Rummage

I would like to be cloned. If ever the call goes out for human guinea pigs I'll be there with both hands in the air. The problem is I wouldn't be satisfied with one doppelgänger wondering around, no, I'd like multiples.

Let's see, there'd be:

Clone A. - Busy alpha Mum, rushing about hot-housing children and escorting aforementioned to dance recitals and the like.

Clone B. - Lazyasallgetout Mum, lolling about on the lounge eating cooking chocolate and watching 6 Feet Under re-runs.

Clone C. - Pillar of the Society Mum, organising chook raffles, escourting ailing neighbours about town and playing 'Kombayah' on the guitar in retirement homes.

Clone D (i) - Gluttonous Supersize Mum, consuming, (in descending order of importance), chocolate, French cheese, red wine, bread and roast potatoes cooked in goose fat.

Clone D (ii) - Bikram-Yoga Mum, glowing with good health barely breaking a sweat after a triathalon, rippling triceps, stomach muscles of a pre-pubescent. Please note D (ii) cancels out D (i).

Clone E - Social Justice Defender and all-round right-on lefty Mum, leafleting soap-boxing and consciousness-raising on whales, endangered earwigs etc.

Clone F - Independent crafter and designer - earning oodles of money and getting about in frocks and facepaint.

I could go on but there wouldn't be much room left in the house for anyone else. Tell me I'm not the only one who fantasises about such things.

PS I'm finally getting my crafting act together and doing a market. The Handmade Market in Canberra at the Albert Hall, May 23. Hope I see you there.

x

Cold feet, April winds
These leather boots soothe my soul
Amidst fallen leaves

More Cold Feet here. I hope Easter was good to you.
x

Here's my creative space brought to you by Kirsty, a woman who should receive some kind of reward from the blogosphere for being single-handedly responsible for cleaning up our craftrooms.

This is the beginning of a project for Shannon's PANDA fundraiser something I instantly put my hand up for since I have one too many falcons loose in my top carpark myself. Did you know that PANDA has no government funding?
Boo, hiss and shame!

You'll be delighted to know that the vomits have subsided only to be replaced by a car crisis in the midst of school peak hour. Apparently my power steering was nixed by a hose or fanbelt or some other mechanical contraption and I was moments away from spontaneous combustion, (at least that's what I told the frenchman).

After spending 45 minutes trying to flag a taxi due to my mobile phone having a senior's moment, the small person and I got home and fell upon the Easter treats that had been destined for her classmates. One should attempt to exhibit a little more self-control in front of impressionable offspring but it had been a trying few moments and chocolate, coconut spiders are very, very good.

Here's the recipe if you are interested:

Chocolate Spiders

250g chocolate (milk or dark - you choose)
2 cups of fried noodles (I use Changs)
1/2 cup of dessicated coconut
Optional - a couple of tablespoons of peanut butter
Makes about 20

Line a baking try with grease-proof paper
Melt the chocolate, (and the peanut butter if you are using it), in the microwave on 70% - check it every 30 seconds or so. Stir the mixture until smooth
Stir the noodles and coconut into the chocolate thoroughly
Dollop dessert spoons of the mixture onto the lined tray
Chill overnight in the fridge

Bon appetit!

There's no question that Autumn is my favourite season. Crisp mornings followed by Indian Summer afternoons and evenings that make snuggling under a quilt delightful. And then there's the produce, crisp apples, chestnuts for roasting and buxom pomegranates.

I've even started the migration of winter clothes, tucking my trans-seasonal scarves into their appropriate places. Before you starting thinking that I sound like SJP, I should also confess that I may be the only person in the world to experience a frisson of excitement at the sight of polar fleece. There goes my Sex in the City credentials, right there.

In other news, we have been vomiting up a storm here with a viral bug that has left us with nary a bed sheet to cover us. If vomiting were an Olympic sport I can tell you we would be serious gold medal contenders at this point in time. Charming. Sorry.

Hope you are well.
xx

Stay

I stayed at the Windsor Hotel and before you ask me which child I had to auction off to do so, consider, as I did, a mini-break at the beginning or middle of the week. The cost of accommodation is a mere fraction of the what it is towards the weekend if you surf around enough of the internet accommodation sites. My room cost me $170, over the weekend the same room costs upwards of $550 a night (!).

The great thing about Melbourne is that the city is buzzing all the time, so a mid-week break still affords the visitor a great time without the pocket pain.

A cheaper alternative I would thoroughly recommend is 'The Nunnery' in Fitzroy. I used to stay here during my Trotskyist period which was not very proletarian of me. It's a backpackers mecca, civilised, clean and tasteful with, (gasp) leather armchairs and persian carpets on the timber floors. It has now expanded next door with a guesthouse, no doubt catering for former-revolutionaries such as myself with a mortgage and small mouths to feed.

 

Wherever you go in Melbourne and wherever you stay, I hope this little guide is of some use to you in your travels. Have fun, be safe, send a postcard.

x

I made this a while ago and keep forgetting to show you. It's a long necklace type affair that was a very satisfying make in a lithiumed-out, basket-weaving kind of way. I'd show you a picture of it on me but I'm not accomplished in the art of the self-portrait. If you're interested in making one of your very own, pop over to Ruby-Ellen at Cakies who has a lovely little tutorial. Just the ticket for an over-flowing scrap basket.
xx

PS Saw a great DVD the other night, Goodnight and Goodluck and read a brilliant book, Siri Hustvedt's, 'The Sorrows of An American' - I'd highly recommend both of them.

