# cool.suz.website.gif
> Thoughts, stories and ideas.
Public Ghost content for AI and LLM tooling. This file includes a bounded export of public pages first, then recent public posts.
Append `.md` to any post or page URL to get the content in Markdown (for example, `/example-post.md`).
## Pages
### Contact
URL: https://suz.id.au/contact/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:54:23.000Z
Coming soon...

![mail-poe](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/mail-poe.gif)
### Links
URL: https://suz.id.au/links/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:54:23.000Z
## Friends

- [granite octopus](https://www.graniteoctopus.com/?ref=suz.id.au)
- [mimobase](http://mimobase.com/?ref=suz.id.au)
### Bagheera Simulator
URL: https://suz.id.au/bagheera/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T09:00:37.000Z
# Cat Simulator
## Posts
### Onomichi and the Shimanami Kaido
URL: https://suz.id.au/onomichi-and-the-shimanami-kaido/
Last updated: 2026-10-18T13:17:11.000Z
![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9899.jpeg)

Fuji-san from the shinkansen

After a long Shinkansen trip, an ekiben and a local train, we arrived in Onomichi! It’s a very cute town with a lot of interesting shops, cafes and restaurants! 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9925.jpeg)

So many cats

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9919.jpeg)

?

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9913.jpeg)

We took a trip up the ropeway to an observation deck where we could see all across the Seto Inland Sea, to the islands we would be riding across the next day. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9937.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9947.jpeg)

The ropeway station at the top had (at least) 2 resident cats that also featured on the ropeway signage. So cute!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9952.jpeg)

After checking into our hotel (which was on top of the station building, so convenient!), we headed out to try to find some dinner. We found an awesome little izakaya with some counter seating, and because the menu was all hand written we basically told the owner to give us whatever he recommended. Everything was absolutely delicious, even the tripe which we were all a litttle sus on but it was excellent too! And some of the best sake I’ve ever had!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9967.jpeg)

On the way back to the hotel we then also stumbled into a second izakaya and they were also so nice and friendly. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9970-1.jpeg)

But maybe that wasn’t the best idea when we had a 40km cycle to do the next day…

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9986.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9984.jpeg)

After a bakery breakfast we picked up our bikes, and headed off to the bike ferry to begin the journey on the first island. I was grateful for the e-assist bike on all the uphill parts, but it wasn’t too difficult of a ride overall — the roads and paths are great and Japanese drivers were really courteous and safe, giving riders a wide berth. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9999.jpeg)

These islands are famous for citrus, so every mascot, town sign or food has something to do with either lemons, oranges or mandarins. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0042.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0052.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0028.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/LineCamera_20261015_101746_970.jpeg)

Selection of excellent mascots

We had some excellent mandarin soft serve at a nice beachside cafe as a snack, and then later on after passing by many closed and fully booked restaurants, we found an amazing seafood restaurant in a carpark of a hardware store. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/LineCamera_20261015_102038_739.jpeg)

We stayed the night in a ryokan by the sea, and took advantage of the public bath to rest our tired muscles. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0032.jpeg)

Garden of the ryokan 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0030.jpeg)

View from our room

The next day was more of the same, excellent warm sunny weather and beautiful views and lots and lots of lemons. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0076.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0083.jpeg)

The final leg was a riding across a massively tall and long bridge (which was a little bit scary!!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/image-2.jpeg)

One side of the bridge 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0117.jpeg)

The middle 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0144.jpeg)

The end

Our final accomodation was right next to the final bridge and the bike rental depot! The house was awesome and the view from both the balcony and the bath was beautiful. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_0050.jpeg)

 In total we travelled across six islands and six bridges over the two days!
### First few days in Tokyo
URL: https://suz.id.au/first-few-days-in-tokyo/
Last updated: 2026-10-11T13:05:18.000Z
We made it to Tokyo a few days ago! I was a bit worried about flying Qantas cos they seem so unreliable nowadays, but it arrived 30 mins early! We are staying in Shinjuku very close to where we stayed when we first visited Japan 15 years ago. It has changed a lot since then, and Shinjuku station always seems like it’s under construction. We took a train for the airport and were feeling cocky about navigating the station cos we’ve done it so many times, but of course we got horribly lost in the maze under the station. 

We checked into our hotel then headed off to find an izakaya for a late night snack! Found a cool one in a basement and tiredly ordered what I thought was a normal lemon sour (my fav drink order in Japan) but it was literally a whole lemon stuffed in a glass. Mm lemony!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9815.jpeg)

The next morning we wandered over to find a Komeda’s Coffee, as I had heard that their morning set was good!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9816-1.jpeg)

Shinjuku is grimy but there’s interesting details hidden around 

I got an iced coffee with bread and red bean paste. Unfortunately finding alt milks seems to be pretty non-standard in Japan, even soy milk which is surprising. But I did my best to practice my Japanese to try to ask for it, and when I was politely rejected I rolled the dice on the lactose intolerance and won today, hooray!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/image.jpeg)

We then headed to Yokohama for the day because there was a jazz festival around the red brick warehouse area. When we got there, there were tons of people walking there and lots of stalls so we assumed it was the jazz festival. But it turned out to be two separate events: a ticketed sweet potato festival and a dog market. There were hundreds of little dogs all dressed up and in prams! So to escape the crowds we grabbed a beer on the balcony and watched the dog people from above. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/image-1.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9834.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9830.jpeg)

We then enjoyed a family restaurant (Jonathans) and headed back to the train station past some lovely pastel theme park rides. I love that Japan isn’t afraid of using pastels in construction!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9837.jpeg)

Before heading home I checked out the handmade jewellery floor in Tokyu Hands and bought some interesting pieces. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9856.jpeg)

There are two more cat bread earrings but I was wearing them hehe 

We then had dinner at a nice (but smoke-filled) izakaya in Shinjuku before heading off to check out Omoide Yokocho, which is a narrow strip of tiny bars next to the train line. I had just read a book about these kinds of built up streets in Japan so it was interesting to check them out after having a bit more of the history and how they operate. Henry and I have been to Japan so many times but haven’t been there before. Anyway turns out the vibes of it being a massive tourist trap nowadays is correct lol, it was packed to the brim with tourists, a lot of them very obnoxious. We did get in to a bar, clambering 3 levels up narrow stairs and over other patrons, to sit on a questionably constructed balcony. Somehow we had one drink each and it nearly cost the same as our izakaya dinner and multiple rounds of drinks! I can tick it off the list as having done it I guess! 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9843.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9844.jpeg)

Brock enjoying the vibes

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9845.jpeg)

The next day we had a nice Japanese breakfast. All of this for about $5.70!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9847.jpeg)

And then headed off to Asakuka for the main event of the day (for me) a cat themed handcraft market!! 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9854.jpeg)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9853.jpeg)

The ticket you receive to enter was this fan with a cat bum 

I bought many things and chatted to some nice people! One of the ladies I bought something from liked my tomato dress from Variety Hour so drew a cute thing on one of the boxes 💕

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/10/IMG_9855.jpeg)

Some of the items not including secret gifts for others 

Wrapping up here, trying to chunk the blog so it doesn’t get too overwhelming to create!

📚

The book I mentioned was Emergent Tokyo: Designing the Spontaneous CityBook by Joe McReynolds and Jorge Almazán
### Japanese learning (with a special guest!)
URL: https://suz.id.au/japanese-learning-with-a-special-guest/
Last updated: 2026-09-19T23:10:30.000Z
I've been learning Japanese for a bit over a year now. I'm still only half-way through the first textbook, so it's slow going! I'm finding it a bit hard to juggle studying with all my other hobbies + work, but I am making progress in learning how to read and write kanji and grammar/vocab. Fingers crossed I can have some good basic conversations when I head to Japan soon!

Recently, my Japanese teacher organised an exchange program for a Japanese university student to come to Australia for a few weeks, and asked if anyone would like to host her for her time here, which we did! Her name is Manami, and she stayed with us for about a week. 

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_9753.jpeg)

まなみさん！

She's studying Japanese Language teaching at uni, so we had a lot of practice speaking both Japanese and English together, and teaching her Australian slang! It was really fun having her around, but my brain did hurt a lot from extensive thinking of how to word things in another language for a week straight!

