Run, Melbourne, Run

It's taken me a long time to become accustomed to exercise.

I had bad asthma as a child, and many of my memories of school sports classes involved thinking up excuses to avoid going down into the cold, damp change-rooms and subjecting my skinny, underdeveloped body to the rigours of organised sport.

There is only one person who has had a lasting influence on my exercise aversion; slowly chipping away at my pre-conceived ideas of how my body should feel when it's being used for something other than walking, eating, sleeping or shopping.

Miles runs. He plays hockey. He golfs. Or plays golf. Whatever. He cycles. He plays basketball. I'm sure he does more, but I'm getting tired just thinking about it.

In a misguided attempt to impress him when we first began dating, I accompanied him on a jog, forgetting that he'd run a marathon the month prior. I travelled at a snail's pace and had a face as red as a toffee apple within ten minutes. Somehow I managed to avoid pulling out the ventolin puffer.

Now, I'm not saying I've turned over a new leaf. I am, however, more amenable to the idea of exercise than I was three years ago.

A few weeks ago Run Melbourne was on, and Miles did the 10km race. I was support crew, and from my view on the sidelines, it looked, well, almost fun. Pass me the smelling salts! Surely this can't be the same person talking?

Melbourne was lucky with the weather that morning: it was bright, blue and sunny, with a chilly wind. We got off the train at Richmond and walked past the new soccer stadium.

And strode along the Yarra towards the start line.

The half-marathoners were already running past us.

By this stage I was failing in my role as support crew, wandering along a little too slowly and far too distracted by the sights and sounds.

So we split up, and I took up position on the Swan Street Bridge.

I had a great view of the participants speeding past me.

Above the last 100m mark there was a conveniently located pedestrian bridge, full of people shouting down to the runners below. The weather was fast closing in.

Who knows, maybe hell will freeze over and next year I'll sign up too.


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My last week (or more) in photos - Part II

We had friends visiting and a visit to Krispy Kreme Doughnuts was thought to be in order. Sugary fluff, anyone?

It's been so cold lately, I was almost tempted by this Snuggie rip-off. *Almost*. Visit the website: their video had me in hysterics.

Tulips from Rocky's Fruit & Veg on Chapel St. Much cheaper than the Prahran Markets.

And after not having attended a gig in over two years, I suddenly had tickets to two in one week. My absolute favourite, Florence and the Machine, and Laura Marling. The image above is from Florence, who danced about on stage like a whirling dervish. You can just make our her flaming red hair and snow white dress, with the harp to the left of the stage.

I'm off to the snow this weekend. We've started packing already. Not looking forward to the long drive, but fingers are crossed for some good ski runs.


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My last week (or more) in photos - Part I

Since when did Melbourne install a French Velib-style bike sharing arrangement? I was flabbergasted to come across these when I took a different exit from Parliament station last week. Has anyone tried them, or are they targeting tourists?

I visited the Melbourne Design Fair, and was intrigued by this cute idea to help remove gum from our streets. Did you know that there are over 1 million tonnes of chewing gum affixed to footpaths globally? Tasty.

I saw this poster in a strange warehouse cafe on Little Lonsdale Street in the city. I can'd handle horror films, but this poster made me laugh. The last few moments I recall were the opening scenes from Saw. Urgh.

I am on the lookout for technology-driven retail strategies at the moment, and this "oovie" DVD rental vending machine caught my eye. It's located on the ground level of Melbourne Central

I had been looking for a birthday present for my mother, and this Longchamp bag, found in Hunt Leather, was highly enticing. But the price tag put me off somewhat. I look forward to the day I can spoil my mum with luxuries she'd never buy herself.

And a late afternoon walk along the Yarra.

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Doing too much stuff

I think I over-commit myself.

I was reflecting on Twitter the other day about how I often find myself running places when I am late. Literally, running down the street, just so I can make it to my next destination on time.

This is partly why I don't often wear heels; and when I do, they are stashed away in my bag until I reach wherever it is I am going.

I'm the kind of person who will run to make the train that has just pulled up to the platform, even if there is another one due two minutes later.

Life is too short to dawdle.

Perhaps, though, I am always rushing from one place to another because I'm trying to cram too much into my days.

In my attempt to have a restful weekend, I managed to see Inception, visit the Prahran Market, BigW and then Coles, meet friends at the Melbourne Art Fair, host a dinner for friends, and see a Melbourne International Film Festival screening. Then I wondered why I didn't have any energy on Sunday evening and sat on the couch watching Entourage episodes.

How do you create a balance in your life? Do you have to say "no" to stuff in order to fit in time for yourself?

By Michael McCauslin

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Visiting the Palace Cinema Como

Sometimes I just need to get myself out of the house, regardless of who is available to join me on a Melbourne city adventure.

