Sometimes, you just gotta....

LAUGH!

Does life get too serious, sometimes? It certainly does for me, and then every little thing seems so big, other people's annoying habits become unbearable and days can go by without a good belly laugh. This is why it's so good to stop and have a bit of fun for no particular reason, as often as possible. And the best laughs are the ones that come unexpectedly, sometimes shared with strangers.

Today I was in the video shop, and I decided to borrow a Seinfeld DVD. While reading the episode blurbs on the back, I remembered just how funny the show used to be, and I started laughing. A woman looked at me, and all I had to do was to hold up the DVD cover, and say, 'Pez Dispenser'. She got it, and laughed too. There was a moment of real connection, though I'd never seen her before, and probably won't ever again.

This morning my kids found this little piece of comedy, and thanks to the creators, we shared a few laughs in our pyjamas. Here is the talented troupe of Harry Potter Pals. Enjoy.

New Project

I have a new project. Not that I've abandoned the last one, but this one has kind of taken me by storm. The idea for this medical romance was such a good one that I kind of ran with it. Sometimes it's good to give ideas and themes enough time to develop, so Hugh and Libby are having a short rest as they make way for Matt and Evangeline.

My strong visual sense demanded some real-life inspirations, and for my central characters, I chose Joaquin Phoenix and Julianne Moore. Joaquin is exactly Matt - nothing needs changing, but in order to become Evangeline, Julianne would need spiral curls. I still want her red hair, but it's just too straight for the heroine I envisaged.

The plot is quite dramatic, and the first chapter works hard to establish the tension. Difficult thing - as always - will be not only to maintain that tension, but to escalate it. I'm working a lot harder with my chapters, trying not to ramble too much. I give myself 5 points of reference, 5 things that have to happen before the chapter ends. So far I've stuck to it quite well, and it's been extremely enjoyable. Though I have a busy life, the nights I fall into bed after midnight with a few pages under my belt, I swear I go to sleep with a smile on my face. When I'm writing, producing well, I feel an enormous sense of satisfaction and feel really happy.

Winter in the Alps

Just got back from a fabulous week at Mt Buller. We got there as the mountain was engulfed in a blizzard of biblical proportions. Gale force winds kept all but about four lifts from running, so we enjoyed a snug day in the lodge on the first day there. There was a bit of snow play outside, which kept the little ones happy, and the white stuff was awesome. With more than a metre on the ground, a steady supply coming out of the sky, and below freezing temperatures, it stayed powdery all week.

Being strictly a fair-weather skier, I waited until the sky had cleared a bit before venturing out, and when it did, I had four good days on the slopes. It's so magic up there on top of the world, and I get as much of a buzz out of the beautiful scenery all around as I do skiing.

The kids went to ski-school some of the time and are now good enough to keep up with us older skiers (okay, actually skiing past me now!). Some friends joined us on the weekend, and they were kind enough to cook a Thai feast on Saturday night, followed by gorgeous blueberry mini-cheesecakes. If that wasn't enough indulgence, on Sunday morning, they cooked pancakes with berries!

What a great holiday... Just what I needed before getting back to work next week.

The Spirit of Romance

Grace Kelly (the screen icon, not the real woman) has always embodied the essence of romance, for me. She was sublimely beautiful, looked spectacular in anything she wore and she was the epitome of style, refinement and... perfection. Of course, her seemingly perfect private life was anything but. I still find many of her movies a delight to watch. 'To Catch a Thief', 'Rear Window' and 'High Society' are among my favourite classics. In these, she plays heroines who are courageous, independent and strong-willed. What's not to love?

Mika's song - 'Grace Kelly' - is cool and boppy, it's loaded with the real goods. A rock solid melody that won't be forgotten overnight. Don't know if I agree with him that '...her looks were too sad', though. Dear, lovely, Grace Kelly. The silver screen misses you.

Check out the groovy video clip below...

And by the way...

I'm bald!!!

A career change, shifting commitments and a new sense of adventure deserve a crazy new look! Today I took the plunge and cut (nearly all) my hair off. I didn't do it myself, of course. I let a professional do it, and did it feel good. Man oh man.

When the hairdresser was finished, she spiked me up until I hardly recognised myself. Next step will be to experiment with some wild colours. But I think I'll wait a couple of months to do that. Best to let the shock of the new subside, first.

Winter by the beach

Just got back from a wonderful week away at Rosebud.

Rosebud, what a beautifully evocative name for this special place on the bay side of the Mornington Peninsula. It's named after a ship that was shipwrecked off the coast there, many, many years ago.

I'd say the defining feature of our time away at Rosebud is always sleeping in and lazy mornings in pyjamas until noon, when we finally emerge from the house and go looking for things to do. In Summer, it's almost always the beach, whereas in Winter, we have to get a bit more inventive.

It was a rainy week, this time, and we had one outing to the Ashcombe Maze, but it turned rather dark, rainy and cold while we were there. We explored the place, found all the fairies and almost all the gnomes, but it wasn't as pleasant as it could have been on a fine day. The man-made landscapes there are quite breathtaking.

I always, always take my laptop and write late into the night, or catch up on reading that I have less time for at home. Sometimes I take a notebook to the beach so I can write down ideas that come to me. Supervising children playing on sand, or swimming (in the warmer months) does lead to a lot of pondering, and from that can spring some gems of ideas, which have to be captured before they vaporise.

My coat of many Daemons

You got me, AbFab and Ellen. I finally succumbed and took the Daemon test. And aren't I magnificent? The most beautiful, the most revered, the most breathtakingly magnificent animal that ever walked the earth. Immortalised in poetry by Blake, too:

Tiger! Tiger! burning bright
In the forests of the night,
What immortal hand or eye
Could frame thy fearful symmetry? etc. etc...

Well, I have a confession to make. I wasn't always this impressive. The first time I took the test I was... (drum roll) a MOUSE. But that test kind of didn't count for the blog, as I took it using my real name. Which meant I had to take the test again as Scribbly. This next time I was... (bigger drum roll) a HARE. A hare???? Mouse was bad, but hare was bordering on ridiculous.

Then my children got in on the act. The eldest has read the books the movie is based on, and apparently, they're fantastic. I guess we'll all be lining up to see it when it comes out. They took the test and came out as a jackal, a fox and a tiger. Not bad, I thought. Then husband had a go. He came out as a big chimpanzee. We all laughed. But when we tried to save his effort, it didn't work, so he tried again. This next time, his Daemon was a snow leopard. Which was much, much more dignified a result. And it got me thinking. Maybe if I answered the questions a bit more assertively, with a bit more, say... attitude, I'd score a better Daemon. Still being truthful, I reached inside the non-mouse and non-hare part of my psyche, and took the test a final time. You can imagine my thrill when I saw a tiger's shadow appear.

If I believed in any of this, I'd say that people don't have just one Daemon. It all depends on what mood we're in. One day's mouse is another day's tiger.


My (latest) Daemon