Chill.

I’m home after eight days in Bali, and four in Cairns, Far North Queensland, Australia. It was so great to do very little. We actually relaxed this time. There was very little running around. It was very chill.

Not our default setting but essential.

So now I have to-do lists coming out my ears but I have to pace myself. The feeling of panic I’ve been carrying around since Mum got went to hospital on 27 November subsided after a couple of days in Bali. I was hoping it would stay away but as soon as we got back I had to drive to the orthodontist in school pick up time and get groceries yesterday… It was a challenge for my zen.

I’ve only done a little writing in the past couple of weeks but I’ve managed plenty of reading while lying beside the pool.

I finished The Woman who Painted the Seasons by Penny Fields Schneider. If you love art and brilliant female characters get this book.

Then I read The Collector’s Apprentice by B. A. Shapiro. Once again, lovers of art and feisty femmes will love this book.

Then I read Nikki Mottram’s Killarney for an author interview at Kingscliff Library on June 5.

And then started on Before the coffee gets cold by Yoshikazu Kawaguchi. It was recommended by a friend because I love time travel. I’m nearly finished it. It’s one of those books that has amazing reviews and terrible reviews. The writing style is unlike anything I have read before and if I didn’t know it was translated from Japanese and based on an original stage play I would probably think it’s poorly written.

Regardless it’s an intriguing story.

I have bought The Work by Bri Lee and I’m listening to her audiobook Who Gets to be Smart.

I really must go and do some work now!

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On 22 June 2024, I will teach a short ekphrastic writing workshop to coincide with the opening of A Bigger View, a collaborative exhibition between the National Gallery of Australia and HOTA Home of the Arts.

You can read more about the workshop here.