...for horns and strings. Plus a bunch of other things. Alexander sometimes has me cruising around YouTube for Thunderbirds or (lately) Star Wars clips, and I came across this little Star Trek montage today. I loved the footage of the old Star Trek when William Shatner was young and handsome before he turned into the incomparable Denny Crane, haha!! The music just took my breath away and it's so extremely simple and effective.
Sorry for being AWOL lately. Life has swallowed me whole and I'm still down in the gurgler just getting through each day. At least Lillian is now sleeping at night. But I seem to be so tired all the time. C'est la vie with two kids.
P.S. Thank you for all your lovely posts about the children's recent birthdays. Much appreciated even though I haven't had a chance to reply.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Monday, October 6, 2008
One
And so our baby girl turned one today!
Lillian is our precious little girl, so cuddly and sweet yet with an obvious streak of determination and strong will. She's crawling well now and is quite the sticky-beak, getting into everything she possibly can. She has a great sense of humour like her brother, and they play beautifully together. They make each other laugh and I hope this continues for a long time even when they're annoying the heck out of each other, as they invariably will. She claps hands delightedly, can wave when she thinks about it, and vocalises surprisingly loudly! "Da-da" is really the only word at present, much to her father's delight.
Happy birthday my sweetheart. May your life be full of sunshine and happiness always.
Lillian is our precious little girl, so cuddly and sweet yet with an obvious streak of determination and strong will. She's crawling well now and is quite the sticky-beak, getting into everything she possibly can. She has a great sense of humour like her brother, and they play beautifully together. They make each other laugh and I hope this continues for a long time even when they're annoying the heck out of each other, as they invariably will. She claps hands delightedly, can wave when she thinks about it, and vocalises surprisingly loudly! "Da-da" is really the only word at present, much to her father's delight.
Happy birthday my sweetheart. May your life be full of sunshine and happiness always.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Five
And so our baby boy turned five last Friday.
We are often amazed at this little fellow. He has so much personality and "chutzpah", he talks like a book yet at the same time I need to muster all my negotiating skills to get him to follow instructions etc. I guess that's normal for a strong-willed five year old! His kindergarten teacher says that he's "an oral, linguistic learner" which is certainly true. I find it hard not to get frustrated knowing that he is such a bright spark yet unbelievably stubborn when it comes to trying or doing new things, but I know he will get there when he's ready. He loves his friends, but when he decides he doesn't like someone there's no turning back and he'll store up his little grievances and bring them out whenever necessary. An obsessive personality, incredibly curious, mad about inventing, loves his family and especially his baby sister. Happy birthday Alexander!
We are often amazed at this little fellow. He has so much personality and "chutzpah", he talks like a book yet at the same time I need to muster all my negotiating skills to get him to follow instructions etc. I guess that's normal for a strong-willed five year old! His kindergarten teacher says that he's "an oral, linguistic learner" which is certainly true. I find it hard not to get frustrated knowing that he is such a bright spark yet unbelievably stubborn when it comes to trying or doing new things, but I know he will get there when he's ready. He loves his friends, but when he decides he doesn't like someone there's no turning back and he'll store up his little grievances and bring them out whenever necessary. An obsessive personality, incredibly curious, mad about inventing, loves his family and especially his baby sister. Happy birthday Alexander!
Monday, September 15, 2008
Holidays
We have been away for a few days.
Photo from here.
After what seems like an interminable winter, we (I) decided that we needed a break as soon as The Piece was dusted and delivered. Lillian seems to have picked up every bug circulating around the Germ Factory (aka Kindergarten) and it was high time we all got some rest and took some time out to recharge the batteries.
Not wanting to travel too far or too expensively, we packed the pram, portacot, a couple of guitars and two small children, hopped in the car and drove to St Helens, 3 1/2 hours up the east coast of Tassie. What a lovely spot. The weather was mixed but we did manage a picnic, some fishing, some rock-hopping, beach-running, a bit of wandering about the town, much lazing about, reading, watching Thunderbirds (what else?) and ... naps for the grown-ups. Bliss.
Lillian decided to start crawling, and also had her first go on a swing.
We stayed here and can highly recommend it to anyone looking for a home away from home.
Photo from here.
After what seems like an interminable winter, we (I) decided that we needed a break as soon as The Piece was dusted and delivered. Lillian seems to have picked up every bug circulating around the Germ Factory (aka Kindergarten) and it was high time we all got some rest and took some time out to recharge the batteries.
