15 months till the big four oh!

2007-05-09T11:15:00.000+02:00

Day 455: The last day. Yes Gentle Reader, I think tomorrow is the start of a new era, not the end of one. So the blog stops here as they say. I didn't achieve any of my body goals in the 15 months, but somehow stayed alive so thats an achievement. Im secretly amazed that I had the discipline to take a photo every day and more or less publish them regularly.
So, "forty years, how'd ya feel?" I have to say that my one and only sadness is missing out on fatherhood, otherwise in every case where I have wanted something and didn't get it, I got something unexpected and much better in its place. I have three university degrees but am most proud of my TAFE certificate in Fitness Training and my Zertificate Deutsch, both of which took copious amounts of blood, sweat and tears (not to mention embarassment and humiliation!).
My goals to reach by age 40 included living in a house I own (tick) and to have written a book (tick, I just received the rejection letter from Random House to prove it!). I have had magnificent friendships, the most important of which still go on.
I could mention all by name but mostly they know what's in my heart. Elaine, Lizzie, Kirsten, Penny (and any other Aussies who have read in secret!)
Hi Rinda also, who is the other regular reader, its nice to share some post modern community with you!

Anyway, before enlightenment chop wood carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood carry water.
Must be time to chop some wood and carry some water!

2007-05-08T13:52:00.000+02:00

Day 453: So here I am in my world. Still a bit unexpected, still amazing. A bit blurry around the edges, but full to overflowing. I know on Thursday I will wake up in the morning and actually no magical transformations will have taken place, but there is such a sense of significance in this birthday. Maybe its just a focal point for some timely regrouping and assessing of how things are and what I want to happen next. The 30s have been 'quite a ride', and doubtlessly the best is yet to come.

2007-05-07T11:15:00.000+02:00

Day 452: I think I look quite noice.

2007-05-06T13:19:00.000+02:00

Day 451: Pardon Monsieur, but it is I who shall be the next President of Fwarnce.

2007-05-05T12:25:00.000+02:00

Day 450: Heathcliff! Its ME! Cathy! I've come home.

2007-05-04T20:35:00.000+02:00

Day 449: In the incredible glow of sunset. The rain didn't eventuate, apart from a few spits. Just enough to get out of mowing the lawn though, so that was advantagous. The pumpkins have emerged and the first shoots are appearing in the bed of summer flowers, so I'm rather excited about activities in the garden at the moment. We also planted sunflowers, capsicum, carrots, corn, tomato, zuchini and cucumber today so by the time I come back from Aus we should be eating very delicious homegrown salad for the rest of summer.

A dear friend suggested that giving up chocolate for good would be a bit extreme for her, especially as she still had some delciious stuff in the cupboard from Easter. Hmmm, I'm not sure exactly how to fit the term "ipso facto" into a sentence, but when you still have chocolate in the cupboard from Easter, there is some level of self control which is admirable and healthy. When you don't have chocolate in the cupboard from TUESDAY... perhaps the options need to be more drastic!

2007-05-03T12:42:00.000+02:00

Day 448: Today's Sesame Street is proudly brought to you by the number 39 and the word 'procrastination'.
Yes, here is the result of the morning's German Homework. I have been toying with an idea for a new photo project and wanted to try a few things in terms of manipulation. This is nothing like the result I was hoping for but even I know there is a time to say enough is enough, please do something more worthwhile with your time. Then again, catching up with good old Lene Lovich via YouTube must have some value, her Lucky Number is still two. Aye. Aye. Aye yi yi.

2007-05-02T10:03:00.000+02:00

Day 447: No I havn't turned into Alan Bates' mother, its a birthday present for my niece. Glad I found something 'on special' because the post from Germany is an outrageous price.

Day 446: All moody and thoughtful like and that (I wonder if 'and that' is a peculiarly Australian turn of phrase?) Do some homework you lazy lazy boy.

2007-04-30T20:43:00.000+02:00

Day 445: Nobody nose the trouble I've seen...

2007-04-29T14:16:00.000+02:00

Day 444: More gardening, more homework. I think I will have to give up chocolate when I turn 40, it probably needs to be a full time thing, as with any adiction. Still, it seems unthinkable to never again taste Cadbury Dairy Milk! Maybe if everyone sends me some pre-birthday I can get it out of my system!! Otherwise I can see myself wandering thoughtlessly into the 7-11 at Changi Airport and scoffing some down before I even remember my plans. Sounds like a true addict talking doesnt it. I did read that one can conquour chocolate addiction by only eating it when absolutely full. Not sure that it has anything to do with appetite and hunger though.

Day 443: The afternoon sun is such a strong orange at the moment.

Day 442: After 6 hours heavy labour in the garden, 30+degrees.

2007-04-26T12:12:00.000+02:00

Day 441; A peaceful day so far, have done a lot of study and also more washing. Its strange how relaxing I find hanging out clothes, and how immensely satisfying it is to have everything clean and in the cupboard. I suspect it comes from the years I spent in a flat with a shared laundry. I knew I would hate it before I moved in, but there was no choice in the matter. As it turned out it was worse than I could have imagined. The laundry was an alcove next to the flat of the crazy woman, a drug addled prostitute who was very often beaten up by or beat up her drug addled boyfriend, who she had previously escaped from to a refuge and then invited him round as soon as the refuge found her a flat of her own. How I don't miss the 3am door bell calls of drunk guys she met in the pub and invited round for business purposes pressing the wrong button... ANYWAY! Its kind of scary doing the washing with people yelling and screaming, then hoping against hope there might be space on the clothes line. It happened about once a month that all was quiet in the laundry, the sun was shining and there was space on the line. I would do as many loads as necessary and hope for the best. But those days are long gone, and this glorious weather means the first thing you hang out is almost dry by the time you hang the last item out... then the mother in law scurries out and collects all the clothes and irons them (including socks and underpants!), and refuses to hand anything over until everything has been ironed at professional precision standard. Not such a bad life!

2007-04-25T20:30:00.000+02:00

Day 440: We collected the new car today, Yay!! Its a very exciting event and really quite thrilling to have something new (and not to pay a fortune to repair something old!).

Its a strange feeling as this project draws to a close, I am pondering if and how it might evolve into something else. Needless to say as a motivating tool for weight loss its been at best a farce. A few nice portraits throughout but thats about it. Can't say I've learnt anything about myself except that when I don't get around to shaving I look worse than I thought. I have a lot more grey than I'd realised, especially on the face. My head is disproportinately large, although I knew that before. If it was a lot smaller my body with have rather spunky classical proportions but its drawfed by the enormous noggin. Yesterday I heard a saying from the Ukraine: If a man has no common sense by the time he's 20, he'll never have any. If a man has no family by the time he's 30, he'll never have any. If a man has no money by the time he's 40,,, yes, you can work out the horrific end. So please send cash in the next 14 days! Although it does say by the time he's 40, not AT the time he's 40 so maybe those couple of years as a moderately over paid publc servant will save the day when all is said and done!

