and now...

trips to nz, trips to the snow, camping, sleeping, eating, being merry, working, hanging out with friends...

my recorder group is performing again at the Opera House next week and I am very please that one of my students auditioned and received a solo!  she is totally amazing!!!  well done to her.

after that i think it is only 3 weeks until the holidays and I am currently planning my next trip away.  hmmmm where to??

Kate and Dan have gone travelling for 6 months and we have a french couple staying in their room.  Camille and Alex.  Absolutely lovely people who are enjoying everything that Sydney and Australia has to offer.  at the moment they are in NT doing some of the Larapinta trail.   I hope they will be able to travel some of the great ocean road with me.

hurrah.

enjoy today!

just a few photos...  oh and i've started crocheting...  loving it!

xx

beautiful snow...

on the day I leave... of course. haha

slip sliding

trying to figure out how to put a tobies caramel roll into my mouth without getting it all over my face. hilarious!!

oh my goodness. they make angry bird beanies. haha. so cute.

so, I'm up in duluth and the weather is really getting colder, but not much snow still, which I suppose is good, seeing as I've been driving around. tonight I went to meet up with one of andy's friends and go out to a

movie, dinner and drinks. so f course it snowed a little. on the way there, I came to a stop at a stop sign and started sliding sideways onto a major road... fun fun fun... how

DOES one stop when they have their feet fully on the brake??

Then, climbing up a hill in town, a car at the stop sign infront of me started slipping towards me in the ice. I was a fair way away cos I wasn't trusting anything or anyone, but still it was a little interesting. how far was the ice there for him to slip? he changed his route, and I decided to take his new route, as the previous choice seemed a little icy!!!

on the way home (I only drank one local brew beer!!! so don't worry!!) it was minus 21 degrees celcius and OH MY GOODNESS, did I feel it!!!! I only had my fingerless mittens on and I was scared the tips of my fingers were actually going to fall off!! ouch!! it hurt so bad, and the car took forever to spit hot air out. I was almost home beforehand hands started to thaw.

WELCOME TO DULUTH!!!

:)

north star roller girls

it was beautiful. someone apologised to me on behalf of Minneapolis, minnesota AND America, for the lack of snow. and asked me please to not hold it against him that he could not provide as much snow this year as they had last year! loved it.

never thought I would be 'too warm' walking. i walked into downtown Minneapolis and was hot. man... bring on the snow! woohoo! I did, however, notice that lots of people seem to waddle over here. and on closer inspection, I realised I waddle too. it's the winter coats that cause it. or the mighty ducks... I think that was filmed over here. quack, quack, quack.

"A quarter of an inch, Charlie."

"Yeah, but a quarter inch the other way and you'd have missed completely."

"I never thought of it that way."

yeah, it was totally filmed over here.

things are really sweet over here, like juice and bread. that's my random thought. ih, and another one... so many people with carabeenas on their keys.

oh, and I went to my first roller derby here. fun to watch!! I'll have to go again in sydney.

anyways, bed for me now. I've been back at Mandy and andy's for the past couple of night, and tomorrow I borrow their car and drive off to duluth. I'm really looking forward to it.

night,

love to you all.

xx

it's snowing... oh yeah it's snowing!!!

not a lot and probably not for long, but I don't mind!!!

woohoo

Minneapolis... the cities...

happy new year!!

I woke up to a crying Noah at 7:00am on new years eve here which was midnight in sydney!! perfect timing. so wished you all in sydney a happy new year (in my head! haha) and then went back to sleep! we then drove up to st Paul to have a dinner on new years eve which was kindly cooked by a friends sister. it was a gourmet 5 course meal and few, it was divine!!! and to top off a decadent evening of eating, it snowed!!!!! so we drove back to Hastings in the most glorious fluffy snow. it was lovely to bring in the new year so beautifully, although unfortunately, the snow didn't continue... but it stayed on the ground for a couple of days. apparently the weather at the moment is more like April weather than January weather. I think I am the only person hoping for snow!!! everyone else is loving fact that it is mild.

on January 3rd, I left Hastings and came up to Minneapolis. I am living in a house called the greenhouse. it is an amazingly beautiful old house close to downtown minneapolis that was rundown and gutted and has been redone. there are 10 adults who live here plus me at the moment, and 3 kids under the age of 2. they are associated with a church called the salvage yard, although not everyone who lives here goes to that church. I have wandered around downtown and a coupleof other places in my time here. I have also spent some time getting to know some of the people in the house. they are so hospitable and I really do feel right at home. I am sharing a room with joi and we went to an art gallery together on Friday. she is kinda like me, bubbly, random, sarcastic, and busy. we get on real well. I have been lucky to go to a few community things of both their community and a few other communities that are friends with these guys. I hung out on a street corner last night and handed out free coffe/hot chocolate/soup to anyone who passed and then went out to a cafe called 'hard times' that draws a crowd of anyone, punks and bickies and hippies and intellectuals and really everyone. it is open til 4pm, serves organic vegetarian or vegan food and you can play boardgames there.... an experience in itself!

I have been spending a lot of time reading, chilling and learning how to just 'be'. this has been interesting for me as i thrive off being busy. I am loving it though. learning how to listen to myself. I have also had some time to reflect on different patterns and things that are going on in my life and also been dared to dream a little. what fun!

anyways, I'm just sitting in a common area being quite rude on my phone, so I might go back to chatting to the others in the room.

happy good day!

xx

don't know way happened to the font, but can't figure out how to change it on my phone... sorry!