Pushing out the Boat.....

Sometimes it is better not to do things by halves.....I actually turned down two grown up parties, I am sure it would have been nice sitting around chatting and trying to pretend I am a middle aged women, hmmmm maybe not.... Had enough boredom to last several lifetimes....So.... If you want a memorable NYE you cant just expect it to happen.... King Suite booked.... Fireworks Check.... Live bands...1000's of people.... And that is how I roll these days.... Rock'n'Roll or what.... Time to see the back of 2011... and lets start 2012 the way we mean to continue.... Sex and Drugs and Rock n Roll...

Happy NYE!!!!!!

Six.....

Well that's a bit dull....maybe if you put a bit of disdain and a ohlala or something? So old school today with pen and paper....

Six Geese a Laying....Dead....Cause of death?

Started out the day with a friendly bird..... I think with a bit of enchouragemant I could get her to move in? She is a pretty little thing, I might see if I can lure her inside and put her in a cage for a bit.... I think I could tame her.....

I think today was the first time in a long time I could see having a pet..... Interesting because it was an instictual attraction and not an affectation, of wanting a pet other people would judge me by.... Interesting feeling....

Speaking of sad animals that have seen better days.... Ran into the Girlfriends Ex at the movies in penrith today.... Awkard much.... Well it may have been if I noticed him standing behind us inline at the movies... Oh well was bound to happen... and I am sure it will happen to me next year, in both directions... I would like to think I would care, but secretly there is part of me that really doesn't think I will.... They say thats the real test, its not love or hate.... It's just failing to give a rats arse anymore...

Cinq........

Busy day house hunting.....So I only got a bit of the Five Gold Rings done..... I started out by being lazy, just incase I had no time to do anything....

But that was just to easy....



So I went digital and one pheasent at a time....

Two......



and three...... It is too late now for two more....



Quatre..... Of Course....

Trying something a little different with Four Colly Birds..... Not sure how it will turn out... and always good to learn new skills, you never know what you are good at till you try....

So a bit of lino, with a picture of a common blackbird (Colly)....

and now some carved up lino, with the raised area of a Bird on a Wire....

And Four Colly Birds....For the price of one......



Duex & Trois......

The 2nd and third days of Xmas.....

Two Turtle Doves.....

&

Three French Hens (Trois Poules Françaises)......

The First Xmas......

Food, Friends and Family.... My Gorgeous kids, were gorgeous.....My friends and family ate and talked like we hadn't in years.... This will not be the last one of these.....

Only turned on the oven to heat the bread rolls, relaxed and no fuss and eat till you explode....

Skipped the cheesy carols and let Robbie do the soundtrack....

Feels like Xmas.....

Going to miss this place.....but I am leaving with wonderful memories and grand designs...

and even with everything going on, I managed to do a five minute sketch for the the first day of Xmas series..... Very simple and loose and filled with cider.... Tomorrow I may have time for a nice long relax on the veranda and make the 2nd day of Xmas a bit more impressive...

I hope your Xmas was as empowering as mine....Joy, and that, to the World....

T'was the Night Before Xmas....

And all the through the house, not a creature was stirring.....other than the kids and I snuggled up on the couch in front of a 50" Plasma TV watching the polar express.....

Picnicked in the park....walked on stilts....Xmas drinks with friends while watching kids play with their school friends.... Lily and Ivy put on a trampoline gymnastic show....Seb played games and was witty....

Home for a spot of dinner and then out to look at the lights with kids and Chris Isaak singing carols in the car....

The only worry was the delivery from coles online this morning was short the two fresh chickens I was planning to cook for xmas lunch!!!! But we all popped into Woolworthes 10 mins before closing tonight on the way home....Free range BBQ chickens were now $2 each.... Lunch sorted.... I would rather be lucky than talented....

Goodnight my friends.....this year may end better than expected....

Decanter - Slowing to a trot....