2007-04-24T13:42:00.000+02:00

Day 439: Pink Pyjamas... I would never have imagined myself in pink pyjamas, but there you go.

Day 438: All Touristed out. Really needing to sit and vegetate for a bit, feet up telly on.

Day 437: Out in the woods. where Spring has sprung.

2007-04-23T10:37:00.000+02:00

Day 436: A week on the tourist trail at the pace of a 17 year old, which I no longer am! Here I am in Sachsenhausen, one of the old town sections of Frankfurt. It used to be a really great area full of German restaurants and bars for applewine and saurkraut with schnitzel, now its Irish Pubs and Brazilian bars with pizza and doner kebab on the menu. Not on our tourist must see list any longer.

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Day 435: Outside Castle Ronneburg, which is quite beautiful and VERY old (not unlike my own good self!). This is also where we watched the hot air balloons at Easter

Dar 434: In the market place at Seligenstadt, a beautiful town on the river, built around an ancient abbey which has a spectacular walled garden and on Thursday the Brothers bake bread to a medieval recipe and you can line up and buy it straight out of the oven. All future visitors to us should expect the trek to Seligenstadt on a Thursday morning!

Day 433: Me on a Ferris Wheel at the Dippemesse. You can see I don't like heights, although I do love Ferris Wheels as long as they are moving and you arn't hanging wobbling stuck at the top. The Dippemesse is now a fun fair that takes place twice a year in Frankfurt, it has evolved from a crockery and cookware market that dates back to the middle ages, especially featuring the dippeware that originates in the Frankfurt region.

Day 432: Me in the baroque splendour of Schloss Phillipsrue, here in Hanau.

2007-04-16T10:32:00.000+02:00

Day 431: Needless to say my plan to go to the gym at 7am didn't come to fruition, even though I was awake from 5.30. Oh well, now I have a couple of hours to cook, clean, study, exercise, vanquish my demons, all before Air France lands at 4.50pm! I do look pretty though!

2007-04-15T12:52:00.000+02:00

Day 430: Sometimes this blogger programme has a mind of its own, eg pulishing the photo upside down no matter how it's positioned in real life. Oh well, I wasn't hanging upside down in the roof window and you get what you pay for, in this case it comes for free so beggers can't be choosers (although you can be a begger but you don't have to look it). Tried something else now which makes the above even more nonsensical. Well that's what you get when its suddenly 15 degrees hotter than a few days before!

2007-04-14T19:13:00.000+02:00

Day 429: A reasonably painful day of contemplation and reflection, realising that the things I miss about Sydney - relationships, intimacies, connections - for the most part no long exist or do so in very altered ways, to be honest 'diminished' is the word that comes to mind. If one thinks of 40 as a mid-point of life, I wonder what I have yet to achieve and experience. I wonder if the most significant events have already taken place... I wonder what will happen to us when we're old, who will do for us what we do for our elders?
If I take a coaching approach and decide that my goal for the day was to avoid the gym, gorge on chocolate, indulge in pointless wallowing, then I can give myself 100% and theoretically provide an experience of success upone which to model my future endeavours. Yay!

2007-04-13T09:59:00.000+02:00

Day 428.

2007-04-12T11:53:00.000+02:00

Day 427: Not a lot to say really, have been very distracted while trying to do my homework, scoffing down the last remaining scraps of Easter chocolate and generally pretending to be good. By the way, this green t shirt is my jimmy jam shirt, I don't wear the same clothes every day. I just sometimes don't get properly dressed until... quite late.

Day 426.

2007-04-10T10:41:00.000+02:00

Day 425: ONE month till the big four oh! Hmmmm. Think I'll go and eat worms.

2007-04-09T19:25:00.000+02:00

Day 424: By now I don't even care if there is a chocolate in the wrapper or not!

2007-04-08T18:03:00.000+02:00

Day 423: Easter Sunday. Had a nice family day with a return of warm cloudless sunny weather (perfect for bike rides and picnics, or in reality naps and chocolate eating). Here I am with the "diet" version of our Easter stash, although to be fair this is less than half of what we got last year and a large proportion of the basket is painted hard boiled eggs. Still, a few KGs of chocolate on offer none the less. Back on the strict programme tomorrow, I need to be back on track with the 1kg loss each week if I am to achieve my birthday goal (which suprisingly enough is no longer a washboard stomach....).

2007-04-07T22:09:00.000+02:00

Day 422: To be truthful, more acurately day 421 and 23/24ths but lets not nitpick at this late stoige. Here I am with kaleidescope eyes, watching a rather surreal event of 10 hot air balloons lighting their fires in time with various pieces of music. There is a balloon competition on in the nearby village of Ronnenburg this weekend and the step son of my cousin in law (and the court of King Caractacus) is one of the pilots. The balloons had to stay grounded and the sway and bob like huge jelly fish until its their turn to light the fire again and they seem to fill out and stand to attention. Quite fascinating. Also discovered there is a sport for people who have radio controlled hot air balloons, they are about 4m high and the fire is controlled by remote control. Someone has to hold on to it all with a rope so I'm still not clear on the exact point of it, but it looks pretty enough in the dark!

2007-04-06T13:01:00.000+02:00

Day 421: Good news, I still lost half a KG this week despite subsisting on easter eggs and buns. Which reminds me I had intended to call yesterday's posting "check out my hot buns", so laugh now intead. ho ho ho... wait a minute, that's Christmas not Easter. Anyway, perfect weather here today which will make watching the hot air balloon race this evening very pleasant indeed.
There is a very cool blog called Sydney Daily Photo ( http://sydneynearlydailyphot.blogspot.com/ ) which is well worth a look, I think Sally the author works somewhere very near my old office in Centenial Plaza and often posts photos of my old haunts in the inner east and inner west. Todays post of a Darrell Lea chocolate shop is a great one, there is something magical about their baby mini easter eggs, which re-appear at Christmas as Christmas baubles. Nothing like sitting down to the very old historical or biblical movie on Good Friday afternoon with a packet of DL mini eggs, saving the Red Tulip egg for Sunday of course. Maybe my chocolate obsession will never end, I just have to counteract it rather than conquer it. I wonder if I should try to write a book about it and use it to my advantage!

