Markets Art Craft n more

I slept a solid six hours and woke up without the alarm at 4am.

My alarm was set for 5am to get ready for a 6.30am departure, so I turned on the TV to watch the golf until I needed to rise.

Harley decided he would jump out of his bed onto my bed for cuddles, which was quite lovely. He lay on top of my body and rested his head on my cheek. He loves me.

We left the house at 6.35am and after dealing with crazy, speeding, dangerous overtaking on double lines on a bend and idiots taking risks on crossroads, we arrived at Urangan Pier markets at 7.10am.

It was PACKED! We had to drive around the block 3 times looking for a park and eventually had to park a ten minute walk away! 

There were heaps of stalls and heaps of people and I spent heaps of money.

I bought

• An enormous sourdough loaf
• Six GF cinnamon donuts
• An ocean jasper pendant
• Two handmade cards
• Two journals - one with a free embroidered calico bag
• A tea towel
• A glasses cleaning cloth

There was stunning art on offer, especially some beautiful stylised octopus in carved timber frames.

Three or four stalls with crystals, gemstones and jewellery.

Lots of fresh fruit and vegetables.

GF breads of all descriptions, Turkish bread, Lebanese bread, baklava and half a dozen different types of sourdough.

A stall full of jams, relishes, chutneys, sauces and pickles.

Fresh local honey.

Carved timber products like cutting boards, pens, bowls, toys etc.

Lady’s clothing and funny printed t-shirts.

Pottery and ceramics all handmade and hand painted.

Essential oils, balms and sprays.

A magnesium stand.

A hemp stand.

A sausage sizzle.

A German sausage van.

A coffee van.

Two fresh juice vans.

A donut van.

Plants, orchids, succulents, fresh flowers and air plants.

So much more.

We left there at 8.30am and went in search of breakfast. It was quite chilly and my fingers and toes were chilled to the bone! I don’t usually feel the cold, but I certainly did this morning.

I enjoyed a freshly squeezed orange and pineapple juice, while BGWLBH had her usual bacon and eggs with pot of tea.

We went in search of the elusive art gallery that we’ve been meaning to visit for a couple of years. What a hidden gem that is!

Beautifully maintained and obviously well loved, run by volunteers and with a really friendly and warm atmosphere. Lots of beautiful art on the walls and a big area where they run classes for beginners, intermediate and advanced. Today they had mosaic classes.

The art changes every month with a different theme for each hanging.

I wish I either lived closer or had a drivers licence because I would definitely join the gallery, do the classes, hang my art and volunteer on a regular basis.

Our final destination was an art and craft garage sale in Torquay. A little shop that ran different art and craft classes was closing down and becoming a mobile operation, so there was heaps of old stock on offer in packs for $5 each.

BGWLBH got a huge bag of different sized pearls.

I got a bag of sea glass, a small tackle box full of gold and silver jewellery findings, 20 gold and silver key rings with clips, tiny screw in hooks in gold and silver, alcohol ink, silicon moulds, ceramic planter pots, leather fringes, 20 packets of crafting wire, crafting gloves, liquid droppers, nail art stickers, glitter and lots more. I spent $54. I could easily have spent more!

If I was still doing my art classes, I’d have made a killing with premixed pouring paint because she had boxes of it.

We were absolutely exhausted after all of that! We came home, prepared ourselves some lunch and cup of tea before BGWLBH retreated to her bedroom for a nap and I selected the couch for my nap.

I’ve watched the football this afternoon and evening and will probably fall asleep before the golf is telecast.

After four days in a row in the Bay, tomorrow will definitely be a rest day … although I DO have some washing that desperately needs doing.

I’ll see how I feel in the morning.

Nite all.

Riding the Week

It has been a big week.

Meditation and funeral on Tuesday.

Drive into The Bay Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Tomorrow will be another trip into The Bay for Pier Markets, breakfast, an art and craft garage sale and finally our first visit to Hervey Bay Art Society - Gallery 5.