Not wanting to travel too far or too expensively, we packed the pram, portacot, a couple of guitars and two small children, hopped in the car and drove to St Helens, 3 1/2 hours up the east coast of Tassie. What a lovely spot. The weather was mixed but we did manage a picnic, some fishing, some rock-hopping, beach-running, a bit of wandering about the town, much lazing about, reading, watching Thunderbirds (what else?) and ... naps for the grown-ups. Bliss.
Lillian decided to start crawling, and also had her first go on a swing.
We stayed here and can highly recommend it to anyone looking for a home away from home.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Thunderbirds are go!
GAAAAAH!
I'm on a quest to find a Soundtech Tracy Island for A Certain Person's 5th birthday in 3 weeks. 3 weeks! The Thunderbirds are currently an all-consuming passion for the small person who will be heartbroken if I can't find one in the shops (not likely) or "in the computer". He is even asking God for one every night, in the hope that it will appear at the foot of his bed the next morning.
Am scouring eBay worldwide. Oh the pressure.
I'm on a quest to find a Soundtech Tracy Island for A Certain Person's 5th birthday in 3 weeks. 3 weeks! The Thunderbirds are currently an all-consuming passion for the small person who will be heartbroken if I can't find one in the shops (not likely) or "in the computer". He is even asking God for one every night, in the hope that it will appear at the foot of his bed the next morning.
Am scouring eBay worldwide. Oh the pressure.
Friday, August 22, 2008
The Omnivore's Hundred
The Omnivore's Hundred is an eclectic and entirely subjective list of 100 items that Andrew Wheeler, co-author of the British food blog Very Good Taste, thinks every omnivore should try at least once in his life.
He offered this list as the starting point for a game, along the following rules:
1. Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating. (I can't work out how to cross out so I'll just write NEVER)
4. Optional extra: post a comment on Very Good Taste, linking to your results.
And of course, if you don't have a blog, you can still play along, with a good old pencil and some paper -- care to share your results? And/or items you think should be added to, or removed from that list?
I have to confess I haven't heard of quite a few of these things, but here goes! (Thanks Steph for this!)
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros (delicious)
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding (many years ago - my father grew up in the UK so we used to have this at home very occasionally, with big eggy breakfast)
7. Cheese fondue (but prefer the chocolate variety)
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Phở
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart (in New York city)
16. Epoisses (?)
17. Black truffle (had it in pasta in Italy...)
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese (NEVER)
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (?)
27. Dulce de leche (the real thing from Argentina, or its French cousin called confiture de lait)
28. Oysters(mmmm)
29. Baklava(mmmm)
30. Bagna cauda (?)
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi (no, but have had sweet mango lassi)
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar (yuck, I don't smoke)
37. Clotted cream tea (no, but love clotted cream fudge!)
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo (no but would love to)
40. Oxtail (only as the soup)
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects (NEVER)
43. Phaal (?)
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/€80/$120 or more
46. Fugu (?)
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel (I think so...)
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut (not had one yet, but will one day)
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi (?)
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine (?)
60. Carob chips (ugh though)
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin (?)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian (definitely an acquired taste)
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis (NEVER)
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette (?)
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe (?)
74. Gjetost, or brunost (?)
75. Roadkill (NEVER)
76. Baijiu (?)
77. Hostess Fruit Pie (?)
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong (is this tea?)
80. Bellini (I thought he was an opera composer)
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict (mmmm)
83. Pocky (?)
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant (I wish!)
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse (NEVER)
90. Criollo chocolate (?)
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano (is this chicken mole? If so, then yes I've eaten it)
96. Bagel and lox (mmmm)
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta (not a huge fan)
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake (NEVER)
He offered this list as the starting point for a game, along the following rules:
1. Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2. Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3. Cross out any items that you would never consider eating. (I can't work out how to cross out so I'll just write NEVER)
4. Optional extra: post a comment on Very Good Taste, linking to your results.
And of course, if you don't have a blog, you can still play along, with a good old pencil and some paper -- care to share your results? And/or items you think should be added to, or removed from that list?
I have to confess I haven't heard of quite a few of these things, but here goes! (Thanks Steph for this!)
1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros (delicious)
4. Steak tartare
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding (many years ago - my father grew up in the UK so we used to have this at home very occasionally, with big eggy breakfast)
7. Cheese fondue (but prefer the chocolate variety)
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Phở
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart (in New York city)
16. Epoisses (?)
17. Black truffle (had it in pasta in Italy...)
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese (NEVER)
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper (?)