Miles is studying part-time for his MBA, and with many of my good girlfriends now living overseas or interstate or down the coast, I can't usually just call someone up and expect that they'll be able to hang out at short notice.

The other weekend was a case in point. Rather than bouncing around the house distracting my not-so-patient boyfriend, I took myself out to see a movie.

What a movie it was. And what a delightful cinema it was.

The Palace Cinema Como is located almost on my doorstep, so my Melbourne excursion didn't actually take me very far that day. Palace Cinemas screen a wider range of films than the Village or Greater Union chains that operate around the country.

In fact, Palace Cinema Como host the French, Italian, Greek, German, Israeli and Russian Film Festivals each year, and you can always rely on them to screen some of the more esoteric art house films that might take your fancy.

Palace Cinema Como is decorated beautifully, with ornate furnishings and fixtures as far as the eye can see. Even the bathrooms don't escape notice, with their tasselled lampshades and embellished mirrors.

I particularly liked the wallpaper. I seem to have a thing for wallpaper - I almost have enough images for a post devoted solely to wallpaper. Say tuned for that exciting blogging titbit.

The Palace Cinema Como has a fully licenced bar, so you can take a glass of wine or a cocktail into the cinema with your choctop. All the better to enjoy your movie.

The film I saw was as visually enthralling as my surroundings. I've saved posting about it because I saw A Single Man close to the end of it's distribution run in Australia. Now, though, you can rent it on DVD for your viewing pleasure.

A Single Man, the directorial debut of fashion designer and all-round artistic talent Tom Ford was received with international acclaim, and I strongly recommend it. The plot was laden with emotion and Colin Firth and Julianne Moore contributed flawless performances. Pay attention to Moore's makeup: for those with an interest in cosmetics, her eyeliner application alone provides a window into the trends of the 1960s.

So, if, like me, you occasionally need to get out of the house at short notice, drop down to the Palace Cinema Como for a glass of wine and a delightfully cutting edge film to indulge your left-wing leanings.


Palace Cinema Como
Address: Cnr Toorak Rd & Chapel St, Sth Yarra
Phone: (03) 9827 7533

A Single Man was released on DVD in Australia on July 7th

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Happiness notes

Things that excite me at the moment:

Mulled wine
Glee Season 1 Volume II
French vinaigrette
Warm sweaters with sequinned shoulders
Roast pumpkin and garlic soup with melted Philly cream cheese
The Blind Side with Sandra Bullock
Madam Vintage and Co’s $100 sale rack
Melbourne International Film Festival
The Abyssinian Restaurant in Flemington

Making mulled wine at home from this recipe

(The Taste.com website is currently down; hopefully the recipe I've linked to will be active again shortly.)

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My last week in photos

It's been busy lately.

I met a friend for an epic catch up session at Journal Canteen on Flinders Lane, scoring a coveted window seat.

My sister visited for a weekend, and she brought three boxes of my favourite green tea with her.

We went shopping at Chadstone, and travelled back to the CBD on the Chadstone Shuttle Bus, which has strangely covered all it's seats in shiny silver fabric.

When we got to the CBD we walked past the Tim Burton exhibition at ACME, but decided we were too tired to go in.

I took her to dinner at The Waiters Restaurant.

I didn't get a chance to take her to Little Cupcakes on Degraves Lane.

We walked through the Block Arcade in the city.

I took a flight to Perth, and rather than taking the usual four hours, we detoured via Adelaide because someone on the flight had a heart attack. Then we had engineering problems, and they called the emergency repair vehicle, seen below. I finally arrived in Perth at 5:30am, after a ten hour journey.

Finally, it was lovely to get back to Melbourne again.

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Blogging absences

I have just spent all evening writing a complex post that doesn't even relate directly with my blog mandate (I usually write about topics loosely relating to fashion, food, or things to do in Melbourne).

But I enjoy stretching myself, and writing about topics I'm less familiar with is a challenge, causing me to read and research across the internet.

However, I'm now fed up.

The crappy Blogger interface decided to stop saving my work, so I not have to re-format all the links I diligently researched and embedded in the text.

I wanted to post something tonight after having a somewhat extended posting hiatus over the last two weeks. Work is stressful, taking up long hours and then refusing to depart from my busy mind when I finally get home. I've always had difficulty switching off and detaching, and now is no exception.

Then I spent six days in Perth (still working, but remotely) where my body decided to subject me to an extreme allergic reaction to the family cat. Look at him. How could such an adorable creature produce such horrid reactions such as full-blown asthma, swollen glands, sinus inflammation and watering eyes? Beyond me.

So there you have it. Instead, I'm posting this for your reading pleasure. I promise I'll be back soon.


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Visual merchandising on show

Working in retail has been a steep learning curve for me.