Not going to stress about having a better homes and gardens thing for Xmas... I really don't have anyone to impress these days... or, at least not by having a tidy house anyway... So today I chilled, picked up a trunk, a Mahjong set and the last of the Xmas gifts.... A truck will arrive in the morning with food... A spot of lunch at the Wayzee Goose with M and the kids.... Back for the Xmas eve tradition of Polar Express and relaxing with the kids....

I must remember not to get drunk and ask the ex to play "Recognise Anything in this House?" game... It's a joke sort of...

My new challenge in the short term.... I am going to do a series of 12 Days of Xmas.. Inkomplete style.... On the first day of Xmas my true love gave to me a rabbit in a ......... You will have to keep coming back to find out what she stuffed a rabbit in...

Stick that in your pipe.....

3 Sleeps till Xmas..... House is only one day from being as close to ready as I can be arsed getting it.... After the kids go to bed I will wrap some gifts, have a cider and relax with a bit of Dr Pats Irish mixture.... 

I am a slave to affectation it seems....Better than cigars, cigarettes, alcoholism or buckets of fudge... Hand made briar x-long wizard style pipe and some tobacco in a tin... It says Irish Mixture.... I think my Irish friend might say there was a little something missing... but it is very relaxing none the less.... It has been very nice to have some help around here....even with a house full of mad kids, it was still good... I think that says something....

Nurse......

A little under the weather at the moment....I wont bore (or disgust) you with the details, just a little affliction brought on by stress and unhealthy habits.... Was truly a revelation to be looked after, as in supported and helped. I think I need to be looked after, not in a dependant way... but in a way that means I am not demeaned, or placed second to selfish or stunted behaviour.... Quite a surprise that help doesn't make you weak and dependant, when it is delivered with empathy and respect....

A couple of days out from Xmas now, somehow I got tricked into having kids for an extra weekend? Oh well at least they will be better off without the milkshakes and chocolates.... The house is a few days from ready for Xmas too, hopefully the weather picks up and Xmas lunch can be served on the veranda.. Just starting to get things set up out there... Still a bit frosty, and I need to do something about lighting...

The food has been ordered to arrive on the morning before xmas.....So that is one thing that I dont need to worry about, a trip to the bottleshop is about all that remains...

Peace Out......

Just a relaxing day....Bit of this....Bit of that.... Bit of the other. Even had a nap.... Been quite a while since I had a guilt free nap things must be looking up.... I had breakfast bought to me in bed the other day... which was nice... actually more than nice... really not used to that kind of thing... I think I may have been like a dog who gets a kick everyday of their life, you think it's normal... You get confused by nice.... Really got to get over that and enjoy...

Twas the Week Before Xmas.....

Been getting carried away with the Xmas trim.... Finally got the tree right.... Felt good to have a no compromise tree for the first time ever... Looking forward to wrapping some gifts to put under it now.... The ex has informed me she has a hotel booked nearby for Xmas, that should be good for the kids... Maybe she can even bring Vista to hide under the bed... Got quite a few invites to things over the next few weeks, looking forward to enjoying the social side of Xmas again.... Hopefully everyone can be have like grown-ups, or at least realize I ain't juggling shit for anyone but the kids... I may look like a circus freak, but I cant juggle....

Just the one strand of lights this year...

Glass....Wood....Tin

Dragonfly....Just the one....

Not a Tinse of tinsel to be seen......

So the first of a new breed of Xmas starts now.... Family, Joy, Food, Drink and Love.... Can't Wait....

Two Bits....

Another day closer to Xmas....and another day further from last Xmas.... All very good... Got a chair. I like my new chair. Picture = Thousand Words and all that.

Anything for the weekend Sir?

On the 9th Day of Xmas My True Love Gave to Me...

I was going to start that way....but of course the 12 Days of Xmas starts on Xmas, so that would be wrong. Anyway just feeling good, and was trying to be chipper in the title. As expected the thing that I thought would go well, went well. Which was nice. I got to say I told you so, in a good natured way... and the clouds cleared, the sun came out, birds sang and all the crap.... The other side looked like they had been bitch slapped, but that's Karma for you...

