Sydney is a beautiful city. It is probably one of two cities in the world (that I’ve been to) I would consider beautiful - the other being Paris. [The Swiss cities are beautiful but they are not big nor really "modern". Rome is gorgeous but it's not "beautiful". London is amazing but it's not "beautiful".]

This was my third trip to Sydney and I had a grand time. The weather was good - we had generally bright sunny days with temperatures rising to 20C (yes, it’s Spring already here in Australia). The company was lovely. We did lots of fabulous stuff, as you’ll soon read. And I wasn’t worried about work because the day before I left Canberra, I finally took a small but important step forward in the research process: I think both my supervisor and I have actually, finally, agreed on a topic!

Day One
I arrived in Sydney on Wednesday, 24 August, at 1230H. I met up with my cousins and had lunch in a food court in Australia Square, sitting outdoors under the sun. We then popped into Lincraft (they’re running a yarn-clearance sale nationwide) where I bought two types of yarn - one to make a loopy & lacy shawl and one for a sweather. We then dropped by a cafe to take-away coffee and lounged on a lawn under the sun in Hyde Park. Dinner later that day was a AUD5 steak in the infamous Slip Inn (the one where an Aussie girl met a Danish prince).

Day Two
As with most people on holiday, we had a late start to the day. Breakfast at 11H was take-away coffee and doughnuts from Krispy Kreme that we consumed sitting on a bench in Wynyard Park. As we were still stuffed from the late breakfast, lunch was just french fries in McDonald’s - they are the best, they taste exactly the same all over the world. We then walked around the shopping area of the CBD, finally plonking down in Gloria Jeans on Park Street to watch the world go by. We then had an early dinner of pizza and pasta in Zia Pina, located in the Rocks area before strolling over to catch an opera - Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel - at, where else, the Sydney Opera House! The day ended with drinks at the Sidewalk Cafe & Bar, located under the Opera House, where a jazz band was performing.

Day Three
We had yet another late start on Friday, so late that we decided to dispense with breakfast and went straight to lunch at Bay Swiss (I’m addicted to their Thai Chicken Soup). This was followed by a leisurely two and a half hour Afternoon Harbour Cruise - a very sedentary affair that was an absolute pleasure! When that ended we decided to sit down some more at the Grumpy Baker Cafe on Oxford Street, but only after a quick stroll in and out of shops in the area. Then it was a quick succession of the Borders bookstore, drinks at the Swissotel, a leisurely stroll through Darling Harbour to Chinatown and finally supper seafood buffet in the InterContinental Hotel.

Day Four
We had big ambitions for this day. Really big ambitions. We wanted to climb the Harbour Bridge at 08H but some of us (i.e. not me!) were watching Gilmour Girls late into the previous night and couldn’t wake up early enough! So we trooped off to the Saturday Glebe Market instead and then sat down for a big late weekend breakfast, i.e. lunch, in Badde Manors. Breakfast/lunch ended at 1430H and I was quickly swept away to Central Station for my 15H coach back to reality, work, and home…

p/s more photos from the Sydney trip will be uploaded in a week or two…

Posted on August 29th, 2005 by jl
Filed under: Posts with Photos, blah blah | 2 Comments »

I knitted a new scarf over the last two days. I bought a ball of Cleckheaton’s Studio yarn in colour #23 from Lincraft a couple of weeks ago and thought I’d make a scarf out of it as a practice and test for an upcoming knitting project.

The yarn is made from 50% mohair and 50% acrylic. I love the texture of mohair - it’s so soft and light on your skin. The scarf feels so luxurious. I used one whole ball for the scarf and it turned out to be almost 2 metres long.

However, I’m not sure I like the colour of this scarf. The yarn was dyed a mixture of olive, light green, dark brown and an orange-y brown which resulted in these alternate strips of colour as it was knitted. I’m quite happy with how the pattern of the scarf turned out, I’m just not too keen on the colour. I’m not really a fan of orange (it makes me slightly sick…) and I didn’t know it would show up so prominently in the finished product. I only bought the yarn because it was on sale at a very, very err.. good price.

What shall I do with it…??