27. Dulce de leche (the real thing from Argentina, or its French cousin called confiture de lait)
28. Oysters(mmmm)
29. Baklava(mmmm)
30. Bagna cauda (?)
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi (no, but have had sweet mango lassi)
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar (yuck, I don't smoke)
37. Clotted cream tea (no, but love clotted cream fudge!)
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo (no but would love to)
40. Oxtail (only as the soup)
41. Curried goat
42. Whole insects (NEVER)
43. Phaal (?)
44. Goat’s milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/€80/$120 or more
46. Fugu (?)
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel (I think so...)
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut (not had one yet, but will one day)
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi (?)
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine (?)
60. Carob chips (ugh though)
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin (?)
64. Currywurst
65. Durian (definitely an acquired taste)
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis (NEVER)
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette (?)
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe (?)
74. Gjetost, or brunost (?)
75. Roadkill (NEVER)
76. Baijiu (?)
77. Hostess Fruit Pie (?)
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong (is this tea?)
80. Bellini (I thought he was an opera composer)
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict (mmmm)
83. Pocky (?)
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant (I wish!)
85. Kobe beef
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse (NEVER)
90. Criollo chocolate (?)
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano (is this chicken mole? If so, then yes I've eaten it)
96. Bagel and lox (mmmm)
97. Lobster Thermidor
98. Polenta (not a huge fan)
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake (NEVER)
Monday, August 18, 2008
A career path for composers
The TSO Australian Composers' School started today. I have been the co-ordinator of the school for the past two years, but this year my role was limited only to liaising with applicants and helping out with the selection process simply because I have been up to my ears with my piece and doing the Baby Thang.
Anyway, this morning I took Lillian along to the Welcome session, and we stayed to listen to part of Gerard Brophy's lecture which began by talking about a career path for composers. What? Yes, that's right, there really isn't one. I can't very well comment on the entire gist of the lecture because I had a small child on my lap who kept dropping her toy and trying to grab my lips with her hands, but Gerry touched on many topics including dealing with contracts, being necessarily concerned with earning a living to house, feed and clothe one's family, the fact that we are surrounded by music particularly in the iPod and movie-music generation, how some composers have been writing ringtones (I'm not sure if he was serious about this one) to earn some cash...
It's hard. In many ways being an academic is of course an easier option, and one that many composers choose to take simply because of the certainty of earning a salary. Theoretically, composers who work at a university have a fair degree of time in the week/year in which to write music, but in today's academic climate there are so many other things that need doing, you barely get any time to write music as part of your job and if you do, you're either lucky or determined not to be sunk into an administrative black hole. And of course, being an academic is never easy because getting a job in the first place is hard enough.
Anyway, I have to stop now. My baby won't stop crying even though she's supposed to be asleep, the washing is almost finished and I have to go and dig out some old yellow curtain material to make some duck feet for the four-year-old's Book Week costume for tomorrow, which I found out about, oh, 5 hours ago. Gee, being a composer is so romantic and productive.
Edited the nasty bits out on 27 August...
Anyway, this morning I took Lillian along to the Welcome session, and we stayed to listen to part of Gerard Brophy's lecture which began by talking about a career path for composers. What? Yes, that's right, there really isn't one. I can't very well comment on the entire gist of the lecture because I had a small child on my lap who kept dropping her toy and trying to grab my lips with her hands, but Gerry touched on many topics including dealing with contracts, being necessarily concerned with earning a living to house, feed and clothe one's family, the fact that we are surrounded by music particularly in the iPod and movie-music generation, how some composers have been writing ringtones (I'm not sure if he was serious about this one) to earn some cash...
It's hard. In many ways being an academic is of course an easier option, and one that many composers choose to take simply because of the certainty of earning a salary. Theoretically, composers who work at a university have a fair degree of time in the week/year in which to write music, but in today's academic climate there are so many other things that need doing, you barely get any time to write music as part of your job and if you do, you're either lucky or determined not to be sunk into an administrative black hole. And of course, being an academic is never easy because getting a job in the first place is hard enough.
Anyway, I have to stop now. My baby won't stop crying even though she's supposed to be asleep, the washing is almost finished and I have to go and dig out some old yellow curtain material to make some duck feet for the four-year-old's Book Week costume for tomorrow, which I found out about, oh, 5 hours ago. Gee, being a composer is so romantic and productive.
Edited the nasty bits out on 27 August...
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