You know
what would be fun? Living in a cool terrace house in Tokyo complete with pool, games
room, modern kitchen, and two cars in the garage (one being a mustang,
naturally). You know what would be more fun? Living with six Japanese people who
use their time to work hard, achieve their goals, make new friends and awkwardly
fall in love.
You know
what’s not so fun? Living in a house in Melbourne with your husband of six
months… and your parents. You know what’s less fun? Not being able to get out
of the house (that doesn’t have a pool or a mustang) except to visit the supermarket
or to exercise, namely going for a walk, which should increase morale but ends
up making you feel worse since walking around the block just highlights the
complete lack of freedom we have right now. (Not that I’m complaining because
staying home + washing hands = saving lives blah blah blah yes, yes we get it but
my god does anyone feel like they’re hovering outside their bodies, looking at
the state of their lives right now and saying WTF?!? Still, not complaining.)
If you had
told me on the day of my wedding, that part of my newly married life would be
played out in front of my parents, I would have laughed hysterically, slapped
you in the face and gotten on with my drinking-and-eating-in-a-restaurant-life
because seriously, I’m starting to think that’s all we ever did pre-pandemic.
But then
the apocalypse arrived (as did my new obsession with Terrace House if you hadn’t
already noticed. Not for nothing but if I was still single, quarantine would
not have stopped me tracking down Tokui and demanding he take me as his other
half. I would then immediately request access to what I imagine to be one hell
of a wardrobe. And yes, this imagined situation takes into account his recent
money scandal and doesn’t alter my course of action at. all. What even is money
these days? Is anyone making any? Does anyone have any?).
Wait… Where
was I? Oh, yeah, the arrival of the apocalypse and living with my husband and
parents.
This new
living arrangement has meant adjusting to ways of life that I had never
considered. I have quickly had to learn how to argue in silence, voicing
displeasure through a glass put onto the table top with a little too much force,
opening the washing machine with a little too much grit, scrapping back a chair
with a little too much strength. It has also meant stealing a hug or kiss in an
empty room that can quickly fill with an accidental audience and leave everyone
feeling Japanese-level awkward.
I’ve
learned what happens when everyone not only wants to eat dinner at different
times, but wants different things as well (spoiler, as soon as this f*cking thing
is over I’m never cooking again). It’s… a lot. But I know how lucky I am. We
have enough space so that everyone can go to a room and watch whatever they
want on whichever screen they use. (Lolz to the generation gap of parents watching
TV, victims to the programming wills of pay TV and Foxtel, and us ‘kids’
freedom fighting our way via laptops and tablets, with Netflix and… other
means.) We have outdoor space, don’t have to line up to use the bathroom and,
most importantly, we have company. So please, don’t think that this post as a
rant. It’s just… How do you balance pleasing the two people who have been in
your life the longest, know you the best, and have helped you in more ways than
you can count, with the new person in your life who is not only your future,
but the person you WANT to know you the best, and longest? Who you want to grow
your life with?
Answer? Yeah,
no idea. All I can hope for is that each of these finely balanced relationships
survives Covid-19 so we can go back to normality (ie seeing each other for a
weekly meal, or maybe monthly…).
Anyway,
this is all a roundabout way of saying, remember Sylvanian Families? I
recently discovered the collection my sister and I cultivated throughout our
childhood and my god how I want to start the collection back up again! (For those just tuning back in to this blog, I'm currently mining my childhood for subject matter now that we're all shut ins and whatnot.)
My favourite Sylvanian pieces were a telephone box that the cat family were quite fond of, and a sewing machine that I think the fox mum was the most competent at using. The toilet was adorable and used, of course, by everyone.
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I might have to start my collection going again |
My favourite Sylvanian pieces were a telephone box that the cat family were quite fond of, and a sewing machine that I think the fox mum was the most competent at using. The toilet was adorable and used, of course, by everyone.
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Makes you want to ditch your smart phone, right? |
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Can you see the tiny scissors? CAN YOU SEE THEM?? |
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It.Has.A.Flush. |
Our Sylvanian Family
houses were crammed with as many families as we could fit. Foxes mixed
hedgehogs, cats mixed with dogs, ducks befriended bunnies and they really did
seem happier for it. There wasn’t all that much space, or freedom since we
called the shots, but they all got on just fine. Just. Fine. There's hope for us all.
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