Just doing my tax return
visited *loading* times
RIP
Steve Irwin.
I can't believe he has passed away. What a tragedy. I'm a huge fan of him and his cause. I hope that his passion has been passed on to many though his publicity.
Although I have not met Steve, I feel like I have lost one of the family. His vivacious character, passion for life and animals - may it live on.
Deepest sympathy to his family and friends.
Sick
Week just passed saw me catch a cold that is rampant in our area. Not surprised actually - working with the general public all day, 5 days a week might give you some exposure to it. I took 2 days off (Wed and Thurs) to recuperate - I was so sick, I couldn't believe it. Then I really started to feel better Friday and Sat, but then this morning I find it has moved to my chest. Bugger! Oh well, I can't expect to get right through winter without a cold.
Here's to good health.
sniff.
Adelaide
I really hope I get to go back, now that I am away, I can only think of all the good things there, and can't re-capture the feelings of homesickness. If I go it will be in the warmer months, so it will be lovely. Spring and Summer are the best times in my opinion.
I just looked back through my photos during the 3ish years we lived there, and most are of people rather than places. I'll take my camera when I go back definately. Anyway, I did find some of a few little spots.
Oops! After spending 10 minutes trying to upload one phoot - I've run out of disk space!
I'll have a think about this one.
Sunny, sunny day!
At last we have a nice day on the weekend! Not a cloud in the sky and I think it will be a fine day. I'm having my sisters and grandmother over for lunch today, which will be a nice little get-together. I was going to have a BBQ, but I think I'll just cook inside, because we will be eating inside anyway.
Last weekend we got to Canberra to visit friends, who now have a beautiful little girl and who was an absolute delight to be around. Then on to Sydney where fabulous weather greeted us, it must have been close to 20 degrees (Celsius - for those of you playing overseas) which is quite warm for this time of year, so we went for a walk on both days and enjoyed the sunshine. Then I came back and have spent the week on my own. My partner has since gone to Melbourne, leaving Sydney yesterday amongst the terrible weather (apparently there was a tornado that ripped the roof off a house?? That NEVER happens here, especially on the coast - how bizarre!)
I have since seen You, Me and Dupree twice at the cinema - quite a funny movie, gee I like Owen Wilson, just a good actor and enjoyable to watch.
I'm thinking of going back to Adelaide for a month at the end of the year - a work opportunity which is quite attractive. I would stay with friends there and be doing a different sort of work, a sort with no customer contact - which would be a nice rest from the public eye. Not sure if it will turn out yet - depends on local office requirements and if they can 'release' me!
Well, I've made a start on the housework, but without my partner here, it isn't going to finish itself!
Here's a little trivia - you know Ned Kelly (Australian Bushranger?), well in the Kelly Gang was Joe Byrne. (Played by the delightful Orlando Bloom in that movie) Apparently, according to my grandmother, his sister lived around the corner from my gran. I'm not sure how long ago this was of course (as in gran might have been a small child and Mrs Bushranger's sister could have been an old lady), but as Ned was born in 1855, and gran in 1915, it's not a stretch. How about that?
And, my Gran's father was stopped out in the country one day by a well known bushranger - to ask for directions somewhere!
Isn't is amazing - the history right there if you just ask the right questions.
Lazy Day
Had a lazy one today, up at about 11am, wandered down the street to look at mopeds (shop was closed though) and then had lunch at a little cafe and then went to the flicks to see 'My Super Ex-Girlfriend', which was light entertainment. Then drove to a nearby reserve and went for a walk up one of the hills for about 45 mins.
I am thinking of getting a moped to buzz around town with. When my partner leaves next week, he takes the car with him. We have talked about a second car, but you seem to pour so much money into them, and the idea is to save money, not spend it. Given though that the care is pretty much permanently relocating, I have to think about my own transport. A moped seems like a plausable solution. I don't need it for work, and I can probably get by without it for the shopping, but to visit my family and really, just to have some mobility, it might be the go. we'll check out some this week and have a think about it.
Friday night (or Sat morning - depending on how generous work will be) we will drive to Canberra to visit friends and then on to Sydney (big bad Sydney) to drop my partner off (or me off, as I'll be flying back home). It's weird, the whole thing seems surreal - like I know it's all going to happen, but it just doesn't feel like it will happen. You know?
I think I might start a health kick!
Although probably I'll just eat chocolate (my favourite thing in the world!!)
All caught up and nothing to say.
I want to write and write and write, but everything that I start to put down is just not what I want to say.
I guess that a lot of it is frustration. My partner leaves at the end of this week. I don't think that it is the cause of the frustration though. It is not bothering me that much, I think because we have had some time apart over the years, and we get through it quite fine. I just feel blocked, I want to scream and shout and flail about, but at the same time I don't feel like doing that.
I can't quite describe it right. I think I have overdosed on junk food, for one. In fact I think that is it.
I bought a hair straightener today. I have already used it, however that's probably the most use it will get! I am so incredibly lazy when it comes to grooming. I mean, by no measure am I a slob, poorly presented or unhygenic! No, what I am trying to say is that I don't blow-dry my hair (towel drying is perfectly fine), it then gets tied up and that is it. If I am going out somewhere special (dinner, weddings etc) then slightly more effort goes into it, but that's it.
In other news, I got re-fitted for contact lenses, which I am wearing now. They're pretty good actually. My old ones became difficult to wear as the day went on, but these are pretty comfortable. And I can see!!
