Work

A Vespa and me, an inner-city moment

by Cellobella on Wednesday, May 11, 2011 · 4 comments

Oh yeah baby!

btw... short skirt + Vespa = a lot of leg = judiciously cropped photo

That’s me on the back of a Vespa about to scoot through the streets of Perth with TFB.

You don’t know TFB?

Let me just say that the T stands for The and the F stands for Fabulous.

’nuff said.

We are co-training a course and after today’s sessions we decamped with participants of said sessions for a quiet Sav Blanc (the only kind to have on a Wednesday evening) to the Grosvenor on Hay St.

A surprisingly full bar on a Wednesday night we discovered!

Anyhoo, said Sav Blancs consumed, TFB offered me a lift to the station on the back of her little green Vespa – Gecko.

How could I refuse?

An invitation is issued and turns out... I'm just a girl who can't say no... to a Vespa.

The city is different on the back of a scooter.

It smells different.

Less inside of manky, not cleaned often enough, car… and more… cement dust, exhaust fumes, still night air.

It looks different.

You notice the inside of restaurants, the people on the pavement, the hotels and the parks.

TFB drives me down to City West train station.

I swing my leg over the seat, flashing the control tops of my 50 denier tights, and slide off the helmet.

“You’re a pretty good pillion”, says TFB.

Yeah.

I still got it.

The legacy of a mis-spent youth… well… a boyfriend with a motorbike anyway.

I walk up to the platform feeling good and resolve to buy an apartment in the city… and a lime green Vespa.

Or… maybe a red one.

They go faster… right?

End of the cyclone season

by Cellobella on Friday, April 29, 2011

Nine systems

Today might be date of the wedding of the century but here I’m more concerned that it is finally the end of the cyclone season.

And I’ve checked with the Severe Weather Centre and they say there will be no more til November.

You might remember that I like to put up the track maps of the systems as they come through.

Usually I get four or five – this year – nine.

Fortunately none of them did any damage apart from bringing loads of rain – which of course caused flooding.

Which did cause damage – but not wind damage.

Anyhoo.

The bloody season is over – thank goodness – and now I can get out my hat, pour a nice glass of something white and wet, and sit back and watch two young folk tie the knot in spectacular fashion.

They seem a nice couple don’t they?

Why I catch the train

by Cellobella on Wednesday, April 13, 2011 · 1 comment

I know it's not London but it is still traffic

I had to drive my car into work the other day and on the way home got stuck in traffic.

I’ve been stuck in much worse traffic.

But it was just so irritating.

Especially because I hadn’t wanted to drive in case I got stuck in traffic.

Probably need to drive tomorrow… unless…

Groover?  Are you busy?

Why I’m a good daughter

by Cellobella on Wednesday, March 16, 2011

This is what happens if the door is left ever so slightly open

Oh I know darlings!

Enough said right?

I mean I don’t even defrost my OWN fridge so what the hell am I doing, the floors strewn with towels, trying to dislodge the wedged in drawers of my parents’ fridge?

Good daughter things.

That’s what I’m doing.

Luckily it is quite warm so the fridge is defrosting quickly, I am after all only here in Dunsborough one night before heading back to Perth to catch my plane to Sydney on Friday - exciting club!

It’s very quiet.

Weird being here on my own.

I bought Indian takeaway (too much) and a few beers, although I’ve only drunk one (they were on special).

(Sure I hear you say… well they were $18 for 6, which is better than $6.50 for one – so what’s a girl to do)

And life feels pretty mellow.

A beer and a view of Geographe Bay

What the hell is that?

by Cellobella on Wednesday, June 16, 2010 · 2 comments

Coast

So I flew up to Geraldton the other week and as I flew up the coast past our fair city I noticed what appeared to be – I don’t know – oil slicks? – emanating from the land.

Sewage slicks?

Freshwater creeks?

They were all along the coast but stopped once we got past civilisation.

Of course I snuck out my electronic camera and defying the chance that the navigation on the plane would go spastic and we’d end up in Bunbury – trusting, in fact, the pilots to LOOK OUT THE WINDOW and keep the coast on their right – I took a couple of snaps.

Quickly sliding my little instamatic behind a convenient cardie when the cabin crew walked past.

So what is your best guess?

I’m buggered if I know.

UPDATE:  Well you guys were rubbish at telling me what those lines were I must say!  Luckily at work today I ran across Professor Jorg Imberger who is the water guru of Perth, and he told me they are the result of Langmuir circulation. Vis a vis – it is wind my friends, wind.  Well you learn something every day.  I am, for one, happy to learn that they aren’t the result of pollution or anything nasty.