2007-04-05T15:10:00.000+02:00

Day 420: Yes, the hot cross buns were a success! Should have trusted myself with the white crosses on top, but pre-cooking they looked so terrible I left half without whereas cooked they were just as they should be. Oh well! If there are any left for tomorrow it will be nice to have them on Good Friday.
I am on a bit of a backwards slide diet wise, mostly due to stress eating. Its difficult to put into practise the knowledge that one 'should' find alternate ways of dealing with stress when one is in the middle of a stress attack! My father has decided he needs to go into a nursing home, which is another of these fine theoretical ideas but faced with the reality of course every factor involved is much more complicated. Because of his illness he is really incapable of any positive or optimistic though, so while its difficult to comprehend the scope of his thoughts at the moment I can only imagine its a dark place for him.
Anyway, will try to combat stress and eating with some time at the gym.

2007-04-04T20:20:00.000+02:00

Day 419: Well here I am again. I found out today that I passed my last German exam with a good grade, although am yet to get the official results. I'm very excited about it really, I've never gone into an exam before with such a sense of how much I didn't know, and with so little certainty about what was needed or expected to get good marks. Anyway, yay me!

Yesterday we took the plunge and booked the flight to Sydney, the intensity of all the emotions really sent me into a spin (not a good day for the gym / chocolate balance all in all). I love the thought of being in Australia, but its painful imagining being away from home which is certainly here now. I have a childish sense of glee at being on 3 continents within a 28 hour time period, but feel nauseous at the thought of flying again. And on it goes. In any case, its an obligation that must be fullfilled and off I go. Have to try not to overdose on chocolated this time and hopefully there will be more flexibility with timing and I will get a day or so in Sydney to see people properly. I still cringe in horrified shame when I remember my dear friend KH struggling off to the train with baby, pram, AND my hand luggage that was too heavy to take with me without paying hundreds of dollars. And of course ES zipping up the coast to visit despite the arthritic joints and baby in tow. Not to mention BFDL, out at the airport at 6am and willing to do it again!
Yes, it will be nice to see people in a relaxed and happy way, at the non jetlag end of the trip too!

Oh, and I got some painting done too, so rather pleased with that achievement. The rough skeleton of the fourth and last piece in the Verticality series is in the background of today's photo. Yesterday's is quite nice too, or so I think! There was an amazing sunset where the sun was like a cut out bronze ball, and for a short time it was visible in reflection on the artwork in the kitchen. I was struggling to get both it and me in the same shot, and then of course all too quickly it was gone. Anyway, there is something a bit Wuthering Heights about Day 418 and this was possibly the one moment I wasn't eating comfort food and or biting my lip!

PS, the spell checker no longer works, so apologies in anticipation!

Day 418.

2007-04-02T11:27:00.000+02:00

Day 417: So its my 'dedicated painting day" and by 11.30 I have not painted anything, although I have unpacked the canvas, looked at it, photographed it, drawn some new charcoal lines on it, looked on the internet, written some emails, phoned my Mum. Seems we have found a reasonable flight deal for August although the flights seem very popular so probably its going to be another 30 hours in the cattle wagon.
I tried to find the April Fools articles in the SMH yesterday, first I thought all the carry on about Ian Thorpe was an April Fool, but it has gone on too long. Probably the article about how the Pyramids were built from the inside out was one though. The best one ever was that the new waitressess at Yum Cha restaurants in Chinatown would need to hang "L" plates on their trolley for a probationary period. I recall being absolutely outraged at this attack on dignity and then thinking "well, maybe it makes sense". My boss at the time couldn't have been more delighted by my reaction if he'd thought the whole thing up himself.

TIme to Paint! "I'm frightened by the devil, and I'm drawn to those ones who aint afraid"

2007-04-01T10:51:00.000+02:00

Day 416: Well my prediction was wrong and I didn't wait until today to remember to post my blog photos. Didn't lose any weight this week, but dropped a cm which is much more important. Looks like I will be zipping back to AUS in July, so must stay on track until then, for vanity if nothing else!
We reached one of the years saddest, or maybe simply poignant moments this weekend. After Spring bursts in and the dead twigs start to fill with green buds, the tulips bloom, the birds sing, all is fresh... then comes the moment when the first flowers droop and die, the ground under the magnolia tree is a carpet of burnished withered petals. Time keeps moving, one can't sit back in complacency, we have to keep taking it all in and enjoying the brevity of each moment.
How I crave to be witty and popular this morning but alas not, I must stop mumbling here and do the washing up.

Day 415.

2007-03-30T17:01:00.000+02:00

Day 414: Another daily rant, how dedicated am I this week. Here I am with my very last Twinings Lady Grey Teabag. I brought 200 of them with me back in 2004, and they have lasted till now. I was right in thinking they wouldn't be available here (although you can get the loose leaf version in the equivalent of David Jones Food Hall), but I've since realised that its the bergamot flavour I like, and that is the point of Earl Grey tea, which is readily available here, even in Aldi. So, farewell to Lady Grey (and Lady Jane for that matter.) Another twinge in the balance between home here and home there. Not sure if I will be so keen on travelling through Sydney Airport now though, I read yesterday that there will be new security measures including body frisks, and of course the restrictions on gels and liquids in hand luggage. In inimitable Aussie style, the new security staff will be wearing bright yellow t-shirts with the slogan "Pack it right, enjoy your flight" printed on the front. Now call me sensitive, but I'm not entirely comfortable with the idea of someone working under that particular mission statement having legal access to a feel of my 'inside leg'...

2007-03-29T16:38:00.000+02:00

Day 413: Totally disorganized at the moment, about 4 hours behind on my German study and too much homework to do before tomorrow to head to the gym. Did do quite a lot of walking though so probably won't blow up just yet! In this photo I look a bit blurry because I was actually spinning round on the chair, it would have been cool to be even more blurry but I don't have time to experiement with timers etc so it will just have to look more farty than arty for today.

2007-03-28T20:46:00.000+02:00

Day 412: Not exactly a self portrait, but at least it was my idea! We have some very beautiful sunsets here and I try very hard not to think about the connection between stunning sunsets and particles in the air from all the factories and industry in the region. Speaking of which, I rode past Dunlop (the biggest industry and employer in Hanau) and it smelled exactly like a new pair of Dunlop Volleys, which ironically you can't buy in Germany. Oh I remember in my day the old D.V.s were cheap and unfashionable, yet sturdy and reliable. In the past few years they became fashionable and so the price more than doubled.
I have to record for the whole world that yesterday I went on a 35km bike ride. Impressive don't you think? Slightly unsettling that the only after effects are in the knees, hopefully not a portent of things to come. I must say that the ice cream I had at the destination village, so the half way mark, was the most delicious and guilt free treat I have ever eaten!