So just like in T2 Judgement Day, we are back at that "No Fate" bit.... Thank goodness....

9 days till Xmas....Yikes....Lots and Lots to do, lots done and for the first time in many years I can truly say I am looking forward to it.... There will be some unavoidable cross over between old life and new... But to be honest I am over shielding people from reality, and my ex is my ex, so not really my job to make her feel anymore comfortable in my house than any other guest... So hopefully it will be drama free, and I would rather annoy someone without emotions than someone with.

In an attack of insanity today I started making my own decorations. I am taking this tinsel free thing very seriously....

Try Rubbing this for Luck.....

Ok I will admit it.... I am an atheist..... Not a noisy one, because I  am so atheistic I don't even think about being one.... So it is completely illogical that I believe in Luck, Karma and Fate? Well not to me, because I don't attribute these things to gods, aliens or rubbing two magic pixes together... It is hard to explaining with out seeming hippy dippy.... I put myself in between the gaps I guess no strong convictions, just an annoying and persistent belief that everything works out... That is not a passive thing though, you have to guide the right thing, even when you dont know what it is... Plan A through Plan E is not unusual in my life, sometimes you change the plan sometimes you change the goal... It all works out for the best I tend to find... Even if its not what I expected... But like most people I do harbour a few superstitions, a little OCD lucky rabbit me... And because I am not a knock on wood kind of guy... I will not say what I believe will happen, right now.... Lets just say (at 11:30 on a Tuesday night), that I will be rubbed well tomorrow, and I suspect the result will be a happy bunny...

An Apple a Day.....

Obvious I know.....but is 11:30pm.....I just finished a giant online xmas food shopping spree... Organised a last minute baby sitter (More on that Thursday)... Half cleaned the house and popped a whole Valium.... So it is a race against time here.... Decided in the past I was pushed, this time I am going to jump.... and I did more work on more new computer today than on my old one in the last two months.... Who would of thunk it?

Better.....

Better Day..... Better Weekend.... and a picture that kind of says that too I guess?

So I drank a cup of coffee and got given a free bottle of wine, because I am a good customer.... Since I only go there maybe once a month, for a cup of coffee, he must have meant I am a good customer, not a regular one.....

Industrial Laziness....

Taking a break from insane rants to get back to doing something more productive.... In between picking things up today I hit a few garage sales... I got my purchases home to realize their had been a shift in buying patterns... With retro and collectibles I was always cautious of condition... a small mark or scratch could halve the value.... With the embracment of Industrial by the cutting edge, I now don't care if something is worn or rusty, in fact I leave somethings out in the garden a few weeks to really get them up to showroom condition.... No more sanding filling and repairing for me.... Industrial is the best thing since unsliced bread....

Love and other Bitch Slaps.....

It is just funny....not ha ha funny, but isn't life funny after the second bottle of wine and 2nd vodka cruiser poured over melted ice cream funny.... Fattening, Painkiller Funny.... All I needed was some sign that people could pull their head out of their arse long enough to see things weren't going well... Silly me... The temporary high of shopping is gone... The beautiful fuzz of Prozac, vodka, Valium in the shape of expensive ice cream and Valium in the shape of Valium is doing its job well.....Cant focus on anything to be angry about for more than 10 seconds.... I have drugged myself into the mind scape of a goldfish...blub...blub.....blub....

So cheers to my fragile Girlfriend who I have broken for over 20 years.... and cheers to my emotionally retarded and badly dressed ex....cheers to my toxic mother and distant father and cheers to my emotional eating.... I will sober up tomorrow and be OK for a while.... everyone else will still be selfish pricks, but I know I will try to be just over that halfway mark of selfish arse and just into trying to make things better.... Lapin is off to finish the ice cream and yell obscenities in poor french at arse hats on xbox live.... Its a wonderful life.....

Allergic to Shellfish.....

