Excuse the title. It’s a ‘song’ the inamorato sings at random, and tonight it applies because I just stuck an enormous vegetable pie in the oven. I stewed up red onion, broccoli, celery, fennel, potato, fresh corn, baby spinach and whatever else I could find in the fridge or cupboard that really needed using up before it went bad, then put some cheese inside it and parmesan with olive oil on top. I’m hungry and I wish it would bake quickly…

Recital was had yesterday afternoon. We had a rather attentive and quiet crowd of about 80. It’s not the worst I’ve ever played, but my teacher thought I seemed a bit ‘stressed’. In today’s lesson I revised the pieces and played them all much better, but I also said I wanted to work on the Military Polonaise of Chopin’s as something different, and to develop a bit more confidence in volume and use of arms. And that went rather well. We shopped afterwards and got the Borderlands expansion, Bioshock 1, Lord of the Rings Conquest (which I will have to play tonight because Lord of the Rings Online is having maintenance), and some bottled confidence for Lowana’s country-themed party on the weekend. We’re all half dreading and half excited about that. Our farm animal costumes haven’t worked out so I’m sure we’ll just look a little countrified instead. Her parents and their friends are sure to be there and they are always excellent company for someone like me who just revels in absolute nonsense!

An enormous box of fabric greeted me as soon as I got up today, and though it’s a bit thicker than I’d envisioned, there is no doubt I can make excellent use of it all. I spent quite a few hours half-creating a pair of black pantalettes the other day, under the guidance and instruction of Miss Lowana. I still need to put elastic in them and embellish them with lace and such, but they’ll look okay for a first try. I’d like to make another pair or two and some frilly little skirts to go over them. I spent a while ‘wishlisting’ on eBay the other night, too, and have been thoroughly inspired for another Rococo tea party/picnic as soon as the weather is improved. A dainty teacup and vintage lace/floral themed collection of things seems to be demanding my attention. It’s all going rather sweet lolita, damask, and candy stripes for me lately.

Anyway, this entry is feeling rather forced and trite so I’ll leave it until I have something more exciting and visual to blog about!

On Tuesday I decided to clear some clutter from my bathroom. I was going to start with some easy task like removing the big box of useless cat toys and picking up the towels all over the floor, but as is my habit, once I got started it was hard to ignore the rest of the filth. Six hours’ cleaning worth of filth and untidiness, actually. I usually just scrub down the basin area and bleach the bath, but this time I took it to the walls and ceiling. It’s possibly the first time the ceiling has been cleaned since the room was done up about 30 years ago… And goodness, did it make a difference! See, I figured if I were to take pride in a room (for once) it would have to be something nice to begin with, and there’s no way this bathroom can be considered ‘nice’ while sporting its current wall colour. We called it ‘apricot salmon’, because at first it’s this orangey sickly colour but then you look again… and you’re really not sure of what it is. My bedroom walls used to be a similar colour before I painted them lemon and lilac to match a particular Harry Potter t-shirt that I used to wear constantly. So I dared to ask father whether I could paint the walls. Usually this sort of request would be answered by outright denial of the need for it and then something along the lines of, “what’s wrong with the colour it is now?” That’s exactly what I got, so I asked a few more times throughout the day, affirming that it would not come at his expense or labour, and would add value to the house. I showed him scrubbed and unscrubbed sections of wall and ceiling to point out the difference it made. I took pictures of the room and used photoshop to change the the wall colours for him to see my plan. He looked around and stated that the ceiling would need sanding back because it was oil paint but that he probably had lots of white paint in the shed, and that the walls would need an undercoat and he’d have a look at his work for paint. Not only was he responsive but he was offering to make it easier. And I found out his work stocks lots of paint, so all I need to do is go in and pick some swatches. I decided on a rather light but rich plum colour, something that would still look okay with the old tiles and floor.

In the meantime, to stave off impatience, I took plans into my own hands and went out to various bargain shops to find new fittings and essential bathroom items that would suit the room enough. I came back with purple and white hand-towels and face-washers, a 5-piece black toothbrush/soap holder set, a small gold mirror, a shelf unit, some sort of potpourri, another shower curtain, mats, and a shiny new shower caddy to replace the gross white rusty one. All up, the difference was quite refreshing.

The night before, and the day after.

The colour I'd like the walls to be, though it will be lighter and more rosy because father doesn't want any dark colours.

Last night I was also delighted to win something I think was a veritable bargain in the world of fabrics. Twenty meters of green upholstery fabric in a delightful damask print is now on its way to me! My heart was beating rather fast and I was very anxious in the last minute of the auction, but my high sniping bid ensured I came out the victor. It worked out at about $3.35 per metre. I am off to see the crafty vixen behindVanyanis this afternoon, to plot over what we shall do with it. I was thinking 18th century sacque-backs or one of these robes for myself, or perhaps a Victorian skirt, but perhaps I need to think outside the obvious. And when it arrives we’ll be able to gauge what it’s most suitable for anyway. It really is time to stop spending for this fortnight.

