Election result too close to call

Well it's almost 7am in Sydney. I think I slept for about five hours or maybe six last night. I did not sleep on Friday evening and haven't had much to eat. I can't even begin to describe the feeling right now... about 800 votes ahead, but not quite at the magic percentage required to stave off a recount of votes.

Instead of sleeping right now, I am awake. Wide awake. In two hours I will spend the entire day scrutineering as a recount begins. A result wont be known in the seat that my husband contested, against the incumbent Minister (won't be a minister now, after the result of the election) for a week. I would rather be in my husband's position than that of the incumbent. He held the seat for 12 years with a margin of 14.4%

It seems at last count, Mark was ahead at 14.9% with 95% of the vote counted.

More news later.

The cupboard is almost bare...

Well this weekend has been filled with hours and hours of campaigning. In fact, Saturday - the whole day was dedicated to campaigning. Street stalls from 8am to 12:00pm and then the afternoon at prepoll until 5pm left me feeling very tired (but pleased to be doing all that I could for my husband's campaign)

Today I began the morning with breakfast and a campaign meeting with the candidate and campaign director.

I have to say that this is the first weekend where we have had two dinners at home. I have had two dinners and one lunch at home. A huge treat for me. I have almost eaten out for every meal since October last year. My family came to visit (I got to see my beautiful niece today) and we had a wonderful home cooked meal. For anybody who knows me well, knows how much I truly love to cook. Last night I cooked some vegetables and meat - we wanted something very simple. For dessert I cooked some figs in the oven and served them with some vanilla bean ice cream. I realised when I opened the fridge and pantry that they are both incredibly bare.

This is not new - in fact, since the campaign has really kicked in (just before November) I haven't really had much of an opportunity to shop for the ingredients that I would ordinarily find in my pantry (a walk in pantry) and my fridge. This is because I am very fussy. I can't buy any particular pasta or oil or vino cotto. I can't buy meat from a supermarket - actually I can't buy very much from a supermarket. I love food and I love finding out about the origin of all the food I buy. This period from November to April has made me realise I am incredibly unrealistic about how I approach shopping for food, but sadly I can't see myself changing.

I have restocked my tins of tuna (for work) and have found some staples that should see me through the week. Mum prepared some delicious meals that are now in the freezer, so a home cooked lasagne is on the menu this week. I was pleased with the varietals of lettuce that my niece and I picked from my garden today, for the base of our salad.

I suppose eating all that is in the pantry is a good thing - it really encourages no wastage and some creativity. I did find some orecchiette so I will be sure to do something with it tomorrow night.

I am busily adding all the things I haven't had an opportunity to do for months to my to do list - things like socialising with friends, hosting dinner parties, reading, cooking, baking, knitting, writing, finding a house etc etc.

Another natural disaster

You may recall that I was fortunate to spend two weeks in Japan, on a study tour run by the Australian Education Foundation. In that time, I visited some of the most beautiful places that I have ever been to, in my life. I have well over 3000 photographs from this two week trip. Japan is a place of great beauty. Natural beauty that radiates peace and calm and serenity. From the lovely moss gardens and Zen gardens to the quiet pockets of space amidst the busy hustle and bustle of cities like Osaka and Kyoto. I will never forget the falling snow and watching the sunrise and sunset.

Japan is a country that lies on a rather active fault line. When in Japan, I recall on a number of occasions, being told about how they were due for the 'big one.' By that, they were referring to the big tsunami and big earthquake that would devastate their country.

My heart goes out to the Japanese people and my condolences to those who have lost loved ones and their homes.

There is so much devastation in the world at the moment. Floods in QLD and Victoria, bushfires in WA, earthquake in Christchurch, unrest in Libya, Egypt, Tunisia to name but a few and now the earthquake in Japan and tsunami to hit countries in the Pacific.

I will most certainly keep everyone in my thoughts and prayers. What a dreadful beginning to 2011. I hope and pray that such devastation is over and people can begin to rebuild their lives.

Something that is most apparent is the sheer wonderment of the devastation that natural disasters can cause and at the same time, be so spectacular in how quickly they move. I have the greatest respect for nature. It is so beautiful and so seductive. Nature lets us believe that we are in control, yet seeing images of the mud slide just take in large homes like they were made of paper, shows how nature can assert her power and ferocity.

Garden update

I was very, very pleased to see that there are a number of very healthy looking seedlings (both tomato and zucchini) growing in pots on my verandah and the peas are also taking off! I received a copy of The Digger's Club seed book to loan for a little while and I am really inspired by the many different kinds of seeds that I can buy!

My husband and I are hoping to buy a house in the next couple of months, so part of me wants to buy lots of seeds so that I can grow them in what I hope will be a sizeable garden!

Already I have plans drawn up for the kind of vegetable / fruit patch that I want - one for every season of the year!

I suppose it all really comes down to the place that we decide to buy and the sun / shade factor as well as space!

One thing that I have learned, is that I can grow almost anything in a pot and this has given me great satisfaction.

I love Autumn because zucchinis and peas will come into their own, taking pride of place in many dishes that I hope to cook. The tomatoes will form the base of my own homemade pasta sauce and tomato sauce, so I really look forward to days spent in the kitchen in the holidays! Will be a welcome relief from the frenetic activity of work at present!