Sky diving on radio

by Cellobella on Wednesday, April 7, 2010

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Wayyyy back in 1991 I was involved in a radio appeal for the RFDS which involved me jumping out of a plane over the city of Perth.

I was 24.

The other day I found the broadcast recording.

Unfortunately I’ve missed the best bit which was screaming as I jumped out the plane and then silence for 20 seconds as we fell 6000 feet.

Instead what you hear is adreniline coursing through my body making me sound like a right tit.

And despite protestations that I would DEFINITELY do it again…

I haven’t.

Poolside in Broome

by Cellobella on Friday, March 12, 2010 · 2 comments

Poolside

How beautiful is that pool.

I started work early yesterday so I could snaffle an hour by the pool in the afternoon.

Lucky I did because the thunderclouds rolled in.

Thunderstorm

We were having a little barbie near the pool and the lightning scared the kids a little.

It was spectacular.

Sadly no rain which means Broome is still on track to have the driest wet on record.

Me and Groover

At this time of year Broome is humid.

It’s like walking through a sauna… okay,  a sauna before you tip water over the hot stones.

I love Broome.

I love the multi-cultural vibe.

The corrugated iron buildings everywhere.

That tropical feel.

Oh, and the lucky geckos in the shower.

Lucky gecko

More Broome photos.

Signs the holidays are over

by Cellobella on Monday, January 11, 2010

A queue at the coffee shop across the road.

And I couldn’t get a seat on the train to work this morning.

Note to self: try getting on at Mosman Park Station.

Old books and old friends

by Cellobella on Tuesday, January 5, 2010 · 2 comments

If you see me commuting by train this week – oh yes, I’m a train commuter now – you’ll spot me reading an ancient book my mother owned.

Billabong’s Daughter by Mary Grant Bruce.

I love the Billabong books but these days they are a bit politically incorrect.

Make that very non PC and I think the newer editions have been… sanitised.

It’s about a station in northern Victoria (I think) just after the First World War and the story is about the squatter Jim Linton and his family.

They act like the upper class might in England, dispensing largess to the lesser well off or should that be ‘orf’.

Far different to squatters of today who (for the most part) are the lesser well off.

There’s lots of cattle mustering and you do get a feel for the country back at the turn of the last century.

They are… quaint… I guess and part of the attraction to me is the fact that my mum used to love them when she was a gel.

Commuting with Billabong has been great so far, although the walk home can be a bit warm.

The five day liquid only diet has come to an end.

I’m not sure I’ll willingly do it again.

It hasn’t been too hard in terms of keeping to the apple juice/ginger root three hourly drinks (bleah) but it is boring drinking liquids all the time.

And I don’t think I’ve lost any weight which I’m disappointed in. I rather hoped I might kick off my new year a bit slimmer. Sigh.

Work has been busy but I must confess sitting the heat out in office air-conditioning has been pleasant.

On the last Sunday before I had to go back to work I went out for drinks at Salt, down at Port Beach with some friends.

The liquid-only diet doesn’t preclude alcohol but I did limit myself to just the one beer. :)

We met this couple nearly ten years ago in Bali – we scabbed a lift to Club Med with them – and since then we’ve become close friends.

Salt is great on a sunny Sunday afternoon. They have someone singing… the food is (looks) great and the beer is cold.

They style themselves as a nano-brewery and I tried the wheat beer – the Heifweisen (or something like that).

I enjoyed it.

Next time I want to try the pizza.

Disconnected

by Cellobella on Friday, December 4, 2009 · 2 comments

phone

I’m on holidays.

For four whole weeks.

And this year I want a real holiday.

But.

I’m not very good at turning off.

I like to keep across my work emails.

I like to feel connected.

This year I’m trying something different.

I’ve left my Blackberry at work for my replacement.

I’ve set my emails to delete as they hit my inbox.

I don’t want to know.

I’m pretending I’m the one trekking in India with no way of being contacted… by work.

…

It feels weird though.

My new phone feels too small.  Too slim.

I feel “out-of-the-loop” and it’s only been a couple of hours since I left work.

I feel… disconnected.

Hellooooo is anybody out there?!

…

…

So I have a new phone and if you want to ring me – send me an email or use the contact me form.

Oh and I’m hoping for a good handover note when I get back.

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