Category Archives: Uncategorized

Image from Kelly Sands at http://appropriateadult.wordpress.com/

“There’s a unicorn who lives in a stable above the clouds and his name is Paul and he visits me just before I go to sleep at night and every boy has his own unicorn.”

His older sister scoffs and says, “There’s no such thing as unicorns.”

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I was thrilled to find that Karen Whitelaw nominated my blog for this award. Karen teaches creative writing classes at our local community-based education centre and I enrolled in one of these classes a couple of years ago. At the time, I didn’t realise how much Karen’s guidance would forever change the way I looked at my writing. It was Karen who motivated me to take my writing seriously and make it a regular part of my life.

Karen blogs at ‘The Writers’ life’ at www.karenwhitelaw.com. The placement of the apostrophe in her blog’s title says it all: Karen doesn’t see herself as one solitary writer, but part of a community of writers who can all benefit from discussing, critiquing and sharing knowledge about all things related to writing. I would highly recommend you follow her blog to discover how writing is much more than just words on a page.

I’ve nominated 7 blogs below that I personally enjoy and make sure I read every post that comes through.

1. http://othersidesun.blogspot.com.au/

Other Side of the Sun shares what it’s like to be a Spaniard in Australia with a strong passionate voice and entertaining comparisons. Her Spanish background and proud connection to my home town (Newcastle, NSW) shine through in every post. The name of her blog is brilliant and reflects what it’s like to move to the other side of the world to a place that is so different yet so similar to her home town.

2. http://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/

I discovered Rochelle’s blog when participating for the first time in Friday Fictioneers. Rochelle works tirelessly each week to initiate and manage FF, allowing hundreds of writers around the world to be inspired by one photograph and write a 100 word story for others to enjoy. It’s a fun, achievable project to keep you writing each week and is VERY addictive!

3. http://ianmchugh.wordpress.com/

Ian McHugh is a sci-fi and fantasy writer with a blog that covers all things writing. It’s a good looking, well-designed blog, and true to his genre, there’s a hint of sci-fi in every post. His posts make me think about aspects of writing I’ve never considered before.

4. http://theopensuitcase.wordpress.com/

The Open Suitcase has helpful snippets about everything to do with travel, from family tales on the west coast to what to pack in a toiletries bag. She has even inspired me to dust off my first draft USA travel novel and start reviewing! The blog is nicely laid-out and you can tell the author is a genuinely lovely person who cares about her readers.

5. http://101books.net/

101 books is an awesome blog where the author has set himself the challenge of reading Time Magazine’s 100 Greatest Novels since 1923 (plus Ulysses). He has read almost 70 books so far and ranks them on his blog. He also gets deep into the characters and the stories, writing quite humorous posts such as which characters he would like to have a beer with and why.

6. http://highfiveandraspberries.wordpress.com/

With its catchy title, High Five and Raspberries is a sweet blog that showcases the author’s love of writing through gentle, poetic pieces. She commits herself to a number of weekly writing challenges and doesn’t miss a beat. Hats off to her dedication!

7. http://mithriluna.wordpress.com/

Momdeavor is a new blog started in February 2013 and looks like it’s really taken off with regular posts and regular readers. The author is honest and consistent and comes across as a truly caring and enlightened person willing to share her positive outlook with others. Oh, and did I mention she’s a mother of 9 kids?

I hope the 7 nominees will accept this award. It’s a small thank you and an acknowledgement for the pleasure your blogs give me and, I’ve no doubt, many other readers.

All awards come with conditions with which to comply.

Rules of “A Field of Flowers” Award

▪ Thank the blogger who nominated you
▪ Place the award on your blog
▪ Nominate 7 other bloggers and write a little something about why you would give these bloggers “A Field Of Flowers”
▪ Let your nominees know that you nominated them

Going on the radio for the first time can be terrifying… but also a lot of fun.

ABC Open 500 words: One Moment, This Year (December 2013).

Here’s the link:

https://open.abc.net.au/projects/500-words-one-moment-this-yr-22lz1tk/contributions/my-fifteen-minutes-of-fame-06eh4wu

I made an exciting discovery today.

No, it wasn’t a forgotten $20 note in my back pocket. And no, I  didn’t finally master the make-at-home Adriano Zumbo’s salted caramel macarons. In fact, Bill recently banned me from baking for a while. It only ever ends with me in tears and Bill having to choke down flat crumbling macaron shells just to cheer me up.

I am yet to master the macaron – photo by Sacha Zufferey at http://www.flickr.com/photos/sazufferey/6679690757

Now, back to my exciting discovery.

It was about divorce rates in Australia. And to be more specific: that the divorce rate in Australia is dropping.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, between 2002 and 2012, the crude divorce rate dropped 19% from 2.7 to 2.2 divorces per 1000 residents. This was during a time when the crude marriage rate stayed the same at 5.4 marriages per 1000 residents. In summary, the same number of people are getting married but fewer are getting divorced.

Almost one-fifth of people who would have divorced in 2002, are today choosing to stay married. We all know about the emotional and financial mess caused by divorces. We all know someone who has been divorced and it ain’t pretty. We’ve seen reported for years that divorce rates are escalating out of control. But in the last 10 years there has been a noticeable change.

However, it’s not opinions to divorce that’s affecting the rates. It’s marriage itself. What we are seeing is a generational shift in marriage expectations.

Let me explain.

To those born in the 1920-1940s (and earlier), marriage was pretty much inevitable. Society expected that you would marry young and stay with that person for the rest of your life. In fact, the number of registered marriages peaked in 1942 with 12 in every 1000 residents being married that year.

To those born in the 1950s-1970s, marriage was also pretty much inevitable. Society expected that you would marry young, but divorce became more widely accepted. The big shift occured from 1975 when the Family Law Act was introduced, allowing couples to divorce if they were separated for at least 1 year.

Now here’s where it gets exciting.

To those born in the 1980s and later, marriage is no longer the inevitable pathway for someone wanting to move out of home. Society no longer expects you to marry young. Couples live for many years in defacto relationships, getting to know each other before deciding if marriage is really for them. People wait until they are older to tie the knot. And because of that, more people stay married.

Here’s the thing. I’m sure you can think of a married couple from the 1920-1940s who probably weren’t meant to be together but stayed together because that’s what society expected. Grumpy old Beryl and Frank up the road who hate each other’s guts? And I bet you can also think of a divorced couple from the 1950-1070s who married young because that’s what their parents wanted them to do, only to find out a few years later that it really wasn’t a good match.

Then, think of someone from the 1980s and later. Were they in a serious relationship in their late teens but decided not to break it off because it wasn’t working? If that person grew up in an earlier time I bet they would have been married. And most likely they would now be either unhappy or divorced.

So, where I can’t guarantee that I’ll ever master a salted caramel macaron, my bet is that divorce rates will continue to decline.

And I’m sure Bill is thrilled there’s many years of flat crumbly macarons to come.