We did a lot of things in a week: a day trip to the Grampians, making gyoza from scratch, went to a local performance of Into The Woods (it was great!), a movie night with friends, and lots of shared meals and chats.

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/e0910763-b35d-4c15-a052-83a7ab7783bc.jpeg)

We made it to the top!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/07736715-4051-4eb3-b7f0-aeaa993cc7c8.jpeg)

Aussie Brunch

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/07869646-2c32-48df-8498-08efb95cc1b2.jpeg)

Movie night with lovely friends

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_9740.jpeg)

Delicious Gyoza! It wasn't too hard to make actually.

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_9743.jpeg)

Into the Woods!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/15c1438d-6054-46c7-b5b5-c26ff6b629bc.jpeg)

Farewell gifts

We had so much fun with Manami, and we've made plans to see her again soon when we visit Kobe (which is very soon!)

🎮

****What I'm playing**  
Pokemon Legends: Arceus (I had the urge to play a pokemans)

📺

****What I'm watching**  
Latest Taskmaster UK series!
### Re-platforming my blog
URL: https://suz.id.au/re-platforming-my-blog/
Last updated: 2026-09-12T05:56:21.000Z
It's been another long time since I posted! Part of the reason is that my old setup for my blog was a bit complicated and difficult to do unless I sat at my computer for a while resizing images, hand writing code and deploying it, as I was using a static site generator. 

Because I want to be able to post from my phone (especially when I am traveling), I decided it was time to change to a CMS platform so I can post remotely, easily upload photos etc.

This is still a work in progress, so you might notice some things look a little strange until I get around to fixing them! In the meantime, there are some new features!

- You can now subscribe properly to my blog, and I can send out little newsletters updating you of new posts (and you can easily unsubscribe if you don't want these emails anymore lol).
- If you subscribe, you can now leave comments on my posts!

**If you still want to get updates when I post, please re-subscribe on my site.** I won't be using my old mailing list method anymore. 

[Subscribe for updates](#/portal/signup/free)

I'll be going on a Japan trip soon, and I'm hoping to post on here in lieu of posting on Insta like I have in the past, so stay tuned!

---

🎵

I've been listening to:  
The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

📺

I've been watching:  
The Sopranos (I have never seen this before lol)

📚

I've been reading:  
Japanese textbooks

🎮

I've been playing:  
Rhythm Heaven Groove on the switch
### New year new belated blog post
URL: https://suz.id.au/new-year-new-belated-blog-post/
Last updated: 2026-09-10T11:18:19.000Z
I dropped the ball on the blog at the end of last year, I think trying to edit photos from my Europe trip made it all feel a little overwhelming to just get started writing. This year I will try to keep my blog posts shorter and less ambitious in the hope I do it more often!

- learning japanese
- visiting stanthorpe for christmas
- garden stuff
- nail art
- book shelf
- books ive read recently

### 📺 What I've been watching

\- **Hadestown** \- I went to see it with a friend a few weeks ago and I enjoyed it a lot - I went in not knowing much about it at all. - **Murderbot Diaries** \- I've always enjoyed Alexander Skarsgård and he's really fun in this, as is the rest of the cast. Wish episodes were longer, but I still enjoyed it a lot.

### 📚 What I've been reading

\- **Leigh Bardugo - The Familiar** \- Halfway through this one and I'm enjoying it quite a bit

### 🎮 What I've been playing

Nothing much except Balatro. Suggest something for my switch that will be nice and chill for my long upcoming plane trips?

### 🎵 What I've been listening to

\- \[m-flo loves ZICO,eill / "EKO EKO"\](https://youtu.be/2YVGOwauJDE) - listened to them a lot as a teen and they are still putting out fun tracks - I've been listening to the \[Triple J Hottest 100 of Australian songs countdown\](https://www.abc.net.au/triplej/countdown/hottest100/1-100) while writing this blog :)
### Eurotrip 2025: French Alps
URL: https://suz.id.au/eurotrip-2025-french-alps/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T09:00:36.000Z
## She's aliveeee!!!

![zombie](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/risin-1.gif)

I'm back babeeeee! I optimistically thought that I could keep up with blogging while travelling but I could barely keep up with the travelling part so there will now be a series of catch-up blogs months after the fact :)

Back to where we left off, we had just arrived in the French Alps....

![sparkle](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/nb04-icon-twinkle-1.gif)

![sparkle](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/nb04-icon-twinkle-1.gif)

![sparkle](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/nb04-icon-twinkle-1.gif)

## Lake Montriond

After a restful nights sleep after our traffic ordeal, we set out for nearby Lake Montriond for a day-trip.

It was pretty busy on one side of the lake, so we drove to the far side (which was actually nicer). Unfortunately it was a little overcast, but trust me that the water was a beautiful blue-green when the sun hit it!

![sparkle](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/morzine-lake-1.jpg)

Everyone was picnicing (including us, with some baguettes of course), and we also went for a swim and a kayak around the lake.

We then broke up the swimming and picnicing with a short hike from the lake up to a waterfall which was nice.

![sparkle](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/morzine-walk-1.jpg)

We also saw a little sea captain!

![capitano](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/dog-boat-1.png)

## Hiking up the Avoriaz Mountain Bike Park

The next day, guess what, more hiking! Because the surrounding area is all ski resorts, in summer it's a very popular destination for hiking, mountain biking and paragliding. Most of the chairlifts are still operational in summer which made it easier to climb very high in the mountains without dying.

We started the day with a bakery breakfast run for energy (and croissants), and then took the first chairlift up to the start of the trail.

![morzine morning](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/morzine2-morning-1.jpg)

Halfway through the hike we discovered that a lot of the bushes on the sides of the trail were actually wild blueberries. For some reason this is a highlight of my entire trip 😂. I don't know why it tickled me so much to find them growing wild but they were delicious.

![blueberry discovery](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Blueberries-1.jpg)

I wasn't feeling super well that day of the hike so while the others hiked down (and back up again) a very steep slope to a view of the lake we were at (above), I had a rest and did a quick watercolour of my view and the blueberry discovery (and maybe ate a few more blueberries).

![blueberry watercolour](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/bb-watercolour-1.jpg)

There were some pretty nice views of rolling hills and surrounding mountains on the walk, but it was pretty dusty from all the bike tracks.

![views](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/morzine-2-views-1.jpg)

“On the way back we could see riders tackling the Avoriaz trails from the chairlift. ” 

!\[bikes bikin\](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/morzine2-bikes-1.jpg)

After making it back down the mountain, we rewarded ourselves with some delicious crepes.

![crepe](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/morzine2-crepe-1.jpg)

## Grocery store chaos

We then went to a bigger grocery store (there was only small ones in town) to stock up for the rest of the week. I thought it would be fun to explore, but it was so busy and stressful (end of the day + summer holidays = madness).

I forgot to bag the tomatoes and apply a weight label sticker to them, so I had to run back to the grocery section, queue up behind everyone for the 2 things in operation, navigate the stupid system which had two categories for vegetables for some mysterious reason, and then the printer got jammed (in French so I had no idea what was happening) so it didn't work anyway!

![me.gif](https://i.giphy.com/yUrUb9fYz6x7a.webp)

At least I got to see a giant babybel (nephew for scale).

![big babby bel](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/morzine2-babybel-1.jpg)

## Mountain biking and more hiking

The next day Henry went off mountain biking for the day, while I did another hike with my sister and nephew. This was another combination of chairlift, hike, chairlift, hike etc and at the top there were beautiful views combined with paragliders taking off and cows!

![Morzine hike day 3](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/morzine3-1.jpg)

You can hear the cowbells on the cows from ages away, and [it is so loud](%7Bstatic%7D/img/2025-aug/morzine-edits/cow-bells.mov)!

## Lake Geneva

The next day we took a little excursion to Lake Geneva (or rather Lac Léman as we were on the French side). It was huge and very pretty.

![Lake Geneva](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/lake-geneva-2.jpg)

Lots of fun watching the swans and ducks and fish swimming around in the crystal clear water.

We only visited the one town of Yvoire, and the architecture of the town was gorgeous.

