Finding some calm after the storm

It's the first day of December - it's Summer here in Brisbane. (still so, so wrong...!) The purple Jacarandas have all but disappeared and instead we now have the wonderful vibrant Royal Poinciana. They really do look fabulous against the backdrop of the blue Summer sky. 

Royal Poinciana

That blue sky that I quickly snapped on the way home from school drop off this morning was very different last Thursday....

It was about 4.30pm and all of a sudden everything went dark. There was an eerie silence, then the trees outside my office started to sway and within a few minutes the rain started to lash at the windows. Not long after that the hail started. When I say hail I don't mean little pea size balls of ice - I'm talking big! They got as big as golf balls and some people saw some the size of tennis balls! It was the strangest 30 minutes ever.  There was no warning as is usual with Brisbane storms.  We could only stare out of the windows and wonder at the damage that was being caused. Hail that size can make a car looked like it's been sprayed with bullets.  Windows and windscreens were smashed and branches were flying through the air. Water began to pour through the roof of a room and this kicked the evacuation alarms into action. Except no-one really wanted to leave...

Here's a bit of a clip at the start of the storm taken from inside.

Brisbane storm

Thankfully, no one was badly injured and apart from very wet feet and a delay in getting home I was unaffected. Some others weren't quite so lucky and the next morning I was checking in with a neighbour who told me that the roof of the warehouse of her business had blown off and her Summer stock had been damaged. Another work colleague knew someone who had to have stitches in her head due to a large hail stone landing on her. There were also numerous people that I know with trees on cars and damaged property. What destruction in 30 minutes! Mother Nature sure was having a bad day!

As Brisbane was shaken by a storm on Thursday, the whole of Australia (and further afield) was completely moved by the tragic accident and subsequent death of the young cricketer Phillip Hughes. It has dominated conversation this past week. Australians are so passionate about sport and especially cricket. It's very touching to see the cricket bats placed outside homes and buildings in tribute to him. We are not a family of cricketers but I did find the beach bat and as I placed it I had a moment of reflection on the fragility of life. Sibs got an extra long good night cuddle on Thursday.

In tribute to Phillip Hughes

I always need to find something quiet and soothing after an incident or occasion that shakes me a bit. The long bath didn't quite work so I got into my crochet zone over the weekend and managed to finish a baby blanket that will get the boy/girl colour trim added when my cousin decides the time is right to give birth!

comforting crochet

Then to start this week off on a slightly calmer note, I took myself off for 5 minutes just for me. (It was probably closer to 45 minutes, but who's counting?)

perfection....

This morning I went to re-stock on coffee beans and plonked myself on a comfy sofa with a coffee, some pear and raspberry toast (it's fruit ok!) and got a bit lost with Jane Austen. Funny how you can re-read a book and still absolutely love it.  'Persuasion' is my all time favourite Austen novel. Of course I adore the others, but there is something about 'Persuasion' that intrigues me. Maybe it's the simplicity of the story, maybe it's because it's set in Bath, maybe it's because it's Austen's last novel, written when she was ill? It's all of these things and probably just the fact that it's beautifully written. 

I have introduced my girl to the wonderful world of Austen and we have watched many versions of her books that have been made into films and for TV. Of course, in my opinion to appreciate her true talent then you need to read the books. Sibs started and struggled with Sense & Sensibility (her favourite TV adaptation) so for Christmas last year I found a box set of easy reading Austen novels. 

Each book starts with a brief explanation of the characters, then the novel is presented in a lovely mixture of original and easy to read text. The books end with further notes about the plot; the era and the author and some questions to think about. 

 I bought the box set from Amazon UK and they are published by realreads.co.uk
Real Reads also have a great selection of classic novels and plays.

on my mantlepiece

Wishing everyone a calm week,

The pleasure and treasure of books.

I'm a big reader and have to have some books on my bedside table at all  times.

Usually there's another few dotted around the house in various corners too.

This is the current state of my side of the bed...



Bit of a theme going on I here I think!

I had a bit of a Jane Austen spurt at the local library last week. I typed her name in the search catalogue and all these related books came up. I have read a few of the Rebecca Collins sequels to Pride and Prejudice but had no idea there were quite so many other spin offs - there were pages and pages...

The Amanda Grange books are the classic Jane Austen stories retold in diary format from the male character's viewpoint. The plot follows the familiar tale of Emma  in Knightley's diary,  Sense and Sensibility  with Colonel Brandon's diary and of course Pride and Prejudice through the eyes of Mr Darcy. Fascinating reads.  You get to glimpse some expansion of the sub plots of the original and I'm lapping it up.

Knightley is still my absolute favourite Austen male though...a true romantic.

Are any of you Austen fans? Do you have a favourite?

I don't think I've ever seen Neil read a fiction novel. He's a scientist - just a 'facts and figures please' kind of man! Look at the contrast....

 I bought him the "Help I'm turning into my Dad!" book. It's pretty funny and we've had a giggle at the accuracy of many a topic.

Then there's Sibs...
Her bedside table doesn't always look this tidy. It's school holidays, so the bedroom has had a major clean up. There's usually pencils and a school diary and three or four other books there.

I devoured the Enid Blyton St Clare's and Mallory Towers books when I was her age and I'm so delighted that she's got the same reading bug.

Talking about Enid Blyton...

When we were on holiday last year exploring a bit of the Queensland coast we stumbled upon a bit of a junk shed. There were some interesting things there but being confined to a small camper van we couldn't buy much and I couldn't persuade Neil that the old ladder was an essential item to get!

