I have been dreadfully neglectful of my blog these past few months, however when you hear about how busy things have been around here you may be more forgiving. Since mid-October I have squeezed more action and adventure into my life than an Indiana Jones movie, I kid you not, I have had more ins and outs and ups and downs than a roller coaster in the last 6 weeks and although I long for a good TV embrace, I have barely had time to shower properly! 
Check out this list of my goings on and you'll start to get the idea of just how much I can ram into 6 weeks, whilst still work 5 days a week. It's actually pretty head spinning how much I have been able to achieve really. 

• Visited an art showcase
• Hosted a dinner party
• Went shopping for a 'mother of the bride' dress in Melbourne
• Went to friends for dinner
• Went my son's final day of school ceremony
• Went to see the specialist - twice
• Went to a yoga festival in Bendigo
• Wrote my emcee and mother of the bride speeches for the upcoming wedding
• Celebrated Halloween
• Went to the NGV
• Went out for Yum Cha in Melbourne
• Had a spa day with my daughter
• Went to Modiva's for dinner
• Went to a Bridal Shower high tea at The Grand Hyatt in Melbourne
• Went to a Grade 4 overnight camp
• Celebrated my in-laws birthdays with a family dinner
• Got my cat desexed
• Went to my son's year 12 graduation event and dinner 
• Had dinner with my mother in Ararat 
• Went out for a wellness massage and hydrotherapy spa with my husband
• Had my 28th wedding anniversary and went out for dinner
• And never missed a day of meditation, brain gym or French in the process!

And now I am rounding the corner to one of the biggest events that we have ever celebrated as a family - the marriage of our daughter! Zoe and Benjamin will be tying the knot and becoming a 'Mr and Mrs' in six short days time. They are having their special day in Hepburn Springs and I am going to be the emcee, so needless to say I have had to spend a fair amount of time writing and practising speeches and toasts as well. And I think that I am almost ready to go.  
Hopefully, I will deliver it all with just the right amount of magic, humour and joy to make their event run smoothly and seamlessly. May need to sprinkle a little extra magic on my speech though, because I really want Zoe and Ben's day to be extra special!

THE LOVE WITCH 
Release Date: 2016 
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 120 mins 
An art house comedy/horror that was written, edited, directed, produced and scored by Anna Biller, an independent feminist American filmmaker who consciously explores feminist themes throughout her work. The Love Witch offers a playful and colourful homage to the 1960's and Technicolour Hammer Horror films whilst  probing into contemporary gender roles and stereotypes. 
A beautiful young witch named Elaine is looking for a new start in life after the death of her husband. Elaine attempts to use spells and magic in an attempt to find a new suitor, and although she succeeds at getting men to fall in love with her, the long term results are disastrous. 
From the dramatic eye make up to the lurid bright-red fake blood effects, The Love Witch is a throwback masterpiece. Amusing and at times visually stunning, this film isn't subtle in any way and although it is slow, it still delivers in so many unique ways. Samantha Robinson is terrific as Elaine, bringing loads of feminine energy and rocking all that swinging '60s fashion with big charm and allure. Jeffrey Vincent Parise also does great job of Wayne, the first man to fall under Elaine's spell and that psychedelic sex scene is utterly unforgettable!
FINAL SAY: Men are like children. They're very easy to please as long as we give them what  they want. 
3.5 Chilli Peppers ​

Anyone that knows me well, knows that I love Halloween. I called my first cat Samhain (which was the name of the Gaelic festival marking the end of the harvest season aka Halloween) and my new cat is called Salem, home of the infamous witch trials. I like to go ghost hunting in my spare time, I adore horror movies and novels and love sweet treats. So yeah, of course I love Halloween. I love everything about it and who wouldn't? You can dress up in scary garb, eat tonnes of candy, pull out the tarot cards and Ouija board and watch creepy arse movies, to be honest it is kind of hard to find any negatives here. 
I wish that we had some scary haunted houses to walk through like they do in other countries though, and that more kids engaged in the trick or treat aspect of the holiday. This year, because of the dreadful weather, we hardly had any  little trickers come to the door in Enfield, which was so disappointing. I now have a massive bowl of uneaten candy to contend with, and considering that I still need to squeeze into my 'mother of the bride' wedding gown in less than a month, this kind of temptation is not welcome right now. 
We do have two banging Jack O' Lanterns at the front door though. Craig and Seth did a stellar job of carving up a couple of pumpkin heads for us. I bloody love a good Jack O' Lantern and I always feel much safer at Halloween with a couple of them burning at the entrance of our home. For those of you that don't know your Jack O' Lantern history, please allow me enlighten you. 
The carving of vegetable effigies and gourd heads has been common practise around the world for centuries. It is believe that the carving of  what we now call a 'Jack O' Lantern' at Halloween first began in Ireland in the 17th century when turnips and mangle wurzels were hollowed out to act as lanterns. They often had grotesque faces carved into them to deter uninvited guests. They were set out during Samhain when it was believed to be the time of the year that supernatural beings and the souls of the dead walked the earth freely for one night only every year.
On the 31st of October, the veil between the world of the living and the world of the dead is said to be at its thinnest, and by placing a burning root vegetable out of the front of your home and ensuring that it stayed alight all night, you were safeguarded from allowing any ill natured or unwelcomed spirit entrance into your home. 
Every year on October 31st, we have at least one Jack O' Lantern on our porch that burns throughout the entire night. And whether it is superstition or just good luck, we have not had any unwelcomed guests to our house on Halloween night either, so it is a tradition that has continued for us. Not only that, but they look so awesome and they are so much fun to design and carve.  The kids in our neighbourhood know that if they see the burning Jack O' Lantern on the doorstep then we are open for some serious candy distribution. 
Perhaps one day I will make it overseas for one of those big, glitzy and all out Halloween celebrations, but in the mean time I am happy to keep my Halloweens on the low down. Just me, my tribe, my good friends, my black cat, my Jack O' Lanterns, my horror movies and my unfortunately still too big bowl of candy!
​And for my keen horror viewers, here's my pick for this year's Halloween movie feature:

BODIES, BODIES, BODIES
Release Date: 2022
Rating: MA 15+
Running Time: 94 mins 
A suspense thriller with a slasher/ gore undertone, Bodies, Bodies, Bodies delivers dark humour and a rising body count in equal measure. Directed by Halina Rejin and written by Sarah DeLappe, this mystery driven tale about a bunch of entitled twenty-somethings will keep you guessing until the very last moments with an extremely satisfying reveal. 
Wealthy Sophie is hosting a "hurricane party" at a mansion owned by her family. As the weather closes in, the group imbibe a number of illicit substances and then decide to play "Bodies, Bodies, Bodies" which is a murder in the dark type game. It's all fun and games until someone has their throat slashed mid-game. Immediately, the group begin to turn on each other and suspicions start to spin out of control as the body count continues to rise as the night progresses. 
This is a well-crafted, modern, whodunnit that explores friendship loyalties, youthful archetypes and the effect that social media has posed around logical thinking and problem solving for our twenty-something cohort. The cast is pretty terrific, with Rachel Sennott, Pete Davidson, Maria Bakalova and Lee Pace bringing loads of youthful energy and believability to their roles.
Every bit as entertaining as the original Scream movie, Bodies, Bodies, Bodies is destined to generate a cult following in years to come. 
FINAL SAY: Did you just fucking shoot me? 
3.5 Chilli Peppers ​