A New Years Eve Celebration

Source

Tonight I'm going to put on my best party frock and have a complete do-over for the New Year.

It's still December 31st 2010 at my place, and the last week was just some crazy dream.

It's time to buy some junky takeaway food, some ice cream, and some chocolate and see whether I can actually make it to midnight awake!

I might even go all out and watch a DVD....

It's a 24/7 party house here - don't let the craftin' fool you.....

Animation Friday - The Scribble Edition 2 - Colouring In

Following on from last weeks animation....

*Please excuse the dodgy mobile phone photos

I've been trying to take a little break from blogging, but you know what? Blogging keeps me motivated and makes me happy. It gives me something else to think about, and allows me to use my brain, so consider my blogging break officially over.... although things still may be a little sporadic.

I really need to thank each and every person who left me a message on the blog, emailed, came to visit in hospital, or popped something in the mail - I didn't get the chance to reply to everyone personally. 

I also need to give a huge thankyou to Cathy, Cathie, Bec, Nikki, Nikki, Cass, Michelle, Selina, .... I hope I haven't forgotten anyone.

I don't really have any news or answers healthwise just yet - things are not exactly going as I'd planned or hoped for, but I'm always ready for a challenge, so here goes.... wish me luck.

My Creative Space

I'm kinda glad that I didn't bring any stitchy projects with me this time (even though the real reason I didn't pack any was because I didn't think I was going to end up staying).

It's quite surprising that there hasn't been that much spare time in between treatments, and med students, and student doctors (and visitors and op shopping and trips to the cafe). I haven't had a moment of boredom yet, and I've actually just enjoyed the doodling and the colouring in....... it's been a good stop/start project that I can pick up or pack up quickly.

I don't usually like wasting time. I'm always trying to cram as much as I possibly can into each and every day, just in case I run out of time. I suppose that's one of the things that you do worry about when you know that there's going to be a point where there is no more spare time. It's also hard for a control freak to admit that they have no control over the current situation!

So for the moment, I'm going to just 'go with the flow'.... and keep on scribbling and doodling.

The home of My Creative Space

When life gives you lemons...

Please excuse the poor quality of my mobile phone photos

 Wonderful friends come to visit bearing yummy peanut butter cupcakes...

.... and the on-site oppy provides some vintage gems...

Now I just need to work on breaking out of here!

The Perfect Combination

A home-grown daffodil and coffee....

Sunday Scribbles

After following along with Tinniegirls Journey over the last few months, it's really got me thinking about how much I loved art when I was in high school. Unfortunately, I had to ditch all of the art subjects that I loved and concentrate on maths and science in order to follow my chosen career path.

Then this week, Jess blogged about taking a drawing class, which got my brain whizzing around even more.

I can't really take on any classes at the moment, but I think that I really should spend some time just doodling around for fun.

Inspired by my favourite vintage fabric (that I used to make my pen roll), this is the first of my scribbles. It's perfect timing considering that I seem to have so much spare time on my hands at the moment!

Deja Vu Two

Same place.... slightly different window.

There was, at least, a stream of sunshine coming in through it today.
I would have had something slightly more exciting to show, if only I could have brought Mr Husky with me.

I have my Cottees Red Cordial, a supply of Peppermint chocolate, a crossword book, my knitting, and a sketchpad, so that should be enough to keep me entertained for now.

I'm hoping that this is the very last time that I'll be stuck here for the forseeable future - fingers crossed!

While CurlyPops Was Away....

Those little mice did play!

My sister came over to make sure my house was nice and clean before I came home.... and bought those rascally little twin nephews of mine with her.

This is how they helped to clean up.

By having wheelie stool races, and jumping and dancing on my freshly made bed trampoline.

It sure is nice to be home....

Completely Over It (and a recipe for Chocolate Crackles)

Gorgeous brooch made by Cathie - Blurry mobile phone photo by me!

I'm a fairly placid and easygoing and patient person these days, but I've REALLY had enough now. I just want to go home to my own house, and sleep in my own bed where it's nice and dark and quiet and peaceful and private!

I needed a change of scenery today, so I spent the entire morning in the coffee shop, reading the Sunday paper back to back.

I found a very interesting Donna Hay Chocolate Crackle recipe in the Sunday Magazine which I'm definitely going to test out.

Chocolate Crackles

200g dark chocolate, chopped
100g butter
1/3 cup golden syrup
4 cups puffed rice cereal

Place the chocolate, butter and golden syrup in a suacepan over low heat and cook, stirring, until melted and smooth.
Place the cereal in a bowl with the chocolate mixture and mix well to combine.
Spoon 2 teaspoons of the mixture into 48 small paper cases.
Refrigerate for 1 hour or until set.
Makes 48.