![Yvoire](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/lake-geneva-1-1.jpg)

The town had an interesting bee hive tower where you could watch the bees work. Bumblebees are so huge!

The town also had a garden with lots of interesting plant sections based on all the senses (touch, taste, smell etc). Highlights were all the poisonous and deadly plants, and this plant which smells exactly like coke does!

![Gardens and bees](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/bees-1.jpg)

We had lunch in town with a nice view of the lake. So far unfortunately I have been pretty disappointed by the food in France. I'm not sure if it's cos it's a touristy area? I didn't love my fish dish, but my nephew got this risotto-esque dish made with buckwheat and it was delicious. Now i want to try to find whole buckwheat to try making something similar.

![food](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/geneva-food-1.jpg)

I also got some tiny chocolate lake fish, because why not. There were also a lot of shops making fresh meringue, so I brought some back for Henry to try as he wasn't feeling well that day and couldn't join us.

I enjoyed this little cat ramps someone made for their cat, and this sleepy cafe cat.

![cats](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/cats-1.jpg)

## Goat Village

On our last full day in Morzine we took a trip to the Goat Village! It was a pretty rainy and cold day, so we didn't spend too much time out and about, but managed to take some nice moody atmospheric photos.

Are you sick of alpine views yet? This is the last set:

![goat village views](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/goat-views-1.jpg)

After checking out the views, we came back down the cable car just in time to avoid the rain. We found a place selling burgers and they were actually reasonably priced which was a perk (everything was so expensive with our horrid exchange rate!)

I dunno if it was post-walk hunger or what, but these burgers were the best thing we ate in France haha. We liked them so much we took a group photo with them. Mine had some of the special alpine cheese which was pretty tasty.

![burgs](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/theburgers-1.jpg)

We then wandered down to the goat village to see some of the fabled goats.

![goats](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/thegoats-1.jpg)

They were pretty cute but...

![stinky](https://i.giphy.com/V6e0kch9OgUbph9jBB.webp)

Apparently there are also whistling marmots around there, and we think maybe we heard them, but alas did not see the cuties.

I'll finish the blog up with this photo of me trying to stay out of my sister's family shot and just looking like a loser instead.

![whoru](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/loner-1.jpg)

*Next time on the blog: Back to Italy!*
### Eurotrip 2025: Milan and onwards
URL: https://suz.id.au/eurotrip-2025-milan-and-onwards/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T09:00:25.000Z
## Arriving in Milan

We landed *very early* in Milan (6.30am), and made our way to the hotel. After paying an exorbitant early check-in fee (it was necessary as check in was supposed to be 3pm and I would have died) we were able to relax and shower before heading out for the day. This was the view from our hotel room, the building in the distance is the Duomo!

![2025-08-14_08-41-43_Milan.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_08-41-43_Milan-1.jpeg)

We ventured out to have a very necessary coffee and caught some VERY rattly old trams to explore more of the city.

“The public transport and bike infrastructure was really impressive, even if it needed a little maintenance.” 

![2025-08-14_10-48-40_Milan trams.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_10-48-40_Milan-trams-1.jpeg)

First, we went to the [Pinacoteca di Brera](https://pinacotecabrera.org/?ref=suz.id.au). It was a beautiful building with some interesting Renaissance pieces like a Caravaggio, but there were also a lot of religious works which get a bit samey after a while. There's only so many weird baby Jesuses you can look at.

![2025-08-14_12-16-42_IMG_0851.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_12-16-42_IMG_0851-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-14_11-36-34_IMG_7916.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_11-36-34_IMG_7916-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-14_11-42-13_IMG_7917.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_11-42-13_IMG_7917-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-14_11-47-32_IMG_7918.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_11-47-32_IMG_7918-1.jpeg)

After getting museum legs we decided it was time to find some lunch. The random place we selected has some great pizza and octopus salad which helped to energise us a bit.

![2025-08-14_12-59-26_IMG_7921.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_12-59-26_IMG_7921-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-14_13-02-38_IMG_0854.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_13-02-38_IMG_0854-1.jpeg)

After lunch we were exhausted/jetlagged and made our way back to our hotel, and I think I passed out at 3pm.

We realised that the reason our flights were so cheap was that our arrival coincided with Ferragosto, and so most shops and restaurants were closed which made it difficult to find anything near our hotel which wasn't right near the touristy areas.

After Henry woke me up from my jetlag nap, we decided to venture out to find a supermarket to find some random things for dinner in our hotel room. We discovered that Italy is so good for food intolerance stuff, lots of gluten free and lactose free goods. We had some delicious lactose free cheese, salami and salad.

![2025-08-14_19-01-34_Hotel dinner.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-14_19-01-34_Hotel-dinner-1.jpeg)

## Milan day 2

Well refreshed the next day, we went for a walk in the nearby park and discovered a park cafe with some mediocre coffee, and watched the dogs playing in the fountain.

![2025-08-15_06-34-37_Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_06-34-37_Museo-Civico-di-Storia-Naturale-di-Milano-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_06-47-34_IMG_0864.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_06-47-34_IMG_0864-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_08-50-37_Milan park cafe.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_08-50-37_Milan-park-cafe-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_09-18-42_Dog fountain.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_09-18-42_Dog-fountain-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_09-38-44_Dog fountain (2).jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_09-38-44_Dog-fountain--2--1.jpeg)

Later in the day once things started opening we went back to check out some museums and saw the Duomo di Milano up close.

![2025-08-15_10-01-26_IMG_0879.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_10-01-26_IMG_0879-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_10-26-08_IMG_7943.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_10-26-08_IMG_7943-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_10-28-31_IMG_7947.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_10-28-31_IMG_7947-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_10-31-12_IMG_7948.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_10-31-12_IMG_7948-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_10-39-33_IMG_7950.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_10-39-33_IMG_7950-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_12-29-22_Duomo di Milano (3).jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_12-29-22_Duomo-di-Milano--3--1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_12-07-15_IMG_7953.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_12-07-15_IMG_7953-1.jpeg)

We had a quick street pastry snack with some delicious little strawberries, and had the traditional Italian restaurant (not really) Jolibee for lunch, which was a hugely stressful experience never to be repeated, both the huge queues ordering and the wasp that tried to attack me while eating it.

![2025-08-15_11-57-34_IMG_0885.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_11-57-34_IMG_0885-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-15_11-57-45_Street pastry.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-15_11-57-45_Street-pastry-1.jpeg)

Overall I felt a bit flat about Milan, with it being quite quiet due to the holidays and a lot of unfriendly people. Not sure I would go back!

“Some people were friendly! I think it being so quiet was weird. The dogs in the fountain was definitely a highlight, and the coffee was very very good! Nearly as good as back home :P ” 

## Driving to Morzine, France via Aosta, Italy

We picked up the rental car early from Milan airport to avoid driving in Milan city (but honestly it was so quiet due to the holiday it probably wouldn't have been a problem!).

![2025-08-16_12-22-15_IMG_7964.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_12-22-15_IMG_7964-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_12-27-58_IMG_7970.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_12-27-58_IMG_7970-1.jpeg)

We stopped for a lunch on the way in, a cute town in the Italian alps. It also has a lot of Roman ruins which are still integrated into the old town which was cool to see.

![2025-08-16_13-08-48_Aosta.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_13-08-48_Aosta-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_13-08-59_Aosta (1).jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_13-08-59_Aosta--1--1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_13-11-13_Aosta (2).jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_13-11-13_Aosta--2--1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_13-56-52_Aosta (3).jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_13-56-52_Aosta--3--1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_13-57-19_Aosta (4).jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_13-57-19_Aosta--4--1.jpeg)

We had a delicious pasta lunch and espresso in the town. The gnocchi was drenched in local cheese which was so good. We also had some nice gelato (not pictured because we ate it too fast).

“I panicked and somehow accidentally ordered the gnocchi which would have absolutely destroyed me, so thanks to Suzy for taking the hit on this one.” 

![2025-08-16_13-30-39_Aosta gnocchi.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_13-30-39_Aosta-gnocchi-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_13-30-42_Aosta pasta.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_13-30-42_Aosta-pasta-1.jpeg)

We had made good time, but unfortunately once we hit the Mont Blanc tunnel things took a turn for the worse. We ended up stuck queued in traffic for 2.5 hours to get through the tunnel.

