Standing Still in a Whirlwind

So much has happened and my routine has been so disrupted that it is difficult to write.  But I guess it is times like this that need to be recorded the most.  It is times like this that I will need to look back on and say " WTF !!".

We are still out of our house.  We still don't know where we will be living come Christmas.  I can't believe this is my life.  It feels like it is happening to someone else, or like I have dreamed it in some strange, surreal nightmare where things are really bad, and yet, not so bad.  We are desolate, and yet we are living in a dee-lux apartment in the sky.

above the rainbow!

watching the sailboats in the harbour from our room

I brought my lucky squirrel to make my room seem more like home

We are on the 66th floor with a panoramic view of a gorgeous city.  We have three bedrooms (Mira is back with us because she is done with school for the year), three televisions, three computers, AC, shopping and restaurants below us, fireworks out the window, rainbows in the clouds that we are above... it is real, but it isn't.

our new temporary living room

We can't just hold our breath and wait to resume business as usual, so we are playing out two story lines at once.  We go to work and school, go grocery shopping, try to keep up with friends and activities in the city.  At the same time we are going through piles of dirty, smokey clothing, ruined appliances and furniture, talking with real estate agents and insurance adjusters.

One of the strangest things is the sense of complete lack of control over time.  I have no sense of what will be real or normal on any given day.  I have no idea if tomorrow, next week, next month, or next year will see us back in a quotidian routine.

This is a good time of the year normally.  Summer is approaching, Christmas is around the corner.  School is wrapping up.  There are lots of fun things happening around the city.  Mira and Valerie both have party invitations for New Years.  I would love to be able to go see a ballet at the Opera House like we did last year for Christmas.  David's birthday is next week and we are going to a music festival (The Harvest Festival) on Saturday.

The Jacarandas are in bloom all over the city signalling Spring

We went out last Saturday night to a pub with two of David's colleagues and their wives (both expats from the UK).  We had some great food and wine, and laughed our heads off about Botox,  tattoos, and having adult children.  I didn't want to go because I was feeling drained, but I was really glad I did.  I keep thinking about what Deepak Chopra said about how there is abundance everywhere in the world but that you have to be willing to share yourself, to open yourself up and give what you have in order to be in touch with that abundance.  I think sometimes I am not.

The girls and I at The Empire Pub in Leichardt

We had some visitors in our temporary digs.  Kit came by to have tea and catch up on both of our situs.  She is such an amazing, creative and kind person.  She always seems to be on the crest of some wave.  Nichole and Aaron also came over on election night.  We drank champagne then went downstairs to Din Tai Fung and had soup dumplings.

one mermaid admiring another -that would be Kit

Two Saturdays ago we went to the Surry Hills neighbourhood festival.  It was the community party for our supposed neighborhood, even though we aren't living there now, we are over the age of 25,  and technically, we live in Redfern.  Still, there was happy music and a festive atmosphere.

are these guys supposed to be happy?

Surry Hills Festival

Today was the Newtown Festival that I had to miss because I went with my daughters to see an exhibit of Karl Lagerfield photos called "The Little Black Jacket".  It was all about Chanel and her iconic jacket.  We went down to Walsh Bay (the same location as the designer wool exhibit that I saw a while back).  It was a beautiful day and the style, spirit, and creativity in the photos was inspiring.

me with photos from the exhibit

I realised though, that two teen-aged daughters have more fun on their own, and I would have been better off  exploring art with a friend or by myself or going to the Newtown festival, or walking over to the park that I can see from the window of our hotel/apartment.  I don't know what was happening there today, but when I looked down I saw crowds of people, white tents in a circle, and people riding camels - yes, camels.

not wearing black, but still fashionable

Through all of this I have been determined to get my portfolio done and my application in to the fabric printing course at TAFE.  It has been a stressor but it has also been a grounding and calming factor.  I have been spending my free time working hour upon hour, day after day, drawing, painting, designing, creating images that I feel good about, that I would like to look at, to wear, or to produce to represent myself.  I am almost done and will turn in the application before the end of the week.  I am crossing my fingers that it will be enough.  I could use some good luck and good news right about now.