And the people stayed home. And read books, and listened, and rested, and exercised, and made art, and played games, and learned new ways of being, and were still. A terrace house in Sevilla, Spain. © Content Catnip 2010 And listened more deeply. Some meditated, some prayed, some danced. Some met their shadows. And the…
Continue reading ➞ And the people stayed home by Kitty O’Meara
"Happiness is in the quiet, ordinary things. A table, a chair, a book with a paper-knife stuck between the pages. And the petal falling from the rose, and the light flickering as we sit silent." Virginia Woolf, The Waves Time Moves Slow by Bad Bad Good https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgPQ2J_uM3A “Nothing thicker than a knife's blade separates happiness…
Some of these renders by Algorithmia were really wonderful, others were a bit wonky, but hey it's alright for zero effort at all on my part. Here are the before and afters of some of my family's black and white photos. Have a go at it yourself and let me know what you think of…
Despite all of the media beat-up around Corona Virus, the Lantern Festival to celebrate Chinese New Year went ahead on Wellington's waterfront the other night. It was really beautiful, bustling full of people and one of those sacred and special Wellington evenings where there was virtually no wind and all was peaceful, balmy and summery.…
Continue reading ➞ Travel: Wellington’s Chinese New Year Lantern Festival
Some books help you as a teenager to move beyond the claustrophobic and limited world you were born into. We can't help where we were born or who our family is. However, when we are young, if we read the right books, we may just be able to transcend challenging beginnings and see the world…
Continue reading ➞ Mind-expanding books that opened up the world to me as a teenager #Booktag
Too often when we have busy lives we can easily become over-wrought with anxiety and worries about whether we are doing enough, achieving enough or making the most out of every moment in life. Life becomes a to-do list or a check-list of tasks instead of a pleasure. I vow to listen to my body and mind and take it easy when I need to, just simply being instead of doing or creating things.
Arashiyama is a charming little town just on the outskirts of Kyoto that features a lot of highly regarded UNESCO Heritage sites such as the Kinkaku-Ji temple. Although we found that surprisingly the most enjoyable activity was simply floating along the river in an old wooden boat and being guided by two funny guys, along…
Continue reading ➞ Kyoto river boat ride adventure by Content Catnip TV
Watch my video of the journey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxaRIuTae8U Wellington is unusual and amazing in that you can walk along the beach for 10 km and go from being in the middle of the city to being in a really remote and wind-swept marine sanctuary. There aren't many other places in the world you can do that.…
Continue reading ➞ Travel: Wellington from city to wild coasts
Here's a few cool albums I have been listening to lately. They have a nice beachy vibe, which is the kind of weather we are getting in Australia and New Zealand right now. Great background music for BBQS, on the headphones while sinking a few cold ones on the beach, while reading, and some of…
Continue reading ➞ An effervescent, mellow and energised summer playlist for 2020
I have a confession to make. I have not one boss but 4, all working in completely different areas of a very large charitable organisation. Three out of the four of my managers are smooth operators who actually grease the way forward for me to glide through with the lofty strategic marketing solutions. However one…
Continue reading ➞ How do you handle a boss who doesn’t believe in you or trust you?
At least 7 years ago now, I WWOOFED in Andalucia, helping out with cleaning and cooking at an Andalucian B&B villa just outside of Vejer De La Frontera.The work was far from easy although I did happen to live in a mountainside cabin (cheap fibro, but yet still my own for a wee while). I loved the location and the cabin.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tN3jXQys7QY In November last year (and in June this year) I spent a lot of time going from place to place on the Shinkansens in Japan. I found the landscape really hypnotic. The whole experience of being in a swiftly moving and sleek metal worm as it snakes its way through the bowels of the…
Continue reading ➞ Travel: A sonic and visual journey into techno on the Tokyo to Kyoto Shinkansen
Waiting in transit, Tokyo Copyright © Content Catnip 2018 http://www.contentcatnip.com Everyone is always in transit and a great metaphor for life is that we can only ever trust in the constant flux of change. Forget about the serenity of temples, impermanence is ever-present in JR stations, subway stations and airports. There is something magnetic about…
Continue reading ➞ Every picture tells a story: In transit in the JR station
I filmed our recent road trip. The track you are hearing is Halcyon&On&On by Orbital, a rave-era classic I love and it always makes me feel uplifted and happy and ready to embrace life with an open heart and open hands. I superimposed some of my interesting oil, glitter and water experimentations over the top…
Continue reading ➞ Travel: The Eastern Cape by Content Catnip
Many of us are introverts but are in denial about this and trying fervently to be extroverted, pushing ourselves to exhaustion trying to make small talk about bullshit that doesn't matter, often dealing with obnoxious people who have loud voices and often (but not always) boring and generic thoughts on the world. Here's a list…
Continue reading ➞ Seven reasons why it’s great to be an introvert and having introverted friends
Himeji Castle was the first place in Japan to become a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993, after this there were dozens of others named. It’s actually the largest and arguably most impressive castle in in Japan and has 83 buildings. It takes hours to walk around inside of it, like a medieval Disneyland, it's…
I had my mind bombarded by a lot of great music and a lot of crappy music growing up. This was thanks to Rage (an Australian version of MTV). Also my dad had a massive vinyl collection that was filled with some great albums - Led Zeppelin and Kate Bush, as well as some really…
Continue reading ➞ A crate-digger’s guide to embarrasingly cringey music: 70’s and 80’s edition
This list is inspired by Anthony Fantano AKA The Needle Drop's list of the most cringe-worthy songs that he loved as a teenager. In case you don't know of his channel, Anthony normally reviews amazing music both new and old in a really interesting way.
Tenryū-ji is a temple and gardens founded by Ashikaga Takauji in 1339. It's purpose at the time was to venerate Gautama Buddha. It's considered as one of Kyoto's so-called Five Mountains. In 1994, it was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tenryuji dates from the Muromachi period in Japan's 14th-16th century. Among its many…
Continue reading ➞ Travel: Tenryu-ji temple and gardens Arashiyama Kyoto
Ueno markets are tucked into a unique pocket of Tokyo filled with interesting characters selling unusual goods. It's a world within a world. The funky music you are hearing is by 70's British funk band Cymande, the track is called Dove. It gives the video a lovely vintage feel. I don't own copyright to the…
