Moving (and melting) slowly

It's the first of three very hot days here in Canberra:

(that's 104, 100.4 and 107.6 Fahrenheit for my so-inclined readers), and worryingly early to be hitting such heights.

And although my new place has much improved airflow (and therefore my studio is a much more bearable temperature) than in my old place, it still means I'm moving at a snail's pace. Which is fine. I'm on holiday after all.

It also means that any painting or staining becomes inadvisable.

So here are my (small) mini achievements today:

1. I made a frame,

and pulled out some pieces that I thought might go nicely with it in a scene. At this stage I'm calling it The Sailor, and have no idea if it's going to be just a shelfy or a full-on build. (Either way I now have some Big Country stuck in my head, which makes me very happy).

2. I went to the post office to check my mail, and discovered, to my delight, that the Christmas-day reading I ordered on a whim has arrived in record time!

(I just need to hide it from myself until Christmas day. Although the way this break is going, Christmas day may pass me by leaving me in blissful ignorance...)

In 'non-miniature' news, I popped into the op shop on the way home from the post office and found this brand-new candle holder for $2:

I'm sure it'll work wonderfully well on my balcony, and there's no reason at all to be googling how to remove spot welding (if that is, indeed, what's holding it together...), or looking at tin snips on the Bunnings website.