Pre Christmas beach weekend

It’s become somewhat of a tradition in my family to spend the weekend before Christmas at my Uncle Tim and Aunt Jo’s beach house in Airey’s Inlet. Seeing as I’m not at home this year I thought I’d better get to a beach somewhere, just so I wasn’t missing out. We got up early on Friday and drove down to Esperance.

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We made the most of the weather, knowing there were big thunderstorms forecast for the following day.

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There are so many amazing beaches in Esperance, but I always find myself going back to Twilight.

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I had to take an important call while we were there so I sat in the car for a while. During the conversation I could see a huge animal swimming not too far out from the shore, one with a fin on its back… I don’t want to speculate, but it looked far too big to be a dolphin. That didn’t stop us from having a swim though.

Or a cool beverage afterwards.

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After a few hours (which included me falling asleep on the sand, infuriating because I can’t seem to sleep in a bed but I can in broad daylight outside?!) we drove back along towards West Beach, stopping to admire the view.

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Then it was straight to the store for provisions: namely wine and nibbles.

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That night we were joined by a couple more friends, drinking wine and playing card games. Wild.

The next day we woke to what I initially thought was someone wheeling a bin down the driveway, it turned out to be loud thunder. We grabbed some breakfast and then head out to Cape Le Grand National Park, despite the gloomy weather.

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For some reason it looks sunny in all the photos?!

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We set ourselves up at beautiful Hellfire Bay but unfortunately the day was marred by two nudists who turned out to have a nasty sand fetish… I won’t go into details, but I’m sure what we saw will be burnt into our retinas for the rest of our lives. I reported the pair to the ranger on the way out of the park. Sickos.

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Doesn’t everyone look thrilled!

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That evening we went to the pub and on the way home found an adorable lost dog called Fritz. We managed to reunite Fritz with his grateful owner, but not before we got pats and cuddles. You win some, you lose some.

Two sleeps until Christmas!

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Lately: the week before Christmas

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I learnt how to cut a pomegranate open the proper way with this video.

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I bought poinsettias for the table. And watched this hilarious honest trailer of Home Alone. Have you ever noticed how many poinsettias are in that movie?! Could be a good drinking game.

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I made these Chocolate Pot de Cremes. I won’t make them again though, they were intense. For extreme chocoholics only!

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I enjoyed some ciders on the beach and checked out some pretty amazing lights displays:

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How are you going? Nailed all your Christmas shopping? What are you cooking this year? Hopefully not one of these 20 Truly Horrifying Vintage Holiday Recipes. Why were people so obsessed with meat jelly?!

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A letter to Santa from me, aged 7

I found this letter I wrote to Santa Claus a few years ago at my Mum’s house. I’m not sure but I think I must have been about 7 at the time. Clearly no one had taught me how to spell ‘Barbie’ yet. Or how to write in a straight line.

Bec santa letter

Seriously, learn how to spell.

 

A few things, firstly, how is it that I knew how to spell ‘picnic’ (still so tempting to put a ‘k’ in there…) and not ‘Barbie’?! Secondly, wtf is a Puggle? Google tells me it’s a cross between a beagle and a pug but designer hybrid dogs didn’t exist in the mid nineties. And finally, “Ps I love you!”?! Go me for trying to emotionally blackmail Santa.

This does raise a few questions: where did I send the letter to? Clearly not the North Pole, because I never did get my Barbie dream house, picnic van (a van just for picnic-ing?! Amazing) or Puggles. Also, did I abbreviate ‘Christmas’ to ‘X-Mas’ in a nod to blasphemy? Or was I just lazy?

Do kids still write letters to Santa? Did you?

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Photos from backstage

Just a few snaps from backstage. They don’t capture the entire cast. How hard we worked or how much fun we had. I’m sad (but a tiny bit relieved) that our nine shows are done.

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Lights

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Photo by Dave

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Curls get the girls

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Vocal warm up

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Leopard print ladies

black and white bec and em

Photo by Dave

It’s good to have hobbies. What are yours?

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A book launch and a French night at Fossick

Exciting news folks! Local shop/gallery/workshops venue/all round amazing crafty place Fossick Handmade put the call out for recipes for their Crafternoon Tea book in October and it’s here:

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Beautifully designed by Paula Fletcher, it has tips on hosting a Crafternoon tea as well as delightful recipes for sandwiches, cakes, scones, slices, you name it.

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And guess what?!

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Two of my recipes are in there!

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Just call me Nigella

I’m pretty stoked! Can finally add ‘celebrity chef’ and ‘author’ to my resume.

The book was launched at Fossick’s VIP night, which was themed ‘A night in Paris’. I was pretty excited to see peonies:

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I have never seen a peony in the Goldfields!

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We nibbled.

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And sipped Kir Royales.

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I admired Paula and Carly’s berets and dedication to colour coordintion:

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And then Kate appeared, a vision in leopard print, with a plate of pain au chocolats:

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Two children and I stalked her and gobbled them up.

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I talked to lots of lovely people.

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And then, after downing my fill of brie, it was time to go.

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Another shot of the peonies

I did better than last year’s VIP night and actually managed to buy some presents for other people. Crafternoon Tea books for everyone!

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A slightly smaller replica of the Eiffel Tower

How’s your Christmas shopping going? Painful? Stay strong.

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I love Lena Dunham

My obsession with Lena Dunham is at an all time high now that I’ve finally finished her book and just this morning, watched a new trailer for Season 4 of Girls (side note: if Jessa goes anywhere near Adam I will flip my lid).

