Winter appreciation club

I don't particularly enjoy Winter, so for this very reason I have concocted a list of all good things that come with the season

- can wear a fur hat and not look silly

- snow fights with friends, extra points for unsuspecting victims

- hot mulled spiced wine, all the time

- baths with fragrant salts, or visiting the local onsen (Japanese nudy bathes)

- the promise of Spring

- staying inside and being creative

- re-watching favourite movies/re reading books

- attempting skiing or snowboaring on the slopes/ trying not to mow down small children

- soul food

- layering

- bed with a million layers of blankets
-watching snowflakes swirl out the window


that's all I can think of!
x

photo via doradoradoo

Make it awesome

photo taken by nik brinkman at fewer shades. I sent his lovely girlfriend this sponge in the post because it was too cute not to!

One of my favourite bloggers is Aron from Make it Easy. He has such a positive attitude and sees beauty in the most remarkable things. When I first started reading blogs I was very uncertain, being a die hard lover of all things print. Make it Easy showed me everything that was good about blogging culture. Aron has set up a new site called This Can Save Your Life. It has a list of simple exercises to help you and others around you be happier about life. My favourites are:

-write a letter to your best friend, explaining how much you love them

-put on some music and dance in your room until you break a sweat

-on a piece of paper, draw a cartoon version of yourself.  on one side of you, make a list of your best qualities, and on the other side, make a list of things you can improve on 

Those are just a few but I think you should visit the site and look at the whole list! It reminded me that it is never too late to improve your day or make a difference to someone else's. 

Mid week mix

Got my mind set on you by George Harrison (I'm a sucker for young George)

I get a kick out of you by Gary Shearston

Balitmore by Randy Newman

So fine - Electric Light Orchestra  

Black Mountain Rag - Doc and Merle Watson

Life as a bum

Due to unforseen and rather unexpected circumstances I will be in New Zealand until May. This officially extends my status past beyond 'holiday' into the murkey area of 'unemployed bum'. I have been relishing the experience and trying to do things I genuinely enjoy, even if other people might consider it straight lazy. 

1. Lying on the couch and listening to favored albums while doing nothing at all. Just closing my eyes and listening intently. No multi-tasking allowed.

2. Staying up till guilty hours reading books and sleeping in till equally guilty hours.

3. Walking to local gardens when the sunshine allows and taking pictures of plants, flowers and wildlife. I used to think my parents were ridiculous for obsessively taking pictures of orchids but now I get it, sort of.

4. Worrying absently about my depleting funds (no income for a bum you see) but then realising that a hiatus of relaxation is way more important than money.

5. Going to the movies alone in the middle of the day.

6. Visiting local opshops and pillaging the magazine section for old copies of National Geographic. The pictures and articles are ahhhhmazzing.

7. Writing letters to loved ones in a relaxed and orderly letter writing manner. This involves sitting at the dining table with an assortment of coloured pens, magazines for collaging, scissors, blank paper, a cup of jasmine tea, and some biscuits on a plate. 

7. Developing film. Always a treat.

8. Taking 3 hours to prepare for an evening date. Bubble bathing, air drying hair and manicures and pedicures.

9. Scouring magazines for amazingly complicated meals, heading to the supermarket for ridiculously specific ingredients and  spending the afternoon cooking.

10. Making leisurely to do lists like

-wash hair

-watch parks and recreation

-trim and paint toenails

-sleep for 9 and a half hours

-pen love letter for boyfriend

(if only more to do lists were this enjoyable)

11. Visit  amazing local exhibitions at galleries like this one.

12. Make mix tapes and channel all artistic power into the homemade cover art.

Block

I am facing a bit of a block at the moment.  Every time I pick up the pen I have a feeling of pure exasperation. There are all these thoughts and ideas banging around in my head but they won't work I paper. I bought myself a new set of inky pens in the weekend as a special treat.  Trying to appreciate the bright spots seems to help a lot. Each night when I go to sleep if I lie very still I can hear my neighbor laughing. He is alway's cracking up. There must be something he really enjoys on television, I don't know what it is but I do enjoy listening to him laugh! A bit creepy no? What I find to be helpful is an excellent playlist, one to suit the exact mood I'm in.  Here is what I've had on repeat for the last week, it's a bit eclectic.

