Until we meet again!

 Time is up my dear friends, my flight is booked and I leave for Iceland in the early hours of the morning this weekend!

Back in September 2009 amidst drama at work I blurted out that I was not going to pursue another position at the university but move to Iceland instead, not sure that I actually had much control over those words as they tumbled out,  however they rang incredibly true deep within me and I have been working on making them a reality ever since.

I know I went about this all back to front but somehow it has all worked out and come to fruition.  I have followed my gut instinct which kept telling me I am suppose to be on the other side of the world.

After a bit of a reconnaissance visit to Iceland during Christmas 2009 to the end of Feb 2010 and setting up a little company called "AusIs" I returned to Australia to renovate and sell my home.  This was achieved after about 5 and half months from start to finish, however I did not apply for residency until towards the end of that period.  My house was sold and all my worldly possessions were packed in a container but at this stage I did not know if residency would be granted.   However deep down I did not really doubt for a moment and kept pushing ahead.

Since the house settled I have been staying with my sister Kerry and her partner Stephen, whiling away the days by catching up and saying goodbye to friends and family here and on the east coast. I have had a list and everything is now done and ticked off.

My residency application was all approved on the 22nd Sept and as there is no Icelandic Embassy in Australia and in a typical Icelandic way I have been told to just come! Once I arrive I just need to present myself to the relevant authorities to register. How cool is that!

So this Sunday past we had a little family gathering with my sisters, nieces and children.

 

Two people who have known me longer than anyone else, my dear sisters Kerry and Donna. 

Lots of laughs with Jesse and Eva in the flesh and

 

 Ross on Skype and Dom on the phone

To all my dear family and friends out there...you know who you are...I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to you all...knowing you has blessed me in some way and I thank you.  Many of you have said you will come for a visit to Iceland, my door will always be open...so it is not goodbye it is just until we meet again!

No Monday Ice today...just Little Sparrows and other stuff!

Cinefestoz in Busselton was the place for the Western Australian premiere of Little Sparrows. I dropped Eva off in Busso on the Wed and I stayed in Bunbury with friends Richard and Lynette. Lynette and I returned to Busso for the premiere on Thurs night.  The response from the public and the media is always very positive, people are genuinely touched by the emotion the film exposes plus the wondrous cinematography. It is a slow gentle paced film, one that I think in someway we all will relate to whether it be similar circumstance and the family relationships or the internal struggles that unfold.  It has been picked up by film festivals all around Australia, Sydney, Melbourne, and  Queensland, it is now time that an Australian distributor took the film on so wider audiences can get the chance to see it.  Little Sparrows is different to the norm in Australian film making, much more European in style.  I resent the fact that our choices in many things become so limited because difference is very rarely explored/supported and we are often dished up with what will bring in the bucks with the least effort, resulting in the same old smorgasbord. The audience/general public often just does not get the chance to experience excellence to be able to develop the discerning palate which in time would show results at the box office.

Little Sparrows cast and crew at the Sydney Film Festival

The Thurs night premiere of Little Sparrows was attended by a large crowd which was great to see, the silence in the theatre at the very emotional and intense moments of the film was palpable as the audience identified with the characters in someway, they were touched by the film and showed their appreciation via applause at the end.  Mark Naglazas from the West Australian conducted an informal Q&A session after the screening, inviting the cast and crew in attendance to come up on stage and answer a few questions from the audience and himself.

 

 The packed foyer before the start of the show.

 Eva with friends who made the trip to Busselton to see Little Sparrows.

 Eva with Shaunagh (they have been friends since schooldays)

 Camille Chen (the director) introducing the film at the start of the screening.

Apparently the Sat morning screening went even better with a packed crowd who were a very enthusiastic and responsive audience providing wonderful feedback to cast and crew on just how much they enjoyed the film.  Eva said the whole festival was fantastic and with such great responses from the general public and her peers she is more determined to see that Little Sparrows gets a theatrical release.

Eva, Nicola Bartlett and Camille Chen at The Directors Lunch at Clairault Winery in Margaret River

Pics from Screenwest FaceBook page

My days are spent catching up with friends (it's a hard life I know), last weekend I spent a lovely Sunday afternoon with Vanessa and Kevin...I have known Vanessa since I was 16 (forgot to take pics...sorry).  After Busselton on the Saturday I caught up with Kerry and Annette who I met once my children started school and once schooldays were over we catch up regularly about 3 times a year, always for at least a 4hr lunch as we are never short for words.

 Kerry and Annette

Yesterday (Sunday) Kerry, Stephen and I visited Donna and Isabella and took them for an afternoon of caching at Lake Leschenaultia....Isabella absolutely loved it took over my GPS and was racing from cache to cache and quite the veteran by the time the afternoon was over.

 Isabella with her first find for the afternoon!

 Checking out the goodies to see if there is anything worth to swap.

 Kerry signing a log book and Isabella looking very pleased with herself.

 Isabella beating Donna to the cache every time!

The last cache we did with Donna and Isabella was fun, the road into the cache was lined with stuffed animals...it was a good giggle and Isabella just loved it.

Nearly Done!

Nearly all the major work is done, I painted a bedroom earlier in the week...It needed it desperately, I had intended to do it after Jesse moved out, however the day after he left Dom moved back in for a couple of months before going to Melbourne...when Dom left, Eva moved into the room so I never got the chance.

The only major job left is to paint the front fence which I have started and managed to get one coat on yesterday but it needs another...but hey it rained early this morning so I think it best to leave for another day.

A very overcast looking sky today...not a good day to paint outside!

Before!

After one coat!

So will work on sorting and cleaning up inside, remove some of the unnecessary clutter and then the old place should be ready for sale. The Perth market is very buoyant at the moment and places seem to sell relatively quickly, I don't think this house will take too long.

Hopefully the roses will keep blooming as they make the house look good!

However I seem to be doing everything back to front, selling my home before I have got residency in Iceland but I am taking a leap of faith that it will all work out...fingers crossed!!! Hopefully Unnur, I will get back there in time for some Berry Picking with you!

Besides painting the bedroom I managed to catch up with a dear friend Judy and fit in a little retail therapy...my style...at the same time (no shoes, clothes or handbags for me) we visited Shedwallah in Freo.

Shedwallah is the place for those interested in all things exotic, oriental...furniture, carpets, rugs, textiles, garden pots etc it is a great place to while a way a few hours...6 Stack St Freo.

I bought floor rugs and cushions...which will make the house look good but the stuff can move with me to Iceland.

The purchases...Afghanistan Balouchi tribal wool rug and two saddlebag cushions.
Iranian Meshecl wool runner for the entry hall

I also bought a slightly damaged kilim in their hail sale...it had a slight run of colour that is hardly noticeable...a bargain for $100

And this lovely handmade chainstitch cushion for my bed...they even had large floor rugs in chainstitch they were absolutely magnificent and mind-boggling in the amount of work.

It was a week of catching up with friends and family, on Thurs night I enjoyed a meal with Mai-Yung a dear friend from uni days and on Fri had a lovely lunch with my two younger sisters Kerry and Donna.

Donna

Kerry

I must say I am enjoying not being tied down to a 9-5 job.
Aah...I did make the right decision not to paint today as it has just started to rain again.

Just one more thing...one of the kickstarter projects I have pledged to (1024 bits of you and me) time is just about up, so if you feel inclined to sponsor go to the link above.