I’m already exhausted just thinking about it! But I’m also excited about all the arty farty fun we’re going to have!

I’ve decided to not watch the golf tonight so as to have a decent nights sleep. We plan on leaving at 6.30am so no mucking around!

It seems that both Friday and Saturday have become ‘fend for yourself’ nights for dinner.

BGWLBH had last nights leftover soup.

I’m not sure what Adoring Husband had, but it included some boiled rice that I had leftover from my honey king prawns with eggy rice.

It’s only 7.15pm and I’m in bed watching the football. Canberra Raiders are beating Brisbane Broncos 24-16 with 30 minutes remaining in the second half.

I’m feeling very weary, so I could be asleep very soon.

PS Broncos defeated Raiders 34-30 - unbelievable!

Nite all.

Again!?!?

Yes, BGWLBH and I drove into The Bay again today.

We drove all the way to the Bakers Room in Urangan to purchase the good sourdough bread. I’m not a fan because I find the crust very tough to chew. So tough that a very sharp serrated bread knife is required to literally saw through each slice. BGWLBH loves it.

From there, we drove to Salt Cafe for breakfast where BGWLBH ordered bacon and eggs on sourdough and a pot of tea. I ordered a citrus bliss cold pressed juice which, to be honest, didn’t taste cold pressed.

While browsing through the neighbouring gift shop, I found a turquoise ring and a single pearl necklace that took my fancy…

…so I bought them!

We did a craft shop at Choice, groceries at Coles (which took FOREVER thanks to a troublesome elderly customer in front of me at the checkout. Ugh!) and juices from the Jam Jar.

All the way back to Eli Waters for a Farm Gate shop and updating lotto tickets.

I won $1.85 more than I needed to pay for OzLotto, Gold Lotto and Powerball. That’s the first time it’s ever happened for me! That should tell me something shouldn’t it!?

We were home before 2pm.

I cooked up a big pot of chicken and vegetable noodle soup for dinner.

Adoring Husband spent the day driving to Brisbane for an appointment with the Parkinson’s Professor and was gone for 11 hours, so he was grateful for the nutritious soup when he arrived home.

BGWLBH enjoyed dunking her fresh sour dough bread into the soup.

AH arrived home safe and sound at 8.30pm.

We watched the football together before heading to bed.

Now I’m waiting for the golf to start, but I doubt I’ll be awake for long. Ready for some sleep.

Nite all.

White Choc Mac Cookies

It took a while for me to fall asleep last night, but once I did, I slept soundly for 6 hours.

Even though the weather was looking ominous this morning, BGWLBH and I decided to drive into the Bay. This meant that we drove through some heavy rain and had to slow down to match the conditions. I wish I could say the same for other drivers!

Groceries, meat, juice AND I was verbally attacked by a drug addled woman. If not for her minder (who looked like a security guard!), I would have been physically attacked as well! She raised her arm, but the minder stepped in quickly and redirected her attention.

All I was doing was sitting in a seat outside the bakery, resting my weary legs. She sure got my heart racing that’s for sure! I moved pretty quick after that haha.

I purchased a number of these white chocolate and macadamia nut cookies from the Jam Jar Cafe when I ordered my juice. They are ‘to die for’ delicious!

The weather was much clearer on the way home so the drive was much more pleasant.

Harley was happy to see me home and he always calls out “Hellooooo” at least six times when I walk in the door. I love him so much.

I unpacked the groceries and started on dinner straight away, which meant we ate at 4.30pm. I made two salads - wombok and garden. I heated a fish and vegetable pastry for BGWLBH and a GF pie for Adoring Husband, both of which took almost an hour.

I watched a couple of episodes of Aust Portrait Artist of the Year and then came to bed to watch The Traitors.

We are off to The Bay again tomorrow, so I’m hoping for a solid 8 hours of sleep.

