A perfect Glebe day.......

Every now and then, usually on a Saturday “a perfect Glebe day” will unfold. Its hard to judge when these days are going to happen, there is no warning and they certainly can’t be counted on. They are characterised by great weather for walking the Glebe streets and include quintessentially Glebe activities.

A perfect Glebe day starts with a sleep-in. Not a “before baby sleep-in”, where you could stay in bed till midday if you had a hangover (or just a really good book), but maybe a sleep in till 9 or so because Arran and Aiden have ventured out for coffee and toast together and left me awake but not needing to get up. When they come back they bring coffee and a ham and cheese croissant from Sonoma, to consume in bed. It could be the start of a perfect Glebe day…...

 

I might surface from bed to make the 10 am reformer Pilates class at Tiaki, if I’m in a virtuous fitness kinda phase and in need of some zen. To get there I walk along Glebe point Rd past the Glebe Markets, held in the grounds of Glebe Public School.  There markets are typically bohemian Glebe. Second hand clothes, home-wares, plants, crafty artisan hand made objects, screen printed t-shirts, good food….on one particular perfect Glebe day I picked up this great 2^nd hand kettle. Random purchase, not needed but I love it anyway. 

I put this purchase in the category of “spending out”, defined by Gretchen Rubin as spending modestly on things that make you happy. Gretchen wrote the book “The Happiness Project”, her account of 12 months trying different techniques to improve her happiness.  “Spending out” is one of Gretchen’s personal commandments of happiness. I heard about the book from some friends and downloaded it from Amazon to my iPad to read on a work trip to the US in May. While in the US I forgot I had downloaded it and bought a hard-copy. Obviously jet lag and baby brain is not the best combo! Anyway its worth a read and it meant I had a gift to give my Aunt for helping look after Aiden while I was away. Check out Gretchen’s blog for some more detail on “The Happiness Project”.

After Pilates I meander home with tired muscles and a floaty state of mind, picking up Saturday’s Sydney Morning Herald on the way. I really only buy it for the Good Weekend Magazine and the gossip page on the back of the front section. Tragic.

The afternoon might consist of a “mani-pedi” for the bargain price of $42 at Tip-Top Nails (they have those great foot spa massage chairs) and a wander further down Glebe Point Rd towards the water to the “Flower Man” (Michael's Supermarket Flowers). A perfect Glebe day always involves buying fresh flowers for the house and the “Flower Man” has a stunning variety of flowers and plants at reasonable prices. If you are buying a bunch of flowers for a gift the "Flower Man" will arrange them and wrap them in cellophane with an older style florists bow for an extra $3! Mum and I were there last Saturday to choose flowers for Laura and Luella who kindly offered to baby sit Aiden that afternoon and evening. Most people who saw us carrying the beautiful blooms wanted to know if we got them from “The Flower Man” down the road.

The end of a perfect Glebe day might be a couple of friends coming for dinner or a walk down Glebe Point rd with a bottle of wine (or even doing a bigger walk across to Newtown) for a cheap dinner. Alternatively it might be a simple meal with just Arran and a great bottle of red wine, shared on our crappy plastic outdoor table. For some reason I moved our crappy plastic outdoor table from Brisbane to Sydney and it has moved with us to every place we have lived since. 

I liken this crappy plastic outdoor table to buying casual clothes.  I would much rather buy beautiful dressy clothes, shoes and accessories than casual laid back threads. I seem to suffer the same affliction with furniture. I’m much happier to save up and wait to invest in a Dattner table, original artwork or turquoise Designer Guild fabric covered 3 seater lounge, but absolutely no interest in more casual outdoor furniture. Last year we discussed getting some nice outdoor furniture as a joint Christmas present for us and our guests to enjoy on Christmas day. Instead we bought each other an iPad and we still have the crappy plastic outdoor table!

Anyway, I digress. A crappy plastic outdoor table does not affect a perfect Glebe day but there are general things that support one:

-       Not having to get in a car and go anywhere. Every place we have lived in Glebe has been easy walking distance to all the good spots. My daily work commute is 45 minute drive each way. Not terrible in the scheme of Sydney traffic but its still nice to not go far on the weekends. I feel healthier for getting some incidental walking in too.

-       Enjoying what Glebe has to offer. Shops, restaurants, interesting people watching, good coffee....

-       Seeing the water at Blackwattle bay while walking in the park

 

-       Catching city views through the row of shops/houses on Glebe Point Rd

-       Admiring the beautiful old homes that line the Glebe Streets

-       Having the Glebe dog walking man say “God bless you”, “ You are so beautiful” or “Your husband is a lucky man”!

What makes a perfect day for you?