Making Friends With The Neighbours

We've been getting up and surfing early every day that I've been home, which makes me incredibly happy. The mornings have been clear; the light and colours soft, golden and warm. So lovely. My friend, Jono, has been taking pictures...   (This one is this morning, at my home beach.) Considering how taken I am with looking at the colours, light, forms, and contrasts of the sky and the sea, early mornings and late evenings are pretty happy times for me.

Look! Even the carpet at the local golf club is in on it!

I'm not really into carols. I find them... unappealing. However, if all carols were executed in this way, by these people, I'd probably give them more of a chance! (via The Bloggess )

So, if you know me, then you know how embarrassingly excited I can get about The World. I'm always happy snapping clouds, sunsets, plants and flowers, and pointing out colours and shapes to any close by me. Like I said, embarrassingly excited. The thing is that I just can't get over how beautiful our environment is - and in that I include art and buildings and gardens and museums and design and all those urban things as well. I mean, I live in a city now and I'd be foolish and naive not to find beauty and purpose here. The thing is that paying attention to the world around me and locating myself as a part of that helps me keep perspective when things go to shit. It gives me a sense of connectedness, place, rhythms, time and cycles of life. So imagine how stoked this film, The Overview Effect , made me feel! (via but does it float ) From the website : On the 40th anniversary of the famous 'Blue Marble' photograph taken of Earth from space, Planetary Colle...

I know, I know; it's an advertisement. But it kind of cracks me up.

Check out this link for a short news report about the experiences of, Nassima a young woman from Myanmar, who lives and   surfs in Bangladesh. Girl defies surf customs in Bangladesh - Central & South Asia - Al Jazeera English A friend once told me that when you look around at women who surf, you won't find any "shrinking violets". She didn't necessarily mean that these women are aggressive or bolshy or in your face. She meant that they are women who are strong, persistent, determined, stubborn and willing to stand up for themselves. Nassima* takes this strength and determination to a whole other level. *Thanks surfergrrrl

The problem with taking a few days out to have fun and surf and relax with loved ones is that when you get back to work in your river city home, all you can think is, I'd rather be surfing .

I just spent a wonderful few days at home, where surfing is as ubiquitous as christmas... Izzy , Ryan, Sarah , Murray and I had some (frustrating) fun on this afternoon. Santa and his reindeer getting sick fairylight pits! (Thanks J.Ware)  Cheesy backpacker van.

It has been a year now since my mum died ; a year since I discovered the depths of the links between my pain, grief, loss, love and the ocean. I am still at a loss as to what to do or say, or whether there are any words left to even talk about it. We marked the moment by returning mum's body to the beach, to the sea. Even though what we poured amongst the water, sand and rocks yesterday was merely ashes, it was a relief; She would have hated to know she was stuck in a little box, inside.