2007-03-27T09:30:00.000+02:00

Day 411: Conversations NOT to have in German, with a naked Greek Bodybuilder, while in the shower.

Yes my amazing linguistic prowess has marvelled not only me but others, yet again. Here is a conversation I had last night while having a shower at the gym after my workout. Its one of those big shower rooms without partitions, with a soap dispenser on the wall at the end. I'll give you the english version, its what was heard. Senf... Seife... who knew??

Shwarzeneggeresque Big Guy: Is there shampoo in there? (pointing to soap dispenser I had just used).
ME: No, I don't believe it is shampoo, I think it is only mustard in there.
SGB: Huh?
ME: No, I have forgotten the word. Shampoo is for hairs or not? Those word is for cleaning the skin. Excuse me, mustard is of course a food, for your little sausage.
SGB: (recoils slightly) My little sausage?
ME: Excuse me, my German is not so good. What is the word for it?
SGB: Are you from England?
ME: No, Australia.
SGB: Oh, Australia. I think its a very beautiful country, nicer than here. You should stay there.

At least I maintained my facial features, if not my dignity!

2007-03-26T17:20:00.000+02:00

DAY 410: Its curious how things turn out. In the middle of my little homesickness tizz I got some truly lovely affirmations from friends old and new, which really went down noice as they say in Fountain Lakes! Then more bizarre than one could imagine, today my inlaws came back from the supermarket with two wattle trees! Huh?? Yes, for some reason the supermarket here had a big display of Australian trees for sale (they survive in pots and need to come inside for the winter), and without knowing anything of my wistful mood NOR my deep love of wattle, they just saw "Australien" and grabbed a couple of pots. Apparently it was a bit of a scrum! Today was also warm enough for us to bring all the other plants out of the cellar and back into the garden until around November, so the world feels right again. If even ONE of the 75 verbs with prepositions I've translated today stays in my brain, I will be even more delighted. Actually if Jeanine gets evicted from Big Brother tonight, I will experience total contenment... did I just admit to watching Big Brother? Oh how the mighty have fallen (me, not her!)

2007-03-25T10:57:00.000+02:00

Day 409: (It's actually today!) Yes, finally up to date with the blog photos, I wonder how long it will last? Probably until next weekend when I realize that I again haven't uploaded any photos for a week. Oh well. Here I am in the flash of sun we had this morning, I managed to get up at 10, which is 'really' 9, so hopefully the school week earlier starts won't be too painful. I have been a bit homesick or restless or something this week. My Dad is deteriorating so rapidly, there is a real drive to jump on a plane and somehow 'fix' things, even though this is a completely irrational drive. I miss the energy of King Street and Enmore Road, I miss the ocean, I miss a sense of connection and community that comes with a shared language, even if its superficial. I miss a sense of mastery and competence in 'something', its amazing how much of my self identity is wrapped up in being a competent communicator and user of language. At the moment my head is swimming so frantically trying to learn German I am even unsure if my English is correct a lot of the time. At least I've mastered baking with Plain Flour, although of course cakes are off the diet until further notice! I miss being called "love" or "darl" by the ladies in the supermarket at Forster. I have a sense of grief that most of the friendships in Australia I felt were important and meaningful have proven impossible to sustain. I feel very sad that my youngest niece is now 4 and a half months old and no one has yet sent me a photo of her. Apparently "its what Jesus would do."

Meanwhile, I love feeling "at home", even if some days it only exists within the garden walls (I also love having a big garden!), I love having a very enthusiastic and professional teacher helping me learn this crazy language, I love feeling part of a family who celebrates me and wants to spend time with me, I love my studio / work room and need to harness the discipline to utlilise it more effectively. I love walking in the same woods the Brothers Grimm walked in, and imagining fairy tale characters hiding behind trees. I love having interesting plans for Easter, and the possibility of very easily visiting the Hildegard Abbey on my birthday. Of course the one reason I'm here in the first place is what makes life meaningful in jedanfall (any case!) I am resolved to knowing I will not be thin and gorgeous on my 40th birthday, but will at least be thin and healthy before I reach 41.

Day 408.

2007-03-24T21:10:00.000+01:00

Days 398 to 407.

2007-03-23T15:22:00.000+01:00

Day 391 - 397.

2007-03-22T14:30:00.000+01:00

Days 381-390: Frank Thring????? How VERY dare you!

2007-03-21T11:07:00.000+01:00

Days 374 - 380 (slightly out of order I think!) Here I am in full Karnival Regalia. First for the local parade on Sunday, which is a very fun community event. We invited various cousins and family members over, watched the parade and had a BBQ where I created authentic "Aussie Burgers" for all. It was 15 degrees (almost 20 degrees warmer than the same day last year!) so we were able to sit out in the sunshine. The next day we headed to the Rosen Montag (Rose Monday) parade in a small town called Selingenstadt, which hosts this very professional and elaborate parade featuring more than 100 floats, bands, groups of dancing girls, costumes of every description. Every single person in the crowd had a costume, or at least a funny hat or bit of glitter on their face. It was an amazing experience (although it had turned cold again and the parade is long. 4 hours is a long time to stand on cobble stones in a hawaiian shirt!)

2007-03-19T20:02:00.000+01:00

Days 368 through to 373: Don't be alarmed, this series is getting into the time when we were getting ready for the fancy dress season of Karnival, it doesn't necessarily indicate an alteration of socio-cultural values!

2007-03-16T20:28:00.000+01:00

Day 367: But its VERY slow, so that's your bloomin' lot.

Day 366: Nice to be in the second year of this body shape changing project... while looking like I'm in the fourth trimester of a pregnancy. Not to worry, have been right on track and the kgs, or at least portions of kgs are melting away! Have had sufficient treats for sanity and warding off hunger most of the time. I must stop reading dietary advice online though, its the age old story that for every approach someone endorces, someone else decides its going to kill you.

Day 365: Poo bum wee. the photo uploading thingy works again after 2 days, so I am unable to blame technology and pack it in!

