Of all the flowers in the world, so far, these are the flowers I would fill my garden with ...
The humble yellow Lupin. Colour-specific because no other lupin smells like the yellow lupin, otherwise known as L. luteus.
In Dunedin, they mostly grow in that place between the land and the sea, in the interstitial zone.
Following the sandy tracks that led to favourite beaches around Dunedin, the yellow lupins filled my soul with something that felt like joy.
There is so much to write about L'Art'e Cafe and Gallery ... so much.
The mind-blowingly beautiful location, the friendly service, the truly sublime food, the superb coffee, the exquisite artwork ... and nowhere do I exaggerate.
It's that remarkable!
This was brunch on that first day back in New Zealand.
It has been difficult to return to this European winter ... return from swimming and wading at various beaches all over New Zealand. Difficult to return from a country where you squint in the sun ... to a country where the sun makes an occasional appearance.
Difficult ... yes. Very.
But I filled my life with projects, as is my way. And they're all EXCITING.
And there are lots of projects because other people are so interesting however ... there's only one of me and this attempt to not miss New Zealand has become a nightmare of a workload.
I have 5 major projects. These last two days have been spent, head-in-hands oftentimes, as I recognise that I might have over-committed myself, in ways that I seem to specialise in.
Each project is brilliant. Some have been underway for a while. Some involve 1,000s of photographs I have yet to process. Others are future plans that excite the hell out of me.
Anyway, here's a glimpse from the other day when I wandered into the city in search of boots for the snow. I found these boots and they were cheaper than the price listed here ... half price in fact.
And the guy that sold them to me was the nicest guy. We chatted about the countries we come from while I shopped for my boots. A huge thank you has to go to him because shopping in Antwerp isn't always fun and the people aren't always friendly. When I find the receipt, I'll come back and tell you which shop I bought them in ... so you can pop in too.
Outside, there was that predawn kind of clarity, where the momentum of living has not quite captured the day. The air was not filled with conversation or thought bubbles or laughter or sidelong glances. Everyone was sleeping, all of their ideas and hopes and hidden agendas entangled in the dream world, leaving this world clear and crisp and cold as a bottle of milk in the fridge.
Reif Larsen, from The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet.
Meanwhile, I'm playing this song on repeat and up loud as I work here this morning.
And before I forget, I found the opening quote over on the marvellous Terri Windling's blog.
A glimpse from one of those early morning walks I took, back home in New Zealand ... Cooks Beach, on the Coromandel Peninsula ... sunrise.
Today, I bought flowers in a bouquet designed by Dieter, my most favourite florist ever, located in Ter Rivierenlaan, Deurne.
And I have the family bouquet downstairs, in lieu of sunshine and blue skies, but here on my desk I have a small bunch of flowers that will surely be stunning as they open in the days ahead.
Flowers, as always, a way of arriving ...
People keep asking me how the return to Belgium is going ... what can I say?
We have been pleasantly surprised by the 9 celsius temperatures we've had since returning but the grey grey days are testing me. It's winter, I know, but Belgium does grey in a way that is unlike any other place I have known. My tan will surely be leached out of me ... perhaps within days.
I miss New Zealand food. I went to a Delhaize supermarket yesterday and came away sad over not finding anything nice, then realised I was searching for New Zealand food. Just that. Nothing else would do.
We are still tired after 60 hours mostly awake as we crossed the world, and in crazy-making ways. Yesterday we set up my work station here at the desk and later, as we failed in so many ways at the supermarket, we realised that we had potentially used up our daily quota of intelligence on the work station. The intricacies of supermarket shopping were all but beyond us.
Last night, coming home from a new year party, Gert kept nodding off on the tram. He had to be quicker in recovering than me, as he has already had two days back at work ... but there was a price it seems.
I miss the freedom of driving long distances through beautiful scenery on almost empty roads. I miss the little red car. I miss mountains and rivers, endless coastlines, and the variations of forest and bush. The smell of the air. I miss sunshine, family and friends. I miss a lot of things but I'm almost sure it will be okay fitting back into life here.
I'm not going to ruin my life with all that I miss. After all, it's as Justine Musk recently wrote, it is time for you to go on an adventure.
Here's to some good adventures in 2013 ... for all of us.
