Green Apple and Blood Orange

Last night was a steamy one in Melbourne. It is so weird having 85% humidity every day in a city where dry is what characterizes it. I am finding it very difficult to cope with myself. I can't seem to be able to wake up in the morning and when I do I don't want to move from the chair. I used to live in Buenos Aires, where humidity is the topic of conversation and there's even a saying "what kills you is the humidity" which seems to aid in the need to complain about how one feels completely exhausted every day. I do not know how people can go about their business in this weather. I hate it.

Last night to leave the house and forget about the humidity we went to have an ice cream at a little ice cream place on Camberwell Road just across the Rivoli. I love the flavours there. I had green apple and blood orange, it was so refreshing. I know some people would say that all ice cream is refreshing however, I find that fruit flavours increase the feeling of coolness and that it is much more rewarding than having creamy flavours.

The night ended taking photos of the night city scape and enjoying the car's air conditioner while listening to July Flames, Laura Veirs' latest cd.

Anoche fue una noche vaporosa en Melbourne. Es tan raro tener 85% de humedad en una ciudad que se caracteriza por la sequedad. Encuentro muy dificil soportarme a mi misma. Parece que no pudiera despertarme por la manana y cuando logro hacerlo no quiero levantarme de la silla despues del desayuno. Yo vivia en Buenos Aires donde la humedad es un tema cotidiano de conversacion y donde incluso hay un dicho "lo que mata es la humedad" el cual parece ayudar en la necesidad de quejarse del estado de fatiga en el que sus habitantes viven cada dia. No se como la gente puede hacer sus actividades cotidianas en este clima. Yo lo odio.

Anoche para dejar la casa y olvidarnos de la humedad y de como nos hacia sentir nos fuimos a tomar un helado a una heladeria en Camberwell Road frente al cine Rivoli. Me encantan los gustos que tienen. Yo comi de manzana verde y naranja sangrienta, fue tan refrescante. Yo se que la gente piensa que el helado es refrescante siempre, pero para mi los gustos frutales aumentan la sensacion de frescura y son mas gratificantes que los cremosos.

La noche termino dando vueltas en el auto y sacando fotos nocturnas de la ciudad mientras disfrutamos del aire acondicionado del auto y escuchabamos July Flames el ultimo cd de Laura Veirs.

Longboard Maintenance

Anton did this video about how to clean your board. My question is

did he clean the bench afterwards?

Anton hizo este video de como limpiar tu longboard. Mi pregunta es

limpio la mesada del quincho al final?

The backyard

El fondo tambien esta lindo y esta explotando en crecimiento. Los frutales estan rebalsando de ciruelas y limones y los olivos dieron tantas flores que vamos a tener que preparar muchisimas aceitunas este invierno. Otro que esta creciendo como los frutales es Anton. No esta hermoso mi hijito?

The backyard is also really healthy and it is exploding with growth everywhere. The fruit trees are bursting with plums and lemons. The olive trees are going to give so many olives that we are going to be ready for them this Winter. Another one who is growing just as much as the fruit trees is Anton. Isn't he gorgeous?

The veggie patch

No es increible como crecio todo? En estas fotos se ven las lechugas, la radicheta, la albhaca y en el fondo los zapallitos que parecen una selva. Esta buenisima la quintita! Los tomates ya empezaron a salir pero todavia estan verdes. A lo que no le esta yendo muy bien es a las berengenas, pero estan creciendo de a poquito...creo que ya tienen flores.

Isn't it amazing how everything just grew! In this photos we can see the lettuces, the radichio, basil and in the back the argentinian green pumpkins which continue to grow like an expanding forest. I love the vegie patch. The tomatoes started to come out, but are still green. The eggplants are not doing very well still, but I think they are flowering.

Hello Lorne 2011

Finally we visited Lorne in this new year. It took a while and a lot of exercises on my part to be ready for this day, but it was all worthwhile. I survived the long trip without making a single stop (we were going to but were in the wrong lane to make an exit). Once there we came to realise that everyone is on holidays and we had been inside for so long. We parked the car and walked to see the beach. The sea was very flat and the beach looked a bit crowded. We went straight to the beach bar and had some chips, which to my dismay were awful. The restaurant that used to be there sort of expanded towards the other side and another bar opened up with food that is not so tasty. We thought we were ordering the restaurant's chips but we were in fact ordering chips from the bar. Anyway after that we went for a walk to see the shops. We walked, looked at stuff, bought some thongs for Anton, had a latte and got changed into more appropriate beach attire. We went to the beach and I sat on a wooden bench that seemed to be there just waiting for me. Anton went swimming and Ric and I just sat there contemplating how lucky I was to be able to be there. I soaked it all in, the sand, the sea, the beach noises, the fresh air. After a big rest there, Ric and I went for a walk along the beach and that was when I felt like I had just touched the sky. My feet left the rubbery feeling of new Havaianas to touch the warm, soft, golden sand. It felt so good I wanted to freeze that moment forever. I walked towards the ocean until I finally felt the cool water covering both my feet in swirls of sand and salty foam. I stood there letting my feet sink in until I couldn't see them anymore. Then took them out and did it again, and again and again! We walked along the beach for a while whilst Anton swam in the same direction. We met further ahead and decided that they will play frisbee and I will take some photos, so we did.

