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This year I took words off the page and put them onto fabric, hoping to foster appreciation for poetry by
embroidering snippets on denim. I select my favourite lines from dead poets (they have to be very
dead for copyright reasons), trying to avoid the most cliched of verse. I call my little venture,
Poetry101, which you might now understand has a double meaning.
Evenings with friends from the Lo-Jong Bookclub continue to be thought-provoking and entertaining. As usual, we had quite an eclectic Reading List - a testament to the varied interests of the members; our one policy being that any recommendation has actually been read by the person nominating it. The dryly-humorous, futuristic novel, The Year of the Flood, by Margaret Atwood, was voted our favourite read for 2010. If literature and embroidery create visions of 'bonnet' movies, I can assure you I'm still a technophile at heart. (You can take the girl out of the Valley, but not the Valley out of the girl!) I've just finished the following web site for my friend, Nancy, who lives in Utah, by way of California: www.northernutah4rent.com I'm in the process of updating my web skills so that I can design dynamic sites, such as those that have user-contributed content and shopping cart scenarios. To this end, I'm learning the PHP server-side scripting language, and MySQL database software. I've just started my second course on these topics and find the potential very exciting! Alex and I have been working on a PHP and MySQL project since his summer holidays started mid-December. He chose to build a database and web page interface for the special weapons available in one of his favourite computer games, Neverwinter Nights 2. His other favourite computer games are Need For Speed Most Wanted and Civilization V. It's hard talking about your child. I mean, it's hard to stop talking about your child, once you start! Still, you're a captive audience... Alex will be twelve right after Christmas, although we had his pool/Hawaiian-themed party early so he could celebrate with friends before school broke for the summer holidays. |
Alex had a strong year academically, winning Dux (top) student for his Year 5 class, as well as several other
school, local and state awards, notably in science. He reads voraciously and has almost clocked 50,000 pages
for this year - that's a lot of bookshop and library trips for me! Alongside soccer and running, he continued with squad
swimming throughout the year, earning his final 'Charcoal' swimming certificate. He also has quite an aptitude for
running, an interest we all share.
Jim has taken on training Alex for both cross-country and track, and is also teaching him to drive in a little Alfa Romeo 33. The paddocks make a perfect place to start learning, and he's progressed to hill hand-brake starts and three-point turns. |
Alex changed piano teachers at the beginning of the year, and his music has taken a great leap forward. He plays for
enjoyment, and we enjoy hearing him play!
After ten years in drought conditions, this area has reached record rainfall for 2010, at more than twice our annual average. The weather factors have produced floods in many areas, and now have us beset with a plague of locusts through much of the state. With floods and locust plagues, it's all rather Biblical. And speaking of things Biblical, that seems the right place to end. Wishing you a festive and joyous Christmas, and an outlet for all that's poetry in you for 2011! 
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