They did give us some bottles of premium 'Mont Blanc' water as an apology though (I'm sure it was delicious glacial water not just tap water from a bog)!

![2025-08-16_15-09-44_Mont Blanc queue.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_15-09-44_Mont-Blanc-queue-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_16-13-24_Mont Blanc queue (1).jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_16-13-24_Mont-Blanc-queue--1--1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_16-25-52_Mont Blanc apology water.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_16-25-52_Mont-Blanc-apology-water-1.jpeg)

“The tunnel is so long it takes 15 minutes to drive through it. It was constructed in the 60s! Amazing engineering. ” 

Once we got through it was only another hour to get to the ski village of Morzine in France, alongside some pretty mountain views!

![2025-08-16_17-17-06_IMG_8003.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_17-17-06_IMG_8003-1.jpeg)

![2025-08-16_17-17-32_IMG_8005.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-16_17-17-32_IMG_8005-1.jpeg)

Our chalet was right in the centre of town between two chairlifts up different mountains.

![2025-08-17_07-29-27_View from the chalet.jpeg](%7Bstatic%7D/img/2025-aug/2025-08-17%20Morzine/2025-08-17_07-29-27_View%20from%20the%20chalet.jpeg)

View from our bedroom window.

![2025-08-17_07-44-39_View from the chalet (1).jpeg](%7Bstatic%7D/img/2025-aug/2025-08-17%20Morzine/2025-08-17_07-44-39_View%20from%20the%20chalet%20(1).jpeg)

View from our verandah.

![2025-08-17_20-12-58_Morzine streets.jpeg](%7Bstatic%7D/img/2025-aug/2025-08-17%20Morzine/2025-08-17_20-12-58_Morzine%20streets.jpeg)

![2025-08-17_20-37-21_IMG_8033.jpeg](%7Bstatic%7D/img/2025-aug/2025-08-17%20Morzine/2025-08-17_20-37-21_IMG_8033.jpeg)

“It was so cool seeing so many hardcore mountain bikes in one place. Like hundreds going past all day, and everyone having a great time.” 

I'll leave this blog here and see you next time from stories in the French Alps!
### Eurotrip 2025: Singapore layover
URL: https://suz.id.au/eurotrip-2025-singapore-layover/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T09:00:16.000Z
We've just set off on a nice long holiday to Europe. This is the first of a few posts I hope to make on the road :)

## Singapore Day 1

![2025-08-12_20-44-00_IMG_0839.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-12_20-44-00_IMG_0839-1.jpeg)

We started off our trip with a long layover in Singapore, to break up the trip and to also spend time with my friend Ka (and eat good food).

Our hotel was in the Rochor area of Singapore and we had a great local hawker centre right across the road, so we had our first meal at the Tekka Centre – a delicious Chicken Biriyani.

![2025-08-12_19-16-03_Hawker indian food.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-12_19-16-03_Hawker-indian-food-1.jpeg)

Ka then took us to have a nice traditional desert of bean curd and fried dough which was great!

![2025-08-12_20-09-27_Tofu pudding.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-12_20-09-27_Tofu-pudding-1.jpeg)

## Singapore Day 2

We started the day with some Kopi C, Kaya toast and soft boiled eggs, which were cheap and delicious! If I have time in the airport on the way back I need to get myself some Kaya jam.

![2025-08-13_09-19-58_Breakfast eggs.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_09-19-58_Breakfast-eggs-1.jpeg)

We then met up with Ka at another hawker centre (Circuit Road) and shared some food, including a Chinese herbal soup with an array of vegetables, wild mushrooms and figs.

![2025-08-13_11-58-19_Hawker soup.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_11-58-19_Hawker-soup-1.jpeg)

“I was particularly impressed with the soup! It was the best, fanciest Chinese style soups I've had. Such a subtle yet powerful taste.” 

After lunch we headed to Bird Paradise. It's such an awesome bird park with a wide variety of birds aviaries that you can walk right into amongst all the birds flying around you and the ceiling of the aviary was so far into the sky!

There were a lot of cool (and weird) birds:

![2025-08-13_13-51-59_IMG_7871.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_13-51-59_IMG_7871-1.jpeg)

Check out this body shape! He was raised in captivity and kept following the keepers around.

![2025-08-13_14-28-53_Kas bird friend.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_14-28-53_Kas-bird-friend-1.jpeg)

You aren't supposed to touch the birds but that doesn't mean they won't jump on you and refuse to get off.

![2025-08-13_14-43-46_Parrot.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_14-43-46_Parrot-1.jpeg)

Meaner than he looks.

![2025-08-13_15-11-05_IMG_7880.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_15-11-05_IMG_7880-1.jpeg)

Flamingo party!

![2025-08-13_15-13-53_IMG_7882.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_15-13-53_IMG_7882-1.jpeg)

A perfectly balanced duck and some pink ibis.

![2025-08-13_15-15-25_IMG_7884.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_15-15-25_IMG_7884-1.jpeg)

A million macaws.

![2025-08-13_15-37-37_Group photo.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_15-37-37_Group-photo-1.jpeg)

Group photo time!

![2025-08-13_15-52-14_IMG_7902.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_15-52-14_IMG_7902-1.jpeg)

My favourite bird, it was so iridescent and shone in the sunlight. Check out the video!

“It was my favourite too! It's eyes are so cool.” 

![2025-08-13_16-07-35_IMG_7911.jpeg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/2025-08-13_16-07-35_IMG_7911-1.jpeg)

And a sleepy little African Grey parrot.

I tried to capture the essence of my favourite birds in watercolour form.

![2025-08-21_15-25-16_Painting - birds.jpeg](%7Bstatic%7D/img/2025-aug/2025-08-21/2025-08-21_15-25-16_Painting%20-%20birds.jpeg)

That's all for now. Stay tuned for stories from Milan!
### Tassie trip and other things
URL: https://suz.id.au/tassie-trip-and-other-things/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:54:06.000Z
Hello, it's been a while! I didn't mean to take so long but a mix of holidays, preparing for future holidays, trying to make a new summer wardrobe before said holiday, getting sick, stressing about trying to get 3 projects done at work in too little time, and other misc worries have meant my motivation to blog has been pretty low! But I wanted to get one out before two months went past, so here it is!

### Tassie trip

In June, Henry and I headed to Hobart for a week with some friends for a little holiday!

We really lucked out with lovely weather. It was cold but mostly sunny, and warmer than back home.

![tassie-1](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/tassie-1.jpg)

![tassie-2](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/tassie-2.jpg)

We also went to a miniature village of old Hobart. I love a miniature village and this one was fantastic, so many fun details and I really enjoyed the landscaping.

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/mini-village.jpg)

Also, Tassie has some great food, so we ate well! Made an effort to have a lot of seafood, and I also managed to get everyone to head down to my fav cider place Pagan Cider, where we tasted a ton of great cider and brought back some cherry and plum with us. Highly recommended, as they are not too sweet!

Also that baked alaska you can see on the top right is one of the best things I've ever tasted.

![tassiefoods](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/tassiefoods.jpg)

The main reason we headed down to Tassie was to go to the Dark Mofo winter festival. We have been once ages ago, so it was interesting to see how it had changed since covid etc. I would say I felt like there was a lot less free accessible interesting art installations around compared to when we went previously, it seems to have tilted more to ticketed music events. But we still had a nice time, it's a good atmosphere to be out there in the cold and the dark and having a shared experience with other people :)

![dark-mofo](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/dark-mofo.jpg)

Also how good is this lil cocktail shaking robot working hard at the winter feast? Look at him go!

![roboshaker](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/roboshaker.gif)

We also discovered that Tassie has some great second hand stuff. Some smaller second hand markets and op shops, but we hit up two tip shops while we were there and they were amazing. Everything tidy and well organised, and so much good stuff! If we had driven over on the ferry I definitely would have picked up one of the 20 or so vintage singer sewing machines I found there.

I did pick up the full collection of the Dragon Age series on disk though, which was a nice find! Collecting my analogue stuff as who knows if those games are going to be deleted off the internet at any time.