Running through the night - Tiny Ruins
OKVW - Jeru the Damaga

On the beach - Neil Young

Talkin' my shit - Brother Ali

The only living boy in New York - Simon and Garfunkel
Work - Gangstarr

Song for Dennis Brown - The Mountain Goats
Tyrant destroyer - Twin Shadow

To be

I was grappling with thoughts on trueness to self and turning away from all the self consciousness and social climbing bullshit (or at least trying to). I want every action I make to be because I truly mean it. I want to have clearer ideas about the person I am and what I strive for. Alas my discombobulated thoughts came out awkward, fumbly and jumbled. Then I stumbled across this list in my drafts inbox. It seemed to sum up everything I wanted to say, and far more eloquently. If you know who wrote it please email me, I would love to credit whoever did. 

• Never depend on your eternal surroundings for happiness, nor another person
• With every act you carry out, whether it be washing your hands, feeding your cat, holding someone's hand; have passion
• Now is all that matters, you can always deal with the present moment. Don't be crippled by pasts events/future
• Be open minded about everything. Let go, go with the flow. Life is really interesting and constantly stimulating this way
• Respect all living creatures.
• Adore your own company
• Embrace strangers, smile with them
• Be grateful for everything
• Embrace relativity
• Humans are incredibly intricate yet simultaneously, very simple. Keep this in mind
• Everyone is having a different experience, don't expect others to reciprocate your own frame of mind
• You will never love another until you love yourself
• Everything you can imagine is real
• Everything is the force of life, you are the force of life
• Cook meals naked, embrace nudity
• Never, ever settle for mediocrity
• Don't pollute your mind
• Love your job, give it your heart and soul. Never do a job just for loot. Have passion for it
• Always expect the unexpected, Always!
• Share baths
• Keep a tape recorder by your bed to record spontaneous epiphanies and dreams
• Don't obsess over the nature of time, you will lose your mind
• If you want someone attention, bite them
• Chill the fuck out, keep it real

Lists for December

Top 5 things I really should do, but don't

1. Finish memorising katakana and hiragana

2. Complete chrismas card craft bee 

3. Develop the growing stack of film sitting in shoe box

4. Brush my hair in the morning

5. Stop being a grinch

Top 5 people I have been dreaming about

1. Mum

2. Bill Murray

3. My koto teacher

4. Boyfriend

5. Best friend

Top 5 books on the xmas wishlist

1. Luella's guide to English style by Luella Bartley

2. Ignorance by Milan Kundera

3. Being and nothingness by John Paul Satre

4. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

5.  Never let me go by Kazuo Ishiguro

Top 5 things I am obsessed with

1. Come away with ESG - an amazing album

2. Koto

3. Seeing Black Swan

4. The affection crazed cat that lurks opposite my work

5. Themed skype dates 

Monday playlist

Bros - Panda Bear

I don't want to get over you - The Magnetic Fields

Skinny love - Bon Iver

I am the cosmos - Chris Bell

Ballad of big nothing - Elliot Smith

Eternity - Jens Lekman

The red telephone - Love

Monday playlist

Vampire: Antsy pants

Autumn sweater: Yo La Tengo

Caring is creepy: The shins

Arne: Haruka Nakamura

Dreamin' man: Neil Young

Friday playlist

On and ever onward - Dirty Projectors and Bjork

Now that I know - Devendra Banhart

Dearest - Buddy Holly

Too young - Phoenix

Out on the weekend - Neil Young

A - Maybe not - Cat Power

The pursuit of happiness

Sometimes I find it is good to sit down and really think about all the things in life that make me happy. I try and do this whenever I am feeling a bit blue, it's a bit murky or the day is just too slloooowwww.