2007-03-14T20:57:00.000+01:00

So, a month later I finally get organized and prepare the 35 overdue photos, and for some reason blogger won't recognize any of my files. Maybe a sign that I should be getting back to my german homework this evening and blog later. Meanwhile you will be pleased to know that 2 weeks after the health scare I have been RIGHT ON TRACK, losing weight at the healthy weight of around 1kg a week, zipping off to the gym 5 times a week and of course walking the poodle for an hour or so every day in any case. All this and have even been able to indulge in a few freddos which arrived as an early birthday present. Dear old Freddo, its one of life's great tragedies that Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate is the one and only taste of Australia that is as good as or better than I remember it. Everything else falls off the radar after a while, but with the Dairy Milk I'm back to square one with the first taste.... which I must admit is from the 7-11 convenience store in Singapore Airport. Speaking of which, I CAN buy Cadbury chocolate here, but its via the UK and has a very different taste. Ironically though, its actually produced in Singapore whereas the chocolate they actually sell in Singapore is made in Australia. Works for me never the less.
Perhaps this long disertation on Chocolate does not bode well for my future lifestyle choices!
Happy Birthday Dr D!

2007-02-08T14:03:00.000+01:00

day 364: Here I am again, one week of being Florence Nightingale ( well, living up to her reputation at least, apparently the reality was something quite different) and one week of being the dying swan. Ahh the flu that comes back and forth like a tennis ball between us and the health giving qualities of having to go out in the rain and snow to take BB for his walk! Got to see some interesting telly though, my theory is that if you can't understand what a commercial is for, probably it's for tampons. All these women sleeping hanging upside down on trapezes above their beds...huh?? Yes, its in case their tampons fall out in the night, until they discover the new super size product. Another woman walks through the world while a carpet of flowers appears two steps ahead of her the whole time and men flirt with her as she laughs hysterically at crazy situations such as standing on an escalator... yes, she choose the right tampon and is now filled with confidence (so to speak).

Clearly I am losing interest in the project if the above discussion is any indication. Might as well keep on with it though, until the lights go out on May 10th, unless a path of flowers appears before my feet!

Day 363.

day 362.

Day 361.

Day 360.

Day 359.

Day 358.

Day 357.

Day 356.

Day 355.

Day 354.

2007-01-28T13:46:00.000+01:00

Day 354: What a week. Have been studying intensively for yesterdays German exam which left me well equipped to pass but more aware than ever of how much I have yet to learn. At least now the gramatic structure is a hazy distant logic rather than a mish mash of unpredictable surprises. On the health front, took the path of least resistance and resorted to the old study aid of Cadbury Dairy Milk, or in this case to be precise Ritter Alpen Milch (Knight brand Alpine Milk). Today you can see me trying to restrict my intake.

Went to a family funeral where the machinations and dramas were truly worthy of King Lear, although I'm not sure that there were any parties more sinned against than sinning. The widow, aka evil step mother, was the only one who visably enjoyed herself. Probably because she is half blind and couldn't see anyone else, is now very rich, and hardly anyone has spoken to her for years anyway so it was nothing new. We have inadvertantly been cut out of one person's family tree, but possibly we won't notice. When someone's husband is called "Stasi Boy", in all likelihood there is little love left to be lost at this late stage.

Anyway, on with the fun. No excuses to be back in the gym routine of daily visits. Its now probably around 15 weeks till the big four oh, and the end of this project. Looks like I won't be starting my 5th decade (ouch, that would have been better not committed to print!) with a spunky superfit body, nor a fascinating photojournal to flog. Probably have a nice bit of cake though....

Day 353: Through a glass darkly... didn't break it though!

Day 352.

Day 351.

Day 350.

Day 349.

Day 348.

Day 347.

Day 346.

Day 345.

2007-01-18T17:12:00.000+01:00

Day 344: We are in the middle of a "Code Red" hurricane warning here, some enormous storm is moving south from the Arctic, flooding towns and blowing semi trailers off bridges. I WOULD have gone to the gym today, but the police have asked everyone to stay inside unless they have emergency business to attend to elsewhere. All the kiddies have been sent home from school, and the dog ate my homework.

Day 343: Have you ever baked a birthday cake for a dog? Its really a nice thing to do.

Day 342: In the footsteps of Hildegard.

Day 341: A face like a fit is that.

Day 340: The world's cutest creature (and his poodle!) Oh how we laughed.

Day 339: Lernen Lernen Lernen.

Day 338: Den comes in first, then dem comes next both of dem, and des comes last.
Der Die Das Die
Den Die Das Die
Dem Der Dem Den(n)
Des(s) Der Des(s) Der.

Had forgotten until this week that some of the above "thes" can also mean "that" and or "who". Yay!

Day 337.

Day 336: Looking rather festive here, and confrontingly visceral. Yairs, these tracky daks have seen better days!

Day 335: Everybody sing, la la-la la-la LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA.

Day 334.

Day 333: Feeling like a major boombah today, so hiding in the photoshop.

Day 332: How many times can a tv station show the same show without being quite ashamed? We are paying a fortune for some english speaking channels, and have now seen the same episode of 4 different sitcomes 6, yes 6, times in the past 6 months. Especially annoying when you know there are 7 or 8 series of these shows available. "Welcome to my gracious drawing room."

Day 331.

2007-01-04T22:56:00.000+01:00

Day 330: Oh well, yesterday was good!

Day 329: So this is what it feels like. Did a huge and satisfactory session of German study, went to gym, walked the dog, ate fruit and veg till it was coming out my ears. What a hero!

Day 328.

2007-01-01T11:58:00.000+01:00

alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5015016768763020562" />
Day 327: New Year's Day. 2007. I can remember at age 7 or 8, Mum worked out that in the Year 2000 I would be 33 years old. I burst into tears, not at fear of aging, but at the enormity of time and the extent that things can and must change (putting a very grown up interpretation on it now). Today Y2K is ancient history, and for that matter so is the concept of 15 months till the big four oh! It is four months and 9 days now till the big four oh and becoming more oh my gawd every minute. I wonder if there is artisitic curiosity in a photo blog that shows how someone can maintain their weight at 20kg above what is desirable, for an entire 15 months? More value added if it's the 15 months leading up to their 40th birthday?
Anyway, its now afternoon on the first of January and I have not smoked, drunk alcohol, or done many other VERY bad things that people do. I have spoken to 2 people, one and a half of these conversations was in German. I have eaten one portion of fruit, and drunk much water. I WOULD have already gone to the gym, but the brief flash of sunshine that appeared in the morning rapidly turned into a freakish torrential rain storm so I am still at home. Blog done, homework begun.

Day 326: New Year's Eve. Looking dare I say it quite cool and neary swarthy! No doubt something like this will make my fans swoon when printed on the back cover of my cult novels...

Day 325: I've got one word to say to you Kimmie (not Kimi), Arty Farty. I hoped the camera would shoot me through the blue bottles, but alas not. Oh well. I look much the same today.

Day 324: At the new computer on the new computer desk! My new work station where marvelous things will happen, creativity wise. Meanwhile I am being a luddite again trying to navigate this new bloggger format. Why oh why can't things just stay the same, well at least the good things and or things I can work out!