![second-hand](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/second-hand.jpg)

### Getting Sick

Of course, as soon as I got back from Tassie, I got sick and isolated myself in the spare room for over a week getting slightly better and slightly crazier as every day went on. Bagheera occasionally tried to heal me with his purrs while I watched some old musicals. Also my sister sent me a photo she found of me as a kid being sick so I thought that would be fun picture to throw in to complement how I was feeling:

![sick](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/sick.jpg)

Thats how I was feeling inside.

### Sake festival

When I was feeling better, we headed into Melbourne to go to the Annual Sake festival, and hit up some Korean BBQ beforehand to line our stomaches. The festival was pretty fun, tried a lot of nice sake and bought a bunch to take home, including some yuzushu and some sparkling sake which was delish.

![bbqsakefest](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/bbqsakefest.jpg)

### New car

We also made some big changes recently, we decided to finally sell our old car and get a cute little electric car. I don't really care about cars but I love this lil guy - it's so tiny, and it's nice to be off petrol and being able to charge the car off the solar. Car name suggestions? We took it for it's first test drive up to Maryborough and also took Henry's new film camera for a spin too.

![newcar](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/newcar.jpg)

### Learning new things

I recently also decided to start learning Japanese again, so I have been taking some private lessons with a local tutor. I'm enjoying it quite a bit and feeling good that I remember some of my old pre-covid lessons. I am hoping just to get to a basic enough level to have simple conversations when we travel there again next!

### Sewing projects

I have made a ton of new things in the past few months but I haven't gotten around to photographing them so I'm not ready to share yet, but I will soon!

### Upcoming holidays

We're going to be heading off to Europe very soon. Looking forward to escaping a long dreary rainy winter. We've planned out most of our European travels - Milan, French alps, Bologna, a nice scenic train trip over to Switzerland, and then a sleeper train to The Netherlands, before we head off to the UK to spend time with my sister in Kent, with probably a few day trips to London and a trip to Bath.

![trip-map](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/trip-map.png)

### 📺 What I've been watching

\- **Hadestown** \- I went to see it with a friend a few weeks ago and I enjoyed it a lot - I went in not knowing much about it at all. - **Murderbot Diaries** \- I've always enjoyed Alexander Skarsgård and he's really fun in this, as is the rest of the cast. Wish episodes were longer, but I still enjoyed it a lot.

### 📚 What I've been reading

\- **Leigh Bardugo - The Familiar** \- Halfway through this one and I'm enjoying it quite a bit

### 🎮 What I've been playing

Nothing much except Balatro. Suggest something for my switch that will be nice and chill for my long upcoming plane trips?

### 🎵 What I've been listening to

\- \[m-flo loves ZICO,eill / "EKO EKO"\](https://youtu.be/2YVGOwauJDE) - listened to them a lot as a teen and they are still putting out fun tracks - I've been listening to the \[Triple J Hottest 100 of Australian songs countdown\](https://www.abc.net.au/triplej/countdown/hottest100/1-100) while writing this blog :)
### May days
URL: https://suz.id.au/may-days/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:54:23.000Z
Gotta try to make sure I do at least one blog a month! So here it is...

### Birthday golf

It was my birthday in April, so we decided to try out the local mini golf course to celebrate the occasion. The theme was gold mining on the outside course, and then... dinosaurs, neon, pirates and medieval themed on the inside?! Honestly the dinosaur animatronics were pretty impressive for a kinda crappy roadside attraction.

![Minigolf](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Minigolf.jpg)

![minigolf2](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/minigolf2.jpg)

![minigolf3](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/minigolf3.jpg)

![henrygolf](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/henrygolf.jpg)

### What I've been making

I finally finished a present I promised Henry for his birthday last year (whoops). I made him a shirt/jacket (shacket!), out of a lovely soft flannelette from Japan. Check out that pattern matching!!

![henryshirt](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/henryshirt.jpg)

I have also started an online course to try to make my own sloper. A sloper is a very close fitting sewing pattern, kind of like a second skin. You make it fit you as well as possible, and then all other patterns can be created from this basic pattern, and are (most likely) going to fit you right away rather than having to fit each pattern individually.

![sloper](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/sloper.jpg)

I have done a sloper/basic block course before run through TAFE in the city, but it was a very short course that sped through the basics of making a block using your own measurements, but that's only the beginning of the journey to having a pattern that fits you well.

Most of the instructions for drafting are based on standardised body sizes and proportions ([in some cases from surveys that were conducted in the 40s with very limited body types](https://youtu.be/2V5m8p1PKOo?t=571&ref=suz.id.au)).

It's the same for mass-produced clothes you buy, they are usually made from those same standardised proportions (and that is what is used in fashion school), though some clothing lines would use their own fit models and proportions that they prefer (either for the look or style they want to achieve, or for the demographics they cater to).

The course I'm doing is supposed to offer extra help with fitting advice, which I think will help me a lot. However I'm currently at the stage of testing my second iteration of my sloper and the whole process feels very demoralising, as the sloper you make is the most unflattering shape and in the most unflattering fabric, and I'm having to take 360 degree photos of myself in it at all angles, so I notice EVERYTHING wrong haha. But the course acknowledges that everyone feels this way, and that once you get the fit right and make it out of fashion fabric it'll all be okay. (I shan't be sharing a full photo of it because it's so bad!)

![egg](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/egg.jpg)

Because it was Easter I dyed some hard boiled eggs. Apparently this isn't a thing everyone does at Easter, I found out 😂. I got to teach Henry how to do it, with the dregs of our food dye in the pantry, which was fun.

### Potato festival

The Trentham Annual Potato Festival rolled around again so we headed off there for a day of too many carbs and hanging out with friends. It's a cute little local festival, with mostly potato-themed food, drinks and activities. The food highlight was the potato-dough jam doughnuts. There's also stalls selling uncooked potatoes of lots of fancy varieties, so we came away with several types of unique potatoes and ate potato-based meals for the rest of the week.

![Potato](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Potato.jpg)

They also have the most horrifying potato mascot wandering around.

![potato-horror](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/potato-horror.jpg)

The act of attending the potato festival that day seemed to stop another potato from gaining power...

![potato-horror-2](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/potato-horror-2.jpg)

### Garden news

We kindly received some goldfish from a friend, so now have some fish to keep the local mosquito population in our pond in check.

![pond](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/pond.jpg)

I've dug out all the summer crops from the 2 raised garden beds and refreshed the soil by digging in some more compost and autumn leaves for mulch. There were so many worms in one bed and none in the other, so I did a little bit of relocation (picture me flinging worms from one bed to the other "Have fun in your new home!!"). I've planted out my lettuce and some choy sum, bok choy, mustard greens - all of which got munched on by cabbage moths. I've sprayed them with Dipel but need to redo it every time it rains to try to give them a fighting chance at getting bigger!

### Arts and Cultcha

There was a one-night-only arty walking tour in town (Hidden) the other weekend, with artworks being projected onto buildings throughout the town. It was really interesting, both the art and getting taken down little alleyways by the tour guides in the dark!

![arts](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/arts.jpg)

### Eurovision 2025

I held another Eurovision party this year! Thank you to all my friends who joined me in person to celebrate the most holiest of nights.

![eurovision](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/eurovision.jpg)

We had a feast of European treats, except Henry forgot to subject everyone to Toast Hawaii, a German delicacy. Maybe next year!

![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Toast_Hawaii_RZ.jpg/1200px-Toast_Hawaii_RZ.jpg)

I also prepared a number of Eurovision activities, such as Bingo, Emoji Guessing Games, and our own in-house voting. The crowd in the room did NOT align with the real results. RIP Malta.

![eurovision2](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/eurovision2.jpg)

The highlight of the show was my dreams coming true with a [Kaarija and Baby Lasagna mashup](https://youtu.be/DGsL8hA-1rE?ref=suz.id.au).

### Hey, I'm a big girl now

I am finally on my open license, no more P plates for me!

![toonces](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/toonces.gif)

### 📺 What I've been watching

We went to see Nic Cage's new movie set in Australia, The Surfer. Had one good Cagey moment, but overall felt pretty long and repetitive. A great anti-Australian tourism movie.

