Sudden Thought

It’s occurred to me that I may have been (unknowingly) using my interest in photography to distract me from writing.

It’s entirely possible. And I wonder if it’s true.

Spring Is Nice But I’m Sad To Leave Winter

Right now I acknowledge the many loose, disconnected, hurrying thoughts that I’d like to share but don’t know where to start. I’m sure if I gave it some time I could make them all connect… but I think the best thing to do is unleash what’s at the front of my brain and let it be.

1. My dad gave me some home-made white wine in a sauce bottle that has a fading label: ‘Siena’ (and we’ll be there oh so soon!). It tastes nice. He tells me I have to drink it within three to four days because there are no preservatives in it. I don’t drink much, and Hubby won’t go near wine, and you know what that means: I’ve spent the last two evenings (including tonight) in a tipsy manner. But it’s for the love of mankind.

2. Now, this is very exciting (and I have my father-in-law to thank for it) as I can now say that I’ve operated a digital SLR. He’s lending the camera to us for our trip overseas and that’s the stuff that STOKED is made of. I’ve had some practice over the weekend. You can see my playing here.

3. The new semester of my writing course offers the module: ‘writing articles for magazines and newspapers’. I’m intrigued by it. I might even be enjoying it. The lecturer is a human gem. I really didn’t need to find out that there’s another area of writing that I could enjoy — it just complicates things, you know? Anyway, it’s forcing article ideas to pour out, but, I’ve been taught to step back and say: well, that’s nice, but which editor will want to publish this idea? And that, my friend, un-complicates things.

4. I’ve been learning Italian. I can now go off on tangents like: Vorrebbe bere qualcosa con me? Del vino o della birra? Allora, non vorrei bere della birra, io bevo l’aqua. D’accordo. E quando vorrebe bere con me? Alle due? Si, va bene. A domani, arrivederci. Here’s hoping I get to go wild with such dialogue in Europe.

5. Yep, my novel is on hold. There is too much fire over this holiday. I’m too excited, okay? You would be, too, if you saw where we are staying at Lake Garda. Phoooooarrr. Our upcoming honeymoon may be 18 months late but I’m very forgiving because of the itinerary we’ve (I’ve) got planned.

6. I feel blessed.

7. Good night.

Today’s Definition Of A Nightmare…

Adelaide’s City Cross food court at lunch time. Ugh.

(Why do I never listen to myself when I say I am never going back again?)

A Roman Warning

I’m doing lots of web-reading in preparation for our trip overseas and I’d just stumbled across this “warning”:

NIGHT TRAINS- OK everyone knows they are not as safe as daytime trains, but it is they are convenient. Well me and my four friends get a cabin and are ready to sleep when Mr.18 year old Italian with white shorts freak comes in and practically sits on my friend. We speak 2 words of Italian and he speaks English about as well. We tell him we are going to sleep and he wont leave us (There were PLENTY of empty cabins) we whip out the guide book and uses the women defense page (serious) and tell him my friend has an an infectious disease (she did have a rash on her leg) this does not faze him, he was disgusting. After we ignore him he leaves….Only to return and do some ‘exotic dancing’ pelvic thrust in our door which he is blocking. A minute of this goes on so I MACED him (OK I did not MACE him I sprayed him with some Saniguard) My friends thought he was going to murder me but we pushed him out into the hall and all of us had to pull the door closed. Then we had to DUCT TAPE the door shut with about 20 pieces (it really worked when he tried to come in later in the night) When the ticket taker came for our tickets we had to spend 5 minutes untaping the door but when we told him we had been harassed he asked if it had been the guy with the white shorts. He had been harassing all the women in the train and he thought we were pretty clever with the duct tape.

Too funny. Unless Hubby and I encounter a gay man in white shorts (who is not bothered by wives), then I don’t think we’ll have a problem…

(Question: who takes duct tape with them while travelling?!)