wimbledon memories

Day 9 and men's quarter finals are about to start.

I use to often go to Day 7 and 9 of the tournament when it was within driving distance.  Now on the other side of the world I have to stay up late to watch the tennis action.



some tennis memories:

• getting past several stewards (I had tickets for a different court) to see Martina Navratilova for my first visit to Centre Court
• on the old number one court being enthralled as Bergeria overcame Pat Rafter 13-11 in the 5th set
• I saw Pete Sampras play many times, after all he won Wimbledon 7 times, the last being in 2000. Seeing him play there, it was the expectation he would win, just like when a young guy named Rodger faced him in 2001.  The crowd got behind him then went into startled silence 5 sets later when Federer went through.

In 2001 4th round

Rodger Federer in 2004 quarter final against Lleyton Hewitt



10 years later and again Federer is there on day 9 - ideally I would like to see him progress to play (the brillant young Aussie) Tomic in the semis, with Nadal and Murray in the other

Update: Tomic puts up a good fight, surprisingly Federer loses from 2 sets up, leaving Djokovic v Tsonga & Nadal v Murray for the semis

not everything goes to plan - Llyton Hewitt
(4th round 2004, which he eventually wins)

feeling the heat?

Last week your mind was whisked away to a tropical island just with a colour.

This weeks' colour turns up the heat.  It shows aggression, warns of danger, yet it can be exciting, passionate and sexy.  Living life a little dangerously, we are attracted to this colour even though we know sometimes we ought not to be.

This colour not just wants your attention, it demands it.

How could it be any other colour?

In it's pure vivid form think fire engine red. The eye catching colour advances, making it appear nearer, which makes it appropriate for fire engine or stop lights.

Given its' eye catching nature and that it can stimulate appetite, it is not surprising red features in the logos and interiors of certain international fast food establishments. 

Red is a sign that food is ripe.

So why is red eye catching and makes you feel warm?
A person sees the colour of an object by the size of a wavelength reflected off the object.  For a red object it reflects the longest wavelengths that can be seen by a human eye.  Your eyes have rods and cones which processes longer wavelengths quicker.  Thus your eye will pick up red quicker, which also makes it looks closer than other colours.

Our physical reaction to it can increase blood pressure and adrenaline that creates a sense of warmth. 

Infrared produces a sensation of heat and has longer wavelengths than the colours that can be seen by a human eye.  As it is red that has the longest wavelengths this colour is closest to infrared red.

I hope you see the love of red - have a good weekend

what I'm....

What I'm reading

(there are also lots of lovely pictures to look at too)

what I'm making

(The results should be ready next week)

a girl can dream

Which calming colour can bring you thoughts that whisks you away to some tropical waters lapping up over your toes as you wander along the shoreline of an exotic island somewhere far away from the chores and grind of daily life? 

Are you on that island yet?  Do you see it? 

Maybe you have dived into the warm waters, snorkelling over the corals you have immersed yourself in this colour.

A bit of green mixed with some blue, put in some white to lighten it up, is all it takes. No wonder turquoise is a colour equally liked by both males & females.

It is amazing how a colour can stir up a memory, or a dream, or change how we feel.  Yet there maybe some reading this who just don't feel the same reaction to this colour as I do - and that is fine, and that is part of what makes colour such a fascinating subject.   

turquoise on watson beach, sydney

tropical waters in maldives

tropical queensland waters

The winter chill is continuing, no wonder I am dreaming of an escape to somewhere warm dominated by turquoise.

Anyone else could do with a holiday?

light me up

Hi there, it has been a while, how are you?
Well I lost a bit of creativity for a time, trust Sydney to help bring it back as currently she is all alight for the Vivid festival.

Customs House is taking on many forms from being set on fire, splatted with paint, filled with water before it comes gushing out, covered in fluro patterns, and crumbling down all before your eyes.

Many of the city buildings are lite up with changing colours and patterns.

A short stroll to Circular Quay will take you past more installations (many interactive) than we had time for, and views over to the Opera house decorated with constantly changing detailed 3D light projection.

Eating chocolate ice cream, watching the fire dance with the back drop of the Harbour Bridge, does Sydney get any better?

If you are in town, then the Vivid Festival is on every night starting at 6pm until Monday (13 June).  Wrap up warm though, Sydney is being hit with a rather cold winter wind this week.

do look down

with views out to Wollongong, even on an overcast day, there was every reason to look down.

as we have had a bit of rain recently, it was all looking very green.

at 45m above ground and 710m above sea level, the view from the tower is spectacular, if not a little scary for those afraid of heights (btw if you are not best friends with being somewhere high, like Mr Decoro or another guy we met up there, they did it and made it down all in one piece).

"Green is the prime colour of the world, and that from which its loveliness arises"

Pedro Calderon de la Barca

I always love a place with a view

views over Albion Park to Lake Illawarra and Wollongong in the faded distance

if you want to look down too, this is this place to go - Illawarra Fly Tree top walk

happy birthday

Plenty of incredible journeys have been made in 80 years, and still many more to make
Happy birthday Dad
love xxx

colour to write about

• take some old doors
• sand them down and in the process burn out the electric sander

•  do some more prep work

•  add a bit of colour 

•  add some more colour

• leave for a few days to thoroughly dry
• start making notes, drawing, doodling and generally having fun

an easter feast

continuing yesterdays taster of the Sydney Easter Show.

My children now think that I can produce something similar for their birthday - at least their birthday parties are towards the end of the year, so hopefully they will have forgotten just how fantastic these creative cakes are.

feeding the animals

A very sharp, shiney axe plus muscles, they made it look easy.  I know I could not do the wood chopping without losing a few toes.

A large display of photos and paintings. There were many that caught my eye, including this one that the style reminded me of some of Margaret Preston's work (a influential Australian artist from 1920-1940s)

Then onto the main arena where the country battled and won against the city in the Rodeo.

A brief history was portrayed of when the postal system in this vast land was delivered by coach and horse - those were the days when post had a much greater importance as a form of correspondance than it does today. Sometimes a coach would set off without a bag of post.  It was up to the skilled stockman (a lone horseman) to gallop, catch up with the coach and throw the swag onto the coach.
3 man teams from 4 of the states and territories competed in races to portray the stockman's job,  finish off carrying the Australian flag around the stadium.

fireworks and lasers rounded the evening off.

taste of easter

here is a little taste of the Easter Show, held each year when the country comes to the city (on til the 27th April if you happen to be in the area)

lunch?  no, one of the many cakes on display

egg decorating

more to follow....

sydney sunday walking

You can always find unexpected surprises around Sydney, like a maze... 

Neild Avenue Maze, Paddington

Neild Avenue Maze, Paddington

For those that have not been to Sydney, it may come as a surprise how hilly it can be.

Even house numbers can be a work of art.

Kinghorn Cancer Centre is being constructed in Darlinghurst next to St Vincent Hospital, funded by Government grant and private donations.  Instead of seeing plain ugly boards to hide the construction site, colourful hand prints cover the wall including this lovely mural.  The far end includes Delta Goodrem's glittering gold hand prints, who was treated and recovered from cancer, now is the Patron of the centre.

'helping hands, healing hands' mural created by the children of Darlinghurst Primary School

A little bit of fun with the water feature at Taylor Square