We also went to see the original 28 Days Later in the cinema. It feels really interesting to see older movies in the theatre - it felt so very of it's time with the 90s yellow tone and the dutch angles. Also it's crazy how bad digital film looks blown up that big! Still, it's a pretty good movie, interested to see what the new one is like later this year.

I am a certified Star Wars hater (don't at me), but Henry wore me down and got me to watch Andor and I actually quite liked it. Maybe because it felt a lot more character driven and less tropey than the movies, and I really enjoyed the villain characters a lot.

Also the COSTUMES in that show. So good!!! I think I paid more attention to Mon Mothma's outfits than most of the plot tbh. All the costumes worked so well as part of each storyline (e.g. the prison garb looking like it was made out of disposable paper), and they were all so rich texturally. Each costume, even for minor characters, had a lot of great tiny details. There's some great detail shots of the costumes [here](https://www.starwars.com/news/andor-season-2-costume-design?ref=suz.id.au).

I had the complete opposite reaction to the costumes in Rings of Power (So bad! So cheap! So ugly! So SHIEN!). The costumes in that show (and the writing to a lesser extent) made me not watch it beyond episode 2, because they put so little care into it.

### 🎮 What I've been playing

Nothin' much, I've been too busy doing other things and nothing has caught my eye lately.

### 🎵 What I've been listening to

\- \[Kaarija - Kovis\](https://youtu.be/g1O\_TmkUZ3g), Eurovision made me dive back into Kaarija's catalogue. Not too many of the songs this year have made it into my playlist unfortunately. - I do have \[Espresso Macchiato\](https://youtu.be/5MS\_Fczs\_98) and \[Tutta L'Italia\](https://youtu.be/Le3WpaLYRvE) stuck in my head though, despite not really liking the latter, it's still an earworm.
### April update
URL: https://suz.id.au/april-update/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:53:26.000Z
### New blog features

I've been slowly working on some new things:

![feeeeeeed](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/RSS-feed.gif)

I've set RSS feeds up properly, so if you have an RSS reader you can stay up to date with my blog.

I've also been working on a dumb little project to add to my site, a tamagotchi version of my cat Bagheera.

![meow](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/tamagotchi-wip.jpg)

He's not quite done yet but eventually he will be able to do all the things real Bagheera does: poop, meow, etc.

### Melbourne Comedy Fest

Unlike last year where I crammed in 5 shows a night, I've only seen one show this comedy festival: Guy Montgomery's Guy Montspelling Bee. Bafflingly popular (I mean, I love it, but I was surprised he sold out the Palais!). Promising for future seasons of the TV show.

![spelling bee](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/spelling-bee.jpg)

It was a really great show, with a bit more fanciness in it compared to last year, with live spelling and roaming cameras for the 'spell the audience member's name' segment.

![palais](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/palais.jpg)

Also I haven't been to the Palais before, it's a beautiful theatre, and I got to see the horrifying visage of Luna park at night!

![look at that screaming maw](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/luna-park.jpg)

### Closer to home

A friend came to visit town, so we took her out to the local goth bar at a very inappropriate time for a goth bar: 5pm (she had dinner plans with local family). The vibes weren't quite right, but the drinks were nice. Here's Henry opening up a treasure chest full of smoke (and a fancy drink).

![goth-bar](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/goth-bar.jpg)

Henry has been busy making the connecting bridge between the catio and the house. Now Bagheera can come and go as he pleases (but somehow he still complains at us to be let outside the back door)

![catio-bridge](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/catio-bridge.jpg)

Henry also made me a lovely shelf for my sewing room/office. Now I can display cute things on it! I need to get a nice big droopy plant or two.

![a cute shelf](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/shelf.jpg)

### Baking exploits

I made some of Samin Nostrat's \[Ligurian foccaccia\](https://www.saltfatacidheat.com/fat/ligurian-focaccia) to bring to a friends place. It's so easy and so good (it's all the olive oil and salt). Topped it with some of our home grown cherry tomatoes (which are still producing fruit in this strange warm Autumn weather we are having).

![such bubbly dough!](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/focc-1.jpg)

![deliciously oily](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/focc-2.jpg)

We then brought it to our friends house where they made a delicious mediterranean feast.

![i did the annoying food blogger angle](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/delicous-meal.jpg)

I also made some hot cross buns last night, from the Beatrix Bakes cookbook. They taste good but are a little flat, maybe needed different flour? She puts black pepper in her spice mix which is a fun addition.

![hot cross buns](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/hcbs.jpg)

I iced the crosses with an op-shop find: some cute copper vintage piping tips that came in a cute tin.

![cute-tin](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/cute-tin.jpg)

### Sewing stuff

The library had some pattern making books which I borrowed, including one that was all about drafting patterns accessories, like hats, shoes, gloves etc. But for some reason it also very strongly wanted you to know that it also had a bunch of dog clothes patterns.

![pattern-book](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/pattern-book.jpg)

I've also been working on some sewing projects, but have yet to take some good photos, so more details will be in future posts, but I have been working on drafting a properly-fitting bodice block from my measurements so I can draft my own patterns. So far I've run through 2 different methods and just bought an online course to try for a third method (so you can tell it's gone well and not driven me crazy at all).

![pattern-drafting](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/pattern-drafting.jpg)

I also finished the shirt/shacket that I promised I would make Henry for his birthday last year! I'm pretty proud of the details on it, so I need to make him model for some proper photos before I share it :)

### 📺 What I've been watching

I keep watching videos about trying to quit/cut down on phone usage. Just the whole state of \*gestures around at everything\* has made me feel pretty down about tech, tech industry and social media. So far I'm struggling to kick the addiction. But maybe if I watch a few more of these videos on my phone I might be able to do it.

I stumbled across this vlog of a Japanese woman visiting Melbourne, and thought it was funny seeing the reverse of the blogs of all the Australians going overseas to gush over Japanese food, sights and shopping. It's fun to see your home through another person's eyes! I also enjoy her shots and colour grading.

A few months ago we bought an awesome original sculptural art piece, and the creator has a making of video of it which is so fun to watch.

### 🎮 What I've been playing

I've not been playing much except Balatro lately, but I did play through the first story of \[The Roottrees are Dead\](https://store.steampowered.com/app/2754380/The\_Roottrees\_are\_Dead/) which is a fun puzzle game where you have to fill out a complex family tree based on using 1998 level internet research. A lot of searching for keywords to uncover different websites, looking up periodical magazines to find articles etc. Very similar kind of concept to \[Hypnospace Outlaw\](https://store.steampowered.com/app/844590/Hypnospace\_Outlaw/) which I also really enjoyed (but Hypnospace is much better aesthetically).

### 🎵 What I've been listening to

\- \[Lucio Corsi - Volevo Essere Un Duro\](https://youtu.be/mfAf9-5Oevw)I'm still deep in Eurovision mode. I really like this one from Italy this year. - \[Shock Treatment - Bitchin' In The Kitchen\](https://youtu.be/BqksSN6K\_V0?si=4Ef7SlBpE2Y5yQLg) I just really like this weird Rocky Horror sequels songs, ok? - \[Tandy 1000 RSX Deskmate Music Samples\](https://youtu.be/hS-ColSsPZY?t=51) Henry got a CD compilation of classical music, and when Canon in D started playing I was transported back to childhood playing with the music software on my sister's hand me down Tandy computer. This is what I think this song should sound like, the classical music versions weird :P.
### Kitten jail and art
URL: https://suz.id.au/kitten-jail-and-art/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:54:19.000Z
### Beanie

![Beans and baggs](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Beans.jpg)

First up with some sad news. I alluded to this in a previous post, but we sadly had to find a new home for little Beanie. For 6 months we have been trying to integrate our two cats together since adopting him, and after numerous attempts, medication, pet behaviouralists etc we finally came to terms with the fact that they are just the wrong personality match.

We took Beanie back to the foster a few weeks ago, and are happy to report that he immediately was able to get along with other cats (so Bagheera was the problem child as expected), and he has already been adopted by a family with a young kid, so he'll get all the attention he deserves.

I'll miss him so much, I have never had such an affectionate and confident cat before :(. Bagheera is so much happier though, the difference in his personality is so different now that he is back to being an only cat.