Finalmente fuimos a Lorne por primera vez en el 2011. Costo bastante especialmente muchos ejercicios de mi parte para estar lista para este dia, pero valio la pena. Sobrevivi el viaje sin parar ni una vez. Cuando llegamos nos dimos cuenta de que todo el mundo esta de vacaciones y nos hizo dar cuenta del encierro en el que estuvimos estas ultimas semanas. Estacionamos y fuimos a ver el mar, estaba re chato y la playa se veia bastante congestionada. Fuimos directamente al bar y pedimos papas fritas, que por desgracia eran feisimas. Lo que paso es que el restaurant de la playa se extendio. Para un lado sigue siendo restaurant, para el otro se hizo bar y se le agrego otro lugar que hace comida y nosotros nos equivocamos y fuimos al lado del bar. De ahi nos fuimos a caminar por los negocios, miramos cosas, compramos ojotas para Anton, tomamos un capuccino y de ahi nos fuimos a cambiar con ropa de playa. Fuimos a la playa y yo me sente a descansar en un banco de madera con Ricky mientras Anton se fue a nadar. Con Ricky contemplamos que afortunada que soy de estar tan bien para haber podido ir. Lo re disfrute y absorvi todo, el aire, la arena, el mar, el sol y hasta los ruidos de la playa. Despues de un gran descanso Ricky y yo fuimos a caminar por la playa y ahi fue cuando me senti como si hubiera tocado el cielo. Mi pies dejaron de sentir la goma de mis nuevas Havaianas para sentir la arena suave y calida. Me senti tan bien que queria congelar ese momento para siempre. Camine hasta el mar hasta que senti el agua fria cubriendo mis pies en remolinos de arena y agua. Me quede parada ahi hasta que mis pies se enterraron completamente, despues los saque y lo hice de vuelta y de vuelta. Caminamos por la orilla del mar por un buen rato mientras Anton nadaba en la misma direccion. Nos encontramos mas adelante y decidimos que ellos iban a jugar al frisbee y yo a sacar fotos, asique lo hicimos.

Sticky Date Pudding to celebrate

Today was a day of visitors. My friends "the Italian gang" (Anna, Linda and Sonia) came to visit me for afternoon tea. We had a nice coffee and caught up with some gossip and some tales from my time in hospital. It was nice seeing them and having a laugh. After dinner my sister in law and nephews came to see me and they kept me company while Ricardo was out running. Luca made a delicious sticky date pudding and made a caramel sauce to pour over it. It was so yummy! It made me think of the time we went to school camp and Bev's face lit up when we made her believe we were having sticky date pudding for dessert and just as quickly her smile faded into a grin when she found out it was all a big tease. We laughed for hours...

Today I had the best news from my physio, he said I don't need my crutches anymore and he thinks I am doing really well. My hip can bend at 85 degrees already and he reckons I am very strong...so he gave the OK to go and walk on sand. He said it will be very good for me particularly in the water. Of course I am not allowed to swim in the waves, but I am really happy to know that I can go to the beach and walk a little. I can smell the ocean, touch the sand with my feet and even bathe them in the cool water! Today was a great day. We planned to go to Lorne on Thursday...so my smile is so big my lips are nearly touching my ears.

Hoy fue un dia de visitas. A la tarde mis amigas " Las Italianas" (Anna, Sonia y Linda) vinieron a tomar el te. Tomamos un rico cafecito y nos pusimos al dia con el chusmerio y las historias del hospital. Estuvo bueno verlas y reirnos un poco. Despues de cenar vino Andrea y los chicos. Mi sobrino Luca hizo un postre riquisimo "Budin de higo" con salsa de caramelo. Estaba tan ricoooooooo! Me hizo acordar cuando fuimos de campamento con el colegio y le hicimos creer a Bev que habia budin de higos (su favorito) de postre y se le ilumino la cara con una sonrisa de oreja a oreja que desvanecio inmediatamente cuando le dijimos que era una broma. Nos reimos tanto.

Hoy mi fisioterapeuta me dio la mejor noticia. Me dijo que estoy re bien, que no necesito mas las muletas, que mi cadera ya se flexiona a 85 grados y que mis musculos estan fuertes. Asique me dio permiso para caminar sobre la arena especialmente a la orilla del mar donde hay agua. Me dijo que no absolutamente ningun problema para que pueda ir a la playa. Por supuesto no puedo nadar en el mar y revolcarme con las olas, pero yo me conformo con pisar la arena, oler el mar y mojarme los pies. Asique hoy fue un GRAN DIA! Ya hicimos planes para ir a Lorne el jueves asique mi sonrisa es tan grande que mis labios casi tocan mis orejas.