Who would have thought that there are whole departments devoted to ensuring that customers get drawn into the visual displays that you see in store? Or that vast amounts of money is spent each year on creating unique, innovative, eye-catching window displays to entice you in store.

Australia seems to be still catching up to the rest of the world when it comes to cutting edge visual merchandising (although the Hermes store on Collins Street does it's best).

Singapore was impressive: retailers with lots of money to spend offered up some delightful displays. I've included some of my favourites below.

Neon in Marc by Marc Jacobs

Feathers suspended in the Vertu window (I think it was the Vertu window...)

Magic mushrooms in the Prada window

Colour blocking in Uniqlo

The Havianna store (I actually wanted to take a photo of the massive flowers hanging from the ceiling, all created out of Haviannas, but the shop assistants were getting edgy.)

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Happiness notes

Things that excite me at the moment:

Porridge with honey and sultanas

Journal Cafe on Flinders Lane
Cold winters’ days with bright sunshine
Eavesdropping on interesting conversations
Scalding hot showers
Cafes that are open on public holidays
Roast lamb with mint jelly
Getting dry in front of the heater
Grill’d burgers, eaten while reading the weekend paper
Waking up refreshed after a good night’s sleep

Image

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Wardrobe post: Yeojin Bae Knit Dress and Tartan Jacket

I don't do outfit posts very frequently. I lack the motivation to dress up, make sure my hair and makeup look half-decent and then stand in front of a tripod and run back and forth half-a-dozen times until I get a good shot.

I have endless respect for the countless bloggers out there who regularly do wardrobe or style posts. Some of my favourites are listed below:

Lady Melbourne
Where Did U Get That?
4th and Bleeker
Cupcakes and Cashmere
Le Luca
Smaggle Style

Each of varying style and professionalism, these blogs make me smile and provided me with enough inspiration to give the outfit post another shot.

In a previous post, I wrote about a jacket that I practiced some DIY on recently.

I often wear it with my grey Ellery dress, but last weekend I teamed it up with my Yeojin Bae knit dress and Bianca Buccheri wedge booties. Oh-so-comfortable, and able to take me from work to dinner in a flash.

Maybe next time I'll work on the location.


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How to: De-bling your jacket

A few weeks back I picked up a cute tartan jacket at Bolleball in the city. Stocked chock-a-bloc with cheap Asian-import labels such as Sunny Girl, this is a shop for those who want to stay on trend but don't mind if their purchases don't outlast the season.

My wardrobe is a complete mix of price points, local and international purchases, vintage one-offs and high street items. I don't think many people can afford to shop 100% designer, even if they wanted too. My philosophy is to mix it up; no-one can really guess the provenance of each item anyway and you know it will be your individual style.

But basement bargains sometimes need a little modification before you actually want to wear them, and this jacket was a case in point. Liberally decorated with diamante-encrusted zips, I figured this was the kind of DIY I could handle. (As against putting shelves up with Miles the other weekend - another story altogether.)

I hunted down some gold-plated craft accessories at Lincraft (no-idea what they were really intended for), and got to work with my old jewellery pliers.

So, the new zips are still slightly kookie - in various shapes such as envelopes (or are they miniature handbags?) mini heart-shaped lockets and keys, but they are small enough to escape attention, and definitely less *bling* than the original diamantes. 

Mission accomplished.

Bolleball

183 Elizabeth St

Melbourne 3000
Ph: (03) 9670 1519

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Singapore Part III: Raffles Hotel

After a long day pounding the marble floors of Orchard Road's vast shopping malls, our second evening in Singapore started out at Raffles Hotel. Established in 1887, Raffles has housed many eminent guests over the years, including Queen Elizabeth II, Rudyard Kipling and Charlie Chaplin.

We visited the touristy yet undeniably atmospheric Long Bar, birthplace of the Singapore Sling.

The Long Bar serves bowls of peanuts at every table. After you have broken open the shell and picked out the nut inside, an odd tradition kicks in: patrons cast their empty shells onto the tiled floor, which progressively fills up with drifts of dusty, empty peanut shells. Gimmicky, but fun.

The hotel was built at the height of colonialism, and has been lovingly maintained.

We left via the grand marble staircase and caught a taxi to Robertson Pier for dinner at Brussels Sprouts, which claims to offer "the best Belgian Beers and Mussels in town". Despite this strange claim, the Mussels Mariniere, with celery, onion, cream and butter in a white wine sauce, were admittedly quite tasty. I didn't try the Belgian beer.

We then walked over to the touristy Clarke Quay for drinks and a sample of Singaporean nightlife. Taking photos somehow slipped my mind sometime halfway through the bottle of wine at dinner, so you'll have to believe me when I say that we finished up at a respectable hour and were soon in bed getting our beauty sleep. Really.

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