Anyhow, Sibs and I found some old Enid Blyton books and even though I thought that they were a little pricey at $6, we'd spent so long there that I felt obliged to buy something. So we picked up a few and that was that.

Recently I was looking for something online and came across some second hand Enid Blyton books.

They were how much???

I rushed upstairs, had a look at our little collection...and it turns out after a bit of research we have a 1st edition! All of a sudden $6 was a steal!

There's a name in the front and someone has crayoned a few of the illustrations so it's not pristine, but still... what a lucky find!

You see - books are real treasures!

Easter school hols here, so we're loving the change of pace and routine. We're off to the dentist this afternoon. There was lots of cake eating happening yesterday as we went for a high tea. I'll get sorted with the photos and share - it was quite spectacular!

Rain, coffee and Jane Austen

This is Brisbane today. 



When it rains here it can really pour and I don't know where the pool water ends and the surface water begins. Only a few days ago we were contemplating topping up the pool with water from the tank in the garden....oh, well at least it's saved us a job!

There are big huge rain drops dancing on the deck and on the tin roof.

The sky has lost the brilliant blue shine and instead there are grey clouds as far as the eye can see.

According to the weather channel we are in for some serious rain this week with warnings of flash flooding.

On the school run this morning I noticed that the drains were already overflowing.

So on a day like this when I'm recovering from very late bedtimes due to the silly times that those tennis players in the Australian Open finish their games, I needed some comfort.

Fresh coffee and a favourite read....

Is there anything better?

On the subject of reading, my girl has definitely been influenced by her mother.

She has just completed a version of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.

Having watched a few different versions (TV adaptations and movies), she recently declared that she wanted to read the novel. She managed the first few pages and declared it just a little bit too hard. Then on a visit to the local library she independently quizzed the librarian about whether there was any child friendly Jane Austen novels. After a bit of research the librarian managed to find this copy and placed it in order. 

We waited a few months and eventually it was ready to pick up. 

It's a simplified version with some illustrations to accompany the text. There is also some reference to the original novel and some explanations to help the young reader to understand some of the concepts and customs of the time. All in all a great introduction and I would recommend it thoroughly.

I have found  a few Shakespeare plays in this series but sadly no more Jane Austen.

So after a day indoors, I'm off to do the school pick up before going to the weekly swimming lesson - well and truly back to routine.

Which library would you choose?

This is the library at the University where I studied many moons ago...

I remember it well...

It smelt of a library.
It was always quiet.
You more of less picked a spot at a table and that was yours for the duration.
You could tell what someone was studying just by where they were sitting



This is the University library that I went to today.

It was colourful.
It was vibrant.
It was noisy and busy.

How is this for a ceiling of books?

.

Clever.

Even though there was colour and space and gadgets, and plenty of light,

I think I'm still pulled by the first image...

It might be the memories that it provokes,

or it might be the traditionalist in me,

...or it might just be what I like.

Which library would you choose?

I've got a new book...

...and I can't put it down!

There are so many jobs that I haven't done today...

I have been sitting on my front deck in the Winter sun with my ugg boots and fleece and book.

I was hooked right from the start with the description of the intensity of the

light in Australia for her British born kids when they stepped off the plane.

Yes, I remember that so vividly in the first few weeks here.

(In fact I still can't leave the house without my sunglasses.)

 In a nutshell "Why you are Australian" is about

an Australian woman who brings her children from London to her birth country

for three months so that they can experience childhood as she knew it.

It's going to be a late night....

Precious family books and memories

My dream is to have a home library...a whole room dedicated to an indulgence in books.

I don't usually hold regrets in life, however there is one thing that niggles me on a regular basis. When we emigrated to Australia I gave away boxes and boxes and boxes of books...ouch, it pains me to type this!! I still managed to hold onto hundreds of them and they are stacked on a bookcase and fill a cupboard in the study....but there were many more that didn't make it :(

Anyhow, let me share with you some of the more precious ones that made the journey across the seas... 

These belonged to my great grandparents, and some are over a hundred years old. 

I wonder why my great grandfather bookmarked these pages?

I imagine him holding the same page open and reading the poem Y Fwyalchen (The Blackbird)

These books are the treasures of my great grandparents Jack and Annie Griffiths and their daughter, my grandmother Megan. I never knew Jack and Annie, but having these books gives me some connection to their world. I knew and loved my grandmother Megan, she was a very special person in my early life. I hold on to the memories of my childhood with her and my grandad. We would spend hours and hours reading and playing together...she taught me a great deal, and I'm told that we are very much alike.

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (plus a smaller 'How to read and enjoy Shakespear') has been passed down through the generations, and I'm keeping it safe so that I can also pass it to my little Sibs when she gets older. She'll be able to add her name to follow her mother, grandmother and great grandmother.

Here's two editions of the same novel, one is the first edition that belonged to my great grandfather and the other is mine. I studied this book at school, and at the time didn't know that there was another copy in the family...



And here we are with my generation of childhood books...

There are echoes of the past here with the Secret Seven books. On Sibs's bedside table last night she had one Secret Seven from Santa 2010, and one of my old copies... and so it goes on...

During a recent bedroom and playroom tidy up, I set aside a pile of books to give away. An hour later the large pile of giveaways was down to about six books...Sibs couldn't bear to part with them. There is now yet another box of books stored away.

I wonder if generations to come will still feel the magic of books?

I hope so!

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