Reconnecting with nature and community in the inner city.
Stormy weather took out the power lines so Christmas morning began with a crackling fire and smokey toasted croissants. Traditions of plastic trees, turkey and shouting matches are made to be broken: family, friends and fishing are much nicer. Chocolate birthday cake is pretty delightful as well.
We stopped for lunch at the Wye River Cafe for some overpriced deliciousness. The food is such a treat and all with that gourmet amount of oil and salt, that is enough to make you really unhealthy, but hidden under enough fresh veg and herbs so you think you can get away with no one noticing.
Sometimes I can’t help myself and and I surrender to my primitive urges to take photos of food, why does sunlight glistening on crystals of salted chips tempt me so?
We took our housemates to spot their first koala and we barely turned the corner into Kennet River when there was one right in front of our faces. It is kind of anticlimactic when there isn’t even the slightest bit of tree scanning. They were treated to said koala, a lecherous old man koala no doubt, trying to get some action from a lady koala demurely perched on a branch. She would have none of it of course and no amount of his grunting and grasping could sway her, the claws came out and after some shrieking he slipped and skidded down down down the trunk to lick his wounds. She sat arms crossed in disgust.
At one point my dad disappeared into the bush only to reappear nimbly balancing on a steep roadside embankment taking a photo of a prize wildflower find. We must have been quite a sight to see scrambling through the bush, ducking down to take photos noses to the ground. Pretty purple hardenbergia rambled cheekily over trunks and tin cans alike.
My mum’s lovely berry muffins were a delicious sweet finish to our picnic lunch.
Last Sunday we took my lovely parents on a day trip to the country. The last time we had gone through Taradale we drove past this little bush glade and though it would be a sweet place to have a little picnic of quiche and tea brewed in Dylan’s trusty bush buddy stove. When we stopped we hadn’t anticipated such yelps of delight from the back seat. My parents are members of the Australian Native Plants Society you see and we had inadvertently taken them to a place brimming with pretties for them to discover. It was much like a treasure hunt and the mood was contagious, I soon found myself trying to find different flowers species to report back.
On venturing deeper into the bush we found an odd assortment of burnt and rusted tin cans, shredded rags hanging from trees, old twisted straps of metal and an old vacuum cleaner. Iwas a little bit eerie and unsettling and I was glad we weren’t caught out there on a dark and stormy night.
Mushroom and Spinach Quiche Recipe