Not in a happy bubbly little mood at the moment....more like a big fuk'in dark cloud.... A week of people asking me about leaving, finally reached breaking point today.... The last day of school... It was raining and I wore dark glasses but even that wasn't fooling anyone.... After the forth person asked I was starting to lose it...then I see my beautiful boy wander up the corridor, being hugged and given xmas gifts by students and teachers.... and when he saw me his bottom lip dropped and trembled... and there were tears from us both.... The head of school hugged me and told me how sad she was that we were going and we spoke of Sebastian's amazing progress....Lily was quite... and on the edge of tears, not the get your own way tears she is so good at, but just lost and upset tears.... My son hugged the school goodbye and I fell apart.... I got home and read the notes the teachers had written for my children, I sat outside and wept openly.....

It would have been a nice day to get some support from anywhere....but not today it seems....and I won't be holding my breath for the ex to contact her children, to make sure they are OK.... Some days it just seems a little unfair.... I try to keep the world an upbeat place, it would be nice if the world made an effort when I couldn't... I am off to eat ice-cream and drink vodka.... and tomorrow I will dust myself off and smile and try and make everything OK, for everyone else again.... not because I am a martyr in case that's what your thinking.... But I have come to far to stop being allergic to selfish....

Chain Gang.....

Child labour laws have been temporarily suspended at Maison De Lapin, due to the last minute school xmas cards and candy cane rush.... 50 cards in sleepy kid font.... and a cheap candy cane stuffed in the envelope. That's xmas for you right there.... Please don't pay to much attention to that Bah-Humbuggery, it was actually great fun...

The kids and I wrote a note to print out and put in every card....I tried not to make it too sad, even though that wasn't how I felt -

We are all so grateful for the wonderful memories the staff, parents and students have given us all.... and while we must move on to our next adventure, a little part of us will always smile at the thought of Korowal.... We hope this not a goodbye... but au revoir....

“Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened.”

All our Best from Lily and Sebastian and Shayn...

So that is how it will end, and I try to believe that I am doing the right thing....I should have made the ex pick them up from school these last few days... To see my son chatting and laughing with other kids... other parents telling me how sad it was we were leaving, and how far he has come....even the reminder call from the librarian about overdue books was accompanied by a genuine message of how much she would miss him.... He came out of school today wearing a silk scarf that he had made himself and he was so proud... and a trip to shops after school resulted in some older girls from the school seeing lily and running up saying "huggy"...she smiled and hugged them both.... One of those glad I was wearing glasses moments....

So school will end....I will have a big xmas with friends and family and an over flowing house... My kids will experience a real xmas... for now that is my focus... and if I fall arse backwards into a shit load of cash....all bets are off....

Love Shack Baby....

I got me a couch, it's as big as a whale
And we're headin' on down to the Love Shack
I got me a Lounge, it seats about 20
So hurry up and bring your jukebox money....

So the piano left.....and the room feels much less cramped and darkened by it's looming black presence... The couch is beyond ridiculous of course....and I suspect I will split it into two separate lounges.... But for now a 8 meter couch is somewhat funny, and I need a bit of funny to adjust the karma of the room back to happy shiny.... The absence of posts for the last few days should be seen for what is was... Busy and not in the mood.... Back on track now... One room ready for xmas, just the rest of the house to go...

I can see clearly now.....

Not really but now I can listen to that song..... Long week ending with a longer weekend..... Not really sure what the problem with everyone else on the damn planet is.... but I went garage sailing and came back with a industrial feel.

Stuff it in a Sack......

More fun with furniture and sacks today....just realized I had sold all my outdoor furniture, and invited people for xmas....whoops.....so off to the local op-shop in search of outdoor chairs....and this is what I found.....

OK...... I will admit not the most attractive chair in the world.....but there was 4 of them, and they are made by Sebel and solid as commercial office furniture of the 80's was.....and they were dirt cheap...$15 for 4 of them.....all i really needed was something to put on the veranda, watch the sunset over the hills and drink long island ice tea's with guests over the xmas break....I cant paint the frames today due to weather....but I think they will make a very comfy place to watch the world roll by when done.....

