For Joann:

Renovations

Please excuse the various, disgusting stage that my blog will go through over the next few days - i'm renovating.

My brain has gone on holidays and left my body at work so I'm giving myself things to do - completely ignoring the actual work i should be doing!

So - for now - ignore the mess and anticipate me settling on something soon - or not...!

All Is Explained

See THIS? This is why I'm not sleeping. This is why the babies are grumpy. This is why I wish it was the holidays.

An unpleasant End

While walking along the Torrens River with Anna last night I felt like something had con into my eye. I blinked a little and pulled a few eyelashes out. It seemed to help a bit.

Soon after arriving home I had a show to cool down and get clean. WhenI stepped out of the shower I saw a tiny bit of black in the corner of my eye. As I had been wearing mascara during the I thought that must be what it was.

Much to my disgust it wasn't.

A tiny little black bug had been trapped in my eye. I imagine it was just as uncomfortable about the whole thing as I was. And I imagine that next time we go walking fdown there I'll wear my glasses like goggles.

Happy Everything Fin

One of my very dear friends, Fin, is being ordained as a Lutheran Pastor in just under a month. It's taken 5 years of study but he's finally done. Last Friday was his 24th birthday AND the day he (and the rest of us) had to have any final assignments in. My gift to him was the above.

As Lutheran Pastor he will need a set of stoles (the fancy coloured bits that go over the white alb) - one for each of the main church seasons - Christmas, Easter, Pentecost, Good Friday and the General one. He and I have been working for the past few months on designs.

This week I took the main design elements and created this artwork for him. (Click on it for a close look) The Christ figure is one taken from a drawing done by an artist in the congregation where Fin did his 9 months vicarage. I think Fin asked this guy to draw the centre figure so that he would have a part of the design come form his vicarage experience. He and I then discussed how he wanted to portray each church season, what themes he wanted to run through the set and what style he likes.

By way of explanation: The stoles will have a deep triangle down his back where each of the Christ figures will be. On the front on each side will identical copies of the cross.

We decided on a theme of light to carry through the stoles. Fire for Pentecost (the furthermost image - it also looks like a dove). The Sun for Easter (such rich reason for choosing a risen sun!). A Lighthouse for the general period in which much teaching about each of us being a light in the world occurs. And a Star for the Christmas season (it is also for lent/advent - which are times of preparation for the coming of the king in which we can follow the star to find him). The Celtic cross is in acknowledgement of Fin's Irish heritage. There is lots of rich meaning behind each image - this is just a very brief overview.

I'm very excited about seeing the final products - mostly because it's wonderful to see my designs completed but partly because it's been a long and slightly stressful project trying to find people to make the designs a reality.

Perhaps the highlight though has been in working with Fin, discovering more about him and his 'style' and having the confirmation of a stunned mouth hanging open when he saw the designs framed for the first time.

Thanks for the privilege Fin. It's been an honour working with you.

82%

The mark I got on the assignment i've been workin gon for the past few weeks - Oh yeah!

Just waiting to hear the mark I got for the presentation I did today - the lecturer alluded to an overall High Distinction. Happy with that!

I'm gonna graduate! I'm gonna graduate! I'm gonna graduate!

where are they now?

After a slight misadventure in connecting Ellie and I had a lovely time catching up! We shared stories of what we've been up to in the time since we last saw each other, things that happened while were were both in Walla Walla, stories of before and dreams of things to come. It was so wonderful to see the young lady she is now compared to the one she was at the end of year 12 four years ago.

This has been one of many 'catch ups' that i've had over the past few weeks - some completely random, most thanks to facebook - that blessing/curse/addiction/timewaster/friend-finder entity that takes over anyone who enters it to some degree or another - I love it! Mostly because i love to see where people have gotten to so far in their lives - what directions they have taken since last I saw them. I have discovered friends from my first primary school who live in London, friends from my second primary school who live in Bunderburg and Victoria and are maried and who have had babies, friends who have travelled extensively, friends who have been studying ever since they left school, more marriages, new pregnancies and so many wonderufl things in between all of that.

And a boy who had a crush on me in year 5!

Where will we be in the next ten years?

Catch up

I'm just sitting here filling in the minutes until Ellie arrives. I'm quite excited. About 2 weeks ago I ran into her in the cereal aisle at my local supermarket - in Adelaide. The last time I saw her she was a student at a school I worked at in New South Wales. She is working here for a few months and lives just around the corner from me. What a fantastic discovery!

I'm looking forward to catching up with her.