this weeks crush

Things I love this week:
- Isabel! She's brand new! This Wednesday she will be 2 weeks old. She is my very first 'close friend baby', and is in the safe and loving hands of Lacey and Pat.
- I'm now collecting many cute things to start sending to her including this adorable grey lamb, I'm awfully fond of it.
- I love this alice in wonderland stuff by Mariana
- I love my new pillow cases. It took a while to get used to their brightness in the first eye opening moments each morning, but now I find them invigorating. (The best thing is that Mr You and I found them together and both liked them).
- I'm loving being able to hang out with my great friends Elle and Kilkenny again. They've just moved back to within walking distance from us, after living in Dublin for the past 2 years. It's so much fun having them back!
- This cool grass hut (bure) we bought back from Fiji. I've never really been one for souvenirs, but we splashed out on this trip, and now there's no turning back.
- Cashew nuts
- Yesterday my friend Henna gave me this amazing red coat. She bought it in America years ago, and has been holding onto it all this time. It's taken her this long to come to terms with the fact it was always too small for her, so she graciously passed it on to me. I'm small, it has its perks.

old bergerky-chooken-p

Fiji was filled with delightful chance encounters. When it seems you are in the most remote place with no-one to be seen, someone will suddenly pop out of nowhere.

Driving along the surrounding dirt roads we encountered many instances where someone would pop out, wave hello to us as they crossed the road, then disappear into the bushes on the other side of the road.
Usually this was someone with a goat.
Sometimes it was an old man with a young grandchild, and once it was two young boys balancing a large suitcase while riding bareback together on one tired old looking horse. (We laughed about the possibilities of them going to the airport, or perhaps running away from home).

One day we walked all the way to the end of a very long beach looking for a good spot to snorkel out near the point. We hadn’t seen anyone. Then, out of the nearby shrubs appeared a man carrying a jerry can in one hand and a small fish in the other. He came right up to us, introduced himself and shook our hands. He pointed out his village around the point and told us about the dolphins and the island across the channel.

During the conversation he asked how old we were.
Mr You: 31
Fish Man: Yes yes 31 (then he looks at me)
Flossy-p: I’m 29
Fish Man: No no. Not 29. You look… You look… like a chicken.

Not sure if he meant old chook, spring chicken, or literally that I look like a chicken, I was never to know.

He immediately went on to ask if we were married, being in a heavily Christian country, Mr You lied “yes”. I hid my left hand from view, but not quickly enough. Much like my age and species, he didn’t believe us. I avoided lying by telling him we’ve been together for 9 years (which is the truth).
“Oh” he said seeming impressed. And he went on for another 10 mins telling us that it’s not the ring that matters, it’s the size of your heart, and the amount of love within it that counts.

Then he waved goodbye, waded into the water, and swam across the channel towards the island, (presumably still holding his jerry can and small fish), leaving this delighted old chook feeling enchanted by his presence and impressed with his understanding wisdom. (But also determined to start a rigorous neck exercise regime on our return home, to rid myself of any flappy-chicken-neck that may be evident to complete strangers).

Visit my Flickr for more photos -of Fiji that is, not my neck.

Although this story may seem strange, it's nowhere near as odd as the story 'Noah from Chicago' told us about the man who appeared the night after with a pack of Barbie branded Uno cards. He insisted everyone play, then after a few rounds he disappeared into the night; never seen before and never to be seen again. A Uno loving phantom we thought...

natural hair colour revealed

My Illustration Friday entry for 'roots'.

The theme is very pertinent this week. Guess what I'll be doing this weekend?

would you make a difference?

Tonight I witnessed a woman do a u-turn on a double-lane one-way street.

I stood by and uselessly watched , transfixed like a bunny in the headlights, as she drove back down the street the wrong way. Like watching a tennis match, my eyes diverted from her car to the traffic lights down the road, and back again.

Then, almost as though a higher force was teaching me a lesson in taking action, a man leapt out onto the road, waving his arms and practically threw himself onto the bonnet of her car! He flailed about attempting to mime the international signal for “you’re going the wrong way” through the windscreen. She swiftly u-turned back again, waved a grateful thank-you, and the superman chivalrously bowed in an “all part of a days work” kind-a-way.

The crisis had been averted, all while my head (now gaining a pleasant momentum) was still swinging back and forth, in a hypnotic yet useless fashion.

scones

My very first attempt ever at making scones! I'm so proud. They tasted pretty good too; hot and fresh with butter and strawberry jam, topped off with a hot cup of tea. Now all I need to do is learn how to cook a mean steak and three veg, and I'll be in the running for the 1950's woman of the year award.

not the ritz

We were heading to Fiji, to accommodation whose tag line is “We’re not the Ritz. But we are famous…”.
Dot dot dot? What’s that? It’s the written equivalent of “yada yada yada”.
We’re not the Ritz, but we are famous for bugs the size of small monkeys?
We’re not the Ritz, but we are famous for regular sightings of rare exotic sea creatures?
We’re not the Ritz, but we are famous for the cannibal massacre of ’99?
Our curiosity had been well and truly built.

We flew with a new discount airline, and were somewhat relieved when the flight attendant announced that the cabin was “pressurised for our comfort”. Here I am thinking the cabin was pressurised for survival, but hey, I was officially on holidays so comfort was just fine by me. Then during the safety demonstration they announced that the life jackets came equipped with a whistle and torch to “attract hot sailors”, and the fun began.

At the end of a long bumpy dirt road, we were welcomed to a cluster of little huts, nestled on the coast in a remote area well away from the towns and cities. A view of the islands across the still sea in one direction, across the reef to surf breaks in another direction, and back up to the rippled hilly landscape behind us.
We were pleasantly surprised to discover it was indeed not the Ritz, but I’m assuming what they are famous for was the fantastic atmosphere, genuinely friendly staff, and authentic Fijian experience.

A land who’s people would give the Irish a run for their money in a “friendliest people in the world” competition. A land where everyone smiles and waves at everyone else. A land where people shake your hand and introduce themselves the moment they see you. A land where most people walk along the sides of the roads to get from place to place, and spend most of their time outside. A land where traditional village life is still completely normal, and is respected. A land that gave us the most fun holiday yet!

Fiji is a place that still has hand painted billboards by the side of the road, where happiness seems simple. Its carefree nature abandons the need for seatbelts or punctuality. The city streets and main highway are sealed, but all side streets and roads are a variety of coloured dirt, from rich ochre yellows through to reds so deep they’re almost purple. The people are a combination of proud native Melanesian Fijians, and newer Indian Fijians, so there’s a lovely mix of bright Hindi temples and grass roofed Christian chapels dotted across the country side. There are sugar plantations everywhere, and the landscape is lush, lumpy and hilly, like a soft un-made bed.

Like the dry dust on the roads, Fiji covered me in a fine layer of colour and joy. It got under my skin, and I cried as we flew high above the endless Pacific, away from Fiji, towards home.

My God we share a beautiful globe!

belated but heartfelt

I can’t start until first expressing the distress about the hurricane devastation and the horror that has followed. I’ve been out of contact with the rest of the world for the past week, so coming back to this was both upsetting and overwhelming. It’s amazing how much of that distress we must carry around with us each and every day, the pain of all of the horrible things going on in the world. I felt the tension stack back on immediately. I can’t begin to imagine what all of those people must be going through.

Sending them the very best wishes and vibes, and hoping they are able to find the strength to cope and find serenity in the future.