Take a Seat Gentleman......

Love it when two separate purchases are made for each other.....a vintage deck chair without canvas, and a pile of coffee sacks that were to good to pass up bought two weeks before.....Big needle time...

And another lucky purchase....a set of balance scales....no weights means I have something to do with all the little bottles I have....make crystal weights with colour liquids and vintage weight labels....

Stuck in a Moment....

Lets just stick to the good bits..... found some interesting bits and pieces...... and had a nice salad.... the end...

oh....I am reading a great book filled with sharp bits of metal and dead animals.....lots of fun for a decorating "bible"....Thanks Jane at Plain Jane Styling (you can follow her much prettier blog by looking to the right in My Blogs List).....

Let's Have That one Bronzed!!!!.....

What a great day....garage sale went of without a hitch....made more money than I can comfortable jam in my wallet....even after buying the kids (and myself) a Playstation 3 with a big pile of games, I can pay electricity, and everything else with enough left for "pushing the barge out" at xmas.... I chatted, I sold stuff, I chatted, I sold stuff....all good, all very good....Had my Dad and M here to help, the kids were great and my sales patter must be rubbing off on the boy. He has a wonderful ability to get the ladies to smile. The Big yellow chairs I bought Last week left today....almost 6 days....hmmmm that's some short lived furniture....if i was better at maths I could work out the percentage of profit....1000% I think.... Did I mention it was a great day? Been a wonderful weekend having the kids here has been great too....We went out got takeaway....curled up on couch watched giant TV.... Sponge bob marathons, Tome and Jerry and now Lava Girl and shark boy.....There has been two large bowls of fresh popcorn, and the house smells wonderful.....

I was going to take a picture when I first started the sale, but to be honest there really wasn't time....it's a shame there must have been twenty people chatting and buying it would have made a good photo......

Don't Cry for me Marge and Tina....

No tears at all.....from them or me....great school concert.... Now I don't know why I have been avoiding them.... Chats and fun and happy smiling kids.... So many hugs and smiles, i may be a little high from them.... a good day....

Pride......

It has now been raining for four days straight......the yard is a mud puddle and the kids are stir crazy.... but it doesn't matter.... must be on the upswing of the roller coaster, does a roller coaster have an upswing.... I cant really say I am on the upswing of a swing, that just sounds dumb.

Very proud moment with my kids last night....It was ten o'clock and I had completely forgotten they were still up. The reason that made me so happy was because the night before they were jumping around like loons in the big TV room, as they have taken to calling the room with the big TV. So I explained to them that if they had of been quiet I would have let them stay up....So the next night they went to great lengths to be invisible and inaudible...So proud......of my pride.....

Tomorrow in between being busy I am off to school to watch my wonderful little girl sing in her Kindergarten concert.....I will wear dark glasses because I know I will cry....

About Face......

They say a week is a long time in politics......well its a bloody long time in  my life too.... Up ... Down .... Hairpin Bends....

These Boots were Made for Walking....

Actually I think they were made for embarrassing cyber goth wannabees.....and should never been worn by any one over 21.... However as I look so good in eyeliner, I will give them ago.... I am sure I wouldn't like them at all if they didn't cost over $500.... But they do seem to be really well made compared to the cheap knock offs I have seen.....

And if the apocalypse comes, and the world degenerates into gangs of leather clad bikers fighting to the death over the last can of tuna*, at least I will have something to wear....

And yes I am making pointless posts to keep my mind of the current spiral of decay and entropy that is eating away at me....

*BBT Sheldon Quote

AT WAR!!!!!!......

For those of you feeling the doom of breakneck speed, as the end of the year is approaching.....I feel for you. My calender looks like the worlds most complicated game of naughts and crosses, at the moment....Red and Black ink, fighting for dominance over the battlefield that my life has become.... The times and dates of children's parties, school events, friends visits and working times of others, let slip the dogs of war on Start of School holidays, Garage Sales, Market Days, and the remaining shopping days till xmas chimes an ominous note over the whole sorry month.....

