Saying Goodbye...

It's been a tough week. On Wednesday we lost our beautiful Merlin. It came totally out of the blue - one day he has a bit of a cough, then suddenly he is riddled with lung cancer. I was really hoping we would not have to go through this again for a couple of years, after losing Mystic just last year, and Misere.

I have been on the 'City Experience' with my year 9's all week. It's been exhausting, and stressful at times, but on the plus side, I've been too busy during the day, and too tired at night to really dwell on it. But we both keep forgetting momentarily, and getting up to let him outside, or keeping leftovers for him. I made pancakes last night, and they weren't very good - Merlin always had to have the first 'test' one out of the pan.

Merlin has been with us for almost our whole married life - he leaves a big hole in my heart.

The Big Fluffball after a brush.

Telling us off...

His favourite pose

Julie, Julia & Me...

Despite being absolutely crazy busy at the moment (I have been at rehearsals till midnight every day this week, for starters), I have been doing a little reading for entertainment lately. This week I read a book called Julie & Julia, by Julie Powell. I bought it because the premise appealed to me - someone working her way through every recipe in a french cookbook in a year. I didn't realise until a few chapters in that it's a true story (I went searching and found the original blog it is based on).

It's a great book, entertaining and humorous, but the thing I found most interesting was that basic idea. I think it's a brilliant idea. I'm pretty frustrated I didn't think of it myself. :) I can see myself involved in such a project, although I doubt I'd be committed or crazy enough to try and get it done in a year, to eat at 10 every night because the recipes are so complex, and quite frankly, I really do not need the extra layer of 'butter fat' Julie says she gained. The idea really appeals to me though - something to keep yourself inspired and committed to a project, a great way to have something to blog about every day - and I love to cook new recipes.

But, it's been done. *sigh* Just changing to a different nationality cookbook probably isn't sufficiently original... Maybe I could apply the concept to another medium, one of my many other interest... I could work my way through Passing the Flame instead perhaps. A new bead design or skill every week (because as I said, I'm not crazy enough to do it every day). I'm going to have to think about this...

But, no time at the moment for these ideas. Calamity Jane opens tonight. It will be such a relief to perform in front of an audience, finally. I have never been in another show that does a run through in the theatre, every night the week the show opens. It's great to be prepared, and the show is so tight because of it, but I am absolutely exhausted and can't wait to sleep in on Saturday morning.