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Note on pattern: I cast on 18 stitches and knitted it using only the garter-stitch with a pair of 12 mm needles. After every 10 rows, I added a yarn-over (yo) after every knit-stitch - these were released on the following row in order to get the extra long loops. I think the scarf would look more “dainty” if it was done in stocking-stitches. That’s the next thing to try with a ball of “nicer” coloured yarn!

p/s yes. i am obssessed with knitting at the moment…

Posted on August 21st, 2005 by jl
Filed under: Posts with Photos, knitting | 10 Comments »

It took me a very long while to finish, and that’s because I procrastinated considerably, but I’ve finally completed my first iPod sock! As I don’t intend to use the same yarn to make another, this is a unique “designer” sock for a unique “designer” iPod.

Orders welcome!
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I think I need to seek help.

I spent 5 hours yesterday evening “shopping” for knitting tools on the internet !!!

I was obssessed. I lost track of time. When I did notice, it was too late. I was too far gone!

I am sick. But I am not alone - apparently, this overzealous passion for knitting is a known recent phenomenon (see this article). I am a knit-aholic. Maybe I need to seek out support groups…

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Yesterday, we spoke about the need to draw a line. Too many sagas have been dragging on unnecessarily. Too many problems have been rumbling along without a solution. You can’t wave a magic want and fix all these, but you can decide to stop worrying about some of them, at least. A change in your approach will make more than a psychological difference. It will enable you to focus on what really matters and work your way steadily, from there, towards the one kind of progress that could really provide you with the most benefit.
- Cainer, for Aries today

Posted on August 17th, 2005 by jl
Filed under: Posts with Photos, knitting | 4 Comments »

This is my second beanie. I had been knitting this simultaneously as I was knitting the first one. I finally finished it last night - at 0300H when I couldn’t sleep. It looks more like a hat than a beanie - it holds it’s shape really well - and it matches the scarf I knitted earlier. It’s now another fashion accessory to wear while my hair grows back.

So… why did I go bald? There are many reasons really… Let’s start with the practical. My hair was looking decidedly dead. I didn’t know how to “style” or have it “cut” anymore. So I thought a complete shave would be a good idea - it will grow back rejuvenated and thicker, or so the theory goes…

The other reason was aesthetic. I’ve never had a completely shaven head before, at least not in my adult life. “Skinheads” are so popular these days, particularly among the gay-community. I know that in a lot of cases, going bald was just a way to mask, and/or deal, with natural balding among men of a certain age. Nevertheless, it has also become “fashionable” among younger men, and women (c.f. Natalie Portman, or Sigourney Weaver earlier). I wondered how I would look bald… and now I know!

But the immediate factor, the one that finally tipped the scale, was all that … was the… err… was the frustration, the depression, the difficulties, the anxieties, the shit, the hell I was going through for the past month or so. It has been building up for a while now and on many occassions, I thought I was really going to crack. And in a way, I sort of did. On the back of all that, shaving my head just seemed like a good idea!

—

The hair is regrowing already. I have a one-day stubble.

Do bald people moisturise their heads? If so, what do they use - facial or body moisturiser? Or is there a specialised product in the market?

No. Shaving your head completely does not solve life’s problems. Not even those that only exist in your head.

Posted on August 10th, 2005 by jl
Filed under: Posts with Photos, blah blah, knitting | 11 Comments »

This is my first knitted beanie (a.k.a. woolen hat)!

It took me about five weeks of very slow-paced knitting but I finally finished it. It’s a little longer than I would have liked it but as it was my first beanie, I wasn’t sure how it would turn out and hence, wasn’t very good at adjusting the pattern. But it fits! And it doesn’t look too bad, if I do say so myself!

Knitting is becoming quite an addictive pastime, not because of the final outcome, i.e. the product of the knitting, but because of all the beautiful yarn that’s available in the shops. I walk into my local Lincraft and go completely goo-goo ga-ga over all the gorgeours yarn that’s on sale. I fell so in love with this Cleckheaton Studio mohair-based yarn that I bought several balls in three different colours!

At the moment, I’m finishing another beanie using leftover yarn from this scarf I had made earlier. I’m also finishing up a “sock” for a friend’s iPod! And then I’m going to start on a lacy, light scarf with the Cleckheaton mohair in time for Spring!

Posted on August 7th, 2005 by jl
Filed under: Posts with Photos, blah blah, knitting | 3 Comments »