Currently... 24.07.21

We are currently in lockdown in Melbourne... again. This is Melbourne's fifth lockdown since March 2020, and our third since arriving in January. It's day 9 of 12; the lockdown is supposed to end in three days on Tuesday night. As is normal here, we will probably know if the lockdown is extending or not sometime on Monday. For now I am enjoying my lockdown silver linings: slow mornings, weekends free of activities, and not having to pack school lunches every evening. 

Reading I just finished the book The Lost Man by Jane Harper. I really, really enjoyed this book. It is set in outback Australia and is the story of three brothers. One brother, Cameron, is found dead at an old stockman’s grave on the family’s vast property. The brothers, having grown up in the harsh climate, know how to survive in the outback, so everyone is shocked that he was apparently on his own without food, water, or his car nearby. But his car is found nearly 10km away (too far to walk in the heat) in perfect working order, fully stocked with enough supplies to last a few days. So how did he get to the stockman’s grave? Why was he there? Did he commit suicide? His death is a mystery and as one of his brothers investigates dark family secrets are revealed. I was absolutely gripped by this novel and highly recommend it. It is as much a mystery/crime novel as it is about family relationships.

I also recently read Klara and the Sun by Kazou Ishiguro. It was my mother's day present from the kids. We have a great local bookshop, Escape Hatch Books, which is where we go for a lot of gifts these days. (Having a child in primary school has equated to a LOT of birthday parties so far this year!) I love that Ella and Ollie know I love reading and that Andy brought them there to help pick out a gift for me. The story takes place in the future, though not such a distant future that you can't imagine society being like this. Parents can have their children "lifted", which is a genetic modification that makes them smart. Those that are "unlifted" have a significantly less opportunities available to them, like going to college or becoming a professional. However being lifted comes with risk; children can become very sick and even die. A pretty tricky choice for a parent to make! The story is told from the point of view of Klara, who is an AF, which stands for Artificial Friend. AFs are companions for lonely children, who in this future world have their lessons independently, online, and have limited interactions with other kids. (Sounds somewhat familiar...) Klara is chosen to be the AF of a girl called Josie, who is lifted but sick. The story is told by Klara, so the reader is only privy to information that she has access to. It's interesting to read her interpretations of the world around her as a robot who learns things at a fast pace.

Listening to a podcast called Exit Scam. It's about the CEO of the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in Canada. He died while on holiday in India, and no one but him has the passwords to the $215 million in crypto on the exchange. And then it is discovered that the money doesn't actually exist. And then lots of other shady things are uncovered. It's a true story! Pretty engaging.

Watching Andy and I just finished the series The Innocent on Netflix. We randomly put this on as it showed up on our recommended list and we were looking for something having finished Handmaid’s Tale season 4 (so good!) and Mare of Easttown (also, so so SO good). I was worried we wouldn't find anything as engrossing as those two shows but I didn’t need to worry, The Innocent was an very engaging (if horrifying at times) series. It is based on the novel of the same name, by Harlan Coban. This isn’t the first mini-series on Netflix based on a book by this author: The Stranger and The Woods are also adaptations from Coban. The Innocent tells the story of Mateo (the series is set in Spain), who as a young adult gets into a fight outside a club, and accidentally kills another man in the fight. Flash forward and Mateo has done his jail time and seemingly has a second chance at life, with a job at his brother’s law firm and a pregnant wife. However his wife has a secret past that catches up with her… and that’s all I can say! Lots of twists and turns in this show and I was glued to the television during every episode.

Drinking long blacks. About a month ago we bought a proper espresso machine. We figured we’d given enough money to the café across the street and should learn to make our own espressos and flat whites. I definitely did not realise how much there is to learn about making espresso based drinks on this machine! The grind size, brew ratio, tamping... and don't even get me started on frothing milk! Andy reckons he’s got it figured out but I still find a shot of espresso pretty much undrinkable. Enter the long black. I’ve discovered that if I put 70-100ml of boiled (and slightly cooled) water in, and then pour my shot of espresso on top of that, I have a really lovely long black. I’m enjoying it so much more than just the espresso on it’s own, and as a bonus I have bigger drink. Win win!

Cooking I am finding cooking for the kids to be a major drag these days. They never seem to like the same things, and unless it is a plate of fries or toast, at least one of them will say “ew yuck” as soon as they see what is on their plates. Usually I just cook things I want to eat and then serve the kids a deconstructed version, so they can pick the parts of it they like. This strategy is mildly successful. Recently I made this Curried Coconut Quinoa with greens and roasted cauliflower. I thought it was delicious. Ollie ate the cauliflower and a few leaves of spinach, while Ella looked at it, refused to eat it, and then ate some of the quinoa and cauliflower once we convinced her to try it and she realised she actually liked it. Soups seem to be less offensive to them, so we’ll be making more of these through the winter. This Thai Curried Butternut Squash soup was a big winner with Ella, Ollie mostly ate the bread we served with it.

I’m beginning to realise why McDonald’s is so successful.

Wearing my mahabis slippers all day in the house. These were a birthday present from Andy, and boy did he get it right with these! I don't think you can live in an Australian house in winter without decent slippers. I used to wonder why UGGS were Australian and why Aussies only wore them inside. Well it’s because the houses here are about as insulted as a camping tent with holes in it, and your feet will turn into ice blocks if you don’t wear warm slippers. We are talking some sort of wool and hard sole combination. Seriously. These slippers were not cheap but so far I'd say the cost is justified. Super comfortable and they keep my feet nice and toasty. 

Loving my morning Ollie cuddles. Ollie is a very early riser (pre 6am most days, ugh) and he starts the day by crawling into our bed, snuggling into his "spot" between our pillows. Between all the lockdowns and school holidays, we've had much more relaxed mornings and therefore time to spend cuddling in bed before getting ready for the day. It is a really lovely start to the day, and I'm conscious that as he gets older these cuddles may become less and less frequent. 

Playing the kids are getting much better at playing together lately. Living through the pandemic for the last 16 months has meant a lot of time where they just have each other at home. Ella can even convince Ollie to play her favourite game of "doggies" where she pretends to be a dog and Ollie has to walk her. WHY is this such a fun game? I have no idea. Ollie loves puzzles these days, and any building blocks/magnetic tiles, and of course playing soccer. Ella got some very cool Lego sets for her birthday which she builds independently, usually during Ollie's naps. Ollie always wants to play with her creations, and then breaks them, which makes her upset, so we do have to manage that situation sometimes!

Learning Ella's reading and writing is really coming along. She's made such good progress in school so far this year. When had periods of remote learning during lockdown she has three online lessons per day, for half an hour each. I have no idea how you'd teach Prep students online, but her teacher does an excellent job of it. Ella does these lessons independently which is incredibly helpful when Andy and I are trying to teach our own online lessons. I'm really proud of how she works in school so far!

Photo of the Month a snap from a day trip to the Dandenong Ranges, just a few days before this lockdown started.