Day 323: Happy Birthday Mum.

2006-12-26T16:09:00.000+01:00

Day 322: Having sampled every flavour, taste, food and experience that in my memory constitutes a good Christms, PLUS the same for what constitues a good German Christmas, I think this photo is as much detail as I care to share. At least you can see me glowing with inner peace and very little guilt!

Day 321: A very definate 'not in Kansas" moment, walking through the foggy forest on Christmas day. My second Christmas outside Australia (without my Mum!), but it was one of the best Christmases ever. I felt more like a grown up AND more like a kid than I have for years, really fantastic, thanks to my Christmas Angel who fortunately flits down more than once a year.

Day 320: Christmas Eve, the big family celebration day in Germany. Here I am presenting the pudding, which is an entirely new phenomenon for my German family. In Australia, Auntie Queenie made 2 puddings every year, in August or September I think. One for Christmas day, one for my mother's birthday on the 28th. I was the one appointed to take over cooking the pudding but Queen died before she could pass on the recipe. So, i followed the Commonsense Cookbook to the letter and it was an unbelievable sensation to taste the pudding, exactly as I remember it. A slightly different texture but taste was so close it was very exciting. I could hear my grandmother and her sister chattering away in the background as I made it so perhaps there was assistance from above throughout the process. We never set the pudding alight in Australia, but since it was around 0.5 degrees and very dark, it seemed a good idea. Another cooking success was getting the baked potatos extremely crispy, only to have my father in law tapping them suspiciously and cutting off every scrap of crispy crust! Oh well.

DAY 319: ALMOST Christmas! Very organized, and rather childish. Doing a lot of shaking of presents from under the tree.

2006-12-22T12:08:00.000+01:00

Day 318: In the early dawn light as I head for school. So dark and cold, I always expect to get there and discover I'm 3 hours too early and should go home to bed. Alas no.

Another excellent German saying (for someone never satisfied): I could catch flies with my bum for you, and you still wouldn't be happy.

Day 317: Today was the shortest day of the year. There is something slightly unsettling about walking in the freezing cold rugged up to the nines, in the dark at 4.30pm listening to "6 white boomers" on the iPod. In anycase, the last of the Christmas shopping completed so feeling very righteous if not downright saintly!
Here in Germany, the Christmas celebrations are mainly on Heilig Arbend (Christmas Eve), although I refuse to open my presents until the 25th. Does it mean there are 3 more sleeps or 4 more sleeps?

Day 315: Study study study. Before I went to Australia I rated 3 out of 5 for my grammer in my letter writing, since I've been back (after 6 weeks of no german), it's slipped to 1 out of 5. When I get it up to 4 out of 5 for the actual exam, all shall be well. Today in our test test, there was one crucial word that I didn't know, and my guess was way off. My letter won't be as incorrect as it could have been by chance, but it certainly has an unintended sarcastic tone. "I certainly hope you will be able to complete your house move without the dictionary I borrowed 3 months ago, I will bring it back on Saturday". What I thought I wrote was "I hope you will be able to complete your thesis without the dictionary...". Sowieso.

Other excellend German sayings (for the pretentious person): She wants to piss with the big dogs, but she can't lift her leg high enough!

2006-12-19T14:41:00.000+01:00

Day 314: The annual newsletter from Elaine's mother arrived this morning, so it must be Christmas after all. I missed out on my copy last year (until a protest saw one arrive in February), however this year I even feature within. Hopefully my ascension will continue in 2007!
Unfortunately I seem to have watched TV and developed square eyes. Hopefully all the other old wives tales arn't also true ... which reminds me, it's bad luck (according to OMA) to have washing on the line during the 12 days of Christmas. I wonder if she made it up so she didn't have to do any washing? Nevertheless, we will need to wash whatever is in the basket tomorrow or else it may not dry before the 25th and bring a curse upon our heads. On a more practical note, we must have nice clean clothes for NYE when we need to eat Sauerkraut at midnight to ensure we have enough money in the year to come.

Day 313: At the FFM Christmas Market. If there is anything that is truly 'UnAustralian', its a cold Christmas. Still magical though, I love it.

Day 312: Window shopping after carol singing. O du frohliche, O du selige, gnadenbringde Weihnachtsziet!

2006-12-16T22:47:00.000+01:00

Day 311: So! Day four of my 'back into the routine, off to the gym 6 times a week' new lifestyle. It is certainly hard to take the first steps out the door, especially when its freezing cold and dark (in the middle of the day, I don't go in the early morning!). Today however I'm really feeling the effectiveness of my workout, although not the effectiveness of my stretching regime. Its a very pleasing kind of pain, despite the shuffling pathetically up stairs and slow motion groaning when trying to sit down. And tomorrow the whole shebang starts all over again!

Day 310: Sometimes it's wothwhile making a brief trip to the past, especially with the safety net of absolute unconditional love available. It is fascinating how words can hold, and lose, their power. More amazing how things can also turn out very nicely indeed! ild.

2006-12-14T18:26:00.000+01:00

Day 309: Another timely confrontation of the terrible truth, probably I could only face it in the knowledge that I finally made it back to the gym and did a lot of walking today. When I was 17 my father installed a full length mirror in the bathroom and said "surely if you can see what you look like you'll do something about yourself". Seems to have backfired as I didn't look in any mirror for the following 15 years, kind of shocking even now to see what I do look like. Not a startling amount of progress really, not surprising this blog hasn't developed a cult following! Should have had more nudity. What is that you say?
Please God, no? Ok then!

Day 308: No tricks, this is what I really looked like. Shortly after this was taken I dreamed that half the people I know were getting beauty makeovers by the girls of the Playboy mansion... no more late night TV for me!

Day 307: Hard at work with the online german dictionary. Now we are learning how to use words in sentences where the word then creates a meaning for that context which is different from its actual literal meaning. I'm still trying to keep up with the actual literal meanings... could there be a more complicated and confounding system than the German grammer? I might go to the part of Africa where people just click their tongues.

Day 306: All of my sins arn't as numerous as all of my chins... but looking very adorable here ho ho.

Day 305: The birthday preparations.

2006-12-09T17:54:00.000+01:00

Day 304: It's dark by 4.30 at the moment, or so it seems with the rain. How clever of us to train the dog not to go to the toilet in the back yard, so that on days like these we still need a trip to the woods!

Day 303: Just discovered this cool filter in Photoshop, it works even better when there is more contrast and more colours in the original, but I like it.