"Like butter spread a little to thinly over to much toast" I think is the quote..... That's how I feel, being pulled in a dozen different directions.... Other people have needs, at the moment I just have tiredness. I want to rally and fight... I need a rousing Henry or Richard (Insert roman numeral here) speech, to lift my weary sole for one last push against the Frenchies or Gerry's or The Scots or something....

So I will pick up, dust off, remount..... and get back to tilting at windmills, till the storm lifts or the pillars of heaven shift.....or I find the Seven Demon Bag......

Today I sat here....I drank coffee....and thunk....

Butcher, Baker and the Candlestick maker......

......Or maybe the guy who turns the Stop/Slow sign at roadworks * All these are real jobs.....Looking after kids and turning a dollar or two with the only real abilities you have.....Not work.....

Only God Can Judge Me!!! the saying goes....I guess as an atheist that cuts that group by one.... Here's a new rule...Number 72 - "You don't need to justify it to anyone, but yourself". I think that is going to become a favourite, up there with Number 6 - "Using the Phrase "It's The Principle of the Thing!" is your personal red light to stop what the hell you are doing and calm down!".

Rule 32 - Is don't eat out of the open tuna can after two days..... These rules are the things we need to know.....they don't have to sound like someone distilled the wisdom of a dozen Dali Lamas.....

**

*Why do they always give the job of holding the slow sign to the person that looks like they are? Happy accident or cruel reminder?
**A Cast Iron Rabbit.....

The Light House Keeper.....

Today I was thinking about lamps..... bit over the designer retro thing.... and the industrial thing can be a bit harsh.... So I started playing around with a few bits and pieces I had around, a very dull 50's floor lamp, Some Paint and a skinned lampshade frame.... and now this is an industrial lamp I can live with....

Just wish I had a completely empty room just to put these to pieces in.... Midnight Express anyone?

The Real Job....

Taking some time off today from grifting and pretentious artistic pursuits, to do my real job... Being a dad..... I am better at that anyway... Dollhouse construction time....

Even this gets a before and after.....

Before

and after...

Try Sleeping Through That.....

The night I mean..... Teeny tiny touch of insomnia, not as bad as I used to have it.... and I got some washing done. Silver Lining and all that..... The books are balanced, the cupboards are not bare.... and I realized something, that when I am not pouring all my motivation and confidence into a bottomless well, I have more than enough to change my world.... and my goodness there is a lot of catching up to do.... Doing well this week....but more of that later.... Jinx and all that ladders, black cats and knocking on your wooden eggs.....

Oh and of course the other upside of insomnia.....

Suits you sir!!!!!

Day Two.....Again.....

Confusing I bet....oh well....

Today's ridiculous ebay bargain.....Two super large comfy club style arm chairs... After a fierce bidding war I managed to snag them for $1.04 or 52 cents each..... Damn I am good at this.....

It's Not Easy Being Green......

But it is a little easier to be a kind of vintage industrial green.... I am not a fan of recycling garbage, it shocks and horrifies people that my plastics, paper etc bin is never used.... I am unapologetic, i try to reduce my consumption of garbage at the other end....the purchase end.....

Very little in my house is new, most of it discarded as worthless, and then replaced by some chipboard rubbish from a chain store.... My greenness comes from the up cycling.... I will stick with that I think....

A great example, is this horrible but solid TV unit, its orange pine cottage look is well out of fashion...so it is basically thrown away.....

Probably to be replaced by something similar in a more "fashionable" country chic or some such thing... They throw this away and then go spend $100's on another one..... or they could buy a $3 tin of paint?

Not a dramatic amount of work, but a very functional piece for my sons room and less than an hour to achieve.....

The $3 can of paint was still quite full, so a 1940's pot cupboard also got upgraded from twee pseudo antique......

....to a much more palatable industrial style piece, also for my sons room....