The only other exciting news I have right now is that on Sunday my teacher’s giving a recital in the retirement village my grandparents live in, and I’ll be playing some things there. I decided on Bach’s E minor Prelude and Fugue #1 (BWV 855), the second movement of Ravel’s Sonatine, and I’m accompanying the darling Alice Emerald while she sings ‘If’, a favourite Nyman composition of mine. I don’t feel entirely technically prepared but I don’t usually make a fool of myself so I’ll just draw on everything I’ve been told and hope for the best.

I’m off to use the improved bathroom now!

Amidst all the 2010 Australian Federal Election hype, the confusing and opaque policies of parties and politicians, and the intensely negative and critical atmosphere surrounding the election, a few rays of wintry sunlight have shone in the unnavigable field of my mind. I had almost committed to an invalid vote through sheer disillusionment with “politics”, but less than 24 hours ago decided that my personal moral obligations shouldn’t include backing out when things are a bit tough. And of course, writing numbers down with pencil and paper is dreadfully hard for those of a modest educational quotient who also happen to live next door to the polling venue. Ahem.

So the important points that have come to me through this little time of personal anxiety and confusion included:

• To avoid a fine (voting being compulsory for pretty much everyone over 18 in Australia), I at least needed to turn up to vote and have my name marked off. The temptation to scrawl, “Gandalf for President!”, lewd anatomical drawings, or to waste wit on the paper all occurred to me, but at the near last-minute I decided to take the vote as serious as was possible.
• I didn’t agree fully with the policies of any one political party. In fact, even when trying to pick the ‘worst of the best’ I discovered that I wasn’t exactly sure of my own stances on all of the issues in question. There wasn’t the time for soul-searching or intense research on, well, the history of the world, to best cast a vote that I could honestly believe was best for the Australian people — which brings me to disillusionment, and the bane of illustrious society: bogans.
• The musings of Malefiction in “Voting – It’s Your Sole Purpose” touch on the notion of how important your vote seems to be to other people, who feel that your vote is wasted if you do not take it seriously, and also bogan xenophobia. I had thought that privacy was an important factor around voting, but I have witnessed so many blunt and overt comments and claims, often quite nasty and unproductive, that it seems everyone but myself has an opinion for once. My opinions, being something that have come under unexpected scrutiny when I have rarely bothered to share them, are often at odds with the mainstream or that ‘enlightened’ generation of today’s sophisticated hipsters. Which is interesting considering I’m quite conservative on most issues.
• Thus, I used Below the Line to create a completely custom .pdf document of my preferences, all 60 of them, which I printed and filled in at the ballot box. I stood giggling next to the Inamorato, who I believe was using his time to enable the ballot paper-sorter to easily find Wally.
• At the end of the day the difference I make is not solely going to be via a piece of paper that we fill out every few years. It’s going to be in the endless series of thoughts and choices I make every minute of every day, the way I affect people close to me, my personal responsibilities, and my personal moral standpoint. Voting is just one of those many choices. I hold by the position that regardless of how education or life experience contributes to my personal purpose on earth, every choice I make should not be for myself, my country, a political party, or anyone on earth. It should be to the glory of God and in accordance to His will. I want reverence for all life, forgiveness, justice, the fruits of the spirit and, over all, love to be the driving force of all my choices. That will be difficult for some to reconcile with, but they must respect my rights and views as I respect theirs.

In other matters, the house-sitting came to its blessed end. We were half glad of the opportunity to be all sickeningly sweet and domestic all on our own, but it was cold and dirty and bereft of the creature comforts of home. I am always willing to help out family and friends in those sorts of things, being practical ways that I can contribute and in like repay generosity we have received ourselves.

Most of our books have arrived from our order; they are sent out as soon as they are available rather than all in a bulk lot. It’s exciting to check the porch each day in the hope of a parcel of new books!

Last night we had fun at a “Steampunk: Gaslamp British India” party. We took on the garb of an explorer and his brave woman. I’m awaiting more photos but can provide a rather good one for now. I wore my chemise à la reine and made a new green sash for it which was a lovely contrast to the candy pink it normally sports! I have put on so much weight I couldn’t do up my stays, so my realistic goal is to keep up my small but regular exercise regime and my improved eating habits. My doctors helped me a few weeks ago when things got rather down and lethargic (my iron levels were much too low), but also suggested I keep my weight about 10kg lighter than I am now. I am inclined to agree but am trying not to let those old demons in, in regards to body image and such. Health is my main motivation these days! More later…

I am presently quite delighted in how fortuitous today has been in the book department! Namely, I have managed to purchase a book which I never though I could acquire in a used state, let alone new, for under $300. As a comparison, the only copies on eBay were around $800. As it is, The Book Depository (a U.K. company who ship out almost any book you can think of at LOW prices with no postage costs) had the book for only $65. I could not let it slip by! The book in question is an out-of-print album of post-mortem photography, Sleeping Beauty: Memorial Photography in America. The book seems to focus generally on 19th-century Americans (though people still take post-mortem pictures, especially of stillborn children). While in some photos the subjects are very much dead-looking and showing signs of decay, others look as if they are sleeping very peacefully. I find this utterly fascinating; the squeamish or death-fearing person might find it unnatural or macabre, but the nostalgic side of me appreciates that moment of time when part of somebody’s life (or death) has been captured on film to outlast them by generations. It is often a sad reminder of the young mortality rate, but also a lasting memorial for those souls.

