Remember those lovely genies who grant wishes? Well, you’re one and you’ve just been emancipated from your restrictive lamp. You can give your three wishes to whomever you want. Who do you give your three wishes to, and why?
Trust
Hope
Respect
Empathy
Encouragenment
Willingness
Integrity
Self-reliance
Harmony
Enthusiasm
Safety
After weeks of preparation the Coates Hire Sydney 500 starts today at Sydney Olympic Park. I was lucky enough to spend a few hours yesterday watching the last practice event. I took many photos from various angles and vantage points however in the end photographing cars speeding at over 200 kilometres an hour isn’t easy to get right.
The action continues off track down the centre with many displays and car style shops and merchandising vans. There was literally something there for most tastes.
Tell us about the top five places you’ve always wanted to visit.
When planning my holidays I like to divide my time between Australia as well as international travel. For this reason I am going to write a buckets list for each.
Australia
International
Starting with the South Island of New Zealand early next year these places are the basis of our next 10 year travel plan. I love the planning and discovery stage of new adventures as I gather the information and start to think about what I will see when my day finally comes and I’m off to great places.
Photo Credit: Google
Oprah arrives in Australia today so I thought it might be fun to take some of her sage advice and make it this weeks Wisdom Wednesday’s quote.
Oprah’s quote is very powerful and one I agree with. Sometimes despite the grass seeming to be greener on the other side making a decision to cross or remove any option of crossing in the future is difficult. Sometimes you have to get advice from the experts, weigh up the pros and cons and then take a leap of faith. Either way it’s not simple. But to move forward you have to make a choice—one way or the other.
It is 12 months ago today that my husband and I accidentally discovered Mallard Cottage, Quidi Vidi, Newfoundland, Canada. We were walking in the snow enjoying the picturesque scenery as the city turned from green to white, when we arrived at our destination—Quidi Vidi Village—a small fishing hamlet just outside St John’s. We arrived mid afternoon and hungry from all the walking decided to stop at Mallard Cottage for some coffee and cake, before continuing on our journey. Boy were we surprised. Coffee and cake were $10 from memory for—all you can eat homemade old-fashioned cakes. There were about 10-12 to choose from. They were amazing. We sat and relaxed for over an hour between us tasting at least a small amount of every cake—okay I admit it some thing more than once—because we could. Unfortunately we were too busy eating to take any photos, sorry.
While we were eating our cakes the friendly wait staff began telling us of the properties history. Mallard Cottage is one of the oldest wooden buildings in North America. Originally built-in the early 1700’s it is older than our country—Australia. This felt weird to think about given the beauty of the restoration and how perfectly it blended old and new. It also turns out that our accidental find has developed a reputation as one of the best restaurants in St John’s area. No wonder we want to go back. If your ever in the area, it is well worth the visit.
In your native language which letter or character describes you best? Why?
I have always associated with the middle letter of the alphabet — M. It is the first letter of my name as well as many other things I relate to.
What is your greatest extravagance?
These days I would spend the most money on books. I love bookshops especially secondhand ones and regularly several spend hours in them and buy many books in one hit.
Do you prefer exercising your mind or your body? How frequently do you do either?
I exercise my mind daily at work so I enjoy stopping it from working with some quiet time. One way I enjoy doing this is through getting physical. Time limits the amount of exercise I do and I do miss spending time at the beach. Bring on retirement so I have more time to exercise.
List at least 5 things that makes you laugh.
What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?
Our speech night went well at Toastmasters and this week I am looking forward to several laughs catching up with family.
http://ceenphotography.com/2015/11/23/share-your-world-2015-week-47/
For this week’s challenge, share an image that depicts transition. Let life itself be your muse.
When he designed the Sydney Opera House I am sure that JØRN UTZON could not have envisaged the amazing displays this centerpiece of VIVID SYDNEY creates each year. I spend hours fascinated by the transitions that unfortunately because of their speed are difficult to photograph. The following photos are from 2014 and I loved the bright colours. If you are in Sydney during late May or early June it is well worth the visit.
https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/transition/
We all know how to do something well — write a post that teaches readers how to do something you know and/or love to do.
One of the main things I have a reputation for is support others. All my life—from the age of 9—I have been the person others come to when they needed a welcome ear to tell their problems to especially when they were fighting with their best friend. With all the practice I had at school I think I was always destined to work in mental health. Supporting others has developed into a passion for me and I find ways to do it regularly in my professional and person life. Below are some of the values I use when I support others.
Sincerity
Understanding
Passion
Professionalism
Optimism
Resilience
Teaching
Open-mindedness
Tolerance
Honesty
Empathy
Reasonableness
Strength
https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/teach-your-bloggers-well/
Don’t wash your chicken it only spreads the bacteria over you and the surrounding benches — it doesn’t remove the bacteria from the chicken. Thinking about it this makes a lot of sense. After all, the only way to remove bacteria from chicken is to cook chicken properly. If you want to remove anything from your chicken before cooking it, use a piece of paper towel and throw it away. These ensures you don’t spread the bacteria around. Personally I don’t wash my chicken but not for the reasons outlined in the video. I just haven’t ever developed the habit. Being aware of chicken’s bacteria however I do use a separate boards to chop my chicken, red meat and vegetables.
Not having heard it before, the simplicity of this food tip inspired me to develop a new regular category — Food Tips. Knowledge is powerful, so join me as I find some interesting facts that relate to food especially in the areas of health, hygiene and history. It will be a work in progress so let me know if you have any suggestions.
I came across this powerful quote from Ernest Hemmingway recently and realised how true it is for all types of writing. Have you ever noticed that it is much easier to start writing if you have an idea—a starting point—something in your writing well. By following Ernest Hemmingway’s advice you will always have an idea in your writing well that after you have slept on it helps to clarify your thoughts and produce more ideas.
Much of my writing follows this principle as I leave it overnight and review it in the morning. The time overnight helps the writing develop like yeast to a much fuller story.
What writing tips do you use to help your flow and story develop?