What is a tag?
I thought the little box to the side with 'Tags' was for links, but apparently not.
Anyone?
Weekend Away
Just spent the weekend at the 'snow' however there was no snow. I took a few pictures, but there was a lot of rain and fog, so not many turned out that great. It was great, however to have a weekend away, without the pressure of having other things to do.
When we first got there, it was night and quite dark and foggy. Walking up to the reception area we passed some enourmous hedges, and my partner pointed out the similarity in the scenery there to the 'Shining' by Stephen King. It was true - he having seen the movie, and me having read the book (but too scared to watch the movie one night on my own - have not as yet!!) - we had just stepped right into the story! I was afraid we would find the place deserted except for our old mate Jack Torrens sitting at the bar with all his 'friends'.
Thankfully though, it was a couple of lovely receptionists and the place was full of people.
Here is the chalet, it is nearly 100 years old. This photo was taken in the mid morning, but the with the fog still present, giving it an eerie feel. About 30 metres behind me is a vertical cliff dropping some 2000 feet. It would have been an awesome view, however the fog did not clear the whole time we were there.
I had hoped very much for some snow, but it has not been very good so far this year. We took a drive around the top of the mountain and did come across a little bit - enough to slip around in and throw snowballs at each other with.
We had a really nice afternoon sitting in the lounge area playing chess and enjoying a bottle of red. We also spent some time in front of the open fire place reading, in a little cafe in the basement of the chalet, that was very much like a Victorian parlour.
I now can't believe the whole weekend has gone and I'm back to work tomorrow. Nooooo! Oh well. At least I enjoy my job. It's just that I enjoy the weekends more!!
I called into the local roller rink to check out the local inline hockey league. A few old faces were there, and they were having pretty much a scratch match - very informal. I really don't know if I want to join in or not - still to think about that one. I stopped playing ice after the nationals last year in Sept, and since then had injured my shoulder, so had not even gone back to training. I want to do something - inline used to be such a passion of mine, but being back there tonight did not re-ignite it. oh well, food for thought.
Well, I think that's it for me tonight - have a lovely evening and an enjoyable week.
Cable Beach
Ahhh... what can I say?
It would have to be the most delightful place I have been to yet. The sand is white and clean and beautiful, the water is clear and full of life, so warm and inviting. The most beautiful sunsets night after night. Clear warm sunny days and balmy nights.
I dream of this place on rainy cold miserable days like today.
This place is quite flat, so with no surrounding hills the sky looks enormous. Rich blue sometimes with puffy white clouds sailing past.
This little paradise is Broome, Western Australia.
What's new pussycat?
Thanks Tom.
Well... since my last post (a bit long between posts actually) I have settled here, back in my hometown (and Mafidl's former place of residence) and started working and going about life. My partner arrived a little over 3 weeks ago and he has started work.
Just before he arrived though, he was told he got a promotion - in Sydney.
Riiight.
We haven't even settled here - in fact he hadn't even arrived here - and he is going again. I don't really want to move to Sydney - it's big and scary and takes forever to get from work to home - so we are going to try commuting for a while. Maybe I'll move, but not yet. I've got a lease here for a further 5 months, so I'll wait until then at the very least. In the meantime, I am living 4 blocks from work, takes about 7 minutes to walk there, so it's quite nice. In summer it will be great, because it will be still light, and it's near the pool, so I'll swing by it on the way home. We hope to buy a house here too (not that we could afford a place in Sydney - ever) so hopefully that will eventuate by the end of the year.
Friday just gone marked 5 years being together. Wow. Where does that time go? We have travelled a bit, so I guess time flies when you have fun. Still not married, or engaged (waiting, waiting...) but still in love! We are going away this weekend - up to a mountain, to stay at a chalet for the weekend, it will be so nice to get away together. Hopefully it snows - it normally does at this time of year, but there hasn't been much snow so far. We wanted to go skiing, but there hasn't been enough snow for that. Maybe later.
It's kinda weird being back in town. I've caught up with people that I didn't really know that well, and have spent hardly any time with the friends I had here. It really feels like there is nothing left in common. It's a strange feeling really. It feels now that I am closer to my friends in Adelaide than I am with old friends here. I feel like I can't really talk to them here about real issues, it's all just that airy fairy hoo-ha that doesn't mean anything. I don't know, hard to grasp what I'm saying. I guess I'm disappointed that I've been here in our new place for over a month and my 'best' friend has not even come to check it out. She hasn't even rung me actually. I know it's a two way street, but I'm kinda tired of trying. I put in a lot of effort while I was away, and got nothing back. No phone calls, no happy birthday, no 'thanks for my present". Maybe it's all a big hint and I'm finally waking up to it. I'll move on. Right now.
I got stopped in the supermarket today and was asked if I knew what a choko was. No idea! I tooka punt that it was similar to a squash, orange in colour and tasted like a squash. WRONG! he he. way wrong. Then I had to make it my mission to find one in the supermarket. How bizarre. Not quite a bizarre as a Buddah's hand, but strange enough. Who does these surveys anyway??!!
Righto - off to the kitchen. To make Buddah's hand and Choko soup. Well, I can't back that up. Maybe it's just Spaghetti Bolognese, or, more delicately put: Spag Bog.
Have a lovely night.
Template by motime.com | header image credit: Markus Gann © www.begann.de