We also got a number of other titles, which perhaps I will “review” after they arrive — if I ever get to read them! I don’t think I’ve been able to finish a book this year; listlessness, Nintendo DS obsession at bedtime, and a confirmed need for reading glasses have all contributed.

We have two more days of house-sitting left. I’ve watched, “The Hurt Locker”, “Gamer” (dreadful), “Iris”, “Ladies in Lavender”, “The Devil Wears Prada”, and numerous documentaries and such. We never usually watch television at home, only movies on the computer! There are a few extra channels here which have stopped me from writing off television altogether; they have been packed with interesting programming, giving me new insights and food inspiration.

The house still resists all attempts at cleaning. Its hydra-like filth reappears moments after sweeping, dusting and washing. It’s made us miss home and made us miss the cat, whose little black clumps of oft-groomed hair are a pleasure compared to the layer of dog hair here. When the Inamorato’s parents return, we may just have to call an intervention, and not least because of the black mould.

Back to the movies and chocolate, then!

My inamorato and I are presently looking after his parents’ house on the mountain. It’s been quiet and cold so far, but also a bit of a holiday. Well, the sort of holiday that makes you appreciate home more!

On Wednesday, the beginning of our house-sitting, the Gent went around tidying and cleaning the abode, which is generally quite filthy (but homely), and we watched “Paranormal Activity”, then “Lust, Caution”. Thursday saw the need for supplies from home and errands to be run. That evening the Lady watched documentaries and drank cheap merlot while the Gent visited his cousin, and then we watched “Iris”.

Today we’ve exercised the dogs, who are absolute nuisances, and the Gent is scrubbing windows and sorting through childhood paraphernalia. The Lady took her weekly hair-wash, has baked a large orange-poppyseed cake and is tending the pot of vegetable and lentil soup on the stove to the strains of Bach. It’s all rather domestic and cozy so far, and makes us wish all the more constantly to be married and living in our own little hideaway somewhere.

We are hoping to entertain friends tomorrow night down in the ‘bar’. I will need to practise my prelude & fugue for a recital at the end of the month. I have a piano-themed outfit planned and it will be rather cute if I manage to acquire it!

I have also added a few friends’ journals to the Blogroll and I heartily recommend “fruippé” for culinary adventurers!

Other than trying to get a post up before midnight (after tweaking the layout so I’m something close to happy with), today’s mission has been to change my Tolkien website so it just uses CSS for positioning — no tables! Overcame a few hitches but was ultimately successful. Unfortunately, the code in my html file and stylesheet are still woefully deprecated and I need to rework it from the ground up to have something fully Web 2.0 compliant. I’ll save that for another day. Regardless, the site is fulfilling its purpose; to present an aesthetically pleasing vista and to capture somewhat my nostalgia for ages past.

I have a number of other website projects either planned or in the works and will post about each once they’re completed. They include:

• JustUs Productions – Theatre & musical production company
• Singing Gardens – Gardens/tearooms in Toolangi on the only property C.J. Dennis ever owned
• Torturin’ Time – A Sims 3 blog with a twist
• Alchemic Photo – Portfolio for Mark Boyle
• St. James, Wandin – Church website

Thankfully my energy has picked right up in the last week so I’ve felt able to work on things, practise more piano, even go outside!

Aletheia Nocturne, so named after the river Lethe, and for a musical form I enjoy, exists once more. Instead of a doomed message board or a pretentious site dealing only with the Age of Enlightenment, I had been feeling the need for an outlet other than LiveJournal or my inamorato (who will be this blog’s official editor). Something that could capture bits of inspiration or news, issues, opera/orchestra/book/film reviews. Something a capricious soul could revert to whenever the impulse to share these snippets came along, in all its usual intensity. I think this is what Aletheia has been destined for.

Expect tangents, rambling, nerdiness, interesting pictures, and possible drama.

What better way to start off my own new blog than by featuring the most inspiring website design I have yet come across! By happy chance today did I discover “Pirogov Bureau“, a Russian design firm whose creativity knows no bounds. Their integration of Flash, CSS, illustration and animation, while still retaining a corporate feel, is a marvel to me. Of course, their enterprise employs a number of professionals in those design categories (including illustrators, marketing analysts, and photographers) and their clients can obviously afford the best. One sacrifice in many of their websites is simply speed; you may have to wait for at least 5mb of content to download before an “enter” option becomes available. Most of the sites are in Russian, so you either need to choose the English option, or use a page translator (though it was still quite easy to navigate even without translating).

Must get to bed now, my throat is screaming for ventolin! ‘Welcome’ post will be up in about 12 hours.