heroic

The Heroic Garden Festival was on this weekend. It's an annual charity event - a chance to support Hospice and to get to visit some interesting private gardens in the Auckland area.

It's nice to spend time in a garden but I'm not a gardener. A few succulents in a pot is my limit. Gardening is hard work. There's a great article here by Anne Wareham on that subject.

Watching (curiously) : Gardening with soul - a New Zealand documentary following a year in the garden with 90-year-old Sister Loyola at Island Bay, Wellington. Maybe she will inspire me.

Reading: The hundred-foot journey by Richard C. Morais.

long weekend

Last weekend was another long one with a public holiday on Friday. Each day was perfect - Friday on Waiheke Island visiting friends and walking the sculpture walk, Saturday at this small farm to celebrate a birthday, and Sunday with family. Three day weekends have to be one of the best things.
 
Reading: Shortcomings by Adrian Tomine

rain

Finally the rain came - after nearly four weeks of glorious sunshine. But such a relief - it's been so hot and so humid.

hedges

Hedges make great photo subjects in my opinion. They are everywhere but hard to define. What turns a row of shrubs into a hedge? Can trees be hedges?

Reading - and enjoying completely - 100 essays I don't have time to write : on umbrellas and sword fights, parades and dogs, fire alarms, children, and theatre by Sarah Ruhl

objects

A few fabulous things to dream of -

• Karlsson flip clock
• smyrna cushion by Renilde de Peuter
• Juliet Arnold silver inlaid bangle from rekindle
• hand built ceramic pots by Stella Baggott
• uten silo organiser by Dorothee Becker
• Vipp pedal bin

in a pear tree

We had a weekend away up North for a family wedding. It was a lovely wedding and, amazingly, both the bride's and the groom's grandmothers were there - all four of them. The oldest was ninety-five.

On the way back we stopped off at our favourite avocado orchard. Everyone should have a favourite avocado orchard.

my year of not so much

Happy New Year.

Have you made any resolutions? I've been thinking about the year ahead and some of the things I'd like to do in the next twelve months. I've actually given it a lot of thought because there are things that I think I'd like to do but somehow I never seem to have enough time for.

So this year I'm going to focus on how I spend my time.
2015 will be my year of not so much:
not so much television
not so much work (I hope)
not so much procrastination
and, maybe,
not so much stuff

I'll let you know what happens.

Reading: The hundred-year-old man who climbed out of the window and disappeared by Jonas Jonasson