Day 302: Sick of being sick, here I am sleeping in my studio but it's all a big game of germy tennis and alas the ball is again in my court.

Day 301: It's Nikolaus! If you leave your red boots outside the door, Santa will knock on the door with his broom, then come inside. If you have been good, he gives you a present. If you have been naughty, you get smacked on the bum with the broom.
Should have done more homework, apparently.

Day 300.

Day 299: Poodle Paws in the background.

2006-12-03T08:25:00.000+01:00

Day 298: Yay, its today! Finally up to date with this blog and back to (hopefully) daily updates. Its now 8.45 and a burst of sun has broken through the window, overwhelming the rather striking pink sky which looked so amazing behind the skeletal trees in the American compound across the street. The smell of something delicious is wafting up the stairwell from my mother in law's kitchen, no doubt my father in law's lunch and our dinner tomorrow night. Its the first Sunday in Advent, so time to put up the Christmas decorations, this year with the added challenge of making everything puppy proof. All I need now is another swig of cough medicine and the world will be at peace. Mine anyway.

Day 297: Feeling not so ill, but the symptoms go on and on and on. Apparently Celine Dion is recording a song about it.

Day 296: Its enough to scare old ladies

Day 295: Back to german school, with my trusty blackcurrent lozenges. And, at last, a haircut. It wasn't a project, but I didn't cut my hair for 12 months. The love child of Shakespear and Krusty the clown look is not a particularly good one. Since my hair started to fall out 17 years ago, its certainly time to understand that the range of options for me is not large when it comes to hair fashions. Welcome back, Clipper Number 1!

Day 294: Rather keen to resume normal life.

Day 293: Sicky Biks.

Day 292: The gift that keeps on giving.

Day 291: And still...

Day 290: And still...

Day 289: No, its the flu! Hurrah!

Day 288: Jetlag, yay. Or is it?

Day 287: Unlike Nelly Furtado, I'm not like a bird (nor a man eater for that matter), I'd be much happier with my feet on the ground and to never fly again. Looking super voluptuous here, I think its only the redistribution of gravity from the flight....

2006-12-01T11:27:00.000+01:00

Day 286: Somewhere on a plane, between Singapore and Frankfurt. Moo.

Day 285: Poor Uncle Bruce! Children are such a charming idea... from the other side of the world!

Day 284: Its very hard when someone who likes to have one pair of shoes and wear them till they fall apart, is married to someone who likes to change their shoes 3 or 4 times a day. I was forced to promise to throw away my old blue shoes BEFORE I packed to come home. I wonder if it was like this for Ferdinand Marcos?

Day 283: Almost home time.

Day 282: I really love how this photo worked exactly as I planned it! Yay.

2006-11-30T11:38:00.000+01:00

Day 281: Ich habe kein deutch lernen hier gemacht, aber ich weis es ich bin hier kein mehr zuhause.

Day 280. Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.
Before baby, clean bathroom, wash clothes. After baby, clean bathroom, wash clothes.

Day 279: Welcome Sophie Violet! You have made a difficult day delightful.

Day 278: Get back to your cell, Birdsworth.

Day 277: A spot of night photography, all arty farty like (and that).

Day 276: How I love these 4.45am wake up woofs. Dog toilet time again, and so begins another day.

Day 275: The Christmas bush is noice this year, early too.

Day 274: Epiphany - Let God be God.

Day 273: Oh my wordy lordy yes indeedy do dah day, Janelle. THAT's what you get for caring.

Day 272: In the laundry...again.

2006-11-25T07:48:00.000+01:00

Day 271: Skinny Minny, the art deco Ninny.

Day 270.

Day 269: Noice.

Day 268: Back when the progress was still evident!

Day 267.

Day 266: Slip sliding away...

Day 265: The occassional perfect moment makes up for all the rest.

Day 264.

Day 263: These Birkenstock's were made for walkin'.... but where are the white socks? Caught in the culture warp between Australia and Germany!

Day 262: As predicted, spending my nights alone with the TV.

Day 261: At one of the most peaceful places I know.

2006-11-24T09:30:00.000+01:00

Day 260: Not a natural nurse, by any means.

Day 259: When this battle is over, who will wear the crown?

Day 258: "bye bye Stevie, I got ya."

Day 257: Rain again, pretending to be swimming through a light dappled coral reef, while again drying clothes in the garage.

Day 256: Sun at last!

Day 255: 12 years of drought, and yet I can't get 12 hours of sunshine to dry the clothes.

Day 254: Cheerfullness long gone, focussing on compassion and non murderous thoughts.

Day 253.

Day 252: The old shadow self portrait trick, this time on One Mile Beach.

Day 251.

2006-11-23T10:45:00.000+01:00

Day 250: At times I've felt my life was in these boxes, but its just old stuff. Some of it still special, but LIFE is something else entirely.

Day 249: Ready for the beach, theoretically.

Day 248: Return to OZ.

Day 247: Only in transit for 51 hours! It feels something like this.

Day 246: Just looking out of the window, watching the ashphalt grow...

Day 245: Me AND me: an exhibition(ist) at last!

2006-10-12T11:59:00.000+02:00

Day 244: My dream of a teleporter! If someone invents it in the next 3 days I won't have to spend 40 hours on planes and in airports.... Get to it, brainiacs!
(Thanks Elaine, I was trying to make time go back 100 days!..... didn't work)

Day 243: Another day at Schloss Phillipsruhe, this is me 'helping' set up the exhibition!

Day 242.

Day 241: A silly wet photo.

2006-10-07T12:19:00.000+02:00

Day 240.

Day 239.

2006-10-07T12:18:00.000+02:00

Day 238.

Day 237.

2006-10-03T10:46:00.000+02:00

Day 236: Wow, a sudden increase in page views here. THANKS RINDA!
please check out this amazing lady's page and community - http://thewritesnark.blogspot.com/

Day 235.

Day 234: Who needs photoshop when you have a frosted glass door?

Day 233.

Day 232.

Day 231: My life as a Pop Icon...

2006-09-27T10:58:00.000+02:00

Day 230: Back online after a week without internet. While I didn't freak out and feel isolated from all I know and love, it was annoying. Especially as the "help"desk people at the server company gave us a new version of the problem every day, which of course they were making up as they went along. What seemed the most obvious thing to do, which in the end was done, took a mere 3 minutes to undertake. Grrrr. On the upside, when we got back online we discovered we had sold some items on Ebay for 150euro, which was exciting for exactly 2.5 hours, at which point we discovered we have to pay 700euro to get the car repaired! Oh well. Even if I'll never be rich, at least I'm thin and beautiful. Oh wait. Bugger.

