Feeling Blue: Why Navy Interiors Reflect Our Mood

Life, Interrupted...

In 10 days we are moving to a new home. We had intended for it to be an investment property, as we had hoped / planned to move overseas. However, life has a way of throwing a cul-de-sac at you, and so we've gone overseas and come back again.

 {Butterfield 8, via Apartment Therapy New York}

The reason(s)? It's election year in the US and so job prospects in US politics are slim (ironically.) RR has had interest from several political players (those not burying their coiffured heads in policies), but it's not enough to give up the great job he has here. Not just yet anyway. In addition, we're realised that his mother is at a stage where she will need more of our help, and may even wish to live with us, intermittently or full-time. (And she is more than welcome to do so.) And my parents would miss us, too.  So we're here for another year or more. Melbourne winter, and all.

The irony is (and I was ruefully cognisant of this as I walked around New York), I could happily go and live in the US tomorrow. I could begin work there immediately. And there is far more work for me than here. (Look at Liz in her lover's Fifth Avenue apartment in Butterfield 8. She looks happy, doesn't she? This is before The Lover throws money at her, of course, and she throws a tantrum back. And then runs out the door with a bottle of scotch.)

I could also happily settle into a little cottage in Connecticut. Especially if it had a little garden. {Photo: Connecticut Cottages & Gardens}

But the road seems to have forked unexpectedly, and we're now taking the left track in life, rather than the right one. (Or should that be, the left door, rather than the right?) I'm hoping the skewed route still gets us there eventually, but I have to admit the detour has made me a little contemplative. No wonder I've been sombre all week. No wonder I'm posting images of bathers. And beaches. And New York streets. Anything to distract me from the fact that I'm still here.

Have you ever given up everything for your family? Have you ever sacrificed your own career to put your loved people first? I have to admit I've never done it. I've moved when I've wanted to; taken jobs where I've wanted to; lingered in places (Paris, London, Key West) just for the sheer pleasure of it. But when you create a family, your life becomes theirs. And theirs becomes yours. It's difficult to herd a clump of family members to the East Coast of America, especially when they're quite happy here, thank you!

The upside is, we love Australia. We love our families. And we adore Melbourne. We also have a beautiful home to move into. So I'm going to console myself with a bit of decorating. (And perhaps a glass of something, too...)

The colour scheme I've chosen for our new living room? You guessed it. Benjamin Moore's New York State of Mind. Or as close as I can get to it with a beautiful navy blue.

What's that old saying? If you can't have what you want, be happy with what you've got? Gratitude is a great thing sometimes, isn't it?

“So be sure when you step. Step with care and great tact. And remember that life's A Great Balancing Act. And will you succeed? Yes! You will, indeed!” ― Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You'll Go!

{NB Have completely lost the sources of these images, possibly somewhere over the Pacific. Please let me know if you know, and I'll happily credit.}

Chasing Your Dreams...

I was chatting with my friend Ruth at Specklefarm last week, and we wandered onto a subject that we often talk about: career dreams. Unfulfilled dreams, as many of us know, are difficult things to deal with. They're particularly difficult during our thirties and forties because it's then we realise that the years are running out. We look at our life to-do lists and wonder if we'll ever find the time? Or the confidence? Or even the drive?

Ruth told me that one of her unfulfilled dreams was to write a book. When I heard this I encouraged her whole-heartedly. And then told her what to do. Because if there's one thing I've learned in my career it's that it's important to inspire people – just as others have inspired you. (I think it's called Creative Karma.)

It took me years – years – to get a publishing deal for my first book. When I finally found a publisher who would listen to my pitch, she told me I had fifteen minutes to persuade her before she went on a month-long holiday. I got on a plane that same day, flew to Sydney, told her what I wanted to do – and why it was commercially viable - and walked out with a two-book deal ten minutes later! A year later I tried to pitch another book – a memoir – to another publishing company without success. Eventually Murdoch Books picked it up and it went on to sell 13,000 copies in a year. It was testament to my tenacity – and writer's dream – that it even reached the marketplace.

I once interviewed Herbert Ypma for Vogue Living. I asked the author of the bestselling Hip Hotels series, about his career, and how he conceptualised this iconic series. He said it took him ten years – TEN – to persuade Thames & Hudson to do it. They eventually agreed to trial it. The books have since sold more than four million copies, according to various reports. Thames & Hudson are clearly very happy.

I also once met a gentleman who had known Walt Disney. He told me that he and Walt often went camping together, and while they were on their horses (this was the 1930s!) Walt would tell him of his dreams, and how he wanted to start a "fun park" but didn't have the money. This gentleman (who was 95 when I met him) said Walt scraped together every cent he had to open his now-legendary Disneyland. His determination was greater than the problems he faced.

I'm writing all of this because I've just been interviewed by MAP magazine on this very subject, and why it's so important to chase down your dreams. Never, ever, ever give up on them. Find a way to make them happen, even if it means sacrificing other things in the process. If they mean that much to you, you'll find the means! As George Eliot famously said: "It is never too late to become what you might have been".