the beaches are plenty. I’ve been enjoying many tried and tested Aussie summer activities, like listening to the triple j hottest 100 countdown and eating fish and chips on the beach. Well not on the beach, but at a look out:

Esperance has a few fish and chip shops, but I think Jax Snax is the best for fish.

Just look at that batter.

It wasn’t the best sunset. The one the previous night was spectacular, but I couldn’t be bothered going out to watch the sunset after our car accident. Which I admit is both an odd and lame excuse.

Still, it was very pretty.

As the sun got really low the mozzies (mosquitos) came out to dine. Mozzies just love me. My blood must be the mosquito equivalent of Macdonalds. I ended up with about 20 bites on my left calf alone.

That’s about it for now. These beach posts are getting pretty repetitive! Oh well.

Posted in Misc | Tagged Beach, Esperance, fish and chips | 6 Comments

Kangaroos at Lucky Bay

Posted on January 22, 2015 by Bec

I realise I’m probably about to shatter the perception that Australians see kangaroos all the time and even ride them on the commute to school/work, but LOOK! Kangaroos on the beach!!

Oh hai

It is really common to see kangaroos hanging out at Lucky Bay in Cape Le Grand National Park, but for some reason they are never there when I’m there. In the car park maybe, but never on the sand. But not today!

I was out at Cape Le Grand today doing some stories for work (hello best job ever) and low and behold, the roos were finally there.

Mama roo on the move

Three of them! Including a mother and joey. Adorable.

Can finally say I’ve ‘done’ Esperance.

Joey and his giant feet.

How was your day?

Posted in Misc, Travel | Tagged Cape Le Grand, Cape Le Grand National Park, Esperance, Kangaroos, Travel | 14 Comments

Boats, beaches, ice creams and accidents

Posted on January 21, 2015 by Bec

On Monday we took a cruise around the 105 or so islands that make up the Recherche Archipelago off the coast of Esperance.

There were many rocks to be seen.

And some seals.

Snoozin’

Some Cape Barron geese.

And a sea eagle.

We then stopped off at Woody Island, the only island people are allowed on.

Andrew and I went to town on the free morning tea. As you do.

Then after a quick walk around the island we went for a snorkel.

Too bad I didn’t have a GoPro with me, otherwise I would have inserted a million murky underwater photos here. Just imagine they are here. And they’re bad!

Back to the mainland!

After the cruise we hung out at Blue Haven beach for the afternoon.

Some hours passed as we floated around on tubes in the water.

Choc mint and Irish Cream with almonds

We decided to stop for ice creams and though they were delicious, stopping for them on the way home did place us (time and universe wise) in the path of a four wheel drive with a bull bar that used us as a method to stop instead of brakes…

Bang

Thankfully all passengers involved were fine. But Andrew’s car probably is not. An interesting end to an otherwise great day. Got any tips for whip lash?

Posted in Misc | Tagged Car accident, Esperance, Recherche Archipelago | 2 Comments

How a car accident resulted in the best morning of my life

Posted on January 20, 2015 by Bec

Yesterday was excellent; my boyfriend Andrew and I went on a cruise around the islands off the coast of Esperance known as the Recherche Archipelago and then to the beach which was calm and perfect for tubing. And then we got ice cream and after that we had a minor car accident.

Just the boring the-person-behind-us-failed-to-stop-and-slammed-into-us kind. The police came, details were exchanged (the other driver doesn’t have insurance, wtf?!) and Andrew’s car was towed away. I was having a pretty restless night due to feeling a bit sore and stiff in the neck and shoulders, so at 4am I decided to just go to the hospital to make sure everything was fine. Which it was.

After I left the hospital, I noticed this was going on:

So I pulled over, jumped out of the car and got a front row seat (on a park bench) to watch the sunrise.

I should point out that Esperance is known for its wind, so to see the water like glass and for everything to be still is quite spectacular.

Those islands in the front are part of the 105 or so that make up the Recherche Archipelago. The ones that look like islands behind them are actually hills in Cape Le Grand National Park, including Frenchman’s Peak.

Even the port looked pretty:

Watching the colours change was beautiful.

At one point a saw a seal bobbing up and down through the water.

Eventually the birds came out and the sun was well and truly up.

So I walked back to the car, slightly freezing at this point in my nightie, thongs (flip flops) and hoodie.

By then it was 5am so I did the best thing you can possibly do at 5am, which is go to the bakery for fresh croissants.

They were still warm. What a glorious morning, which never would have happened if not for the car crash yesterday. I might need a nap today though.

Hope you have a great day.

Posted in Misc | Tagged Car accident, Esperance, Sunrise | 11 Comments

Thistle Cove

Posted on January 18, 2015 by Bec

Tell me something; why would you go to Scarborough, Bondi or St Kilda when you could have all of this to yourself?

Granted, Thistle Cove is a good 770 kilometres from the nearest capital city (Perth) and you will have to share the beach with a few other people:

But you will get to while away the hours on an inflatable tube in the waves (just be sure to tuck your legs in when a big wave comes or you’ll tumble in the washing machine-esque sea).