Whimsy and Wonder

I can't begin to tell you how good it feels to recharge my batteries and do things that bring my pleasure and happiness, rather than slaving over a hot text book and studying for hours and hours in a day. Today I am trying to go without mindless television and only turn it on to play Banjo Twooie on the Nintendo 64, in between blogging as well as catching up on the books I've borrowed from the library. The photographs chosen for this post have a gentle air of enlightenment about them and I'm going to try and achieve the same thing today in my own state of mind.

Last night I bought two Penguin book bags in orange and dark green and also plan to treat myself to the pink and purple covers of the bag too when I have all my financial affairs sorted out properly. I've hit penguin fever and also scoured Etsy for second hand copies of penguin classics I plan to buy as soon as the payment for advertising space on this blog comes through. Till then I'll have to properly manage my bookshelf space in my room and get through the Terry Pratchett novels I borrowed from my local library. He writes fantastic and witty fiction, there's about thirty or so books dedicated to his own magical and celestial world of wizards, witches and other creatures by the name of Discworld.

If I really was on holiday I wouldn't be wearing the tracksuit pants and jacket that I am not but perhaps a loose fitting blouse and vintage cut off shorts while strolling around the streets of a forbidding looking market. Although there are plenty of activities in my own city, I find it hard to play tourist and do the tourist thing- but make no mistake that when I do go out to the city I wear my best clothing and protect my skin from the sun by means of a well placed and dapper looking straw hat.

While I have dedicated a good two months to slothing around the house and doing nothing all day, one can't help but wonder that I have been too lazy in rousing myself from this creative stupor and I could have been doing better things with my time up to and including learning rudimentary language skills in Japanese or creating DIY Doc Martens. Of course, that would involved finding a plain white/ pink pair as well as enough cellophane sparkles and a good quality glue to attach them to said boot.

What could be more relaxed and unimposing then a pair of loose fitting and baggy jeans as well as a crisp white blouse and perhaps a floral garland for your head if you so desire. That's what I envision when I think of holidays to inviting lands full of perfect weather. I suppose these types of outfits would be a staple part of your routine if you were to travel to somewhere exotic like the Greek islands but there's also your very own backyard in which you can host small little garden parties and possibly play croquet, weather and landscape allowing it.

Garden parties too small scale for you? Feel like taking on a real challenge of epic proportions? Why not host a fully-fledged dinner party showing off your finest silverware with grand looking candelabras down the middle of the main table, fine glassware to drink from and also a chandelier threatening to crush the heads of your enemies below? I think I would love to have something like this set up in a spare room or something like that, but I know in my heart of hearts that I will never have anything as grand as this scene in any home that I live in.

The perks of owning such a grand home with dinner parties and the like is that you can dress as an 'eccentric' rather than being labelled as a friendless wonder who probably has dementia and social problems. On occasion, I will sit down and join my mother to watch period pieces or murder mysteries by Agathy Christie simply to see the decadent style of 1920s flapper girls as well as beaded fringing and feather plume headbands. I loved seeing the Art Deco exhibition a few years ago with my parents and getting to ogle the cars, snuff boxes as well as Egyptian artifacts and Ming dynasty pieces that were popularised at that time.

While many of the whimsical things I blog about are in the composition of a photography of the styling chosen for a model, places and lands of exotic spice are equally as wonderful and thrilling and I can't wait to get another taste of travel in little more than a year. I will be heading to Canada and while their culture can't be too far off from that of Australia, maybe I'll be hearing a little bit of conversational French while I'm there as well although I will be in an English speaking province. It's fun to be immersed in a foreign language and culture for about a week or so, but after you tired of not being able to understand and communicate with others around you. It's socially isolating without having someone to share ideas with about this new culture you're experiencing.

The American Dream

These photos don't belong to me, nor am I in them but their relevance to me is that at this time last year after all the hype and excitement from Christmas had died down I was getting ready for my twenty day trip to America. I'd like to return and go back, but for now I'll settle for reminiscing and looking at someone else's experience of their trip to America as well as pouring my eyes over lovely vintage inspired Disney watches that feature lovable characters with animated arms that move around the watch face to tell the time. Spending a single day at Disneyland really isn't enough, and I would love to search around and snap up what I can using my arsenal of film cameras to capture the action again. Maybe getting a three day pass would be best for such an expedition but I should make the most of my home city and try to do tourist things hear instead.

I barely took any photographs beside classic Disney characters because the lines were very long and full of children a lot younger than me but I do regret it a lot! I have a lovely shot of a Chip 'N Dale chipmunk at the main area at which all the costumed characters gathered but it was a small trophy from what I got to experience there and the joy I felt to walk through those hallowed gates and explore the polished and all plastic and child safe world of Disneyland California. At the moment I'm trying to persuade my mother to go to Hong Kong's Disneyland with me after we save to go to Canada to meet my mum's best friend. If I nag her enough and do well in school and university than I should have her eating out of the palm of my hand at any moment...

I went to Disneyland without getting a hug from Mickey Mouse... despite having quite a few Disney pieces of memorabilia from my childhood such as a professional photograph of my brother and I aged eight and four wearing shirts and holding a Mickey Mouse toy. Also I have plans to buy some Disney looking clothes from the online store of Lazy Oaf, that is a bodycon skirt featuring the iconic red and two oval buttons as well as a baseball shirt with what looks to be the mouse and the word 'Mick' on it. I have such a great love for the characters and was even going to get a Minnie Mouse watch with animated hands but chose instead to get a cat watch with moving eyes. Still- my great love of the characters has been a part of my youth and I didn't get a photo with Minnie or Mickey? Shame, shame shame...

Running around loose on Disneyland did mean we spent a ride on the teacups at night with all the overhead lanterns lit up above us, right after we got our official Disneyland caps! I got mine stitched with my name on the back and a classic design as well as a Chip N' Dale merchandise cap because it looked very soft and cool and has come in useful since at costumed themed school free dress days and a party. I do feel proud of the sights we saw and the rides we went on and enjoyed but we barely scratched the surface, I mean, my tour group didn't even get to go down to Disneyland California Adventure and see some of the more recent movie characters and stuff like that which was pretty annoying. Guess that gives me a reason to return then.

Despite missing out on buying all the hats I desired at Disneyland, Lazy Oaf an English brand have made a few cool, couple of spoof items off the iconic movie masters which I can buy without looking like a complete dork. They had a hat that looked like goody with hanging ears on the sides, but I think that one has been discontinued but there's badges as well as other goodies just waiting around with my name on them. Once my money comes in for working as a Christmas casual then I can really let loose but a few hundred dollars will have to get over into my account to save for overseas trips and be good.

Another thing left undone on my visit to America was checking out baseball games and walking through New York city but I was very happy to pick up a mock baseball jersey with the words 'Alcatraz Hardball' on the back. I should really check out some of games of America's favourite past time but I think that is another trip for another day and I will definitely need to get my head out of the clouds and back on to working when I can... if not there's always blogging and trying to earn a little bread from that as well but at the moment it's not looking too likely.