Day 229: Some form of epiphany regarding irregular verbs in prateritum form!

Day 228: Ich mache gern meine deutch hausausgabe.... oder??

Day 227: Yet another image at the window. Is the light the attraction or is there some deeper psychological force at work?

Day 226: Checking out a birthday party for the neighbours over the lane. A Hausfrau's work is never done!

Day 225: ...although it did seem to attract the attentions of alien beings.

Day 224: Fortunately the wind didn't change direction while I took this photo.

Day 223.

Day 222.

2006-09-19T11:05:00.000+02:00

Day 221: Eine Hausfrau's work is never done!
Now I'll have to concentrate more as the number of posts isn't the same as the days, but what the hey. At least i won't be rated a spammer in my own blog world, and come the big trip to Oz, it may make things a lot easier. I wonder what happens when I'm zipping over the dateline?

Day 220.

Day 219: Same shirt and almost same pose as Day 198 (I think it was). Spooky. This used to be my favourite t shirt. I cost $5 at Woolies at Town Hall, I bought it one day when I had forgotten my clothes for gym when I worked in the city. The last year another red tshirt turned everything, well, red, and so I had to put most of my clothes through a rinse of colour remover. It certainly worked well with the old fave tshirt, ALL the colour was removed!

2006-09-16T10:18:00.000+02:00

Day 218: 15 seconds of my face in the dark.

2006-09-15T10:50:00.000+02:00

Day 217: Well, I think I have reached my desired body shape at last... how ironical that I can only achieve this pacifically in the Cologne Chocolate Museum! The text down the side says "chocolate makes you beautiful". Sadly there is another mirror next to it that says "chocolate makes you fat". Lets just say I wasn't the only one who spent 5 mins in front of "beautiful", and 2 seconds in front of "fat"!

2006-09-15T10:37:00.000+02:00

Day 216: Me and both halves of the "better half".

2006-09-12T14:15:00.000+02:00

Day 215: A very kind and generous friend commented I was looking "svelte" in recent photos... Perhaps, in the same way a patent leather beanbag is "stylish"!

2006-09-12T14:13:00.000+02:00

Day 214: I had it in my mind to say "what a difference 25 years makes!" until I realized it was THRTY five years..... not so 'hilarious!'

2006-09-12T14:12:00.000+02:00

Day 213.

2006-09-12T14:05:00.000+02:00

Day 212.

2006-09-08T18:49:00.000+02:00

Day 211. Not a good week to be an Aussie Legend....

2006-09-07T15:12:00.000+02:00

Day 210: No tricks, this is how I really looked today. Zsulf to you too!

2006-09-07T10:18:00.000+02:00

Day 209: Yay, up to date again - well up to yesterdate. I must start doing this daily again so I don't have a build up when they do eventually grant me human status again. Meanwhile, no other news. Have been back in the swing of my gym routine so feeling fitter for that. Having lots of thoughts about Christmas Puddings, and thinking I will take the plunge (Boom Tish) and do the full old fashioned boiled version this year. The microwave version was ok for what it was, and certainly no one else here has any inkling as to what a Christmas Pudding is, let alone how it ought to taste, but lets go the full monty.

2006-09-07T10:13:00.000+02:00

Day 208.

2006-09-07T10:10:00.000+02:00

Day 207.

2006-09-07T10:09:00.000+02:00

Day 206: Today's code - xmwqvois. Yes, you may be wondering why, when its annoying me so much, I am choosing to type the bloody thing an extra time. Good question, I will stop now!

2006-09-07T10:08:00.000+02:00

Day 205. The code for day 205 is niucdwwl. They seem to be getting longer as time goes by, and the fonts more complicated!

2006-09-07T10:01:00.000+02:00

Day 204: Gawd ducks vis ain arff doin my ead in. Because I got behind with my daily postings and posted 9 entries at once last time and now I'm ashamed to say 14 in one go, the Blogger programme thinks I am a spammer so have installed a verification system I have to fill out before I can post, unlike the one I can turn off for comments. They will only remove it when a "human person" logs on and views the blog to verify its a roolly trooly blog.

But hey, nice to find out there are a few other people watching the blog, that the community is a bit bigger than I thought. Will have to spend more time doing the blog again and let the shop take care of itself. Did I mention the shop? www.cafepress.com/uniqueboy. Still no sales to the general public but it makes no never mind. I think the horrifying thing about this blog is not that it reveals me as a lazy chocoholic who has not lost any weight, but that it shows me as quite an impatient person, which I hadn't really acknowledged before. "I want everything, and I want it now!"

The code for Day 204 is qyrfmcv.

2006-09-07T09:59:00.000+02:00

Day 203: A reflection of me in the frame of an arty photo of my parents' house on the other side of the world. Quite a nice conjunction of themes no?

2006-09-07T09:58:00.000+02:00

Day 202. As requested, another inclusion of the wonder dog, but as usual out of focus due to frenetic playfullness. That's me in the corner (that's me in the Spot Light!)

2006-09-07T09:56:00.000+02:00

Day 201. A Fat Odyssey.

2006-09-07T09:55:00.000+02:00

Day 200! woo hoo!

2006-09-07T09:54:00.000+02:00

Day 199.

2006-09-07T09:49:00.000+02:00

Day 198.

2006-09-06T18:27:00.000+02:00

Day 197: I don't think I have the energy to upload the rest now! So, still fat, not thin, but at least STILL 39!

2006-09-06T18:24:00.000+02:00

Day 196: SO I got a bit behind in posting my daily photos so now I'm a SPAM blogger?? PLEASE TURN OFF THIS ANNOYING VERIFICATION THING! I AM A PERSON AS YOU CAN CLEARLY SEE! Its not as if anyone else reads this apart from Elaine and Lizzie!
Sheesh! :-)

2006-08-24T11:42:00.000+02:00

Day 195.

2006-08-24T11:41:00.000+02:00

Day 194.

2006-08-24T10:47:00.000+02:00

Day 193.

2006-08-24T10:46:00.000+02:00

Day 192

2006-08-24T10:45:00.000+02:00

Day 191.

2006-08-24T10:44:00.001+02:00

Day 190.

2006-08-24T10:44:00.000+02:00

Day 189.

2006-08-24T10:43:00.000+02:00

Day 188.

2006-08-24T10:42:00.000+02:00

Day 187.

2006-08-24T10:41:00.000+02:00

Day 186: Yes you've found me out, i retouched this image with photoshop!

2006-08-13T17:40:00.000+02:00

DAY 185.

2006-08-13T17:39:00.000+02:00

DAY 184.

2006-08-13T17:38:00.000+02:00

DAY 183.