Blending in.

Ben blending.

Last night we blended in with the crowd attending the opening night of "Control"; a photographic exhibition of large-format images taken in natural light by Daniel J Bushaway. Tess and Dan did a fantastic job of organising and hosting a well-attended event. Can't wait for the "Farm" or even the "Tassie" exhibitions! Ben's already pre-planned what to wear and my own wardrobe does need some fine tuning.

One year in the kitchen.

Our corner of the universe.

Stardate -310409.58, or thereabouts. Travel from Earth to Mars takes about 10 months using current technology, and with planets in a favourable alignment. We've been living in the kitchen for longer than that but at least we haven't been cooped up in a tiny capsule and Ben can step out of the kitchen (and the house) as often as he feels so inclined, which is once every day or two. I, on the other hand, frequently don the spacesuit and venture out. Of course the current environment is very different to the wild outdoors of NE Tas or the bitter cold of a Berlin winter but we're settled and things are going OK. "All systems nominal," as a space commander would say. The Jazztronaut lives just outside the kitchen, keeping a close watch through the glass and making sure her sustenance is provided at correct times. Unlike a sojourn to Mars, we're not sure how long this trip will take, nor certain where we'll end up. But some things can't be hurried and the warp drive is out of action; note to self: check for Dilithium Crystals at the local supermarket. "Engage thrusters, Mr Sulu. Plot us a course to an improved outlook!"

One year ago, this happened.

One year ago, this happened
and it was a very difficult time.

Mum's Merc.

The "old" four-wheel-drive ML320 Mercedes Benz reached a more-expensive-than-usual point in its maintenance schedule and has recently been traded for a Merc C200 sedan; a glossy black, 2010 model with leather seats and an assortment of modern gadgets. We saw the "new" car last night and also received some new T-shirts and a book from mum's recent trip to Sydney art galleries. In addition, we got to sort through two bags of "near new" clothes for any useful items. We're not sure where the clothes came from but one of the jackets had a fairly-recent funeral notice in the pocket.

Vanilla or chocolate?

Today we took Jazz to meet a new friend. Abby is only 13 weeks old and very playful. Both pups got a thorough workout chasing each other around the garden. It was a little difficult to sit and sip tea while all the mayhem was happening. Abby's chocolate coated. Jazz looks vanilla but her coat is more like pale banana.

Snoozeberries.

(Escher, Day and Night, web image)

Twelve awake,
Twelve asleep,
Tablets dubbed "snoozeberries".
Writing alot,
But I don't know what.
Fragments assembling,
Chemistry adjusting,
Feeling better than before.
Equilibrium achieved?
Maybe...

Tinker tailor utter mutter.

Thanks to subtitles, frequent rewinds, pause-please discussions and a quick peek at a film synopsis, we pondered our way through Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and almost understood the story. We had more success watching True Grit (the re-make) and only occasionally required subtitles to understand the muttering cowboys.