Have you met Kirsty? I'm sure you have. She is one of the most delightful people I have met in some time.

I joined in her weekly Creative Space round-up and I'm wondering why I haven't done it before. It has prompted me to clean up the abomination that is otherwise known as my creative space. So, it's slightly manufactured but, I hope, nevertheless legitimate. I'm working on completing a swap project for the lovely Bianca who I also had the good fortune to meet at the Mikes book launch.

Have a delightful weekend, we're off apple-picking and if I get time, I'll finish off the last Melbourne posts. I'm really glad you've enjoyed them.
xxx

Shop

It was a good thing I only had a day and a half in Melbourne. Anymore than that and I would have had to sell off some vital organs to pay for the shopping damage. This is a very small list of establishments that I would happily set up house in if it were possible.

Shappere - 191 Smith St, Fitzroy
Vintage clothes and shoes for men and women. Whoever does the buying in this store has a great eye. I snared a beautiful pair of vintage boots at a good price. Nice rack of frocks.

 Zetta Florence - 197 Brunswick St, Fitzroy
Paperie of the kind found usually in the backstreets of Venice.

Zakkaya - 52 Johnson St, Fitzroy
Japanese wabi-sabi inspired goodness. I spotted some lovely Shinzi Katoh bags and beautiful wooden toys here.

Moustache - Gertrude St, Fitzroy
CHEAP and gorgeous. I bought natty frocks for the small people and was highly tempted by a pair of chocolate ex-rodeo cullottes but I don't have the yodel to pull them off.

Mr Lincoln - 102 Gertrude St, Fitzroy
Innovative eco-florist, I particularly liked the crushed cardboard boxes serving as coffee tables.

Lost and Found Market - 12 Smith St, Collingwood
Vintage shopping emporium. Seek and ye shall find.

Books for Cooks - 233-235 Gertrude St, Fitzroy
A whole bookstore devoted to the culinary arts, I could have taken up residence quietly in the corner.

Meet Me at Mikes - 63 Brunswick St, Fitzroy
Does this establishment really need an introduction? Cuteness, kindness and loveliness all wrapped up in a big scarlet ribbon. Don't visit Melbourne without visiting Mikes.

Dr Follicles Barber Shop - 240 Gertrude St, Fitzroy
This is the place to bring your bloke for a spiff-up prior to a night on the town. An old-fashioned barber shop that takes the edge off with a complimentary glass of Coopers. Need I say more?

Arthur's Circus - 631 Queensberry St, North Melbourne
I was really disappointed to not get a chance to check-out this jewel-box of a vintage shop. When you go say hello from me.

Job Warehouse - 56-58 Bourke St, Melbourne
'Curiouser and curiouser', said Alice, (no doubt referring to this fabric shop). I like the slightly dodgey air about the place. Come for the habadashery if you've got the time and energy to rifle through.

Melbourne is my favourite city in Australia, hands down. It has been since I started going there for Student Union conferences way back when the Prince of Wales still smelt like stale urine and cigarettes and the Espy was, well..pretty much the hipster hive it remains today.

I was prepared to love it again but I didn't expect it to have metamorphosised from the grungy, live music capital with kick-arse coffee into all of that plus urban sophisticate, arts beacon, counter-culture icon and foodie haven. Having recently spent some time in Paris and Tokyo, two of the world's greatest cities, I feel they are in danger of being outclassed by this gorgeous town.

With only a day and a half to spend in Melbourne, I tried to pack as much as I could into every second of it. Here's the low-down:

Eat

Melbourne does this well and breathtakingly cheaply in comparison with other cities. My tips are:

Birdman Eating - 238 Gertrude St, Fitzroy
Do not leave this casual cafe without consuming the freshly made doughnuts with chocolate sauce.

Gill's Diner - Gill's Alley, Melbourne
Slow delicious food, long tables, good wine list, atmosphere. It's all there.

Von Haus - 1a Crossley St, Melbourne
This tiny vintage button of a cafe is great for breakfast or lunch. The hot chocolate will make your hair stand on end.

Pellegrinis - 66 Bourke St, Melbourne
A Melbourne institution - great coffee, good pasta.

Drink not that I imbibed (cough)

Labor in Vain - 197 Brunswick St, Fitzroy
A real pub like the ones you used to go to and have a counter-meal as a little tacker. Plus they make their own beers, smashing.

Hell's Kitchen - 20 Centre Pl, Melbourne
Decor - check. Bevy list - check. Street cred - check.

Paris Cat Jazz Club - 6 Goldie Pl, Melbourne
I'm going back with the Frenchman next time. Think 30's Paris with Arthur Miller

Perseverance Hotel - somewhere on Brunswick St, Fitzroy
I've always loved the name of this hotel. Unfortunately, it's completely derelict but if you put your head up against the brickwork it might just whisper some wicked secrets in your ear.

Up next: sleep and shop.
xx