### Kitten jail

![Catio](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Catio.jpg)

Another reason Baggy is so happy is that we finally finished building the catio for him. There's still a few things to do like building some more shelves and putting in a bit more landscaping and plants, but he can now come and go as he pleases from a little bridge from the house to his catio.

I also got to use a scary nail gun to help build it

### Getting into some art

I've been messing around with watercolours and gouache. Here are a few little sketchy things I have done to try to practice again:

![Tree and the sky](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Watercolours---Sky.jpg)

![A lime](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Watercolours---Lime.jpg)

![A tomato](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Watercolours---Tomato.jpg)

![Miso-based foods](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Watercolours---Miso.jpg)

I really like the idea of doing some kind of travel sketching/painting when I go on trips. I always find the quick sketches of peoples meals or scenes really interesting, so I want to try to practice doing that a bit more.

I have been watching some [tiny painting videos](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5CrhP8LNBY&ref=suz.id.au) on youtube, and it made me want a tiny palette so small it's hard to make an excuse to not bring it around with you everywhere. Henry suggested I could print one on our 3D printer so that's what I did. 5 cent coin for scale (it's really little!). I've also done some swatching to try to get to learn colour mixing and what my palette is capable of.

![Palette](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/Palette.jpg)

### 📺 What I've been watching

Have been rewatching **Danger 5**, it's such a tight show packed with so many gags and style, just the right level of shitty to hit the right tone, but a lot of love and thought put into every costume, prop and miniature. Possibly one of our best exports, and source of many a great gif.

![Danger 5](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/sensible-chuckle.gif)

The last ep of **Severance season 2** is not hitting like it used to, it's all feeling a little disjointed and all over the place. Hoping they tie it all together in the finale though!

![sad](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/sad-irving.webp)

**The White Lotus** on the other hand is doing it's thing of slowly building to a stressful crescendo, with some great acting and monologues in the latest ep!

![Ol goggins](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/goggins.webp)

### 🎮 What I've been playing

I have been getting into watching [**Kasso**](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nl6ogMR0y%5Fk&ref=suz.id.au) \- a Japanese skateboarding competition/reality show/real life video game, so I downloaded Tony Hawk Pro Skater 1&2 for the switch, and I'm having fun being bad at it all over again (and enjoying the tunes).

### 🎵 What I've been listening to

\- \[Rob 'n' Raz - Got to Get ft. Leila K.\](https://youtu.be/njacCWObEOM) - \[Empire Of The Sun - The Feeling You Get\](https://youtu.be/vwp6PSCx5nI) - \[KAJ - Bara Bada Bastu\](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WK3HOMhAeQY) Sweden's banger of a Eurovision entry 🇸🇪 - \[Go-Jo - Milkshake Man\](https://youtu.be/\_08I6mjHSLA) Australia's Eurovision entry, can't wait to see the staging
### Some blog updates
URL: https://suz.id.au/some-blog-updates/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:54:06.000Z
I made some updates to my blog, added some more pages and blog categories (there is now a separate category for projects), and made some design updates including some fun gifs I made :) Hope you like it!
### Bike shorts
URL: https://suz.id.au/bike-shorts/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:54:23.000Z
I wanted to make myself some bike shorts to wear for roller skating because the expensive ones I've bought have either been too thin or rode/rolled up these thicc thighs.

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/skating.gif)

I had a thought to try to create a copy of some existing leggings that fit me well, and went through a whole process of doing so, creating a mockup only for them to be laughably wrong (turns out tracing stretch leggings is a little hard).

So instead I bought the [Greenstyle Spark Leggings](https://greenstyle.com/en-au/products/spark-tights-pdf-pattern-sizes-b-m?ref=suz.id.au) pattern and found some discounted sports lycra from Spotlight for $8 a meter (while I was trying to find some kind of decent fabric there to finally start making the [Drafter's Grid dress](https://www.roberts-wood.com/drafters-grid-dress?ref=suz.id.au), alas it was not to be).

The pattern came together well, they nicely have an option for an ultra curved waistband when you have a bigger waist to hip differential which meant I didn't have to grade as much (though I still think it could come in a little more if I made another version). I would also maybe grade slightly larger at the thighs/hemline as they are a little tight there. But also I used a stretch stitch on my machine I don't usually use which I had trouble with (read: a lot of unpicking), so that might also be contributing. Next time I will go back to old faithful twin needle for a nicer finish.

![bike-shorts](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/bike-shorts.jpg)

I also had some fun inserting one of the tags I got for Christmas into it, so it kinda looks professional.

I think they fit fairly well, and the power of

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/d03-icon-star.gif)

[gussets](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gusset?ref=suz.id.au)

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/d03-icon-star.gif)

and them being the right size means that they don't ride up like every other bike short I have owned.

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/skatingcat.gif)
### Hey, I didn't forget to post this month, honest!
URL: https://suz.id.au/hey-i-didnt-forget-to-post-this-month-honest/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:53:53.000Z
### Welcome to my new blog, same as the old blog (hopefully)

I was trying to keep this site as simple and basic as possible so it was easy for me to update without much technical messing around, but 3 posts in and I was sick of having to copy paste all the html templating stuff every time I wanted to make a new page, so I decided for the 20th time to try to understand how static site generators work, and managed to get this working with Pelican (with Henry's kind assistance). It won't look any different to you unless I broke something, but it will be easier for me (in some ways, in other ways its a pain in the ass like most modern web dev is to me lol).

### Garden updates

The garden has been gardening! After a lot of false starts (beetles kept eating everything) my cucumbers are finally producing in a whole manner of interesting ways.

We got:

Long cuces

![long-cuce](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/long-cuce.jpg)

Spiral cuces

![spiral-cuce](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/spiral-cuce.jpg)

Suspended above a pond dramatically cuces

![the-drama](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/the-drama.jpg)

Also my cherry tomatoes are still going off, highly recommend this variety ([Tiny Tim](https://www.diggers.com.au/products/tomato-tiny-tim?ref=suz.id.au))

![garden-1](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/garden-1.jpg)

We also made a nice hammock space which has been good to enjoy on the not-too-hot days. Glad we have nice established big trees in our yard!

![no-free-feet-pics](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/no-free-feet-pics.jpg)

### Other stuff I've been up to

We had to go to Melbourne on the weekend (for a sad reason that I might blog about later when I've gotten over it enough), and to make it a bit of a nicer time we hung out with some friends and got Onigiri from Chookas in Brunswick which was pretty great!

![onigiri](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/onigiri.jpg)

We also went to Beinart Gallery to see an exhibition of an artist I've followed on instagram for ages ([Stephanie Kilgast](https://beinart.org/collections/stephanie-kilgast-relics?ref=suz.id.au)). She has some really awesome stuff, you should check her out.

We also had fun revisiting our old neighbourhood - the tram stop out the front of Franco Cozzo used to be my stop when we first moved to Melbourne over a decade ago. Also stocked up on some Italian goodies from The Mediterranean Wholesalers which hasn't changed much.

Back near home, we went to check out the Library in town for the first time, and I borrowed a few interesting books, including a Japanese book of (mostly American) fashion images from the 50s - I think it's a compilation book from a Japanese fashion magazine. Not sure why it's in the Ballarat library system, but it was worth it to find some cool pics.

![cool-dude](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/cool-dude.jpg)

I also got some books on packaging label design, interior design (cos I would love to get better at it as I'm terrible at visualising spaces), and a random fantasy book.

### Planning travel

Henry and I are headed off to Italy/France/UK later in the year (to escape our winter) so have started to do some research - if you have any recommendations for northern Italy or southern UK let me know!

### What I've been watching/playing/reading

- 🍿 Went and saw [Presence](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt28249919/?ref=suz.id.au) at the movies the other week. Had some interesting ideas but the ghost story was outshone by white collar crime drama I wanted to know more about
- 🪷 White Lotus is back and has possibly the most detestable characters of all 3 seasons so far?!? It's great. Theme song needs more woowoos
- 🎮 Trying out Avowed to see if it scratches my RPG itch - alas not so far, but I'll give it another go this week
- 📚 My library books, turns out libraries are good and valuable. Reading After the Forest by Kell Woods - a book about what happened to Hansel and Gretel after the events of the famous fairy tale were over. It's pretty enjoyable so far!

