^ unknown.

I don't have much to say today except that I am (finally) in Launceston, Tasmania and it is very, very cold, as anticipated. (I think I've mentioned before that) C's parents live in Launceston and they're currently on holidays back in Newcastle, so we're able to mind their house down here rent and bill free for at least two months while they're away so that we can suss out rentals. So far we've hardly been out, but C's friend Ben took us on a mini-tour of Launceston last night and we had the most delicious vegetarian burgers known to man at a place called Flip. I got my first bundle of redirected mail today in C's parents' mailbox and my bicycle should be arriving today or tomorrow. As for the removalists' truck carrying all of my worldly possessions, I have no idea whatsoever when we'll be seeing it again, so I have two pairs of clothes to wear indefinitely! Tonight we're going out to see Inception - Leonardo DiCaprio & Joseph Gordon Levitt <3

Just in case you were wondering, this is where I have moved to and from;



Launceston (pronounced; Lon-sess-ton) is 1565.1km from Newcastle and is Tasmania's second largest city (Hobart is the capital). Tasmania is not attached to the Australian mainland and it is an island, but it is still a state of Australia. To get to the mainland you either catch a boat or a plane. The whole state of Tasmania only has a population of 500 000 (the greater area of Newcastle is about that amount). I miss Newcastle, friends, family and our housemate a lot, but I am feeling optimistic about being here.

In other news, I dyed my hair;

^ By the end of the week I may have returned full-circle to the hair I was born with, white blonde.

Promise to blog again with some substance soon!

^ Unknown.

We've spent the last week catching up with various lovely people in between some light box packing. Today we got a call from the removalists asking if they can come a day earlier than planned (tomorrow) to pick everything up, so tonight may well be sleepless! I am feeling pretty anxious about it all, and on the flight we can only take carry-on luggage (I think I need to re-read Lauren's 'How-to Cram Your Life Into A Carry-On' post) so after our things have been picked up we have two days left here to clean and won't see our things again for almost a week (clothes, toiletries, stationery, knick knacks, other important things!). However, I am still very excited and I can't wait to be there.

Just to verify, if you've sent me a letter or are going to in the next three months it will still reach me if you send it to my old address and at approximately the same rate. What would I do without mail forwarding!? Here are a couple of pictures I found on my camera from this week to share;


^ I couldn't decide what kind of sandwich to make for my lunch the other day so I made three different slices; vegemite and cheese, banana and honey and nutella. Yum! Ignore disgusting floor!


^ My first packed box. It was like practical tetris. Seeing this now I'm wishing I'd kept that Ghost World comic to read on the plane.


^ C bought eleven packets of cheap organic Aldi coffee for taking to Tasmania because TASMANIA DOESN'T HAVE AN ALDI :( I think that box might last him, what, a month?!


^ Our friend Sylvia came over yesterday with her two delectable little children and she gave C and I gifts each. This is what she gifted to me (there was also a block of Green & Blacks chocolate but it is long gone). I have ALWAYS wanted a Keri Smith book. I haven't found the time to read a page yet but it will be my plane reading material.


^ Low on packing space for paper goods, C said that I could fill his filing cabinet full of stuff - so this drawer was completely full of old letters and postcards.

When next I blog, it will be from Launceston, Tasmania! Hope you have a far more relaxing weekend! :)

Friday Brag: Siobhan of Far Out Brussel Sprout has made a new blog especially for interviews she conducts with creative Newcastle types called The Novocastrian Files. Though I took ages and ages to fill it out, she kindly included me in it and my questionnaire is up this week, conveniently featured in my final week as a Novocastrian! If you'd like to check it out it's here :) It's basically me just waxing lyrical about letter writing and Newcastle. Now back to box packing!

Would you like to meet Alice?



Alice was my great great grandmother and lived in the late 1800's/early 1900's. This photo has a bit of a story behind it. From what I can gather, Alice was to attend a fancy dress ball in the town where she lived and at which there was a competition for best costume. Not being particularly well off and wanting to have a bit of fun with the costume, she made her dress entirely from layers of paper and even made decorations for her bulldog. When she arrived at the ball she was very embarrassed by her outfit after comparing it to the other women there who had professionally made dresses made from expensive fabrics and lace and so she went home. Later people came to tell her that she had in fact won best costume and this is the photograph that was taken of her. I haven't seen any other photos of her but I find her fascinating. A love of paper, creativity and craft seems like it might be a bit of a constant in my heritage. I like your outfit Alice!