Right now this is what's making me happy

- hot hot tea and biscuits for dipping

-my niece Sophie

-lovebirds

-my (soon to be) home Yamagata

-summer memories of swimming in the sea

-purchasing a new bike

-felt tip illustrations

-lots and lots of sleep and slothing in bed

-Skype dates with my best friend who is moving to Paris

- Cats, in any way, shape or form

-Jem and the Holograms

-Magazines and nail polish

Vapourise

a list of smells I love


~ hairdressing salons
~ roasting coffee beans
~ sheets just out of the dryer on a wintery day
~ trig on the tararua ranges on a cool morning
~ marmite just spread on hot toast
~ fire works and sparklers
~ fresh cut grass
~ my nan

The 'knuckle-down-cull-stuff-clean-apartment-pack-my-bags' Mix Tape

I move to London in a mere three sleeps! therefore today is my knuckle-down-cull-stuff-clean-apartment-pack-my-bags day and this is my knuckle-down-cull-stuff-clean-apartment-pack-my-bags mix tape, unashamedly smashing some of my favourite bands repetitively.

Passion Pit/Foals/Minus The Bear/Friendly Fires/Two Door Cinema Club

'read more' for the list and the awesome videos

Dear Gemma

Dear Gemma,

a brief guide to living in an Asian country


food, food, food
our daily routine is based around it, we consume it every day, we love it, we loathe it, and it's going to be the biggest change to adapt to.
my advice as to how to adapt to this new, sometimes strange, at times down right scary, new diet?
get amongst it ~ with gusto!
and maybe start a regular exercise routine to try and counteract the inevitable effects ...

you're on their turf now
acquaint yourself with their culture ~ their rules, their traditions, their ideals, their way of life. accept that somethings we may find perfectly acceptable in our society may not go down so well in theirs. and likewise theirs ours.
the last thing you want to do is accidentally insult the masses by baring your shoulders on a sunny day (I write from Korea wearing a cardigan on a hot sunny day)

which brings me to ...

keep an open mind
be willing to accept, compromise and roll with the cultural differences. there's nothing worse than 'that' foreigner constantly proclaiming 'well back in MY country ...'

music, fashion baby
don't be afraid to succumb to the sweet temptation of Asian pop music, get amongst the dirty indie scene and don't be surprised when you find yourself dressing like a harajuku girl ...
expressing interest and having some knowledge of local music and culture will make it easier to make new fun friends, will expose you to more events and things to do you otherwise would have missed, and not to mention your kids will LOVE you ...

and have fun! such exciting new times await!


Love, Tash

Life is for lists. Top three's (for now)

Top 3.

Reoccuring dreams

1. Creepy workmate lives in a secret room in my house and spies on me

2. Male prostitutes turn up for dinner at my parents house

3. High speed car chase (with appalling outfits)

Top 3.

Breakfasts

1. Avocado and extra crispy bacon with a dash of lemon and black pepper on 5 grain

2. Leek and potato frittata

3. Berry compote

Top 3.

Celebrities I would have like(d) to have met

1. Sylvia Plath

2. Milan Kundera

3. Michael Jackson

Top 3

Embarrassing moments as of late

1. Saying 'good thanks' when someone said hello

2. Tripping over my clogs while walking with a new friend

3. Getting my head stuck in the bus doors

Top 3

New blogs discovered

My Funny Eye

Long Hair Forever Club

Fuck Yeah French Cinema

Top 3

Movies enjoyed

A Single Man

The Cove

Departures

Top 3

Road trip essentials

A mix tape to end all mix tapes

A religious dashboard figurine

Cupcakes

Top 3

Lists to make

Before I die I will:
New food I will try at the supermarket this week:
Things that scare me to do list:

bitter sweet nostalgia

As odd as it may be, I don't remember much from my childhood, but there are few things I will never forget!

my late nan's incredibly kitsch souvenir teaspoon collection from all over the world

my moose's blue willow collection, her cornish ware collection I now proudly own

those creepy waif like big eyed children prints I had in my bedroom which terrified me! but now I wish I still had ...

my nan's vintage tea cups, but going against my british roots and being a non-tea drinker, I never got to use

gah!

a list of my irrational fears.

• randomly parked cars down long, deserted stretches of roads, particularly at night.
• answering phone calls from unidentified numbers at night when I'm alone.
• of having my arms tied above my head so that my armpits are exposed and can be tickled, and being helpless to stop it.
• zombie viruses.
• walking down stairs or down hill in heels.