Now that sounds much yummier than the old school version which uses copha.

To fill in the rest of the day, I have a crossword and my knitting.

I'd better be getting out of here tomorrow.... I really can't take much more!

An apple a day

Liesl will never believe me (come to think of it, anybody who knows me won't believe it) if I don't provide documentary evidence, but I actually took Kitty's advice.

Instead of buying myself a chocolate bar at the cafeteria...... I actually bought FRUIT.

Now of course, just buying the fruit is only the first piece of the puzzle. Liesl wouldn't believe it unless she could see documentary evidence that I would actually eat said pieces of FRUIT.

So Liesl, I give you an empty banana skin.

I'm just wondering whether this makes up for the Honey Cakes, Honey Jumbles, Twisties, Fruit and Nut Chocolate, and Crunchy Caramel chocolate that Cathie treated me too???

Deja Vu

 

Frustratingly, I seem to have ended up in the exact same place that I left two weeks ago.

Suprisingly (or maybe freakishly), I'm in the exact same room with the exact same view.

This time I thought ahead, and bought my mini laptop and wireless USB modem with me so I can amuse myself for hours on end reading lots of crafty blogs - that's a little hint crafty girls.... I need lots of blog posts to read so get blogging (pretty please)! 

I also bought a few crafty projects to work on, knitting, sewing, embroidery.... I've already completed a little bit of knitting while I was waiting... waiting.... waiting.

Now I'm off to catch up on the 123 posts in my google reader!

Knock Knock

A room with a view

Hellooooooooooo
Coooooooooeeeeeeeeeeee

I was expecting to see dustbunnies, cobwebs and tumbleweeds, but it seems that my little space in blogdom was hijacked while I was away sunning myself on a desert island (or maybe it was just the temperature of the central heating that was making me dream that I was in the desert).

I had quite a few false alarms regarding my exit date - I was supposed to come home last Thursday, then last Friday,  but I finally made it home late thisafternoon.

Anyhow, those IV Pina Colada's did just the trick. I feel much more refreshed and ready for action again (well, apart from being completely unfit after being confined for ten loooooong days). I've never ever been stuck in there for that long before.

I've managed to come home with at least three self inflicted needlestick injuries. Note to Self: embroidery is a very dangerous pastime when you constantly have the ventolin wobbles.

I did something useful, and managed to put in a little bit of community service time while I was stuck, by playing test patient for all of the trainee specialists and doctors, med students, and physios. It's always a bit of a novelty for them to have a younger patient to learn with. With any luck, the experience might teach them to think outside the square for any future patients with 'interesting and unusual' conditions!

The granny rug I didn't buy

On a more serious note, I need to give a huge thankyou to Tinniegirl for keeping the blog up-to-date (and making me laugh a whole lot in the process). I was waiting with baited breath every day to find out just what she was getting up to next. I was quite amazed as to just how much info she managed to glean from Frances. Frances has never been very chatty with me (I thought it was her European reservedness), so I was quite suprised. Thankyou Tinniegirl - you're the best craft partner in crime a CurlyPops could ever wish for!

I also want to thank everyone who texted, sent me an email, or left a message on the blog. Sorry that I couldn't reply to everyone, but I only had my mobile phone with me, so they would have needed to amputate my texting thumb before I'd left if I'd tried to reply to all.

The granny rug I did buy

And finally, a huge thanks to my big sister Rach who managed to keep my vacant house safe and clean, looked after Houdini dog and Bastard Cat, kept me in clean clothes (and more importantly clean undies), brought me my mail, brought me in Thai Takeaway and Chocolate Cupcakes when the hospital food was getting to be too much, brought in X-rays from home at short notice, and kept the chocolate stash full! Phew! She'd even made me dinner and left it in the fridge so I didn't need to cook tonight. Thanks Rach, I couldn't have managed without you.

Blogtoberfest Day 8: My Creative Space

Although I do usually create something each and every day at CurlyPops HQ, today I'm taking the day off.

Instead, I'm attending an appointment where I get to sit in a nice comfy armchair, read a book, and listen to some groovy tunes..... If I'm nice, someone might even make me a cup of tea and bring me a sandwich while I'm there (not including any salad of course).

I'm also taking a notebook to sketch some new ideas, and write some lists.... I'm having terrible problems remembering things lately.

Of course, if you'd like to see some lovely people who are actually creating something today, then make sure to head on over and say hi to Kirsty and join in the fun (and make sure to check out the cool corner bookmark tute - I need one of those today)!