7am

Up at seven am. The keys are still shrouded in night. On top of their own blackness, that's a lot of dark.

The day is yawning its dawning. Grey is the colour of a yawning dawn - the grey of concrete. 

A not so far away view

M has left already - complaining of traffic. All through the French doors looks in that early-morning half wake, even the tree. All is rubbing its eyes and straightening its pyjamas, all is achy of limb, unless quite young. All are thinking about breakfast, well almost all. M doesn't eat breakfast, for instance.

The chilli con carne last night filled a hole. We normally have 'vegetarian chilli con carne', until C1 pointed out that the carne is the meat. So I'm trying it with the meat (kidney beans, onions, peppers, spices, chilli, tomato) for coherence sake. We have vegetarian once a week (at least) regardless. 

Chilli con carne: not particularly photogenic food

Normally daughter B would be getting ready for uni at this time, bustling about preparing her custom-made b'fast. But she stayed over at a new varsity friend's place last night so the kitchen is dark and quiet.

One invariably misses ones children when they are away for any length of time. B used to spend some part of every week sleeping at her BF's house for much of her later childhood. I'd miss her then. C1 has been to Japan for a couple of weeks when twelve, I missed him then; and C2 I can miss when he's at school.

The thing they really don't tell you about having kids is the difficulty of moving on from kids when they grow up and become, well, kids no more. I suspect most parents go on treating them a bit like kids to compensate but they probably shouldn't. Hard job to get completely right, parenting.

The sun is making an appearance. Hits first the yellow leaves, then the sky, so susceptible to shading. From concrete grey to pale apricot she blushes, the 7.30am winter sky.



I used to do a bit of colouring in in my day, shading with blotting paper was my speciality. I won a competition for colouring in a long drawing in black ink of an elaborate paradise garden scene. I remember doing most of the colouring in down at my Nana's flat in Manly, but I can't remember why. I think Nana might have arranged the competition.

Cars are revving along our road now, people off to work, to visit a sick friend in the hospital before work, perhaps. Coming home from work, some of them. Me, I'm writing, putting off setting out the breakfast and making the lunch buns. The keys have lightened up some, I'm enjoying hitting them

Mother cat is sleeping next to me here on the downstairs couch. I am not sleeping on the couch, no. I have set up my computer at the coffee table next door for the foreseeable. To begin with, M was painting my study door and I liked the space and view. Now they can't get rid of me. I'm installed with my pens and books and mouse pad and camera as well.

Mother cat has the blanket that my legs want. M said she left a wee deposit this morning, poor old TT, I don't want to disturb her. Time for breakfast...

Have a nice day,
Sacha