So in the spirit of wanting to quench my thirst for her witty quips and palatable wisdom, I went back to watch the Ask Lena videos that were released earlier this year to promote the book. I also made two people who hadn’t seen the videos watch them as I creepily enjoyed their reactions… If you haven’t seen them and are an LD fan you are in for a treat:

There are 12 videos in the series and while they are essentially ads, Lena gives incredibly thoughtful and useful advice on bullies, body images, relationships, feminism, mental health and other topics. All the more reason to love her.

She’s also gosh darn hilarious. Roll on January 11 (when the next season of Girls comes out).

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17 musings on air travel

air travel

1. I have an irrational fear that the tail of the plane will scrape the tarmac upon every take off.

2. Hearing a dog bark from the luggage hold is rather disconcerting.

3. I like to put the tiny butter packets under the hot food container on my food tray to melt slightly and ensure premium spreading consistency for my bread roll.

4. The only flight I’ve successfully slept through was Bangkok-Melbourne after two vodkas and a sleeping pill offered by a stranger (sounds irresponsible but it came from a packet, and I was with my boyfriend at the time, and I feel a plane would be a very unsuccessful location to drug and harm someone).

5. I rarely salt and pepper my food, except on planes. Only to make the most of those free condiments.

6. Taking off from Coolangatta Airport in Queensland always results in the most painful of earaches. Not landing though.

7. I learnt the alcohol and sleeping tablet trick from my sister, who once managed to sleep all of the 24 hours from Melbourne to London (while I ate her food) despite a layover.

8. I never know whether to get the free (terrible) wine or the Diet Coke I know I will enjoy.

9. The best flight I’ve ever been on was Melbourne to LA with Virgin Australia. Their free snack stations are unparalleled.

10. I’ve not yet known the discomfort of travelling near a screaming baby on a long haul flight. I feel sorry for the parents who have.

11. The worst plane meal I’ve ever had was on Good Friday. I jokingly said to my travel companions “imagine if they served fish!” and they did. The entire cabin stank.

12. It makes me shudder when I see people go to the toilet on a plane in bare feet.

13. An Air France flight attendant once poured boiling water into a cup with paper towel so I could hold it under my ear and let the steam could sooth the stabbing pain. It works.

14. I cringe when people clap upon landing when the flight has experienced minimal turbulence.

15. I’ve never been on a flight when the oxygen masks have dropped. But I’ll be sure to fit my own before helping those around me if it does happen.

16. For a brief period when I was 15 I wanted to be a flight attendant.

17. Pegasus Airlines has the best (and cutest) safety demonstration video I’ve ever seen. And New Zealand, the most bizarrely sexual one.

Got some to add?

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Where I’ve been

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In ‘God’s Country’, to quote an elderly man I met in a supermarket, also known as Queensland. I went for a week of video shooting/editing training. It was really great, I shot and edited three videos in three days and came back exhausted on Saturday morning. So that’s my excuse for the disappearing act, feeble though it may be.

I had one morning free and managed to knock off a few Christmas presents, but apart from that it was all work. I had a yummy breakfast at Habitat, three very average tacos at Beach Burrito and some great craft beers and food at Tomahawk Bar.

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We spent a lot of time on South Bank, right near the big Ferris wheel, which no doubt provides a far nicer view over the city than Melbourne’s version next to the industrial western suburbs. One day I’ll try it out.

So now I’m back and on the fast track to Christmas. You?

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Decorating the Christmas tree

For the first time in my life I’ve erected a Christmas tree in my home in November. I don’t know what to think or if it even counts because it’s plastic (which I hate). But still. I’m away in Brisbane this week, and then my housemate Bec is away the week after so it was this weekend or halfway through December, by which point the effort or putting up a tree would be superseded by the pain of having to take it down again two weeks later…

It started, as practicality dictates, with the lights.

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The lights are twinkly good fun to start off with…

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But then this happens…

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And quickly you realise, like not having to clean up glass you dropped on the kitchen floor while barefoot, having a parent around to take care of things is one of the great joys of childhood you never appreciated at the time.

Moving right along.

I bought some sparkly new decorations this year to make up for not being able to go to a farm, argue for far too long over the perfect tree, have an axe man chop it down, somehow get covered in sap, lug said deliciously fragrant tree inside and attempt to wrangle it into a stand meanwhile dealing with pine needles for the best part of December. Such joy.

Bambi’s dad came to the party:

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I see avian decorations are big this year:

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It must be because Christmas is such a hoot. Heh.

And because every Christmas movie ever says so, we put the star on last.

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Just imagine Michael Buble’s Christmas CD playing underneath this post.

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So pretty.

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I think it looks pretty decent for an oddly emaciated tree!

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Nothing beats sitting in the living room with the lights off and just staring.

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Have you put up your tree yet? When will you?

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Put your hands up for Friday

A photo of a photo in the Kalgoorlie Miner.

A photo of a photo in the Kalgoorlie Miner.

I’ve been in the local paper twice this week, the photo above is the one from today #localceleb. I’m in a play called Jungle Fever, it’s a pantomime style Christmas dinner show. The Goldfields Repertory Club does a Christmas show each year, pretty much all 9 performances sell out as social clubs use the night as their end of year wind-up. People tend to drink a lot and heckle the performers. There’s audience participation and a drag number. Quality theatre as you can imagine, but it’s damn fun to be involved in.

Our first show was last night, we have another tonight and tomorrow night. I will miss two shows while in Brisbane next week. I’m pretty excited to be headed to the big smoke!

Some things I enjoyed from around the internet this week:

Did you know there’s an apartment in the Eiffel Tower?

They are making a Paddington Bear movie! This preview looks great. He was one of my favourites as a child.

The fashions of Jerry Seinfeld’s girlfriends.

Are we the most self-absorbed travellers of our time? How do you feel about the selfie stick?

How to not waste your weekend.

Check out this incredible electrical storm we had last night.

Also, I cut my hair even shorter this week.

Plans for the weekend?

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