French Homework ...

Miss 10 and I have been studying French, via recordings, her books and my intention ... I never studied languages in New Zealand and so 'intention' is all I have to offer.

First up, there was much laughter as she tried to add Italian endings to words like 'ecole'.  Unashamed she told me, 'but i'd rather go to Italy.  France, not so much.'

My girl I think.

And so we laboured over the half hour of French study, and I may learn French as a result, before we broke open Sandi Thom and I Wish I Was A Punkrocker.  Then we moved on to the song that her mum and I used to sing along to, as we drove along the crazy winding road that was the peninsula road home, back in Dunedin. 

Blue by Eiffel 65.  It made those wicked tight corners, between hillside and harbour, 'interesting'. 

So yes, it's like that over here at the end of a long day here in Belgium.

Now this ... it had Jess and I in hysterics, one day back when we lived in Te Anau and waiting in the car for her Dad, this came on.  We almost died as the story unfolded ...

Ran Ortner, Painter

... but then came to realise that art is not a cleverness contest. It is not one's capacity to be inventive.  It is really an honesty contest ... the capacity to truly be that thing that you are.

Ben Ortner.

Ran Ortner paints the most extraordinary paintings.

I would love to live in a room with his work there on the wall, reminding me of the sea that I love, the sea I'm so far from now.

Here's a documentary (in progress). 

Ran Ortner Trailer (documentary in process) from Todd Holland on Vimeo.

I wrote this on Facebook today ...

Antwerp ... it's grey and it's raining but coming home on the packed tram, complete with screaming child torturing her mum with a tantrum, I ended up chatting with the guy next to me. A musician, a circus performer, from Cuba originally. A friendly foreigner like me. He even does the high-wire stuff. And I had to smile, even on the grey days, these small sunshiny moments are possible.