Where has she been all this time...

I am delighted to be back in London following a short but sweet visit to Australia to share in the nuptials of my brother. I made hay while the sun shone on me and crammed in some relaxation time sans Off-Spring. Many people nod sympathetically at the thought of 21 hours airborne in economy class to Brisbane. The truth is that 21 hours anywhere without the children is in fact a treat to be cherished. Much as I love and missed them, everything is better after an absence and I was sorely in need of a little absentia from responsibility when I boarded that jumbo jet...

It was a lovely visit "home". The wedding went beautifully, the weather was delightful, the time with family and friends meaningful and joy-filled (on the whole), the Off-Spring and Mr Springgirl made the most of some quality father/son time without me and I returned feeling, if not refreshed and restored, at least relaxed and refocussed (mentally that is - the physical toll is still being felt...).

When I last posted here I was in search of the Voom, I recall. I am delighted to say that I found a little bit of Voom down under in the form of a rather dashing and chic blue coat (French, of course) which I wore to the wedding over a shiny teal dress, teamed with a little bit of bling at throat and wrist and some sweet blue flowers in the hair. It was all quite Holly Golightly (or so one guest informed me) - which I interpreted to mean I looked Audrey Hepburnesque (rather than call-girlish).

The Voom was not too long lasting though as a weird bloodshot eye complaint came on the day after the wedding (eyeliner(!)), only to be followed by severe jet lag and sleep deprivation induced skin blotch breakout soon after that. I now find myself virtually ripping both eyes from their sockets in a melodramatic upstaging of King Lear due to the pollen and dust in the air. If any of you are at a loose end - please develop a hay-fever drug that works without causing massive mood altering side effects. Then again - maybe those mood altering varieties might help with that elusive Voom...

I do not want to make this post into a negative and whining complaint about pollen and long haul flights. I am missing Australia playing in the World Cup to write it, after all, so I had better not fritter this time away being a big old whingy pants, but I have to say that apart from the three weeks of Spring in which there is no pollen, the whole London summer experience is greatly overrated to my way of thinking. Sure I do love the long evenings of light and the glorious thrill of not knowing which climate to dress for on any day, but on the whole, the sheer discomfort of sneezing and itching one's eyes for several of those daylight hours, does detract from one's enjoyment of tea in the garden. It's like travel. It's a nice idea...  Of course one loves to go away, to share special occasions and memories, but one forgets how very gruelling long-haul travel can be. I take my widebrimmed stylish summer hat off to those cabin crew and pilots. How do they adjust to all those time zones, sleep at funny times and return to work so smilingly, with such pleasant and sunny demeanours?

In any case, as you can see, I am still, after several days back home in London, searching for my old sense of purpose and vigour. I do have several episodes of "my shows" to catch up on, it is true. Moreover, despite coming late to the "Madmen" party (in-flight tv drama thanks to Qantas), I now have another distraction to make time and space for. As a result, blogging, job-hunting, finishing the next novel and arranging for printing of the children's book have all gone on the back burner, together with the Voomless search for meaning in the myriad concerns of the multitudes. I shall have to make more hay until this sense of dislocation and malaise wears off. Perhaps three more days - just long enough to watch three episodes of "The Good Wife", restock the fridge and catch up on the sleep lost in transit...

So I apologise for my absence. I apologise for having nothing much to say here. I apologise for not keeping in touch. I apologise for whining. I apologise for not having a photo of myself looking so good at the wedding to share with you.

But - on a happier note - do you like the new template? I am not convinced. I want to like the Spring-like design and feel but a part of me wants to hold on to the past. Am I just embracing this change for the sake of it? Am I trying to distract you from the parlous lack of content in this post?

Let me know what you think.

I promise more gripping, amusing and scintillating dialogue in the next few days.

I actually have several ideas in the pipeline for posts. Really, I do. Come on - it's World Cup time, and Wimbledon around the corner! Who is reading my blog anyway?!