Iced coffee

Yesterday we enjoyed an iced coffee at Borders in Camberwell. It was a very nice day to be outdoors. Unfortunately it is hard to do outdoor things when you don't feel very comfortable in any one place for a long time. I am enjoying a little outing every day though trying to build my strength. I am walking without crutches at home, but when I'm out I take one just in case. The problem is that when I take one crutch I end up using it even though I don't think I need it all the time. We have made plans to go to Lorne for a day so I am looking forward to it. It's not going to be a beach day per say, but it will be a nice drive and an opportunity to see the coastline, the turquoise waters and to feel a little bit like on holidays.

Ayer disfrutamos de un cafe helado en Borders en Camberwell. El dia estuvo re lindo para estar afuera. El problema es que es dificil hacer cosas afuera cuando uno no se siente muy comodo en un solo lugar por mucho tiempo. Estoy tratando de salir un poco todos los dias para aumentar mi fuerza. En casa camino sin muletas, pero cuando salgo llevo una por las dudas. El problema es que cuando llevo una muleta termino usandola todo el tiempo aunque no la necesite.

Hicimos planes para ir a Lorne el Jueves por el dia asique estoy esperando el gran dia. No va a ser un dia de playa pero va a ser un lindo viaje y una oportunidad para ver la costa, las aguas turquesas y sentir que estoy de vacaciones un poquito.

Welcome 2011

Welcome 2011! We received you with a feast of yummy cold meats, salads, pancake tower and cheese platter, not to mention the delicious deserts: tiramisu, lemon pie and fruit salad with ice-cream. We also had a great time singing, playing charades and laughing and we did it all despite the extremely hot weather and mosquitoes.

Bienvenido 2011! Te esperamos con un manjar de carnes frias, ensaladas, torre de panqueques y bandeja de quesos, sin olvidarnos de los deliciosos postres: tiramisu, lemon pie y ensalada de frutas con helado. Tambien la pasamos bien cantando, tocando el violin y la gitarra, jugando a digalo con mimica y riendo y lo hicimos todo a pesar de la extrema temperatura de 40 grados y los mosquitos.

Este ano va a ser un ano dificil, extremadamente agitado y atareado y con algunos cambios a los que habra que acostumbrarse. Asique estas vacaciones me tengo que cargar bien de pilas, descansar y prepararme mentalmente para el gran desafio. Es muy probable que este sea mi ultimo ano de estudio (rompiendome bien la cabeza para terminar) y finalmente me reciba. Con mi titulo en mano vendran otros desafios, aplicar por trabajos y comenzar una carrera nueva.

Mi mayor determinacion para este ano es estar sana y fuerte. Eso implicara agregar una rutina de ejercicio en mi ocupado calendario y cuidarme mucho en las comidas. Quiero en 3 meses poder estar arriba de la bicicleta pedaleando por Melbourne y entrenando para aventurarme a viajes mas largos.

This year will be a difficult one, extremely busy and with some changes to get used to. So this holidays I have to rest well, charge my batteries and mentally prepare for the big challenge. It is probable that this will be my last year of study (if I kill myself studying) and will finally graduate. With a diploma in hand other challenges will come: applying for jobs and starting a new career.

My main resolution for the year though is to become healthy and strong. This will imply adding an exercise routine to my busy schedule and really watch what I eat. I want to be up on my bike in 3 months time pedaling through Melbourne and training for longer trips.

Wish me well, for I have a very challenging year ahead and I am going to need help, support and understanding.

Deseenme suerte porque este ano va a ser muy dificil y voy a necesitar ayuda, soporte y entendimiento.

Last day of 2010

Image taken from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hip_replacement

Well finally the year is coming to an end, only a few hours left of 2010. What a full-on year it has been for me. We started the year searching for a new place to live and finding a new house. Work-wise was incredibly busy, not only the everyday busy, but we had to shift buildings, all the packing, arranging, cleaning, re-arranging, decorating and getting used to the new place. I also had established a tutoring business with 11 students, which I hope to continue in the new year and to top it all off I completed 6 units at University and I did all of this with a painful hip and a limp. To end the year I had a total hip replacement at a very young age (like everyone keeps telling me and making me feel like a freak). This x-ray is not mine is a borrowed image from Wikipedia, but this is what mine may look like now. The surgery went well and I am now recovering. I suppose this was a successful year in many ways, but it was exhausting and I am incredibly tired. I just sleep in everyday, do my hip exercises and vege-out the rest of the day...no...wait a minute...I forgot I am still studying over the Summer so I have one unit to complete and assignments to write. To be honest I haven't done much yet and I have to get started. Not today though, not today. Today is a day to celebrate the good and to put aside the bad of 2010 and to look forward to a better 2011, which will be also extremely busy for me with units to complete at Uni and practicums to carry out, Anton will start University, Ric will continue to work extremely hard, but I am predicting it will be a changing year for us, with lots of adjustments and many challenges yet our love and care for each other will sees us through. Good bye 2010...thank you for everything :)