Nite all.

Celebrating SL

Extra info about Covid vaccine

I slept well last night. Two solid 4 hour blocks only separated by the need to pee!

It was meditation day and unfortunately (for The Gypsy) but fortunately (for we, the mini class), there were only two of us in attendance. It was fantastic and our discussions were deep and full of epiphanies. The last two classes have been over and above the usual amazingness and I have gained a lot from them.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to spend time with The Gypsy to discuss further because I was committed elsewhere.

I hopped on my trike, did a small grocery shop, picked up the mail and rushed home with 5 minutes to spare before the live streaming of The Motivator’s Mum’s funeral.

Dear Sexie Lexie passed away from dementia at the ripe old age of 84. We became close pre-dementia and even played pokies together, but the last time I saw her, she didn’t know me. 

Pre-dementia, I found Lexie to be warm, generous, kind, welcoming, hilarious and sharp as a tack. She warmly welcomed me into a family gathering and fed me as an Italian Mama (just as she was described in her eulogy) would. She did everything to make me feel comfortable.

Her demeanour did not change even with dementia. She was still warm and welcoming with a huge smile on her dial.

Hearing her story today, straight from the mouth of a grieving The Motivator, had me weeping at her unbelievable strength and resilience. For all of her struggles through life, she did not hold any bitterness or resentment. She was simply filled with love and gratitude for all that she had … her family in particular.

Thanks to The Motivator, today we all got to know Sexie Lexie just a little bit better and because of that we love her a little bit more.

RIP Sexie Lexie.

I remained in my bedroom for the rest of the afternoon. I just needed quiet alone time.

I got up at 4.30pm to make fried rice and stir fried vegetables for dinner.

7.30pm bedtime for both Adoring Husband and myself AND Harley.

Now I’m ready for sleep.

Nite all.

Golfed Out

Another night of broken sleep, although I think I slept for longer periods last night.

I’ve been trying to wrap my head around the rules, point system and placements for the FedEx Cup. I had it very wrong and believed that some of my favourite players were ‘out’ for the next round because they fell outside the top 50 in this tournament, but the point system creates a safety net for many top players so they are still in the running for the top prize!

Here I thought golf was a simplistic game, but nah.

I was awake at 8am but didn’t get out of bed until 10am.

I started with Harley play, added a bit to my patch working, cooked some brunch, made a chocolate milkshake for Adoring Husband and I, watched the golf that I had missed while I slept, watched my quiz shows, fit in another Harley play, red curry chicken and rice for dinner and watched a couple of episodes of the new season of Portrait Artist of the Year Australia.

Now I’m inspired to try art portraiture again - although I didn’t get to try it last time round. 

BGWLBH worked today.

The ‘pool guy’ visited today.

Tomorrow is meditation day, so I’ll enjoy a good nights sleep and early start.

Nite all.

Nil Productivity

I didn’t do ANY of the things that I hoped.

I slept and woke on and off all night watching snippets of the golf, so my energy levels were pretty low all day.

Harley got his morning play.

My breakfast was a dip of avocado, tuna, lemon juice, spring onions, salt and pepper which I dipped my beetroot crackers into. Adoring Husband bought me a latte from the shops.

I sat down and watched a Netflix movie called “The Incredible Jessica James” starring Jessica Williams and Chris O’Dowd which I enjoyed very much. I followed that up with an old movie that I’d seen a few times before “The Perfect Date”.

Adoring Husband and I watched two games of footy and “Robin Hood Prince of Thieves”. I adore Kevin Costner.

It’s ’spaghetti Sunday’ but I didn’t have any bolognese sauce in the freezer so I had to move my butt into the kitchen and cook everything instead of just reheating. I made enough for two more meals so I’m good for next week.

Harley got an afternoon play between rain showers.

BGWLBH did the ironing, including about ten items of mine.

That’s it for my Sunday.

Nite all.