It's a new dawn, a new day, a new outlook

Hi readers

The reason for this blog title is that yesterday, when I contemplated blogging, I realised I was just too tired, too flat, too downright exhausted and in a frail mental state so I aborted the mission.  This morning, I have woken up after 10 hours of unconsciousness and I'm Ready to Go!  I have started with a small overhaul of the blog, just to keep it fresh (though some may say it's probably related to my overstimulated mind).  I've added a few little widgets or gadgets but have some work to do on my slideshow.  It's all about Smelling the Roses today.  So, I've started with some snaps of the wonderful things growing in our garden.  Above is our veggie garden, which is growing really well and providing us with some lettuce leaves and soon, a little stripey eggplant.   

This is the sky outside my window.  It's a magnificent day.  We've been for a long walk with Lil the dog & seen galahs, cockatoos and king parrots and stopped at the Vietnamese bakery for still-warm bread.  How lucky are we?  

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Our cycad has sprouted new leaves and our succulents are all blossoming beautifully.  Everything is good with the world - in our 100 metre radius anyway! 

Spud and I have become big fans of another television personality, and a big personality at that, although nowhere near as big as Dr Rey.  Yes, Stefano de Pieri is our current favourite television chef.  He is so charismatic and cheerful and the food he cooks looks marvellous! 

His current show, Stefano's Paradiso, which is on the Food Channel, is so beautifully done, with great photography and is a culinary tour of Mildura. The Victorian Travel bureau must love him!  Now I want to tootle down the Murray River in a little boat too!  Instead, I am going into my kitchen right now to clean out the pantry and bring some order to the packets of semolia, pine nuts, couscous and muesli that seem to be impossible to find when required.  Cheerio!  Before I go, I have to share this photo of Rachel, a friend of mine who sang last week at Border's book shop in the city.  She has a great voice and has produced a CD (in her loungeroom) which is well worth a listen.  Tim the cat has put in an order for one, quickly before she becomes famous!