![severance](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/severance.gif)

Severance season 2 is still great and I would die for Irving

### Thanks for reading

I've had some great feedback on this blog from friends, I really appreciate your kind thoughts about it and that you enjoy reading it :)
### January stuff
URL: https://suz.id.au/january-stuff/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:54:00.000Z
### Stuff I've been making

![shorts-acajou](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/shorts-acajou.jpg)

I've finished making a pair of shorts based off the [Deer and Doe Acajou pants](https://closetcorepatterns.com/products/acajou-pants-pattern?variant=40665613959302&ref=suz.id.au). Pants are a pain in the ass to fit properly so now that I have a somewhat decent fit on these I'm using them as a base. I already had a pair of shorts in the same fabric but they were just my mockup pair of pants that I cut shorter, so these were done a little bit more properly and hopefully will last a bit longer!

![skate-bag-sketch](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/skate-bag-sketch.jpg)

I've picked up a project I started mid last year but didn't progress much with because it was hard and a lot of maths and self drafting, and something I haven't made before: a backpack!

Specifically, this is going to be a backpack for my roller skates and skating gear, to replace the shopping bag that will surely disintegrate if I keep using it to carry my heavy gear every week.

It's based off the Fjallraven Kanken backpack which you've probably seen everywhere, but with a few modifications, namely adding an extra flap on the front that I'll add some clip to, and the skates will be able to be contained in there. I was inspired to do this by [Emily from Self Assembly Required](https://selfassemblyrequired.co.uk/2023/04/09/the-skate-bag-from-sketch-to-life/?ref=suz.id.au) who has done something very similar.

I also intend on making a normal sized Kanken knockoff, as it has become my favourite bag to take on trips - it's a great size for fitting under plane seats, lightweight enough to scrunch up small, and fits a ton of stuff.

I've been using a combination of a few different tutorials online to muddle my way into drafting the pattern and figuring out it's construction:

- [This German blog](https://www.naehratgeber.de/tutorial-rucksack-von-mein-anderes-ich-10628/?ref=suz.id.au) one has some great pictures on constructing the front pocket as well as helped me finally understand how to do the zipper flap
- [This WithWendy video](https://www.withwendy.com/blogfull/2016/8/31/diy-mini-backpack-fjllrven-knken-style?ref=suz.id.au) has some well filmed parts that helped me figure out parts of the construction, but some of the construction felt a little sloppy so I needed to figure out different ways to do it. It has a pattern though if you're interested in making it yourself
- And finally I found this [video of someone upcycling a jacket](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wjM1uxwgFcc&ref=suz.id.au) to make a Kanken which had some good construction bits.

![skate-bag-mockup](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/skate-bag-mockup.jpg)

I finished making and ripping apart (and making and ripping apart...) my mockup backpack that you can see in the pic yesterday (the one with all the crazy scrap fabric pieces joined together), and have drafted all the pattern pieces and just squeaked through in cutting out the pattern pieces from this leftover scrap of teal kitty fabric. I'm just waiting on all the other notions to arrive to continue that project.

If anyone is interested in a copy of my pattern/instructions let me know

While procrastinating I also made myself a new myki card holder out of this cute Japanese Salaryman Cats Commuting On The Subway fabric I got a few years ago

![IMG_7021](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_7021.jpg)

### Garden stuff

![garden-jan-25](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/garden-jan-25.jpg)

It's been very dry here, and we've been wanting to work on making our front yard more water resistant and bird friendly by replacing some of the European plants with natives. We have a loose plan where we want to remove a bunch of the grass, put up a fence at the front and have some native shrubs for privacy along the fence. We also want to make the path go down the centre to the front door, for some reason the previous owners have a pat to the left which only meter readers seem to use cos it's super inconvenient (and overgrown haha).

We do have some native birds hanging out, including a family of magpies that like to chill in our big tree. I was standing under there the other day and looked up and there was like 5 of them quietly sitting right above me. We also had a juvenile rosella parrot hanging out in our fountain out the back having a bath which was very cute.

In terms of veggie garden, my large tomatoes are struggling with the weather and haven't been very productive. But I have some great cherry tomato bushes that are full of fruit so just waiting for them to ripen. I did grow one that looks like a bum though (see above pic) which is always a win.

![DSC00626](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/DSC00626.JPG)

![DSC00629%20(1)](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/DSC00629--1-.JPG)

## Other things I did

It was Henry and I's anniversary last week so we had dinner out at a nice local Thai restaurant which was great. We then had dinner with friends at another Thai restaurant a few days later, so really feeling the Thai this week haha.

![thai-food](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/thai-food.jpg)

We went to a local native plant nursery to check out what they had (which was a lot and we were overwhelmed with choice). They also had some nice scones and drinks and a little cafe area to sit in in their garden, and some miniature donkeys and a Cockatoo! (Real and a carved wood simulacrum)

![native-nursery](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/native-nursery.jpg)

We also went to a special live audience taping of a very niche thing that Henry and I are fans of called Gamey Gamey Game - a video game review/chat show hosted by a bunch of Melbourne comedians (they don't often talk about the game much at all haha). It was a really nice vibe, and fun to see the behind the scenes of how it all comes together.

![IMG_7006](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_7006.jpg)

### What I've been watching/playing

- 🍿 Conclave - pretty good movie, got a little bit silly/fantastical at the end which felt quite different to the whole rest of the movie. I wouldn't want to live in those dank lil rooms so I'm not applying to be cardinal anytime soon
- 🎮 I'm playing Stardew Valley for the third time because sometimes you wanna farm and chill and not think about the state of the world

![severance](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/severance-1.gif)

Severance season 2 is out and I forgot how good it is
### My summer break
URL: https://suz.id.au/my-summer-break/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:53:57.000Z
What I've done over the past few weeks...

![holidays](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/holidays.jpg)

### Sewing

I made a dress, self drafted bodice and sleeves from my block, which I hadn't done in probably over a year so I actually spent some time doing mockups and finessing the fit which I am fairly happy with!

![](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_6806.jpg)

Henry got me a cute label advent calendar for Christmas and the labels have come in handy to articulate my sewing mindset

![IMG_6772](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_6772.jpg)

I am currently working on a new pair of shorts, but keep getting interrupted...

![IMG_6942](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_6942.jpg)

### Getting back into art

I've been having fun doing some digital painting and enjoying seeing myself improve with every piece. I originally started off looking at doing a bunch of dedicated study using things like [the Draw a box program](https://drawabox.com/?ref=suz.id.au) but realised that I mostly enjoy doing studies from photos and fanart bullshit instead, so decided that if it keeps me drawing it's better to do the fun stuff. (I had the same revelation with reading where I realised I can spend a year trying to slog through the Important Non-Fiction Book, or I can read a fluffy fantasy book every week instead and actually read more...)

Here are a few paintings I've made in the Procreate app on iPad (which is great!). Top row is the first attempt, second row is the same picture redone after some more practice and study!

![art-progress](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/art-progress.jpg)

### Other things I made...

I painted a ceramic cup in my friend Julie's workshop, and it turned out pretty cute. I based it off some traditional Hungarian embroidery patterns

![mug](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/mug.jpg)

(I still haven't mastered the art of soy milk texturing and latte art...)

### In the garden

Making slow progress on our catio, a lot of grass has grown in on the dirt side since I took this photo.

![IMG_6812](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_6812.jpg)

I've had some success at growing blurry turnips which I have pulled up and pickled.

![IMG_6817](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_6817.jpg)

...And less success at growing strawberries which I keep losing to mysterious pests.

![IMG_6823](https://suz.id.au/content/images/2026/09/IMG_6823.jpg)
### First post
URL: https://suz.id.au/first-post/
Last updated: 2026-09-09T08:53:54.000Z
Fed up with the current state social media of algorithms designed to trap you in an endless doomscroll loop, a non-chronological feed which makes it hard to see updates from people you actually care about rather than ads, and the latest bullshit the man-baby owners of said platforms are doing to make them a worse experience for all, I decided to start up this little website to post stuff on for friends and family to see (if they care).

At the moment I'm thinking it will be a sporadic blog of things I've been up to and stuff I've made, but stay tuned!